April 21, 2008
· Filed under health, nutrition, recipes · Tagged drinks, nutrition, recipes, snacks
Milk–Drink as is!
2% or less
Milk contains:
Calcium, Protein, Potassium, Vitamin A & B12 & D
Riboflavin, Niacin, Phosphorus
Orange Juice
Just one glass of orange juice contains:
A full day’s supply of vitamin C
As much potassium as a banana
A good source of folate
Fruit Smoothies
Easy Smoothie Recipes
Smoothies contain tons of fruit which means lots of nutrients. |
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Green Tea Soda
If you are looking a healthy, refreshing cold drink alternative this is for you. Try it.
4 Green Tea Bags (I used Republic of Tea Wild Berry Plum Green Tea)
4 Cups Boiling Water
Pyrex Measuring cup
3 Teaspoons Agave Syrup
4 Cups Natural Sparkling Mineral Water
Place tea bags in Pyrex measuring cup. Pour boiling water over tea bags. Stir in Agave Syrup, Place in refrigerator about 1 hour to cool. Remove tea and take out tea bags. For each serving, pour half a glass of tea into tall glass. Fill rest of glass with sparkling mineral water. Add ice.
Strawberry Shake
2 cups milk
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup frozen strawberries
In a blender, combine milk, honey, vanilla and frozen strawberries.
Blend until smooth. Pour into glasses and serve.
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April 16, 2008
· Filed under nutrition, recipes · Tagged food, nutrition, protein, recipes, snacks
Sweet Maple Popcorn
Drizzle 5 teaspoons pure maple syrup over 1 3/4 cups hot air-popped popcorn. Sprinkle with salt, if desired.
Bonus: This sweet snack contains fiber, a waist whittler that’s also good for your ticker.
Chocolate Yogurt Pops
In a blender, puree 1 1/2 cups lowfat vanilla yogurt, 1/3 cup cold water, 2 packets sweetened cocoa powder mix and 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder. Pour into four 4-ounce ice-pop molds. Freeze overnight.
Bonus: These pops pack protein, key for building muscles, as well as calcium, which helps maintain strong bones.
April 16, 2008
· Filed under health · Tagged health
Recent research has shown that artificial sweeteners in soda may interfere with your body’s ability to estimate how many calories you’ve ingested, so you eat more than you need.
In a new rat study, animals that ate fake sugar consumed more calories overall and gained weight, compared to those that didn’t eat artificially sweetened treats.
This is just one study, but it’s enough to make me want to kick the can habit. Need more convincing? For every diet soda you sip daily, your risk of becoming overweight can rise by 37 percent, according to researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.
We also know that regular soda is a total sugar bomb — most people I know gave it up long ago. At roughly 225 calories a pop, a 20-ounce bottle of regular soda packs nearly as many calories as a chocolate bar (but is much less satisfying).
Typically, soda also contains zero nutrients — so who needs it? Still have some soda around? Fine, stow it for guests who haven’t decided to quit. Next time you want a fizz hit, try seltzer with lime (or for a caffeine fix, green tea).
April 16, 2008
· Filed under health · Tagged health
Eat what you love. Outlawing a food makes you more likely to want it. Don’t declare all foods off-limits—just keep portions reasonable. Eat just one cookie (or if they’re tiny—two, max.) Or one scoop is fine—but not three! Just tell yourself, “it’s OK” and not “I’ve blown it, might as well keep eating.” One scoop is easy to walk off—three is a major sweat session!
Redirect your appetite. Replacing one mental image with another will help curb the munchies, says Lisa Dorfman, R.D., of Miami. One fast way to distract your brain is with scent. Catching a whiff of peppermint or eucalyptus stimulates thoughts of being light and healthy, so pop a sugar-free mint, smooth on a scented lotion or light a fragrant candle.
Engage your brain. Read a great book, write in a journal or even play a game such as solitaire or Minesweeper on your cell phone or computer to increase activity in the same areas of your brain that light up when you think about eating, so you can take your mind off food.
Make a deal with yourself. I try to keep my treats portion controlled and have them just once a day. If I have a cookie after lunch, I skip dessert after dinner. It makes it easier to give up my evening bowl of ice cream when I know I can have it tomorrow!
April 15, 2008
· Filed under health, nutrition · Tagged food, health, nutrition
Drink as much lemon water as you can…
Lemon water….
-aids the digestive system
-makes eliminating waste products from the body easier
-prevents constipation & diarrhea
-rejuvenates skin from within & brings a glow to your face
-helps pave way for losing weight faster
-flushes out body toxins
-promotes immune system
-protects from most infections
-works as a blood purifier
Nutritional Value of Lemons
Given below is the amount of nutrients present in 100g portion of the fruit.
- Energy - 30 kcal
- Water - 89 g
- Carbohydrates - 9g
- Fat - 0.3 g
- Sugar - 2.5 g
- Dietary fiber - 2.8 g
- Protein - 1.1 g
- Vitamin C - 53 mg
- Citric Acid - 5g
- Trace amounts of selenium, zinc, manganese and copper
April 15, 2008
· Filed under recipes · Tagged food, recipes, shrimp
Tropical shrimp with ginger-mango relish
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 26 minutes
Cook Time: 8-10 minutes
Nutrition Score per serving:
(5 shrimp and 1/3 cup relish): 218 calories, 7 g fat (29% of calories), 1 g saturated fat, 14 g carbs, 25 g protein, 1 g fiber, 79 mg calcium, 3 mg iron, 330 mg sodium
Tonight’s dinner
Ingredients
4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
¼ cup chopped parsley
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 ¼ teaspoons each salt and ground pepper
1 ¼ pounds large shrimp, peeled, deveined, and patted dry
1 large ripe mango, peeled and diced
¼ cup minced red onion
4 tablespoons crystallized ginger, slivered
Zest of 1 lime
1 tablespoon lime juice
Lime wedges (optional)
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large shallow bowl, combine 2 teaspoons oil, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper. Add shrimp and toss to combine, then spread in a single layer on a large cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until shrimp are just cooked.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine mango, red onion, ginger, lime zest, lime juice, and remaining 2 teaspoons oil and toss to coat.
Place 5 of the cooked shrimp in a covered container and refrigerate until you’re ready to prepare them for your lunch.
Divide remaining shrimp among four dinner plates and top with mango relish. Serve with lime wedges if desired.
April 10, 2008
· Filed under exercise, health · Tagged cardio, exercise
(According to exercise.about.com)…
Here’s why cardio is so important:
- It’s one way to burn calories and help you lose weight
- It makes your heart strong so that it doesn’t have to work as hard to pump blood
- It increases your lung capacity
- It helps reduce risk of heart attack, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes
- It makes you feel good
- It helps you sleep better
- It helps reduce stress
Just about anything is acceptable as long as it involves a movement that gets your heart rate into your Target Heart Rate Zone. Remember:
- There is no ‘best’ cardio exercise. Anything that gets your heart rate up fits the bill
- It’s not what you do, but how hard you work. Any exercise can be challenging if you make it that way
- Do something you enjoy. If you hate gym workouts, don’t force yourself onto a treadmill. If you like socializing, consider team sports or a walking club.
- Do something you can see yourself doing at least 3 days a week.
- Be flexible. You don’t have to do the same thing all the time–it’s boring and will lead to weight loss plateaus as well. Feel free to turn on the radio and dance around the house like a fool.
- Do something…anything. Please. We really need to take care of this obesity problem
After you choose what to do, the most important element of your workout will now be how long you do it. You should work on duration before you work on anything else–it’s more important than how fast you’re going. If you’re a beginner, be cautious and start with a few minutes, adding more time to each workout until you’re up to 30 minutes.
April 10, 2008
· Filed under recipes · Tagged cake, food, recipes
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1 3/4 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup cake flour, sifted
12 egg whites (the closer to room temperature the better)
1/3 cup warm water
1 teaspoon orange extract, or extract of your choice
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a food processor spin sugar about 2 minutes until it is superfine. Sift half of the sugar with the salt the cake flour, setting the remaining sugar aside.
In a large bowl, use a balloon whisk to thoroughly combine egg whites, water, orange extract, and cream of tartar. After 2 minutes, switch to a hand mixer. Slowly sift the reserved sugar, beating continuously at medium speed. Once you have achieved medium peaks, sift enough of the flour mixture in to dust the top of the foam. Using a spatula fold in gently. Continue until all of the flour mixture is incorporated.
Carefully spoon mixture into an ungreased tube pan. Bake for 35 minutes before checking for doneness with a wooden skewer. (When inserted halfway between the inner and outer wall, the skewer should come out dry).
Cool upside down on cooling rack for at least an hour before removing from pan.
Cook’s Note: Since they’re easier to separate use the freshest eggs you can get. |
April 10, 2008
· Filed under health, nutrition · Tagged health, nutrition, protein
Lately high-protein diets have been the most popular topic buzzing the health scene. Body builders rave on about protein shakes, and drink as many as they can, while dieters ingest protein bars to help synch their waste sizes.
Protein is one of the main ingredients to build a human being. Hair and nails are mostly protein, tissues are built and repaired by protein, and enzymes, hormones and other body chemicals are created by protein. Convinced yet? Well proteins are the building blocks of bone, muscles, skin and blood as well.
Protein is a macronutrient, so your body needs it in large amounts; and since your body does not store protein, you must constantly be re-supplying it.
So are you eating enough of it?
According to webmd.com, teenage boys and active men need to have three daily servings for a total of seven ounces. Children ages 2 to 6, women and older people need to have two daily servings for a total of five ounces. For older children, teen girls, active women and most men two servings are needed for a total of six ounces.
So what are some good and easy ways to fill up on a healthy amount of protein?
Seafood is one of the best sources or protein because it is low in fat. (The fish that have higher fat contents, salmon, are the heart-healthy kind, FULL of Omegas.)
Chicken is full of lean protein and easy to get a hold of.
Milk, Cheese & Yogurt contains protein and calcium. This helps keep your body strong along with your teeth and bones.
Eggs are an easy, cheap protein.
Lean Beef is chock full of zinc, iron and vitamin b.
Soy has the ability to lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease.
And if you are on the run…
Protein bars or drinks are great for a quick hold-me-over or energy boost.
April 9, 2008
· Filed under exercise · Tagged abs, exercise
