Health Foods Blog

Submitted by A Sizable Apple

I recently got the chance to speak with a local doctor about skin care and sun protection for this summer. While some of her responses were the tried and true things we know about sun protection but don’t always practice, a few things she said were new news to me!

First off, you’re putting on a much lower SPF than your bottle brags. The dermatologist I spoke to said even though you’re lathering up with SPF 30, if you’re not putting on enough, you’re protection is actually much less.

Even more shocking was the amount of lotion she recommended using. The amount of lotion in a full shot glass will suffice for covering a full body, and that amount should be re-applied every few hours. (I’m not sure what seems stranger, slathering on that much lotion or the idea of someone measuring out their coverage in a shot glass at the beach!)

How do you stay protected from the sun? What are your sun screen tips?

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Submitted by Healthy Foods and Eating Healthy

Image via Wikipedia

Guavas are an excellent source of vitamin C. and are high in pectin and other types of soluble dietary fibre. Additionally guavas provide potassium and beta-carotene.

Guavas small tropical fruits that first originated in southern Africa and South America. The fruit is round, pear shaped, or ovoid, has a thin skin and varies in colour from yellow green through to pale yellow.

It has a distinctive musky aroma with a sweet flavour. The entire fruit is edible when it is fully ripe, though many people discard the skins and seeds. Most varieties of guava have meaty deep pink flesh, though some varieties are yellow or white.

An average sized guava has approximately 4 times as much vitamin C. as an orange. When choosing guavas, choose a fruit that is firm but not hard, because a guava when it is ripe will be able to be squeezed a slightly.

Dried guavas may be a problem with people who suffer asthma or allergic reactions as they may be treated with sulphites.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

Every spring and summer on trips to favorite parks in my area, I witness teams of disc golfers. It’s very interesting to watch and takes more concentration and patients than I possess, but seemed like a great unique way to enjoy the outdoors and get some exercise!

One of the beauties of the game is its simplicity. Most parks have disc golf courses set up, although you might not know it. There’s little to no equipment needed to play on the course, minus the Frisbee. The game is similar to golf in that participants take turns trying to land their Frisbee closest to the hole, sometimes a designated plot of land or an elevated container.

Disc golf is great for people of all ages, and upper and lower body coordination with aerobic exercise and mental and concentration skills. Avoiding obstacles like trees and shrubs provide the same excitement as do sand-traps and water for golfers.

For more information on the sport, check out the Professional Disc Golf Association website.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

One of the best and worse parts of the grocery store is walking past fantastic assortments of way too expensive meats. Rotisserie chickens under warming lamps are occasionally my impulse buys and ready for dinner meats are tough to skip as well.

Some of these favorites can drain your wallet, but show up at the grocery store at the right time and you’ll find these treats marked down in hopes of quick ship out. Even if the whole chicken isn’t something you want to deal with, you can save it up for several meals throughout the week.

Trimming a rotisserie chicken or pre-cooked meat at home can pair easily potatoes, pasta, frozen vegetables or rice, leaving you with less time in the kitchen. This idea usually leaves great left-overs for later in the week as well.

Getting creative in the grocery store can lead to better results throughout the week. Find items that you can use in a variety of ways through the week. Even if you have to pay a bit extra for them, they’ll be easy to go to meals, and will spread the cost out over a good week.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

If you’re starting a new fitness routine or just looking to spice up your gym wardrobe, this post is for you.

Feeling good (and looking appropriate) while you’re working out is important! One of my favorite bloggers recently posted a what-not-to-wear gym edition you can find here. (Check out my post on gym etiquette as well.

Treat yourself to some new duds that won’t drain your wallet. Here are some of my favorites for all less than $15.

Kohl’s has a great selection of apparel online, and allows you to sort by items less than $20. Among some of my favorite finds:

The blue-T and stretch capris are great options for any exercise. The jacket, skirt and pink-T are a little more fashionable items, and can be doubled as errand running outfits if you’re on the go between workouts.

Old Navy has some great new options for active wear as well. Their online specials are offered in a variety of colors.

The terry shorts and running shorts are a find at $10 each, and the terry Bermudas are also a cool $10 for a little more cover up.

Target sale options for active wear were also great. Mesh shorts, cheer gym shorts and athletic v-tanks were all under $10.

If you’re thinking of going for new fitness gear, consider shopping online. Often more sales are offered online than in stores. When you do shop, take your patients with you. What might be a great sale rack at one store, may not be the same at another. More so, don’t be afraid to be picky! There’s no need to invest in too many expensive pieces you’re going to sweat in.

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Submitted by Café Physique

Appetizer
Don’t let muscle cramps derail your workouts

Main Course
Everyone who works out regularly will probably experience muscle cramps at some point. Not only are they painful, but they can actually make your workouts less effective and often force you to cut your exercise time short.

Besides drinking plenty of water (which you should be doing even if cramps aren’t a problem for you) here are a few ways you can make sure that muscle cramps don’t harm your fitness plan:

Stretch - We all lead busy lives, so it can sometimes be tempting to jump into your workout at a hundred miles an hour, but diving right into lifting heavy weights or sprinting can overheat your muscles.

Eat More Sodium – This isn’t usually a problem because most people actually get much more sodium than they need, but if you follow a strict diet there is a chance you don’t have enough sodium in your system. Sodium holds water in your body, and when you don’t have enough it can lead to muscle dehydration making them cramp more easily.

Ease into a Workout Program – Muscle cramps might also be caused by trying to do too much too fast in a new workout program. This can even happen to experienced exercisers if they start a new unfamiliar exercise routine. For example, if you are used to doing cardio and want to give plyometrics a try, don’t expect to jump like Kobe on your first try. Take it easy it first, and build gradually over time.

Dessert
I think one of the most important things you can teach yourself when going through a fitness plan is the difference between “good pain” and “bad pain.” There’s no doubt that sometimes lots of exercise leaves you sore, but it typically shouldn’t hurt you in a debilitating way. Generally, if the pain is a dull ache, then it is just the feeling of your muscles working or recovering. If you feel something closer to a stabbing pain or a spasm, then there is probably something more troubling at hand and you should see your doctor.

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Submitted by Café Physique

Appetizer
It helps to have allies on your fitness journey.

Main Course
I’ve met many people who can never quite seem to stick to a healthy eating plan or exercise routine because their relationships with others somehow get in the way, but fortunately it doesn’t have to be that way. With a little effort you can actually help turn those closest to you into partners rather than roadblocks.

Work Out Together - When you work out with a friend or significant other, workout time becomes something more social and fun. Don’t worry if they haven’t yet caught on to the gospel of exercise. You guys don’t have to actually go to the gym. Just spending some time walking around the park together will help you burn calories, but you’ll feel like you are just hanging out.

Ask For Their Help – Well-meaning family and friends can sometimes sabotage your diet plans by constantly offering you terribly fattening food. Usually these people just don’t know any better, and simply telling them that while you appreciate the thought, you are trying to stick to a healthier diet will do the trick. Most people will truly understand, and you may motivate them to even join in with you.

Seek Out Compliments – We all know one or two people who are never shy with a compliment. These people can be key to your overall fitness strategy because hearing “Wow, you look great! Have you been working out?” every once in a while is a good way to give you the extra boost of motivation you need to keep up the hard work.

Dessert
Your circle of family and friends can either be your greatest allies or worst enemies when it comes to losing weight and getting healthy. If you are proactive about asking for their support, you can use them as a great way to leverage yourself into the body that you want.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

Towards the end of our ride, in northern Michigan.

Per request (ahem Mizfit), I’ve put together a little how to guide for event training. I think the fact that the hills on my ride last weekend beat me up good gives me some qualification to write an ‘damn, I wish I had done this before hand!’ However as a helpful reminder, I’m not a certified trainer nor nutritionist, so if you are serious about preparing for a race or athletic event, you might want to double up on where you’re getting your advice.

I also have to preface with a little two cents about training in general. Working ahead for an event is a great goal/motivator towards working out. Even if you don’t have something in the future you’re concerned about getting in shape for, incorporating training programs into your workout keeps days at the gym unique and works your body hard. I split training into two basic principals- endurance and strength.

Your intensity and dedication to your training program is all dependent on the time you have before your race and your goals for your race as well. Meaning, the training for a first timer who is just looking to make it through varies from a racing veteran.

Endurance:
You want to finish, don’t you? Starting weeks in advance, you should be practicing regularly pushing yourself each week to do more than the week before. Serious athletes record and plan out their training ahead of time to keep on track, and this may be a good idea for beginners.

For me, this was about getting comfortable with being on a bike for an extended period of time. I took off on weekends at school to go riding for a few hours, and even if I didn’t think I’d have time that week, I would at least ride to my classes. I went on a few long weekend rides with my dad when I was home as well. I knew I would be ok on the race when I did 30 miles with my dad about two-three weeks before. That ride was hard, but it was over half of the 51 race miles, and we did the 30 with no lunch break.

I have a sixth sense for where my endurance level is after years of competitive swimming. If this is your first event in awhile (or ever), I would recommend being able to do 75-80 percent of your race millage comfortably up to at least a week before your race. The training you’ve completed to get there plus excitement and nerves will get you through the rest without a problem.

Strength:
When I heard there would be hills on my ride last weekend, it didn’t register that they would sometimes be back to back or tough long and steady climbs. Color me unprepared as I huffed and puffed through the first 10 miles of the ride wondering how I was ever going to finish. The trails I had been practicing on at home were flat like paper and I had only gotten a very mild amount of hill riding in at school a good month ago.

It might not always be possible to know your course ahead of time, but use your resources. If you can get to the course in advance, scope it out and incorporate some of the climbs and challenging parts into your training routine. If not, talk to your race coordinator ahead of time for some advice.

For any kind of race, strength training is important. It’ll help you get through those rough patches and push you to go faster all together. If you live in a flat part of town, head to the gym and work with the incline on machines. Not only should you be able to climb the hill setting with confidence, but practice some back to back inclines as well. You can also use free weights in your training program. Build up your muscles by increasing your weight slowly in weeks ahead.

Training in general all depends on the type of event you’re preparing for. Working in advance is good, but talking to people who know the route and getting workout advice is even better.

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Submitted by Healthy Foods and Eating Healthy

photo credit: Paul Francis Harrison

Mushrooms are a classified fungi, (which are primitive plants that cannot use photosynthesis to obtain energy because they do not contain chlorophyll). Instead they get their nutrients and energy from partially decomposed tissues of other vegetation.

Did you know that mushrooms have a unique feature? Their cell walls are made of chitin, which is the same material that makes up the external skeleton, (or exoskeleton), of insects, whereas plant cell walls are made of cellulose. Humans value cellulose as fibre, because we cannot digest it and it passes through the gut and helps with the elimination of digestive waste.

For 5000 years mushrooms have been used as medicines, stimulants, hallucinogens, and even as dried tinder for lighting stone age fires. The proof of this was found on the 5000 year old body of the Iceman named Oetzi found in the Alps towards the end of last century.

The French are credited with being the first cultivators of mushrooms over 300 years ago in abandoned Gypsum quarries near Paris. Today of course mushrooms are grown on beds of manure straw and soil, and there is a wide range of mushrooms that are offered for sale by many supermarkets.

Interestingly a mushroom which is not picked will double in size every 24 hours starting as a closed cup mushroom, and finishing as a large flat mushroom with open gills. A mushroom’s flavour is directly proportional to its age, so the older the mushroom the more flavour.

Mushrooms bruise easily and should never be stored in cling film or plastic. They should be stored in paper or cloth bags in the vegetable part of the refrigerator. Store them in anything else and they will deteriorate quickly. Unfortunately even then the maximum time you should store a mushrooms in a fridge is five days.

Warning!..

Mushrooms contain toxins and trace amounts of the carcinogen Agaritine. The toxins can be reduced by cooking, but if you are a cancer sufferer, or are susceptible to cancer perhaps you should avoid mushrooms.

Although mushrooms do have some benefits in that they are a useful source of copper and some of the B vitamins, wild mushrooms can be extremely dangerous. While they may be safe to eat by themselves, they can be deadly when eaten with alcohol.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

While I’m off still recovering from the long ride and trying to make up for a missed weekend at home, check out some of my favorite links!

Map my run & map my bike
Two of my favorite sites that are tremendously helpful for anyone exercising outdoors this season. Both sites work like mapquest, to help you plan your route and determine the mile amount.

Hungry Girl!
I must say, I’m pretty creative in the kitchen, but I know cooking is a strong or favorite point for everyone. Near the top of struggles for getting in shape is what to eat, and what new recipes to try. Hungry girl is a great site that give you the low down on fabulous recipes and reviews hundreds of pre-packaged products as well.

Weight Training for Women
A great article exposing the benefits of weight training. Trainers weigh in on training successfully without bulking up.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

Whew!  What a weekend!

Thanks for hanging in there while I took a mini vacation and went off on my bike ride!  We had gorgeous weather and it was an absolute fabulous experience!  However, with anything new, comes a learning experience.  Here are the top 5 things I know now:

1. How to train-

To be honest my training fell short 3 weeks before the ride.  Had I prepared better, I still don’t think I would have felt confident with the hills on the course.  My tip:  train for the worst.  Get your body ready for 10 miles more than you have to, 5 times the amount of incline you’ll think there will be.

2. Preparing for the outdoors-

Considering there were talks of mid-40 degree rainy weather, (and we rode in clear skies!) we lucked out with the weather.  There was some rain at the end of the ride, which made me glad I had my rain coat just in case.  You may feel stupid lugging around a big backpack, but I was glad I had the extra water bottles, rain coat, camera and everything else.

3. Go with a group-

Although I was in a group of 6, we estimated about 2,000 participants on the ride this year.  The group dynamic was a big hit.  I made flags, armbands and noisemakers for us to take along the ride to set our team apart from the masses.  Not only did it make it much easier to find our bikes with the bright red flags during the lunch rush, but it brought a feeling of unity to our small group.

Hope everyone had a great and active weekend.  Check back tomorrow for more information on the ride and possibly pictures!

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Submitted by Healthy Foods and Eating Healthy

photo credit: twenty_questions

Deciding not to eat beef because you believe it affects your cholesterol level is not actually quite correct. Eating too much red meat will affect your cholesterol level, but eating red meat in moderation does you little harm, and in fact may be beneficial.

Beef contains a type of fatty acid called conjugated linoleic acid or CLA for short which has been shown to help improve cholesterol ratios. Note however I said in moderation.

Animal studies have also shown that the presence of CLA in animals can delay the onset of atherosclerosis and aid weight loss. However, further research still needs to be done to form a conclusive opinion with humans.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

Life has gotten hectic around my side of town!  Bare with me while I take a week off from blogging to get some of my other summer projects going.  Thursday I’ll be off with my family for the Zoo-de-Mack bike race I updated about here, complete with training diaries here.

Check back Tuesday for a recap of the race and new ASA posts!  Until then, check out some of my favorite health bloggers: The ELFF Diet, Miz Fit, The Weighting Game and Cranky Fitness.

Consider this break from checking ASA daily a great time to get in your submissions for my free bike give-away!

Have a great week!

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Submitted by Healthy Foods and Eating Healthy

photo credit: la familia brophy

Sorbet fruits d’ete, or Summer Fruits Sorbet is a delicious and refreshing treat that is really easy to make and will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer.

1lb or 500g of freshly frozen mixed summer fruits such as strawberries
Blueberries and raspberries
1 tablespoon of raspberry jam
Juice and grated zest of 1 large quality orange
Some extra strawberries, cherries, raspberries, and blueberries for decoration
Some fresh mint sprigs for decoration

Simply put the 1lb of frozen summer fruits into a food processor and blend until smooth. (It can help to put the food processor container in the freezer if possible before hand to make it really cold).

Serve immediately over a bed of fresh summer fruit and decorate with the fresh mint sprigs. Serve in a round scoop about fist size, similar in look to a Christmas pudding.

Of course if you really want to spoil yourself add a little fresh cream.
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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

How much will you pay to get healthy? A study I posted about in January found over a lifetime, women will spend close to $300,000 on weight loss products. Between pills, promising lotions, books, DVDs, apparel and all the accessories you can imagine, keeping up in the weight loss world means dishing out, big time. And with new enticing products coming out every day, more money slurping temptations are coming out.

A new breed of help has been gaining popularity in the fitness world. Personalized help from trainers, motivators, coaches and therapists have gained the popularity from celebrities to the normal person in need. This New York Times article takes a look into the inside of personal coaches.

Figuring out where you stand in the battle is half the solution. Some people flourish with the help of assistants, coaches and trainers. After leaving the world of competitive swimming, I realize how much I accomplished because of the coach figure putting me to work. The power of an authoritative like figure in the gym pushes some farther than they are able to go alone.

However, all this help comes at a price. Going about fitness alone is a perfectly respectable way that can lead to just as positive results. Strengthening your inner drive with working out and eating well will benefit you in other aspects of your life as well.

If you are interested in finding a personal trainer, check out my favorite links post with a link to guidelines to finding a good trainer. It is possible to find a trainer if you’re on a budget as well. Skip the big gyms and look at smaller facilities for starters. Also finding someone who trains independently will save you money although might not be as reliable.

Ask your trainer what you can be doing on your own outside of sessions. Encourage them to give you advice when you’re working out solo so you can minimize the meetings with them. If motivation is an issue, come to your training sessions a half hour earlier or stay later!

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

I recently raided my mom’s magazine rack, looking through all the goodies her favorite health magazines had to offer. Here are my favorite highlights from the assortment of articles I’ve found.

Dr. Andrew Weil in the December 2007 issue of Cooking Light says he loves chocolate, and it’s keeping him healthy. “In general, the more cocoa (in the chocolate), the more bitter the chocolate will taste. And the more bitter, the more heart-healthy flavonols you’re consuming,” said Weil.

If you’re looking to make soup, don’t leave out these seven great ingredients, Natural Health Magazine posted in their winter 2009 issue that beans, cabbage, carrots, leafy greens, onions, potatoes and turnips make up “The Magnificent Seven” ingredients to boost nutrition value in soups.

Confused about constant news with contradicting diet studies? Experience Life’s December 2007 issue confronted the misleading information. Rule #1 says look for randomized-controlled studies over correlation and cohort studies. Rule #2 is to scrutinize the source of the article. Be critical about the information and who is producing it and where their loyalties may lie. The article also advises to ask “how much do you resemble the people in the study?”, “was the change in the outcome important?”, “What’s the tone?”, and “What’s the sacrifice?”

Beat stress with these healthy alternatives, the December 2007 issue of Women’s Health promises. Nuts like almonds, pistachios and walnuts will boost your immune system, the smooth texture of avocados will reduce frantic feelings and calcium in skim milk will reduce muscle spasms and soothe tension. Among some of the other stress fighters are oatmeal, oranges, salmon and spinach.

Health magazine’s November 2007 edition gives tips to curb hunger quick. Eat some potatoes, they help you feel full longer, include smoothies in your diet, use temping smells to lure your hunger away and best of all, fix yourself a healthy snack you can feel confident about.

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Submitted by Café Physique

Appetizer
Get your fitness plan off to a good start

Main Course
We all have to start somewhere. If you are thinking about taking the very first step towards lifelong health by starting an exercise regimen, keep these tips in mind to make your transition to the fit life a bit smoother:

Err On the Side of Caution- When you are just starting out, sometimes your competitive instinct tells you to see just how much weight you can lift, how far you can run, or what kind of advanced yoga positions you can get into. This is generally a bad idea as it might lead to an injury. In the beginning, you surely should be exerting effort but not giving it your all just yet. Save that for a little further down the road.

Don’t Mind the Soreness - Most people who exercise regularly periodically experience muscle soreness, but it’s typically worse for people who are just starting out. Since your muscles aren’t accustomed to working so hard, you may even have problems doing simple things like walking and lifting light objects for a day or two. Don’t worry…this pain goes away over time, so continue to stick to your exercise routine.

Dabble a Little Bit - There are many, many forms of exercise out there, and if you are just starting out now is a good time to try a little bit of everything. Experiencing all of the different types of exercise that are available to you will help you get a better understanding of the exercises you like best. Plus, you will become more familiar with the various ways you can exert yourself physically.

Dessert
The trickiest part of any fitness plan is sticking to it, and people abandon their fitness program usually do so within the first few weeks. People who have been exercising for years or even months rarely just stop because they tend to miss their workouts both physically and mentally. The trick is to totally dedicate yourself to working out regularly for at least 6 weeks. If you can make it past that point, fitness will likely become a habit rather than a chore.

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Submitted by Healthy Foods and Eating Healthy

Image via Wikipedia

by Arturo Ronson

The slow cooker or crock pot is one of the greatest inventions known to man. With little or no effort, you can have a hot, delicious and nutritious meal whether you worked all day or were out running errands. With most slow cooker recipes, you cut and chop in the morning and turn on your crock pot to the required setting and let it simmer all day. When you and your family return home after a long and busy day you will have a delicious hot meal waiting for you.

A slow cooker can make a low fat meal simply delicious. You begin by spraying low fat spray into the ceramic insert and you are just about ready to make a low fat meal. Adding fresh vegetables and lean cuts of meat cooking for hours can make flavor rich and satisfying, even if it is a low fat meal. The flavor comes from the liquid you add, and you can use tomatoes, broths and wines as your base when you are preparing a low fat meal.

photo credit: JaseMan

If you really want a low fat meal, don’t use as much meat and replace with whole grains and beans. You can add fresh herbs and spices to enhance the flavor of your slow cooker low fat meal as well. If someone tells you that eating low fat meal is boring and bland, they aren’t making use of all the no fat options that are available to add zest and flavor to any meal.


Tips for Preparing Low Fat Meal in a Slow Cooker

Start with buying a slow cooker with a removable insert for easy cleaning. Find a slow cooker that has more than one setting, such as low, medium and high. Most slow cookers include basic instructions for using it, as well as more elaborate recipes you may want to try. Remember, any slow cooker recipe you find can be easily remade into a low fat meal using low fat substitutes for high fat ingredients. When you use your imagination and your slow cooker, there is no end to the delicious low fat meal you can serve your family.

For more information about Low Fat Meal, feel free to visit us at: http://www.about-low-fat.com/Low-Fat-Meal.html

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Arturo_Ronzon

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

Low fat, low calories, organic. Packaged foods marketing has gone above and beyond pretty pictures and attention grabbing colors on packaging. Food companies are trying to secure your buy with their clever wording promising a healthier product.

Despite being checked by either the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or the U.S. Department of Agriculture, some slippery wordage still flies through to the shelves. Real Simple Magazine decoded the unique food language into understandable terms.

Organic:
These products are made using methods thought to be earth friendly. However, to be labeled organic, products only need to contain 95 percent organic ingredients.

Organic foods can cost you up to 50 percent more than nonorganic products. While there is no research organic foods are better than others, it does save you from potentially consuming chemicals.

100% Natural:
These products are free of artificial colors, flavors, preservatives and synthetic ingredients. They still, however, can contain any amount of sugars, fats and calories.

Fat free:
Contains less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving. Manufacturers sometimes add extras (sugar or starch) for flavor. Fat free foods are often less filling, leading to over eating. Skip fat free and buy low fat for more flavor.

Low fat:
Contains three or less grams of fat per serving.

Light:
Contains half the fat of the full-fat options. Best bet for calorie watching and dieting. Can contain higher sugar levels.

0g Trans Fat:
Contains less than 0.5 gram of trans fat per serving. Trans fats raise bad (LDL) cholesterol and lower the good (HDL) kind. Sometimes replaced with unhealthy saturated fats (pal and coconut oil), avoid “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated” on packages.

Heart healthy:
Low in saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium and contain no trans fats. Also contain three grams of fat or less per serving and have at least 0.6 gram of soluble fiber. Despite the label, these foods won’t necessarily lower your risks for heart disease. Don’t disregard the heart healthy foods in the fresh produce section.

Low calorie:
Contain 40 calories or less per serving.

Low sodium:
Contains 140 milligrams of sodium or less per serving.

Low carb:
There is currently no standard definition for this term. There is also no evidence that low-carb diets are more effective long term than other diets. Manufacturers often replace carbs with high-fat ingredients like nuts, sugar alcohols, or artificial sweeteners.

No antibiotics:
On meat, poultry and milk, this term means that the animals used in creating this product were raised without being routinely fed antibiotics. “Organic” labels on meat are also antibiotic free.

No hormones:
This term means animals were raised hormone free. Hormones are used to up weight in animals or to increase more milk, and despite little long term research, hormone treated foods may increase the risk for cancer. Organic products are also hormone free.

Gluten free:
Gluten can cause intestine damage and can lead to digestive problems. “Wheat free” products are not necessarily gluten free.

Sugar free:
Contains less than 0.5 gram of sugar per serving. Sugar free doesn’t always mean low calories.

Check my earlier entry here on how to win a free bike!
Contest open from now until June 5.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

After a few nights of getting creative with what’s left in the fridge, ignoring your craving for take out gets tough. Local favorites aren’t a good solution for every night, but your waistline and wallet can benefit from giving in now and then.

My sister told me about her use of local favorites when she is cooking. If you’ve got a favorite salsa, humus or dish at a favorite restaurant, order out and mix it with your own food to stretch your dollar. Use the takeout dish as a side dish, and pair it with different sides of veggies or rice for a full meal.

If you’re not so sure about those local favorites, check out the Eat this, Not that section of Men’s Health Magazine. Also in book form, it compares any national/international chain you can think of and give you the low down on what your best options are when out to eat.

Local favorites are a great way to stimulate your neighborhood economy and also to stimulate ideas for dinner throughout the week. Don’t let your quest for a healthy lifestyle stop your exploration of your area. Become familiar with what your local restaurants carry, and keep in mind backup plans for ways to utilize their side dishes throughout the week.

Check my earlier entry here on how to win a free bike!
Contest open from now until June 5.

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Submitted by Healthy Foods and Eating Healthy

photo credit: Mel B.

by Cal Smith

In spite of their world-wide reputation as being fattening, pancakes are the perfect breakfast food. It is the toppings and fillings that turns them into fat generators. Take away the butter, milk, sugar, eggs, cooking oil, sour cream, whipped cream, syrups, and jams, and there is nothing left but a perfect balance of protein, carbohydrate, and fat.

Two big pancakes made with cake-flour and smothered in fresh crushed strawberries, sweetened with a good sugar substitute like Splenda, contains less than 250 calories. A tablespoon of cooking oil adds an extra 120 calories, and butter contributes another 100 or so. By the time you add in the sugar, eggs, creams, and syrups, your poor pancakes resemble a skinny dad padded with pillows to play the role of Santa.

Of course, pancakes aren’t pancakes without syrup. But now days, syrup doesn’t have to be made with sugar. There are many brands of sugar-free syrups on the supermarket shelves. But none of them are as good as some of the things you can make in less than two minutes in your own kitchen!

All you need is water, flavoring, sugar substitute, and cellulose gum to provide the thickness and viscosity of sugar syrups. Maybe add a bit of coloring for a rich, full-bodied look. Mix it for 30 seconds or so in your blender and you’ve got delicious, thick, slow-pouring maple, almond, strawberry, orange, or lemon syrup.

For a very unusual treat, just add cellulose gum to any flavor no-calorie soda pop. Just imagine - root beer or cream soda syrup! The kids will go crazy! How about a variety of orange crush, lemon-lime, Dr. Pepper, strawberry, peach, and ginger ale. I haven’t tried coke or Pepsi, but they should make good syrups too.

You can turn almost any liquid into syrup with cellulose gum. Chocolate milk becomes chocolate syrup, Add some vanilla, cinnamon, and Splenda to soymilk for a healthy and delicious eggnog syrup.

So forget the frozen waffles, toaster strudels, and French toast stix. Stir up some cake flour, baking powder, and water and cook the kids some pancakes. It takes just a couple of minutes. While they are cooking, make a fresh batch of syrup. Everybody will love them and they’ll go to school filled with all the even, slow-burning energy they need to keep them active and alert all morning.

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

A Sizable Apple readers are of all different ages, and I recently found a great article to celebrate my range of readers. “Good health at any age”, an article from Weight Watchers.com had a great summary of what to keep up with for women and men at each stage in their life. Here are some highlights from the article (full text can be found here).

All the time:

1. Fuel your body with a wide range of foods, focusing on fruits and veggies.
2. Buy whole grains over processed, and steer clear of foods with added sugars.
3. Pick fish and lean meats over high-fat alternatives
4. Clock in your 30 minutes or more of moderate activity 4-5 times a week.

In your 30’s:

Weight tends to creep up as women start to settle down. Look for alternatives for more exercise, take the stairs, walk whenever you can, ect. Up your folate intake if you’re looking to conceive. Keep up with your calcium to protect your bones!

In your 40’s:Metabolism starts to slow, so cut back your calorie intake or increase your fitness routines. The weight watchers article suggests starting weight training to increase endurance as well, twice a week. Women in their 40’s should also be getting annual mammograms, clinical breast exams and doing a self breast exam monthly.

In your 50’s:

Risks for heart disease, diabetes and many cancers can be fought off with a solid health and fitness routine. Talk to your doctor about scheduling screenings for colon and breast cancers and osteoporosis. Keep up with your blood pressure and cholesterol levels as well. Menopause can cause women to gain about 5-7 pounds.

For more information on age related check-ups, contact your doctor.

Check my earlier entry