Did You Know?

Did you know that lack of sleep can cause weight gain and other health problems. Getting good quality sleep each night allows your body to burn 60-65% of its calories, and keeps you from reaching for unhealthy snacks throughout the day.





Check out How? and Why?

http://obesity.ygoy.com/does-lack-of-sleep-cause-weight-gain/

http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/excessive-sleepiness-10/lack-of-sleep-weight-gain

**look for my DID YOU KNOW? section each month. I will fill you in a couple times a month with quick and fun nutrition facts to help improve your health.

Skinny Energy
Caffeine is a large part of how most of us make it through each day. With our schedules being so busy, it is easy to put on a few unwelcome pounds. The wrong caffeine choices may be the one factor affecting your weight negatively. Following nutrition fact guidelines can help us avoid drinking to many calories. Making smart decisions about the energy we feed our bodies is an essential step to a slim figure.


Nutrition Facts:
An important practice for everyone is to compare food nutrition fact labels. Lets say you have green tea with 1 gram of sugar compared to an energy drink with 15 grams of sugar for half the can. After comparing the labels the smartest choice would be the tea. If you skip that quick glance at the facts you may skip the healthier option. When reviewing the nutrition fact labels, important areas to look at and compare is . . .

1. Serving Size (How many ounces per serving?)(compare serving size with the following)

2. Calories
3. Sugar
4. Carbohydrate
5. Ingredient list (less ingredients the better!)

Portion Size:
Overdoing caffiene drinks that are full of sugar and calories is enough to simply explain the extra pounds.  When people drink fluids full of sugar they tend to get a short burst of energy and then crash. This leads to us reaching for another sugary beverage. Soon we have doubled and sometimes tripled the drinks which means we did the same with the calories, sugar, and carbohydrates. If you absolutely cannot give up soda or energy drinks try this option. . .

*Allow yourself six to eight ounces of your favorite drink, with a small handful of almonds. This is allowing you some sugar with an all natural snack, jam packed with energy to keep you from crashing.

"Diet" doesn't always mean "Diet":
Be careful, some diet drinks have been know to actually make you gain weight. It may cause you to reach for more drinks than necessary, or even cause you to feel more hungry than you actually are. Instead of looking for labels that say "diet". Look for labels that say "all natural". Your body will respond to the natural foods better and it will quench your bodies real cravings leaving you satisfied; not hungry!

For more information on diet soda research:
http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20050613/drink-more-diet-soda-gain-more-weight

The Skinniest:
Above all recommendations, replace your usual caffeine beverage with black coffee (meaning don't add anything to it), plain green tea, or plain black tea. With these options you can avoid excess calories and carbohydrates that lead to extra weight. If you have trouble drinking these forms of caffeine, use the above tips to help find the healthiest match.

Also if you have a craving for other forms of caffeine like energy drinks, read this article below. It is very informative and will compare some of the nutrition fact labels from some of your favorite drinks. It will give you a break down of what to look for on the nutrition labels. Also, this will allow you to learn about how they affect your body. Your favorite drink may be on the bad list so please take a look!

http://health.yahoo.net/experts/eatthis/are-energy-drinks-dangerous

DID YOU KNOW?. . .


. . .That cabbage has more beneficial nutrients than lettuce and they have a very similar taste. Toss a handful of cabbage in tacos, soups, or mix in with your salad for quick nutritious meals.

Cabbage benefits vs. Lettuce benefits!!

http://www.organicfacts.net/nutrition-facts/vegetables/nutritional-value-of-cabbage-and-iceberg-lettuce.html

Three Places to Make Changes

THREE PLACES TO MAKE CHANGES. . .

Forty hours a week we sit at work. One to two hours of television per weeknight. Think about the hours we spend sitting in the car and lounging for no particular reason. After that, do you want to get up and move?

In the car-  We are limited to very little movement when we are in our vehicles. Take this time to meditate and focus on your breathing for stress relief.http://www.articlesbase.com/meditation-articles/zen-driving-meditation-for-busy-people-363291.html Also posture for your core strength is an important area to really think about. For information on how to work on your posture while you are driving take a look at this. http://www.ehow.com/how_5359589_improve-posture-driving.html.


At your desk- We spend a third of our day, five days a week stuck at work. Standing up every so often to stretch can amp your energy. This can even work out kinks in your body that build up throughout the day. If you need some ideas for stretches or exercises to do, check out this link.   http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stretching/WL00030. Use your break times to walk around the building and use the stairs so you can burn calories. The weight will soon be melting off and you will have energy to finish each day strong.


In front of the television- The best answer is get away from television and do something active. If you absolutely cannot miss your nightly episodes, then get up and move while you watch. During commercials do combinations of floor exercises or stretching. When your show begins, try walking and jogging in place. Do that for one whole episode a few days a week and notice the change in your body. Here is a great link for different types of exercises that can be done at home. http://www.ehow.com/facts_5200313_types-floor-exercises-do-home.html.

Did You know?

DID YOU KNOW?

Celery has negative calories!? It has such a low amount of energy that your body works harder to digest it. You burn as much or more calories than what is actually in the celery. By eating celery you gain many nutrients without the calories!

For more detail on celery and other food like it:
http://ezinearticles.com/?A-Negative-Calorie-Food-List&id=71441

http://www.snopes.com/food/ingredient/celery.asp



**look for my DID YOU KNOW? section each month. I plan to fill you in a couple times a month with quick and fun nutrition facts to help improve your health.

6+meals per day

From my perspective, six to eight small meals a day is key to boosting energy levels, kicking metabolism in to overdrive, and actually saving you time each day. It works for me because I enjoy getting to eat something every couple of hours. The best way to describe this benefit is each meal is a pit stop to fuel energy for the upcoming hours. I am eating smaller meals so I don't feel full and tired after eating. Metabolism is revved by the food and fluids you put in it. Eating and drinking healthy foods as the day goes on is a good way to keep metabolism from coming to a halt. Smaller meals are easier to plan out ahead, since they are more convenient to throw in a lunch bag and go. Taking meals on the run are so essential for hunger cravings and keeps me from making poor food choices.

I could go on with many benefits that has come from this lifestyle change, but energy, metabolism, and saving time are a few of my favorites. There are many different metabolism boosting theories out there, so it is up to each individual to find out what works for them best. I thought it would be fun to share a days worth of my healthy meal ideas, for anyone who would like to see how the change might affect them.

7 A.M. . . Smoothie

•  1  Banana
• 1/2 cup Strawberry
• 1 cup Fat free vanilla yogurt
• 3 cubes Ice
• 1 cup Organic fat free milk
• 1 tsp Flaxseed

*Toss all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth and creamy.

9:30 A.M . . .Oatmeal                                                                          

• Sugar free original flavor oatmeal (off brand is only $2)

*One package of oatmeal. Try sweetening with splenda or natural honey.

12:00 P.M. . . Grilled Tofu or Chicken Salad

• 3 cups Shredded lettuce
• 1pinch Shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup Chopped onions
• 1/2 cup Tofu
• 1/4 cup Low fat ranch

*Grill up tofu or chicken the night before, with you favorite seasoning.

2:30 P.M . . .Trail Mix                                                                            

• Pick out your favorite all natural mixture at your local health store. (Trader Joe's, Whole Foods)

*One handful is enough. Prepare into portion sizes to easily grab and go in the morning.

***Still hungry?  Grab a small handful of grapes or whole grain crackers!

6:00-7:00 P.M . . . No bun Veggie burger

• 1 Vegetable burger
• 1slice Tomato
• 1  Lettuce leaf
• 1/4 cup Organic Ketchup or Mustard

*Have a side of black beans with the burger.

Try to avoid any late night snacking. Especially avoid items loaded with carbohydrates after 8:00 P.M.

The Hidden Menu

I love McDonalds! The golden arches has squeezed a few healthy items in there for us!

Breakfast/Snack:

1. Side of scrambled eggs
2. Side of egg whites (however many you want)
3. Smoothie (portion size matters, so get the small)
4. Black coffee
5. Chopped apples and walnuts
6. Fruit parfait (delicious)

Lunch/Snack:

1. Grilled chicken Salad (emphasis on the grilled)(go light on the dressing)
2. Side salad
3. Unsweetened tea (add some splenda!)
4. Lemonade (ask for the light lemonade for less calories)
5. Vanilla ice cream without the cone (only if you are really craving it) (and definitely no cone)    

Dinner:  

1. Grilled chicken wrap (toss some of the tortilla to the side)
2. Grilled chicken sandwich (throw out one of the buns)
3. XXX Vitamin water (ask for low calorie)
4. Filet o Fish (ask for no cheese and no bun) (good all by itself!)             

This little menu I have listed above should allow you to leave the drive-thru with no regrets. Avoiding a damaging lunch does not mean you have to stop going to McDonalds. It just means that you need to take an extra glance and look for healthier items on the menu. Our health and happiness is worth the extra couple minutes it may take to find that hidden menu!

For extra information about McDonalds nutrition facts, I added a link for you to get a head start!
http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/food_quality/nutrition_choices.html