BREAKFAST...are you in the club?!

Funny Pun for one of my all time favorite movies...The Breakfast Club

Breakfast isn't just the most important meal in the day...it can be the yummiest.  The word breakfast means: to BREAK a FAST!  That means that your body is in starvation mode until you eat something.  If your metabolism isn't working, you're not allowing your body to work effectively.

If you remember nothing else...when you're choosing your breakfast, think - PROTEIN and FIBER!!  Make sure your breakfast includes both to help fill you up and sustain you until lunch.  Try to limit your processed carbs and sugar!

Research shows that the heartier your breakfast, the more likely you are to meet your wellness goals and avoid metabolic disease (by 40% when compared to breakfast skippers). 

Some yummy breakfast ideas:

• GREEN MONSTER!  (http://www.greenmonstermovement.com/)
• Whole Wheat english muffin/waffle with natural peanut butter and a Banana
• Low Sugar WHOLE Oatmeal with a handful of nuts/fruit (beware of raisins)

Try to make your breakfast include all 4 of the below:

• Fruit and/or Veggies: green monster, banana, berries, oranges, (beware of juice)
• Whole Grains: oatmeal (try steel cut), whole grain bagel, waffle, English muffin, ground flax seed)
• Low-fat protein: natural peanut butter, lean meat (Canadian bacon, veggie sausage, egg whites/substitute
• Low-fat dairy: skim milk, low fat yogurt, low-fat cheese, cottage cheese

There are lots of excuses for not eating breakfast but your body needs to be kick started each morning.  Try it and you'll see a difference.  Being hungry (truly hungry - not stressed or bored) is a GREAT sign that your body is working...FEED IT and...join us for a meeting this week!

Thanksgiving Survival Guide

Do you know that the average Thanksgiving dinner has over 2000 calories? It can be a real challenge if you are watching your waistline. The following are some eating tips so that you can still look good and be healthy after the Thanksgiving dinner without having to deprive yourself.

If you are a guest:

• Don't go to the Thanksgiving dinner hungry: we often eat faster and more when we are hungry - therefore eat a wholesome breakfast and lunch on the day to avoid overeating at dinner time.
• Thanksgiving dinner is not an all-you-can-eat buffet: Fill your plate half with vegetables, one quarter with a lean meat and the rest with a starch of your choice. Eat slowly and stop when you are full.
• Turkey - go skinless: choose your 4-oz turkey portion skinless to slash away some fat and cholesterol. Save your appetite for the side dishes and desserts.
• Side Dishes - watch your portion size: go for smaller portions. This way you can sample all the different foods. Moderation is always the key.
• Make a conscious choice to limit high fat items: high fat food items can be found in fried and creamy dishes as well as cheese-filled casseroles in a traditional Thanksgiving meal. For instance, mashed potatoes are usually made with butter and milk; green bean casseroles are often prepared with cream of mushroom soup, cheese and milk and topped with fried onions; candied yams are loaded with cream, sugar and marshmallows. If you cannot control the ingredients that go in to a dish, simply limit yourself to a smaller helping size. Again moderation is the key.
• Drink plenty of water: alcohol and coffee can dehydrate your body. Drink calorie-free water to help fill up your stomach and keep you hydrated.

If you are the honorable chef:

• Substitute high fat ingredients with lower-fat or fat-free ingredients: Learn about the 5 easy steps to recipe substitutions or see table below.
• Leftover Turkey? Instead of turkey sandwiches, use the leftover turkey to make a pot of soup with fresh chunky vegetables.
• Experiment with new recipes: Simply doing a Google search you can find numerous delicious yet healthy low-fat contemporary Thanksgiving recipes. Experiment!

Join is for a meeting this week to learn more startegies!

Back to Basics: Protein

The Power of Protein

Protein is an important component of every cell in the body. Hair and nails are mostly made of protein. Your body uses protein to build and repair tissues. You also use protein to make enzymes, hormones, and other body chemicals. Protein is an important building block of bones, muscles, cartilage, skin, and blood.

Along with fat and carbohydrates, protein is a "macronutrient," meaning that the body needs relatively large amounts of it. Vitamins and minerals, which are needed in only small quantities, are called "micronutrients." But unlike fat and carbohydrates, the body does not store protein, and therefore has no reservoir to draw on when it needs a new supply.

So you may assume the solution is to eat protein all day long. Not so fast, say nutritionists.

The truth is, we need less total protein that you might think. But we could all benefit from getting more protein from better food sources.

Good Protein

Seafood

Seafood is an excellent source of protein because it's usually low in fat. Fish such as salmon is a little higher in fat, but it is the heart-healthy kind: omega-3 fatty acids.

White-Meat Poultry

Stick to the white meat of poultry for excellent, lean protein. Dark meat is a little higher in fat. The skin is loaded with saturated fat, so remove skin before cooking.

Milk, Cheese, and Yogurt

Not only are dairy foods -- like milk, cheese, and yogurt -- excellent sources of protein but they also contain valuable calcium, and many are fortified with vitamin D. Choose skim or low fat dairy to keep bones and teeth strong and prevent osteoporosis.

Eggs

Eggs are one of the least expensive forms of protein. The American Heart Association says normal healthy adults can safely enjoy an egg a day.

Beans

One-half cup of beans contains as much protein as an ounce of broiled steak. Plus, these nutritious nuggets are loaded with fiber to keep you feeling full for hours.

Pork Tenderloin

This great and versatile white meat is 31% leaner than 20 years ago.

Soy

Fifty grams of soy protein daily can help lower cholesterol about 3%. Eating soy protein instead of sources of protein higher in fat -- along with a healthy diet -- can be heart healthy.

Lean Beef

Lean beef has only one more gram of saturated fat than a skinless chicken breast. Lean beef is also an excellent source of zinc, iron, and vitamin B12.

Protein on the Go

Grab a meal replacement drink, cereal bar, or energy bar. Check the label to be sure the product contains at least six grams of protein and is low in sugar and fat.

Protein at Breakfast

Research shows that including a source of protein like an egg or Greek yogurt at breakfast along with a high fiber grain like whole wheat toast can help you feel full longer and eat less throughout the day.

Join us for a meeting this week to learn more.

Got Milk??

  Low-Fat Is the Answer

A recent study showed that the more servings of dairy foods that adults consumed, the greater the percentage of their total calories that came from saturated fat (definitely not a good thing).

But the other side to the story is that their intake of many key nutrients -- like protein, calcium, magnesium, folate, B1, B2, B6, B12, and vitamins A, D, and E -- also increased along with the number of dairy servings.

So how do you get all those great nutrients from dairy without the drawbacks? Low-fat dairy is the answer! As you decrease the fat in dairy products, you cut calories, saturated fat, and cholesterol, while protein, calcium, and most other vitamins and minerals remain high.

Here are six reasons you should include low-fat dairy foods in your diet:

Calcium and Protein

Some dairy items have impressive levels of two things many of us need more of: calcium and protein. I'm sorry to say that ice cream falls a bit short on these two nutrients, but low-fat milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, and reduced-fat cheese pack a protein and calcium punch in every serving. Just a cup of lite nonfat yogurt, for example, gives you a third of your daily recommended calcium intake, along with 17% of your estimated daily protein intake.

Vitamin D

Many brands of milk are fortified with vitamin D, and now some yogurt manufacturers are joining in. Vitamin D is an important vitamin, yet many of us don't get enough in our diets. Our bodies can actually make vitamin D if we get adequate sunlight, but this can be a problem for people who are housebound or who live in areas that don't get a lot of sun.

Drinking vitamin D-fortified low-fat milk is an easy way to boost your vitamin D. Vitamin D has long been known for promoting healthy bones through its role in calcium absorption. And recent research has indicated that it may be helpful for all sorts of other things, from reducing the risk of certain cancers to lowering blood pressure.

Bone Density

Getting calcium from food, rather than supplements, seems to do your bones good. A study in Finland looked at changes in bone thickness and density in girls 10 years old-12 years old whose diets were supplemented with either cheese, calcium, or calcium plus vitamin D. The cheese-eating group appeared to have bigger increases in bone mass than the other groups.

Blood Pressure

Researchers in Spain who studied more than 5,000 adults found that those who reported consuming the most low-fat dairy (mostly skim and reduced-fat milk) were 54% less likely to develop high blood pressure over a two-year period than those with the lowest intakes of low-fat dairy.

Calcium has been suspected of having an effect on blood pressure in the past. But the Spanish researchers found that only calcium from low-fat dairy products was related to a lower blood-pressure risk. The researchers suggested that this could have something to do with the proteins found in low-fat dairy (caseins and whey), which may have actions similar to those of blood pressure-lowering drugs.

Weight

In a recent review article, a researcher from the University of Alabama at Birmingham noted that although an analysis of overall calcium consumption has not linked calcium to greater weight loss, there is increasing evidence that calcium from dairy products may play a role in body-weight regulation.

For any or all of the above reasons, aim to work in some low-fat dairy each day, whether it's from skim or 1% low-fat milk, low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese, reduced-fat cheese, or a combination.          

- WebMD

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