Barbara Boser - It Works Independent Ambassador Diamond Distributor

Don’t Let Thanksgiving Ruin Your Diet – 5 Ways You Can Substitute Something Healthy

iStock_turkeycarcusXSmall

You can have a magnificent Thanksgiving feast, without piling up the calories. If you’re watching your waistline this holiday season, use smart substitutions to keep your diet on track while enjoying your meals. Turkey day offers ample opportunity to make food choices you won’t regret.

Swap: Mashed Potatoes for Mashed Cauliflower
If you haven’t tried them, you’ll probably be very surprised. Mashed cauliflower is very similar to potatoes and totally delicious. The simple ingredients are just cauliflower, garlic, leeks, margarine, and the seasoning of your choice. It knocks the calories down to just 67 per serving, leaving plenty of leeway for toppings of your choosing. If you don’t think you can give up the real thing, try swapping out the real butter and sour cream for light sour cream, margarine, or olive oil.

Swap: Green Bean Casserole for Roasted Green Beans
Almost everyone loves that traditional casserole topped with french fried onions. None of us can deny how unhealthy it is, though. Coming in at 161 calories per serving and 530 mg of sodium, it can really put a dent in your diet. But you can make a quick, delicious alternative by simply roasting green beans in the oven with some olive oil, sea salt, and pepper. Prepared this way, a serving of green beans is only 37 calories and 196 mg of sodium per serving.

Swap: Deep Fried Turkey for Traditional Baked Turkey
Whether frying your bird is a recent method for you or a long time family tradition, consider putting it in the oven this year. A 3.5 ounce serving of baked turkey breast contains 165 calories and 7 grams of fat. The same size portion of fried turkey breast contains 190 calories and 11 grams of fat. Most people will opt for double that portion or more though, multiplying the difference in calories and fat. If you want to trim even more calories, opt for a skinless turkey.

Swap: Buttery Pumpkin Pie Crust for Graham Cracker and Flax Crust
Rather than using a premade pie crust, you can make this low calorie, nutrient dense version that tastes wonderful. Combine wheat germ, ground flaxseed and crumbled graham cracker to make your healthy crust with just 141 calories. You also get a boost of Vitamin E and Omega 3s from the wheat germ and flaxseed. You can use this recipe to create single serving pumpkin pies in a muffin tin.

Swap: Wine for Wine Spritzers
If you enjoy alcoholic beverages with Thanksgiving dinner, avoiding them can save you hundreds of calories. Wine drinkers can replace a few ounces of wine with club soda, saving about 60 calories. The result is a lighter, fizzy drink with the wine flavor you love. Sipping drinks made with fruit juice? Grab light versions of the juice. You can even buy light agave nectar and other reduced-calorie sweeteners for diet friendly holiday cocktails.

Sometimes the thought of switching your favorite, traditional dishes with “diet food” is just so unappealing you’d rather derail your diet. If you make smart choices that don’t feel too much like compromises, you can enjoy Thanksgiving dinner and still slip into that cute New Years outfit.

Why Chia Seeds Should Become Part Of Your Diet

iStock_chiaseedsSmall

If you were alive during the 1980s, you probably remember Chia Pet?. Maybe you even had one of your own. If you associate chia seeds with those silly products, you might be very surprised to learn that the seeds have myriad health benefits. They’re surprisingly easy to include in your regular diet, too.

What Are Chia Seeds, Anyway?
Related to mint, the salvia hispanica plant is commonly used in Mexico and several South American countries. Chia seeds and sprouts can be eaten and prepared in a wide variety of ways. The sprouts are often called “micro greens,” along with many other tiny sprouts used to add flavor and texture to culinary creations. The seeds can be absorbed by the body whole, but they may be prepared in other ways for different dishes.

Though claims about their ability to aid in weight loss may be a myth, chia seeds pack loads of nutrition into tiny little packages. This superfood contains protein, dietary fiber, phosphorus, manganese, calcium, and potassium. It boasts antioxidants, such as caffeic acid, chlorogenic acids, quercetin, and kaempferol. Chia seeds are full of Omega-3 fatty acids, even more per serving than flaxseed. All these great nutrients mean chia seeds are good for your bones, teeth, blood sugar, heart function, and even your skin.

How to Add Chia Seeds to Your Diet
If you’re already adding ground flaxseed to your meals, you know it’s pretty easy to add some ground up seed to just about anything. Chia seeds have a very light, nutty flavor that isn’t overpowering. You won’t have to worry about balancing strong flavors or trying to hide them in something. They can be eaten whole or ground, used as a thickening agent, and as breadcrumbs. They can also be soaked, which creates a jelly-like substance you can use to make pudding. Now that you know how nutritious and versatile they are, let’s talk chow.

Chia Seed Recipes
We curated a list of five of the most delicious chia recipes around the Web. Give them a try.

Fresca is a traditional chia recipe. This one combines mint, cucumber, honey, and lime juice to created a refreshing, energizing drink.

This tasty dessert packs 10 grams of fiber and 7 grams of protein per serving. This version is made with ice so it takes less time to set up. Not only is it super healthy and delicious, it’s also totally vegan.

This tasty little recipe includes instructions for how to sprout your chia seeds. Make the recipe for a cool appetizer or snack, then learn how to store your extra chia sprouts for later use.

A wonderful collection of fall flavors, this pudding also includes coconut milk, honey, and optional probiotic powder. It is a cornucopia of nutrients.

Create breading for your own chicken tenders using panko, pecans, coconut flakes, and chia seeds. This recipe also includes instructions for spicy orange dipping sauce.

If you’re looking for ways to include more Omega-3s, fiber, or protein to your diet, chia seeds are a great way to get a boost. Not only can you grind them up and toss them in a smoothie, yogurt, hot cereal, or other meals you already eat, but you can use them to create wonderful new meals, too. They can be purchased in most grocery stores, usually in the baking aisle, for a reasonable price. So give them a try and enjoy this excellent little superfood in your diet.

The Latest Health Craze: The Paleolithic Diet

iStock_paleoSmall

 

When several books about Paleolithic eating became best-sellers, this diet was catapulted into the forefront of health and fitness media. You have surely heard of it. You probably have a friend or two who tried it, but do you really know what a Paleolithic Diet is? Is it truly good for you? Should you try it?

A Little History Lesson

When you hear the name of this diet, it may bring up mental images of cavemen. If so, you’re not far from the truth. Also known as the Stone Age, the Paleolithic Period occurred some 2.5 million years ago until about 10,000 years ago. It was during this time that ancient people began to use basic tools. Diets during this lengthy era varied a bit by geography and phase of the time period. Late in the Stone Age homo sapiens, modern humans appeared. The Paleolithic Diet is based on an approximation of the diet these early homo sapiens ate.

What Did They Eat?

During the latter part of the period, known as the Upper Paleolithic, people had developed efficient means of hunting. Evidence even suggests they were probably able to store some food. They also foraged for food. This is typically referred to as a “hunter-gatherer” society. Though agriculture began to show up during this time, it didn’t effect the selection of food so much as the availability of it. So, the hunter-gatherer diet consisted of some meat and fish, as well as wild fruit, nuts, and berries. Thus, the foundation of the current Paleolithic Diet trend.

Why is the Paleolithic Diet Healthy for Modern Humans?

The diet quite obviously excludes processed foods, with extra sugar, fats, refined carbohydrates, and preservatives. By its very basic nature, it cuts out many of the modern convenience foods that are so unhealthy for us. In this way, it’s quite healthy. The foods that can take some of the blame for modern diseases, such as diabetes, obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol, are mostly limited in this diet. That is assuming you make the best possible meat choices.

The foods excluded from?the Paleolithic Diet include dairy, grains, and legumes. Of course those foods have great nutritional value, such as calcium, fiber, and lean protein. Legumes, for example, are nutrient dense, meaning you get a lot of nutrition per calorie. That’s pretty much the opposite concern that cavemen had, but for those of us watching our waistlines, it’s very important to note.

The foods left out of the diet tend to be the sticking point for critics. One evolutionary biologist, Marlene Zuk, wrote an entire book aimed at debunking the Paleolithic lifestyle called Paleofantasy. In it, she explains how we have evolved significantly since our ancestors foraged for berries and how we continue to evolve. In the context of perpetual evolutionary change, does it really make sense to eat as our cavemen cousins did tens of thousands of years ago?

The truth is that “healthy” is a relative term. We’re all individuals with different health needs. While the Paleolithic Diet can very restrictive, it really depends on how you implement it into your life. Check with your doctor before starting any diet, especially one radically different from your current diet.

5 Tips to Help you Fit into Your Sexy Halloween Costume

halloweenYou?ve found a perfectly sexy Halloween costume that flaunts your best assets, but you want to slim down just a little bit extra. We?ve collected five of the best ways to slim down quickly before your main event. Many times results can be maintained long term with healthy eating and exercise habits.

Eat Your Veggies
Loading up on vegetables is helpful in losing weight quickly because they?re high in fiber. The fiber fills you up and stimulates digestion. It will help you stay away from snacks while ensuring your digestive process is working optimally. Vegetables with lean protein, like beans, also keep you fuller, longer. You digest them slowly, so they offer sustained energy. They also have low sugar content, so you won?t get hungry from a blood sugar spike.

Don?t Forget the Fruit
Eating fruit can help you lose a little extra puffiness before slipping into your slinky costume, too. Some fruits are high in fiber and help curb your appetite, like apples. Others, like melons, have a high water content. They?ll help flush your system while providing a filling snack. Bananas, grapefruit, and oranges are high in potassium, which will help you banish bloating due to water retention and aid in flushing sodium from your body.

Replace a Meal with a Shake
Reducing your caloric intake will help reduce the waistline. Find a good protein shake that you can use to replace breakfast or lunch (or maybe even both). Use an unsweetened almond or soy milk rather than milk to further reduce the calories you are taking in.

Cut Out Sodium
Nearly all adults in America eat too much sodium in their normal diet. Limiting or eliminating sodium has both short and long term health benefits. High sodium intake can lead to high blood pressure and for some that can lead to cardiovascular disease and death. The reason is that sodium causes the body to retain fluid. Extra fluid can put stress on the heart. Cutting sodium over the long term is a smart choice for anyone. If you eliminate it completely a few days before an event and continue drinking water, your body will release the extra fluid and reduce the bloating.

Use a Tightening, Toning & Firming Body Wrap
With results as little as 45 minutes after application and progressive results over a period of 72 hours, this solution is perfect for some last-minute firming before Halloween. It Works Ultimate Body Applicator is a cloth wrap made with natural ingredients. It can be applied to those trouble zones, like your tummy or thighs, to tighten, minimize cellulite, and help to firm up the jiggly spots.

Before dramatically changing your diet or physical activity level, be sure to check with your doctor.

Recent Posts