Tag Archives: healthy

Capsule Nutrition = Meal Prep

Posted on December 16, 2014 | Leave a comment

brooke-lark-jUPOXXRNdcA-unsplashI love the idea of capsule wardrobes. So I thought, why not capsule nutrition? How about the essentials same shopping list (change out seasonal fruit & veggies) & change up the meals? So easy! Also, make recipes/prep short or able to be done ahead of time when you have more time or motivation. Consider once weekly grocery shopping- so foods that don’t last as long, would be used earlier in the week after grocery shopping…AWESOME. That’s the dream. So, I came up with the capsule nutrition plan’s grocery list.

Capsule Nutrition: What you need – Create your own list of the basics to have on hand for healthier nutrition. Here’s my list: 

Produce for the week (Varies with season & preference):

  • Green leaves – 2+ cups per day per person. Eat the flimsier green leaves earlier in the week as the heartier leaves last longer.
    • Lettuces – various kinds, Romaine hearts last longer
    • Kale, Spinach, Swiss chard, Collard, turnip or mustard greens
    • Parsley, cilantro
    • Salad packs – check the expiration date
  • Avocados, lemons
  • Additional veggies that looks good to you – 2 cups per day per person. Consider: cucumber, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, zucchini, summer squash, eggplant, mushrooms, celery, tomatoes, etc. etc.
  • Fruit – approx. 1 handful per day. Berries are extra nutritious.

Enough for 2 meals daily, some combination of (Varies with availability & mood & season):

  • Fish (Fatty, wild) – 2 days of week
  • Poultry (chicken, turkey, etc.)
  • Meats (beef –grassfed, lamb, pork, bison, etc.)

Dairy for 1+ week (if you are including dairy in your diet):

  • Cheeses – individually wrapped are easy for packing and for quick snack
  • Whipping cream – organic
  • Butter – organic
  • Greek yogurt – plain – enough for 1 week. Individual packed are easy for portion control & for packing
  • Eggs – pasture raised – 2 dozen. Older eggs are easier to peel (remember to boil with 1tsp baking soda or if steamed in an egg steamer!).

Keep stocked:

  • Salad dressing (No sugars or high fructose syrup. Avoid diet dressings)
  • Olive oil, coconut oil
  • Mustards, vinegars, capers
  • Seasonings: pick your favorites. Some of mine: Greek seasoning, garlic salt with parsley flakes, Malden sea salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, dried parsley flakes, soy sauce, thyme, ground ginger, cinnamon.
  • Nut butters – like almond butter, peanut butter, cashew butter. Make sure they are without additional ingredients other than salt. This usually means the oil separates and you will have to stir it when you first open the bottle.
  • Various nuts (almonds, walnuts, cashews, pecans, hazelnuts, peanuts, etc.)
  • Old fashioned rolled oats
  • Unsweetened coconut flakes
  • Bittersweet chocolate chips
  • Flaxseed
  • Chia seeds
  • Almond flour
  • Coffee
  • Tea – various

Frozen- keep stocked:

  • Veggies (chopped onions, peppers,  & greens such as spinach, green beans, peas, edamame, etc.)
  • 1 bag Berries
  • Ezekiel bread (if bread is part of diet)
  • Low carb tortilla

Photo by Brooke Lark on Unsplash

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Healthier Together Series: Cycle 4A. Nutrition – Go To List

Posted on October 4, 2014 | Leave a comment

dan-gold-4_jhDO54BYg-unsplashREAL food. Here are some of my go-to REAL food ideas. A little planning & prep can go a long way.

Remember: Avoid foods and drinks that are artificially made “low fat” or “no fat.” If nature made it with fat, that’s how it’s best managed by your body. Avoid artificial sweeteners. Monk fruit may be ok. If you are having something sweet, own up to it and only have a little. You can modify the list below to remove grains or dairy. 

Snacks to have on hand (**Always available, keeps longer):

In the Fridge:

  • Raw veggies – usually have 2-4 varieties in fridge for week:
    • carrot sticks
    • sugar snap peas
    • celery sticks
    • radishes (eat salted- yum)
    • cucumbers
    • peppers
    • romaine hearts
    • grape tomatoes
  • salad/baby spinach packs
  • hummus
  • Greek plain yogurt
  • Baby bell (or other individually wrapped) cheeses**
  • crumbled smoked blue cheese or feta cheese
  • blue cheese or other salad dressing**
  • boiled eggs (boil a dozen at beginning of week- remember boil older eggs & add 1 tsp baking soda to water helps make them easy-peel)
  • crispy oven baked nitrite/nitrate free bacon (line on cookie sheet & bake)
  • deli meats, (pasture raised IS better)
  • leftovers: roasted veggies or meats
  • Berries occasionally
  • dark chocolate covered cocoa dusted almonds** (Buy in bulk & stored in freezer)

NOT in the fridge (often in my desk drawers in office or pantry at home)

  • nuts** (various flavors ie. wasabi soy sauce almonds, smoked almonds, salted peanuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, etc.)
  • nut butters** (peanut, almond, cashew, etc.) – great to add to other foods or when in a pinch, just scoop it out in a spoon and eat 1 spoonful- surprisingly satisfying.
  • beef jerky** (pasture raised is best)
  • tuna packs**
  • salmon packs** (great way to get wild salmon, instead of farm raised “Atlantic” salmon – which doesn’t have the higher omega 3’s of wild salmon)
  • olives**
  • pickles**
  • Kind bars** – there are many varieties…these are when I want something sweet

Rotating foods:

  1. Kale Salad: kale- 1 bunch (julienne or chopped fine, massage leaves with drizzled olive oil), juice of 1 lemon juice, sprinkling of pine nuts, grated Parmesan to taste
  2. “Everything” Mix: nut butter + flax seed + chia seeds + coconut flakes (unsweetened)+/- hemp hearts +/- few choc chips +/- other nuts/seeds (optional) (which is combined & put together with some maple syrup (optional) & stored in fridge in balls or crumbled…then when desired, mix it into plain Greek yogurt +/- berries). Recipe for a no-bake snack.
  3. Chopped Colorful Salad or Wedge salad – nitrite/nitrate free bacon, boiled eggs (as above) +/- avocado/blue cheese +/- grape tomatoes on salad pack (or quarter of iceberg lettuce or cut up hearts of romaine lettuce) with leftovers from dinner
  4. Tuna/egg/salmon salad on romaine lettuce leaf (use like taco shell) or on cucumber slices/boat (scoop out the seeds) or on salad pack. (If you like capers, add some to your egg salad – it is divine!)
  5. Nut butter on celery or apple slices or stirred into Greek yogurt
  6. Deli meat (as above) or tuna/egg/salmon/chicken salad wrapped in romaine with hummus or cheese +/- additional veggies like peppers slices or tomato or avocado (wrap in saran wrap like nori-maki to store in fridge if making ahead)
  7. Spinach with almost anything (can saute or eat fresh or put in microwave. Then, put dressing or soy sauce or vinegar w/olive oil or sprinkle with cheese & bacon or toss berries in it)
  8. Broccoli slaw – saute or add to almost any dish. It’s easy and an excellent source of vitamins and delicious.
  9. Eggs: fried/scrambled/boiled with tomato slices & avocado (+/- sprouted ezekiel bread-if occasionally eating whole grains, found in freezer section only) +/- salsa
  10. Homemade Trail Mix: mixed nuts with some dark chocolate chips/carob chips +/- unsweetened coconut flakes
  11. Cabbage – sauteed as “base” for other foods in place of pasta or rice
  12. Spaghetti squash -baked – to eat with spaghetti with meat sauce
  13. Cauliflower – as “mashed potatoes” or “rice” or baked with parmesan or roasted or raw, etc. etc.
  14. Meatloaf, prefer grass-fed ground beef or ground lamb – great as leftovers & easy to add to almost any other meals (if have extra time, would make it into meatballs)
  15. Green beans (blanched) & grape tomatoes halved (soy sauce, chopped garlic & sesame oil)
  16. Edamame – boil x 5 minutes & sprinkle with salt over pods. Good hot or cold.
  17. Eggplant slices – baked or fried with some olive oil & salt or grated Parmesan or other seasonings. Add some tomato or marinara sauce on it with a sprinkling of Parmesan or Asiago & baked- it is AMAZING.
  18. Mushrooms – stuffed. Or baked with soy sauce or cheese
  19. Cheese crisps (sliced or shredded cheese placed on parchment & baked or microwaved until melted & flattened out, then browned just a bit to make them crispy when cooled down)
  20. Stir fry veggies +/- protein
  21. Hummus with veggies
  22. Peppers stuffed with deli meats (see above), tuna salad or sliced with hummus or in stir fry or salads
  23. Leftover meats cut into strips (Always cook extra protein for dinner & cut up the leftovers. Strips are easy to grab as snack or put in romaine boat or toss in salad or stir fry or with cabbage stir fry)
  24. Coconut granola (I did not use both honey AND maple syrup, so it wasn’t too sweet)
  25. Golden Low Carb granola from the Low Carb Diet Doctor

Keep healthy food options easy and readily available and you will improve your nutrition and your health from inside…out. Please share some of your suggestions for easy healthy real food ideas.

Photo by Dan Gold on Unsplash

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Healthier Together Series: Cycle 3D. Putting it all together — Power Recharge!

Posted on October 1, 2014 | Leave a comment

tracey-hocking-tq1J9imFJ3g-unsplashIn our 3rd cycle, we covered healthy responses to hunger, that little bits of physical activity count & add up, and the power of nature in our abilities to recharge. Here’s how it might look:

1. In the morning when you first wake up, drink a glass of water, maybe with a lemon. Or drink some tea. Or some coffee with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Spend some time walking (it can be a leisurely pace or as fast as speed walking), doing some enjoyable exercise (including the obvious like lifting weights, interval training, treadmill, biking, elliptical, nordic track, but free form dancing also counts!) or some other physical movements of the body (tai chi, yoga, pilates, Nia technique, Callanetics, etc.). If you wake up before others in your home, this is your GIFT time. It’s ALL yours, to spend how you want. I cherish this GIFT time in my life. I can choose EXACTLY how to spend it.

If you have beautiful nature nearby, you can take your activity outdoors, as is commonly done with Tai Chi, an ancient Chinese practice of coordinated physical movements that used to be a martial art for self defense. Moving your body outside in nature is a VERY nice way to start your day. Have another glass of water/tea/unsweetened coffee when you move onto the rest of your day. After your physical activity, have a breakfast with protein for better function later in the day. In nicer weather, have breakfast outdoors- what a dream!

Once this routine becomes your regular routine, you will find that this is a FANTASTIC way to start your day. It’s great to start out your day as your own perfect person, fully recharged and ready to face the day!

2. At work, when you would normally take a break to walk to the coffee machine/break room/vending machine/bathroom, grab a cup of water/tea/coffee and stand or walk a bit extra. Take a step outside if you can, or look out the window. At least move your body: This can be stretching your arms up high, arching your back (especially if you sit hunched over a desk or computer),  or bending forward at the waist to stretch out your lower back. You might pull out your travel yoga mat and do a floor stretch or two, maybe downward dog and plank pose? A sun salutation? You may take a walk by the potted plants or a window and shake out your legs, roll your shoulders. Bottom line, make an effort to hydrate and move and expose yourself to nature. If you are hungry, go for the protein snack you have as back up.

3. In many countries, people take extra “rest” time at lunch, commonly known as a siesta. In the US, we don’t traditionally incorporate that into our day, but we do commonly take a break for lunch. At lunchtime,  get as close to the outdoors as possible so that you can see the weather, you can see something naturally green or view the sky or a natural body of water. Spend at least a few minutes just seeing what’s “out there.” If possible, stand or walk in places you find peaceful or that allow you some exposure to nature. It can be surprising how enchanting this habit can be. To complete the picture, take a bottle of water with you on the lunch time walk outdoors. If you eat lunch AFTER your walk, you will be much more alert later in the day and you may find you make better food & drink choices. Choose water/tea/coffee, protein, and some non-starchy veggies for lunch & you are good to go.

4. In the evening, stay away from caffeinated beverages like tea and coffee. Drink water. Taking some time in the presence of nature, stop to connect with other people and give them your full attention. Taking an evening stroll with friends or significant other is a great way to do this. Having a meal with someone(s) you care about is also beneficial to your health. Think about, talk about, journal about the events of your day. Process your day…better with someone, but OK with nature. Think about what you learned that day and consider 3 things you are grateful for or appreciate. In this way, you will be refreshed and able to be recharged for tomorrow.

5. When you find you have greater time, unplug from the electronics and spend some time reading, writing, drawing, moving, singing, or communing with others- ideally in person. Sip some water or tea or coffee. Move around, walk a bit. This is the equivalent of “hanging out on the piazza” and recharging your soul. The more regularly this becomes a part of your life, the more relaxed and comfortable the rest of your life will become- the ripple effect.

Please send me your ways of bringing it all together.

Photo by Tracey Hocking on Unsplash

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Healthy Together Series: Cycle 3B. Physical Activity – It only takes a little.

Posted on April 30, 2014 | Leave a comment

toa-heftiba-fmQh9ouUofY-unsplashToday’s physical activity note:

Increasing your overall activity level adds up.

  • Stand instead of sitting if you can.
  • Tap your foot if you are sitting.
  • Use a stability ball in place of a desk chair.
  • Take the stairs.
  • Plan to walk or bike places instead of driving.

The more you move, the better.

  • Walking and getting up and down from a chair or seated position is very good for you. Stand up when you take a phone call or if you are on a conference call.
  • Go up and down steps or stairs- it is working against gravity and aging. Walk upstairs to use the bathroom on a different floor.
  • Dancing or swinging your hips is good for everyone. Solo or with a partner or in a class, great music makes it way more fun.
  • When you raise your arms overhead, it’s hard to feel bad or to cry. Smile at yourself when you reach up.
  • Stretch your arms  up and out if you’ve been staring at a computer screen or smartphone. You can feel your body open up.

Find ways to just increase your overall daily energy expenditure. Moving is what keeps your body and mind young and able to adapt to changes around you.

 

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

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Healthier Together Series: Cycle 1 D. Putting It All Together — Midwest Winter

Posted on March 5, 2014 | Leave a comment

In this section, I am hoping to integrate people’s experiences and wisdom and/or offer examples of how we apply what we have learned. Please be sure to share your experiences and wisdom. This is how we can help each other and become healthier together.
*Disclaimer: Apps or links are listed as examples & do not necessarily represent the BEST ones or the only options. They are included to help you get started on your search for the right resources for you. So please share what you are using too.

Here is an example of putting it all together:

Scenario: Midwest. Winter. Cold. Darker earlier, longer. Work is busy. Traffic is terrible in bad weather- longer and more frustrating commutes. Not going outside much. Limited exposure to nature. See fewer people socially. Sleep is messed up. Craving and eating comfort foods that increase blood sugar and therefore insulin. Gaining weight. Getting more tired. Being less active. Feeling bad about not exercising, eating poorly and weight gain. Feeling progressively more down…sound familiar?

Thank goodness for Spring! However, what about all those months before Spring arrives?

Winter happens EVERY year. Plan for it. Let your healthy habits continue to help you. Many people schedule a break to warmer climates during winter or early spring (maybe too expensive for some of us), or they embrace it and find a physical activity that they can do in the midst of nature’s healing effects. Mental planning helps. Journal or keep a log of your observations. Here’s a plan:

1. Limit your new transitions that use up your activation energy and brain energy. You have lower reserves in the winter. Keep the things, people, activities that rejuvenate you and give you energy, maybe even increase the duration of exposure to them. Note: not adding more, just make it longer. It might mean eliminating some of the energy drains.

2. Maintain your healthy eating habits. In particular, keep the amount of white starchy carbs and sugars lower. This will keep your energy and mood up and also your weight stable! Stay hydrated- UNSWEETENED clear nonalcoholic beverages are best, like water or unsweetened tea.

3. Always continue your regular daily physical activity, especially in the winter. This is not the time to change it up or take a break. Start your day with a boost of activity- as little as 7 minutes will help you! It will save you from the winter blues and regulate your sleep and eating and your weight. When you are away from home or when there is a time crunch, try the 7 minute workout which you can find online. A sample iphone app: The 7 Minute Workout “Seven” with High Intensity Interval Training. There are MANY online videos that also show how to do the complete body workout.

4. Practice your self hypnosis to allow you to develop control of your mind so you can relax or sleep when you need to. When you are particularly stressed or if you have insomnia, it is nice to have your brain help you. Given the nights are longer, maybe you can use some of the extra darkness to practice relaxing the mind. 2 sample apps on the iphone: *Hypnopack. Has 5, 15, 20 & 27 minute programs and also can be used for other behavior change helpful for public speaking, anxiety release, studying & memory, etc. *Create Inner Peace & Calm with Glenn Harrold is another iphone app that many find helpful, has some free & some components you can choose but have to pay for.

5. Reach out and connect with nature and the people who energize you. This might mean taking a walk or snowshoeing in nature on a winter morning with a friend.

Bottom line: you can learn from previous experiences, what your patterns are and maximize the joy you get out of your life with a little planning. Taking care of yourself is a choice and it helps make the world a better place. And you deserve it!

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Healthier Together Series: Cycle 1 B. Physical Activity — Workout bonus

Posted on February 26, 2014 | Leave a comment

lindsay-henwood-7_kRuX1hSXM-unsplashToday’s Physical Activity Notes:

First: I will often use the terms physical activity and workout interchangeably. When I use the terms “working out” & “workout,” I specifically refer to intentional physical activity that is planned for the purpose of being exercise. Working out is deliberately moving for health, fitness –> exercising. Physical activity is anything we do that moves our body and includes working out, exercising as well as other activities we do daily.

Good news: since we wake up in a mode burning our body’s stored fuels, whatever physical activity we do in the morning prior to eating or drinking calories, accelerates our fat burning by using up our muscles’ stores of glycogen (energy stored in muscles). This means that you get to drink or eat a bit more freely after being physically active in the morning. In fact, if you workout vigorously in the morning (if you used up all the glycogen in your muscles), you can add some unprocessed carbs to your meal within approximately 30-60 minutes & your body will put the extra blood sugar (the glucose from digesting the carbs) into your muscles and NOT into fat cells. HOW COOL IS THAT?

Remember, if you eat foods that spike your blood sugar (especially foods like processed carbohydrates including sugars), your insulin will spike and your body will store most of that extra blood sugar in your fat cells! So, your FAT stores will GROW BIGGER…and mostly around your middle. NOT your goal. So, that means if you want to eat/drink that higher carbohydrate food or drink & you don’t want to grow your fat, WORK OUT first! You get the biggest bang for your buck if you are physically active first thing in the morning before you eat or drink any calories (drinking water is better).

Remember, the “physical activity” can be:

1. Low intensity movement for a longer duration – like walking for 30-40+ minutes or an activity that is at a perceived exertion level of 5-7 or heart rate approximately 60% (+/-10%) of your personal maximum heart rate. *see previous blog about perceived exertion and heart rates for more info.

2. Spurts of higher intensity activity for a shorter duration (even 4 minutes counts!). This might mean boosting your perceived exertion closer to 8-10 or 80-90% of your maximum heart rate for very short spurts, no longer than 30-60 seconds, interspersed with 2-5 minutes of lower intensity such as level 5-6. Basically, you go hard for 30 seconds then easy for 2 minutes, & repeat a few times. I like 4 cycles. — Another option, look up the 7 minute workout online.

The key is to deplete or significantly lower your body’s storage of glycogen with exercise and voila! You now have created an empty space (your muscles and liver) where your body will put the extra sugars in your blood (from the carbs &/or sugars you have consumed) & it is NOT going into your fat cells for storage. It is getting burned up in your muscles immediately. If you have eaten protein & fat within a low carb “break-fast,” you will just continue to be burning fat.

Bottom line: If occasionally, you are craving extra berries or a sweetened cup of coffee or tea or other starchy carbohydrate with your breakfast, & you don’t want to worry about it increasing your weight, work out first thing in the morning! It’s a workout bonus!

Photo by Lindsay Henwood on Unsplash

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Change and Activation Energy

Posted on September 17, 2013 | Leave a comment

Recently, I had a nice discussion with my mom about the challenges of NOT having a regular schedule.

Why was it so hard to sustain that new exercise routine and healthy eating plan? Was it that the work & home life had so many changes recently? The new school year, the different work hours? Was it the changing weather? The recent 10 day “vacation?” Was it that in this upcoming semester, there would be no 2 days or 2 weeks that were similar – NO routines?

It made me think about what trauma surgeon once told me. “It’s the transitions that are hard in our work. That’s what makes being “on call” so draining. Once we are at the hospital, we are fine and we love what we do. And once we are home, we love being home and don’t want to leave. It’s the transitions that are awful.”

Transitions are hard for children, and adults too, it turns out. A transition is when you have to change what you are doing now, to do the next thing: shift from sleeping to waking to exercising to showering to getting ready for work to being a parent to driving to work to working, etc. A transition may be that you have to change locations: go from one store to the other, go from home to work, go from one appointment to another. The more transitions in your day, the more your brain has to do, the more vigilant it has to be. This can exhaust your energy stores. When those energy stores are depleted, things may start to feel overwhelming. When we feel overwhelmed or when our brain has been vigilant for too long without a chance to recharge, that is when it becomes easier to let your good intentions & health efforts fall to the side.

Transitions require activation energy & there is only a finite amount there. Activation energy is the amount of “effort” and “discipline” you need IN ADDITION to the physical & mental energy you need, to do the next activity. If you are fit and you have been taking care of yourself, you will have more activation energy available to you & can do so much more before you have exhausted your supply of activation energy. You are more resilient to change and transitions.

But if you have not been taking care of your whole self, or have let stress build up in your life…changes and transitions may quickly deplete your activation energy stores and prevent replenishing them. This may cause you to cut out some of the newer activities in your life, such as your fairly new exercise program or your healthier eating plan. The longer you have been doing something or the longer something is a part of your routine, the less activation energy it requires. The newer the activity, the more activation you need to transition to doing that activity. Habits hardly require ANY activation energy. A habit is practically a reflex.

So, in order to live our lives to our fullest potential and joy, we need to find ways to replenish & increase our activation energy stores on a regular basis. Our activation energy stores are directly proportional to our resilience. Our stores of activation energy and our resilience increases with certain healthy behaviors.

The goal is to find those unique things that you have control over that energize and replenish you, that nurture you and give you that boost. Then create a routine that incorporates some or all of those activities into your life regularly. Taking a walk after dinner on those days you eat dinner. Sitting with yourself and thinking about your day before you brush your teeth. Listening to classical music on the ride home from work. Sitting amongst greenery during lunch break. Jogging on the treadmill on waking in the morning. Hanging out with family. You find what works for you.

The longer you make that effort, the easier it will be to maintain that activity and the more activation energy you will develop and maintain and the more resilient you will be to change and transitions. Then, incorporating new changes or transitions into your life or managing your life when you are hit with a new stressor will not be as disruptive. You will be resilient and have sufficient activation energy to meet the demands of your daily transitions. In addition, you will have a reflexive response to replenish your activation stores. You will be able to continue to take care of yourself and you don’t have to let your good habits or good intentions fall to the side. This allows you the freedom to live your life to your fullest potential and full of joy.

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