On a recent episode of Good Morning America, they did a segment on hidden sugars in various foods. One of the foods was the GO LEAN bar by Kashi....sounds healthy enough right? Wrong.
The GO LEAN bar has as much sugar as FIFTEEN Hershey's kisses. Wow! I have to say I think that I'd rather have the kisses! Now, I know I've touched on this topic before but this deserves a quick review.
Five grams of sugar is equal to one teaspoon of sugar...
So, the next time you are eating a breakfast cereal or drinking a juice drink...look at the label! If it says that it has 25 grams of sugar then you are literally ingesting 5 teaspoons of sugar! Not necessarily what you had in mind for a glass of V-8 Fusion or that bowl of Raisin Bran Crunch?!
Not only that...a gram of sugar has four calories ... then 4 X 25=100 calories. Wow...bet you didn't realize that the 160 calorie juice drink is 63% sugar?!
So that's the bad news...the good news is that you can start over today...reading labels and making choices that make sense for your healthy lifestyle. Be especially aware of pseudo-healthy foods marketed towards children...they're usually loaded with sugar. Just remember...just because it sounds healthy doesn't mean it is!
Showing posts with label healthy holiday options. Show all posts
Showing posts with label healthy holiday options. Show all posts
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Two Weeks of Too Much ...
Here we are again...the most wonderful time of the year! Two weeks of eating, drinking, and doing TOO MUCH! A recent study reports that the average person gains seven pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years Day...yikes! Although I do have to admit that it's good for business, I would rather prospective clients live up to that statistic and that our current clients become an exception to that rule!
Did you know that seven pounds is equal to 24,500 calories? This year there are 34 days between Thanksgiving and the New Year...that means you would only have to over-consume 721 calories per day to gain those seven pounds! That's actually pretty easy to do! So here are a few strategies to help you avoid that Holiday Heft:
~Eat a snack before the party...that's right ruin your appetite with something healthy before you head out the door. Besides you don't want to be one of those party goers that stands next to the buffet like it's a trough!
~Drink plenty of water...all day long and alternate between every alcoholic drink. Unless, of course, you want to put that wreath around your head like you did last year.
~Graze don't gobble...when I was little, I was always told to clean my plate...so I would always save my favorites for last. Bad idea...eat your favorite foods first so that you don't force yourself to make it through everything on your plate just to get to the good stuff!
~Exercise every day...period! Don't make excuses for yourself! We're all busy but it just can't wait until the New Year. Do your exercise first before anything else. You will have more energy and feel better about yourself for the rest of the day. A thirty minute workout can burn up to 400 calories! A GREAT way to burn off those excess sausage balls and egg nog!
~But most of all have fun! Enjoy yourself this holiday and know that we will be here to whip you back into shape after you delete this email and reach for your next handful of Chex Mix...
Did you know that seven pounds is equal to 24,500 calories? This year there are 34 days between Thanksgiving and the New Year...that means you would only have to over-consume 721 calories per day to gain those seven pounds! That's actually pretty easy to do! So here are a few strategies to help you avoid that Holiday Heft:
~Eat a snack before the party...that's right ruin your appetite with something healthy before you head out the door. Besides you don't want to be one of those party goers that stands next to the buffet like it's a trough!
~Drink plenty of water...all day long and alternate between every alcoholic drink. Unless, of course, you want to put that wreath around your head like you did last year.
~Graze don't gobble...when I was little, I was always told to clean my plate...so I would always save my favorites for last. Bad idea...eat your favorite foods first so that you don't force yourself to make it through everything on your plate just to get to the good stuff!
~Exercise every day...period! Don't make excuses for yourself! We're all busy but it just can't wait until the New Year. Do your exercise first before anything else. You will have more energy and feel better about yourself for the rest of the day. A thirty minute workout can burn up to 400 calories! A GREAT way to burn off those excess sausage balls and egg nog!
~But most of all have fun! Enjoy yourself this holiday and know that we will be here to whip you back into shape after you delete this email and reach for your next handful of Chex Mix...
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Little Baby Fat Bombs ...
It's hard to believe that it's already the first week of November and the holidays are already upon us! I hope everyone had a Happy Halloween and didn't partake in too many little baby fat bombs...
"So what are little baby fat bombs" you ask?!? They are those innocent, little bite-sized pieces of candy that you supposedly bought for the trick or treaters but proceeded to eat yourself. It is really hard to believe how quickly these tasty little morsels can add up! Here's a look at the calorie count of just a few...
~Twizzlers- 1 treat size pkg.= 45 calories
~Almond Joy- 1 snack size bar= 90 calories
~Milk Duds- 1 treat size box= 40 calories
~Butterfinger- 1 snack size bar= 100 calories
~Milky Way- 1 snack size bar= 90 calories
~Reese cup- 1 minature cup= 36 calories
So...I ate seven minature Reese cups(among other things!!) That's 252 calories! That's more than two full-sized cups...which I never allow myself to have! No wonder I had such a Halloween hangover on Saturday!
Sometimes when I'm gorging myself...I visualize a gas pump display ticking away the calories in my stomach...just like it does the gallons of gas in your car tank. Then I begin to wonder just how much am I going to have to move to work all of those calories off...and is it really worth it?? In this instance, it really was worth it! But I bet we've all got a little bit of extra cardio work to do this week! See you at the gym!!
OH and by the way...if you've still got any of those little baby fat bombs lying around your house...get rid of them...FAST!
"So what are little baby fat bombs" you ask?!? They are those innocent, little bite-sized pieces of candy that you supposedly bought for the trick or treaters but proceeded to eat yourself. It is really hard to believe how quickly these tasty little morsels can add up! Here's a look at the calorie count of just a few...
~Twizzlers- 1 treat size pkg.= 45 calories
~Almond Joy- 1 snack size bar= 90 calories
~Milk Duds- 1 treat size box= 40 calories
~Butterfinger- 1 snack size bar= 100 calories
~Milky Way- 1 snack size bar= 90 calories
~Reese cup- 1 minature cup= 36 calories
So...I ate seven minature Reese cups(among other things!!) That's 252 calories! That's more than two full-sized cups...which I never allow myself to have! No wonder I had such a Halloween hangover on Saturday!
Sometimes when I'm gorging myself...I visualize a gas pump display ticking away the calories in my stomach...just like it does the gallons of gas in your car tank. Then I begin to wonder just how much am I going to have to move to work all of those calories off...and is it really worth it?? In this instance, it really was worth it! But I bet we've all got a little bit of extra cardio work to do this week! See you at the gym!!
OH and by the way...if you've still got any of those little baby fat bombs lying around your house...get rid of them...FAST!
Friday, December 7, 2007
Some Christmas Greenery...
The other night I was forced to take my mom to her favorite restaurant...Chili’s. She likes to get their Cobb Salad and even worse has herself convinced that this is somewhat healthy! Oh no!
That got me to thinking that we all kind of live by that “ignorance is bliss” nutrition regimen...so I went home and looked up Chili’s Cobb Salad on the internet. Would you believe that their Cobb Salad contains 970 calories and 60 grams of fat with 16 grams being saturated fat! Wow! Just for comparison I went to McDonald’s site and looked up the Big Mac. It contains 540 calories and 29 grams of fat with 10 grams being saturated fat.
So the moral of this story is NOT to go have a Big Mac! The moral is to be an educated consumer...ignorance is only bliss when it comes gas prices and global warming! Don’t be fooled by healthy sounding names or appearances. We all have enough knowledge under our belt to know when something is truly good for us or not. So when choosing your Christmas greenery here are some basic rules: 1. Make sure the salad contains at least 4 vegetables.
2. Have some healthy protein on top like grilled chicken or turkey.
3. Limit the fats (cheeses, nuts, crunchy things) to no more than three.
4. Choose a low fat dressing and have it on the side...
Oh and by the way...sorry Mom. Have a great weekend!!
That got me to thinking that we all kind of live by that “ignorance is bliss” nutrition regimen...so I went home and looked up Chili’s Cobb Salad on the internet. Would you believe that their Cobb Salad contains 970 calories and 60 grams of fat with 16 grams being saturated fat! Wow! Just for comparison I went to McDonald’s site and looked up the Big Mac. It contains 540 calories and 29 grams of fat with 10 grams being saturated fat.
So the moral of this story is NOT to go have a Big Mac! The moral is to be an educated consumer...ignorance is only bliss when it comes gas prices and global warming! Don’t be fooled by healthy sounding names or appearances. We all have enough knowledge under our belt to know when something is truly good for us or not. So when choosing your Christmas greenery here are some basic rules: 1. Make sure the salad contains at least 4 vegetables.
2. Have some healthy protein on top like grilled chicken or turkey.
3. Limit the fats (cheeses, nuts, crunchy things) to no more than three.
4. Choose a low fat dressing and have it on the side...
Oh and by the way...sorry Mom. Have a great weekend!!
Friday, November 16, 2007
Make Sure That the ONLY Thing Getting Stuffed This Year is the Turkey!
It’s that great time of year when we can all consume copious amounts of food and beverage and not feel any guilt...right?!
Here are a few painless tips to make your holiday a little healthier...
· Whole grains...pick whole wheat bread for your stuffing...put whole wheat rolls on the table...use brown rice in your recipes
· Low-fat dairy...with all of the other rich ingredients no one will notice if you use light butter, light sour cream and skim milk in your recipes.
· Broth not butter...use vegetable or chicken broth in your recipes and lighten up on the butter...the flavor is actually better.
· Get some exercise before and after the big feast...don’t make it rigorous, just enjoyable and then take a big ole’ nap!
· Be sure to eat breakfast everyday including the day of and the day after the gorge fest...it will regulate your metabolism and hopefully keep you from overdoing too much...
Above all else...enjoy yourself! It’s just one meal and you can undo the damage with your trainer next week! Have a great time...you know we will!
Here are a few painless tips to make your holiday a little healthier...
· Whole grains...pick whole wheat bread for your stuffing...put whole wheat rolls on the table...use brown rice in your recipes
· Low-fat dairy...with all of the other rich ingredients no one will notice if you use light butter, light sour cream and skim milk in your recipes.
· Broth not butter...use vegetable or chicken broth in your recipes and lighten up on the butter...the flavor is actually better.
· Get some exercise before and after the big feast...don’t make it rigorous, just enjoyable and then take a big ole’ nap!
· Be sure to eat breakfast everyday including the day of and the day after the gorge fest...it will regulate your metabolism and hopefully keep you from overdoing too much...
Above all else...enjoy yourself! It’s just one meal and you can undo the damage with your trainer next week! Have a great time...you know we will!
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