Appraising Your Success
The end of the week/month and year is a good time to review your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals, then focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently. You need a plan, not a hope, in order to be successful. If your plan isn’t working, it’s time to revise your plan.
How do you feel at the end of this week/month/year? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? If so, that’s great! Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll continue to experience all of these feelings! If not, just know that by living the SWEET Life, you will feel all these great feelings!
Topic of the week - Exercise Drudgery vs. Habit
One day when I lived in France in 1991, I went to my local hangout and told the very good-looking bartender that I had just gone running in the Bois du Bologne. He looked me straight in the eye and said, “Why!?” I was floored. I had five reasons off the top of my head, but, basically, running was pointless to him. I was reminded of this recently when a member at the health club where I’m a Fitness Trainer asked me about working out twice a day. My first thought was, “Why!?” If I had the time to exercise twice a day, there are a lot of other things I would prefer to do instead. Lastly, I have a friend who just joined a local gym and started working out with a Personal Trainer. She doesn’t like it and just wishes she didn’t have to exercise at all. So all this made me think about those people who feel exercise is drudgery and whose reaction to exercise is, “Why!?”
Therefore, my topic for this week is: Why I Exercise
1. To feel strong and physically capable
2. To eat whatever I want
3. To sleep better
4. To have energy
5. To be able to play actively with my kids
6. To solve all my problems
7. To have a good reason to shower
8. To wear any of my clothes and know it will fit
9. To know that, in the dressing room, if it doesn’t fit, it’s the cut of the clothes and not the shape of my body
10. One word: bikini
11. To feel relaxed afterwards (Tranquility)
12. To enjoy Alameda’s beautiful scenery
13. To be “medically boring” and not need any medications
14. To be healthy, with only ~2 colds per year
15. To have longevity
These are my personal reasons for exercising, with #1-2 being the most important reasons. #3-5 are strong secondary reasons for exercising, and the rest are additional reasons why I exercise. Doctors will give you more physiological reasons, like improved bone density, lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol levels, etc. As the New Year approaches, think about how you look and feel physically and what you might want to change about that in 2008, knowing that exercise is the way to change the way your body physically looks and feels. I remember in high school tying all my belts around my waist, thinking that would somehow make it smaller. It didn’t. Sit-ups do.
Happy New Year!
Suzanne
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Sunday, December 23, 2007
How to Have a SWEET Christmas
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week - How to Have a SWEET Christmas
Here, I expose my religious orientation, which is Christian. If you do not celebrate Christmas, you might be able to apply these ideas to a holiday that you do celebrate. If you do celebrate Christmas, here are some suggestions for how to have a SWEET Merry Christmas.
Sleep
If you have kids, tell them to go to bed early because the earlier they to go sleep, the earlier Santa will come. Also tell them they can’t leave their bedrooms until it’s light outside (~7:00 a.m.). Once it’s light, they should wake you up and only open their stockings before you are there (or whatever other restrictions you want to set). At the same time, you should also have your visit with Santa as early as possible (remember, gifts from Santa aren’t necessarily wrapped) so that you can go to bed early too. And don’t eat Santa’s cookies & milk just before bed because the sugar could give you strange dreams and disrupt your sleep.
Water
It’s easy to forget and to be too busy to drink water on Christmas day. Here are a few suggestions that might help you remember to hydrate yourself:
· Drink water each time you eat
· Drink water between alcoholic drinks
· If you’ll be at your own home, have a cup in the bathroom and drink some water each time you go in there.
Eating
Don’t “save up” and only eat Christmas dinner because of the “interest” that accrues when you starve yourself. You always hear that you’ll eat more at that one meal if you starve yourself beforehand. Well, I always thought that made sense because the extra calories at that one meal make up for not eating breakfast or lunch. However, what actually happens is that you “accrue interest” and end up eating more total daily calories and more fat, salt and sugar calories when you starve yourself then gorge yourself on one meal. Besides that, you will feel stuffed and uncomfortable for several hours after eating a huge meal.
Now that I’ve convinced you not to starve yourself all Christmas day, be conscientious to eat nutritiously during the other meals of the day. Eat small, simple meals of fruits and veggies and whole grains. These foods have a low glycemic index and a high nutrient content, which means they will keep your blood sugar (i.e., energy) level consistent and add the vitamins and minerals that you might miss in your big, Christmas dinner.
At the same time, and most importantly, enjoy your Christmas dinner! Like I said at Thanksgiving, serve yourself just a few bites-worth of each dish. If you don’t like something, don’t waste stomach space and calories by eating it. Just leave the rest, which will only be 1-2 bites-worth anyway. Holiday feasts tend to be high in protein, fat and high-calorie, low-nutrient carbs. Therefore, load up on any fruits and veggies that you can to get some balance in your nutritional load.
Another way to help control your eating is to wear close-fitting clothes with a belt to prevent yourself from eating too much. Remember the Hawaiians: they wore loose-fitting muumuus and weighed 300 lb. Don’t eat like a Hawaiian.
You’ll feel more comfortable and consume fewer calories and more healthy nutrients if you do the above.
Exercise
My first thought is: skip it; it’s Christmas!
However, my husband’s family likes to take a walk together after a noontime Christmas dinner. It’s actually very nice to get out in the fresh air and move around a bit after sitting around and eating so much. If the weather continues as is, we should have a beautiful sunny day for taking a nice family walk.
Tranquility
Tranquility could be an easy, natural part of Christmas.
Or Christmas could be stressful due to family relations, having too much to do, having too much to cook and prepare for the family, etc. If Christmas = stress, then you definitely need to plan some Tranquility into your day. It’s a great Christmas gift to yourself. Tell your family you need ½ hr. (or 1 hr.), so they know to leave you alone. Consider your schedule for the day, and decide if, mentally, you need it before the onslaught of Christmas or after it, in order to unwind from the day. Here are some examples:
· Go to church; ‘tis the reason for the season.
· Morning: take a bath with nice bath oil or salts, a candle, and peaceful Christmas music to start your day.
· Noon: After opening gifts with your immediate family and before your afternoon or evening extended family gathering, take a walk, or have a family “Quiet time” when everyone does something quietly, like read a book, newspaper, or magazine; play with new, quiet toys; watch a football game, etc.
· Evening: If your Christmas celebration ends by the early evening, it’s a good time to take a walk and enjoy the Christmas lights in your neighborhood, watch a Christmas movie, use a Christmas gift (if you received anything relaxing), etc.
Christmas should be a fun, happy celebration. It’s up to you to make sure you have a SWEET, wonderful day.
Merry Christmas!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week - How to Have a SWEET Christmas
Here, I expose my religious orientation, which is Christian. If you do not celebrate Christmas, you might be able to apply these ideas to a holiday that you do celebrate. If you do celebrate Christmas, here are some suggestions for how to have a SWEET Merry Christmas.
Sleep
If you have kids, tell them to go to bed early because the earlier they to go sleep, the earlier Santa will come. Also tell them they can’t leave their bedrooms until it’s light outside (~7:00 a.m.). Once it’s light, they should wake you up and only open their stockings before you are there (or whatever other restrictions you want to set). At the same time, you should also have your visit with Santa as early as possible (remember, gifts from Santa aren’t necessarily wrapped) so that you can go to bed early too. And don’t eat Santa’s cookies & milk just before bed because the sugar could give you strange dreams and disrupt your sleep.
Water
It’s easy to forget and to be too busy to drink water on Christmas day. Here are a few suggestions that might help you remember to hydrate yourself:
· Drink water each time you eat
· Drink water between alcoholic drinks
· If you’ll be at your own home, have a cup in the bathroom and drink some water each time you go in there.
Eating
Don’t “save up” and only eat Christmas dinner because of the “interest” that accrues when you starve yourself. You always hear that you’ll eat more at that one meal if you starve yourself beforehand. Well, I always thought that made sense because the extra calories at that one meal make up for not eating breakfast or lunch. However, what actually happens is that you “accrue interest” and end up eating more total daily calories and more fat, salt and sugar calories when you starve yourself then gorge yourself on one meal. Besides that, you will feel stuffed and uncomfortable for several hours after eating a huge meal.
Now that I’ve convinced you not to starve yourself all Christmas day, be conscientious to eat nutritiously during the other meals of the day. Eat small, simple meals of fruits and veggies and whole grains. These foods have a low glycemic index and a high nutrient content, which means they will keep your blood sugar (i.e., energy) level consistent and add the vitamins and minerals that you might miss in your big, Christmas dinner.
At the same time, and most importantly, enjoy your Christmas dinner! Like I said at Thanksgiving, serve yourself just a few bites-worth of each dish. If you don’t like something, don’t waste stomach space and calories by eating it. Just leave the rest, which will only be 1-2 bites-worth anyway. Holiday feasts tend to be high in protein, fat and high-calorie, low-nutrient carbs. Therefore, load up on any fruits and veggies that you can to get some balance in your nutritional load.
Another way to help control your eating is to wear close-fitting clothes with a belt to prevent yourself from eating too much. Remember the Hawaiians: they wore loose-fitting muumuus and weighed 300 lb. Don’t eat like a Hawaiian.
You’ll feel more comfortable and consume fewer calories and more healthy nutrients if you do the above.
Exercise
My first thought is: skip it; it’s Christmas!
However, my husband’s family likes to take a walk together after a noontime Christmas dinner. It’s actually very nice to get out in the fresh air and move around a bit after sitting around and eating so much. If the weather continues as is, we should have a beautiful sunny day for taking a nice family walk.
Tranquility
Tranquility could be an easy, natural part of Christmas.
Or Christmas could be stressful due to family relations, having too much to do, having too much to cook and prepare for the family, etc. If Christmas = stress, then you definitely need to plan some Tranquility into your day. It’s a great Christmas gift to yourself. Tell your family you need ½ hr. (or 1 hr.), so they know to leave you alone. Consider your schedule for the day, and decide if, mentally, you need it before the onslaught of Christmas or after it, in order to unwind from the day. Here are some examples:
· Go to church; ‘tis the reason for the season.
· Morning: take a bath with nice bath oil or salts, a candle, and peaceful Christmas music to start your day.
· Noon: After opening gifts with your immediate family and before your afternoon or evening extended family gathering, take a walk, or have a family “Quiet time” when everyone does something quietly, like read a book, newspaper, or magazine; play with new, quiet toys; watch a football game, etc.
· Evening: If your Christmas celebration ends by the early evening, it’s a good time to take a walk and enjoy the Christmas lights in your neighborhood, watch a Christmas movie, use a Christmas gift (if you received anything relaxing), etc.
Christmas should be a fun, happy celebration. It’s up to you to make sure you have a SWEET, wonderful day.
Merry Christmas!
Suzanne
Monday, December 17, 2007
How to Add Tranquility to Your Daily Routine
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to Add Tranquility to Your Daily Routine
The “T” in the SWEET Life is for Tranquility. It’s really about tension-reduction or stress-relief. As much as it would be nice to live in a constantly tranquil world, no one does. We all have stress in our lives; some of us have more stress than others. At the same time, some stress is within our control, but some is not. Because of that, it is important to have multiple methods of relieving your stress. Some people just accept that their lives are extremely stressful; those are the people who need methods of relieving stress the most!
Excessive stress over time can contribute to a variety of ailments, such as hypertension, strokes, heart attacks, diabetes, ulcers, neck or low back pain. Stress can negatively affect many aspects of the SWEET Life as well. Stress can cause insomnia, as you think about what is stressing you, rather than sleep. Stress can cause you not to pay attention to drinking your daily water. Stress can cause you to eat “comfort” foods, especially those high in salt, sugar, and fat, rather than eating a variety of nutritious foods. Stress can cause you not to exercise, convincing yourself that you don’t have time for it. And thus the downward spiral of stress makes you not live any aspects of the SWEET Life.
Everyone needs multiple, healthy methods of relieving stress because, depending on the situation, we can’t always do our preferred method. Personally, exercise is my preferred method of relieving stress. A 3-mile run can solve all my problems because it gives me time for my mind to wander, absorb whatever’s on my mind, and find solutions to any problems. However, if it’s night time or raining, I can’t run, so I need other methods. Journaling also works for me; writing down whatever is on my mind helps me clarify what is causing stress and work out solutions. Some people prefer calming types of stress-relief like a bath, yoga, listening to relaxing music, meditation, etc. Others prefer hobbies, such as knitting, baking, painting, etc. to help them relieve stress and find tranquility. Others prefer more active pursuits, like exercise, playing with their kids, driving, gardening, etc. What’s important is to find healthy things to do, rather than alcohol, drugs, shopping, etc. It’s also important to find a variety of things that will make you feel tranquil to do in different circumstances.
Lastly, it’s important to spend time every day in tranquility. A mere 30-minutes a day will go far in helping you relax, relieve stress and find tranquility. An hour a day is even better.
The following web pages are excellent sources of information about stress:
http://www.stress.org/americas.htm
http://www.stress.org/topic-reduction.htm?AIS=6934505de631c228b165483c7f4652c7
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to Add Tranquility to Your Daily Routine
The “T” in the SWEET Life is for Tranquility. It’s really about tension-reduction or stress-relief. As much as it would be nice to live in a constantly tranquil world, no one does. We all have stress in our lives; some of us have more stress than others. At the same time, some stress is within our control, but some is not. Because of that, it is important to have multiple methods of relieving your stress. Some people just accept that their lives are extremely stressful; those are the people who need methods of relieving stress the most!
Excessive stress over time can contribute to a variety of ailments, such as hypertension, strokes, heart attacks, diabetes, ulcers, neck or low back pain. Stress can negatively affect many aspects of the SWEET Life as well. Stress can cause insomnia, as you think about what is stressing you, rather than sleep. Stress can cause you not to pay attention to drinking your daily water. Stress can cause you to eat “comfort” foods, especially those high in salt, sugar, and fat, rather than eating a variety of nutritious foods. Stress can cause you not to exercise, convincing yourself that you don’t have time for it. And thus the downward spiral of stress makes you not live any aspects of the SWEET Life.
Everyone needs multiple, healthy methods of relieving stress because, depending on the situation, we can’t always do our preferred method. Personally, exercise is my preferred method of relieving stress. A 3-mile run can solve all my problems because it gives me time for my mind to wander, absorb whatever’s on my mind, and find solutions to any problems. However, if it’s night time or raining, I can’t run, so I need other methods. Journaling also works for me; writing down whatever is on my mind helps me clarify what is causing stress and work out solutions. Some people prefer calming types of stress-relief like a bath, yoga, listening to relaxing music, meditation, etc. Others prefer hobbies, such as knitting, baking, painting, etc. to help them relieve stress and find tranquility. Others prefer more active pursuits, like exercise, playing with their kids, driving, gardening, etc. What’s important is to find healthy things to do, rather than alcohol, drugs, shopping, etc. It’s also important to find a variety of things that will make you feel tranquil to do in different circumstances.
Lastly, it’s important to spend time every day in tranquility. A mere 30-minutes a day will go far in helping you relax, relieve stress and find tranquility. An hour a day is even better.
The following web pages are excellent sources of information about stress:
http://www.stress.org/americas.htm
http://www.stress.org/topic-reduction.htm?AIS=6934505de631c228b165483c7f4652c7
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Sunday, December 9, 2007
How to add exercise to your daily routine
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to add exercise to your daily routine
If you don’t have the habit of exercising regularly, the task of adding daily exercise may seem daunting. However, you may be surprised to find that it takes less time to add the recommended amount of daily exercise than it does to add enough sleep to get the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep (if you only sleep 5-6 hours)!
The official recommendation for exercise is: “Adults should engage in moderate-intensity physical activities for at least 30 minutes on 5 or more days of the week,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/American College of Sports Medicine. Some physical benefits of exercise are: a stronger heart and respiratory system, stronger bones, decreased body fat, increased functional ability, increased calorie burn, increased metabolism, increased energy, increased lean body mass, relief of muscle soreness, improved posture, improved self-discipline, and improved quality of life.
Some disease-related benefits of exercise are: lower blood pressure, increased HDL (good cholesterol), improved cholesterol ratio, improved immune function, improved glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, decreased resting heart rate, and decreased risk of injury.
There are always a lot of little things you can do to add physical activity to your day: park at the far end of the parking lot, take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator, do 2 minutes of toning exercises during the commercial breaks of your favorite TV show, hop on any stationary cardio machine (treadmill, elliptical, bike, etc.) while watching your favorite TV show, sit on a stability ball at your desk (either at home or at work), take a 30-minute walk during lunch, walk anywhere that’s less than ½ mile away rather than drive there, etc.
Some physical activities might even seem pleasant, like taking a walk with your family after dinner, going for a swim on a hot day, going for a walk, hike or bike ride with family or friends on the weekends, or playing in the park with your kids (rather than watching them play from a bench). It’s important to do something that you enjoy; otherwise, you won’t follow through.
Decide what time of the day will work best for you to exercise, and set up an appointment with yourself for exercise. For a year, I’ve been exercising at 6 a.m. so that I could finish before my husband left for work. Now I’m burning out and having a hard time getting up that early, so I’ve decided to exercise in the middle of the afternoon while my girls are napping. The point is to set up a specific time and follow through as if it were an appointment for a job interview: don’t back out on yourself!
Also, decide what types of exercise you will do on which days; you need cardio, muscle toning, and flexibility. Stretching is good to do after all types of exercise. Beyond that, you can either segregate or combine cardio and toning exercises. However, your muscles need a rest after the fatigue of toning exercises, so be sure to work the same muscle groups only once per 48 hours. If you want to combine cardio and toning exercises every day, just make sure to tone different muscles on different days. Alternatively, you can do toning exercises every other day. You can do cardio and flexibility every day.
In addition, exercise benefits the other aspects of the SWEET Life in these ways: improved Sleep, increased thirst (i.e., you need to drink more Water), increased metabolism (i.e., you can Eat more), and decreased stress (i.e., increased Tranquility). Add exercise to your daily routine and reap the benefits!
Sources:
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/physical/recommendations/index.htm
http://www.fitness.gov/fitness.htm
Yoke, Mary. ((2003). A Guide to Personal Fitness Training, Revised Edition. Aerobics and Fitness Association of America: Sherman Oaks.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to add exercise to your daily routine
If you don’t have the habit of exercising regularly, the task of adding daily exercise may seem daunting. However, you may be surprised to find that it takes less time to add the recommended amount of daily exercise than it does to add enough sleep to get the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep (if you only sleep 5-6 hours)!
The official recommendation for exercise is: “Adults should engage in moderate-intensity physical activities for at least 30 minutes on 5 or more days of the week,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/American College of Sports Medicine. Some physical benefits of exercise are: a stronger heart and respiratory system, stronger bones, decreased body fat, increased functional ability, increased calorie burn, increased metabolism, increased energy, increased lean body mass, relief of muscle soreness, improved posture, improved self-discipline, and improved quality of life.
Some disease-related benefits of exercise are: lower blood pressure, increased HDL (good cholesterol), improved cholesterol ratio, improved immune function, improved glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, decreased resting heart rate, and decreased risk of injury.
There are always a lot of little things you can do to add physical activity to your day: park at the far end of the parking lot, take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator, do 2 minutes of toning exercises during the commercial breaks of your favorite TV show, hop on any stationary cardio machine (treadmill, elliptical, bike, etc.) while watching your favorite TV show, sit on a stability ball at your desk (either at home or at work), take a 30-minute walk during lunch, walk anywhere that’s less than ½ mile away rather than drive there, etc.
Some physical activities might even seem pleasant, like taking a walk with your family after dinner, going for a swim on a hot day, going for a walk, hike or bike ride with family or friends on the weekends, or playing in the park with your kids (rather than watching them play from a bench). It’s important to do something that you enjoy; otherwise, you won’t follow through.
Decide what time of the day will work best for you to exercise, and set up an appointment with yourself for exercise. For a year, I’ve been exercising at 6 a.m. so that I could finish before my husband left for work. Now I’m burning out and having a hard time getting up that early, so I’ve decided to exercise in the middle of the afternoon while my girls are napping. The point is to set up a specific time and follow through as if it were an appointment for a job interview: don’t back out on yourself!
Also, decide what types of exercise you will do on which days; you need cardio, muscle toning, and flexibility. Stretching is good to do after all types of exercise. Beyond that, you can either segregate or combine cardio and toning exercises. However, your muscles need a rest after the fatigue of toning exercises, so be sure to work the same muscle groups only once per 48 hours. If you want to combine cardio and toning exercises every day, just make sure to tone different muscles on different days. Alternatively, you can do toning exercises every other day. You can do cardio and flexibility every day.
In addition, exercise benefits the other aspects of the SWEET Life in these ways: improved Sleep, increased thirst (i.e., you need to drink more Water), increased metabolism (i.e., you can Eat more), and decreased stress (i.e., increased Tranquility). Add exercise to your daily routine and reap the benefits!
Sources:
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/physical/recommendations/index.htm
http://www.fitness.gov/fitness.htm
Yoke, Mary. ((2003). A Guide to Personal Fitness Training, Revised Edition. Aerobics and Fitness Association of America: Sherman Oaks.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Recipe: Hearty Rice Skillet
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Recipe: Hearty Rice Skillet
Here’s a recipe for an easy, low-fat, all-in-one meal. It has beans for protein, mixed veggies, and brown rice. It has a stew-like consistency and is great with bread. It’s a little sweet, which is why the recipe calls for hot pepper sauce; however, don’t include that if you’re serving it to kids. To lower the sodium content, use low sodium versions of the ingredients.
Hearty Rice Skillet
Prep: 5 min. Cook: 20 min.
1 15-oz. can black, garbanzo, or kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups loose-pack frozen mixed vegetables
1 14-oz. can stewed tomatoes, cut up
1 cup water
¾ cup quick-cooking brown rice
½ teaspoon dried thyme, crushed, or dried dill weed
Several dashes bottled hot pepper sauce (optional)
1 10-oz. can condensed tomato soup
1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted
½ cup shredded mozzarella or cheddar cheese (2 oz.)
In a large skillet stir together beans, vegetables, undrained tomatoes, water, uncooked rice, thyme or dill weed, and, if desired, hot pepper sauce. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 12-14 minutes or till rice is tender.
Stir in soup; heat through. Before serving, sprinkle with almonds and cheese. Makes 4 main dish servings.
Nutrition Facts per serving: 329 cal, 9 g total fat (2 g sat fat), 8 mg chol, 1206 mg sodium, 53 g carbo, 7 g fiber, 18 g protein. Daily Values: 39% vit. A, 81% vit. C, 16% calcium, 24% iron
Source: Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book 11th ed. (1996). Meredith Corporation: Des Moines, p. 61.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Recipe: Hearty Rice Skillet
Here’s a recipe for an easy, low-fat, all-in-one meal. It has beans for protein, mixed veggies, and brown rice. It has a stew-like consistency and is great with bread. It’s a little sweet, which is why the recipe calls for hot pepper sauce; however, don’t include that if you’re serving it to kids. To lower the sodium content, use low sodium versions of the ingredients.
Hearty Rice Skillet
Prep: 5 min. Cook: 20 min.
1 15-oz. can black, garbanzo, or kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups loose-pack frozen mixed vegetables
1 14-oz. can stewed tomatoes, cut up
1 cup water
¾ cup quick-cooking brown rice
½ teaspoon dried thyme, crushed, or dried dill weed
Several dashes bottled hot pepper sauce (optional)
1 10-oz. can condensed tomato soup
1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted
½ cup shredded mozzarella or cheddar cheese (2 oz.)
In a large skillet stir together beans, vegetables, undrained tomatoes, water, uncooked rice, thyme or dill weed, and, if desired, hot pepper sauce. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 12-14 minutes or till rice is tender.
Stir in soup; heat through. Before serving, sprinkle with almonds and cheese. Makes 4 main dish servings.
Nutrition Facts per serving: 329 cal, 9 g total fat (2 g sat fat), 8 mg chol, 1206 mg sodium, 53 g carbo, 7 g fiber, 18 g protein. Daily Values: 39% vit. A, 81% vit. C, 16% calcium, 24% iron
Source: Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book 11th ed. (1996). Meredith Corporation: Des Moines, p. 61.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Healthy Snacks and Appetizers
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Healthy Snacks and Appetizers
Eating snacks between meals is a great way to prevent yourself from feeling starving and overeating at your next meal. Snacks need to be quick and easy to eat without any preparation, and I like to eat snacks that are 100-200 calories. That’s enough to tide me over until the next meal, but not enough to count as a meal.
Here are some suggestions:
· Whole grain crackers
· Low fat cheese
· Whole grain pretzels dipped in low fat cottage cheese
· Veggies dipped in hummus
· Fruit
· A handful of nuts
· A handful of raisins or other dried fruit
· Low fat yogurt, but read the ingredients because some have a lot of sugar
· Turkey & cheese roll-ups (just a slice of each rolled up together)
· A hard-boiled egg
Energy bars are a great snack if you buy nutritionally balanced ones. There are a lot out there, and many are close to eating either a candy bar or dry toast. Read the labels carefully, looking for a balance of carbs, protein and fat. Ones with healthy ingredients (as opposed to lots of chemicals) are a good idea as well. I suggest ones with about 200 calories, which you could break in half if you only wanted to eat 100 calories. They are non-perishable and individually wrapped, which makes them very easy to tote around with you.
When you are out & about, it is hard to find healthy snacks, which is why it’s a good idea to carry some with you. I generally wouldn’t consider anything at a café to be healthy, unless they sell a piece of fruit.
Do you have any other snack suggestions? I’d love to hear them.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Healthy Snacks and Appetizers
Eating snacks between meals is a great way to prevent yourself from feeling starving and overeating at your next meal. Snacks need to be quick and easy to eat without any preparation, and I like to eat snacks that are 100-200 calories. That’s enough to tide me over until the next meal, but not enough to count as a meal.
Here are some suggestions:
· Whole grain crackers
· Low fat cheese
· Whole grain pretzels dipped in low fat cottage cheese
· Veggies dipped in hummus
· Fruit
· A handful of nuts
· A handful of raisins or other dried fruit
· Low fat yogurt, but read the ingredients because some have a lot of sugar
· Turkey & cheese roll-ups (just a slice of each rolled up together)
· A hard-boiled egg
Energy bars are a great snack if you buy nutritionally balanced ones. There are a lot out there, and many are close to eating either a candy bar or dry toast. Read the labels carefully, looking for a balance of carbs, protein and fat. Ones with healthy ingredients (as opposed to lots of chemicals) are a good idea as well. I suggest ones with about 200 calories, which you could break in half if you only wanted to eat 100 calories. They are non-perishable and individually wrapped, which makes them very easy to tote around with you.
When you are out & about, it is hard to find healthy snacks, which is why it’s a good idea to carry some with you. I generally wouldn’t consider anything at a café to be healthy, unless they sell a piece of fruit.
Do you have any other snack suggestions? I’d love to hear them.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Traveling and the SWEET Life
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Traveling and the SWEET Life
As Thanksgiving and the holidays approach, many people will visit family in other places. Late night parties and sleeping in an unfamiliar bed can sabotage your efforts to sleep 7-8 hours. Also, you will likely get out of your water-drinking habit with the change from your usual routine. Moreover, you will eat in a lot of restaurants and at family banquets. Lastly, you will be away from your usual exercise routine. However, you will probably get more tranquility and relaxation than usual. In short, being away from your routine at home can be disastrous to the SWEET Life.
So how can you have a relatively SWEET Life while traveling?
Sleep: Try to go to bed and get up at your regular bedtimes, despite any changes in the time zone. Earplugs and an eye mask can work wonders in blocking out unfamiliar lights and sounds.
Water: Drinking from 16 oz. bottles may likely be the easiest way to keep track of your water intake because you can carry it with you. You may have to spend some money to buy them around here and there, but you may be able to refill them at a drinking fountain or relative’s house.
Eating: Start with a basic, healthy breakfast, and keep meals without family and friends simple and nutritious. You will likely be eating a number of family banquets, so eat only a little of each dish, 2-3 bites, and load up on the veggies. You can get tired of eating so many big, holiday meals, so eat balanced, nutritious meals in between the feasts.
Exercise: I don’t have enough fingers and toes to count the number of times I’ve taken workout clothes on a trip and not used them. While, on some vacations, it’s easy to take long, beautiful walks, on other trips, exercise is definitely more of an effort, possibly against everyone else’s will.
My advice about vacation exercise frequency is the following: If it’s a 2-day trip: skip it, but try to exercise the days before and afterwards. If the trip is 3-4 days: try to exercise once, so that you are not skipping half a week. If the trip lasts 5-7 days: exercise 2-3 times; if it lasts 8-10 days: exercise 3-5 times. For a trip lasting 11-14 days: exercise 5-7 times. Basically, I’m suggesting you exercise every other day. However, you can’t just “say” or “try” to exercise; you must plan it like an appointment or else it’ll never happen. Look at your trip schedule and decide, at the beginning, which days and times you will exercise; then stick to it.
The next question is where you will exercise. If you belong to a gym, see if there’s a location near you (& remember to bring your card). If your gym belongs to the IHRSA (International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association), you can use its passport program to be a guest at a member club where you will be traveling. Go to: http://healthclubs.com/find.html to find out if your gym is a member and to find a gym in the city where you will be visiting. If you don’t belong to a gym, most hotels have fitness centers in them or agreements with local health clubs for their guests to use their facilities.
If you prefer not to work out in a gym, suggest taking a walk with family or friends (instead of eating out another meal!). Another option is to find a nearby park or scenic area where you can go for a walk, hike or run. Last summer while visiting family, I found a park near our hotel where I could run while my husband played with our kids at the playground. It worked out great for everyone!
Another option is to do some toning exercises in your room. You don’t need much space or any special equipment to do some lunges, squats, push-ups, tricep dips and sit-ups. Find a curb or step and do some calf raises. Bring a resistance band with you (they don’t take much space) and you can do some bicep curls, lateral raises, and low & high rows. Spending just 30-40 minutes will help you burn off some of those holiday feasts, feel better about yourself, and help you keep living the SWEET Life while on vacation.
Tranquility: The best part of visiting family is that you will probably get lots of rest and relaxation. At the same time, visiting relatives can get overwhelming. Take some time out to be alone, if you need it. The morning might be the best time, before you meet up with anyone: read the paper or a book, take a bath, etc.
Other general suggestions are to bring your SWEET Life Plan to help you keep track of your SWEET Life quantities. If it’s an extended trip, say a week or longer, bring your SWEET Life Cycle and check off which aspects of the SWEET Life you are completing each day. As you know, a lot of the SWEET Life is just paying attention and being aware, so if these tools help you keep the SWEET Life in mind while traveling, then take them along; they don’t take much space in your luggage.
If you have the SWEET Life habit, then a week off of it will break your hard-earned habit. Don’t let traveling prevent you from having the SWEET Life!
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Traveling and the SWEET Life
As Thanksgiving and the holidays approach, many people will visit family in other places. Late night parties and sleeping in an unfamiliar bed can sabotage your efforts to sleep 7-8 hours. Also, you will likely get out of your water-drinking habit with the change from your usual routine. Moreover, you will eat in a lot of restaurants and at family banquets. Lastly, you will be away from your usual exercise routine. However, you will probably get more tranquility and relaxation than usual. In short, being away from your routine at home can be disastrous to the SWEET Life.
So how can you have a relatively SWEET Life while traveling?
Sleep: Try to go to bed and get up at your regular bedtimes, despite any changes in the time zone. Earplugs and an eye mask can work wonders in blocking out unfamiliar lights and sounds.
Water: Drinking from 16 oz. bottles may likely be the easiest way to keep track of your water intake because you can carry it with you. You may have to spend some money to buy them around here and there, but you may be able to refill them at a drinking fountain or relative’s house.
Eating: Start with a basic, healthy breakfast, and keep meals without family and friends simple and nutritious. You will likely be eating a number of family banquets, so eat only a little of each dish, 2-3 bites, and load up on the veggies. You can get tired of eating so many big, holiday meals, so eat balanced, nutritious meals in between the feasts.
Exercise: I don’t have enough fingers and toes to count the number of times I’ve taken workout clothes on a trip and not used them. While, on some vacations, it’s easy to take long, beautiful walks, on other trips, exercise is definitely more of an effort, possibly against everyone else’s will.
My advice about vacation exercise frequency is the following: If it’s a 2-day trip: skip it, but try to exercise the days before and afterwards. If the trip is 3-4 days: try to exercise once, so that you are not skipping half a week. If the trip lasts 5-7 days: exercise 2-3 times; if it lasts 8-10 days: exercise 3-5 times. For a trip lasting 11-14 days: exercise 5-7 times. Basically, I’m suggesting you exercise every other day. However, you can’t just “say” or “try” to exercise; you must plan it like an appointment or else it’ll never happen. Look at your trip schedule and decide, at the beginning, which days and times you will exercise; then stick to it.
The next question is where you will exercise. If you belong to a gym, see if there’s a location near you (& remember to bring your card). If your gym belongs to the IHRSA (International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association), you can use its passport program to be a guest at a member club where you will be traveling. Go to: http://healthclubs.com/find.html to find out if your gym is a member and to find a gym in the city where you will be visiting. If you don’t belong to a gym, most hotels have fitness centers in them or agreements with local health clubs for their guests to use their facilities.
If you prefer not to work out in a gym, suggest taking a walk with family or friends (instead of eating out another meal!). Another option is to find a nearby park or scenic area where you can go for a walk, hike or run. Last summer while visiting family, I found a park near our hotel where I could run while my husband played with our kids at the playground. It worked out great for everyone!
Another option is to do some toning exercises in your room. You don’t need much space or any special equipment to do some lunges, squats, push-ups, tricep dips and sit-ups. Find a curb or step and do some calf raises. Bring a resistance band with you (they don’t take much space) and you can do some bicep curls, lateral raises, and low & high rows. Spending just 30-40 minutes will help you burn off some of those holiday feasts, feel better about yourself, and help you keep living the SWEET Life while on vacation.
Tranquility: The best part of visiting family is that you will probably get lots of rest and relaxation. At the same time, visiting relatives can get overwhelming. Take some time out to be alone, if you need it. The morning might be the best time, before you meet up with anyone: read the paper or a book, take a bath, etc.
Other general suggestions are to bring your SWEET Life Plan to help you keep track of your SWEET Life quantities. If it’s an extended trip, say a week or longer, bring your SWEET Life Cycle and check off which aspects of the SWEET Life you are completing each day. As you know, a lot of the SWEET Life is just paying attention and being aware, so if these tools help you keep the SWEET Life in mind while traveling, then take them along; they don’t take much space in your luggage.
If you have the SWEET Life habit, then a week off of it will break your hard-earned habit. Don’t let traveling prevent you from having the SWEET Life!
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Conquering Holiday Feasts & Goodies
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Conquering Holiday Feasts & Goodies
The two months between Halloween and New Year’s Day are filled with special foods and sweets. As such, you need to make a plan for how you are going to face all those temptations. Don’t deprive yourself of these special holiday indulgences, but go in with a plan.
One holiday control plan is to enjoy each holiday, but to maintain your regular healthy eating plan, along with the other elements of the SWEET Life, all the other days in between holidays. That makes about four days of being gluttonous, depending on which holidays you celebrate, rather than 60 days! In the scope of 60 days, those four days will be insignificant.
Some “at the moment” ideas for holiday party control are the following:
· Don’t starve yourself all day to “save up” calories. You’ll be so hungry by the time you eat that you’ll eat more than you would have if you’d eaten a regular meal a few hours beforehand.
· Serve or offer to bring “relishes” as an appetizer. Carrot, celery, and cucumber sticks; cherry tomatoes, radishes, bell pepper strips, etc. with hummus for dipping are a healthy way to stave off those hunger pangs while waiting for people to gather and the meal to begin.
· “Select,” don’t “select all,” at the buffet. Make yourself a meal of protein, grains and vegetables, rather than a little bit of everything. Think of a buffet like a deli counter: as much as everything looks good, you only choose a few things to make your meal.
· Only serve yourself 2-3 bites of each food. That way, if you don’t like something, you can leave the rest without wasting a lot of food. It also allows you to try more foods, if you’re so inclined.
· Thanksgiving is typically weak in vegetables, so eat all you can.
· Don’t waste stomach space and calories on bad food. If you have kids, you know that food they don’t like immediately comes back out. As adults, we are polite enough to swallow that bite, but don’t go thinking the second bite will somehow taste better.
· Don’t “eat all you can” (unless it’s veggies).
What about all those sweets people give you when they drop by? Pay them forward: Serve them to guests who drop by or take them to people’s houses that you visit. Just because people give them to you doesn’t mean that you, personally, have to eat them all!
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Conquering Holiday Feasts & Goodies
The two months between Halloween and New Year’s Day are filled with special foods and sweets. As such, you need to make a plan for how you are going to face all those temptations. Don’t deprive yourself of these special holiday indulgences, but go in with a plan.
One holiday control plan is to enjoy each holiday, but to maintain your regular healthy eating plan, along with the other elements of the SWEET Life, all the other days in between holidays. That makes about four days of being gluttonous, depending on which holidays you celebrate, rather than 60 days! In the scope of 60 days, those four days will be insignificant.
Some “at the moment” ideas for holiday party control are the following:
· Don’t starve yourself all day to “save up” calories. You’ll be so hungry by the time you eat that you’ll eat more than you would have if you’d eaten a regular meal a few hours beforehand.
· Serve or offer to bring “relishes” as an appetizer. Carrot, celery, and cucumber sticks; cherry tomatoes, radishes, bell pepper strips, etc. with hummus for dipping are a healthy way to stave off those hunger pangs while waiting for people to gather and the meal to begin.
· “Select,” don’t “select all,” at the buffet. Make yourself a meal of protein, grains and vegetables, rather than a little bit of everything. Think of a buffet like a deli counter: as much as everything looks good, you only choose a few things to make your meal.
· Only serve yourself 2-3 bites of each food. That way, if you don’t like something, you can leave the rest without wasting a lot of food. It also allows you to try more foods, if you’re so inclined.
· Thanksgiving is typically weak in vegetables, so eat all you can.
· Don’t waste stomach space and calories on bad food. If you have kids, you know that food they don’t like immediately comes back out. As adults, we are polite enough to swallow that bite, but don’t go thinking the second bite will somehow taste better.
· Don’t “eat all you can” (unless it’s veggies).
What about all those sweets people give you when they drop by? Pay them forward: Serve them to guests who drop by or take them to people’s houses that you visit. Just because people give them to you doesn’t mean that you, personally, have to eat them all!
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
How to add water to your daily routine
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to add water to your daily routine
If you are not used to drinking a lot of fluids throughout your day, adding 8-10 cups of water a day could seem overwhelming, as could the trips to the bathroom caused by such an increase in fluid intake. However, your body has an incredible power to adapt to the circumstances given to it, for better or for worse. Within a couples weeks of adding water to your daily routine, you won’t have to use the restroom as often. In addition, you might find that you weigh a pound or two less because your body will stop holding on to extra water, once it’s convinced that it will continue receiving ample water.
There are many different ways to make sure you drink your 8-10 cups of water. You can drink it warm, cold or on ice; the temperature doesn’t matter. Personally, I like to fill a 2 quart pitcher in the morning, knowing I need to finish it by the end of the day. I drink it out of a tall glass, which I refill from the pitcher as soon as it’s empty. People on the go might prefer to drink water by the standard 16 oz. bottle, knowing they need to finish 4-5 of them throughout the day. The bottle is small enough to fit in a purse, computer bag, etc., and the amount in a 16-oz. bottle isn’t overwhelming. On the other hand, if you don’t want to use so many bottles, you can carry around a 2-liter bottle, which you only need to finish once. Another way to drink your water, without having to carry it around all the time, is to drink a tall glass (16-oz.) with each meal, plus a cup (8-oz.) with your multi-vitamin, and at least one other cup sometime between meals. Furthermore, be sure to drink water before, during and/or after exercising. Your body needs one cup per 15-min. of cardio exercise.
Remember, too, that all fluids count, not only water. This includes the fluids in foods (i.e., soup, fruit, tomatoes, etc.) and, of course, all beverages. However, limit caffeine and alcohol intake to one cup per day because research shows that a cup a day is beneficial to your health but that more than that is harmful to your health. In the end, water is best because it contains no calories, sugar, caffeine, alcohol or other unhealthy ingredients.
In the end, be sure to drink your water, especially during these winter months when heaters can really sap your hydration.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to add water to your daily routine
If you are not used to drinking a lot of fluids throughout your day, adding 8-10 cups of water a day could seem overwhelming, as could the trips to the bathroom caused by such an increase in fluid intake. However, your body has an incredible power to adapt to the circumstances given to it, for better or for worse. Within a couples weeks of adding water to your daily routine, you won’t have to use the restroom as often. In addition, you might find that you weigh a pound or two less because your body will stop holding on to extra water, once it’s convinced that it will continue receiving ample water.
There are many different ways to make sure you drink your 8-10 cups of water. You can drink it warm, cold or on ice; the temperature doesn’t matter. Personally, I like to fill a 2 quart pitcher in the morning, knowing I need to finish it by the end of the day. I drink it out of a tall glass, which I refill from the pitcher as soon as it’s empty. People on the go might prefer to drink water by the standard 16 oz. bottle, knowing they need to finish 4-5 of them throughout the day. The bottle is small enough to fit in a purse, computer bag, etc., and the amount in a 16-oz. bottle isn’t overwhelming. On the other hand, if you don’t want to use so many bottles, you can carry around a 2-liter bottle, which you only need to finish once. Another way to drink your water, without having to carry it around all the time, is to drink a tall glass (16-oz.) with each meal, plus a cup (8-oz.) with your multi-vitamin, and at least one other cup sometime between meals. Furthermore, be sure to drink water before, during and/or after exercising. Your body needs one cup per 15-min. of cardio exercise.
Remember, too, that all fluids count, not only water. This includes the fluids in foods (i.e., soup, fruit, tomatoes, etc.) and, of course, all beverages. However, limit caffeine and alcohol intake to one cup per day because research shows that a cup a day is beneficial to your health but that more than that is harmful to your health. In the end, water is best because it contains no calories, sugar, caffeine, alcohol or other unhealthy ingredients.
In the end, be sure to drink your water, especially during these winter months when heaters can really sap your hydration.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Enjoying Halloween without eating all the candy
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Enjoying Halloween without eating all the candy
As a Personal Trainer, you might expect me to say not to eat any Halloween candy. However, if you know me personally, you know I love chocolate! I always say, “Everything in moderation, with the emphasis on everything.” That includes Halloween candy.
Halloween, however, is merely the beginning of the two-month-long holiday season, ending on New Year’s Day. As such, this is the beginning of making a holiday plan for health maintenance, so that you don’t gain any holiday weight. Making a plan now, and following it for the next two months, will prevent you from having that dreaded feeling on New Year’s Day that you have to start a health kick.
However, this week we are going to focus on Halloween. There are many ways to avoid overindulging on Halloween candy. You don’t need to follow every idea, just decide which idea(s) will work best for you and follow through.
It’s important to consider both the amount of candy you are going to eat and the amount of time you will give yourself to eat it. You might decide that since October 31 is the actual holiday, you will only indulge in candy on that day. At the same time, you can go intensive or extensive, for example, all the candy you want to eat, but only on Halloween day vs. one piece of candy a day for a week following Halloween. Do whatever works for you, but decide on your plan in advance and follow through.
If you’re single and don’t live in an area with kids, you don’t have to worry about Halloween candy, right? No kids come to your door, and you’re probably out at a party where you are more likely drinking than eating candy anyway. Why don’t you have to worry about eating too much candy? Because it’s for the kids.
Remembering that the candy is for the trick-or-treaters might help you avoid eating too much. That being said, don’t steal your kids’ candy! Set a good example, if you have kids, of not eating too much, of sharing, and of not stealing other people’s candy. That means, you ask your child politely for a piece, just like you would want your child to ask, and you don’t sneak into another room to eat some, just like you wouldn’t want your child to do. Those things will definitely prevent you from overindulging!
Another thing to do to avoid eating Halloween candy is to buy candy you don’t like; then there’s no temptation.
November 1, to prevent the temptation of candy at home, many people will take it to the office. That’s a great way to get it out of the house; however, remember that it’s basically someone else’s trash. It’s not there for you to eat; it’s there to prevent someone else from eating it at home. And it’s usually not the good stuff; that’s already saved or gone; it’s the junk candy that no one in the house likes, so don’t eat someone else’s junk. Only eat good Halloween candy.
Finally, probably the best idea is to donate your leftover Halloween candy to hospitalized kids who couldn’t go trick-or-treating. Find out from your local hospital how you can do this. The kids will be thrilled, and you’ll feel good too.
The next two months of holidays are filled with special foods and sweets. Plan now how you are going to face all those temptations. Don’t deprive yourself, but make a plan and follow your plan.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Enjoying Halloween without eating all the candy
As a Personal Trainer, you might expect me to say not to eat any Halloween candy. However, if you know me personally, you know I love chocolate! I always say, “Everything in moderation, with the emphasis on everything.” That includes Halloween candy.
Halloween, however, is merely the beginning of the two-month-long holiday season, ending on New Year’s Day. As such, this is the beginning of making a holiday plan for health maintenance, so that you don’t gain any holiday weight. Making a plan now, and following it for the next two months, will prevent you from having that dreaded feeling on New Year’s Day that you have to start a health kick.
However, this week we are going to focus on Halloween. There are many ways to avoid overindulging on Halloween candy. You don’t need to follow every idea, just decide which idea(s) will work best for you and follow through.
It’s important to consider both the amount of candy you are going to eat and the amount of time you will give yourself to eat it. You might decide that since October 31 is the actual holiday, you will only indulge in candy on that day. At the same time, you can go intensive or extensive, for example, all the candy you want to eat, but only on Halloween day vs. one piece of candy a day for a week following Halloween. Do whatever works for you, but decide on your plan in advance and follow through.
If you’re single and don’t live in an area with kids, you don’t have to worry about Halloween candy, right? No kids come to your door, and you’re probably out at a party where you are more likely drinking than eating candy anyway. Why don’t you have to worry about eating too much candy? Because it’s for the kids.
Remembering that the candy is for the trick-or-treaters might help you avoid eating too much. That being said, don’t steal your kids’ candy! Set a good example, if you have kids, of not eating too much, of sharing, and of not stealing other people’s candy. That means, you ask your child politely for a piece, just like you would want your child to ask, and you don’t sneak into another room to eat some, just like you wouldn’t want your child to do. Those things will definitely prevent you from overindulging!
Another thing to do to avoid eating Halloween candy is to buy candy you don’t like; then there’s no temptation.
November 1, to prevent the temptation of candy at home, many people will take it to the office. That’s a great way to get it out of the house; however, remember that it’s basically someone else’s trash. It’s not there for you to eat; it’s there to prevent someone else from eating it at home. And it’s usually not the good stuff; that’s already saved or gone; it’s the junk candy that no one in the house likes, so don’t eat someone else’s junk. Only eat good Halloween candy.
Finally, probably the best idea is to donate your leftover Halloween candy to hospitalized kids who couldn’t go trick-or-treating. Find out from your local hospital how you can do this. The kids will be thrilled, and you’ll feel good too.
The next two months of holidays are filled with special foods and sweets. Plan now how you are going to face all those temptations. Don’t deprive yourself, but make a plan and follow your plan.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
How to add sleep to your nights
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to add sleep to your nights
Many people take sleep for granted and don’t realize the importance of getting enough sleep. Sleep helps your memory, concentration, metabolism, weight management, safety, mood, and cardiovascular health. Adequate sleep also fends off disease.
Sleep is an important pillar of the SWEET Life because lack of sleep will likely cause you to skip exercising the next day; you might be too tired to focus on eating healthy and drinking enough water, and you might feel more stressed out, all due to a lack of sleep.
There are many negative affects of sleep deprivation. Of course, we all know how it can cause irritability, impatience and moodiness; moreover, it also causes an inability to focus, which can result in mistakes and accidents. Chronic sleep deprivation can alter your hormones, causing weight gain, weakening the immune systems and possibly causing hypertension and irregular heartbeat. Finally, fatigue can simply make you too tired to do the things you would like to do.
In order to feel rested and rejuvenated, most people need about eight hours sleep per night.
Here are some suggestions for how to get more sleep at night: think about the times you go to bed and have to wake up. Are they 8 hours apart? If not, decide which of those times you can change and do so. For example, for years I was an 11-7 sleeper. As soon as the 11:00 news came on, I got ready for bed and crawled in. My alarm was always set for 7:00 a.m. Nowadays, I get up at 6:00, but for a long time, I didn’t alter my nighttime routine. No wonder I was always tired! Now, I watch the 10:00 news and get ready and go to bed then. Decide which time you can modify, your bedtime or your waking time, in order to get eight hours of sleep consistently.
Other aspects of the SWEET Life affect sleep, too. For example, dehydration can make you feel sleepy, so if you feel tired during the day, drink a glass of water before grabbing a caffeinated beverage. In addition, eating a variety of nutrient-dense foods throughout the day will give you sustained energy, preventing any sugar or caffeine crashes mid-afternoon. Also, exercise has the effect of making you feel more alert during waking hours and sleep more deeply at night. Knowing that, I always ask myself how much (or how little) I’ve been exercising, if I have a spell of not sleeping well. Furthermore, stress can keep you awake, so do relaxing things, like reading, before you go to bed or if you wake up feeling stressed during the night. Reading will help your eyes feel tired and will take your mind off of what is making you feel stressed, allowing you to relax and fall asleep.
In conclusion, besides altering your bed- and waking times, in order to get enough sleep, take advantage of the other aspects of the SWEET Life to help you sleep more soundly at night and feel more awake during the day.
Source:
http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health.htm
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to add sleep to your nights
Many people take sleep for granted and don’t realize the importance of getting enough sleep. Sleep helps your memory, concentration, metabolism, weight management, safety, mood, and cardiovascular health. Adequate sleep also fends off disease.
Sleep is an important pillar of the SWEET Life because lack of sleep will likely cause you to skip exercising the next day; you might be too tired to focus on eating healthy and drinking enough water, and you might feel more stressed out, all due to a lack of sleep.
There are many negative affects of sleep deprivation. Of course, we all know how it can cause irritability, impatience and moodiness; moreover, it also causes an inability to focus, which can result in mistakes and accidents. Chronic sleep deprivation can alter your hormones, causing weight gain, weakening the immune systems and possibly causing hypertension and irregular heartbeat. Finally, fatigue can simply make you too tired to do the things you would like to do.
In order to feel rested and rejuvenated, most people need about eight hours sleep per night.
Here are some suggestions for how to get more sleep at night: think about the times you go to bed and have to wake up. Are they 8 hours apart? If not, decide which of those times you can change and do so. For example, for years I was an 11-7 sleeper. As soon as the 11:00 news came on, I got ready for bed and crawled in. My alarm was always set for 7:00 a.m. Nowadays, I get up at 6:00, but for a long time, I didn’t alter my nighttime routine. No wonder I was always tired! Now, I watch the 10:00 news and get ready and go to bed then. Decide which time you can modify, your bedtime or your waking time, in order to get eight hours of sleep consistently.
Other aspects of the SWEET Life affect sleep, too. For example, dehydration can make you feel sleepy, so if you feel tired during the day, drink a glass of water before grabbing a caffeinated beverage. In addition, eating a variety of nutrient-dense foods throughout the day will give you sustained energy, preventing any sugar or caffeine crashes mid-afternoon. Also, exercise has the effect of making you feel more alert during waking hours and sleep more deeply at night. Knowing that, I always ask myself how much (or how little) I’ve been exercising, if I have a spell of not sleeping well. Furthermore, stress can keep you awake, so do relaxing things, like reading, before you go to bed or if you wake up feeling stressed during the night. Reading will help your eyes feel tired and will take your mind off of what is making you feel stressed, allowing you to relax and fall asleep.
In conclusion, besides altering your bed- and waking times, in order to get enough sleep, take advantage of the other aspects of the SWEET Life to help you sleep more soundly at night and feel more awake during the day.
Source:
http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health.htm
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
How to add whole grains to your day (instead of “enriched” flour)
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to add whole grains to your day (instead of “enriched” flour)
Whole grains are a new trend, which is both good and bad. It’s good because it’s easier to find more whole grain products than just a few years ago. It’s bad because everyone wants to jump on the whole grain bandwagon, whether or not their products are really made from whole grains. As much as we all hate reading the ingredients, it’s important to read the list. The good thing is that whole grain should be the first ingredient, so you don’t have to read any farther than that. If whole grain is not the first ingredient, then just imagine that your product is made from white, enriched flour, with a touch of whole grain thrown in so that it can be marketed as whole grain.
So what’s the big deal about whole grains? A little history: over a hundred years ago, millers figured out how to separate the three parts of a grain: the bran, the endosperm and the germ. The bran is the outer shell, which contains the fiber. The endosperm is the middle part, which contains the starch. The germ is the inner part, which contains most of the vitamins and minerals. Using only the endosperm produces beautiful, “refined,” white flour, which makes great pastries and lovely white breads, compared to the dark, heavy, dense breads produced by using the whole grain. In the early 20th century, there were a lot of diseases related to malnutrition, so bakers added vitamins to “enrich” their beautiful, white flour in order to make up for those vitamins that were pulled out when “refining” the grain. By the 1940’s the FDA required flour to be “enriched” with specific vitamins. However, stripping out and adding in vitamins and minerals is not as good as simply using the whole grain from the start.
From a health standpoint, the insoluble fiber in whole grains helps with the digestive process from the intestines on down and out the back door. The soluble fiber in whole grains helps you feel fuller because it slows the digestive process. It also reduces insulin levels, improves “good” HDL cholesterol, and decreases “bad” LDL cholesterol. Eating whole grains also reduces your risk of getting heart disease, colon cancer, diabetes, and stroke.
Now that you know how healthy you’ll be, here are some examples of whole grains: Wheat & wheat flour, oats & oatmeal, corn & corn meal, popcorn, rice, couscous, barley, spelt, quinoa, bulgur, millet, buckwheat, rye, amaranth, sorghum, and triticale.
That’s a long list, but how can we incorporate them into our meals? Here are some suggestions:
First of all, write “whole grain” before each grain product on your grocery shopping list. Secondly, be willing to try some grains you’ve never eaten before. Check the package’s cooking directions because some of them take a long time to cook. I tried quinoa because it’s as easy to make as rice (in the rice cooker), and now my kids love the squishy/crunchy texture.
Breakfast: whole grain cereal, bread, bagels, muffins, muesli, pancakes or waffles
Lunch: your usual sandwich on whole grain bread. Try whole grain rye for a change.
Snacks: whole grain crackers or goldfish
Dinner: Whole grain pasta, tortillas, bread, rolls or buns. Trader Joe’s has a whole grain pizza dough that’s easy to prepare, and a delicious Brown Rice Medley. I recently tried whole wheat bagels instead of hamburger buns, and the bagel was better than a bun because of its firmer texture and nutty wheat flavor.
When buying grain products, there’s, unfortunately, the Costco factor: At this point, Costco has few whole grain products, but they have huge quantities of grain products that we all use for very low prices. That creates a dilemma: should I buy a 6-pack of 1-lb packages of pasta for $6 at Costco, or should I buy a few packages of whole grain pasta at the grocery store for $1.50 each? I find myself stuck in this dilemma all the time, so I try to think of the nutrition per dollar, rather than the quantity per dollar. The whole grain pasta gives you a lot more nutrition than regular pasta, and you can find it on sale for $.99, so focus on nutrition and stock up on whole grains, especially when they are on sale.
In conclusion, try to buy whole grain products every time you purchase any grain products and check the label for the first ingredient to be “whole grain.”
Sources:
http://health.msn.com/dietfitness/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100110618
http://www.mypyramid.gov/pyramid/grains.html
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to add whole grains to your day (instead of “enriched” flour)
Whole grains are a new trend, which is both good and bad. It’s good because it’s easier to find more whole grain products than just a few years ago. It’s bad because everyone wants to jump on the whole grain bandwagon, whether or not their products are really made from whole grains. As much as we all hate reading the ingredients, it’s important to read the list. The good thing is that whole grain should be the first ingredient, so you don’t have to read any farther than that. If whole grain is not the first ingredient, then just imagine that your product is made from white, enriched flour, with a touch of whole grain thrown in so that it can be marketed as whole grain.
So what’s the big deal about whole grains? A little history: over a hundred years ago, millers figured out how to separate the three parts of a grain: the bran, the endosperm and the germ. The bran is the outer shell, which contains the fiber. The endosperm is the middle part, which contains the starch. The germ is the inner part, which contains most of the vitamins and minerals. Using only the endosperm produces beautiful, “refined,” white flour, which makes great pastries and lovely white breads, compared to the dark, heavy, dense breads produced by using the whole grain. In the early 20th century, there were a lot of diseases related to malnutrition, so bakers added vitamins to “enrich” their beautiful, white flour in order to make up for those vitamins that were pulled out when “refining” the grain. By the 1940’s the FDA required flour to be “enriched” with specific vitamins. However, stripping out and adding in vitamins and minerals is not as good as simply using the whole grain from the start.
From a health standpoint, the insoluble fiber in whole grains helps with the digestive process from the intestines on down and out the back door. The soluble fiber in whole grains helps you feel fuller because it slows the digestive process. It also reduces insulin levels, improves “good” HDL cholesterol, and decreases “bad” LDL cholesterol. Eating whole grains also reduces your risk of getting heart disease, colon cancer, diabetes, and stroke.
Now that you know how healthy you’ll be, here are some examples of whole grains: Wheat & wheat flour, oats & oatmeal, corn & corn meal, popcorn, rice, couscous, barley, spelt, quinoa, bulgur, millet, buckwheat, rye, amaranth, sorghum, and triticale.
That’s a long list, but how can we incorporate them into our meals? Here are some suggestions:
First of all, write “whole grain” before each grain product on your grocery shopping list. Secondly, be willing to try some grains you’ve never eaten before. Check the package’s cooking directions because some of them take a long time to cook. I tried quinoa because it’s as easy to make as rice (in the rice cooker), and now my kids love the squishy/crunchy texture.
Breakfast: whole grain cereal, bread, bagels, muffins, muesli, pancakes or waffles
Lunch: your usual sandwich on whole grain bread. Try whole grain rye for a change.
Snacks: whole grain crackers or goldfish
Dinner: Whole grain pasta, tortillas, bread, rolls or buns. Trader Joe’s has a whole grain pizza dough that’s easy to prepare, and a delicious Brown Rice Medley. I recently tried whole wheat bagels instead of hamburger buns, and the bagel was better than a bun because of its firmer texture and nutty wheat flavor.
When buying grain products, there’s, unfortunately, the Costco factor: At this point, Costco has few whole grain products, but they have huge quantities of grain products that we all use for very low prices. That creates a dilemma: should I buy a 6-pack of 1-lb packages of pasta for $6 at Costco, or should I buy a few packages of whole grain pasta at the grocery store for $1.50 each? I find myself stuck in this dilemma all the time, so I try to think of the nutrition per dollar, rather than the quantity per dollar. The whole grain pasta gives you a lot more nutrition than regular pasta, and you can find it on sale for $.99, so focus on nutrition and stock up on whole grains, especially when they are on sale.
In conclusion, try to buy whole grain products every time you purchase any grain products and check the label for the first ingredient to be “whole grain.”
Sources:
http://health.msn.com/dietfitness/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100110618
http://www.mypyramid.gov/pyramid/grains.html
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
How to Add Fruits & Vegetables to your Day
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to Add Fruits & Vegetables to your Day
I was surprised to find out that after so many years of having breads and grains at the base of the food pyramid (and expanding American waistlines), the Dietary Guidelines for Americans now recommends eating more fruits and vegetables than any other food group. They suggest that half your plate consist of fruits and vegetables every time you eat! For good reason: colorful fruits and vegetables contain a huge variety of important nutrients your body needs. Some of the key nutrients in fruits and vegetables include: fiber, folate, magnesium, iron, potassium, and vitamins A and C. They contain no saturated fat, cholesterol, or other unhealthful components. I always say, “No one got fat eating fruits and vegetables!”
In addition, fruits and veggies come in a huge range of colors, textures, shapes, sizes and packages. Canned and frozen products are convenient and have a long shelf life, and with today’s production methods, they hold onto their nutrition. You need to eat a rainbow of fruits and veggies everyday in order to give your body the variety of nutrients it needs. Here are some examples of each color:
· Dark green: broccoli, spinach, kale, romaine lettuce, spinach, watercress, collard greens, turnip greens
· Green: green beans, celery, cabbage, iceberg lettuce, honeydew melon, asparagus, bok choy, kiwi, zucchini, brussel sprouts, cucumbers, artichoke, bell pepper, lime
· Yellow: bell peppers, squash, corn, lemon, pineapple, banana, star fruit, plaintains, quince
· Orange: carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, winter squash, oranges, apricots, cantaloupe, peaches, tangerines, nectarines
· Red: tomatoes, bell peppers, strawberries, raspberries, apples, watermelon, cherries, radishes, beets, pomegranate
· Purple: egg plant, plums, purple onions, purple cabbage, grapes, figs, blackberries, raisins, prunes
· Blue: blueberries
· White: cauliflower, potatoes, onion, mushrooms, pears, jicama
· Starchy: white potatoes, corn, green peas
· Dry beans: black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, split peas, chickpeas, lentils
Here’s a link to what’s in season: http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/?page_id=674
With a colorful array of fruits and vegetables in our heads, the question becomes: how can we incorporate them into our meals? Here are some suggestions:
First of all, here’s a list of simple ways to add more fruits and vegetables to your day:
http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/?page_id=113&iCat=22
Next, here’s a per meal breakdown of suggestions:
Breakfast: 100% juice, any fruit, add avocado, onions, bell peppers, or other veggies to eggs; smoothies; raisins in oatmeal, yogurt or bread; add chopped fruit to pancakes or waffles; eat pancakes or waffles topped with fruit or applesauce instead of syrup
Lunch: any fruit; baby carrots, broccoli florets, snap peas, cherry tomatoes, etc. dipped in hummus; lettuce, tomatoes, sprouts, avocado, cucumber, or other veggies in a sandwich, veggie soup (or vegetables added into any type of soup, add any leftover cooked veggies to whatever you are eating
Snacks: (same as lunch and) raisins or other dried fruit
Dinner: in addition to having a cooked vegetable as a side dish, have a salad, soup, stir-fry, veggie pizza, grilled veggies, fruit salad for dessert, or add some fruit into a vegetable salad, add veggies to your spaghetti sauce, use spaghetti squash instead of pasta with marinara sauce
In conclusion, enjoy eating a huge variety of colorful fruits and vegetables throughout every day in every way, shape and form.
Sources:
Friday, November 30, 2007
How to Add Protein to your Day
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to Add Protein to your Day
Protein is very important to your body. Protein is one of the big 3: protein, carbohydrates & fat, which are the major components our bodies need. Protein builds and repairs tissues, such as nails, hair, muscles, hormones, enzymes, bones, skin and blood. Protein also makes you feel satisfied longer after a meal. Our bodies do not store protein, so we must eat it every day. However, most Americans eat a lot more protein than their bodies need, which is five to seven ounces a day. That’s less than an 8 oz. steak or ½ lb. burger. Dieting women, on the other hand, have a tendency to skimp on protein because it tends to have more calories and fat than other types of foods. However, the focus should be on nutrient-dense foods, more so than on calories or fat content.
In order to consume an array of nutrients along with our protein, it is a good idea to eat a variety of sources of protein. Some examples are: fish, poultry, beans, nuts, whole grains, soy, low-fat dairy products, eggs, pork, and lean beef. For an exhaustive list of sources of protein, go to the USDA National Nutrient Database for protein at:
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/SR20/nutrlist/sr20w203.pdf
(The first five pages (out of 25) list the most protein-dense foods. But be sure to look at the “common measure” because some of them are rather high quantities, for example, half a duck.)
As important as which foods have protein is how to incorporate protein into our meals. Here are some suggestions:
Breakfast: an egg, ½ cup cottage cheese, 1 cup low-fat yogurt, milk or soy milk, 1 ½ oz. cheese, whole wheat bread
Lunch: Of course, the traditional lunch sandwich has meat, which contains protein, but some other ideas are: grilled cheese, tuna, peanut butter; soups such as lentil, split pea or chili; whole wheat macaroni & cheese
Snacks: a handful of nuts, edamame, apple or banana topped with peanut butter, pretzels dipped in cottage cheese, yogurt, cheese & apples
Dinner: Of course, the traditional American dinner has meat at its center, which contains protein, but some other ideas are: cottage cheese melted over cooked pasta (a protein-rich, alfredo-like sauce); nuts tossed on a salad; beans tossed on a salad or in soup; stew with beans, tofu, or meat; stir-fries with tofu or meat; burgers with patties made from lean beef, chicken, tofu, or protein-rich garden burgers.
In conclusion, enjoy eating protein, don’t eat too much, and eat it from a variety of sources.
Sources:
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/guide/benefits-protein
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/guide/good-protein-sources
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- How to Add Protein to your Day
Protein is very important to your body. Protein is one of the big 3: protein, carbohydrates & fat, which are the major components our bodies need. Protein builds and repairs tissues, such as nails, hair, muscles, hormones, enzymes, bones, skin and blood. Protein also makes you feel satisfied longer after a meal. Our bodies do not store protein, so we must eat it every day. However, most Americans eat a lot more protein than their bodies need, which is five to seven ounces a day. That’s less than an 8 oz. steak or ½ lb. burger. Dieting women, on the other hand, have a tendency to skimp on protein because it tends to have more calories and fat than other types of foods. However, the focus should be on nutrient-dense foods, more so than on calories or fat content.
In order to consume an array of nutrients along with our protein, it is a good idea to eat a variety of sources of protein. Some examples are: fish, poultry, beans, nuts, whole grains, soy, low-fat dairy products, eggs, pork, and lean beef. For an exhaustive list of sources of protein, go to the USDA National Nutrient Database for protein at:
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/SR20/nutrlist/sr20w203.pdf
(The first five pages (out of 25) list the most protein-dense foods. But be sure to look at the “common measure” because some of them are rather high quantities, for example, half a duck.)
As important as which foods have protein is how to incorporate protein into our meals. Here are some suggestions:
Breakfast: an egg, ½ cup cottage cheese, 1 cup low-fat yogurt, milk or soy milk, 1 ½ oz. cheese, whole wheat bread
Lunch: Of course, the traditional lunch sandwich has meat, which contains protein, but some other ideas are: grilled cheese, tuna, peanut butter; soups such as lentil, split pea or chili; whole wheat macaroni & cheese
Snacks: a handful of nuts, edamame, apple or banana topped with peanut butter, pretzels dipped in cottage cheese, yogurt, cheese & apples
Dinner: Of course, the traditional American dinner has meat at its center, which contains protein, but some other ideas are: cottage cheese melted over cooked pasta (a protein-rich, alfredo-like sauce); nuts tossed on a salad; beans tossed on a salad or in soup; stew with beans, tofu, or meat; stir-fries with tofu or meat; burgers with patties made from lean beef, chicken, tofu, or protein-rich garden burgers.
In conclusion, enjoy eating protein, don’t eat too much, and eat it from a variety of sources.
Sources:
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/guide/benefits-protein
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/guide/good-protein-sources
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Exercise in Bad Weather
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Exercise in Bad Weather
Welcome to autumn. The weather is changing and the days are getting shorter, which make it more difficult to exercise outside. It’s important to continue your moderate intensity activity most days of the week, no matter what the weather is. It’s especially important to keep moving as the holidays approach, and we tend to eat more food and more, unhealthy, holiday foods.
If you belong to a gym, of course, that’s an obvious place to work out without needing to worry about the weather or lack of daylight.
If you have indoor exercise equipment, like a treadmill, elliptical machine, stair stepper or stationary bike, now is the time to pull it out, dust it off and start using it. I recommend hopping on it while watching your favorite TV show so that you get both exercise and the pleasure of watching a show you like at the same time. During commercial breaks, increase your intensity and really push it for those 2 minutes.
Another option is exercise shows, which include TV shows, internet videos and DVDs. The benefit of exercise TV shows is that they are on a schedule, which can motivate you to do it at a specific time each day. Of course, the internet and DVDs, on the other hand, give you more flexibility in scheduling. I suggest trying various shows and finding a few different ones that you like. Be sure your collection includes both cardio and toning workouts. If you belong to a DVD rental service (Netflix, Blockbuster, etc.), rent some exercise DVDs and try each a few times before deciding to purchase any. If you already own exercises videos, dust them off and try them, but if they are old or on video cassettes, it’s time to look into some new ones because exercises and exercise combinations improve as we learn more about how the body works.
Don’t let the weather turn you into a sloth; think about the best way for you to continue exercising as the weather changes.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Exercise in Bad Weather
Welcome to autumn. The weather is changing and the days are getting shorter, which make it more difficult to exercise outside. It’s important to continue your moderate intensity activity most days of the week, no matter what the weather is. It’s especially important to keep moving as the holidays approach, and we tend to eat more food and more, unhealthy, holiday foods.
If you belong to a gym, of course, that’s an obvious place to work out without needing to worry about the weather or lack of daylight.
If you have indoor exercise equipment, like a treadmill, elliptical machine, stair stepper or stationary bike, now is the time to pull it out, dust it off and start using it. I recommend hopping on it while watching your favorite TV show so that you get both exercise and the pleasure of watching a show you like at the same time. During commercial breaks, increase your intensity and really push it for those 2 minutes.
Another option is exercise shows, which include TV shows, internet videos and DVDs. The benefit of exercise TV shows is that they are on a schedule, which can motivate you to do it at a specific time each day. Of course, the internet and DVDs, on the other hand, give you more flexibility in scheduling. I suggest trying various shows and finding a few different ones that you like. Be sure your collection includes both cardio and toning workouts. If you belong to a DVD rental service (Netflix, Blockbuster, etc.), rent some exercise DVDs and try each a few times before deciding to purchase any. If you already own exercises videos, dust them off and try them, but if they are old or on video cassettes, it’s time to look into some new ones because exercises and exercise combinations improve as we learn more about how the body works.
Don’t let the weather turn you into a sloth; think about the best way for you to continue exercising as the weather changes.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Adding More Food Groups to Your Meals
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Adding More Food Groups to Your Meals
I try to eat from 3-5 food groups in each meal and at least 2 food groups per snack. Here are some suggestions how to add more food groups to your meals and snacks:
Breakfast is more difficult than other meals, but I still try to include 3 food groups. For example, cereal with milk and fruit, toast with peanut butter and juice, or a fried egg sandwich: egg, cheese and toast.
Lunch is a great time to eat all five food groups in one meal. For example, a turkey and cheese sandwich with a piece of fruit and a handful of baby carrots or cottage cheese (protein and dairy) heated on cooked pasta (it’s like a healthy alfredo sauce) with a small salad and piece of fruit.
For snacks, I try to eat at least two food groups. There are different possibilities depending on whether I’m home or out of the house. Out of the house I have non-perishable snacks, such as peanuts, crackers, pretzels and raisins (or other dried fruit). At home, there’s carrots dipped in hummus, apples slices spread with peanut butter, yogurt and fruit, pretzels dipped in cottage cheese or cheese and crackers.
Dinner is my last chance to catch up on any needed food groups. I make sure to include at least protein, grains and vegetables, which are all typical dinner foods. Adding fruit can be done by adding fresh or dried fruit to a salad or having a fruit salad for dessert. Dairy can be added by topping chili, noodles or other foods with cheese or by adding yogurt to your fruit salad for dessert.
It’s not difficult to add more food groups to your meals; it’s just a matter of thinking about it, and sometimes getting creative.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Adding More Food Groups to Your Meals
I try to eat from 3-5 food groups in each meal and at least 2 food groups per snack. Here are some suggestions how to add more food groups to your meals and snacks:
Breakfast is more difficult than other meals, but I still try to include 3 food groups. For example, cereal with milk and fruit, toast with peanut butter and juice, or a fried egg sandwich: egg, cheese and toast.
Lunch is a great time to eat all five food groups in one meal. For example, a turkey and cheese sandwich with a piece of fruit and a handful of baby carrots or cottage cheese (protein and dairy) heated on cooked pasta (it’s like a healthy alfredo sauce) with a small salad and piece of fruit.
For snacks, I try to eat at least two food groups. There are different possibilities depending on whether I’m home or out of the house. Out of the house I have non-perishable snacks, such as peanuts, crackers, pretzels and raisins (or other dried fruit). At home, there’s carrots dipped in hummus, apples slices spread with peanut butter, yogurt and fruit, pretzels dipped in cottage cheese or cheese and crackers.
Dinner is my last chance to catch up on any needed food groups. I make sure to include at least protein, grains and vegetables, which are all typical dinner foods. Adding fruit can be done by adding fresh or dried fruit to a salad or having a fruit salad for dessert. Dairy can be added by topping chili, noodles or other foods with cheese or by adding yogurt to your fruit salad for dessert.
It’s not difficult to add more food groups to your meals; it’s just a matter of thinking about it, and sometimes getting creative.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
Weekly Menus
Appraising Your Success
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Weekly menus
Spending half an hour a week planning your menus for the next week is a great way to eat healthier all week long. I start with two pieces of paper: one for dinner menus and one for groceries. The following is what works for me:
Menus:
1. I write the days of the week, spaced out, down the left side of the paper.
2. I write any plans I already have that will affect dinner next to the days they will occur.
3. Of the days without plans, I pick three days when I will cook dinner.
4. I choose two days when we will have leftovers.
5. I choose two days when I will cook something quick & easy, like frozen meals, boxed or packaged meals, or pasta served with jarred sauce.
6. I check my pantry, fridge and freezer for what dinner foods I already have, such as frozen meat, frozen dinners, rice, potatoes, pasta, etc.
7. From there, I start to fill in my menus of what quick & easy foods I could make. If I don’t have much, then I add some quick & easy meals to my grocery list.
8. Using what foods I already have as a start, I decide what meals I will cook this week. I make sure my dinners include protein, grains and vegetables. Adding dairy and/or fruit is a bonus.
9. In addition to writing my cooking menus on my menus paper, I add whatever ingredients I will need to my grocery list.
10. To my grocery list I also add any breakfast, lunch or snack foods we need.
I don’t get around to doing this every week, but when I do, my entire week runs more smoothly. I never wonder what we’ll have for dinner tonight, and my family eats healthier all week long.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
The end of the week is a good time to review the past week of your SWEET Life and count up your accomplishments. Your goal is 5-6 times per week for each aspect of the SWEET Life: Sleep, Water, Eating, Exercise, and Tranquility. If you didn’t achieve some of your goals for the week, then next week, focus on those areas more and think about how to fulfill them more consistently.
How do you feel at the end of this week? Are you better rested? Do you feel relaxed? Are you more energetic? Do you feel generally healthier? Continue with the SWEET Life and you’ll experience all of these feelings!
Topic of the week -- Weekly menus
Spending half an hour a week planning your menus for the next week is a great way to eat healthier all week long. I start with two pieces of paper: one for dinner menus and one for groceries. The following is what works for me:
Menus:
1. I write the days of the week, spaced out, down the left side of the paper.
2. I write any plans I already have that will affect dinner next to the days they will occur.
3. Of the days without plans, I pick three days when I will cook dinner.
4. I choose two days when we will have leftovers.
5. I choose two days when I will cook something quick & easy, like frozen meals, boxed or packaged meals, or pasta served with jarred sauce.
6. I check my pantry, fridge and freezer for what dinner foods I already have, such as frozen meat, frozen dinners, rice, potatoes, pasta, etc.
7. From there, I start to fill in my menus of what quick & easy foods I could make. If I don’t have much, then I add some quick & easy meals to my grocery list.
8. Using what foods I already have as a start, I decide what meals I will cook this week. I make sure my dinners include protein, grains and vegetables. Adding dairy and/or fruit is a bonus.
9. In addition to writing my cooking menus on my menus paper, I add whatever ingredients I will need to my grocery list.
10. To my grocery list I also add any breakfast, lunch or snack foods we need.
I don’t get around to doing this every week, but when I do, my entire week runs more smoothly. I never wonder what we’ll have for dinner tonight, and my family eats healthier all week long.
Have a SWEET week!
Suzanne
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