5 Tips to Eating Healthy in Social Situations

1.

If you are going to go out to a restaurant for any occasion try to look up the menu before you get there, most of the time there is more health facts on-line than on the establishment menu. You can then find what is healthy and go with that option, or know what substitutions you can make ahead of time.

2.

When you are invited to someone’s house, offer to bring something (if the host says yes) you can make something healthy that you like and goes with the meal. This is also a good trick for pot-lucks; I am always the one who brings the healthy option to pot-lucks.

 

3.

Eat a little bit before you go. A piece of fruit or a handful of nuts can help curb hunger and not let you eat so much, especially if you are not eating right away and there are appetizers and breads put in front of you until the food is served.

 

4.

Make lunch your biggest meal. If you have a hand in making plans try to opt for a lunch, this is twofold because lunch is usually cheaper and places offer deals, but also if you happen to over eat you, work it off during the rest of the day.

 

5.

Drink Water!! This will help you stay or get full without eating too much. Also it will help you to avoid some of those empty calories alcohol will give you. I’m not saying don’t have a drink, but try a glass of wine or light beer as opposed to high calorie mixed drinks.

**Bonus Tip…Try celebrating special occasions by doing other things rather than just going out to eat!**

Live Healthy,
    Nadia

Tofu Tacos

      In an effort to find new foods to try and make healthy versions of the foods I love. I was inspired to make tofu tacos by the new menu item Sofitas at “Chipotle” (which is delicious by the way).  I love Mexican food so I thought why not replace ground beef in my tacos for tofu!! I hope this makes you think of other substitutions you could make to foods you like.  

Ingredients

-          1 package extra (super) firm tofu

-          3 cloves garlic(chopped)

-          ½ medium onion (chopped)

-          Small jar roasted red peppers (chopped)

-          1 teaspoon cumin

-          1 teaspoon dried oregano

-          1 teaspoon salt and pepper

-          Pinch of cayenne pepper (to taste)

Directions

-          Drain and crumble the tofu

-          Mix all the seasonings in a small bowl

-          In a sauté pan, sauté chopped garlic, onions, and red pepper until soft.

-          Add tofu to pan, sauté for 2 minutes

-          Add seasoning mix, cook for about 5 more minutes

You can then have your regular taco fixings on hand, such as soft and hard taco shells, diced tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, avocado and sour cream.  Have fun with it, make lots of topping options and let everyone make whatever they like.  Enjoy!

Live Healthy,

  Nadia

Exercise

       Here are my 8 tips on getting more physical activity into your daily routine.

1. You need to do at least 20 minutes of cardio a day, something to get your heart pumping.

2. It's ok if the gym and traditional work outs are not your thing, find new and fun ways to get some exercise, for example Zumba, kicking boxing, hiking etc. Things you really enjoy. It should be FUN!!

3. The exercise you do does not have to be vigorous and tough. I love to walk, so when I have the chance on my lunch breaks or on weekends I'll just go out for a walk for about 20-30 minutes, sometimes longer.

4. Do only what feels right to you. If something doesn't feel natural or is really hard for you don't do it, or you might have to work up to it.

 

5. Start small! If you are not already an avid gym go-er , see what works for you. Most gyms allow you to try them out for a couple of days, if you like it then you can join. If it's not for you or you are intimidated don't jump right into it. When it comes to working out, don't overwhelm yourself, no one wakes up and decides to run a 26 mile marathon without training first.

6. Find a work out buddy, someone else to help motivate you (and each other) always helps. You make each other accountable, and on days you may not want to work out they might give you the extra push to go and do something.

7. Switch it up. Try to either do something different every other day, or add to the work out every day, so you don't hit a plateau. For example if you walk everyday try to walk a little inn linger/farther the next time.

8. Don't stress if you miss a day of exercising!! Everyone needs a rest day, just pick it back up the next day.

Physical activity is just as important as eating well to your body, find what's right for you and you will start to notice a difference.

Live Healthy,

Nadia

Food Labels

     I believe people need to take the time to read and understand food labels. I am going to give you the basics to help you know what to look for and how it all works so that it hopefully makes sense.

(Here is a random food label I found to use as an example)

Let’s start with serving size you will usually see it first it’s right on the top (usually in cups).  This label says the serving is one cup, but notice under that it says “servings about two”, that means this packet or food has about two servings in it, two cups. That is important because when you go to the calories it says 250, but that is for ONE serving, which means because this food has two servings in it you need to either measure out the one cup or know that you are consuming 500 calories, not 250.

That also goes for all the other numbers and percent’s on the label. For this particular food notice that the amount of sodium (salt) is 940mg, that is only for one serving, if you eat two (the whole thing) that is 1,880mg of sodium, way more then you are supposed to consume in a day. This label clearly belongs to some kind of savory food because of the amount of sodium it has. The amount of sodium is one of the most important things to look for when buying savory/salty foods. In turn when you are buying sweet foods (cereal, desserts, etc.) you need to keep an eye out for the amount of sugar it contains.

Recommended amounts:

 Sodium(Salt) - about 1,500 mg a day

Sugar -about 100 calories (25grams) for women a day; about 150 calories (37.5 grams) for men a day

The next thing to look at is the ingredient list. The first thing on the list is the main ingredient in the food. In this case it would be water. Two good tips to follow when reading the ingredients are, if you can’t pronounce it, don’t eat it, and if it has more than FIVE ingredients (most of the time), don’t get it.

I challenge you to try to make some of the packaged foods you are looking to buy at home, I am sure you will like them better and they will make you feel better too!!  I hope these points will help you learn what you’re eating and to make better choices at the grocery store.  

Live Healthy,

 Nadia

Empty Calories

     I want to get some information out about Empty Calories, I’m sure everyone knows all food and drinks have some amount of calories in them, some being good and nutritious, and others having no nutritional value for you, those being empty calories. Most candies and sodas are ALL empty calories, and do not provide you with any nutrients.  Although I am not a huge fan of counting calories, if that is something that works for you then that’s great! empty calories and reading labels is something I think more people need to think about and know what they are eating.

     Two good examples of foods with empty calories versus not having any is applesauce and ground beef. Let’s start with applesauce, sweetened applesauce has added sugars in it, which are not good for you and add no nutritional value to the applesauce itself. So buy the unsweetened kind and add honey or agave yourself, or better yet make your own applesauce!  On to ground beef, if you buy regular ground beef it has solid fats it in, that are considered empty calories, all meat have them. That is why the big push is to buy or consume lean meats. Lean meats being 90% or more lean (that means it does not have a lot of fat in it, 90% meat to 10% fat). The same can be said for milk, whole milk as opposed to fat-free milk. Knowing what to look for can help to lower the amount of empty calories, added sugars and solid fats you consume.

Research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill determined that Americans are consuming 83 more calories per day from caloric sweeteners then in 1977, those extra 83 calories a day add up to 2,490 calories PER MONTH!   

I hope this makes you look a little deeper into what you are eating and making some better choices that will help you live healthier. 

Live Healthy,
    Nadia