Why Eat Iceberg Lettuce And Celery

Do you avoid iceberg lettuce and celery because you subscribe to the myths that iceberg lettuce has no nutrients and celery is just water? The myths are partially true. Iceberg doesn't have as many nutrients as the darker leafed varieties, and celery is more than 90% water. However, both are still good for you and contain vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals.

Celery facts:

• Keeps your blood pressure down. Celery contains pthalides, rare compounds that lower your blood pressure by relaxing artery walls.


• Lowers cancer risk. Celery also contains apigenin, a potent phytochemical that protects against cancer by inhibiting gene mutations.


• Helps you stay slim. Celery sticks can satisfy an urge to munch with virtually no calories.

Iceberg lettuce facts:

• Boosts bones. 1 cup of shredded iceberg lettuce delivers nearly 20% of your daily does of vitamin K, a nutrient many women don't get enough of. Researchers say that women who ate one or more servings a day of lettuce (they're all rich in it) had the lowest rates of hip fractures.


• Protects your sight. Iceberg lettuce is a good source of vitamin A, needed to keep your vision sharp. 1 cup supplies 15% of your daily dose.

So though they may not pack the punch of other veggies, if you like them, eat them. They can still be a great vehicle for getting more produce into your day!

Source info: June 2008 Prevention

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How To Tell If Your Produce Is Organic

Have you ever found yourself standing in the produce isle looking at a display of bananas with a sign over them that says something to the effect of Bananas - $ .39 with another right next to it that says, Organic Bananas - $ .79? How do you know which is which?

Actually, there is a very simple way. Those irritating little stickers that are on the produce are the key. There's apparently a method to the madness behind them. A 4-digit number means the food was conventionally grown, whereas a 5-digit number beginning with a 9 means it was grown organically.

So the conventionally grown banana will have the number 4011. While an organic one will say 94011.

Studies show that there is a 34% increase in antioxidant activity of organic apples versus conventional ones. Now you know how to pick the organic every time!

Source info: Prevention, June 2008

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Fallen Off The Diet Wagon? Think About This...

I read a great analogy yesterday regarding those times when you fall off the 'healthy life' wagon. It came in an email and was taken from a SparkPeople forum post. The poster, Lisahas2cats, said, "If you forgot to brush your teeth last night, did you decide this morning to throw in the towel and never brush your teeth again? Since you're obviously a slob who doesn't have enough self- discipline to remember to brush your teeth, why bother brushing them at all if you forgot to last night?

Of course not."

Most of us would not beat ourselves up for forgetting to brush our teeth, that would just be silly! But yet if we were to over-indulge at a dinner party, or ate too many sweets yesterday, or didn't get around to exercising for a couple days, we figure it's of no use trying and just give up.

Just because you've gone off track, don't give up! It's about moving forward again! So today, dust yourself off, give yourself a hug, and start anew. Go for a walk, eat healthier, drink more water... and go brush your teeth!

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Could More Fiber Help You Lose Weight?

As I was Stumbling through websites the other night I came across the video below. I found it interesting and thought a little about the amount of fiber I eat in a day. Strangely, just a couple of days later I read the experience of Shon Gables in the May 2008 issue of Fitness magazine. She took the challenge to make one small change to her diet, which was to eat more fiber at every meal, consuming at least 30 grams of fiber a day. The result? She lost 5 pounds in a month! Tanya Zuckerbrot, R.D., author of The F-Factor Diet: Discover the Secret to Permanent Weight Loss, says it's because "fiber-packed foods tend to be low in calories, yet they're dense, so you can eat until you're full and still barely make a dent in your daily calorie count. And fiber will also keep your blood-sugar levels even, staving off hunger and energy lulls." With all this information in hand, I decided to make 30+ grams of fiber a day my goal. Today was day one. The verdict regarding difficulty? I thought it was quite easy! I actually ate more than usual, but what I ate was better for me than what I eat many days. I will admit that figuring out a high fiber dinner was the hardest part. I had already had 24 grams before that meal though, so with the broccoli and whole grain rice I had, I ended up right at 30 grams. To do this yourself, you'll need to record the fiber content of everything you eat. Packaged items have the fiber content on them, for other items, you can refer to a fiber chart such as the one I used at http://www.wehealny.org/healthinfo/dietaryfiber/fibercontentchart.html#fiber. I found sugar snap peas to be a great source of fiber and they made it easy for me to reach my lunch-time goal. Also fruits such as apples and pears are high in fiber. And when produce is nowhere to be found, at the recommendation of a friend, I purchased Fiber One Bars - Oats & Chocolate. These easy-to-take-with-you bars have a whopping 9 grams of fiber packed into them and are great for breakfast on-the-run! Shon says she will stick with the plan and that she has more energy, is now regular, and doesn't feel bloated the way she used to. As for me, I'll let you know at the end of two weeks what (if any) difference it has made. If you try it, or already eat the recommended amount of fiber a day, let me know if you think it made a difference in your health and/or weight and how you feel and also any favorite high-fiber foods you would recommend.

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I Won More Entrcard Credits!

Last month the Marcus Hochstadt who runs the Internet Business Guide at www.Hochstadt.com, hosted a one-of-a-kind Party Contest to celebrate that it is indeed possible to catapult from no man’s land to popularity in 107 days! There were 220 winners with a monetary value of more than $7,000+ (!!) and exactly 66,666ec (”ec” = Entrecard Credits)!! Well, I'm happy to report that I was one of those lucky 220! Shelia of Black Tennis Pros, was kind enough to donate the 1,500 Entrecard Credits that I was the recipient of. Black Tennis Pro's has the current events, match facts and latest info on the Black professionals in the game of tennis. So if you enjoy Tennis stop by her site and see what's going on, she updates it regularly. Thanks again to Marcus and Shelia and congratulations to all the winners! (If you're one of them I'd love to hear which prize you received, leave me a post letting me know.)

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20 Ways To Burn 50 Calories A Day (And Lose 5 lbs. A Year)

In a recent post I listed 30 ways for you to cut 50 calories a day and lose up to 5 pounds a year. The reverse is also true. If you burn 50 more calories a day, you'll also lose those 5 pounds. It's really not as hard as it seems. Most people think they will have to add 20 to 30 minutes of walking to burn 50 calories, but it actually only takes 10! So, here I've written a list of 20 ways you can burn 50 extra calories today.

Just think, if you burn 50 more calories a day and also cut 50 extra calories, in a year you can lose around 10 pounds!

1. Walk at a moderate pace for 10 minutes.
   
2. Play Frisbee for 15 minutes.
   
3. Wash your car by hand for 10 minutes.
   
4. Put your leaf blower away and rake those leaves. In 10 minutes you'll burn 60 calories!
   
5. Get off that raft while in the pool and swim! Just 10 minutes of light swimming burns over 50 calories.
   
6. Vacuum for 18 minutes.
   
7. Ride your bike for 7 minutes.
   
8. Walk up stairs for 5 minutes.
   
9. Dance for 10 minutes.
   
10. Jump rope for 4 1/2 minutes.
    
11. Weed your garden or landscaping for 15 minutes.
    
12. Make someone feel good. By giving a massage for 15 minutes you'll burn more than 50 calories. (maybe you can talk them into reciprocating... in the name of burning calories of course!)
    
13. Bowl for 20 minutes.
    
14. Play pool for 25 minutes.
    
15. Catch your dinner. Actively fish for 25 minutes.
    
16. Build something. You'll burn more than 50 calories when you do 15 minutes of carpentry.
    
17. Does your room need a make-over? Paint for 20 minutes.
    
18. Play a game of catch with your kids for 20 minutes.
    
19. Stand while talking on the phone, working at your computer (all you bloggers), eating, etc. You burn at least 20 more calories per hour when you stand than when you sit.
    
20. Passionately kiss someone for 25 minutes. Supposedly kissing can burn up to 2 calories per minute. --Hey, it's worth a try!

Note: Calorie burn varies from person to person. A heavier person will burn more calories than a lighter one for each activity. Most of the figures above are based on a 130 lb. person. Use a Calorie Estimator to find out how many calories you, personally, will burn.

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On A 'Lighter' Note

I thought I'd take a break from my usual, serious, health and diet posts and throw in something a little more light-hearted. After all, as they say, 'laughter is the best medicine!' I hope you enjoy these diet and health related funnies.

According to a recent article I just read on nutrition, they said eating right doesn't have to be complicated. Nutritionists say there is a simple way to tell if you're eating right. Colors. Fill your plates with bright colors. Greens, reds, yellows. In fact, I did that this morning. I had an entire bowl of M&M's. It was delicious! I never knew eating right could be so easy.

A woman walked up to a little old man rocking in a chair on his porch. "I couldn't help noticing how happy you look," she said. "What's your secret for a long happy life?"
"I smoke three packs of cigarettes a day," he said. "I also drink a case of whiskey a week, eat fatty foods, and never exercise."
"That's amazing," the woman said. "How old are you?"
"Twenty-six," he said.

"I suspected my wife was really struggling with her new no-desserts diet when she started calling out 'Ooh! Willy Wonka!' in her sleep."

I have a great diet. You're allowed to eat anything you want, but you must eat it with naked fat people. --Ed Bluestone


How to weigh yourself:

Why I gain weight:

Just funny - about ageing:

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30 Ways To Cut 50 Calories A Day (And Lose 5 Pounds A Year)

If you only need to lose a few pounds, or just want to take it slow and steady, you can lose around 5 pounds a year just by cutting 50 calories a day from your diet. Here is a list of 30 simple substitutions, or tricks, you can incorporate into your day to cut those calories without hardly noticing it. Choose 2, or burn 50 more calories a day, (suggestions to do this are coming in a future post) and you could lose up to 10 pounds in a year!

1. Use skim milk instead of flavored creamer in your coffee.


2. Use non-stick spray instead of 2 tsp. oil.


3. Cut out 4 oz. of soda or orange juice.


4. Use low-fat cream cheese instead of regular.


5. If you must have french fries, have steak fries instead of shoestring fries. (steak fries absorb less oil thus lowering your calorie intake by 50 calories per 4 oz serving)


6. Use a low-fat salad dressing instead of full fat on your salad.


7. Skip the cheese on your sandwich.


8. Have 1 ounce of pretzels instead of 1 ounce of potato chips.


9. Use low-fat yogurt instead of sour cream where you can. (such as in dips)


10. Ditch one piece of bread on your sandwiches, instead eat them open-faced.


11. Use applesauce in place of oil or butter in home-made baked goods.


12. Have a 'fun-sized' candy bar instead of a full-sized one.


13. Eat a piece of angel food cake instead of chocolate Devil's food cake.


14. Eat an ear of corn on the cob instead of a 1 cup serving from a can. (an ear has around 85 calories, but a 1 cup serving has over 160!)


15. Eat 2 Tbs. less ice cream.


16. Have 4 oz. ground turkey instead of 4 oz ground beef.


17. Have a glass of wine instead of a margarita.


18. Have salsa instead of guacamole.


19. Use mustard instead of mayonnaise on your sub sandwich.


20. Eat egg whites only, cut out the yolks. (An egg has around 76 calories, more than 50 of which are in the yolk)


21. Use an 8-inch tortilla instead of a 10-inch one.


22. Buy your tuna packed in water instead of oil. (this one saves over 100 calories!)


23. Use light syrup instead of regular.


24. Drink non-fat milk instead of whole.


25. Eat roasted chicken instead of fried.


26. Eat couscous instead of white rice.


27. Blot your pizza with a napkin. (soaking up just one teaspoon of grease can cut 50 calories)


28. Only use 1 Tbs. of peanut butter, instead of 2, on your PB&J sandwich.


29. Eat 2 fewer meatballs with your spaghetti and meatballs.


30. Eat 2 fewer chicken nuggets.

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