Fat is a girl's best friend

                                           Source: resources.drsinatra.com via Christine on Pinterest

Move over diamonds.  When it comes to maintaining a healthy weight, fat may be a girl's best friend.

Yes, fat.

According to a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine, you may want to rethink the low-fat diet.  Though it may seem counter-intuitive, researchers found that people who chose to eat a moderate fat diet lost, on average, 13 pounds more than those who followed a low-fat diet.  The moderate fat dieters also kept that weight off.

You might not like the fat on your thighs, but that doesn't mean all fat is evil.  On the contrary, fat has some virtues.  The human body requires fat to function.  Fat can also be a dieter's best friend, because it takes our bodies longer to digest fat than other nutrients, enabling us to feel satiated longer and eat less often.

Remember, though, not all fats are equal.  Stick to a diet high in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat.  Think Mediterranean, and reach for olive oil, fish, nuts and seeds.  Save the gooey brie cheese, and the gorgeous filet mignon for special occasions.

Take the burden out of exercise

I know why you skipped out on your last workout: it felt like a chore, and spending that time on something else was more appealing.  When activities get put on a "to-do" list they can become burdensome, and let's face it, that happens a lot when it comes to exercise.

If exercise has become a chore rather than a physical and mental outlet that inspires, try reframing your thinking this week.

Take a cue from your children and make exercise childlike and fun:

                                                          Source: Via Christine on Pinterest

Make physical fitness social by involving your best friend, whomever that may be:

                           Source: Via Christine on Pinterest

Treat not just your body, but your mind to a rejuvenating session.  Surround yourself with beauty:

                 Source: Via Christine on Pinterest

                                     

Challenge yourself by asking your body to move in different, awe-inspiring ways:

 

                                       Source: Via Christine on Pinterest

What will you do this week?  Put some time into planning a workout that will appeal to your mind, body, and senses.  You'll be sure to keep your appointment and go back for more.

Do you sabotage your efforts to be healthy?

                          Source: retrozone.tumblr.com via Christine on Pinterest

Smoking while playing tennis: I love the irony here.  Though today we can enjoy chuckling at these two women for their behavior, we often engage in equally ludicrous, contradictory and laughable activities.  The only difference is that it isn't quite so obvious.

And so this photo begs a very relevant and current question: what activities do you engage in that ultimately undermine your efforts to live a healthy lifestyle?  Do you spend an hour blasting 500 calories at the gym and then reward yourself with a 1,000 calorie latte from Starbucks?  Do you emerge from a moderate workout and down a sugar laden sports drink that your body doesn't really need?  Do you follow a strict, low-fat diet during the week and then gorge on fast food and beer on the weekends?  Do you make an effort to sweat at the gym, but then move very little the rest of the day, making your overall daily activity extremely low?

No one wants to sabotage her good deeds unwittingly, but many of us do just that, every day.  The result is frustration, a desire to throw the towel in, and an inability to meet health goals.  Weight loss and health depends upon a balance of calories taken in and calories expended.  It depends upon vigorous activity, but it also depends on activity throughout the day, every day.  It requires a diet heavy in fruits, vegetables, and lean sources of protein.  It requires not just fat blasting cardio, but muscle strengthening activities that also build strong bones.  And, of course, it requires both treats and days of rest to keep the average health-minded person on the right track not just for a week or a month, but for a lifetime.

Look at your activities over an extended period of time to see where you need to make adjustments.  A little tweak here or there could make a big difference to your overall health.

How to exercise in minutes, not hours

                          Source: None via Christine on Pinterest

If you are busy, stressed out, and short on time I have some good news for you.  According to researchers, you can get real health benefits from small, yet intense, bursts of activity.  In a study published in the American Journal of Human Biology scientists demonstrate that a short, intense sweat session is indeed worth the time, even if that time is a couple of minutes.  Participants in the study either ran four to six 30-second sprints or they ran at a moderate pace for 20 minutes.  After seven weeks, each group had similar health gains: lower blood pressure, increased aerobic fitness, and lower BMI.

Hmmm.. Where can you squeeze some time out of that hectic schedule?  Is it while your child is watching Dinosaur Train?  Is it on your lunch break?  Could it be when you simply need to put your work down and clear your head?  Is it during your child's nap time?  Is it in between loads of laundry?  Find those minutes and put them to good use.

That muffin top isn't your biggest health issue

                 Source: designboom.com via Diana on Pinterest

You may hate the look of a muffin top or saddle bags, and this ugly fat may be what drives you to exercise.  According to researchers, however, it is not the fat you ought to be concerned about.  Rather, you ought to direct your attention to the fat that you cannot see, deep within your body and surrounding your organs.  This fat, also known as visceral fat, is far more dangerous to your health.

So what ought you to do?  The answer is simple, according to researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center: exercise moderately and eat more soluble fiber.  Researchers concluded that visceral fat declined as consumption of soluble fiber increased.  Over 5 years, it decreased 4% for each 10 gram increase in soluble fiber consumed daily.  Moderate exercise, which was defined as exercising vigorously for 30 minutes 2-4 times each week, resulted in a 7% decrease in visceral fat over 5 years.  

How do you increase your fiber intake?  Here are a few good sources of fiber.  

1. Barley: 6 grams per cup
2. Quinoa: 5 grams per cup
3. Black beans: 15 grams per cup
4. Green peas: 14 grams per cup
5. Blackberries and raspberries: 8 grams per cup
6. Flaxseed: 8 grams per cup
7. Almonds: 4 grams per cup

Squeezing in exercise, even if only 2-4 times a week, can seem like an insurmountable task.  Don't give up.  The key is to find an activity you enjoy.  That way you can look forward to your workout rather than dread it.  Look in unsuspecting places, like your church hall, the community center, the trails around your house, a nearby lake, or your garden.  Surely you can find some activity that both gets your body moving and brings you joy. 

Apple sandwiches

Kids love making these yummy apple sandwiches

If it is autumn and you have young children, chances are you have a refrigerator full of apples you are desperately trying to consume.  Why?  Because taking the kids apple picking has become a fall tradition that is just as important as hanging stockings from the fireplace at Christmas time and sipping lemonade under a tree on a blistering day in July.

If you haven't the time or inclination to bake those apples, you may be on the "apple a day" diet.  Here's a fun way to add a bit of variety to your diet, and the kids will love helping you both make and devour these sandwiches.  They make great after-school snacks!


Apple sandwiches:

1. Wash and core apples
2. Slice apples 
3. Spread all natural, organic peanut butter on a slice
4. Sprinkle with granola and dried cherries 
5. Top apple slice with another slice, creating a crunchy sandwich 
6. Enjoy with a glass of skim milk 

An imaginary friend can help you achieve your fitness goals

                 Source: ivillage.com via Manja on Pinterest

It is well known that exercise buddies are useful in keeping the average exerciser honest.  How?  They make us accountable to someone beyond ourselves, which can keep us from skipping out on a scheduled sweat session. Buddies can also provide us with motivation, which many exercisers complain they lack.  They can cheer us on, push us to perform at our best, pick us up, and boost our mood when we need it most.

But what if you can't find a buddy with a similar schedule or mindset?  According to a study from Michigan State University, a virtual fitness buddy may be a good option.  Researchers found that people who worked with virtual partners were motivated to exercise harder.  Participants in the study were asked to hold exercise positions like the plank with and without their "friend."  When working out with their virtual partners they held their positions 24% longer.

I guess peer pressure is just as strong in the virtual world as it is in the real world.  You may want to check it out.

Recipe relief for those who picked too many apples: apple bread

It happens every year.  Before loading up the car to head out to the apple orchard, I vow that we will not pick too many apples this time.  Then, somehow, I quickly break that vow.  (The speed at which this happens is even faster than a broken New Year's resolution, which I can usually keep until daybreak).  The problem is hard to rectify: each child wants to pick apples and each person wants to pick a different type of apple.  Because the experience is a beautiful one, we all want to linger in the orchards.  The result is always the same: too many apples.

And so, on the way home, I try to convince myself it will be fine.  I'll just make on apple dish each day.  An apple pie, apple bread, stewed apples, apple sandwiches, baked apples, applesauce, sauteed apples, and, of course, apple slices for lunch and snack every day for the next month.

My children love apple bread, so that was one of my first creations this year.  I used a recipe that I shared here last year, but I believe I've made some improvements.  The biggest change?  I pureed the apples rather than slicing them.  This allowed me to use more apples, which I'm keen on.  I was also able to leave the peels on, which saved time and boosted the nutritional content of the bread.  The bread was moist and yummy.  Here is the recipe.  Enjoy!

Apple bread for the women who always come home from the orchard with too many apples:


Ingredients:

1/3 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
5 large apples, cored and pureed (you can leave the skins on!)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup chopped walnuts (if the children allow)


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Core and puree apples
3. Wet ingredients: combine oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla and apples in large mixing bowl
4. Dry ingredients: in a medium bowl combine flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon
5. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix
6. Pour batter into greased, 9x5 bread pan
7. Bake for 60-70 minutes