Anonymous asked: I'm a freshman in college who switched from being vegetarian to vegan a month ago. My diet includes oatmeal and a piece of fruit in the morning, a large salad (spinach, tomatoes, peppers, cucumber and legume proteins like chickpeas, beans, hummus) for lunch, some vegetables and grain for dinner (like brown rice with steamed broccoli and carrots), and fruit/nuts for dessert. I also take a Centrum multivitamin each morning. I am worried that the diet is "too easy"; am I forgetting some important nutrients? Thanks.

I don’t know how many calories you’re consuming, but as long as it’s over 1,200 (or 1,500 if you exercise regularly), this looks like a great diet to me. It seems like you’re incorporating plenty of whole grains, protein, and fiber (from the grain and the produce). To be sure, ask yourself the following:

1) Do I feel satisfied and energized most of the time?

2) Do I get enough variety?

3) Do I consume enough healthy fat?

If the answers to all those questions are “yes,” then I think you’re solid!

I just got this tip from Kallah Maguire via comments. She says:

For anyone in LA, I just visited an amazing spice store today in Silver Lake. It’s called the Spice Station (http://spicestationsilverlake.com) and they have an amazing selection and really reasonable prices. They hubby and I picked up some white peppercorns, long black peppercorns, sweet smoked paprika, and ghost pepper salt. We got to smell and taste everything before we bought, and they owner is really knowledgeable.

So if you’re in LA or passing though I highly recommend visiting the Spice Station. It’s also the cutest little store with a beautiful courtyard and fountain in front.

I really want some of that sweet smoked paprika… yum! I’ll try to post a recipe that incorporates it. Thanks for the tip, Kallah!

Anonymous asked: What are your thoughts on flaxseed oil? I read it is great for fat loss.

Flaxseed and flaxseed oil are great for a lot of reasons. I dedicated a whole post to flax here.

In a nut shell, just two tablespoons of flaxseed has 146.3% of your daily omega-3 needs (in the form of alpha linolenic acid, or ALA) and 20% of your required daily fiber intake. Omega-3 fatty acids, though they sound kind of gross, are actually great for you. They’re anti-inflammatory (they can reduce inflammation in conditions like asthma, arthritis, migraine headaches, etc.) and they protect bone health. Flaxseed has also been used to produce substances that reduce the formation of blood clots and can help prevent and control high blood pressure.

The seeds also have about 20% of your recommended daily amount of fiber, as well as some protein. It’s important to note that whole flaxseeds aren’t digestible, so you need to grind them or, like this reader suggests, use it in oil form. I actually recommend grinding whole flaxseeds (or buying them pre-ground) so you get the fiber you wouldn’t get from the oil.

gggreenlight asked: What's your opinion on yoga? I am thinking of taking some classes to help reduce stress, as I have stress-related migraines. Anything else you know of that helps with migraines? thanks!

Oooh, girl. I know two things: 1) I’ve never done, or had much interest in, yoga. 2) I get migraines, too, though I’m not sure if they’re stress-related or not.

When I get migraines, I try to minimize the sugar and fried food (even more than I already do!), only do very LIGHT exercise (if I do anything too intense, it’s very painful), and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

I bet yoga could be very beneficial for stress in general, and I’m definitely all for it. It’s just not something I’ve done before, so I can’t give you much info. Sorry!

I love Real Simple’s latest article about which staples to splure on. I totally agree with their calls:

Black Pepper

Pepper is one of the last things you add to a dish, so its flavor has a big impact. Always grind your own.
The upgrade: Tellicherry black peppercorns ($4 for a four-ounce bag, penzeys.com).

Butter

Use creamy European-style butter on the rare occasions you use butter for cooking. Buy unsalted to control the sodium.
The upgrade: Organic Valley, Horizon Organic, or Land O’ Lakes Ultra Creamy Butter ($3 to $3.50 for eight ounces, in supermarkets).

Canned Tomatoes

Organic tomatoes come in enamel-lined cans, so there’s no metallic taste―just a fresh, natural flavor.
The upgrade: Muir Glen Organic tomatoes ($1.50 for 14.5 ounces, in most supermarkets and health-food stores).

Chicken Broth

Broth from bouillon cubes is overly salty and suspiciously yellow. Low-fat, low-sodium broth is ideal.
The upgrade: Swanson Natural Goodness 100% Fat Free ($3 for 32 ounces, in supermarkets).

Eggs

Spring for organic eggs from free-range chickens. The yolks are bright yellow-orange, not a muted yellow, and the taste is full, rich, and downright eggy.
The upgrade: Greenbrier or Trader Joe’s ($2.50 to $3.50 a dozen, at health-food stores or Trader Joe’s, traderjoes.com for store locations).

Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

There is a huge difference in quality between the big-brand varieties and oils made by small producers. A flavorful extra-virgin olive oil can transform a simple salad into something spectacular.
The upgrade: Lucini Italia ($19 for 500 milliliters, lucini.com) or Bertolli Gentile ($6 for 500 milliliters, in supermarkets).

Parmesan

Bypass the canned version. The best-tasting Parmesan is from a specific region in Italy and has the Parmigiano-Reggiano stamp on its rind.
The upgrade: Authentic Parmigiano-Reggiano ($9 to $18 a pound).

Peanut Butter

The kids’ stuff is loaded with sugar. The natural kind contains only peanuts and salt.
The upgrade: Smucker’s Natural Creamy Peanut Butter ($3 for 16 ounces, in supermarkets).

Salt

Kosher and sea salt are clean-tasting and easy to control with your fingers.
The upgrade: Maldon Sea Salt ($7 for 8.5 ounces, thespicehouse.com) or Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt ($3 for three pounds, in supermarkets, or call 800-428-4244).

Tuna

Italian-style light-meat tuna packed in olive oil delivers a double dose of good fats. It has more calories than the all-white-meat, water-packed kind, but it doesn’t need a lot of mayo when made into tuna salad.
The upgrade: Genova ($2 for six ounces, in supermarkets).

Vanilla

Use pure (not imitation) vanilla extract and you’ll be wowed by its complex, heady perfume.
The upgrade: Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract ($20 for eight ounces, kingarthurflour.com) or McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract ($7 for four ounces, in supermarkets).

twosquishygirls asked: Do you have a favorite healthier version of a junk food?

Perfect timing! Have you seen this post on reprogrammed versions of less-than-nutritious fare?

anavalentina asked: Is there such thing as strength training too many times in a week? I do group fitness classes, including kickboxing, cardio circuits and pilates, but I end up doing about 3-4 strength training classes a week. Also, is it a bad idea to do more than one class in a day, even if they're different kinds of workouts (e.g. pilates and kickboxing, or strength and ballet)?

I’m not any kind of certified personal trainer, but I have been told by many of them that it’s a no-no to work the same muscle without giving it 24 hours to rebuild and recover. I would also listen to your body. If a certain muscle group feels sore, try to avoid working it for a day or so. I don’t know how intensive your kickboxing, pilates, etc. classes are in terms of really fatiguing your muscles, so that’s something you’ll have to use your judgment on (or ask a trainer).

In terms of taking two different kinds of classes a day, I say as long as you’re fueling yourself properly and nothing is painful, you’re good to go! I sometimes do cardio and strength in one session, and then another strength session focusing on different muscles later that day.

Ron Marks, the resident wino on MTM, just wrote a post on wine drinking and weight loss. Here’s an excerpt:

What role does wine play in your diet, and could there be benefits? There are several popular diet books (The French Don’t Diet Plan and French Women Don’t Get Fat, just to name two) that actually make the case based on trends in France that rather than worrying about the calories in wine, we should intentionally and without guilt allow it to be a regular part of our diet and lifestyle. The argument runs like this: Enjoying wine is something you should do at a leisurely pace, and if you do this with meals it will also help you eat at a leisurely pace. And doing this allows you to not only feel when you’ve truly had enough to eat, but make you feel truly satisfied as well, thus taking away the temptation to cheat later or between meals. Rather than worrying about the calories in wine, we should let it cause us to enjoy life more.

Ron’s definitely on to something. Though this shouldn’t give you license to put back a bottle of wine in an evening, I totally agree that enjoying wine (or food for that matter) at a leisurely pace and taking time to savor every morsel is really the path to a healthy, balanced life. Read his whole post here.

Anonymous asked: Margarine/Butter question again:
I meant for example, I like to put at the most like 1/2 tbsp of CBINB Light or about 5 sprays on a baked potato or baked sweet potato or on a couple of whole wheat toast, so should I (since I don't have heart disease) just use regular butter instead on those things (because for cooking I do use Extra Virgin Oil)?

I would check the ingredients on your butter substitutes. If you don’t see “partially hydrogenated oil” anywhere on the list, I’d say they’re okay to use in small quantities. If they DO contain the partially hydrogenated oil, try to find a substitute that doesn’t (Earth Balance doesn’t) or just use a small amount of real butter.

Anonymous asked: Wait! Soy is a no-no?

Read this or this for my thoughts on soy!