18 June 2010
Recovering Sugar Addict
Inspired by the Outside the Box Challenge, one reader shares her experience trying to cut back on sugar:
i realized that i was/am addicted to sugar, so i am going on a sugar detox. this means no more candy, cookies, processed crap like that. i’ve done it in the past, and always feel good afterwards. it’s amazing how cutting out sugar REALLY makes you not want it any more, and subsequently feel better and make a conscious effort to fueling your body with things that should be going into it instead of nastiness. looking forward to getting off the sugar train!
Thanks for the message! Anyone else tried to cut back on sugar? How did it go?
4 May 2010
The Plight of the College Student
Recently, I got an email from reader Brooke, who asked a question I get fairly often:
I’ve always been interested in eating healthy and, just naturally, am kind of an “organic eater.” However, in college, I don’t have the money to necessarily shop at the organic, health food markets. Do you have any tips and tricks about ways to eat healthy and organic (or minimally processed) on a budget?
Oh yes, the plight of the healthy college student! Low on funds, but high on aspirations to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Before I get into some tips and tricks for Brooke, let me say one thing about organic food: It’s nice, but it’s not the most important thing. WHAT you’re eating is much more important than whether or not it’s organic. You can eat organic cookies all day, but it’s not going to do much for your health. So first, make sure what you’re eating is quality, unprocessed food, and then worry about whether you can afford to make it organic. That said, here are some ideas for eating healthy on a tight budget:
- Shop recessionista-style! The following healthy, versatile foods are all less than $1 per serving (some as low as $.22!): brown rice, green tea, broccoli, plain yogurt, bananas, black beans, apples, lentils, and sweet potatoes. You can use most of these foods in hundreds of recipes and not get sick of them!
- Buy in bulk. If you have a grocery store that sells grains, nuts, and other staples in bulk bins, GO FOR IT. You can get great deals on whole, unprocessed foods. Look for staples like rice, oats, quinoa, dried fruit, and other shelf-stable foods.
- Hit the .coms. If you can’t find what you want in bulk (or otherwise) at your local stores, search for staples online! I buy a lot of my “health” foods (like coconut oil) on sites like Amazon. You can get great deals on items that cost an arm and a leg in stores! I got two large jars of coconut oil for the price one costs at my local store.
- Look for the deals. For meat, fish, and even produce, don’t go into the grocery store with a closed mind about what you’re going to get. Maybe you wanted salmon, but the trout is $5 less per pound — go for it! Most of the time, you can adapt whatever recipe you were using to fit the new protein.
- Go veg — but make sure it’s unprocessed. Yes, vegetarian protein is less expensive than animal protein. Stock up on items like tofu, tempeh, beans, and eggs. Just make sure that you stay away from heavily processed veggie burgers and other frankenfoods (those aren’t even that cheap)!
- When it comes to organic, stick to the 2010 dirty dozen. If you can’t afford to eat organic all the time, just shoot for the foods that tend to have the most pesticide residue in conventional form: celery, peaches, strawberries, apples, blueberries, nectarines, bell peppers, spinach, kale, cherries, potatoes, and grapes. Print the PDF for a handy on-the-go guide!
Hope that helps, Miss Brooke! Remember that it’s not about organic so much as it’s about unprocessed, REAL food. Happy eating!
7 April 2010
What about veggie burgers?
Reader Carol via email: What are your thoughts on Veggie Burgers? I do eat meat and fish, but I also really like the taste of Veggie Burger options, specifically the Morningstar brands. Are these too processed, or ok every once in a while?
You know, I do tend to think most veggie burgers are pretty processed. Take a look at the ingredients in a Morningstar Farms Grillers burger:
TEXTURED VEGETABLE PROTEIN (WHEAT GLUTEN, SOY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, WATER FOR HYDRATION), EGG WHITES, CORN OIL, CALCIUM CASEINATE, CONTAINS TWO PERCENT OR LESS OF MODIFIED TAPIOCA STARCH, ONION POWDER, CANOLA OIL, TRIGLYCERIDES FROM COCONUT OIL, HYDROLYZED VEGETABLE PROTEIN (CORN GLUTEN, WHEAT GLUTEN, SOY PROTEIN), DEXTROSE, SALT, SOY PROTEIN ISOLATE, AUTOLYZED YEAST EXTRACT, SUGAR, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS FROM NON-MEAT SOURCES, CARAMEL COLOR, CULTURED WHEY, MALTODEXTRIN, GARLIC POWDER, SPICE, CELLULOSE GUM, DISODIUM GUANYLATE, DISODIUM INOSINATE, SOY SAUCE (WATER, SOYBEANS, SALT, WHEAT), VITAMINS AND MINERALS (NIACINAMIDE, IRON [FERROUS SULFATE], THIAMIN MONONITRATE [VITAMIN B1], PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE [VITAMIN B6], RIBOFLAVIN [VITAMIN B2], VITAMIN B12), SESAME SEED OIL, CELERY EXTRACT, SOY LECITHIN.
I’m not super impressed. I spy some sweetening agents and a lot of additives. But the good news is that veggie burgers are really not hard to make! Here are a couple good recipes:
If you don’t have the time or desire to make your own, one decent option is Dr. Praeger’s veggie burgers. They don’t have as much protein as the others, but they’re a lot less processed. Check out the ingredients in one of their California Burgers:
Carrot, Onion, Stringbeans, Soybeans, Zucchini, Oat Bran, Peas, Spinach, Expeller Pressed Canola Oil, Broccoli, Textured Soy Flour, Corn, Oat Fiber, Red Pepper, Arrowroot, Corn Meal, Corn Starch, Garlic, Salt, Parsley, Black Pepper, All Natural Vegetable Gum
Those ingredients I can sort of get behind!
10 March 2010
Reader Mail: Getting Back on Your Feet (Literally)
Recently, I received an email from reader Cary, which I got permission to share. I’m honored that she wanted to share her story with me. It’s a story of resilience; using a setback to ramp up instead of back down. If you have a few minutes, read the whole thing. I have no doubt some or all of it will resonate with you. (Edited slightly, bolding mine.)
Last Sunday I was about three minutes into my weekend long run (was planning to do 8 miles in Central Park) when I was hit by a cab and broke my ankle. I was obviously devastated, panicked, and shocked because a) I was in a ton of pain, b) I have no health insurance, and c) no running for at least two months!! Doctor’s orders. Heart-breaking stuff. But then I took a little time to read about runners who’ve taken involuntary sabbaticals due to injury, and I decided that I wouldn’t let these 6-8 weeks get the best of me. I decided to treat this break not as a hellish spiral in sloth-like idleness and weight gain, watching my muscles atrophy, but I’d take control of the situation and come out on the other end with a new respect for my body and its healing processes.
A little backstory: I started running in 2003 as a freshman in high school. I had never been athletic but immediately fell in love with the sport. Thanks to a 24/7 salad bar at my sorority house and, after I got my own apartment, an enormous and inexpensive grocery store, I managed to lose 15 pounds and be the healthiest I’ve ever been. My eating habits were impeccable (at times a little rigid and neurotic), but I looked great and felt amazing. I ate like a runner should - fuel first, treats if I can afford them, run off the desserts with an extra mile later.
When I graduated and got a job, chaining me to a desk 9 hours a day, I also discovered happy hour and fatty foods. The one-time rabbit (nothing but salads, baby) developed a serious addiction for….bar food?! Jalapeno poppers, cheese dips, burgers, quesadillas, mac ‘n cheese. If it was loaded with saturated fat and/or deep fried, I was in heaven. Within six months I put on 10 pounds. Within the next year I added 7 more.
Despite the change in diet I continued to run, but I slowed down considerably (despite running the Hamptons marathon in September in my fastest time ever, 3:37). I felt gross. My skin looked bad, heart burn, general sluggishness and lack of energy. Disgusting. Not to mention a total lack of self esteem because I a) gained nearly 20 pounds, and b) could not seem to control my over-eating and new bad habits.
That all changed last Sunday.
When I broke my leg and became literally incapacitated, unable to do even light cardio for the next month, I had a legit epiphany. The only way I will be able to maintain my shape (I don’t care if I don’t lose weight right now) will be to eat right. So in the past week I have completely revamped my diet - with inspiration drawn heavily from your blog - and not only do I feel better than I have felt in months and months, but I look better too. My face has de-puffed, I’m less hungry for bad foods, and I finally have the self-discipline to stop eating when I am satisfied, as opposed to when I am so full my tummy hurts. Thank God for FreshDirect or else none of this would be possible. But last week I stocked up on fruit, a ton of veggies, low-fat yogurt, roast chicken, Fiber One Honey Cluster cereal, 1% cottage cheese, hummus, Amy’s Organic soups, whole grain bread. I feel like a new person.
I’m so excited to take these next several weeks to reacquaint myself with good food, build some new culinary habits, and get back on the trail in May with the outlook I lost a couple years ago. I feel no guilt about not being able to work out while I’m convalescing, but have managed to get down to the gym twice in the past week to lift weights, do a lot of crunches, and even ride a couple miles on the stationary bike while pedaling with just my left leg. (Funny sight to see.)
I cannot wait to rediscover running and start training for the next marathon with a body that has been transformed by a healthy little vacation, and I couldn’t have done it without your blog, recipes, and inspiration. Just wanted to share my story with you and say thanks.
1 February 2010
Reader Mail: “Why aren’t I seeing results?”
(Source)
Reader Johana recently directed me to this post on her blog. In it, she describes how she’s been eating well and working out regularly for the past few weeks. But she says she’s just not seeing any results:
Considering I am exercising more than I think I ever have continuously, I am eating much better and healthy foods. Which means, cutting a whole lot back on carbs, sugars and just fatty foods in general. And have added plenty of vegetables to my daily eating habits. I don’t want to call this a diet because it’s not, I’m just eating better, and I don’t plan to return to eating as badly as I had been (although I never really ate horrible, but my choices weren’t always the greatest).
A recent chat with a fitness expert revealed that Johana is only consuming between 1000-1200 calories a day. The expert pointed to that as the reason for her seemingly few visible results. Johana also admitted that besides boot camp, she hasn’t been doing much strength training. She asked me for my feedback, so here it is.
- Your kickboxing instructor was right! You’re consuming dangerously few calories, and your body doesn’t want to allow any to be burned off! Here’s a trick I use: to lose 1-2 pounds a week, use 1200 calories as a BASE. Then, estimate calories burned through exercise and add that to the 1200. If you’re working out at a moderate intensity for 40 minutes to an hour every day, that should give you about 1500-1700 calories. I can also refer you to this post, which explains how to find your “sweet spot” in terms of calorie intake.
- I’ve always recommended at least two hours of strength training per week. Boot camp-style classes are great, but they’re more cardio with a bit of toning thrown in. You also need to devote some time to heavy lifting. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I don’t ever see results from cardio alone. Cardio burns calories, but strength training can help mold the shape of your body. You will definitely NOT bulk up!
- Patience is definitely a virtue when it comes to weight loss. Remember: the slower you lose it, the more likely you are to keep it off. I recommend 1-2 pounds a week. I know it’s painful at times to go that slowly, but it’s SO much more likely to last during the “maintenance” phase.
- Johana, I’ve seen your pics, girl! You look fab already. You’re clearly already at a healthy weight for your height, and you’re clearly already very fit. So if all else fails, try working out your acceptance muscle. One of you amazing readers summed it up so well a few weeks ago:
- “WHEN I lose [weight], that’ll be great, but I can’t wait to start living when I get to some number. Most people can barely tell the difference. I keep finding myself thinking, ‘I have to postpone this date until the end of the week so I’ll be skinnier,’ ‘I don’t want to go to that dinner with my family looking like this…’ But, where I am is fine! I’m fine! I can be better, and I will be, but there’s nothing wrong with where I am.”
I get these kinds of questions from readers all the time, and I know how frustrating it can be when you’re putting in the work but not seeing results. Here are some other posts that might come in handy:
