Is this necessary?

A new commercial from Poptarts boasts that they have 25+ flavours.
Well.. how intriguing. Did you know that they even have a....MULTIGRAIN version of Poptarts? While I appreciate their attempt at being healthy, just because the word "multigrain" is slapped on your product, doesn't necessarily mean it's healthy. They even have a whole line of "low fat", "20% fiber", and "added Calcium".There is a discontinued flavour that really piqued my interest, but I can't seem to find nutritional information on it anywhere: Low Fat Frosted Chocolate Fudge. I kid you not.
Their wiki page (found here at Wiki) lists all 25 flavours, their discontinued flavours, their special editions and frighteningly enough... their low fat/multigrain/calcium and fiber enhanced flavours... Wow... 

Lets look at the nutritional fact of a frosted Poptart. When I was a younger person, my favourite was the S'more's flavour. Lets look at that one first.

I chose this one, because as a kid I couldn't get enough of this one. I'd have one whole pouch (2 pop tarts), OR MORE!! Now, how many people have JUST ONE pop tart?  Seeing this kind of makes me sick, and VERY scared. I'm looking forward to having children, and while I'm incredibly thankful for how my parents raised me, you can be SURE Poptarts will NOT be in my house.

Ah wait, it can't be all bad, right? They have a LOW FAT selection! What flavours can you get?

• Low fat strawberry (Frosted)
  
• Low fat brown sugar cinnamon (Frosted)

Looking at the brown sugar flavour (yet again, another favourite of mine) was....flabbergasting to say the least. All it was, is "magic math". I dare you to compare and contrast. It's ridiculous. On the right is the "low fat" version. They take away protein, add some sodium, add some carbs, and take away a whole 20 calories... when you mix that up it breaks down to 25 calories from fat, rather than 45. Wow. Big switch.. not so much.  

Kind of sad. Though it DOES make you stop and look at labels..

So instead of Poptarts, what kind of breakfast can you feed yourself, or your kids? Cereal is a great option. To nix out some more calories, look into Silk Lite Vanilla soymilk. It's my favourite, personally. It's what i stock my fridge with.

In a single Poptart, there are 200 calories. Now, what does 200 calories look like in a -NORMAL- breakfast? Here's a list of ideas:

• Thomas' Light Multigrain english muffin with 1 serving All Whites and 1 Jimmy Dean precooked turkey sausage patty (190 calories)
• Cereal with 1 serving skim milk (200 calories)
• Weight control oatmeal w/ raisins (175 calories)
  
• Thomas' Light Multigrain english muffin with 1 tbsp peanut butter (190 calories)
• All white omelette (3 servings), 1 slice whole wheat toast (40 calories), 1 Jimmy Dean precooked turkey sausage patty (190 calories)
• Dannon light and fit yogurt with All Bran bran buds and half a fruit (200 calories)
• 1 serving raw almonds and half a fruit (210 calories)
• 1 serving raw nuts (almonds or cashews) and K2O Protein Water (190 calories)
• Light yogurt with 1 TBS raw slivered almonds, 1 tsp ground flaxseed and 1/4 cup of a high fiber cereal. (199 calories)
• Omelet bakes: it is so easy to toss together some egg whites (or Egg Beaters), chopped veggies, maybe a little bit of protein (lean ham, turkey bacon) and sprinkle the top with light shredded cheese. Bake it in a 9x9" pan at 350 degrees until set (30 min maybe?) and let it cool. Cut it into squares and package it up. Each morning, you can grab one, warm it up and either eat it with a couple slices of light toast or stick it in one of the Arnold's sandwich thins for your own Egg McMuffin.

How about a parfait for breakfast? A yummy parfait like the one here on the right is scrumptious, filling and HEALTHY! 

Again, how about some Special K with some soymilk. That's my favourite breakfast. Though, they tell you that it's healthy for you to have most of your calories in the morning. Especially if you're going to be highly physically active. To jump start your metabolism, you should have a nice dose of protein and complex carbohydrates to help get you through your metabolism into hyperdrive!

ZOOM ZOOM!

Some quick facts for you

• 55% of all adult Americans - 100 million people - are overweight.
  
  
• One out of three adult Americans is obese. This number continues to increase.
  
  
• In the next 10 years, 70 to 80 percent of all heart disease deaths will occur in people with Type II diabetes is frequently associated with obesity. In fact, obesity is the number one cause of Type II diabetes.
  
  
• Half of all cases of hypertension are attributed to obesity.

• An estimated 97 million Americans (55 percent of the U.S. population) are overweight or obese -- 59 million are overweight and 38 million are obese.
  
  
• Over the past 20 years, the number of children who are overweight has increased by more than 50 percent. The number of obese children has nearly doubled.
  
  
• Forty percent of non-Hispanic Blacks and nearly one quarter of Mexican Americans are obese.
  
  
• Obesity rates among African-American girls are the fastest growing among any demographic group in the country.

(Source:  Dr. Donnica, fast facts)

And here are some of the most scary, and intriguing facts that I've heard in a while. Courtesy of Suze Orman, on the Biggest Loser, Season 8.

• obese employees make $7,000 less than normal employees.

• If you swap out one restaurant meal a day you save: (family of four) 24$ a day

• Americans spend $4.4 billion on gastric bypass (220,000 people a year @ 20k a surgery (approx) )
  

• Americans spend $147 billion a year on obesity-related health issues.

• Americans spend $90 billion on cancer related issues, but we spend $57 billion more per year on obesity related health issues.

• You will save $1 million over 40 years by going from obese to your ideal weight

Wow! How frustrating. Stuck at work, which means no gym tonight. This means I have to be creative. Ball workout tonight, plus pushups and maybe some p90x yoga!

Well.. Lazy is as Lazy does

Today was a shopping day. I'm incredibly broke, as most Americans now a days are, but I'm very skinned when it comes to money. So i took the bit of scrapings i could, and went food shopping. Got some couscous, cucumbers, peppers, some veggies that i didn't get in my food basket from Flagler Organics and some Kellogs Special K cereal. They were buy one, get one, so i stocked up a little bit! I also got all the stuff my roommate needed for some chili. This is my second dose of red meat for the month, so my body is good. I rarely eat red meat, usually about once a month to get my iron jolted back up there.
Had a great weekend... but then i get to today. Starving for breakfast, with an empty house (I went shopping this afternoon)... and just had some fruit.. So what happened? I wasn't hungry until almost this evening. I made myself eat 2 tomato basil & turkey sausages with brown rice and black beans..
I have a problem with eating.
Do i eat too much? HAH no.

I actually under eat, chronically. i've been trying to remind myself to eat more... to no avail.
So .. is it OK to skip a meal then?
The answer seems to be a RESOUNDING no!! Especially breakfast!!

This is from Jillianmichaels.com:

Q: I'm trying to learn to listen to my body and eat only when I am hungry, and sometimes I just don't really want anything to eat. Is it okay to skip meals or to eat fewer than the recommended calories?

A:  You should NOT skip meals. There are so many adverse effects to skipping meals. Not only does it slow your metabolism but it can also lead to overeating, because when you do eat, you're overly hungry.
As for cutting your calories below your recommended allowance, remember this golden rule: Never allow your daily calorie allowance to fall below 1,200 if you are a woman and 1,500 if you are a man. Falling below these daily allowances can do real damage to your metabolism and result in excessive loss of lean muscle tissue. When you dramatically reduce your calories on a consistent basis, it can slow your metabolism or trigger a plateau. Consistent exercise — plus the occasional high-calorie day — will help ward off a plateau.
------------------------------

SO the moral of the story? Eat.
3 square meals a day, and at least 2 snacks...
Smoothies with protein helps wonderfully if you're just not into having real food.
Fruit, greens, and superfoods combined together make DELISH smoothies! I Love green smoothies, so long as there is no chard or kale in it. It just tastes way too bitter for my own palette. Hrm.. Maybe i'll post a smoothie recipe tomorrow!

OM nom nom!

Recipe is from: LOSING IT! With Jillian Michaels
Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Ring in a Healthy New Year

This year's holiday season is almost over... Thank god, right?!
So.... why are you still trying to fix one more fancy, time-consuming meal for guests? Or are you just looking for a good Anniversary/birthday/excuse to celebrate meal that will impress your guest(s)?
Jillian has brought us a quick, simple, healthy, and elegant dish. It is packed with lean protein and heart-healthy omega-3s, with a little punch from the capers and lemon! No one will be the wiser that this dish was quick and is actually HEALTHY for them!
This definitely earns an "Om nom!"
 
Poached Salmon With Creamy Piccata Sauce
 
Ingredients

• 1 pound salmon filet, skinned and cut into 4 portions
• 1 cup dry white wine, divided
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large shallot, minced
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 4 teaspoons capers, rinsed
• 1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon fresh dill weed, chopped

Preparation Place salmon in a large skillet. Add 1/2 cup wine and enough water to just cover the salmon. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer, turn the salmon over, cover, and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
Meanwhile, heat oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallot and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Add the remaining 1/2 cup wine; boil until slightly reduced, about 1 minute. Stir in lemon juice and capers; cook 1 minute more.
Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream and salt. To serve, top the salmon with the sauce and garnish with dill.
Makes 4 servings.

(Nutritional Information unavailable unless you sign up for JillianMichaels.com... how expensive is it? Here's the snippit from her billing:
*Jillian Michaels’ online program is just $4 a week, billed quarterly (every 13 weeks). You will be charged when you subscribe and at the beginning of each following quarter. The charge will be applied to the same account you provide at sign-up. You may cancel your membership at any time. If you cancel, billing stops immediately and no new charges will be billed to you. You will continue to have access to your account for the remainder of your term. )

New year, New experiences.

So i'm a bit late to the party, I'll be the first to admit. Here we are a week into the new year, and my hopes and dreams of a world famous blog are dashed. Wait... Are they? NO!

I've been working out nearly every day. I had to take two days off due to illness and extreme low iron count. I ate a trim steak, some baby potatoes and beans with baby carrots. Relaxed for a night, slept super early. It felt amazing.


  But now i'm back in action. I took a TRX class tonight at the gym (Thrive Fitness, Palm coast!). Dont know what it is? Ahh never fear! I shall explain, but first... A little smack to my ego.

Now, I know i'm not in shape, by any means. But things that i've been doing lately have truly helped me to understand that i am NOT as bad off as i thought. Yes, i'm fat. Yes, I have a belly. Yes, I'm "Plus size".... But man, i can MOVE! I can get on the treadmill, i can do elliptical, i can do rowing.... I can lift weights like nobody's business... So this class should be a pretty decently smooth right? Whoa. Just. Whoa.

I walk in a few minutes "late"--the class actually started early. I was kind of embarrassed. I hate walking into anything late, let alone a fitness thing. Hey! Everyone stop and look at the fat chick walking in! WOO! ....UGH.
There are these handles hanging from the ceilings, and mats on the floor. The sassy side of me is thinking "hrm, these could be fun at home" and the scared fat kid in me is shrieking, "OH GOD! They wont hold me"... Nevermind the steel beams it's hanging from, right?

The class trainer, Christine, is tiny. Skinny. GORGEOUS body, beautiful personality, amazing face and an ass that would make any woman drop to her knees in worship. The best part of all? She's welcoming, friendly and *gasp* SINCERE! She's genuinely happy to see me walk in class, and she greets me by name every time she sees me. It quiets the little scared girl inside of me.

After watching her lithe figure press, lift, and maneuver these ropes, I'm still stiff staring at the beams and the straps, praying that they dont snap and send me on my bum. My partner is a quirky young girl, smitten with my tattoos, but sad in the face. She seems so down. I cheer her on, and tell her to look up, be proud, push harder, she's doing great. I get a smile.
Class was hard. And at points, awkward. I have very big feet, and shoes that are 2 sizes too big for me.. OH and we have to put our feet in the stirrups, ala gynecological visits ladies! Thankfully, Christine was fantastic. She was understanding of the awkwardness, and told us to help our partners saddle up, so to speak.

It was fun. Hard. If you move forward or back, it governs how much weight you are really pushing or pulling. A half a step forward REALLY makes a difference. I have a lot of upper body strength, specially with my biceps, but a slight move forward sent my upper body leaning backward more, which meant i had to pull more of my own weight.
Time flew by. Christine was engaging, fun, and totally supportive.
I left the class far more sore than i had ever been just spending an hour hitting the free weights or the machines. There was a ton of cardio, stretching, and OBVIOUSLY lifting.

Best part is? This can be used for your home gym. Click the link above, and take a look. I've bought other fitness things before, but nothing is nearly as fun as this! Bea was there with me, and even SHE  had a hard time on some things! She actually sweat! (Not like bea's a bum, she's a yoga diva, but she takes forever to sweat). It's challenging, but it is completely worth it.

if you have a class on TRX in your area, TAKE IT!!.... You truly will not be disappointed. If you walk away from that class not feeling any sort of burn, good luck. It's time for a real trapeze for you!