Category Archives: Nutrition

Caffeine Jolt!? Know The Facts First

July 26th, 2011

Caffeine: The Good, The Bad, The Truth

It’s in some of your favorite drinks. And while it may keep you up at night as you shuffle around names on your wedding reception seating chart, the benefits of ingesting caffeine far outweigh the downsides. So what exactly are the benefits of caffeine? Let us count the ways.

One, One Thousand…
It gives your memory a little boost. Seating charts, wedding registry lists, or studying for a big exam coming up, all might require staying up past your bed time. Or are you meeting with your boss about a sensitive issue that will require you to have perfect recall of past events? Want to cement a certain event into your memory forever? You may want to sip on a cup of coffee or your favorite caffeinated drink of choice.

Two, One Thousand…
It can help your brain work better. Going hand in hand with increased memory, caffeine’s brain-boosting capacity has long been appreciated by lovers of all things coffee. With a bit of caffeine in your body, your brain is on overdrive. Sound a bit frightening? When you finally come up with a solution to a problem that’s been plaguing you at work for months or figure out a cure for cancer, you get over your fear of caffeine pretty fast. So down a little caffeine when you need your brain to be at its peak.
Three, One Thousand…

It can give your energy levels a helping hand. Feeling a bit tired? Dragging your way around the office or the house? If your wedding planning to-do list is too big to just lie down and take a nap, you may want a caffeinated jolt to your system. As increased energy is one of the most beloved perks of caffeine, you can bet your bottom dollar that downing a few ounces of the liquid goodness will help you forge ahead and take on whatever life throws your way.

Four, One Thousand…
It may help you fend off all sorts of illnesses. Okay, caffeine may not be as good at keeping disease away as a healthy, well-balanced diet and regular exercise, but some studies have shown that the perky ingredient may actually lend a hand in fending off a number of troublesome and even deadly conditions. Conditions you may find some protection from via caffeine include liver disease, type 2 diabetes, and Parkinson’s disease.

It’s Not All Good
Despite all these great benefits, the downsides to getting too much caffeine in your system on a regular basis are real and can be really dangerous. In addition to keeping you awake at night and feeling tired the next day (unless you take another shot of caffeine in the morning), too much caffeine can give your blood pressure an unwanted rise and even increase your risk for heart disease.

Additionally, consuming excessive amounts of caffeine can cause you to be on edge and overreact, making big deals out of small issues that would normally not affect you. Drinking soda can also weaken women’s bones over time, and since caffeine is often in foods and drinks that lead to obesity, it can actually put you at higher risk for diabetes – a condition that caffeine is supposed to fend off. So before you start buying everything at the store that contains caffeine, weigh the pros and cons of caffeine. Also, consider other ways to boost your brain power, memory, and energy levels. Because while caffeine may offer an instant fix, working out at the gym frequently, going to bed at a decent hour every night, and eating a healthy diet do everything caffeine does without the potential negative side effects.

Avoid Vacation Fat Traps

July 16th, 2011

Does your upcoming vacation have you worried about your waistline? You should be. OK, it’s not your honeymoon yet, but you still want to look your best, right?

The average person gains almost a pound a day while on vacation.

But that doesn’t have to be you. Most of the time extra pounds sneak up on you when you least expect it, so decide right here and now that your vacation will leave you slimmer than when you left.

Just like I tell you for your bridal fitness journey, all you have to do is have a plan.

As you embark on your next vacation adventure, use these 7 tips to come home fitter than when you left.

Trick #1: Cut Your Carbs
Vacation days are notorious for carbohydrate rich meals, and it’s a well-known fact that too many carbohydrates will quickly add up to unwanted pounds. Combat this fat-trap by choosing one meal per day to go carb-less.

Breakfast: This may be the most effective meal to use the carb-less trick, since breakfast often involves breads, pastries or pancakes. Skip the toast and fill up on egg whites and lean breakfast meats.
Lunch: A great carb-less lunch is a salad with lean meat. It’s so filling and satisfying that you won’t even miss the bread.
Dinner: Since you’re on vacation, you don’t want to feel deprived, so dinner is the hardest meal to go carb-less. But if you’ve indulged at breakfast and lunch then make it a point to cut the carbs at dinner. Stick with veggies and lean meats.

Trick #2: Be Active
If your travels keep you too busy for a workout, or if your hotel does not have an exercise room, make a conscious effort to be active everyday. Of course, I’m going to suggest you take my Bridalicious Boot Camp DVDs with you and you can work out in your hotel room.

But if this is not an option, go on a brisk walk after your day’s activities. This is a great way to see a new city, and also a great way to burn off extra calories. Take the stairs instead of elevator in your hotel and any other buildings you visit. Go on a short jog in the mornings or evenings of your stay. If your hotel has a pool, swim a few laps each morning or evening.

Trick #3: Indulge with Control
Eating out is a must while on vacation. Whether you’re visiting 5 star restaurants or the local Subway, you are faced with the same problem: large portions. While the easiest thing to do with a large portioned meal is to simply eat it all – you are on vacation after all…right? – that isn’t the best for your waist.

When you order your meal ask the waiter or waitress to bring you a to-go box. Take half of your meal and place it safely into the box before you even begin to eat. This gives you no choice but to eat a healthy portion. If you would rather not carry around a to-go box then ask that your entrée be made into a smaller portion. If it is dinner time ask for the lunch-sized entrée.

Trick #4: Don’t Eat Late
One of the easiest tricks for preventing weight loss is to simply stop eating 3 hours before you go to bed. This is especially effective while on vacation. So skip that late night indulgence and wake up looking and feeling great.

Trick #5: Snack Healthy
Have you ever noticed how travel days create the perfect opportunity for snacking? A coffee and muffin before your flight, a snack on the plane and then before you know it – it’s lunch time! Taking a road trip? This opens up even more opportunities for regrettable snacking…rest stop vending machines, gas station quickie marts and of course the never ending string of fast food restaurants along the highway.

This summer cut unhealthy snacking off at the pass by bringing along your own healthy options. Fresh fruit, unsalted nuts, protein bars, cut veggies and low fat, whole grain crackers are a good start. By filling up on these healthy snacks between meals you will end up eating less when presented with a less-than-healthy meal.

Trick #6: Avoid Fried Foods
While fast food restaurants are definitely convenient, with their low prices and quick service, this convenience is not worth the additional pounds brought on by chips and fries. As you enjoy your vacation keep this in mind: avoid fried foods. While this is always good advice to follow, it is even more important to abide by while traveling.

While vacationing you will likely burn fewer calories each day than you would burn at home, and you are consuming more calories due to your schedule of eating out. You are walking a fine line, and eating fried foods would throw you right over the edge. A gram of fat contains 9 calories as compared to the 4 calories that proteins and carbohydrates carry – so you can see that consuming fried foods will drastically increase your caloric intake.

If I still haven’t convinced you to pass on the curly fries, keep in mind that heartburn and indigestion are never fun…especially while on vacation!

Grill Your Way to a Shapely Bridal Body

June 23rd, 2011

Summer is traditionally known as “wedding season” with countless couples tying the knot from May through August. Along with planning a wedding, grilling also gets into full swing during the summer.

While outdoor cookouts are a great opportunity to relax and visit with friends and family, did you know that the average barbecue meal exceeds 1500 calories? That’s almost an entire day’s worth of calories in one meal.

That type of eating will do some serious damage to your waist over the course of the summer.

The good news is that barbecue season doesn’t have to be fattening. In fact, with a few small changes to your barbecue menu, you can turn summer into the perfect opportunity for weight loss.

So before you slather on the sunscreen and fire up your grill, read the following tips to grill your way to lean this summer to a slim and sexy wedding day figure.

On the Grill: Believe it or not, grilling is actually a very healthy way to cook meat. Of course the type of meat that you choose will make all of the difference. Burgers and hot dogs are traditional barbecue meats, but they aren’t the healthiest. Try the following:

Choose lean cuts of beef, pork or poultry
Marinade with low fat dressing
Make hamburgers with extra-lean ground beef
Take the skin off chicken before grilling
Replace beef patties with ground turkey patties
Grill up salmon or cod
Forego the meat and grill veggie burgers

Side Dishes: This is where most people run into trouble. Barbecue side dishes are typically filled with loads of fat. Creamy coleslaw and potato salads can hold as much as 15 grams of fat per serving. Try the following instead:

Make veggie kabobs and grill them
Grill bok choy
Replace the mayo in your salads with low-fat mayo
Serve fresh salad with light vinaigrette
Try whole-grain macaroni for your pasta salad
Grill up corn on the cob (pass on the butter)
Put out a veggie tray with low fat dip

Drinks: Most people don’t realize that beverages play a big role in summer weight gain. Margaritas, beer, soda and punch all contain lots of empty calories. Try the following:

Drink water, it is always your healthiest option
Stick with light beer
If you have to have a soda stick with diet
Brew unsweetened ice tea and serve with lemon

Dessert: Yes, there are ways to satisfy your sweet tooth while getting lean. Think outside of the box instead of turning to the typical fattening options like ice cream, pie, cake or cookies. Try the following:

Grill mango, banana and pineapple on kabobs
Stick with sorbet instead of ice cream
Replace peach pie with grilled peach halves
Choose light ice cream over regular

Remember, it’s ok to splurge every once in a while. Cheating on your eating plan is part of the program, as long as it is done in moderation and only about once or twice a week. Just keep in mind that by taking a few of the above suggestions you can enjoy great food while getting back into great shape.

Fitness Goals In The Bag

May 15th, 2011

A few tips for brown bagging your way to improved health and wedding day “wow”

Lunch. If you work or have a busy school schedule (or both) – it’s not always easy to make it a healthy affair that supports your fitness goals. And if you aren’t careful, you can easily find yourself in the Taco Bell drive-thru a few days a week. Instead of doing that, brown bag your lunch. Don’t have the time or dedication to make your lunch in advance? (It was so much easier back in the day when Mom had it waiting for you before catching the school bus). Instead of wishing Mom was around to do it for you, make it easy on yourself by keeping a few handy items on hand at your job and you’ll not only eat healthier than ever, but your next dress fitting will be all about “taking in,” as you get closer to the big day!

Which foods should you consider packing for your healthier than ever lunches, not to mention for your overjoyed reactions to the “you’ve lost some weight since last time” comments from your seamstress?

Peanut Power

With a heaping helping of peanut butter you give yourself an equally large helping of protein. Toss some peanut butter on a couple pieces of 100% whole wheat bread, add a touch of honey, and you’re in for a smooth lunch delight that’ll power you up for the rest of the day. Prefer something more substantial than honey? Slice up a small banana and pile it on. You’ll get a nice load of potassium to complement the protein!

An Average Calorie Count. Did you know that the average fast-food meal with hamburger and fries contains more than half your daily allotment of calories? Beat the average by brown bagging your lunch. Your waistline will thank you, and your coworkers will envy you (and they will even be jealous).

Green Goodies

Salad is the new healthy brown-bag alternative. If you think an all-green salad is a bit bland for your taste buds, add some color by chopping up and adding some of your favorite veggies and fruits. Carrots, tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, and tangerines can all add some color, flavor, and nutrition to your salad. Want to give it even more help? Cook up some lean chicken the night before and toss it on when you’re ready for a substantial and delicious salad.

Snack Away

Lunch doesn’t always have to consist of one large item with a few sides to go along with it. Actually, some of the best lunches contain a handful of smaller items and nothing else. Turn your favorite health snacks into a meal by grabbing a fruit-filled container of greek yogurt, a sandwich bag of carrot sticks, some cheese and whole wheat/multi-grain crackers, and a tall glass of water. It’ll delight your taste buds, give you lots of variety, and provide your body with plenty of vitamins and minerals you need to keep on keeping on.

Golden Leftovers

Have something healthy and delicious for dinner last night? Don’t let the leftovers go to waste in your refrigerator. Pack the food up in an appropriate container and bring it to work. If your leftovers are rather small in size, be sure to pack an apple, orange, or something else to make sure you fill up on healthy foods and can withstand the temptation of the snack machine later in the day.

Wrap It Up

Love sandwiches but growing tired of the same old thing, day after day? Get everything you love about sandwiches in a new package by wrapping it up. Grab some whole-wheat tortillas and toss in some lean lunchmeat, your favorite vegetables, and whatever else suits your fancy. Top it off with a side of applesauce and a small bag of nuts, and you’ve got a brown bag full of delicious, health-improving lunch!

Think Breakfast

Yes, you already had a healthy breakfast before heading off to work, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy breakfast foods at lunch. Whether you prefer a bowl of oatmeal with blueberries on top or a whole wheat bagel with low-fat cream cheese, eating breakfast for lunch is a great and healthy way to fill up without worrying about excessive calories.

Bridalicious DVD Goes National Today!

March 22nd, 2011

The #1 Bridal Fitness DVD in North America is being offered today
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Cut the Calories in Your Drinks

March 10th, 2011

And watch your waistline become the shape you always wanted by your wedding day

For most people, calories are thought of in solid forms, via meat and potatoes, fruits and vegetables, and cake and ice cream. But if you’re not careful, the liquids you drink each day can add hundreds of extra calories to your daily diet without you ever knowing it.
Which drinks should you be wary of during your daily grind?

Soda

One of the easiest ways to pile unwanted calories on is through soda of any sort. And while you may think that a diet soda is better for you (it does have fewer calories), many diet soda drinkers wind up drinking more soda as a result. Do yourself a favor by skipping soda and opting for water instead.

Fancy Coffees

You hit Starbucks on the way to work or school and get your morning java fix. Yes, it tastes delicious and gives your energy an instant boost, but that large café latte made with whole milk is also sending 265 calories directly to your belly. Chop the calories in half by downsizing your drink and making it a skinny, which is made with fat-free milk.

Sports Drinks

Don’t believe the hype! You work out pretty hard and are convinced that you need a sports drink to replenish everything your body loses as you exercise. Unfortunately, your conviction is nothing more than a response to good advertising. Unless you’re exercising hard and heavy for 90 minutes or more, your sports drink is leaving you with many more calories than you burned during your routine. Keep your body hydrated the old-fashioned way: with water.

Sweet Tea

Though you may consider it the healthy alterative to soda, sweet tea packs nearly 200 calories in a meager 16-ounce bottle. Unless you’re a professional marathon runner and have an extra thousand calories to use up every day, drinking sweet tea chops out a big portion of your daily calorie allotment without giving you much benefit. Substitue unsweetened green tea for added health benefits.

Smoothies

Quite possibly the healthiest drink around, smoothies are both delicious and nutritious. However, if you work at a desk all day and don’t take time to get to the gym, a smoothie a day may actually bring extra pounds your way. That’s because while they are very healthy, they have hundreds of calories. Drink a daily smoothie each morning in addition to breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and you can easily suffer from calorie overload. Make sure your smoothie is not just fruit and ice. A scoop of whey protein makes it extra good for you.

Alcohol

Whether you mojitos or margaritas, all things alcohol come with a calorie count that can easily be overlooked. To keep these calories to a minimum, watch the amount of alcohol you consume. Also, choose light beer, a small margarita, and the proper amount of wine instead of the excessive amount provided at many restaurants. BTW, if you have to indulge a bit during your bachelorette party, that’s understandable, but make sure to get right back on track the next day (once the hangover subsides).

Beyond the Drink

In addition to what you drink, how you drink and what you combine with your drink can all add up to extra unwanted calories. With a few easy steps, you can sidestep hundreds of calories.

Prepare Properly. Certain drinks work well with certain foods. Unfortunately, soda and alcohol often taste best with greasy, unhealthy foods. Instead of falling prey to such figure-killing choices, have healthy alternatives readily available and train yourself to choose healthy foods in those situations.

Go Slow. If you’re prone to drink three or four glasses of soda at a restaurant or don’t shy away from multiple drinks at the bar, you can slow down your caloric intake by breaking between each fill. When your glass is nearly empty, ask for a glass of water and don’t drink anything else until your water is gone.

Drive the Car. Have friends who enjoy getting a little rowdy at the local bar? Save yourself from joining in their calorie-rich alcoholic fun by being the designated driver. You keep your friends safe and get to hang out without worrying about adding to your calorie count.

Speed Up Your Slow Metabolism

February 22nd, 2011

What a faster metabolism can do for your body.

Your wedding gets closer every day, and although that’s totally exciting, it also creates a sense of urgency. One of the great things about being a bride is the motivation you have to get in the best shape of your life, and fast1 And with that uncommon motivation comes the desire to find out about things that you have wondered about for years, but never really took the time to investigate.

For example, you hear talk all the time about metabolism. But what exactly is metabolism, why is it important to your body, and what can you do to increase your metabolism? Well, beautiful bride, I’m about to tell ya!

What Is Metabolism?

Inside your body, a complex process is going on that involves hormones, enzymes, and food. Known as metabolism, this process is responsible for your body’s ability to take food and turn it into energy. Additionally, your metabolism determines if you take that energy and burn it off with ease or if it sits around on your body and goes nowhere fast.

Though you probably wish your metabolism was sky high (everyone wants that sleek body – right?), there are a number of factors you can’t change that determine the level of your metabolism. These include age, sex, and your genes. For instance, those who are over 40 have a slower metabolism, as does being a woman or having a family history of slow metabolism.

Why Is It Important?

Ever wondered why the first few pounds of weight loss come so easily for some people? It’s because your body has to work a little harder when you’re overweight. So when you make a small lifestyle change, your high metabolism does the rest, helping shed pounds with ease. Unfortunately, keeping a high metabolism isn’t after you’ve lost the initial few pounds. But if you want to lose weight and keep it off, you’ll need to have your metabolism working for you.

How Can I Boost It?

While there are a handful of factors that limit your ability to increase or decrease your metabolism, you can take your low metabolism by the horns and give it a boost with the right steps. Since you know that muscle burns more calories than fat, you probably already guessed the first step to speeding up your slow metabolism.

Get more muscles. A little flab here and there won’t make a huge difference, but muscle burns energy faster than flab. So if you want the highest possible metabolism, you’ll need to increase your muscle mass. Do this by exercising on a regular basis (three days a week at the least), and be sure to mix in plenty of weight lifting with your running, bicycling, and swimming.

Get five meals. Eating three times a day may be how you did things growing up, but unless you want to grow out, you’ve got to eat up more often. By substituting three large meals for five or more small meals throughout the day, you give your body confidence that there will be plenty of food coming later. This confidence allows your body to burn off more calories all day long.

Get good foods. Eating five or six times a day will have the greatest impact on your metabolism if you’re filling up on the right stuff. That means tossing the extra slice of cake in the trash and going for a handful of carrots instead. Or grab some oatmeal for a fill up that will provide a slow-burning boost to your metabolic low.

Breakfast: The Crux of Metabolism

Think you can have a high metabolism without ever chowing down on breakfast foods? You’re wrong. Without eating breakfast, you put yourself at risk for slowed metabolism.

Here are a few ways skipping breakfast will do the body bad.

It makes you hungrier at lunch and other times than you should be. When this happens, you don’t make good choices – and you know it!
It gives you nothing to start with. When your stomach is empty, your body is doing everything possible to hang onto the calories at its disposal. Hence why you have no energy without breakfast!
It starts you off all wrong. Start your day with a poor dietary decision, and you’re sure to make more of them throughout the day.

Quick ‘n Yummy Breakfast Treats

February 1st, 2011

5 Quick and Easy Breakfast Ideas

Most people complain that breakfast is one the hardest meals to eat in a day. However, your mother was right: it is one of the most important meals.

Not only does a balanced breakfast give you energy for the rest of the day, but it helps you eat less and feel less hungry as the day goes on. It’ll prevent you from digging into the cookie jar when you get home from work, and will allow you to have a great workout at noon.

But, since time is usually an issue for most people, here are 5 of our favorite quick breakfast meals that you can make in a snap:

1) High-Fiber Protein Pancake: Most people think of butter and syrup when they picture a pancake, but this is different. Instead, mix up the following ingredients and cook them the night before so you have this healthy pancake in the morning. Just warm quickly on the stove or toaster oven and top with your favorite nut butter:

Ingredients:
•   1/2 Cup Egg Whites
•   1 scoop Vanilla Prograde Protein powder
•   1/3 Cup dry Old-fashioned Oatmeal
•   1 tsp Ground Flax Seeds
•   1/8 tsp. Baking Powder
•   Sprinkle of Cinnamon
•   Olive Oil cooking spray

Directions: Spray a nonstick pan with cooking spray and place on medium heat to preheat pan. Meanwhile, combine the egg whites and protein powder in a mixing bowl, stirring with a fork or whisk until well-blended. Add oatmeal, flax, baking powder and cinnamon and mix vigorously for about a minute. Check pan’s temperature by dropping a tiny amount of water on it. If the water bubbles/sizzles immediately, the pan is ready. Using a large spoon or small ladle, spoon a small amount of the batter into the pan, gently spreading it to a pancake shape if it’s too thick to do this on its own. Cook on one side until bubbles begin to appear and burst on the top of the batter. Using a spatula, carefully flip over and cook for roughly the same amount of time. Repeat until batter is gone. Serves 1.

2) Scrambled Eggs with Avocado and Salsa: Scrambled eggs really aren’t that hard or time-consuming to make. People think you have to mix the eggs ahead of time, but you can just quickly stir them a few times while cooking and they’ll become scrambled – Amazing! We like mixing two Omega-3 Eggs with ½ cup Egg Whites and adding Spinach. Then, top with slices of avocado and fresh salsa. It’s a quick breakfast fit for a king (or queen).
3) Whey Protein Smoothie: When you’re in a rush you can make this smoothie the night before, or quickly in the morning. The key thing is to use a single-serve blender unit, like a Magic Bullet, so you don’t have to worry about cleaning a huge, messy blender when you’re done. We like to combine the following: 1 Cup Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk, 1 scoop Prograde Vanilla Protein, 1 Tbsp Ground Flax, 1/3 Cup frozen unsweetened Mixed Berries, ½ Cup raw Spinach (the spinach adds a neat green color to the smoothie, but it still tastes awesome! Try it!), and 1 Tbsp Natural Peanut Butter.

4) High-Protein Cereal: Face it, people love cereal because it’s easy to eat and can be healthy. But, most brands are covered with sugar and full of junk. Also, with just milk, it doesn’t really pack much metabolism-boosting protein. So, instead, try this with your normal breakfast bowl: Mix one scoop of Vanilla Prograde Protein with water or milk and pour that over a bowl of your favorite low-sugar breakfast cereal; some of our favorite are Uncle Sam, Bran Flakes (add your own raisins to make it Raisin Bran), Cheerios, Puffed Rice, and Shredded Wheat.

5) Nutty, Berry, Greek Yogurt: Most people think of yogurt as just a snack item, but it can be a great breakfast food too. However, like cereal, some yogurt is really like dessert, instead of a health food. So, skip all that sugar found in most yogurts and try this: Mix 6 ounces of 2% plain organic Greek yogurt with 2 Tbsp of slivered almonds, 1 tsp ground flax seeds and 1/3 cup frozen, thawed, unsweetened berries.