Reduced-fat peanut butter

The oil is the healthiest part of a nut, containing most of the nutrients, so there’s no advantage to taking it out. In fact, it’s worse because it robs the peanut butter of its health benefits. “Reduced-fat peanut butter has as many calories and more sugar than the regular,” says Bonnie Liebman, nutrition director for the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

Instead: Buy regular peanut butter. Eating one or two ounces of nuts daily is associated with reductions in heart disease and cancer risk. A recent Harvard study showed that eating nuts is associated with lower body weights.

Enhanced water

Drinks such as Vitaminwater are essentially sugary drinks with a vitamin pill. They are “unequivocally harmful to health,” says Walter Willett, professor of epidemiology and nutrition at Harvard’s School of Public Health. “Whether vitamins dissolved in water have any benefit will depend on who you are and whether you are already getting enough. . . . Some people may be getting too much of some vitamins and minerals if they add vitamin water on top of fortified foods and other supplements.” A recent Iowa Women’s Health Study found an association between certain commonly used vitamin and mineral supplements and increased death rates.

Instead: Drink water, ideally from the tap (“Eau du Potomac,” as it’s known locally). It’s the best drink for hydrating your body, is naturally calorie-free and contains fluoride to prevent tooth decay. No supplement matches the nutrients in whole foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grains.

Energy bars

The reputation of these bars, also known as meal replacement bars, is that they are healthy, aid in weight loss or help build muscle. In fact, they are calorie bombs: candy bars with vitamins, protein or fiber added. For most of them, sugar is either the first (predominant) or second ingredient.

Instead: Snack on fruit or veggies for weight loss and yogurt for muscle gain. If you’re hiking a long distance and want a healthful, nonperishable calorie bomb, try nuts and dried fruit.

Multigrain foods

Multigrain breads, crackers and cereals are often the most confusing foods. People see “multigrain” and think “whole grain.” That’s not necessarily so. This is an important distinction because people who eat whole grains have a lower incidence of diabetes, heart disease and cancers, and are less likely to be overweight compared with those who eat refined grains. Note that when “enriched wheat flour” is listed in the ingredients, that’s refined flour.

Instead: Be sure a whole grain, such as whole wheat, whole oats or brown rice, is the first and preferably the only grain in the ingredient list. A great example is a cereal listing whole rolled oats as the only grain. Alternatively, consider an egg for breakfast. “The huge amounts of refined starch and sugar that many people eat for breakfast, often thinking that this is the healthy choice, does far more damage to their well-being than an egg,” says Harvard’s Willett.

Non-fried chips and crackers

It’s easy to believe these foods are healthful because of labels such as “baked,” “low fat” or “gluten free.” But most are made with refined grain or starch, which provide plenty of calories and few nutrients. Popchips, for example, are a new product marketed as healthful. But the ingredients are highly refined potato flakes, starch, oil, salt and about 14 additional things. Pita chips, made with white flour, oil, salt and several more ingredients, are no better. To boot, research shows that too much refined grains and starches increases the risk for heart disease, cancers, diabetes and weight gain.

Instead: Try Wasa or Finn Crisp Original Rye crackers. They’re 100 percent whole grain and have little sodium. If you’d like a chip, try Terra Chips, made with sliced vegetables, or even a 100 percent whole grain chip fried in a healthy oil, such as olive or canola. Tortilla chips and SunChips are two examples. “Now that trans fats have been removed from most cooking oils, the healthiest part of potato chips is the fat,” Willett says. “And chips made of whole grains rather than potatoes, like Frito-Lay’s SunChips, can legitimately be considered a health food,” so long as you keep to the one-ounce serving size.
SOURCES:

http://www.washingtonpost.com

By Katherine Tallmadge
Tallmadge is a registered dietitian and the author of “Diet Simple” (LifeLine Press, 2011).

“Obesity develops when energy intake is greater than expenditure. Diet and physical activity play an important part in this, but an additional factor may be inadequate sleep,” said Dr Kristen Knutson, from the University of Chicago. “A review of the evidence shows how short or poor quality sleep is linked to increased risk of obesity by de-regulating appetite, leading to increased energy consumption.”

Dr Knutson accumulated evidence from experimental and observational studies of sleep. Observational studies revealed cross-sectional associations between getting fewer than six hours sleep and increased body mass index (BMI) or obesity.

The studies revealed how signals from the brain which control appetite regulation are impacted by experimental sleep restriction. Inadequate sleep impacts secretion of the signal hormones ghrelin, which increases appetite, and leptin, which indicates when the body is satiated. This can lead to increased food intake without the compensating energy expenditure.

“In the United States 18% of adults are estimated to get less than 6 hours of sleep, which equates to 53 million short sleepers who may be at risk of associated obesity,” said Knutson. “Poor sleeping patterns are not random and it is important to consider the social, cultural and environmental factors which can cause inadequate sleep so at-risk groups can be identified.”

The evidence suggests the association between inadequate sleep and higher BMI is stronger in children and adolescents. It also shows that sleep deficiency in lower socioeconomic groups may result in greater associated obesity risks.

The majority of the studies Dr Knutson examined came from Western countries, which highlights the need for more research to understand sleep’s role in disease risk. However other research papers in the special issue focus on obesity in the United Arab Emirates, Samoa, and Brazil.

“These findings show that sleeping poorly can increase a person’s risk of developing obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease,” concluded Knutson. “Future research should determine whether efforts to improve sleep can also help prevent the development of these diseases or improve the lives of patients with these conditions.”

SOURCES:
Sciencedaily.com
Wiley-Blackwell, via AlphaGalileo.

This has been an ongoing controversy for many years. For optimal fat loss, should you focus more on your diet or your exercise routine? Well…all in all, the answer is definitely, without a doubt, 100% BOTH. You must follow a diet and exercise in order to get the absolute best results. But when it comes down to which contributes more, you may be surprised as to what the answer is.

Simply put, exercise is the easy part…at least for most people. The majority of the population finds it much easier to get to the gym and break a sweat than to put down that piece of bread or stop themselves from getting another serving of dinner. Exercise is always more favorable than dieting. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just exercise and eat whatever you want? Well, that’s sure as heck not the case. Dieting contributes to about 90% of fat loss, leaving only that 10% left for exercise. This may come as a big surprise to you but it is true. How come? Read along to find out why dieting has an advantage over exercise when it comes to weight loss.

“YOU CAN’T OUT-EXERCISE A BAD DIET.”

This is such a popular phrase in the fitness world and it is probably one of the truest statements out there. Many people believe that if they work their butt of in the gym, that they can go home and eat what they want. The main idea behind exercising is to burn calories. The unhealthy foods that you reward yourself with afterward are chockfull of unnecessary calories. Take this for example: You stop by the McDonalds drive-thru with some friends and splurge on a Big Mac. In the back of your head you’re thinking…I’ll just go to the gym later. Well, hold that thought and put the Big Mac down! In order to burn off a Big Mac, you would need to bust your butt in the gym for at least 90 minutes of full on intense cardio just to create a small calorie deficit. This goes for all foods, just only Big Macs. In order to lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. If you have bad dietary habits, chances are that’s not happening and that’s the reason why you aren’t losing weight. All the exercise in the world can’t help a bad diet.

IT’S EASIER TO CREATE A CALORIE DEFICIT THROUGH DIETING.

The last statement just explained this. “In order to lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume.” There are two ways to do this: through diet or through exercise. Here’s the deal: In order to lose only 1 pound per week, you have to burn 3500 EXTRA calories in that week. That means you would have to burn 500 calories every day. For some people, that’s a breeze…for others, not so much. It is much easier to cut calories from your diet than it is to bust your butt in the gym to burn those calories. You can cut out simple things in order to save 500 calories such as your daily soda which contains about 120 calories. If you drink more than one soda…well, you get the point. In the perfect world, you can split it up and cut 250 calories from your diet and burn 250 calories in the gym. However, this is only to lose 1 pound per week. If you are someone who wants to lose more, you have to do the math and figure out which is more realistic. The majority of the time, it’s easier to cut your calorie consumption to lose 2 to 3 pounds per week rather than exercising to burn all of them.

THE FOOD YOU EAT IS WHAT FUELS YOUR WORKOUT.

Do this experiment: eat a Big Mac and drink a large soda before hitting the gym one day and then the next day eat a banana and drink a tall glass of water before the gym. You probably already know which will benefit you more. Your body can’t just do what YOU want it to. It’s a lot more complex. Feeding your body unhealthy foods that are high in saturated and trans fat, sodium, and way too many calories will definitely have a negative impact on your ability to exercise. Eating those foods is just putting garbage in to your body. It’s like putting water into your gas tank in your car instead of what it really needs…gas. You are not going to get very far, if anywhere, by doing that. Your body is the same way. You must give it proper fuel to make it work.

THERE’S A LOT MORE BEHIND FOOD THAN YOU THINK.

Food does more than just taste good and satisfy a hungry stomach. This is what your body needs for survival. Food can either make or break a lot of things in your life such as your weight and many common diseases such as cardiovascular disease and cancer. Without consuming the proper foods your body will begin to shut down, slowly but surely.

SO WHICH ONE WINS: DIET OR EXERCISE?

The answer is diet. Diet is going to have a greater impact on your fat loss. It will help you shed the weight much more quickly than exercising alone will. There are many things that dieting can do that exercising cannot. The hardest part for most people is the diet part anyway. The way you eat goes all the way back to how you were raised. If you ate poorly as a child, you never knew any better. It’s much harder to change eating habits than it is to just get up and go for a walk. The thing with diet also is that it’s much harder to understand how to properly do it than it is for exercise. Exercise is simple. You go to the gym, hop on the treadmill, and sweat like a pig. (There is more behind it but just for simple weight loss, it’s pretty simple!)

Bottom line is that you need to do both. Dieting will help you lose the weight but exercising is what’s going to tone you up. It’s very simple to diet the whole time and lose all the weight but if you want nice toned arms, six pack abs, and tight legs, you’re going to have to hit the gym. Eating apples and yogurt isn’t going to create biceps.


SOURCES:

http://dualfit.com

Gluten and wheat

They are “the most demonized ingredients beyond high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oil,” said Melissa Abbott, culinary director at the Hartman Group, a company specializing in consumer research.

Yet decades of studies have found that gluten-containing foods, such as whole wheat, rye and barley, are vital for good health, and are associated with a reduced risk of diabetes, heart disease, cancer and excess weight.

“Wheat is a good source of fiber, vitamins and minerals,” said Joanne Slavin, nutrition professor at the University of Minnesota. She added that the confusion about gluten, a protein, has caused some people to avoid eating wheat and other grains.

Only about 1 percent of the population, or less, cannot tolerate gluten and must eradicate it from their diet to ease abdominal pain and other symptoms, including the ability to fully absorb vitamins.

One reason wheat-free or gluten-free diets are popular is that people who don’t eat wheat often end up bypassing excess calories in sweets and snack foods. Then they start feeling better, lose weight, and mistakenly attribute their success to gluten or wheat avoidance.

Eggs

Eggs also don’t deserve their bad reputation. In recent decades, their high cholesterol content has been thought to play a role in increasing LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and heart disease risk.

But cholesterol in food is a minor factor contributing to high blood cholesterol for most people, and studies have not confirmed a correlation between eggs and increased heart disease risk. The major determinant of LDL (bad) cholesterol is saturated fat, and while eggs are high in cholesterol — 184 milligrams in the yolk — they’re relatively low in saturated fat — about 1.6 grams in the yolk.

Interestingly, some of the biggest egg eaters in the world, the Japanese, have low cholesterol and heart disease rates, in part because they eat a diet low in saturated fat. In contrast, Americans eat eggs alongside sausage, bacon, and buttered toast.

“The amount that one egg a day raises cholesterol in the blood is extremely small,” saysWalter Willett, professor of epidemiology and nutrition at Harvard’s School of Public Health. “Elevations in LDL (bad) cholesterol of this small magnitude could easily be countered by other healthy aspects of eggs.”

Potatoes

Potatoes have been blamed for increasing blood glucose levels, insulin resistance, excess weight and Type 2 diabetes. A recent Harvard study that followed large populations and their disease rates linked potato eating with being overweight, blaming it on the blood glucose rise.

But many foods, including whole-wheat bread and whole-grain cereals, cause similar spikes in blood glucose, and are correlated with superior health and lower body weights. How could the higher body weight in the Harvard study be explained?

The study lumped all potato products together, including potato chips and french fries, very fattening versions of potatoes usually eaten in large portions alongside hamburgers, hot dogs, and sodas.

“It’s an easy food to attack; but the meal pattern may be the culprit,” said David Baer, a research leader at the Agricultural Research Service of the Department of Agriculture. “Other epidemiological studies have not verified a connection between potatoes and weight gain or any diseases, and no clinical studies have shown a connection.”

Potatoes are a great source of potassium, Vitamin C and fiber that many cultures — Scandinavians, Russians, Irish, and Peruvians — relied on as a nutritious staple for centuries. And they were not fat.

Fruits

People often ask me if fruit is too high in sugar, especially for diabetics. This fear of fruit, I believe, is left over from the Atkins craze, which discouraged eating some fruits on the grounds that they are high in carbohydrates.

Avoiding fruit could actually damage your health. Study after study over many decades shows that eating fruit can reduce the risk of some cancers, heart disease, blood pressure and diabetes.

Fruit is high in water and fiber, which help you feel full with fewer calories, one reason why eating it is correlated with lower body weight. Even though they contain simple sugars, most fruits have a relatively low glycemic index. That is, when you eat fruit, your blood sugar raises only moderately, especially when compared with refined sugar or flour products.

Several health organizations, including the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, the National Cancer Institute, and the American Heart Association, recommend Americans eat at least five cups of fruits and vegetables a day because of their superior health benefits.

Soy

Though popular for centuries in many Asian cuisines, soy is sometimes seen as dangerous after studies found elevated rates of breast cancer among rats when they were fed a concentrated soy derivative.

But studies looking at whole soy foods in humans have not found a connection. In fact, the reverse may be true.

Soy, “when consumed in childhood or adolescence may make breast tissue less vulnerable to cancer development later in life and probably has no effect on breast cancer risk when consumption begins in adulthood,” said Karen Collins, registered dietitian and nutrition adviser with the American Institute for Cancer Research.

Actually, Collins said, the evidence is so strong for protection against heart disease that the FDA allowed a health claim for labels on soy food products.

Alcohol

Alcohol is feared because of the potential for abuse and alcoholism and complications such as liver disease, which are valid concerns.

But decades’ worth of research shows that moderate alcohol consumption “can reduce deaths from most causes, particularly heart disease, and it raises HDL (good) cholesterol,” the USDA’s David Baer said.

Wine may have additional benefits because its grapes are filled with nutrients called polyphenols, which reduce blood-clotting, inflammation and oxidation.

The key is to drink alcohol moderately and with meals. What’s moderation? One serving daily for women and two servings for men, with a serving being 5 ounces of wine, 12 ounces of beer or 1.5 ounces of spirits.

Fried Foods

While it’s true that frying food usually increases its caloric content, that doesn’t necessarily make it unhealthful.

As long as food is fried in healthful oil instead of butter, shortening, or trans fat, and it’s eaten in moderation, it isn’t less healthy. In fact, fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K, and heart-healthy, cancer-preventive carotenoids such as beta-carotene (e.g., carrots, sweet potatoes), lycopene (e.g., tomatoes) and lutein/zeaxanthin (deep-green leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale), need fat in order to be absorbed by the body.

“The consumption of certain fats, such as saturated fatty acids and trans fatty acids [fats that are solid at room temperature], is associated with an .?.?. increased risk of cardiovascular disease. On the other hand, the unsaturated fats, monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids [canola, safflower and olive oils] have significant metabolic benefits and are health promoting,” said the 2010 U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee.

SOURCES:

http://www.washingtonpost.com

by: Katherine Tallmadge, is a registered dietician and author of “Diet Simple: 195 Mental Tricks, Substitutions, Habits & Inspirations” (LifeLine Press, 2011).

Oh my goodness folks!  BUFFIE THE BODY is now teamed up with WESLEY VIRGIN IV at www.7DAYFITNESS.com as the Booty and Thigh Expert !!  She is going to be giving you the best advice on how to go from a ’beanpole’ body to a figure that’s BAM!  When you go to her website, www.BODYNOMICS.com , and read her bio, she’ll describe how she came from being shaped like a string bean to being being shaped like an hourglass, and a very nice one, at that!
Since joining our team, I got the chance to interview her.  After reading her bio at I was very eager to know more about what motivates her, and helps her achieve her goals.  So, I asked her some insider questions and here are her answers!

LALA:  Soooo… On your website, BODYNOMICS, you mentioned that you were a skinny girl, and wanted these curves.  You specifically said a nutritionist helped you accomplish this goal.  What did they advise?

BUFFIE: It was actually a doctor who prescribed me the appetite stimulant that helped me gain weight. He also gave me a list of foods that were healthy and high in calories. The only things I remembered being on the list were peanut butter and I think nuts.  He also mentioned resistance training to help gain muscle mass.

LALA:  Was this advice hard/easy to follow?

BUFFIE: The appetite stimulant instantly made me hungry so it was fairly easy to eat more after that. The exercising, I would say, was a little harder.

LALA:   What are the best workouts for someone who is all around shapeless?

BUFFIE: WEIGHT-LIFTING!!!!!! Nothing sculpts your body like those weights…especially free weights.  (LALA’s note here:  I specifically remember Britney Spears saying that same thing, and so many more stars saying their trainer could literally shape their bodies to what they desired through this type of training.  Go to Buffie’s sight and check this out!)

LALA:   So is food our friend when shaping our bodies?

BUFFIE: No doubt. You need the energy and nutrients from foods in order to exercise efficiently.

LALA:  You look so good.  Have you always been a pretty girl or are you noticing that your commitment to good health has made you more attractive?

BUFFIE: Wow…thank you    I definitely would say exercising makes me more confident, and being more confident makes me even more conscience about other things like my skin, hair, smile (teeth) and even my attitude.

LALA:  How did you get to know Wesley?  And how/why did you want to get involved with www.7DayFitness.com?

BUFFIE:  I met Wesley through Youtube. I’m always extra attentive to people who are in the fitness industry.  I learn so much from communicating with fitness gurus like Wesley.  So we started chatting about fitness, and we became cool.

LALA:    I’ve noticed in life, when we’re tempted to make poor choices, that sometimes a ‘saying in our head’ or ‘mantra’ helps us to keep going in the right direction.  For example, when quitting an addiction that has drug us down in the mud, we can repeat to ourselves, “You were raised better than that.”  Do you have a mantra that you use whenever you just don’t feel like doing your workout routine?  Is there something that really just gets you going?

BUFFIE: What gets me going is the fear of possibly looking horrible and losing my good health if I don’t continue to exercise.

LALA:   Oh, that’s a good one.  I can definitely appreciate that.  Lastly, are there any drinks/foods that physically get you going?

and ready for BUFFIE’S PROFOUND ANSWER….

BUFFIE: Water! There’s nothing better !

LALA:  Thank you Buffie, and good luck with all your ventures!

BUFFIE: Thank you!

So, you hear it time and time again, that water is a very key ingredient when it comes to working out and having your fitness lifestyle that you desire.  Buffie, Wesley and their team members are willing to be your personal trainers that you need to shape your body into what you desire.  It’s not impossible.  It’s a step-at-a-time process and a step in the right direction.  What direction are you going, today?  Look up BUFFIE’S website and read her bio.  Look up some of her interesting videos where she’ll show you as she measures her body.  It’s incredible!  She even does a BMI video!  This lady has learned some stuff the hard way and is GIVING  you the information!  So, take one step in her direction and become involved in www.7DayFitness.com where she has teamed up with Wesley Virgin IV to make your exercising/body-shaping experience a much more enjoyable one.

Postscript: I realize some things sound like a commercial for Wesley and his site.  But, remember, commercials.. honest ones anyway, are there to point you to a product or service that is beneficial.  So, please go check out BUFFIE and one of her ridiculously cool videos!

–
GET FIT WITH PASSION

Wesley Virgin IV, Master Virtual Fitness Trainer
A New Way To Train.
7DayFitness.com

The study — recently published in theAmerican Journal of Clinical Nutrition– is the first to examine soda’s affect on stroke risk. Previous research has linked sugar-sweetened beverage consumption with weight gain, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, gout and coronary artery disease.

“Soda remains the largest source of added sugar in the diet,” said Adam Bernstein, MD, ScD, study author and Research Director at Cleveland Clinic’s Wellness Institute. “What we’re beginning to understand is that regular intake of these beverages sets off a chain reaction in the body that can potentially lead to many diseases — including stroke.”

The research analyzed soda consumption among 43,371 men who participated in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study between 1986 and 2008, and 84,085 women who participated in the Nurses’ Health Study between 1980 and 2008. During that time, 2,938 strokes were documented in women while 1,416 strokes were documented in men.

In sugar-sweetened sodas, the sugar load may lead to rapid increases in blood glucose and insulin which, over time, may lead to glucose intolerance, insulin resistance, and inflammation. These physiologic changes influence atherosclerosis, plaque stability and thrombosis — all of which are risk factors of ischemic stroke. This risk for stroke appears higher in women than in men.

In comparison, coffee contains chlorogenic acids, lignans and magnesium, all of which act as antioxidants and may reduce stroke risk. When compared with one serving of sugar-sweetened soda, one serving of decaffeinated coffee was associated with a 10 percent lower risk of stroke.

In addition, study findings show that men and women who consumed more than one serving of sugar-sweetened soda per day had higher rates of high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol and lower physical activity rates. Those who drank soda more frequently were also more likely to eat red meat and whole-fat dairy products. Men and women who consumed low-calorie soda had a higher incidence of chronic disease and a higher body mass index (BMI). The investigators controlled for these other factors in their analysis to determine the independent association of soda consumption on stroke risk.

“According to research from the USDA, sugar-sweetened beverage consumption has increased dramatically in the United States over the past three decades, and it’s affecting our health,” said Dr. Bernstein. “These findings reiterate the importance of encouraging individuals to substitute alternate beverages for soda.”

SOURCES:
ScienceDaily.com

Following a healthy diet and eating all of the right foods and is all well and good for your start on weight loss but what you put on top could make or break that scale. You can count calories until the day you die and while you may be successful for a short while, if you are sprinkling that salt shaker or pouring on the salad dressing, you could be doing a great deal of damage. It’s understandable that some people use these condiments and spices in order to make their food much more flavorful but there’s a fine line between what you should be using. What you garnish your food with is almost just as important as what that food is.

CONDIMENTS/SPICES TO AVOID

There are so many condiments and spices on your grocery shelves or in your own kitchen. Some of these spices can be seriously damaging to not only your waist line but also your general health. What people put on their food or dip their food in tends to take the back seat when it comes to dieting when it really should be right up front in the passenger’s seat. If you are looking to get the absolute best results you can from your diet, avoid these common condiments and spices that people put on their foods.

SALT

This is almost a no-brainer. Everybody knows that salt is bad for us yet you still see the salt shaker on their kitchen table every single day. So what’s the deal? Why is salt so bad? Well, before we get to why it’s not so good for the body, let’s talk about why it IS good. The human body needs sodium, or salt, to live. It’s a very important mineral but it is only needed in small amounts. Most human beings get a substantial amount of sodium in their diet. Consuming to much of that salty goodness can take a toll on your weight as well as your health. Salt doesn’t actually make you fat. What it does is it makes you retain water, which makes you heavier. It will also make you appear to be heavier by making you bloated. If you have ever eaten a really salty meal and then tried a bathing suit on a couple hours later, you may have noticed your face looks puffy and so does your stomach. You can thank the high sodium content of your food for this. The best way to avoid an over intake of salt is to throw out that salt shaker. Aside from cutting back on fast foods, chips, and canned soups…putting down the salt shaker is the first step.

BARBEQUE SAUCE & KETCHUP

The biggest misconception people have about these two condiments is that they are healthy. This is such a false statement! While they are not the worst foods for you to eat, they provide almost no nutritional value. Both ketchup and barbeque sauce are used on many healthy foods in order to give them flavor. Little did you know that these two sauces are full of sodium and sugar. Sodium and sugar are two things that can take a toll on your weight loss. They can also be detrimental to your health. If you are going to use these condiments, it is best to use the sugar free organic kind.

SYRUP

Like salt, this may seem like a no brainer but many people use syrup way more than they should. Pancakes are not the healthiest thing you should be eating but nowadays, there are a ton of recipes for diet or health pancakes. There are berry pancakes, protein pancakes, fiber pancakes, oatmeal pancakes, nut pancakes, whole wheat pancakes, and the list goes on. If you are someone who loves pancakes, I’m sure you have given at least one of the healthy recipes a try. But before your reach for that Aunt Jemima bottle, think again. While the pancake may be loaded with whole grains, fiber, and protein…you are topping it with pure, sticky, artificial sugar. Top your healthy pancakes with fresh fruit or even drizzling a little bit of honey on top to make for a healthier choice.

CONDIMENTS/SPICES TO USE

Not all condiments or spices are bad to use. There are actually some that you should be incorporating in to your diet to get even better results. To find out what spices and condiments you should be using, read along.

CINNAMON

Looking to give your metabolism a boost? Begin by eating cinnamon. This spice is known for its comforting properties. Many people associate cinnamon with apple pie and lattes but this spice can be used in many different dishes to really jump start your weight loss. Aside from its metabolism boosting properties, it’s also been shown to reduce inflammation such as arthritis. Other benefits of cinnamon include reducing blood sugar and your LDL cholesterol levels (your bad cholesterol.) Instead of putting a spoonful of sugar in your coffee, sprinkle some cinnamon instead.

BLACK PEPPER

Unlike its partner, salt, black pepper has been shown to provide many benefits. It will boost your metabolism, help burn fat, and aids in digestion.
Ginger. This spice provides its best benefits when used fresh. You can buy ginger in the produce section of your grocery store. The greatest benefit for weight loss that ginger can have is that it helps to suppress appetite. Unlike some of the diet pills out there, ginger is a natural appetite suppressant and only does so at a mild rate. Other benefits of ginger include aiding in digestion, removing toxins, and raising the temperature of the body which will help boost your metabolism. Ginger is great in many Asian dishes as well as in tea!

CAYENNE PEPPER

This mouth burning spice has been shown to produce incredible results when it comes to weight loss and fat burning. Spicy foods have always gotten a good rep when it comes to aiding in weight loss. Cayenne also has a thermogenic property which increases the body temperature and leads to an increase in daily calorie burn. If you aren’t in to this spicy spice, the benefits can be seen by also taking the capsule form.

SOURCES:
http://dualfit.com

This is the final part of my “Tank Top, Sundress & Halter” videos. By following the 3 part video series your arms should be toned, shapely and beautiful. Keep up this arm regime to have nice arms all year long. Remember to use slow and controlled movements on all exercises.  For a general workout do this 3 times a week, 3 sets, 12-15 reps.
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1. Saturated Fats

Many of us know saturated fats as “bad” fats, but new research has led experts to question whether they are linked to heart disease, as previously thought. And one study even found that certain saturated fats can be metabolized by your body faster than others, which means they are rarely stored as flab. If a fat is solid at room temp, it’s likely saturated.

Try:
1 tablespoon butter (salted)
(12 g fat, 102 cal)

1 tablespoon coconut oil
(14 g fat, 117 cal)

8 ounces reduced-fat milk (2 percent)
(5 g fat, 122 cal)

3 ounces cooked ground beef, 85 percent lean
(13 g fat, 212 cal)

 2. Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFAs)

Eating this form of unsaturated fat can help improve cholesterol levels. MUFAs may steady blood sugar.

Try:
1/4 avocado
(7 g fat, 80 cal)

10 large green olives
(4 g fat, 40 cal)

1 tablespoon peanut butter
(8 g fat, 94 cal)

3. Monounsaturated Fatty Acids (MUFAs)

These fats tend to be liquid at room temperature, like oils. PUFAs can help reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes and heart disease by helping improve cholesterol. PUFAs are often in plant-based foods.

Try: 
1 tablespoon safflower, corn, sunflower, soy, cottonseed, peanut, or other vegetable or nut oil
(14 g fat, 120 cal)

1 ounce dry-roasted sunflower seeds
(14 g fat, 165 cal)

4. Omega-3 Fatty Acids

These may protect against cardiovascular disease. “Getting sufficient omega-3s is tough,” says Blaue. You’d have to eat salmon three times a week to get 500 milligrams per day of O-3s, the amount needed to reap the heart benefits. Fish oil may fight body inflammation.

Try: 
3 ounces cooked salmon
(4 g fat, 114 cal)

1 can sardines (3.75 ounces) in oil
(11 g fat, 191 cal)

1 ounce walnuts (about 14 halves)
(18 g fat, 185 cal)

 5. Omega-6 Fatty Acids

To help decrease the risk of dying from coronary disease, “people should get a 1-to-1 ratio of omega-6 fats to O-3s,” says Blaue. Otherwise, our bodies can metabolize O-6s in a harmful way. “Most American diets,” she says, “have a 20-to-1 ratio of O-6s to O-3s.” O-6s can help you absorb more vitamins from food.

Try: 
1 tablespoon margarine
(11 g fat, 101 cal)

2 tablespoons Caesar salad dressing
(17 g fat, 163 cal)

1 tablespoon almond butter
(9 g fat, 98 cal)

 SOURCES: 

By The Editors of Women’s Health
Yahoo Health

• Mold
• Maggots
• Animal excrement
• Carcinogenic hormones

Answer: They can all be in your food. Legally.

Disturbing, right? The truth is, as we discovered while researching the all-new Eat This, Not That! Supermarket Survival Guide, the food you buy in grocery stores isn’t nearly as safe or as healthy as you’d like it to be. Perhaps that’s why 48,000 Americans develop food poisoning every year.

So what can you do about it? Protect yourself by asking questions. It’s your food; you have a right to know what’s inside. I’ll even give you a head start—with the help of Rodale.com writers Leah Zerbe and Emily Main, I’m exposing the 5 most gag-inducing foods in your supermarket.

#1: Pink Slime in Beef

The Gross Factor: The meat industry likes to call it “lean finely textured beef,” but after ABC News ran a story on it, the public just called it what it looks like—pink slime, a mixture of waste meat and fatty parts from higher-quality cuts of beef that have had the fat mechanically removed. Afterward, it’s treated with ammonia gas to kill salmonella and E. coli bacteria. Then it gets added to ground beef as a filler. Food microbiologists and meat producers insist that it’s safe, but given the public’s reaction to the ABC News report, there’s an ick factor we just can’t overcome. The primary producer of pink slime just announced that it’s closing three of the plants where pink slime is produced, and Kroger, Safeway, Food Lion, McDonald’s, and the National School Lunch Program (among others) have all pulled it from their product offerings.

Eat This Instead: Organic ground beef is prohibited from containing pink slime, per National Organic Program standards, so it’s your safest bet. If you can’t find organic, ask the butcher at your grocery store whether their products contain the gunk.

#2: Mercury in Oatmeal

The Gross Factor: Sugary and calorie-laden, those convenient instant-oatmeal packets all have one thing in common. They’re sweetened with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which, according to tests from the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, may be contaminated with mercury. The group tested 55 samples of HFCS and found mercury in a third of them at levels three times higher than what the average person should consume in a day.

Eat This Instead: Buy yourself some instant oats, which cook in less time than it takes to microwave a packet of the sugary stuff, and add your own flavorings, like fresh fruit or maple syrup. And buy HFCS-free versions of other foods as well. The artificial sweetener lurks in seemingly all processed foods.

“CEREAL” OFFENDERS: Skip over these wholesome-sounding grains—the FDA doesn’t regulate many popular packaging claims, which is why you have to look out for these 9 “Natural” Cereals That Aren’t.

#3 MRSA in the MEAT AISLE

The Gross Factor: Hard-to-treat, antibiotic-resistant infections are no joke. Superbug strains like MRSA are on the rise, infecting 185,000 people—and killing 17,000—people annually in the United States. Thought to proliferate on factory farms where antibiotics are overused to boost animal growth, a January 2012 study from Iowa State University found that the dangerous organisms wind up in supermarket meat, too. The dangerous MRSA strain lingered in 7 percent of supermarket pork samples tested. The bacteria die during proper cooking, but improper handling could leave you infected. The spike in superbug infections is largely blamed on antibiotic abuse in factory farms that supply most supermarkets.

Eat This Instead: The Iowa state researchers found MRSA in conventional meat and store-bought “antibiotic-free” meat likely contaminated at the processing plant. Search LocalHarvest.org to source meat from small-scale producers who don’t use antibiotics or huge processing plants.

CHUCK BOMB: If the meds don’t scare you, maybe this will: Applebee’s Quesadilla Burger has more than 1,200 calories! And that’s not even the worst we found! Check out our complete list of the 15 Worst Burgers in America!

#4: Rocket Fuel in Lettuce

The Gross Factor: Lettuce is a great source of antioxidants, and thanks to the great state of California, we can now eat it all year long. However, much of the lettuce grown in California is irrigated with water from the Colorado River. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Colorado River water is contaminated with low levels of perchlorate, a component of rocket fuel known to harm thyroid function, and that perchlorate can be taken up inside lettuce plants. A separate study from the Environmental Working Group found perchlorate in 50 percent of store-bought winter lettuce samples.

Eat This Instead: Perchlorate is hard to avoid, but some of the highest levels in the country have been found in California’s agricultural regions. If you eat locally and in season, you can ask your local farmers whether it’s a problem in their irrigation water supply.

GREEN GIANTS! Lettuce makes our list of 9 Spring Superfoods that fortify your immune system, strengthen your bones, ward off allergies, and more!

#5: Moldy Berries

The Gross Factor: The FDA legally allows up to 60 percent of canned or frozen blackberries and raspberries to contain mold. Canned fruit and vegetable juices are allowed to contain up to 15 percent mold.

Eat This Instead: Go for fresh! When berries are in season, stock up and freeze them yourself to eat throughout the winter. To freeze them, just spread fruits out on a cookie sheet, set the sheet in your freezer for a few hours, then transfer the berries to a glass jar or other airtight, freezer-safe container.

Mold isn’t the worst of it. Find out what else is in your canned fruit by reading our full list of The Nastiest Things in Your Supermarket!

SOURCES:
Yahoo Health
David Zinczenko with Matt Goulding (editor-in-chief of Men’s Health)