Tune in this Wednesday, January 26 to the Dr. Oz Show to learn all about the big O – Omega fatty acids.
By now, we all know that omega fatty acids, like those found in salmon, flaxseeds and walnuts are good for you, but do we really know the difference between an omega-3 fatty acid and an omega-6 fatty acid? (more…)
This weight loss plan created by Dr. Mike Moreno has taken the diet industry by storm. It’s unique program, which consists of four 17-day phases, promises to burn fat, curb your cravings and give you noticeable results within just a few days. (more…)
Maruchy Lachance is president of Running Ninja!, a lifestyle brand for runners by runners. Running Ninja! offers a wide variety of apparel and gifts for runners to keep you happy and inspired while you’re on the run.
We have all heard that we should live in the moment. I admit to not having seen the sense of this saying until I began on the path to health and fitness.
The quote really seemed a little irresponsible to me. If I was living in the moment who was taking care of my future? As I began to take responsibility for my nutritional and physical needs the statement became my mantra.
When it comes to healthy eating you must be in the present in order to make the right choices. You can no longer be satisfied to pull up to a drive-thru or to dig your hand in a bag of chips. Those food decisions are poor because they have no nutritional value and are made in a mindless state. Healthy eating takes planning and preparation and it is a wonderful way to begin the practice of living in the moment.
Instead of being annoyed by the amount of time it will take you to prep for a healthy meal, look at it as an opportunity to pamper yourself. Nothing screams spa experience like fresh vegetables and fruits. Toss in some delicious grains and lean meats and suddenly you are zen master spa chef. (more…)
Watch out, donuts lovers of the world. Krispy Kreme, that iconic, yummy scented denizen of the South, has unveiled a new treat. Called the Dark Chocolate Kreme Doughnut, the signature yeast raised doughnut is filled with a rich dark chocolate cream and hand dipped in dark chocolate frosting. It is then drizzled with more chocolate. The doughnut is available for a limited time and will be out of their shops by February 14.
In conjunction with their “Celebrate Chocolate” theme, Krispy Kreme pairs the Dark Chocolate doughnut with their European Dark Hot Chocolate. The hot chocolate is topped with whipped cream and a chocolate drizzle. Be careful, though – this combination may be delicious, warm and filling during the brutal weather we’ve been experiencing this winter, but it’s deadly to your diet. The Dark Chocolate Doughnut has 360 calories, 22 grams of fat and 40 grams of carbohydrates. A 16 ounce Hot Chocolate contains 320 calories, 8 grams of fat and 85 grams of carbohydrates. If you choose this afternoon snack, you’ll need to spend more than 3 hours walking at a brisk pace or play racquetball for more than an hour and a half to counteract it.
On Wednesday, British courts ruled that Vitaminwater, a popular line of flavored water products, has too much sugar to be accurately described as nutritious. While UK courts ordered brand owner Coca-Cola to stop publicizing the claim, US legislators have already decided that Vitaminwater claims violate FDA rules.
Now, the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority said that Coca-Cola broke the rules by describing the products as “delicious and nutritious” in a 2024 ad. According to the CBC News, consumers wouldn’t expect a drink marketed as nutritious to have between four and five teaspoons of added sugar.
“The term ‘nutritional value’ is the loophole many manufacturers use to sell their products without outright lying,” said Mindy Haar, MS, RD, CDN, Director of the Graduate Program in Clinical Nutrition, New York Institute of Technology. “Most associate the term ‘nutritional value’ with ‘healthfulness,’ yet any food with more than zero calories, whether these calories are from carbohydrates, protein or fat, does provide some nutrition.”
Registered dietitians, also known as RDs, are food and nutrition experts who have met a number of academic and professional requirements that qualify them to provide reliable, objective information about food, fitness and the latest scientific findings from the dietetic community.
Unlike a doctor or a nurse who specialize in medicine, registered dietitians study food and food science to determine the best diet and lifestyle plans to help nourish our bodies. Becoming a registered dietitian, while not exactly easy, is accessible for anyone once they have completed a minimum of a bachelor’s degree at an accredited US university or course work approved by the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education (CADE) of the American Dietetic Association (ADA).
Valerie Waters is a celebrity trainer who has an approachable take on fitness. Also a spokesperson for California Raisins, she’s actively living a healthy life and works to help others, whether her clients or fans, do the same. She has nearly 20 years experience in the business, has worked with such names as Hugh Jackman, Jennifer Garner and Jessica Biel, and regularly appears in some of the most watched morning shows and read magazines.
We spoke with Valerie Watersabout what it takes to get fit like a celebrity, how to tackle postpartum nutrition, and about her upcoming appearance with California Raisins at the 2024 Blissdom event. Her expert advice is some of the most realistic we’ve ever heard, and Hollywood or Hometown, you can apply it to your life.
Valerie on Celebrity Fitness
We asked Valerie what we can do at home to train like her clients. Her advice? You might be surprised to hear that it wasn’t expensive trainers, hours a day in the gym and fancy chef-prepared meals. Instead, it was “Decide that you want it.”
Valerie said her celeb clients aren’t any more interested in waking up early on dark and cold mornings to workout than we are, but when you make that commitment it’s no longer an option. “Then you’re not negotiating with yourself at six a.m.”
The FTC has been cracking down on misleading advertising claims on food products, and Kellogg’s has come under fire for the second time. In November of 2024, the company Cocoa Krispies sported a label that read “Now Helps Support Your Child’s Immunity.” The Food and Drug Administration quickly asked the company to remove the unproven claims from boxes and ads.
The company made other unscientifically supported claims. For example, they advertised that Frosted Mini-Wheats could improve children’s attentiveness and that Rice Krispies had “been improved to include antioxidants and nutrients that your family needs to help them stay healthy.” The FTC asked the company to change their advising campaigns twice in the past year and a half.
Over the past month I’ve tried something new: vegetarianism. I’ve read much about a vegetarian diet, including how it can reduce your saturated fat intake (if you choose the right foods), help reduce your footprint on the Earth and help you increase how many fruits and vegetables you eat. Plus, I just wanted to see if I could do it- and how, or if, it would affect my desire to eat meat. Well, I’m 20 days and counting as being meat-free in my diet, and while I haven’t craved any meat yet, I have noticed a few benefits I didn’t expect.
3 Unique Benefits of a Vegetarian Diet
1. More energy. Within just a few days of going meatless in my meals I noticed that I had more energy. This could be to my increased consumption of fruits, vegetables, nuts and beans, but I found that even though I was eating the same amount of physical food at meals and snacks, that the food felt lighter in my stomach and I didn’t have that heavy after-lunch or after-dinner feeling that you can get. Instead I had the energy to go for a walk or even squeeze in an extra 10 minutes of exercise!
Gary Taubes, a professional writer and journalist is the author of the critically acclaimed Good Calories, Bad Calories. Now his newest release, Why We Get Fat takes the long-held idea that the reason we get fat is the calories in/calories out hypothesis and debunks it. In essence, Taubes, through scores of research-backed evidence, suggests that it is not the amount of calories per se, but rather the carbohydrates in our diet that are responsible for fat accumulation.
Taubes proposes that in order to lose weight, we need to consume a very low carbohydrate diet. Protein, naturally-occuring fat, like those found in meat, poultry, fish, eggs, avocados and oils as well as leafy green vegetables should comprise the mainstay of our diet. The typical American diet of starchy carbohydrates, grains, sugar, processed food and even high glycemic vegetables and fruit needs to be given the boot if we want to avoid being overweight or obese.
Two recent studies show that eating ginger after you work out can ease muscles soreness the following day. Ginger contains anti-inflammatory compounds and volatile oils called gingerols that have been shown to have analgesic and sedative effects in animals. Researchers have now examined the effects in humans.
One study gave examined participants who did exercises designed to cause muscle pain over 11 days. Some of the participants where given raw ginger supplements, some heat-treated ginger supplements, and some a placebo. Both groups taking the ginger supplements reported less muscle pain. They conclude, “This study demonstrates that daily consumption of raw and heat-treated ginger resulted in moderate-to-large reductions in muscle pain following exercise-induced muscle injury.”
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