Diet and Nutrition

How to Care for Your Body, as Told by Cameron Diaz

Actress Cameron Diaz can do it all. She’s made us laugh, made us cry, and made us dance. Now she’s making us feel good about our bodies.

Diaz has just released a book entitled “Body Book“, but it is not exactly what you might think. Diaz has a wonderful body, a body that is very easily envied. There is something different about Diaz, though—her personality is just so relatable. Yes, she is a gorgeous movie star, but she could just as easily be your best friend or next door neighbor.

Diaz’s book is not a diet tome. (Isn’t that refreshing!) Instead, Diaz relies heavily on the natural science of how the body digests food. There’s a little new info here and a lot of tried and tested ideas, but she basically reminds us—endearingly through her personal stories—that basic is best. Though the book is called “Body Book”, it truly focuses more on feeling good about yourself through healthy (and simple!) guidelines.

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Posted on February 4, 2024 by Jessica Tholmer

Need a Dose of Willpower? Use Your Imagination!

By Team Best Life

Cake. Cookies. Candy. French fries. What’s your Achilles heel when it comes to foods that taste good, but aren’t very good for you? Is it difficult to resist the temptation? Do you find that you always overdo it when you’re around these foods? Where’s that willpower when you need it? We’ve got the fix! It’s a new technique known as “episodic future thinking.”

Here’s how it works: Imagine events that you’re looking forward to that are happening at different points in the future: tomorrow and two days, a week, two weeks, six months, and two years from now. Describe the events that you’re picturing in detail—what you are wearing; what you see, hear, and do; and how you feel. Commit this to memory. You can call to mind these images whenever you’re faced with your trigger food(s) or even make a recording of yourself describing these events and play the tape back before you head out to a party.

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Posted on February 4, 2024 by BestLifeDiet

Work It Off: 3 Ways to Burn off 533 Calories from an Order of Tater Tots

For me, bad weather in Portland generally spells the start of bowling season. I play in a weekly winter league with 5 of my friends. Our team name is “The Thunderballs”, and what we lack in skill we more than make up for with laughs and good conversation. This past week I was running late and didn’t have time to eat dinner before arriving at the alley. I scanned the menu for something healthy and, finding nothing, ordered chicken tenders with a side of tater tots. My teammates arrived, and one by one, more orders of tots appeared on the table. Without meaning to, our team of 6 wound up with at least 4 big plates of the deep fried potato poppers.

It turns out greasy hands—and slippery bowling balls—is just one hazard of this type of meal: Tater tots have 160 calories per 9-piece order, and each plate came with 50 or so tots. I would gauge my consumption at around 30 tots, or 533 calories. And that’s not including the dipping sauces, which included ketchup and ranch dressing that evening.

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Posted on February 2, 2024 by Jessica Cassity

Kim Emert Lost Nearly 100 Pounds – “I Signed Up For My First 5K and Never Looked Back.”

Last fall, Kim Emert ran the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon and finished with a time of 4:35:39. It was her second marathon and she did it with a 23-minute personal record. For Kim, the event was another milestone in her weight loss journey and proof that all her hard work over the last few years is paying off. The 34-year-old wife and mother from Tennessee has lost 86 pounds, and she did it the way you might expect a runner to, by pacing herself and taking one step at a time.

“I was average and active as a child,” Kim explained. “My weight struggles began later in life. After marriage, kids and my first sit-down desk job. I made poor food choices, overate and made excuses about why I didn’t exercise.” Like many women, Kim lost a significant amount of weight after her first child, only to gain it all back during her second pregnancy, which put her back at square one. “This wasn’t my first time on the weight loss wagon,” she said. “It wasn’t until my son was 2 that I decided to do this for real and for good because my kids and family needed me. I wanted to be healthy and active for myself and them.”

Kim has been successful with her weight loss because she started with the right mindset. Instead of using starvation tactics or falling for the get-skinny-quick promises of some diet programs, she simply relied on, dedication and determination saying, “I cleaned up my diet and started hitting the gym. Once I got into a regular routine I took up running and signed up for my first 5k. I haven’t looked back!”

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Posted on February 1, 2024 by Dani Stone

6 Must-Watch Food Ads to Look For During the Super Bowl

One of the most divisive events of the year is also one that brings the most of us together. Whether you’re a Denver fan, a Seattle fan, or neither, odds are that come Sunday you’ll be gathered around the TV to watch the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl watchers come in two kinds: the ones who watch for the game, and my people, those who watch for the commercials. It’s a storied tradition that some of the best ads of the year air during the Big Game. It’s such an important part of the experience that companies are shelling out $4 million for a 30-second spot.

With slots that expensive, you’d expect the commercials to be pretty brilliant, right? We think so, but we’ll let you be the final judge of some of our favorite food, and drink, commercials that you can look forward to on Sunday. Beware, there are spoilers ahead!

In an attempt to spark interest, several companies are releasing “teasers” for their Super Bowl ads. M&Ms parent company Mars is one giving us a glimpse of their ad, and it looks like Yellow is in a bit of trouble. Who knows what we may learn on Sunday.

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Posted on January 31, 2024 by Elizabeth

Kickstarter is Making Healthy Things Happen

Kickstarter is really making big things happen in the world. In 2024 the company and individual funders were responsible for the successful launch of 19,911 projects. These projects ranged from movie productions, to tech devices, to even launching a human-powered powered helicopter. In a nutshell, the platform of Kickstarter and crowd funding has proven to be very powerful.

In the area of health and wellness, there have been many funded projects and there are several more out there waiting for their ship to come in too. Check out some of the healthiest Kickstarters and maybe become the backer that sets them over the top:

1. Personal Chef
The Personal Chef is hoping to get enough pledges to become our next great kitchen appliance. The device is designed to cook and stir. By mechanically stirring, the appliance stands to simplify the kitchen duties, therefore making it more convenient to eat healthier food at home. The Personal Chef has its own cookbook which include recipes like granola bars, fajitas, scrambled eggs, tons of soups, several stir-fry options. These are typically pretty time consuming meals as they require a lot of attention. The Personal Chef may be the device you need to stick to you resolution of eating better and eating out less.

This project has not yet met all of it’s backers.

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Posted on January 31, 2024 by Lacy

5 Teas for Good Health

Of my recent travels, London stands out as one of my favorites. After all, what’s not to love about a place that makes an event out of tea in the afternoon? Tea is a passion of mine, one that fits very well into my fitness journey. My tea love affair started many years ago when I used a cup in the morning to help me break my diet Coke habit. As I explored different varieties of tea I came to appreciate its taste and the other benefits to my overall well being. If your only experience with tea is of the sweet variety or a bag of Lipton let me give you some tips on how to add tea for wellness to your fitness journey.

There are basically two types of tea: those derived from the Camellia sinensis plant (black, green, white, oolong or pu-erh) and herbal teas (herbal infusions). Unless otherwise indicated, all of the Camellia sinesis plant derived teas have caffeine. Herbal teas generally do not (yerba mate is an exception to this rule). Whole leaf teas are better quality than cut leaf. You’ll find cut leaf in most tea bags so I recommend purchasing a tea strainer and go with whole leaf where possible.

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Posted on January 31, 2024 by Pamela

Slammin’! Food Labels to Get First Major Update in 20 Years

If something has stayed the same for 20 years, it’s usually either a sign of a tradition holding fast, or an indication that it’s time for a change. Change is in the air at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) which has plans to overhaul its 20-year-old design of food labels.

According to the FDA, the new design is headed down the path of final approval. “The agency is working toward publishing proposed rules to update the nutrition facts label and serving size information to improve consumer understanding and use of nutrition information on food labels,” Juli Putnam, a media spokesperson for the FDA, told TIME magazine.

Many consumers and nutrition experts are saying it’s about time the labels are updated. Michael Taylor, the FDA’s deputy commissioner for foods told ABC News that, 20 years ago, “there was a big focus on fat, and fat undifferentiated. The food environment has changed and our dietary guidance has changed. It’s important to keep this updated so what is iconic doesn’t become a relic.”

The last notable change to food labels was the separation of trans fats from all fats in 2006, due to consumer demand.

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Posted on January 30, 2024 by Elizabeth

Chicken, Quinoa Dominate Top 10 Food Trends for Second Year

Want to know which foods were hot this past year and what to expect for 2024? Foodily, the world’s largest social recipe network, keeps tabs on what visitors have been searching for over the years. Since 2024 the site has seen “the decline of red meat and the increase of healthy eating related searches,” says Foodily co-founder Hilary Mickell.

What else is on tap for 2024? Here are the top 10 trendiest, most searched for foods in 2024. BONUS: We’ve included our favorite recipes so you can be sure to fit them in this year!

Top 10 in 2024:

1. Chicken. This standard red meat alternative can get a little plain sometimes, but not with this Apple and Herb Dutch Oven-Roasted Chicken! Check out our tips to use the leftovers for equally as awesome meals for the rest of the week.

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Posted on January 30, 2024 by Katie McGrath

Work it Off: Burn Away a 446-Calorie Bowl of Soup

During winter I make a lot of soup. But it’s hard to find a recipe that has enough protein, fiber, fat and so forth to keep me satisfied for hours after mealtime. Recently I tried a new take on tomato soup—one with lots of chickpeas in it. It’s actually pretty similar to the Best Life Diet’s Chickpea and Tomato Soup, only I add a scoop of pesto and leave out the ginger, cilantro, curry, and lemon.

This is no overindulgence—all of the ingredients are healthy and eaten together they really do provide a filling, tasty meal. But I was pretty surprised to see that the aforementioned recipe packs a 446-calorie punch. This isn’t a crazy amount of calories—as I mentioned, it feels filling enough that I tend to skip my afternoon snack when I eat it for lunch—but it still seems high for vegetable soup. Add on the fact that I sit at a desk for most of the day and you’ll see how a even a healthy soup could potentially lead to unwanted pounds.

So, how can I make sure that this delicious soup fuels more than just my fingers, typing away on the keyboard? Here are 3 ways to burn off the 446 calories in from this bowl of soup:

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Posted on January 26, 2024 by Jessica Cassity

Noel Rich Lost 60 Pounds By Making Good Choices Part of Her Daily Routine

Noel Rich has a story that many people can relate to. As a self-described, “chubby girl” throughout her childhood, she accepted her “large frame” as the way she was simply destined to be, but after she graduated high school and got married, she added another thirty pounds.

Today, though she has struggled with setbacks and pushed her way over many plateaus, she’s been successful in losing 60 pounds and keeping it off. She was recently diagnosed with celiac disease which has her switching up her diet once again, but she’s determined not to let this new challenge get in her way or sabotage all the weight she’s lost.

Diet and Nutrition

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