Taking Care of Your Emotional Health

May 12, 2009

stressI’ve devoted a lot of time to talking about physical health in terms of diet, nutrition, and exercise but it is just as important to acknowledge the importance of emotional health. Our emotional health can be affected by many different situations:

  • Stresses in our lives (family, work, financial, etc.)
  • Relationships
  • Physical health
  • Disorders (depression, bi-polar, etc.)

With so much emphasis on physical well being and other concrete factors such as blood pressure, cholesterol, etc., it is easy to overlook less tangible emotional wellness issues.  That doesn’t mean that emotional well being is any less important however.  In fact, left unchecked,  mental/emotional problems can lead to very real physical ailments. Read more

Not All Calories Are The Same

May 6, 2009

strawberriesIt’s no secret that eating excess calories leads to weight gain, but do you really know what a calorie is?  A calorie is a measurement of energy (specifically heat energy).

One calorie is the energy required to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius.

Every food you eat has a calorie value associated with it however not all calories provide the same health benefit to our bodies. Read more

Servings and Portions

May 2, 2009

The terms serving and portion are often used to mean the same thing, but they’re not.  The difference is important because confusion around serving and portion sizes often leads to over eating.

Serving

A serving is a specific measurement of food that delivers defined amounts of key nutrients.  Serving size is usually determined by the Nutrition Facts Label on a package or container of food.  A serving size may be measured in cups, teaspoons, one or more units, ounces, etc.  The nutrition label will state the size of a single serving, the nutrients for a single serving, and the number of servings in a package.  It’s important to read nutrition labels carefully because manufacturers will often try to make unhealthy foods look better by disguising serving sizes. Read more

Gonna Make it This Time

May 2, 2009

coupleeatingI was having dinner with my husband last night and out of the blue he said to me, “I think you’re gonna make it this time.”   I had no clue what he was talking about.  He went on to explain that he thought I was really going to stay healthy and keep the weight off.  WOW!  It felt so good to know that my healthy living commitment was noticeable to others, especially my husband who has seen me tackle every diet known to man over the past 20 years (and fail at all of them). Read more

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Daily Lessons:

  • One small apple has the same number of calories as one Oreo cookie (55). Replace 3 cookies a day with one apple and save 770 calories a week.
  • Three, 10-minute exercise sessions are just as effective as one 30-minute session. Lace up those shoes and take a brisk walk morning, afternoon, and evening. You'll burn, on average, about 200 calories a day and your heart will be healthier.
  • If you don't have time for a healthy lunch, eat something to hold you over like an apple, orange, or some nuts. Avoid the temptation to go to the vending machine or to the fast food drive through lane.
  • Instead of ice cream, go for sorbet 1/2 cup has only about 100 calories and 0 grams of fat.
  • Cutting out 150 calories every day could save you from gaining 15 pounds a year