Author: Sarah Kesseli

Reliable Fuel for When You’re in a Hurry

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

While you don’t need to wait for the New Year to establish resolutions for yourself, January normally ushers in a wave of motivation and a “go get ‘em” attitude for many. Whether you’re planning to tackle a big project at work for a promotion, build a healthier habit of physical activity a few times per week, or resolving to be more active in your community, many of these activities cause life to become a bit busier. Yet, that shouldn’t mean that nutrition and healthy fueling go by the wayside!

So, to help you ensure that good nutrition is still a part of your efforts to create and conquer a new goal, we’re sharing some tips for reliable fuel to eat when life gets a little hurried.

Breakfast

It’s oftentimes cited as the meal most difficult to squeeze into a busy morning, but the benefits of breakfast are many! With a little pre-planning you can be out the door quickly, but with a properly nourished body.

  •  Overnight Oats: an excellent gab-and-go option that can be made the night before for a day of mobile fuel. Oats provide soluble fiber to fill you up and sustain your energy levels throughout those important early morning meetings. Get creative with the toppings- add some nuts for protein, fresh fruit for essential vitamins and minerals, and something fun, like shredded coconut!
  • Breakfast Burritos: a one-handed way to spice up your morning. Eggs are amazingly versatile and can be cooked in a microwave to save major time. While the eggs are being cooked, simply layer a tortilla with some pre-chopped pico de gallo and a slice of cheese, then spoon on the eggs, wrap, and go! Or if even more strapped for time, microwave a Sriracha Scramble while you’re packing your bags for the office.
  • Frozen to Hot Oatmeal: if bringing your breakfast from home isn’t an option, is there a way you can fit it in at work? If your office has a freezer, the Organic Unsweetened Steel Cut Oatmeal can be reheated at work in a mere 3 minutes. With a jar of nut butter at your desk to add a spoonful of plant-protein, this breakfast practically makes itself.

Lunch

Lunch is one of those meals that is either the biggest meal of a person’s day or it can get skipped all together; however, one that’s too large can leave you feeling sluggish, whereas not eating anything could turn you into a ravenous fridge-raider later that night. Try finding a balance with these easy lunch options that can fit in between the day’s tasks.

Snack Plate: toss some odds and ends into a lunch box and call it a midday meal. A few snack items from each food group can make up a nutritious lunch in no time at all. Try whole grain crackers, some slices of cheese, a piece of fruit, and an easy vegetable like baby carrots or pre-sliced bell pepper strips.

Dinner Again: stash some food from last night’s dinner in a container for your next day’s lunch. The mindset of “cook once, eat twice” is ideal for when on a time crunch. These leftovers could be anything from a soup that needs to be quickly reheated at work, to a salad of left over roasted veggies, quinoa, and chickpeas that can be eaten cold in between juggling kids and activities.

Heated Up Healthy: when you don’t have time to pack lunch, but would prefer to not turn to fast food, grab a healthy frozen option that only takes minutes in a microwave. A Chicken Black Bean Bowl could be your answer to good nutrition in a hurry!

Dinner

The end of the day undoubtedly brings more chaos- wrapping up work, picking up kids, and walking the dog- so dinner needs to be fast and painless. To make that happen, let others do the work for you!

Sheet Pan Meals: grab a large sheet pan and let your oven do the rest of the work. Toss your favorite vegetables in olive oil, lay them alongside some seasoned chicken breasts, and bake for 20-30 minutes. While it’s cooking, go help your kids with homework, and come back to a fully cooked, fuss-free dinner.

Slow Cooker: dinner could be ready and waiting for you with the help of a crock-pot. Dump in the ingredients for your favorite soup or chili in the morning, let it simmer all day, and walk into dinner already taken care of.

Halfway to Dinner: pick up something like a rotisserie chicken or pre-cooked salmon filets from the deli counter to get half of the dinner figured out. Using a pre-cooked protein saves time and let’s you focus on other, equally easy, dinner tasks such as putting together a green salad and cooking up brown rice.

Snacks

Let’s say all of your planning for quick and easy meals didn’t go, well, to plan. Snacks on the go can be an answer to reliable fuel if chosen wisely.

Energy Bites: making up a batch of portable energy bites over the weekend could save you on a particularly busy day. Typically made with dates, nuts, and extras like hemp seeds, coconut flakes, or chocolate chips, these bites can be calorie dense and packed with healthy fats and protein to satisfy a midday hunger pang.

Roasted Chickpeas: a portable option that’s plant based. Protein snacks are great to sustain hunger and energy levels, but so many are perishable (think cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese). Roasted chickpea snacks are now sold pre-packaged, are a great crunchy snack option, and come in a variety of exciting flavors.

Fruit and a Friend: toss an apple or banana into your bag or desk drawer, but don’t forget its protein friend! Some dry roasted almonds, pistachios, or a squeezable peanut butter packet are great additions to a crunchy fruit snack

—

Article Courtesy of: Casey Seiden MS, RD,CDE 

Pre and Post Workout Nutrition For Optimal Health

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

As the New Year rolls in there is one thing that is sure to happen: the gym gets SO much busier! As a year-round gym-goer myself, rather than seeing the extra foot traffic and machine usage as a nuisance I see it in a positive light. I love that so many people are thinking about their physical health and making time for a sweat session! 

Whether you’re adding a new fitness routine in as part of your New Year’s resolution or if you’re continuing your usual routine it’s important to make sure your nutrition is being considered, too.  Making sure you are adequately fueling your body will help you to achieve your fitness goals in a healthy and safe way. Here are three key nutrition tips to fuel your active lifestyle!

  1. Pre-Workout Fuel: Before working out it is important to give your body the energy to actually do the workout. This is best done by focusing on giving your body carbohydrates, while also adding in little protein. The carbohydrates are most important for giving you energy and the protein will allow your muscles to begin repairing. You might try toast and peanut butter, cereal and milk, oatmeal, or a yogurt cup.
  2. Post–Workout Fuel: Just as it’s important to give your body proper nutrition before you workout, it’s just as important to give it the energy it needs to recover. Your muscles need protein to help them repair, and when they’re given adequate nutrition after exercise they will repair even stronger than they were! Our muscles also deplete their energy stores during exercise, which will need to be replaced. After a workout make sure to focus on consuming protein to really help those muscles repair while adding in some carbohydrates to restore your energy. Some great options are chocolate milk, greek yogurt and granola, a burrito, or a turkey sandwich.
  3. Hydration: Giving yourself enough water is something that is often forgotten. However, it’s so important when you’re physically active! Water is needed for our bodies to produce sweat, which helps to keep us cool and prevent overheating during workouts. Not consuming enough water can also lead to muscle fatigue and cramping, not ideal during a workout! It’s a good idea to keep a water bottle on you to sip on before, during and after exercise.

Now, you may also be wondering what the best strategy is for nutrition in order to reach your fitness goals. There are so many out there like calorie counting, macro counting, sticking to a paleo diet, etc. So, what should you do? My advice, and personal experience is none of the above. I highly recommend adapting an intuitive eating approach to nutrition.

When you stick to strict food rules, such as “X” number of calories a day, only allowing yourself so much of each macro, or avoiding food groups you can set you up for developing a disordered eating pattern, and possibly lead to an eating disorder. As someone who has personally recovered from a  6 -year struggle with an eating disorder, it has become my passion to help others avoid this.

What is intuitive eating? To put it simply, intuitive eating is normal eating. It’s about learning to understand which foods make your body feel it’s best, in turn allowing it to function optimally and help you achieve your fitness goals. Intuitive eating is not a diet, it is a sustainable way of eating. This last part is key. Intuitive eating is NOT a diet.  Research has consistently shown that 95% of diets don’t work and that the end result is usually MORE weight gain! Additionally, diets cause stress, anxiety, and frustration. And I don’t know about you, but that is not something I need more of in my life! I’m guessing you don’t either.

So, with intuitive eating, you may be thinking you’ll simply eat cookies and cake all the time. Well, this isn’t exactly true. At first, you may consume higher amounts of these foods, which is necessary for your body to realize that these foods are not restricted, they are not bad, and they can have them whenever they want. Once your body realizes this there is less of a desire for these foods because they’re no longer seen as “off limits”, which only makes us want them even more. Additionally, you’ll begin to realize which foods fuel your body optimally, such as a balanced diet of fruits, vegetables, protein, grains and, for many, dairy. By learning to eat intuitively you’ll also find your “set point weight”. This is the weight that your body wants to be and can maintain effortlessly, without thought.

After learning to become an intuitive eater I can personally say that I am in the best shape of my life. By learning to listen to my body I have been able to gain more muscle and strength that I ever was able to when I followed food rules and restrictions. No two bodies are the same and no one can possible know what your body needs besides YOU. That is why it is so important to become in-tune with your body and learn to listen to what it is telling you it needs. Our bodies are pretty smart about what they need, but we have to listen to them in order to get that information.

Another benefit from becoming an intuitive eater is the mental space you’ll gain. Counting calories or macros or constantly thinking about what foods you can and cannot eat takes SO much energy! When you become and intuitive eater you will spend less time thinking about food and spend more time and energy living! For instance, when you’re in your fitness class or lifting weights you can focus on the workout you are doing rather than being consumed with food thoughts. This will actually allow you to have a better workout since you’ll be able to focus on the here-and-now!

So, as we start the New Year, and likely new fitness routines, let’s focus on fueling our body optimally without food rules and restrictions! You’ll find yourself much more healthy and happy!

Article courtesy of: Colleen Christensen, R.D.

Cozy Self-Care Rituals to Try During the Holidays

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

It’s the most wonderful time of the year — yet it also might be one of the most stressful. The holidays are usually jam-packed with stuff — ranging from lots of food and family time to holiday parties, evening events, gift giving, and trips to visit loved ones.

When you jam a lot of good into a month or so, it begins to take a toll on your mental and physical health. Whether you love or loathe the holidays, you’re going to undoubtedly feel tired, stressed, and most likely in need for some solo chill time.

It’s important to take care of yourself so you can stay energized and joyful as we head towards the new year! Rather than simply describing a few typical self-care tips, here are some especially comfy ones you can do to feel extra cozy and cared-for this holiday season.

7 Cozy Self-Care Rituals for the Holidays

Meditate lying down. Meditating is a hard but super rewarding habit to form. Yet no matter how seasoned of a meditator you are, it’s sometimes uncomfortable! (I’ve been there: trying to keep my back upright, my shoulders relaxed, and instead I’m thinking about my aching spine and hips.) I recently discovered that meditating while lying down allows me to focus way more on my breathing than my body. It’s also way more comfortable! So give it a whirl; lie down on a soft floor (carpet works great) and focus on counting your inhales and exhales. For some guided support, use an app like Headspace or Calm. Keep it cozy by wearing warm socks, and if you have it, turn on a diffuser that’s filled with peppermint and lavender oil to really set the mood.

Enjoy a cup of tea before bed. Tea is scientifically proven to be calming and relaxing while packing a punch when it comes to nutritional benefits. In the cold months, get into the habit of sipping on some herbal teas, which can be great for fighting colds, boosting your immune system, and improving digestion. And if you’re anything like me, you’re probably eating a bit more than you normally do during the holidays — so anything to help your stomach digest food is an A+ in my book!

Take a warm bath with essential oils. Nobody can bother you when you’re in the bathroom. Put your tub to good use and start taking more bubble baths! The warm water will soothe your body and mind, and the quiet time will allow you to disconnect from others. Leave your phone behind and take a book with you to the bath instead. For some extra calming effects, add a drop or two of eucalyptus oil. You’ll feel like you’re at a spa.

Up the ante on your sleep. Sleep is always super important, but it might be even more critical during the holidays. Stay cognizant of how many Zzz’s you’re getting a night, and try not to lose sleep no matter how packed your schedule might be. Squeezing in some afternoon naps may help, too, so if you have the flexibility to doze off for a bit during the day, take advantage of that as a way to recharge.

Try yin yoga. Yoga is always a great tool for relaxing your mind. Yin is especially a helpful way to give yourself some self-love. Yin Yoga involves variations of seated and supine poses that are typically held for 3 to 5 minutes, with the goal of accessing deeper layers of the fascia tissues. It’s both intense and extremely rejuvenating; you’ll leave the class feeling like you have a new set of muscles!

Do things by candlelight. For some reason, the flickering of a candle adds a mood to the room that’s both calming and soothing. Decorate your home with candles throughout the house, and use them when you’re reading at night, while you’re taking said bubble bath, or when you’re having a romantic dinner with friends or loved ones. Dim the lights and break out the wicks — the atmosphere it creates will most certainly make your spirits soar.

Eat well with room for indulgence. Food is often the main attraction during the holidays. And while nobody can argue that holiday cookies aren’t delicious, the number of sweets and salts we eat can become stressful. Rather than worrying about an uptick in your cookie consumption, give yourself a healthy bout of room for indulging, while focusing on eating healthy whenever possible. You can eat that extra slice of pie, and then perhaps make yourself a healthful veggie omelet the next morning. Maybe skip the second glass of wine and instead make a cup of hot tea to enjoy before bed.

At the end of the day, the holidays are all about balance: balancing social stuff with solo-time, eating both salads and sweets, and checking in with yourself to see if you’re taking on too much. Hopefully, these self-care suggestions can help you feel a little bit more ease and allow you to enjoy all the fun and love that encompasses this time of the year.

Simple Tips for Reducing Mealtime Stress

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

While eating around the dinner table might be relaxing, getting the whole family there with a healthy and home-cooked meal on everyone’s plate might be quite the hassle. Especially with school and fall in full-time force, you need to bounce hectic schedules, shorter days, and most likely a picky eater or two.

We’re here to help. Mealtime, whether that’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner, doesn’t need to be full of stress. If you enjoy cooking, we want you to keep it that way! Here are some tips to bring back the fun in food and ensure that the whole family is appreciative and relaxed when it’s time to dig in.

Let’s Toast to This: How to Ease Meal Time Anxiety

Set a routine.

The easiest way to make something a habit is to form a routine. While your schedule may vary day-to-day, consider how you can set a schedule for when you start cooking and who is helping out.

For example:

  • Set a time to start cooking every evening. If you’re home from work by 5:00 pm and the family doesn’t have any evening activities on Mondays and Wednesdays, use those evenings to start cooking at 5:30 pm, so everyone is happy and fed by 7:00 pm. If there are other days when the family is getting home later, you can adjust your schedule accordingly. The main thing is to stick to whatever times you create for yourself.
  • Prep in the morning. If morning meal prep is your fancy, enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning and scan the internet for fun recipes you can make at night.
  • Get ahead of schedule. Sometimes, making lunches the night before is a lot easier than doing it the morning of. While this might be a harder habit to start, try to prepare lunches while everyone is (hopefully) in the kitchen helping you clean up from dinner. That way it’s one less thing to worry about the next morning.

Meal prep!

The easiest way to help stick to a routine is to prep your meals. This could look like a few different things:

  • Carve out an afternoon. A lot of people enjoy using Sunday’s as a meal prep day. You can take an afternoon to make a big batch of soup, roast a few pans of veggies, make some meatballs, and cook up quinoa or couscous. This will help to make the actual meal a lot easier during the week, and will especially assist when it comes to packing lunches for school.
  • Make a list. Instead of scanning the aisles at the grocery store, figure out what meals you want to make during the week and create a grocery list that hits on all the ingredients you’ll need. That way you’ll have just enough of everything and will be less likely to splurge on unnecessary foods and will save some money, too.
  • Freeze big batches of food. Lastly, a lot of folks enjoy making meals and freezing them. If you know you have a busy few weeks coming up, you can make things like lasagna, homemade veggie burgers, soups, and burritos, and then stick them in the freezer. These are always great to have on hand if you run into a busy evening and don’t have time to whip something up yourself.

Get a helping hand.

You should never have to go it alone. Involving your family is a way to take all the burden off of you while making cooking a fun, family activity. Here are some ways to get some extra hands in the kitchen:

  • Assign roles. A fun thing for a partner or kid to do is to assign them the “sous chef” role. This means they can do some of the chopping, prepping, blending, and mixing in the kitchen, while you focus on cooking the meal.
  • Assign days. Give different people in your family cookies responsibilities throughout the week. Make Friday night “date night,” where you and your partner take turns cooking meals for one another. If one of your kids wants to learn how to make pasta, give him or her the chance to on Wednesdays. Pancakes are always a hit, too, so assign that to someone for a lazy Sunday morning.

Consider a meal kit service.

If you love to cook but hate coming up with the meals, or simply don’t enjoy getting the ingredients, then a meal service might be a great thing to consider. They’re also fun because you get to learn how to cook things you might never have thought to make yourself. Some meal services include Blue Apron, Sun Basket, and Plated. If you want to skip the cooking and have fresh, organic meals right in your own grocery aisle, we can’t help but suggest Good Food Made Simple.

Streamline breakfast.

While breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it can also be the most hectic, especially if everyone is trying to get out the door. Don’t worry about trying to put together a gourmet meal before 7 am; instead, streamline the process. Here are some tips:

  • Make overnight oats! The night before, you can put together a batch of overnight oats that will be creamy and delicious in the morning. For one serving, grab a jar and add ½ cup of oats. Pour in one cup of milk (almond milk works great, too!), two tbsp of nuts, a tsp of cinnamon, and a quick squeeze of honey. You’ll have an instant yummy and nutritious breakfast in the morning. Or better yet, use our frozen organic oatmeal to create a fast oatmeal parfait like this!
  • Blend your breakfast. Smoothies are awesome because they’re quick to make and packed with lots of vitamins and minerals. Invest in a good blender, and add a mix of frozen fruit, almond milk, protein (whether protein powder or nut butter) and a handful of spinach. Make a big batch, blend and let everyone enjoy!

Treat yo’self to takeout.

Three meals a day, seven days a week…all that cooking adds up! It’s nearly impossible to make meals all week long, so you should allow yourself some wiggle room. Here are a few fun ideas:

  • Make Mondays a takeout night. While Sunday’s are notorious for some Chinese or pizza delivery, Monday’s are typically the most stressful night of the week. To ease some of that chaos, give yourself a break and order takeout at the beginning of the week.
  • Look for healthy options! It’s easy to succumb to fried food when ordering in, but explore some of the healthier, to-go choices in your town.
  • Rotate who chooses what meal each time. In order to give everyone a voice, each week (or however often you decide to eat-in) allow one person to choose where you’re ordering from. This lets you mix things up and is a fun way to give someone a yummy responsibility.

Making meals should be fun. Hopefully, some of these tips take the stress out of the kitchen and allow you to enjoy the process, savor the delicious and nutritious food, and ensure that the whole family is involved in mealtime prep and planning.

Buttermilk Waffle Monte Cristo

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

The best part of breakfast is eating it any time of the day! The combination of crispy buttermilk waffles, ham, cheese, and a sweet jam make this Buttermilk Waffle Monte Cristo recipe perfect for breakfast, lunch or even dinner. 

Buttermilk Waffle Monte Cristo

Since breakfast is always on our mind, we thought it was the perfect time to share one of our favorite remixes with you. Let us introduce you to this epic Buttermilk Waffle Monte Cristo.

If you’re not familiar with the Monte Cristo, it is traditionally made with a filling of ham, turkey, and cheese. Then it is dipped in batter and deep fried. Although we love the traditional version, they are are not our jam. (Pun intended)

Instead, we have remade the traditional recipe into something healthier with a breakfast twist thanks to our buttermilk waffles and some raspberry jam for sweetness. We removed the batter and deep frying and swapped it for baking to give the outside the same crunch as a traditional Monte Cristo.

We opted to use our Buttermilk Waffles in this recipe, but our Blueberry Waffles would be just as lovely! You could also you another flavor jam and swap the ham with turkey if that’s more appetizing.

Lastly, we listed the powdered sugar as optional, which it is. However, it is something we would highly recommend to make it feel a little bit more like the traditional version. It might make more sense to save that for serving this at Sunday brunch, but truth be told, we have prepared this and taken it to work – powdered sugar and all.

For our vegetarian friends out there, you can easily swap the ham for your favorite vegetarian meat alternative. Or, forgo it altogether and use extra cheese instead. And for a Thanksgiving twist, swap the ham for some leftover turkey and cranberry sauce! *chefs kiss*

Buttermilk Waffle Monte Cristo Ingredients:

4 buttermilk waffles 

1/2 cup shredded swiss cheese

1/4 pound thinly sliced ham

2 tbs dijon mustard

1/4 cup raspberry jam

powdered sugar, optional

Buttermilk Waffle Monte Cristo
Print Pin

Buttermilk Waffle Monte Cristo

The best part of breakfast is eating it any time of the day! The combination of crispy buttermilk waffles, ham, cheese, and a sweet jam make this Buttermilk Waffle Monte Cristo recipe perfect for breakfast, lunch or even dinner. 
Course Breakfast
Keyword Buttermilk Waffles
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 2 sandwiches

Ingredients

  • 4 Buttermilk Waffles
  • 1/2 cup shredded swiss cheese
  • 1/4 pound thinly sliced ham
  • 2 tbs dijon mustard
  • 1/4 cup raspberry jam or preserves

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
  • Heat waffles according to package directions.
  • Layer 2 waffles with: jam, ham, cheese.
  • Spread 1 tbs on each of the remaining 2 waffles.
  • Top each of the ham waffles with the mustard waffles.
  • Place the waffles in the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and waffles are crisp. About 10-12 minutes.
  • Finish off with powdered sugar, if desired.

How to Eat Mindfully During the Holidays

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

With the holiday season in full-swing — Thanksgiving spreads on the table, Christmas cookies in the oven, and Hanukkah latkes in the frying pan — it’s easy to equate this time of year with fun, family, and a lot of food. While indulging during the holidays is perfectly okay, and we shouldn’t stress about putting certain treats in our bodies, it’s easy to go overboard and lose complete control of how and what we eat.

There’s a way to enjoy the rich and delicious holiday feasts while still being mindful of what we’re putting it into our bodies, and balancing it with fresh, whole foods. By doing this, we won’t have to worry about making any new year’s resolutions around losing weight or getting our eating habits back on track; if we start now, we can exit the holidays and enter the new year feeling better than we do today!

First Up: What Is Mindful Eating?

Before we dive into the holiday health tips and tricks that will allow us to eat more mindfully and feel more in control during the holidays, let’s take a step back to clarify what mindful eating really is.

To do that, let’s take yet another step back and talk about mindless eating. Mindless eating is when you start eating food while distracted — you’re not enjoying the taste or noticing how much you’re consuming. Think: going through a whole bag of potato chips while scrolling your phone and not even realizing it. Mindless eating can lead to weight gain and obesity, along with feelings of anxiety and depression.

On the flip side, mindful eating is when you are paying attention to what you’re feeding your body. You’re enjoying it, too, and eating slowly and with awareness. The best example of mindful eating is to eat a bowl of oatmeal without a laptop or smartphone nearby. Simply notice how each bite tastes, feels, and smells. You’ll most likely eat a lot slower, feel more satisfied, and not feel the need to indulge in a chocolate croissant afterward.

How to Eat Mindfully During the Holidays

Here are some ways to practice mindful eating so you can feel in control, satisfied with your food, and be more confident in your body.

Eat when you’re hungry! This might sound obvious, but it can be a real tough one for us. Before you unravel a blueberry muffin “because it’s 8 am,” tune into your body and figure out if you’re actually hungry. If you’re not, wait until your hunger cues kick in. And once you do start to chow down, eat slow enough so you know when your body is satisfied and you don’t overeat.

Drink a glass of water before every meal. It’s easy for us to confuse hunger with thirst. Before every meal, drink a nice glass of water; not only will it help with digestion, it will also allow your body to absorb nutrients and prevent you from stuffing yourself with too much food. A morning glass of water with lemon in it is also a nice way to jumpstart your digestive track.

Control your portions. During the holidays, there is usually more food on the table than necessary. Before getting a big scoop of everything (we’re looking at you, Thanksgiving dinner) pay attention to portion size.

Reconsider seconds. Speaking of portion size, in addition to going in for too much food, we also love to help ourselves to seconds, or even thirds! Before you dive in for a second serving of mashed potatoes, sit back and take a few deep breaths. Notice if your body is actually still hungry and needs that second helping, and if it doesn’t, say no thanks and make yourself something soothing, like a cup of hot tea.

Keep the electronics away. It’s easy to start eating mindlessly when we’re distracted by our phones, computers, or tv screens. Whenever you eat a meal, whether alone or with a group, turn off any and all electronics and keep ‘em out of sight.

Slow. Down. The best way to eat enough and know when you’re truly satisfied is to eat slowly. This will give your body enough time to send signals to your brain that you have eaten enough, and don’t need three more heaping servings of pecan pie. While you eat slowly, pay attention to how the food really tastes — you’ll be surprised to notice how much more enjoyable that bite really is.

Keep a food diary. In order to truly understand what you’re eating all day long, consider keeping a food journal! This will allow you to track every single thing you eat  — yep, even those handful of M&Ms and roasted peanuts — throughout the day. You might be surprised at how much you eat, especially between meals, and it could help you clean up some habits and start to eat with more awareness and control.

Start and end each day with some fresh. Begin and end your day on a high note. For breakfast, go for a piece of fresh fruit and a spinach scramble bowl over a processed baked good, and end your evening with some herbal tea. If you still feel hungry before hitting the hay, slice up a banana or eat a handful of raw almonds.

Give yourself some wiggle room! This last holiday health tip is the most important one. Remember: It’s okay to not eat perfectly during the holidays. While being mindful is important, you also have to be flexible. Sure, you might not be starving when you go for a second Christmas cookie, and that’s okay. (Just don’t make that a daily habit!) While this shouldn’t be the norm, you have to carve in some small space to stuff yourself silly — my favorite is on Christmas Eve — or else you’ll deprive yourself and be more likely to binge on all the sweets later on. Be mindful when you eat, be kind to yourself when you slip up, and enjoy the holidays for everything they offer.

Breakfast. The Most Important Meal Of The Day?

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

Lately, there’s been a big debate around the breakfast table. Is this meal really the most important of the day? Will you actually consume less calories for lunch and dinner if you eat eggs and bacon first-thing? If you cut through all the noise, you’ll realize it’s not breakfast itself that is either “good” or “bad” for you. Instead, it’s how to “do” breakfast, which carries over to the choices you make throughout the rest of your day.

We’re going to break down the facts so you can understand how breakfast is a critical component to overall good health. Then we’ll share some great breakfast options so you can always start your day off on the right foot.

Breakfast — Why It Matters

The most important reason to eat breakfast is that it kick-starts your metabolism. Even if you’re not super hungry, something light (like a piece of fruit) will actually help keep you full later on in the day. Getting calories in you early also provides energy after you wake up, which you need at the beginning of a school or work day. It’s called break-fast for a reason; you’re breaking a fast from not eating all night long, and your blood sugar is typically low when you first wake up. You need to replenish your body with a healthful meal so it knows to start taking your food and turning it into fuel. If you don’t eat first thing, there’s a good chance you’ll simply overeat later in the day.

Jump-starting your metabolism with something for breakfast is a way to tell your body that you are already on your way to consuming your daily caloric goal. If you skip breakfast, your body will think it needs to conserve what you consume — versus burn it off — meaning you might be holding onto extra sugars and fats your body would normally metabolize. Science backs this up, too; there’s a chance you’ll eat fewer calories if you skip breakfast, but those people still typically have higher BMIs (body mass index), which is a measure of body fat based on your weight in relation to your height. Other studies show that people who eat breakfast are more likely to meet their recommended fruit and veggie intake (hello veggie omelet!), consume more fiber and calcium, and overall have better attention, memory, and energy throughout the day.

How to Make Good Breakfast Choices

When you wake up, don’t snooze your alarm and then rush out the door with a half-frozen waffle or store-bought muffin! Use your mornings to your advantage and take the time to eat a good meal. This doesn’t mean you need to slave away at the stove for two hours; instead, it’s all about planning ahead so you can make something quickly and easily. Believe us, your body will thank you.

The best way to approach breakfast is to eat a combination of foods that contain carbs, which will give you that good morning zap of energy, fiber, to help you feel full, protein, to keep you energized throughout the day, and healthy fats, which help you absorb nutrients and can even boost brain power!

Here are some easy breakfast options that are healthy, delicious, and easy to make, specifically categorized so everyone is satisfied.

Oatmeal

  • Steel cut oats are a great option for your morning meal. They pack a lot of fiber to help you keep full all morning. They take longer to cook than regular rolled oats, so we recommend using a crockpot the night before to cook them so you can wake up and have a creamy bowl right away!
  • Rolled oats are another great breakfast option. They can easily be cooked on a stove top in just a few minutes. Use water, almond or soy milk, or regular milk to get them nice and creamy. For toppings, skip loading on the sugar, and sweeten it naturally with berries and a sprinkle of cinnamon. A little squirt of honey or maple syrup never hurt anyone, either!

Eggs

  • Veggies omelets are super easy to make and are filled with protein and tons of other vitamins and minerals. Whisk two eggs in a small bowl and add it to a medium-hot pan. Fold in any veggie you like — spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, and broccoli all make great omelets!
  • Did you know you could also make eggs in a muffin tin? Think of this as your quick solution to a frittata. Whisk together eggs with anything you’d fancy, like turkey bacon, feta, or diced up green onion. Then pour your batter into a muffin tin and bake in the oven at 350° for 20 minutes. These are awesome to take on the go!

Smoothies

  • The sky’s the limit when it comes to smoothie combos you can make in the morning. A secret tip is to add a spoonful of nut butter or a scoop of protein powder to help keep you feeling full. You can also go green and add spinach, kale, or even half an avocado to get some extra greens in you. Just make sure you have a powerful blender.

Toast/Bagel

  • Bread isn’t bad for you. I repeat: Bread isn’t bad for you. Instead, it’s all about the choices you make. Go for whole grain bread, and check the ingredient list to make sure there aren’t a ton of added preservatives. Toast up two slices and add almond butter and banana, or half of a smashed avocado.
  • There’s an easy way to lighten up a morning bagel. Skip the hefty amounts of cream cheese and try hummus instead! You can also add red onion, spinach, and cucumbers, and make a yummy veggie sandwich that is a lot healthier than any bagel sandwich you’d buy in a bakery.

Cereal

  • If you love a morning bowl of cereal, just make sure to skip the sugary stuff. Check your labels and go for four to six grams of sugar per serving. Look for whole grain options that don’t have a lot of added “stuff,” like granola, chocolate, or dehydrated fruit. This will add a lot of sneaky sugars that will make your blood sugar spike but sadly fall right back down.

Fruit

  • If you tend to have a little-to-no appetite in the mornings, then fruit is a great way to jump-start your day. Cut up watermelon, have a banana, or enjoy an apple, peach, or nectarine. Bonus points if you also eat a handful of raw almonds as a way to get some good protein in you.

Yogurt

  • Yogurt is usually packed with lots of protein, which is great to help keep you full. However, yogurt can also contain a lot of added sugar. Try to buy unsweetened yogurt (full fat is totally ok!) and sweeten it yourself with honey, berries, or a dash of cinnamon. You can even add it to your smoothie for an extra bout of protein.

Meat

  • Meat lovers, we promise not to leave you out. While a big hunk of ham in the morning isn’t the best choice, other alternatives like turkey bacon, lox, or breakfast chicken sausage is a great way to satisfy your savory tooth and pack your morning with protein.

At the end of the day, the beginning of your day will determine how your body feels. Don’t let a busy morning or a snoozed-alarm clock stop you from remembering to eat something healthful and delicious. We promise it will help keep energy levels up, appetites under control, and bodies feeling strong, lean, and supported by an A+ diet.

Snacks Versus Meals

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

There is often a split between people when it comes to snacking or eating full meals. We believe that meal time should be stress free and align with your personal preferences. While it often gets a bad rap, it is actually helpful to implement snacks into your lifestyle.

To some, snacking is an easier way to meal prep for the day or a more convenient way to get in daily nutrients. To others, snacking is simply a personal preference. Overall, it is important to break the stigma that all snacking is bad. After all, food freedom allows us to incorporate foods into our personal preferences and lifestyles!

What is snacking?

Typically, snacking is characterized as consuming food/beverage between your regular meal times (breakfast, lunch, dinner). With this board definition, it is obvious that snacking or snack times are different for everyone. As there is no universal definition, it is surprising that there is (more or less) a universal stigma.

Unfortunately, snacking does have a negative connotation. Specifically, that it involves overly processed, packaged and “unhealthy” foods. Further, negative messages are often circulated around the idea that snacking could be to blame for weight gain and health complications. As a result, snacking often leads to guilt and food insecurities.

However, snacking doesn’t have to equate to consuming “junk food.” One of our favourite ways to focus on cleaner snacks is to build a snack plate. The best part of a snack plate is that you can pretty much add whatever you like!

If you are a picky eater, snack plates allow you to fill up with the foods you enjoy most. The variety and options snack plates provide you are literally endless.

If you find yourself craving some chips or sweets, you can totally incorporate them into your balanced snack plate. By mixing in fruits, veggies, protein and carbs, your snack plate is perfect for nourishing your body and listening to your cravings, too!

Are there benefits to snacking?

The short answer is: it depends. As aforementioned, there is no uniform definition of snacking nor is there a right or wrong way to snack. Therefore, the benefits of snacking depend on your personal health, preferences and lifestyle.

As explained by Eliza Martinez, snacking benefits can include increasing your nutrient intake and energy. As a result, your concentration levels may be boosted due to fueling your body between meals.

Martinez says that a balanced snack can “increases your energy levels for a longer period of time than sugary snacks do.” Essentially, by consuming balanced snacks, you are slowly fueling your body throughout the day and keeping your energy levels up.

There are many different opinions and perspectives regarding the effects of snacking. However, conflicting views on snacking shows that there is no right or wrong way to incorporate snacks into your routine!

It’s still important to eat full meals

Snacking is certainly an important factor to integrate into your daily meal routine. However, it is just as important to make sure you are eating enough full meals to fuel your body.

Eating complete, nutritious meals ensures that you are consuming the daily recommended nutritional intake. As such, it is important to note that both meals and snacks are a good way to fuel your body – you don’t need to eliminate one or the other! So, don’t be tricked into thinking you should only be eating one meal a day, or replacing all meals with just snacks!

That being said, meal time doesn’t have to be stressful or overcomplicated. Just like snacks, meals can be pretty easy to make! Some of our favourite simple meals include:

Structuring snacks or meals into your routines

Implementing snacks into your dietary lifestyle is all relative to your personal preferences. Some of these can include your hunger levels, dietary restrictions and daily cravings. Planning to incorporate snacks into your diet is all relative to you! Sometimes the best way is by experimenting what snacks work and don’t work for you. From there, you can decide: are you more of a snack or meal person?

4 Ways to Honor Heart Health Month

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

While some think of Valentine’s Day during February, we also need to remember that it is Heart Health month, too! According to WebMD, when your heart isn’t getting the proper care it needs, serious issues occur and can lead to “heart attacks and blockage of blood flow in the arteries.”

This month, we propose you look out for your heart! Some small ways you can do so include exercise, controlling cholesterol levels, limit stress levels and eat heart healthy foods.

Get your heart moving

It is no secret that movement and exercise is great for heart health. After all, cardio is one of the best ways to put your body (and heart) into motion! If you aren’t into fast-paced exercising, that’s okay – you can still find a type of exercise that fits your preferences and helps your heart.

John Hopkins Medicine lists aerobics as a great form of exercise to promote heart health. They explain that aerobics “improves circulation, which results in lowered blood pressure and heart rate.” Some of these aerobic exercises include brisk walking, swimming and cycling/spin.

Aerobics is not the only type of exercise you are limited to when focusing on heart health! Believe it or not, strength/resistance training is also recommended by the American Heart Association.

Healthline explains that “when combined with aerobics, strength training will help to raise good cholesterol and lower bad cholesterol [which] can also reduce your risk of having a heart attack or stroke.” Strength training includes using free weights (dumbbells, barbells), weight machines, resistance bands and body-resistances (sit-ups, squats).

While exercise is definitely one of the key methods to promoting heart health, you don’t need to be locked into one kind of routine. We recommend finding a type of exercise that fits your lifestyle and preferences best!

Control those cholesterol levels!

Cholesterol – we all have it, most of us have heard about it, and some of us actually know about it. Usually, cholesterol has a bad rap. However, there are two different types of cholesterol – LDL and HDL, which are known as bad and good cholesterol, respectively.

The American Heart Association explains that LDL is typically viewed as bad because “it contributes to fatty buildups in arteries.” In contrast, they claim “experts believe that HDL [carries] LDL cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where the LDL is broken down and passed from the body.” Essentially, LDL rids the body of bad cholesterol, which is why it is often considered as good.

So, what are some ways you can keep your LDL levels under control? The short answer is to incorporate heart healthy foods and exercise into your daily routines. While this may seem oversimplified, we recommend finding exercise routines and recipes that work best for your preferences.

However, Mayo Clinic provides a few helpful guidelines when focusing on heart healthy foods. Some of the guidelines listed include:

  • Reducing saturated fats
  • Eliminating trans fats
  • Increase Omega-3 fatty acids

As always, the best place to receive recommendations about maintain your cholesterol is through your primary care physician/doctor.

Cut that stress out!

It is no secret that the inevitability of stress plays a role in your mental and physical health. Evidentially, stress can lead to factors that impact heart health or increase your risk for heart disease. According to the American Heart Association, elements such as “high blood pressure and cholesterol levels, physical inactivity and overeating” can be caused by stress and lead to a decrease in heart health.

The AHA recommends learning to manage stress in order to promote heart health. It is a good idea to take a step back if you find that you are stressed or feeling overworked. By prioritising healthy habits, you are closer to protecting your heart and all that comes with it.

Protect your heart through food

Maintaining a well-rounded diet is one of many ways to manage a health heart. While all foods fit and are good in moderation, there are specific foods that are more beneficial to heart health. As identified by CNN Health, some of these heart-friendly foods include oats, low-fat dairy, leafy greens, nuts/seeds and avocados.

An easy way to start the day with a heart healthy breakfast is by whipping up a bowl of our Steel Cut Oatmeal. CNN Health explains that oatmeal contains “a special type of soluble fiber called beta-glucan,” which reduces cholesterol levels. Steel cut oats are a great breakfast because you can top it off with anything! If you’re into savory oatmeal, you can double up and top your oats with leafy greens and avocado.

Breakfast isn’t the only meal you can incorporate heart healthy ingredients into. We love using low-fat yoghurt to make a Pancake Puff Banana Split! Top it off with some nuts or seeds, and you’ve got yourself a heart-healthy dessert.

If you are trying to introduce more heart healthy ingredients into your diet, we recommend choosing what fits best for your lifestyle! Honoring your heart can take many shapes in forms. By combining exercise routines, mental health promotion and heart healthy foods, you are sure to be on the right track to honoring your heart!

3 Snow Day Workouts Anyone Can Enjoy

Posted on by Sarah Kesseli

Let’s set the scene. You wake up snuggled under your warm bed. You had grand plans the night before to get a good workout in today, but once you wake up, you look out the window and see it: snow. Piled high. There’s been a snow storm.

While it’s perfectly reasonable to use snow days as a chance to stay inside all day, that doesn’t mean you still can’t get your heart rate up. Without equipment, coaches, or studios, consider dedicating just 20-30 minutes of your snow day to your body and mind.

Continue reading for a few different snow day workouts to get the heart pumping before you jump back into sweats and enjoy the rest of the day on the couch with some Netflix. We’re not judging — we’ll be right beside you!

3 Snow Day Workouts Anyone Can Enjoy

HIIT(high-intensity interval training) is a great way to do a lot with a little. It involves alternate spurts of vigorous activity with short recovery periods to burn lots of calories in less time. Whether you’re a fitness pro or just startingout, HIIT can be adapted to anyone. The key to doing HIIT well is doing the moves with proper form, so don’t rush too quickly through them, but also don’t move too slowly. Listen to your body to find the right pace and rhythm.

20-minute No Equipment HIIT Routine

Here’s a 20-minute HIIT routine you can do practically anywhere. Go through this sequence four times, and do each exercise/move for 45 seconds. Rest between moves for 15 seconds.

Push-ups: To do a traditional push-up, start with your hands shoulder-width apart in plank pose. Bend your elbows and lower toward the ground, keeping your elbows at a 45-degree angle to your body. To modify (no shame!) try doing them with your knees on the ground.


Squats: Stand up straight with your feet hip-width apart. Make sure to keep your feet directly under your hips, and place your hands on your hips. Tighten your core as you start to sit, lowing your booty to the floor.

Mountain climbers: Get into a plank position, and then bring your right knee to your right shoulder. Switch sides. Start moving faster so it’s as if you’re running in place, though in plank formation!

Tricep dips: You’ll need a low table or chair for this one. Place your hands on either said chair or table with your back facing it. Put your legs straight out and hold onto your surface with your palms. Lower as far as you can, bending from the elbows. Come back up. You should feel this in, surprise, your triceps.


Jumping lunge. Start standing tall with your feet staggered, your right foot a bit in front of your left. Keep your knees bent in a slight lunge. Push off the bottom of both feet into a jump, and switch the position of your feet mid-air, landing in a basic lunge with your right leg in front. Without stopping, repeat this movement, alternating which leg is in front.

The Science-Backed 7-Minute Workout

If you’re crunched for time (to start baking cookies…) then you can, at the very least, do this 7-minute workout. The sequence first became known in 2013, when The New York Times published the workout, along with some scientific validation behind it. This workout includes 12 exercises and calls for a chair, a wall, and your own body weight. Each exercise should be done for 30 seconds with only a few seconds of rest between each.

  1. Jumping jacks
  2. Wall sits
  3. Push up
  4. Abdominal crunch
  5. Step-up to chair
  6. Squats
  7. Tricep dips
  8. Planks
  9. High knees running in place
  10. Lunge
  11. Push up with rotation
  12. Side plank

If you’re feeling fiery, repeat this sequence as many times as you fancy!

Stay-Inside Yoga Flow

If you’re not feeling anything too intense, not a problem at all. You can still move a bit with a nice yoga sequence in order to relax your muscles, stretch your ligaments, and clear your head. There are a ton of resources online to find the exact type of flow for you, from something more restorative to one that is a bit more intense. Youtube is a hub for many yoga recordings you can listen to (and watch!) or you can also download an app, like FitStar Yoga or Daily Yoga. The sky’s the limit when it comes to free resources, so get downloading and down-dogging!

After your snow day workout is complete, give yourself a nice pat on the back. You deserve to cozy up and enjoy the rest of your afternoon inside, staying nice and warm. However, if you’re really looking for more, you can always shovel the driveway —that counts as a workout, too!