Author: Sarah Kesseli

With so many various nutrition advice thrown your way, it can be hard to know what should go on your plate. Should you focus on healthy fats? Eliminate carbs? Eat raw? Meat or no meat? While certain health needs and preferences means every plate is going to look a little different, there’s still a way to build a balanced plate — regardless if you’re vegan or a meat lover.

A good place to start when trying to eat a balanced meal is USDA’s MyPlate. This is a government-mandated recommendation for how we should eat.

Interestingly, USDA food guides have evolved over time as we’ve become more aware of various food nutrients and how they impact our health. The early 20th century focused on establishing guidance based on food groups and household measures, and included things like foods that small children needed. As we entered the 1940’s and 1950’s more rules were set to include tips for nutrient adequacy, but these lacked serving sizes and did not include guidance on recommended fat, sugar, and calorie intake.

Fast forward to 1992, when the USDA introduced the Food Guide Pyramid, the previous food guide many people are familiar with today. That stuck around until 2011, until Michelle Obama and the Agriculture Secretary created what we use now: MyPlate.

How MyPlate Works

Today, the US recognizes five food groups people should focus on consuming: fruits, veggies, grains, protein, and dairy. However, it’s not as simple as that, since each food group has subgroups as well. For example, the veggie category includes the following subgroups: dark green vegetables, like broccoli and kale, red and orange vegetables, such as acorn squash and red peppers, starchy vegetables, including green peas and potatoes, and other veggies, like avocado, mushrooms, and eggplant.

The general portion guidelines for MyPlate include:

• Filling 1/2 of your plate with fruit or vegetables
• Filling 1/4 to 1/3 of your plate with a protein
• Filling 1/4 to 1/3 of your plate with fiber, like whole grains
• Consuming a small portion of dairy with every meal

9 Ways to Make a Balanced Plate

With these guidelines in place, here are nine ways to make a healthy plate chock-full of all the nutrients you need.

Check for protein, fiber, and fat.

While fruits and veggies should take up half your plate, protein, fiber, and/or fat is what is going to keep you full. All of these ingredients take longer to digest in the body, ensuring you’re not rummaging through the fridge one hour after eating. Consider adding whole-grains to your plate for fiber — quinoa and brown rice are great here! — and consuming lean meat, beans, or lentils for protein. Don’t be afraid of eating some healthy fats as well, like avocado, full-fat yogurt, or nuts and seeds.

Consider how it’s cooked.

While half a plate of veggies is great, if they’re deep fried they lose some of the nutritional value. Don’t just think about what’s on the plate — consider how it’s prepared as well. Using healthy oil for cooking, like olive or avocado oil, is a great way to make things taste delicious while adding healthy fats to your meal. Sauteing and baking is better than frying. Or, considering eating your veggies raw while boiling your grains in water or vegetable stock.

Use your hands.

Clean your hands, then use ‘em to help figure out correct portion sizes. Generally, your palm equals a serving of protein (so if you need both hands to hold your steak, it’s definitely too much!). Your fist equals a serving of fiber, such as rice or another whole grain, while a serving of fat (oil, butter) should be about half of a thumb.

Green is great.

While veggies are important, getting those dark, leafy veggies (like kale and spinach) will have way more nutritional value than lighter-colored veggies. So choose kale and spinach over iceberg lettuce — it will be packed with vitamins A, C, K, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants. All the things your body is craving!

Get whole grains and unprocessed fiber.

While grains and fiber can easily be found in certain grocery aisles, a lot of fiber sources can be found in processed packages, like rice with flavor packaging, high-fiber bars, and cheddar popcorn. Focusing on getting fiber from unprocessed sources like air-popped popcorn, quinoa, brown rice, and sweet potatoes.

Drink more water.

Eating balanced should also imply drinking balanced, too. Avoid sugary sodas and juices, and drink up eight, 8 oz glasses of water a day. This will help with hydration, digestion, and maintaining a healthy metabolism.

Get colorful.

By making your plate colorful, you’re by default getting a lot of various nutrients your body needs. Choose the rainbow and get dark, leafy greens, red, orange, yellow, blue and purple fruits and veggies, and save white for potatoes and cauliflower, and other whole grains.

Think calcium, not dairy.

While MyPlate recommends dairy at every meal, there’s a debate around whether you truly need it or not. Many experts suggest focusing on getting calcium versus dairy — calcium can be found in whole foods like almonds, kale, and sardines. If you’re going for dairy, don’t be scared of the full-fat versions. Just pay attention to portion. Full-fat yogurt, almond milk, or shaved cheese also have great sources of calcium and dairy to get your body what it needs.

Still, remember to treat yo’self.

Part of any healthy diet includes saving room for guilt-free indulgences. Just because you’re eating healthy does not mean you can deprive yourself of the good stuff, like ice cream, french fries, or baked goods. Allow yourself some sweets and salty foods, just as long as you’re aware of portion control. Enjoy a square or two of dark chocolate at night, a glass of red wine, or a small bowl of tortilla chips with homemade salsa.

When you glance at a nutrition label, it’s easy to fall into the trap of looking at the number of calories and then skipping the rest of the information. While keeping an eye on calories is important, there’s more to nutrition than this number alone. Besides, without taking a look at servings per package, you might be eating more than you think!

We’ll break down the latest nutrition label guidelines and point out the most important things to pay attention to.

Before we dive into the good stuff, let’s briefly discuss the history of nutrition labeling. Interestingly, it wasn’t until the late 1960s that we started providing and regulating the nutrient content of food. Between 1941 and 1966, only a handful of foods contained nutrition information, and these labels only included calorie and sodium amounts. By 1969, a White House Conference on Food, Nutrition, and Health declared that the FDA develop a system for identifying the nutritional values of food.

What the labels actually look like has evolved drastically overtime, and today they are relatively simple to read and highlight the most important facts about our health. Still, there’s a few tips and tricks to read them correctly to ensure you’re making the most out of each meal.

Why Reading a Nutrition Label Is Important

Properly reading nutrition labels allows you to do a few things beyond simply “knowing” what you’re putting in your body. You can also use a nutrition label to:

• Compare products. If you’re choosing between two brands or two products, use the nutrition label to pick the healthier option
• Understand the nutritional value of foods. It’s not only about calories in versus calories out. Rather, it’s understanding the quality of foods — ensuring they’re not just a certain caloric amount but also filled with a variety of important nutrients
• Take control of your intake of a certain nutrient. If you’re looking to increase potassium or fiber, or trying to eliminate saturated fats or sodium, use the nutrition label to monitor what you’re consuming

5 Steps to Reading a Nutrition Label

Here are some easy steps to follow to help you learn how to read a nutrition label and know exactly what kind of nutrients you’re putting in your body.

Examine the serving size

First thing’s first: knowing how many servings are in the container. For example, a bag of chips might contain seven servings, which means that the nutritional information you see below is only for one of those servings — not the entire bag. For support with portion control, considering removing the exact portion from the packaged good versus eating out of the bag or box.

Look at the calories

Calories is really just how much energy you get from a serving of food. In other words, a lower the calorie number doesn’t always mean something is better for you. Examine the calories on the label and be ready to compare them with the nutrients they offer. In other words, are the calories coming from fiber and protein, or saturated fat and sugar? Look at the number of calories and make sure your calories count. As a general rule, any serving over 400 calories is considered “high.”

Check out % Daily Value

The % Daily Value puts nutrients on a scale from 0 to 100% and can be found on the right side of the label. This value essentially explains how much of a particular nutrient is in a serving of food. If something contains  5% Daily Value or less, it’s considered a small amount, whereas 15% Daily Value is a lot. In real life, you want the good-for-you nutrients (more on that below) to be 15% or higher while unhealthy ingredients at 5% or lower.

Focus on getting certain nutrients

When you’re looking at the % Daily Value of various nutrients, there are a few you should pay close attention to. Aim to fill up with key things like fiber, potassium, vitamin D, calcium, and iron. Pro-tip: You’re likely to find these nutrients if you opt for fresh foods and packaged goods that are not highly processed.

Avoid or get less of these nutrients.

On the flip side, you’re going to want to aim for less than 5% DV of other nutrients found on the label, including certain types of fats, cholesterol, and sodium. On the fat front, remember that not all fat is bad! Look for foods low in saturated and trans fats, which will help reduce the risk of heart disease. Fats that are good to eat include polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, which can be found in fish, nuts, and certain meat. As a general rule, fat should be in the range of 25-30% of your overall caloric intake. Another nutrient to look out for is sodium. Various studies show that eating less than 2,300 milligrams of sodium (that’s one teaspoon!) a day could reduce the risk of high blood pressure. While you’re at it, try to up the ante on your potassium intake (found in bananas, sweet potatoes, yogurt, and beet greens) which could counteract some of the sodium side effects on your health.

Quick & Easy Late Night Snack Alternatives

With summer night’s getting longer and our desire to stay out later, it is not uncommon for our bodies to need a little late night re-fueling. We understand that some nights it’s tempting to grab a bag of chips or devour a pint of ice cream. However, there are countless amounts of guilt-free options that will still settle your cravings. We believe that late night snacks can be both tasty and leave you feeling good too. Our easy late night snack alternatives will keep you satisfied no matter what you’re craving!

If you’re craving something creamy

Try whipping up a bowl of yoghurt topped with your favourite summer fruit! Some of our favourite toppings include peaches, strawberries, and blueberries – really any fruit that is in season near you! If you want an extra layer of sweetness, try adding a drizzle of honey or a sprinkle of dark chocolate chips! This is a great alternative when you are craving ice cream because it’s cold, creamy and sweet. You even get to enjoy an extra layer of natural sweetness from fresh fruit and bitterness from the dark chocolate!

If you’re craving something salty

Go ahead – pop up some fresh popcorn with olive oil! While microwavable popcorn is convenient, cooking up fresh kernels at home allows you to alter the fat and salt content. If you want to eliminate fats from your snacks, switch butter for oil. Olive, canola or coconut oil are all good alternative to butter! To satisfy your salty craving, we recommend a sprinkle of sea or pink Himalayan salt immediately after the popcorn is done – this ensures that every piece is coated with flavour! According to Dr. Steven Lin, natural sea salt is less refined than traditional table salt due to its iodine levels while pink Himalayan salt is rich in minerals and provide a number of benefits for your body!

If you’re craving something sweet

Why not cut some slices of your favourite apple and smear on some nut butter?! According to Women’s Health Magazine, apples are high in fiber which decreases your hunger levels and leaves you satisfied for longer. This is a great option when you need a little something at night because it will naturally help you avoid over indulging. By adding a few dollops of your preferred nut butter, you’ll be getting in some protein and natural sweetness. Whatever combination you choose, we promise it will satisfy your late-night sweet cravings!

If you’re feeling peck-ish

We recommend digging right into a bowl of unsalted or lightly salted mixed nuts! If your first instinct is to chow down on a bag of potato chips, this is a great protein filled alternative. There are a lot of benefits to snacking on nuts and each kind provides different nutrients. For example, according to Medical News Today, pistachios, almonds, cashews and walnuts provide great nutrients to your body (in addition to protein). Some of the most popular nuts such as almonds and pistachios provide a good amount of calcium to the body  as well vitamin E and iron! If you’re allergic to nuts and still feel like getting a bit of protein in at night, our Egg White Patties contain 6 grams of protein per patty. Top it off with a slice or two of avocado and you’ve got yourself the bite!

If you’re snacking with the kiddos

It’s always fun to put together a quick snack with the kids and get them involved in the process. We totally understand not all kids like the same foods and that’s okay – especially with this next snack idea! While rice cakes are pretty low in nutrients, they make a great slate for toppings of your choice and are usually pretty low in calories and fat in comparison to other crackers or breads. Rice cakes come in various flavours, which is a perfect way to cater to your child’s eating habits. This will give the kids a choice to mix and match while making their snack! Some of our favourite toppings for rice cakes include nut butter, honey, and fruit if you want something sweet. If you’re craving a savoury snack, avocado, hummus and sliced veggies pair great with rice crackers too. This is the perfect family friendly snack and allows every member to build their own with their favourite ingredients. Instead of an ice cream sundae bar, try setting up a DIY rice cake bar for you and your family!

Regardless of what you’re late night cravings are, there are always alternatives if you’re debating on what to snack on. Even if you’re not looking to limit your sodium, calorie or sugar intake, there are always small changes you can make  – you don’t always have to give up that bowl of ice cream! At the end of the day, you know your body best. You will know exactly if you’re craving a handful of chips or an easy late night snack alternative.

Everybody wants a nice, cold beverage in the summertime. While it’s easy to opt for a chilled beer or a glass of rose, choosing the non-alcoholic version of your favorite boozy drink is one of the best things you can do for your health and lifestyle. Why are mocktails better, you ask?

Here are 5 Reasons Why Mocktails Are Your Summertime Best Friend

Reason 1: You’ll Save Money

 Your wallet will be very pleased with you if you decide to cut back on the booze. One beer at a bar can quickly become two or three, which will do some damage to your bill. Even buying your own alcohol at a liquor store can be pricey. While this example might be a little extreme, if you have three drinks a day, five days a week, at an average of $10 a pop, you’re spending about $150 a week or $7,800 a year — just on alcohol! To think of this a bit differently, the cost of a bottle of white wine averages $14.41, while an average bottle of red wine costs $15.66. If you drink one each per week for a year, that’s more than $1,563. Mocktails leave out the priciest ingredient in a drink: the booze.

Reason 2: It’s Way Better For Your Health

The only thing that will thank you more than your wallet is your body. While a boozy drink every now and then is fine, making it a habit can do a lot of harm to your health. Not only is the extra sugar and calories not going to be great for your waistline, but short-term effects of alcohol include poor judgment and increased accident risk, trouble concentrating, mood swings, raised blood pressure, and passing out. The long-term effects of excessive drinking could cause memory loss, liver problems, and a host of other health issues. The bottom line? Keep your alcohol indulgences at a minimum, and replace most of your boozy drinks with a delicious mocktail.

Reason 3: It’s Inclusive

There’s, unfortunately, a social component to drinking, and oftentimes being the one in the room without a drink can feel exclusive, or even cause unnecessary negative comments from people with a drink in hand. That’s why holding onto a mocktail can come to your rescue — you don’t feel left out and nobody will know whether there’s vodka in it or not.

Reason 4: It’s Fun!

Coming up with mocktail recipes can get your creative juices flowing and making them are super fun, too! You get to experiment with different fruits, sodas, garnishes, and muddling techniques, which makes putting a mocktail together way more fun than pouring yourself a simple glass of beer.

Reason 5: It’s Pretty Delicious

Lucky for us, mocktails taste great and probably even better than their alcohol-filled relatives. Who wouldn’t want a hydrating, fresh, and bubbly drink to sip on in the summer, without the extra alcohol calories and risk of a hangover?

5 Delicious Cocktail to Mocktail Swaps

To DIY your own mocktails, here are some swaps inspired by some of our favorite summertime beverages.

Watermelon Margarita

Ingredients (Serves 4!)

• 1 medium seedless watermelon, cut into chunks
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 4 teaspoons agave
• 5 tablespoons sparkling or soda water

Instructions

Puree watermelon chunks in a food processor until you yield four cups of watermelon puree. Then, add the lime juice and agave and mix again. Pour into four cups, and top each with sparkling water.

Moscow (Mango) Mule

Ingredients

• 5 slices of cucumber
• 1 oz honey
• 1.5 oz mango puree
• 1.5 oz fresh lime juice
• 1.5 oz ginger beer
• Ice

Instructions:

Muddle the cucumber and honey in a cocktail shaker. Then, add the mango puree, lime juice, and a handful of ice. Put the cover on the shaker and shake everything for 10 seconds! Strain into a glass or use a copper mug for a true Moscow mule feel. Top your drink with ginger beer and stir.

Mint Mojito Mocktail 

Ingredients

• ½  oz lime juice
• ½  oz agave
• ½ oz blood orange purée
• 4 fresh mint leaves
• Splash of sparkling or soda water
• Ice

Instructions:

Muddle the mint, lime juice, agave in a glass. Then, add ice and blood orange puree before topping with soda water. Garnish with fresh mint.

Paloma Mocktail 

Ingredients

• 1.5 oz lime juice
• 1 oz grapefruit juice
• 1 oz agave syrup
• Pinch of sea salt
• Sparkling or soda water

Instructions:

Combine all of the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake, shake, shake with ice. Strain over ice into a glass and top with sparkling or soda water.

Blueberry Bee’s Knees Mocktail 

Ingredients

• 1 oz filtered water
• ½  oz lemon
• ½  oz honey
• 5 blueberries + 1 blueberry for garnish
• Ice
• Sparkling or soda water

Instructions:

Muddle five blueberries at the bottom of a glass. Then shake all the ingredients together with ice and strain into the glass. Top with a splash or two of soda water and garnish with another blueberry.

Don’t forget the food! From dip to nachos and even sliders. Your guests will be eating and hydrating well with these mocktails and tasty treats!

While the summer season is loved by many, the hot temperatures don’t always fare well with outdoor exercise. In certain situations, it can be downright dangerous to workout in the heat. Having said that, there are active measures you can take to keep cool during the summer months, along with warning signs to look out for if you’ve pushed it to far. We’ll break down all this — and more — now.

How Heat Impacts The Body

When you exercise in hot temps, the heat places extra stress on your body since the air temperature, humidity, and the exercise itself all contribute to increasing your core body temperature.

To help keep cool, your body will send more blood to circulate throughout your skin. While this initially is helpful, it also leaves less blood for your muscles and can lead to an increased heart rate. If it’s extra humid out, your sweat won’t actively evaporate from your skin which can push your body temperature even higher.

To avoid your body temperature from increasing to dangerous levels, follow these tips to stay safe (and keeping cool in hot weather) all summer long.

Check the Forecast

It’s important to know exactly how hot it’s going to be when you exercise. There’s a big difference between going for a run at 75 degrees with low humidity and 85 degrees at high humidity! As we mentioned before, exercising in warm weather will increase your core body temperature. If your temp gets too high, serious health risks could occur.

It’s not just what the thermometer reads, either. When the humidity is low, your body is better at cooling itself (since sweat won’t evaporate) and you can safely run in higher temperatures. When the humidity is high, your sweat doesn’t evaporate as quickly and you body can’t cool itself as effectively, making your core temperature rise. So check the humidity, too: If it’s over 82 degrees out and the humidity has reached 90-100 percent, skip the outdoor workout. However, is the humidity is 40 percent or lower, you can safely exercise outdoors until the thermometer reads 90 degrees.

Also check for cloud cover, sun, or chances of rain and thunderstorms. While the rain might sound refreshing, that means the humidity level is high. Cloud cover helps with the heat, but you should still wear sunscreen just as you would with the sun beating down overhead.

Dress Smart

What you wear really matters when you’re working out in the heat. If it’s warm, choose clothes that are lightweight, can wick sweat, and are light-colored. The darker the color and heavier the materials means the shirt or shorts could absorb more heat and raise your internal body temperature. Remember: You can always shorten your workout — both how long you exercise and how intense the workout is. Keeping cool in hot weather should always be the most important thing for your safety.

Hydrate Before, During, and After

Staying hydrated is a key element of safely exercising in the heat and keeping cool. If you’re planning on exercising later in the day, drink enough fluids throughout your morning and afternoon. This can obviously look like water, but could also mean chomping on watermelon, tomatoes, celery, and other fruits and veggies that are rich with water.

Bring water with you while exercising, too; you can carry a handheld water bottle or a hydration pack. If it’s humid, add electrolytes to your water to replace the sodium and other nutrients that you sweat out. After the workout, chug a big glass of water and continue to hydrate in order to replace the water weight you may have lost while working out in the heat.

Avoid the Midday Sun

Whenever possible, choose to exercise in the morning or evening, when it will probably be a lot cooler out with the sun not as strong. For added coolness, try to workout in the shade or do a workout in a pool!

Wear the Right Protection

Before every outdoor workout, apply water-resistant sunscreen to any exposed skin (including things like ears and elbows!) and make sure it’s at least SPF 30 and says “broad spectrum” or “UVA/UVB protection” on the label. Place it on about 30 minutes before going out and read the label to know how often you need to reapply. Wear UV-blocking sunglasses and a hat to keep your face from getting direct sunlight as well.

Have a Plan B.

If you’re concerned about the heat and humidity, it never hurts to take an outdoor workout inside. Head to a gym, workout class, or even climb stairs inside a building that has the air conditioning blasting.

Know the Warning Signs: Heat Exhaustion and Heat Stroke

Exercising in hot and humid weather can put you at risk of heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Heat exhaustion is a less-dangerous form of a heat-related illness that can form after being exposed to high temperatures for a few days. It can also be caused from dehydration. Signs of heat exhaustion include heavy sweating, muscle cramps, fatigue, dizziness, headaches, and nausea or vomiting.

If heat exhaustion is untreated, it could lead to a heat stroke, which is a serious heat-related illness that needs to be addressed as soon as possible. A heat stroke occurs when the body temperature rises up to 105°F or higher. Symptoms of heat stroke include:

• Dry, hot skin
• A rapid and weak pulse
• Confusion
• Seizures
• Unconsciousness

If you see someone with any warning signs of heat stroke, call 911 immediately.