Eating FAT in a healthy way...

This time we have invited an expert in nutrition and fitness, Athenea Lara, with over 6 years of experience, she shares her secrets:

Despite many years of hearing arguments for "anti- fat,” it is increasingly clear that the right kinds of fat make us healthier, smarter, more muscular and less fat!

In the 80 's, everything we saw or read about nutrition tried to eradicate all common dietary fats, thus giving the message that any food containing any kind of fat was harmful to our health. 

Athletes and people concerned about nutrition adopted the idea that the less fat their diet had, the better. From that moment on, a low-fat diet was fashionable.

Today it remains a challenge to change the mindset of people, and to make them understand that the correct fat is not only essential, but also very beneficial to our body. 

I’ve seen this example with my clients: none seems to have any conflict with eating a muffin, brownie, or burger ... however the vast majority shows major concerns over olive oil, dressings or a small handful of almonds in their diet.

The message that I want to give today is: FAT IS NOT THE DEVIL, but quite the contrary, it is one of our best allies to get in shape.

An important fact: Walter Willett, director of the department of nutrition at Harvard, has devoted the last years to show that since the start of the anti-fat movement, obesity has increased further and health in the general population did not improve at all.

It is true that there is a type of fat (let´s call them " bad fats ") that block our arteries, increase our adipose tissue, and accelerates aging, but it is also true that there is another type of fat ("the good one") that protects us against heart disease, damage from free radicals, increases our metabolic rate and fat burning, and can help gain muscle and testosterone production.

Next week we will talk in detail about which are good fats and how to use them to improve our health and live better...

A simple mistake that ruins your efforts.

This week I was thinking about those small details that we commit in our diets that lead us to failure. 

Today we will talk about PORTION SIZES.

You can choose the most wonderful diet, internationally proven, the diet of Hollywood stars, you can buy the most exotic food, but if your portion sizes are larger than indicated, everything falls apart.

The concept of a "normal portion" is entirely relative. A portion that is excessive to me may be small for someone else.

 

For example, a serving of meat is equivalent to 30g (the size of the palm of your hand) and it is a common belief that a portion of meat is 150g because that is the amount of a “small” Mc Donald's burger.

To make it simple, in recent years everyday objects have been used as reference for food portion sizes.

A poker chip = one serving of oil, butter, margarine or peanut butter = 45 kcal

A pack of cigarettes = 1 serving of meat (chicken, beef, pork, fish) or cheese = Approx 70 Kcal

A baseball or tennis ball = 1 serving of vegetables (25 kcal) or cereals (75 kcal)

A CD = one serving of breakfast bread (hot cakes, waffles, bagel) = 75-100 kcal

In this way, the next time you make a change in your habits, compare what you call a portion with what it really is and try to adapt to these new quantities. You'll see that your efforts will be well rewarded.

Best of luck!

 
 


 

SiMpLe and healthy for your KiDs

Following post-holiday changes, in this blog I give you two delicious recipes, easy to make and to enjoy with your children:

Potato Salad Sandwich

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of low fat cream

• 2 tablespoons light mayonnaise

• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 4 cups cooked and cooled and diced potatoes

• 1 cup frozen vegetables, cooked and cooled

• 2 tablespoons capers, drained (optional)

• 2-4 slices of bread

Preparation

• Combine the cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice, mustard and salt in a small bowl and reserve separately.

• Toss potatoes, vegetables and capers in a large bowl and pour the cream dressing over potatoes and mix well. Chill the salad before serving.

• Spread a slice of bread with the salad and place another slice to form a sandwich.

• Cut the sandwich in half to make two triangles

Wrapped chocolate banana

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons chocolate powder (preferably without sugar)

• 1 tablespoon skim milk

• 1 tablespoon peanut butter

• 1 banana

• 2 small flour tortillas, slightly warmed

• Cinnamon

Preparation

• Mix the chocolate flavor powder and milk in a small bowl. Add peanut butter and mix well.

• Spread half of the mixture into each tortilla.

• Put the banana in the center of each tortilla and sprinkle them with cinnamon. Roll it up and cut it in half.

See you next week!

Reference: http://www.elmejornido.com/es/kitchen/recipes

Give them a HEALTHY return to ScHoOL!

Starting school is a very good opportunity to create new eating habits in your family.  
Let's take advantage of it!

First of all, remember that creating a new habit requires slow and gradual change.  Talk to your family and make them part of the change. Explain your plan and involve them. If everyone participates it will be easier and there will be less resistance to eat healthier and improve their quality of life.

• Healthy Cupboard

In order to eat healthier and not fall into temptation, a simple principle is: DON’T BUY IT.

A few weeks ago, my husband and I bought a liter of Coca Cola to unclog a drain. At home we never drink soda, but knowing that we had it, we were tempted and took several glasses.

• Educate your family

It is very important that you include your children in the process of choosing food, invite them to the supermarket and teach them to choose the healthier version of the foods they like. Let them choose the fruits / vegetables and experiment with these new options. 

Children who are involved in the grocery shopping, are more eager to eat what they bought.

• Buy more fruits and vegetables

Make sure that more than a third of your purchase consists of fruits and vegetables.  Your purchase will be cheaper and have more ingredients to prepare meals and snacks with

• Plan your menus

Once a week plan what you will cook and anticipate your kids’ lunch the night before.  Involve them in the preparation and use that time to teach them how to eat healthier and lighter. 

There are many websites where you can find thousands of simple and innovative recipes for your family.

• School store

If your children takes money to school, spend time with them to explain what is better to buy in the store in order to feel lighter and more energetic.

• Home visits

When you have visitors at home or friends of your children, seek to provide snacks made from fruits and vegetables instead of buying bags of chips and dressings.

Remember: We seek long-term habits gradually developed. You do not need to radically change your food.  Try to make it as slow as possible so that the change does not become uncomfortable for anyone and that everyone finds new food options.

I hope these tips will be useful and that this return to the routine will be a new beginning for healthy habits.

Why TRY to eat better and exercise if you don’t see the results YOU WANT?

 For those who didn’t read last week, Atena Lara, nutrition and training expert, describes some "little things" that can make the difference between success and failure of our efforts to eat better...

DRESSING:

This subject is classic! You can be eating very healthy and low in calories but if you add guacamole to your chicken, “light cream” or olive oil to the salad you are adding many extra calories.

I'm not saying eat tasteless, just be careful about how you add flavor to the food: homemade sauces without oil, lemon, vinegar, soy, and chili powder in reasonable quantities, do not change the quality of your diet.

BEVERAGES:

We are so careful about our food that we forget to check what we drink!  Juices are NOT the best breakfast (whole fruit is the best choice), the cappuccino is not free of calories and you don’t necessarily need Gatorade to train.  It's best to drink clear water: put slices of lemon, strawberry or a tea bag in your water bottle, it gives some flavor and doesn’t affect your diet! 

ON AND OFF

Follow your objectives 5 days and stop for 2.  Ten intensive days and 3 lazydays are the WORST thing you can do.

First, your metabolism will never accelerate, as it does not receive a constant stimulus. Second, you lose time and money without getting anywhere!  Chances are in a few months, you will be in the exact same point where you started.  Third, the worst part is that you get tired and your mind is generating a sense of failure over and over again. 

As a tip, if you are not ready to start it’s OK. Take the time you need to convince yourself that you will do this and you're willing to pay the price, and once you decide CONTINUE until you are happy with the results. 

The name of the game is TENACITY.

For further information about this subject write to:

InspiringFitnessNow@gmail.com

3 reasons why you don't see improvements

This time we have invited an expert in nutrition and fitness, Atenea Lara, with 6 years of experience.  She will share some secrets to success. 
Hope you like it:

Why don’t we see results when we really try to eat better and exercise more? Actually there are many factors that may be affecting the speed of your progress ... however there are some “small details” that when we put them together make a BIG difference.

It’s not fair that your efforts to eat better and exercise don’t give any results due to “small“ or “harmless mistakes”. I share them here for you to pay attention and observe yourself!

HAVING HEALTHY FOOD AS SNACKS:

Eating a stick of celery, cucumber, one little plum, an apple, etc. The fact that something is healthy does not mean it contains no calories! You need to pay close attention to distinguish whether you are eating out of hunger or anxiety.

If it’s hunger, it's best to have an earlier mealtime and if it’s anxiety, try to do small activities to keep you distracted and away from food.

SKIPPING MEALS:

When you skip meals you will NOT lose weight faster, but your metabolism will slow down. Removing food groups from your diet (such as "carbohydrates" or "proteins") will change the way you process food and can cause vitamin or mineral deficiency affecting your health.

FILLERS:

Chewing gum all day, using artificial sweeteners in excess and drinking light soda at each meal affects your results! While these tools are useful in times of anxiety, they can become enemies when trying to create order in our eating habits.

These “harmless” products are made from chemicals, many of which are SO processed that our body discards them as they enter, but that does NOT mean they do not cause damage ranging from cancer to water retention.

I recommend you use less than 2 packets of artificial sweeteners, less than 3 sugarless gums a day and a diet soda only every 3rd day.

Next week will talk about 3 more "small" mistakes that hinder our efforts.

See you!

Do not forget to LOG OUT these VACATION

A small reminder:

Healthy tip: Try to choose BIG fruits like watermelon, melon, orange or papaya. These contain more water, fiber and less calories.