Wellness Wednesday: Snacking

Does your work have a vending machine filled with buffalo chicken flavored Dorritos, double stuffed Oreos, mini frosted apple pies or "healthy" candy filled trail mix?  It may be time you give yourself a snack rehabilitation.  Healthy snacking throughout your day can make a huge difference in your energy level, metabolism and weight management.

They key is preparing snacks is to choose items with very few ingredients, think the less steps it takes to get to your mouth the better.   Also, plan ahead and prepare your snacks in advance so that you can just grab and go.  Turn your briefcase or backpack into a mobile healthy vending machine.  But keep in mind that too much of anything is not good, so mind serving sizes and create some variety.  Here are some healthy and tasty snack ideas:

• Baby carrots
• Hard boiled egg
• Cucumber salad-1 cup of chopped cucumbers, 1/2 tsp of rice vinegar, sprinkle with red pepper
• Roasted seaweed
• Apple slices
• Raw almonds
• Serving of pistachios
• Low fat string cheese
• Can of Sardines
• 1 low sodium brown rice cake and 1 tbs of almond butter

There are so many options!  Share your favorite healthy snack.


 

Wellness Wednesday: Calories don't matter? Whaaaat?

Love what the experts at Equinox have to say about nutrition.  Instead of focusing on counting how many calories you consume, put more emphasis on nourishing your cells and eating nutrient rich foods.  Sure there are 100 calorie chocolate chip cookie packs, but will eating cookies really help you achieve your wellness goals?  I'll answer that for you, "NO!"  Remember if you want to see a younger, healthier (and we bet, happier) self, you must have a metabolic system that hums (Q Editors).

Read more at Q By Equinox

Photograph by Getty Images from Q By Equinox

Wellness Wednesday: Granola alternative

If you are like me, then you could probably house a pound of granola each morning.  The only problem... WAY TOO MUCH SUGAR AND BUTTER!  So instead of ditching my beloved tasty oats combination I created a "healthy" version of the toasted breakfast treat.  Behold, quinoa and oats granola!  Protein packed quinoa mixed with gluten free oats.  Instead of using butter or olive oil, I used virgin coconut oil to help it all stick.  If you are still craving sweet, simply add a half of a teaspoon of raw honey to top it off.  The result, yum.

1 Cup red quinoa
2 Cups of gluten free oats
1/4 cup of cinnamon
1tsp of nutmeg
1/4 of virgin coconut oil

Mix all of the above ingredients together and place in a glass cooking dish
Roast in the oven on 350 degrees for 45 minutes, turning the mixture every 15 minutes

Optional add on's

1 tsp of Acai powder
1tsp of raw honey
1/2 cup of nonfat kefir

Wellness Wednesday: Battle Rope

Want to mean serious business? Want to get a great workout in the shortest time possible?  Then using the battle rope to do some high intensity interval training. or HIIT, is the way to go.  The idea behind HIIT is that you push yourself to a high level for short bouts, rest and repeat.  This leaves your body recovering and burning calories long after the workout is done.  Doing it with the battle rope just creates another level of challenge as you have to use the total body to create the waves in the rope.  A simple program would be going as hard as possible for 20 sec and resting for 40 sec.  Repeat that 10 times and you will be cooked.  Enjoy!

Wellness Wednesday: Supplement my day

Photo: Esme Williams

Some believe that if we could get all of our vitamins and nutrients in one pill, the world may be a better place. Though this magic pill doesn't exist, there are a few supplements that you may want to make a part of your daily routine.  I take the following supplements daily to help account for any lower levels of vitamins and minerals that I dont satisfy in my regular diet.  Remember too much of anything is not good, so be careful not to get caught up in taking a vitamin for every ailment.  

My daily dose:

• Biotin, 1000 mcg - Hair nails and skin
• Fish Oil, 4800 mg - Circulatory system
• Raw One for Women - Multivitamin 
• Vitamin C Powder, 1000 mg - Antioxidant, Vascular

Disclaimer:  Not everything is for everyone.  Though this regiment works for me, please make sure to get approval from your primary care physician prior to changing your nutritional habits, as there may be serious side effects when taken unadvised.

Wellness Wednesday: Meditate

If you are like me you experience a meltdown more often than you would like to admit.  I am always trying to add to my plate, however, I get completely overwhelmed and come to the realization that I can't do everything.  When it comes to health and wellness most people put the majority of their focus in to what more they can do.  How much further can I run?  Can I lift a heavier weight?  Can I eat more vegetables?  All of these are fantastic deposits in to the Bank of Wellness.  However there is an often forgotten side to being healthier, meditation.  Stillness.  Now this doesn’t mean you have to sit under a tree and chant OMMM for hours (though it would be cool if you did), meditation is finding a quite space in your home or work where you can sit and breath.  Sometimes you may reflect on your thoughts and sometimes you may drift into the land of nothing.  The point is that meditation forces you to focus on, well, you.  By doing this you are going to incur a whole host of great health benefits.  Here are just 10 of the big ticket payoffs that you will see:

1.  Stress Management

2.  Deeper level of physical relaxation and reduction in muscle tension (which is a   must if you are on a strenuous workout schedule)

3.  Reduction of Blood Pressure levels

4.  Improved flow of air to the lungs

5.  Enhances immune system

6.  Improved performance in athletic events

7.  Relaxes the nervous system (which everyone needs in a bad way)

8.  Improved memory and learning ability

9.  Increased Job satisfaction

10. Increased work productivity

Again, everyone’s definition of mediation is different.  For some it can be done while going for a walk,  for others they can do it sitting at their desk.  However you choose to do it, just start small in build your way up.  Take 5 minutes at first to calm your mind and once that becomes easier you can go for longer.  And in time you will be a meditative master and have the ability to move things with your mind (disclaimer:  the part about moving things with you mind may or may not happen).