Month: December 2014

Overnight Power Oatmeal

J Walden

We are all pressed for time this holiday season, myself included. This is not an excuse to give in but rather a good opportunity to look for ways to prep ahead of time. I don’t know about you, but it seems often I end up with 15 minutes between two other things. I am NOT encouraging you find ways to fill up that time with more stuff to do, but rather to take a minute to do something to save time later for you.

Put on one of your favorite songs on the radio and make your breakfast for the entire week and quickly. Here’s the overnight, delicious to get your oatmeal ready for the entire week in a few easy steps.

Overnight Power Oatmeal

❖ Gluten free raw oats
❖ Small 8oz mason jars or other sealable containers
❖ Chia seeds
❖ Unsweetened non-dairy milk  (almond, coconut, rice, hemp, flax etc.)
❖ 1/2 Scoop of Protein Powder of choice

Last step-any superfood toppings your little heart desires! i.e. nuts, berries (or other low/mid glycemic fruit such as apples or pears), cacao powder, gogi berries, hemp hearts, bee pollen, raw pumpkin seeds, pure vanilla, unsweetened coconut flakes, a dollop of nut butter, cinnamon etc. Use your imagination, just keep the sugar to a minimum as you already have a good amount of low glycemic carbohydrates in the form of oats.

Preparation
❖ Raw Oats always go first-fill to approximately half way
❖ 1 tablespoon or chia seeds (white or black is fine)
❖ Shake vigorously
❖ Add milk to the top leaving enough room to add the toppings you wish
❖ Add some toppings and don’t forget some superfoods!
❖ Seal and leave in the fridge overnight.

Pull out and warm if desired.  Add a little milk or moisture in the morning to give it a smoother consistency.  Enjoy.

thank you Ciarafoy.com, modified by eatlivefit.net

Watch What Could Happen to Your Body If You Drank 10 Cans of Coke a Day

J Walden

This article popped on my screen today and I just had to share it.  I don’t know that I would be willing to do this test on myself, but I was not surprised by the result of this man’s outcome.  What I think is very telling is that all our food choices have an impact on us and so we want to make indulgences a bump on our road to good health, not road blocks!  Let’s just not even think about the money spent on this little trial out of his own pocket (upwards of $450 in one month).

It all started in an effort to raise awareness about sugar content in beverages.  Los Angeles resident George Prior chugged 300 sodas in one month to see if it would have any effect..and guess what..it did!

(Photo: Facebook)

December 03, 2014 By 

Staff Writer Liz Dwyer has written about race, parenting, and social justice for several national publications. She was previously education editor at Good.

Just drinking 12 ounces of soda a day can boost your chance of dying from heart diseaseby one-third, but what would happen to your body if you downed 10 sugar-filled cans of Coca-Cola every day for 30 days? Fortunately you don’t have to go to such extreme lengths because 50-year-old Los Angeles resident George Prior has done it for you.

Prior, who follows the Paleo diet and works out regularly, wrote on his blog that he decided to do the Super Size Me-style project because he wanted to raise awareness about how easy it is to ingest hundreds of grams of hidden sugar through beverages. Downing 10 cans of Coca-Cola (sometimes he added in a few cans of Cherry Coke for variety) put an extra 350 grams of sugar into Prior’s body every day.

“ ‘But,’ you’re probably thinking, ‘Everyone knows it wouldn’t be healthy to drink ten cokes a day, and, besides, I only drink four Cokes a day,’ ” Prior wrote on his blog.

“That’s true, perhaps you’re only drinking four Cokes, but if you add in the two glasses of orange juice, the two sweetened coffee drinks from Starbucks, the 16 ounce Odwalla drink, the two ‘healthy’ brand ice teas, and the $9 fruit smoothie you waited ten minutes in line for, you’ve made my ten Cokes look like child’s play. Maybe it’s not all Coke, but they’re all sugar drinks, and a big percentage of Americans drink at least the sugar equivalent of my ten Cokes,” he explained.

Prior got a complete physical prior to starting his experiment on Oct. 24. He weighed 168 pounds, was 9.4 percent body fat, and his blood pressure was 129/77. Even though Prior followed his normal exercise and diet plan, by the thirtieth day of the program, Nov. 22, he tipped the scales at 191 pounds—an increase of 23 pounds in 30 days. His body fat had also increased to 15.3 percent and his blood pressure was a much less healthy 143/96. Prior also experienced increased cravings for other sugary treats. Here’s what happened to his body:

(Photo courtesy 10 Cokes a Day)

“The actual drinking of the ten Cokes got to be an irritating chore every day,” Prior toldExpress. “There were a lot of visits to the restroom, a feeling of constant fullness, and a clutter of cans everywhere.”

But Prior is clear that Coke isn’t the only sugar drink we need to worry about, particularly in regard to the health of children.

“Kids shouldn’t drink Cokes,” Prior told the paper. Given the sugar content of other beverages, “kids shouldn’t drink juices, either, and that’s going to be a very hard sell to parent who believe that juice is ‘natural’, or even ‘organic’,” he added.

In the video below, which was taken on Prior’s first Coca-Cola-free day, you can see how he feels mentally and physically now that the experiment is over—he’s certainly eager to get all those added pounds off. You can also check out what he does with all the leftover soda that he didn’t drink. (Hint: he doesn’t pass them along to a friend.)

Getting Back To You

J Walden
“Perhaps the most valuable result of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it ought to be done, whether you like it or not; it is the first lesson that ought to be learned; and however early a man’s training begins, its probably the last lesson that he learns thoroughly. ”   – Thomas Huxley

A friend shared this quote with me this morning and it hit home.  As humbling as it may be, there is as sense of accomplishment and pride waiting for you because you feel the best about yourself when you do what you KNOW is right.  As much fun as it is to be bad occasionally, it feels even better to do the things you know are best.

That being said, today is a great day to get back to your healthy habits and routine to feel the best you can feel.  The next couple of days make sure you drink MORE than your regular water intake to help your body flush out all the holiday celebrations.  As the parties begin, make sure to follow my tips on how to enjoy this month of celebrations without undoing all your hard work.  If you missed that blog, catch it here.

This is a good time of year to add a Probiotic to your daily regimen.  Probiotics are “good bacteria” that promote a healthy digestive system.  They are found naturally in foods like yogurt, miso soup, and kefir.  Even if you regularly eat these foods, most of our systems require a larger dosage to support the number of healthy bacteria in our digestive track.  “Roughly 70 percent of our immune system is in the gut..” according to parkerhospital.org, and as we head more indoors and come in contact with more germs it is important to encourage the good bacteria to work for us.  These guys help us ward off bloating and inflammation on a small scale all the way to fight diseases on a larger scale.  This time of year particularly with added stress and energy zapping events, our healthy bacteria are working overtime to keep us functioning at optimum level.  Add in one dose of antibiotics and your natural probiotics are stopped cold.  I use Trunature because it is a natural brand that is readily available, but there are several good brands on the market to help you.

One final note, often times you are making the right choices and doing what you know is right, and the ways you are doing it are working against you.  I am thinking of drug interactions in particular.  For example, were you aware that Vitamin B12, which aids in blood and nerve cell health, is inhibited by strong antacids?  A Pharmacist can help you uncover more of these in your own daily regimen, but it is important to be aware.

As your schedule changes over the next few weeks, you will need to adjust with it.  Whether it be stress and rushing around, or just enjoying event after event and working to find a balance that doesn’t overwhelm you.  Putting yourself on the front burner is important because it will help you survive and thrive in this season.  If you are struggling with energy and focus, nutrition can help in many ways.  Just contact me at eatlivefit@hotmail.com for guidance.

In the meantime, enjoy this little motivation for the week:

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