Healthy Snack Ideas

If you enjoy savory snacks then you'll love these!  

Kale chips make a quick, healthy & nutritious alternative to potato chips but today I tried roasted garbanzo beans (chickpeas) for the first time.

Rinse the beans to remove the starchy coating

  Spread them on a baking sheet & pat dry

 Drizzle with olive oil & stir to coat all the beans

 I also washed and dried kale. Roast at 325F for around 15-20 minutes for the kale & 385F for around 30 minutes for the beans

Then I added a little salt but you could use any seasoning you prefer. Enjoy!

5 Steps to Your Best 'Detox' Ever!

Happy New Year!  Are you one of the many people lamenting how much you consumed over the Holidays?  Are you vowing this year will be different and you're going to eat only healthy food all year long?

Welcome to the Season of cleanses & detox diets.  These are often associated with deprivation, cutting out entire food groups, drinking strange concoctions of cabbage water & cayenne pepper and.......failure.

So why am I as a Registered Dietitian taking part in Arbonne International's 30 Days to Fit program?  Because flooding your body with nutritious, unprocessed food & supplementing with carefully selected botanical extracts will help your body's natural detoxifying systems do their job!

I tried Arbonne's 30 Days to Fit Program when I first became an Arbonne Consultant as I wanted to experience it myself before offering it to others.  It's designed around regular, unprocessed meals with portion sizes which are in line with the most recent government guidelines, such as half your plate being fruits & vegetables, plus addition of Arbonne's Fit Essentials products really did make me feel more energized!

By taking you back to nutrition basics it allows you to push the re-set button on your diet & many clients  report weight loss & loss of inches but it's the loss of sugar cravings and energy slumps that are the real benefits! Get rid of those obstacles & you can finally, successfully make those dietary changes you always wanted to make.

When you place an order you'll receive access to the online Guide plus contact me via Facebook  for membership to a Private Facebook Group providing additional information & support.



 Arbonne's 30 Days to Fit

Focus on 5 key areas of fitness:

1. Eat Clean
2. Increase Nutrient Intake
3. Eliminate Allergenic & Addictive Foods
4. Balance Blood Sugar
5. Support Elimination Organs

Arbonne Nutrition products are:

~ dairy free
~  vegan
~ formulated without gluten
~ free from artificial color, flavor & sweetener
~ free from cholesterol & trans fat
~ effective & taste great!

Find out more at  NutritionSpa.My Arbonne.com select Arbonne Essentials - Fit Essentials & get ready to feel fitter, sleep better & nourish your body!

To your health!

National Men's Health Week 2012

June is a time to focus on men....and their health!  It's International Men's Health Month & the week before Father's Day is National Men's Health Week.

If it's been a while since you had a check-up consider this a gentle reminder to call & make that appointment - remember prevention is better than cure!

Decide to take a look at your eating & lifestyle habits this week and think about changes you could begin to make towards healthier choices.  If you need help, ask for it!  The women in your life and health professionals are standing by ready to support you!

If you're a Dad that automatically makes you a role model & actions speak louder than words. I work with a lot with families & all too often I hear Moms say it's hard to get their children to eat certain foods because their husband's won't eat it.   So don't just tell your kiddos to eat their veggies - let them see you eating more of them!

I'm pleased to say my husband & several of my male friends enjoy cooking but if this is something you've avoided in the past make this the week you learn to create a new dish!  Men Can Cook is a fun site with easy, healthy recipes by men!  Be inspired by celebrity chefs such as Jamie Oliver who advocate simple yet healthy meals and don't be intimidated thinking it has to be celebrity chef standard.

Health means looking after your body inside & out. As a new Consultant for Arbonne, a Swiss nutrition & skincare company established 32 years ago, I've been very impressed with their products & commitment to the environment and as Dr Peter Matravers explains, real men do practice skincare!

So while June is a month for enjoying sunshine & those delicious summer  fruits, it's also a great time for men to take charge of their health & wellbeing!

Spring clean your diet

April's a great time to clear out your fridge, pantry & freezer & review your shopping habits to set you up for a healthy summer! It may be easier to run down your fresh food supplies before starting this task.

Refrigerator

• empty everything out (but for food safety don't leave these food items lying out too long)
• check use by dates & discard anything that's out of date
• go through all those half used jars & bottles, check use by dates & decide if you will actually ever finish what's in those jars & bottles
• if not clean them out & recycle the containers
• wash the shelves & drawers with hot soapy water and let them air dry.  Wash the inside of the fridge to clear up crumbs & spillages
• as you put the items you're keeping back in, make a note of what needs used up soon & plan meals around those
• are their items you could buy healthier alternatives: lower fat cow's milk/sour cream/cheese, plain yogurt to flavor with fruit yourself?

Freezer

• discard anything that's been lurking in there for too long!
• discard bags or containers with no label & you've no idea what they once were!
• are there ingredients ready to put together for a quick, healthy meal?  If not, think about what items would be helpful to you to keep in the freezer
• you can help yourself prepare a fast, healthy meal on busy nights by stocking your freezer with your own 'ready meals', such as frozen vegetables, pasta sauce, portions of chilli, soup and so on.

Pantry

• lay everything out so you can see what you have & easily clean the shelves
• check sell by dates & discard anything that's out of date
• do you have items that are still sealed & in date but you bought & now realize you'll never use? Donate them to a local food bank.
• decide how to group items to make cooking easier for you.  Is it helpful to you to have all the herbs & spices together or would it be better for you if the Italian herbs were beside the pasta for example?
• keep items you use often accessible & if you have children decide what items you'd like them to be able to reach or not

Did you find you discarded a lot of food? 

Meal planning can not only save you time but also save you money as you only buy what you need for meals & leftovers to stock your freezer and there's no waste.

Before you go shopping, take time to plan out meals & write a list of ingredients plus a list of items you'd like to have in your pantry to make cooking at home more enjoyable & achievable as you'll have all the ingredients you need on hand!

Are you stuck in a dinner rut?

We are currently painting the interior of our home - I use the term 'we' loosely as my husband is doing all the prep work & the painting & my job is keeping the kiddos out of the way!

The other job my husband has ensured I do while everything is off the shelves is to go through the pile of magazines I have accumulated due to those 'subscribe for one year get another year free!' type deals.  As a result I have many Better Homes & Gardens and Real Simple magazines and a couple of others I received in the mail without ever subscribing too?!

I find clearing out therapeutic & am not a hoarder at all but have kept all these magazines because they are full of useful information and recipes I plan try 'one day'.

So I spent Sunday afternoon flicking through piles of magazines tearing out articles (which I now have to find time to read & file!) and came to 2 conclusions:

1)  I long to live in a blue & white cottage by the sea in New England which is decorated & organized immaculately  just like all the photos in every single one of these magazines!

2) With all the recipes there are in the world I should never be in a dinner rut!

Looking at all the recipes I've torn out it's obvious that by using the same basic ingredients then adding different herbs & spices I can make a different meal every night & travel round the world with the flavors!

~ Toss seafood into my basic stir-fry and I can imagine I'm actually sitting in that cottage on the coast... 

~ Add plums, cinnamon & curry powder to chicken & suddenly I'm in Morocco!

~ Mix chilli & lime into my recipe & I'm in Mexico

~ Add ginger for an Asian experience

~ Basil or oregano will transport me back to Italy!

Recipes don't have to be complicated or include lots of different ingredients but there are so many different flavors to experience! 

 Flicking through those magazines has inspired me to try new recipes & get creative with my herbs & spices.....now if only I could get round to organizing & filing ...!

Registered Dietitian Day - March 14th 2012

"The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics proudly announces the fifth annual Registered Dietitian Day. As the nation's food and nutrition experts, registered dietitians are committed to improving the health of their patients and community. Registered Dietitian Day commemorates the dedication of RDs as advocates for advancing the nutritional status of Americans and people around the world."

March is National Nutrition Month & today is Registered Dietitian Day.  A day for highlighting  the role of dietitians and what they can offer you with regard to your nutrition & health. It's about letting people know who to turn to for credible nutrition advice in the midst of overwhelming nutrition information.

I was incredibly proud when I graduated in Scotland with a BS in Human Nutrition & Dietetics in 1994 & following a hospital internship qualified as a Registered Dietitian in 1995.  I was thrilled again, when 16 years later, I passed the US Dietetic Registration exam!

Throughout this time I have had the pleasure of working with many amazing, dedicated dietitians all with one goal...to help people improve their health via good nutrition. Whether it's altering diet because of a medical condition or improving nutritional intake for pregnancy or weight loss, the power of good nutrition never fails to amaze me!

What do we hope for on RD Day?  

Not an award or a pat on the back - we'd like you to contact us - via our blogs, Facebook pages, LinkedIn, Twitter, telephone, online or in person & let us help you achieve your full health potential.  

Stop living with those symptoms or dreaming of losing that weight -make this RD Day the day you commit to your good health & contact a dietitian!

For a list of dietitians in your area visit the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.

Chocolate Milk for athletes?

Fotosearch

Chocolate milk is in the news again. 

This time it's not the great debate about having it in schools but about the new marketing campaign targeting athletes.

The campaign is about the protein & nutrients in milk helping with muscle recovery after a workout.  It's also about chocolate providing antioxidants which are beneficial to health.  So does it follow that by combining these 2 foods you create a 'super food'?

I'd like to add a word of caution before anyone starts drinking chocolate milk thinking 'if a little is good, a lot must be better!'

I've no problem with people drinking low fat milk or occasionally eating some dark chocolate.  The protein & lactose (sugar occurring naturally in milk)  can help muscle recovery & the antioxidants from dark chocolate have heart health benefits.

BUT:

• check to see how much sugar is in the chocolate milk - drinking your calories is never a good idea
•  bear in mind chocolate flavoring is not the same as actual dark chocolate!  
• drinking chocolate milk after your workout may mean you're drinking all the calories you just worked off!

A better option would be to drink regular (white), low fat milk & enjoy actual dark chocolate as a 'treat with added anti-oxidant benefits'

Remember, they are advertising their product & that doesn't mean it's a 'wonder food'!