Fruits are Berry good for you!

Get a Vitamin Boost

Vegan Vanity- Vegging out?

Interesting article I found by Harper’s Bazar:

Being a vegan used to be something big, symbolic, and meaningful, the dietetic equivalent of Jane Fonda’s Black Power salute.

Eating lower on the food chain took you to a higher moral plane: Every bite of tofu was a dinner table protest about protecting the planet.

Now, what was a radical lifestyle is being embraced by women from Rodeo Drive to Madison Avenue who are looking to lose the blubber, not save the whales.

(-Outch-)

They’ve noticed it keeps their BMIs low and their waists free from dairy-induced bloat. “Vanity and weight loss is the number-one thing that’s driving this,” says Los Angeles nutritionist Cynthia Pasquella. “I’ve seen people lose 15 to 40 pounds in a month. It can be very rapid because you’re not eating all the junk in meat. Saturated fat intake is lowered, and plant-based foods are low in calories.”

Even the many vegan celebrities are touting the health benefits. “I used to think about dieting,” actress Jessica Chastain said recently, “but I’m vegan now, so it’s not really a problem.” Alanis Morissette attributes her 20-pound weight drop to going vegan.

While some are vegan for ethical reasons, others just want the slimming side effects. But it’s the moral high horse that vegan converts ride that irks some. At a recent gathering in suburban Connecticut, one yummy mummy announced gravely to us all that she had secretly been a vegan for two years. (“Please, I don’t call her a vegan,” muttered one onlooker. “I call that a ham-sandwich-etarian.”)

Strictly speaking, a vegan is someone who does not eat or use animal products. That means vegans don’t wear leather, fur, wool, silk, or pearls; they can’t wrap themselves up in that white winter coat from Céline or throw on a J. Crew cashmere sweater. Besides seafood and meat, they don’t eat eggs, honey, cheese, yogurt, milk, or caviar, and are wary of processed cereals and dried fruits (they may contain animal glycerin) and marshmallows (usually made with gelatin). If a vegan wears makeup or visits a dermatologist, she should take care with lipstick and mascara (many have beeswax), peels with lactic acid (they may be derived from milk), and fillers (some are extracted from animal sources).

Surely, I thought, a vegan could at least live on a diet of wine and cocktail nuts. But before you put that glass of pinot to your lips, beware. Many winemakers use animal products, such as casein (a milk protein), egg whites, and gelatin during processing.

Not all vegans subsist on kale salads, however. First, “you can be a vegan who eats chips and salsa all day,” says Hamptons-based culinary nutritionist Stefanie Sacks, but it’s a fast track to a muffin top. Second, the diet may result in precariously low levels of vitamins like B₁₂ and D. Sacks recommends regular blood tests to monitor any deficiencies. “I’d warn against doing it as a crash diet,” says Pasquella.

There are other benefits, more for the mind than the body: My sister, Carolina, who turned to veganism while recovering from breast cancer, said it made her feel more mellow. After nine months, though, “the halo wore off,” she says, “and all I wanted was a cheeseburger.”

0 kcal for weightloss ? – Not the answer to a lean healthy body!

Rethink your Drink

Well alcoholic drinks aren’t even mentioned, guess that speaks for itself!

-Go slow on alcohol, as it’s the only drink that if consumed mindlessly can endanger other innocent people’s health beside your own.

Stay risk-aware 

xx

Easy portion size guidelines

Just as promised, some easy tips about managing your portion sizes.

I like this way of measuring the most as it is individually adjustable

so you don’t have to spend hours concentrating on the exact amount of grams and counting those calories.

Try and see yourself.

xx

Fueling strategies (type 1) your body will thank you for!

Stay Hydrated

Do it the right way! Avoid sugar-loaded fizzy drinks, as soda bloats and sugar doesn’t only fatten problem areas, but also sabotages our bodies antioxidant defense systems! So, drink plenty of pure water and calorie free beverages to keep your performance at its peak. Besides water is able to give you guidelines about what your body actually really needs, if you use it correctly: Always drink 1-2 cups of water whenever you feel like craving food when you’re last meal has just been an hour or so ago! If the feeling goes away, it’s because you weren’t really hungry, it was the dehydration that caused the craving! You mixed up your body’s demand for water with its demand for food!

>*Tip:

Drink 2 cups of Green tea, or Chilli water throughout the day to detox your body, and opt for 2-3cups before every meal if you want to increase weight loss.

————————————————–

Limit Processed Foods + Treat Meal

Cut out those high-calorie, nutrition poor foods from your daily menu plan and you’ll be more likely to reach your goals for physique and mind health. This doesn’t mean you won’t ever get to eat that delicious ice cream, cookie and burger ever again! Just not for now, not until you’ve managed to eat clean first for at least 1-2 weeks straight. This concept actually helps a lot with changing your eating habits as you attempt to take a challenge with an encouraging reward. Not only will the Treat Meal await you after completing clean eating for 1-2 weeks, but also your much more improved health & physique.

>*Keep in mind that:

It is called treat MEAL not treat DAY! A treat day rather than a meal will make it much harder for you to fight sugar cravings the next morning you wake up.  As cravings create a vicious cycle you’ll simply fall back to your old unhealthy eating habits , eliminate last week’s achievements or even set your health to a worse level than it has been before.

————————————————–

Opt for 5 meals a day

Fuel your body with multiple small meals every day keeping your blood sugar levels under control, fighting carvings for sweets and keeping your metabolism steady. Furthermore it will help stimulate the building of new muscles mass.

>*Tip:

You can make them 3 main meals that are somewhat bigger and 2 smaller snacks too if you like that better. Just make sure you have at least 2.30 and max 5 hours between every meal

———————————————-

Protein daily – ideally with every meal

Your body needs a protein infusion every couple of hours to maximize muscle growth, while still releasing fat burning hormones.Go for ground lean beef, chicken breast without the skin, and fish. If you’re a vegetarian make sure you’re getting enough protein! Try protein supplements as for example a gluten, and artificial sweetener -free protein shake. This doesn’t mean I am against the concept of getting your protein from sources like soy, nuts, seeds, pulses (lentils, beans) and low fat diary! The only thing I disliked about these protein sources -as I’ve been a vegetarian myself- was, that besides the wanted protein, you’ll get a extra dose of fat or carbs that are contained -whether you want them or not.

>*Another tip:

Taking a bite of  protein at the beginning of your meals inhibits your blood sugar levels to spike once you put food into your mouth- this helps preventing your body to scream for more food or even crave for sugar. So try to keep a small and handy portion of protein with you in your bag wherever you go- easiest options: protein shake, nuts or seeds.

————————————————–

The “S”-rule for Carbohydrates

There are two forms of Carbohydrates. The “good” and the “bad”. The ones you need to go “”S”-Strategical and Slow” on are the starchy carbs that act faster and raise your blood sugar levels quickly (:white bread, rice and pasta). The other group is called complex carbs (:fruits, whole grains and vegetables) which are higher in fiber and raise your blood sugar only gradually. The latter are rarely a problem- if you limit your fruit and whole grain intake to 1 portion per day, you can enjoy them without guilty feelings! The only thing you need to get more aware of when eating your carbs is to choose the right time! Eat them in the morning or directly after your workout, as your body will be more likely to use them to refuel your energy reserves.

>*Take this as a challenge

When you crave for a treat of starchy carbs, or fruits &whole grains: Perform a quick HIIT workout & EARN yourself those carbs!

———————————————-

!Healthy! fats- No free pass to indulgence though.

Everyone knows that the consumption of Fast Food, which is full of unhealthy saturated and trans fats, is pretty much of a poor nutritional choice. Sadly this fact often gets translated into the false assumption of “Foods containing fat (in general) are bad for your health, make you obese, can cause diseases etc., avoid them by any chance!!” …Well, not quite correct- It depends on the type of fatty foods you choose!  Fat- the healthy type- is actually essential to your health as it supports a number of your body’s functions. Some vitamins, for instance, must have fat to dissolve and nourish your body. The type of fats you definitely shouldn’t eliminate from your dish menu are: monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats such as vegetable oils, nuts, seeds, and fatty fish- yumm!

>*but please always keep this one in mind for all of your food choices(not only for fats):

No matter how “healthy” a food is, once you overdo things- indulge and eat mindlessly – it’ll all just fire back! Resulting in increased weight, feelings of guilt because of lacking self-discipline and therefor not only declined physical but also mental health.

Don’t start hating healthy foods or yourself , just because you’re discontent about the lack of improvement you might see or feel– It’s  very common that a wrong understanding of moderation, portion size and usage of foods is what’s holding you back !

———————————————

More tips on that on improving that in my next post!

Till then try to incorporate as much of the strategies on making a better food CHOICE and gradually see the changes.

Yes, CHOICE! It always was and always will be no ones but your own choice to start breaking bad habits and replace them with good ones.

———————————————-

*Healthy or not- Make your choice!

xx