Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Healthy Priorities

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This is the place to come for good information on making your health a priority. And after all, why would it be anything less?

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Today’s Bite

We are living in a world today where lemonade is made from artificial flavors and furniture polish is made from real lemons. ~ Alfred E. Newman

Take 5

Try 5 new and different breakfast ideas, and let us know what your favorites are!

Who Knew?!

Did you know that there is a lot more Vitamin C in both kiwis and strawberries than there is in an orange? Per 100 grams of fruit, an orange has 53.2 mg, strawberries contain 89.4 mg, and the kiwi wins with a whopping 92.7 mg!

Tid Bits

Have you ever paid attention to the PLU Number that is on the stickers you find on your produce? The four digit PLU numbers (PLU stands for Produce Look-Up.... really!) identifies the specific type of produce it is. If you see a five-digit number, look carefully. If the first number is a 9, that means its organic. If the first number is an 8, that means it is a genetically-modified item. So when you grab your next bunch of bananas, pay attention to that sticker to make sure you are getting exactly what you want.

Next Meeting

Meetings are held the last Tuesday of the month. Looking forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday, September 28th, at 6:30.

Hot Topics

Info

Are You Making These Fitness Mistakes?

Filed under :Activities | Events, Activities | Events, Fitness Information, Move It Or Lose It, Stay Young
This is a great article about some of the biggest mistakes we all make in our fitness routine – click here to read, and learn how to get the best results possible when you spend all your time and energy working out.

Gluten-Free The Easy Way!

Filed under :Free From Gluten
FOUR STEPS TO TRANSFORMING YOUR HEALTH
So, you receive test results or you’re having a conversation with your health care provider, and you hear the words “gluten-free”.  At first, it doesn’t mean much to you, but then you start reading a bit, or listening to your doctor, and all of a sudden the reality of what a “gluten-free” lifestyle really means starts setting in.
Before you start panicking about not ever eating your favorite pizza again, take a breath, and realize that you are incredibly lucky.  Yes, lucky.  Right now, there are so many resources available that makes changing to gluten-free eating pretty painless.  This website is one of them – we’re here to help!
I’ve been eating gluten-free for about 30 years now, and I’ve learned a lot, that is for sure.  Here is what I tell everyone who comes to me with that deer in the headlight look (or worse) when they have no idea how to eat anymore.
1.  INFORMATION
Get educated!  We are continually finding new special diet cookbooks, websites, articles, and products.  You are not alone.  Many people have these same dietary challenges and that means better resources for all of us, and the number of people who are eating gluten-free is skyrocketing, which only helps all of us.  Go to the library, the bookstores, search online, read magazines, ask questions, share information and visit us often for updates.  Learn what it takes to keep your body healthy and become your own expert.
2. PREPARATION
Don’t wait until you are hungry to figure out what to eat.  Meal planning, careful shopping, food preparation and restaurant research will all help you to maintain a healthy eating plan.  Be sure to stock your pantry with your special ingredients, make meals and snacks in advance.  Know which restaurants serve meals that are safe for you and always have a healthy snack in your purse, glove box, and desk drawer – just in case.
3.  DEDICATION
Eating gluten-free is not a diet.  It is the new and healthier way you will be eating for the rest of your life.  It can be a bit challenging in the beginning, as all new things can be.  Soon it will become just a way of life and your dedication will be rewarded with feeling better, having a healthier body, and a better quality of life.
4.  CELEBRATION
Chances are, you need a new eating plan because your body, mind, and/or emotional  state made it clear that the way you had been eating was not right for you.  Eating food that you have an intolerance or sensitivity to can create huge challenges by way of serious disease, chronic conditions, and a diminishing quality of life.  Being able to help, and perhaps even eliminate, these conditions simply by changing the food you eat…..well, that is, indeed, cause for celebration!
The first step is the hardest.  Just take the leap, get started, and you’ll be amazed at how much better you’ll feel!

Cauliflower Rice – It’s Great!

Filed under :Food, Free From Gluten, Free From Grains, Group Recipes, Quickies, Recipes, Recipes, Veggies

Nope, not snow.
It’s really cauliflower and it’s one of my favorite new “go to” foods.  I like cauliflower anyway, so it’s not unusual for me to sit down to a big bowl of steamed cauliflower with a little butter and salt – yum!  But this technique takes it to a whole new level and makes it much more versatile.
Clean the cauliflower and cut into manageable chunks.  Using a shredding attachment for your food processor,  shove the cauliflower chunks through so that they end up looking like the picture above – little shreds of cauliflower.  At this point, you can saute it on the stovetop, throw it into stir-frys or soups, or use my favorite technique which is steaming.  I have an electric steamer but you could use a stovetop steamer as well.  I steam mine for about 20 minutes, and it comes out kind of plump, very mild (less cauliflower flavor), and really light.
Cauliflower rice makes a perfect substitute for rice in most dishes.  I love it under Chicken Mushroom Fricassee or anything that has any kind of a sauce.  You think you’re eating rice, but you are trading all those carbs for all kinds of great nutrients.  Cauliflower is a great source of Vitamin C, Vitamin K, manganese and many more.  Click here for lots of great info on this typically overlooked vegetable.  Now that I can make “rice” out of it, cauliflower has become a staple in my  menu planning.  And if you need a video to show you how to make it, click here.

No Excuse Healthy Meal Ideas

Filed under :Food, Food, Meals, Products we love, Quickies
Look what I found at Trader Joe’s!
No more excuses for making a healthy meal!  These are great assortments of veggies that are already prepped for you and ready to go.  You can use them in stir-frys, soups, sautes, salad, all kinds of things.  Find them in the refrigerated veggie section and make something heathy (and easy!) today.

Organicfest in Asheville

Filed under :Education and Resources, Food, Health Websites, News, Nurture Self, Places to go, Products we love, Quickies, Stay Young, Wellness
I just saw a notice for Organicfest – Celebrate Everything Organic – which will be held on September 11th at Pack Square in Asheville.  Click here for more info.  Sounds like fun!

Live Dynamite

Filed under :Be Inspired, Fun, Health, Making a Difference, Quickies
One of our Healthy Priorities stars, Heather, was kind enough to share this website with me.  It is a great site, full of really positive and uplifting messages.  When you go on the site, look for the section that says “Get Good at Living.  Weekly Tips.”  (on the left column).  You can sign up there to receive emails once a week that are really fun.  Inspirational and positive and helpful ( this weeks message was a gentle reminder of the advantages of sleep).  It’s so nice to receive little messages every once in awhile to help us live a healthier life!  Please check it out here - it’s a really great, well organized and fun site.

Tarragon Chicken Salad

Filed under :Free From Gluten, Free From Grains, Meals, Quickies, Recipes, Recipes
At a recent meeting of our Art Group, we were all enjoying a cool and tasty Tarragon Chicken Salad to go along with the fabulous array of garden salad and veggies Tawny prepared for us.  As much as I’d like to take credit for the Chicken Salad recipe, I have to instead simply direct everyone that wants the recipe to click here, and thank Chef Emeril Lagasse for his inspiration.  It’s a great meal for these dog days of summer.

Dr. Sara Rose – A New “Healthy” Friend

Filed under :Health, Health Websites, Nurture Self, Quickies, Things To Do, Wellness
I recently met Dr. Sara Rose who is an author and specialist in the field of Divorce Support and Relationship Counseling.  I think we all know how imperative it is to have healthy relationships in our lives, not just for our emotional and spiritual health, but for our physical health as well.  I urge you to check out Dr. Rose’s website (click here) and her book, Reaching for Your New Life – Healthy Recovery from Divorce.
Don’t you just love the title?  Instead of thinking of the end of a relationship as a failure, I really like the idea of putting energy towards “reaching for your new life”.

Possible Contamination of Gluten-Free Foods

Filed under :Free From Gluten
Just when you think you know what is safe to eat, here is a study stating that there is a lot of cross-contamination happening in the grain world.  Note that this is not talking about products specifically labeled as gluten-free, but in natural products that should be gluten-free.  Click here to read the whole article and be more aware of what you’re eating and how you feel after eating it.  Your body will tell you when you aren’t feeding it the right thing.  It’s our job to learn how to listen!

Friendship = Health

Filed under :Education and Resources, Health, News, Nurture Self, Quickies, Stay Young, Things To Do, Wellness
I can personally attest to the truth in this article.  I could never survive the ups and downs of my life without my “chosen family”, all the people in my life with whom I have the most intimate relationships.  Here is an interesting article that talks about just how important our relationships are to our overall health.  So the next time you want to do something healthy, read this article (click here) and then phone a friend!

2 comments:

Barb said...

Thanks so much for posting this, Bradley. Lots of mega info and great ideas to implement it.

Anonymous said...

To the poster above get your facts right