Recall of products containing peanut butter

Today the FDA announced a huge recall on products containing peanut butter, due to an outbreak of illnesses caused by Salmonella Typhimurium.

This recall affects more than jars of peanut butter.

What you should do:

• Check the FDA’s web site to determine which products have been recalled
  
• Dispose of products on the recall list ssafely manner and wash your hands if you come in contact with any of these products
  
• Better safe than sorry. If you're unsure whether a peanut-containing product is potentially contaminated, stop consuming it.
  
• If you think you may have become ill from eating peanut products, consult your health care providers.

Having a baby has made me healthier

It might be surprising, but it's true. Having a baby has made me healthier.

One of the big changes I've noticed is that we rarely eat out. Before Sydney was born we ate at home most of the time, but would go out to eat 2 or 3 times on the weekend. Now, it's a lot more challenging to get out because of Sydney's nap and bedtime schedule.

Instead of feeling limited by this, I've been using it as an opportunity to save money, eat healthier, and get creative with my cooking. I've gotten into the habit of picking something new or a little more involved to cook on the weekend. This way we still get to enjoy a delicious meal and I don't feel deprived.

I've come to realize that in many cases I can cook food that tastes better than what we'd get at a casual restaurant. I'm often dissapointed when I eat out, though of course it's nice to get out and have someone serve you food and do the dishes. I still go out to eat, but it's much less often and when we do, I view it as a special opportunity and choose the restaurant carefully.

Some of the things I've cooked recently:
Fresh pasta with homemade bolognese sauce
Black eyed peas with collard greens
Black beans with bacon

Striving to be in the moment

As most of you know, I am a new mom. My beautiful daughter, Sydney, is now 4.5 months old. (You'll notice that many of my upcoming posts are going to be about my experience as a mom.)

I have to admit that before becoming a mom I often found it difficult to be "in the moment." I define being in the moment as being able to appreciate what you're doing, who you're with, you're enviroment, etc. without multi-tasking or thinking about what's next.

Having Sydney has made me very aware of how quickly time passes. She is changing every day and I don't want to miss fully experiencing all the stages of her development. I realized, early on, that if I wasn't careful I could easily miss out of fully enjoying time with her.

So I've made it a mission of mine to work on being in the moment more. For me, this means that I take time to do nothing but be with Sydney - watching her and playing with her. I have to resist the urge to put her on the playmat while I do work or cook dinner. Of course it would be impossible for me to pay attention to her 100% of the time. I'm not striving for that, but I am striving to have time every day when I thoroughly enjoy being a mom. This means reminding myself (in those moments) that there's no where I else I need to be and nothing else I need to be doing.

Being in the moment more has brought more joy and peacefulness into my life.

I wonder... how could you practice being in the moment more?

Is Your Exercise Working For You?
I talk to my clients a lot about their exercise because I feel it is crucial to whole body wellness. Exercise is great for stress relief, a healthy heart, strong bones, balance, and weight loss. I am not a personal trainer, but I have read a lot about exercise and I’ve experimented for years with my own workout routine. (Of course, you always want to consult your physician before embarking on a new exercise routine.)

Here are a few questions you might want to ask yourself:

1. Have I changed my workout routine lately?
We are creatures of habit and once we find a routine that we enjoy and feel comfortable with, we tend to stick with it. It’s natural. The downside of this is that our bodies are very efficient and adjust quickly to new physical demands. This means that over time, our body doesn’t have to work as hard to complete the same activity.

2. Am I doing cardio and strength training?
I commonly speak to clients who do cardio or strength training, but not both. I personally believe the best results come from a combination of the two, not to mention that both are important for our physical health. Cardio is good for our heart, and strength training is great for our bones. Strength training helps you build muscle, and one pound of muscle burns more calories than one pound of fat. Cardio helps you burn calories and fat. And, as you build more muscle, your cardio is burning more and more fat.

3. How much am I challenging myself?
Everyone has different goals around exercise, and I do believe there is a benefit to more relaxing, and meditative exercise. But I also know that I see changes in my body when I do workouts that really make me sweat and leave me feeling like I couldn’t possibly do more. You want to be safe about this so you don’t injure yourself, but it’s about pushing yourself a little bit outside your comfort zone. You don’t necessarily have to do this for your entire workout. A few minutes might be all you need.

Is Eating Out Sabotaging Your Results?
I know you’ve probably heard multiple times about all the reasons not to eat out a lot. You know that the food is heavier and the portions are much larger than what you’d eat at home, but has the reality of this set in for you? I am not a big fan of calorie counting because I don’t think it works for the long term. That being said, I do think it can be helpful to have an awareness of the number of calories in some of the foods you’re eating – especially when it comes to eating out.

Take a look at some of these common dishes with their calorie count:

Chinese cashew chicken 1232 calories
Cobb salad 1200 calories
Beef teriyaki 1110 calories
Pasta with pesto (2 cups) 990 calories
Cheese quesadilla 900 calories
Shrimp scampi 932 calories

If you were eating a relatively healthy meal prepared at home, you’d probably consume about half the amount of calories. (Of course this can vary greatly depending on your portion size and the ingredients you’re using). I am all about moderation and I think a special “splurge” meal out once a week is totally fair game – even if you want to lose weight. But how often do you eat out or get take out each week? Could the excess calories you’re consuming be adding up and getting in the way of you reaching your goals? Aside from the calories, food prepared out is generally not as healthy as what you could prepare at home. Restaurants typically don’t serve many vegetables and they use large amounts of unhealthy fats.

When eating out, choose the healthier options:
Chinese steamed veggies and chicken 490 calories
Bowl of chili and salad 475 calories
Snapper in wine and tomatoes (4 oz.) 200 calories
Shrimp taco 320 calories
Broiled salmon (4 oz) 175 calories
Grilled chicken with Veggies 270 calories

Here are some additional tips for you to try when eating out:

• Pick one meal per week to eat out as a special “splurge” meal.
• When eating out at other times, think of your meal as a replacement for what you’d have at home and choose the healthier options on the menu.
• Choose restaurants that have healthier options.
• Only eat half of your entrée and add on a salad or a side of vegetables.
• Ask for sauces and dressing on the side.
• Keep ingredients for a couple of quick meals on hand, so you’ll find it easier to eat at home.

Are you feeling confused about how and what you should be eating? I know how you feel because a few years ago I was exactly where you are, and I don’t want you to struggle (as I did) to figure out how to eat in a way that works for you.

Healthy Restaurant Eating?
Last month I wrote about the many benefits of eating home-cooked food. While I am still a proponent of eat home-cooked food, eating out can be healthy, fun, and relaxing. Here are some tips for healthy restaurant eating.

1. Pick a restaurant with healthy options.

Eating out should feel like a special treat, so think carefully about what kind of food you want to eat. While most restaurants do not cater to healthy eating, there are a few gems out there. I encourage you to check out the "Healthy Boston-area Restaurants" section of the Free Resources page on my website. I am always looking to add to this list, so please email me your favorite healthy restaurants (in Boston or elsewhere).

2. Customize your meal.

Don't be afraid to ask your server to modify a dish or to create a special dish for you. Restaurants are usually willing to accommodate your desires, as long as the have the ingredients on hand. Some requests you might make include asking for extra vegetables, sauce on the side, an entree portion of an appetizer, or steamed vegetables instead of sauteed.

3. Watch your portion size.

As I mentioned in my February newsletter, restaurants typically serve larger portions than what we would eat at home. I find that it's very tempting to eat all of the food that's put in front of me, so here are some strategies to avoid overeating.

• Fill up on a large salad and then order a bowl of soup or appetizer rather than an entree.
• Share a main dish and a side dish with a friend.
• Ask for two plates and put half of your entree on the second plate. Only eat from the second plate if you are still hungry. If you don't eat the whole portion, take the rest home for leftovers.
• Drink a lot of water and chew your food thoroughly.

4. Don't starve yourself before eating out.

If you know you are going out for dinner, you might be tempted to skip a meal earlier in the day or eat substantially less. This strategy will backfire because you will be so hungry once you are at the restaurant that you will end up over-ordering and overeating.

5. Enjoy yourself.

Keep all of the above in mind without depriving yourself. Don't order something just because you think it's healthy. Order food that you know will satisfy you and then don't feel guilty about it!

Good Home Cooking
As a Nutrition & Lifestyle coach, one of my goals is to inspire people to eat more home-cooked food. Over time, I have gradually increased the percent of food that I cook at home, and I have experienced the benefits. Here are a few of the often overlooked benefits of eating at home.

1. Know what you’re eating
The most obvious benefit to preparing your own food is that you know what’s in it. Did you know that people consume 50% more calories, fat, and sodium when they eat out? I also find that restaurant meals are heavy on things like rice and noodles, and lighter on vegetables. It’s tough to get your days’ worth of vegetables when you eat out.

I find that when I eat out, I gravitate towards less healthy foods. Restaurants tempt us with French fries, pizza, bread, and desserts. It is also a lot easier to overeat at restaurants because the portion sizes are typically a lot bigger than what we’d serve ourselves at home. (If you do eat out, you might want to order a salad and split the main course with the person you’re with — or ask for a doggy bag and put half of the food away BEFORE you start eating.)

2. Save money
I’ve realized that I can save a lot of money by eating more home-cooked food. This is true even when I’m buying high-quality organic fruits, vegetables, and meats. In our house we typically spend $100 per week for food for 2 people. This is usually enough food for all of our meals for the week. We’d likely spend more than twice that amount if we ate all of our meals out, and that’s figuring we’d be eating at relatively inexpensive restaurants. I figured $2 for breakfast, $6 for lunch, and $8 for dinner. Multiply that times 2 (for 2 people) and times 7, and the total is $224. Now I know most people don’t eat EVERY meal out, but this demonstrates how much you can save by cooking your own food.

3. Get your dose of Vitamin "L"
The benefits of eating home-cooked food go beyond nutrition, calories, and saving money. I know you’ve all heard the saying "you are what you eat" and I think there’s some truth in this. Have you ever cooked a meal with friends and been amazed at how good the food tastes? I had this experience last week when I cooked a basic stir fry with my friend Lisa. We had fun cooking, were able to choose the ingredients we love, and then sat down and savored a delicious meal. I believe that part of the reason the food tasted so good, is that it was made with love. Before you laugh, think back to eating your grandmother’s famous chicken soup (or other traditional food). The soup was the best you’d ever had, and even though you have the recipe, it’s never tasted as good as when your grandmother made it. Again, she put a lot of love in her cooking.

Do you think the same is true of restaurant food? Have you ever looked in the kitchen of a busy restaurant? What you’ll probably find is a group of tired, stressed-out cooks, running around busily preparing your food. If you believe in the idea "you are what you eat," do you want to eat the food made with love or the food made under stressful conditions?

Get Inspired!
Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and a place for eating out. Going out to eat can be a wonderful, relaxing experience. I would, however, like to inspire you to prepare more of your food at home. If you love pizza, make a pizza. If you’re craving steak, make a good quality steak with some beautiful vegetables and a salad.