Category Archives: Health, Exercise, and Motivational Tips

Making Healthy Restaurant Menu Choices

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As it does for many of us, life gets very busy or we have to travel somewhere for work or vacation and sometimes the only option is eating out at a restaurant. This doesn’t mean you have to completely go off your healthy eating plan. If you know what to look for, you can make some great choices when eating out that is in line with your goals. To help you know what to look for and what to avoid, download Making Healthy Menu Choices and keep it handy.

Eating out doesn’t have to be bad and it doesn’t have to completely derail you from your goals. With some knowledge of what to look for you can stay on track no matter where you go or what situation you’re in.

Nutrition Tip – Sugar

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We all know the detrimental effects of too much sugar in the diet and many of you are trying to limit your sugar intake. When looking at the ingredient list of foods you may notice that sugar isn’t listed and this is great but be careful here because sugar comes in many forms. If any of the following ingredients are listed then the food you are eating isn’t sugar free. The best foods to consume are the ones that are unprocessed with the fewest amount of ingredients. Here are a list of ingredients that are synonymous with sugar:

  •  sucrose
  • fructose
  • maltose
  • dextrose
  • malto dextrin
  • hydrolized starch
  • invert sugar
  • corn syrup
  • honey
  • cane sugar
  • agave nectar
  • sugar beets
  • high-fructose corn sweetener
  • maple sugar
  • molasses

Frequent Travelling and Health/Nutrition Goals

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If you travel quite often chances are you are eating out for most of your meals and not exercising as much as you normally would. Here are a few ways to stay on track with your exercise and nutrition plan so you don’t lose the momentum you have gained:

  • at your travel destination, try to choose a location to stay that is close to a gym and grocery store so you can get your workouts in and pick up some healthy food. If your hotel has a gym that is even better
  • choose a hotel room with a kitchenette so you can prepare your own meals
  • look at restaurant menus beforehand so you can pick the healthiest options
  • bring protein supplements, powdered vegetables, and homemade bars with you so you have healthy options no matter where you go

Staying on track while travelling can be challenging but some prep work before hand will help keep you focused and motivated!

To see 8 reasons why traveling is good for your health, check out this great article over at positivehealthwellness.com.

Nutrition Tip – The Benefits of Fruits and Vegetables

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Increasing your consumption of fruits and vegetables is important as they prevent malnutrition and nutrient deficiencies; they reduce the risk of many cancers, diabetes, and heart disease; and they balance out acids coming from proteins and grains and reduce osteoporosis risk. Also, the higher fiber intake improves blood sugar control, reduces appetite, and increases digestive health.

Nutrition Tip – Grocery Shopping

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When shopping at the grocery store look for and avoid foods with: trans fats, long ingredient lists containing lots of artificial ingredients and added chemicals, and otherwise healthy products that contain additional sugars added like sucrose, glucose, sugar, maltodextrin, corn syrup, etc. Also, be skeptical of foods making health claims like: added vitamins and minerals, wholesome or healthy, no added sugar, contains real fruit, natural, fat-free, low-carb, high-protein. Always check the label to see what is in the products you are buying and purchase food that is as unprocessed as possible.