I wanted to share a recipe from my new book The Soccer Mom weight loss program! It's a fun and nutritious sandwich that even the fussiest of kids will eat! The added bonus is that it's fun and nutritious for Mom (and Dad) too! Loaded with protein and healthy Omega's, it will keep you going and feeling energized all through the afternoon.
Green Eggs and Ham Sandwich
Ingredients
1 hard-boiled egg
1/2 peeled and pitted avocado
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 slices whole-grain bread
2 ounces extra lean baked ham
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
In bowl, mash together egg with avocado until well blended to desired consistency. Stir in lemon juice. On one of the slices of bread, arrange slice of ham. Top with "green egg" mixture; cover with remaining slice of bread. With serrated knife, slice into quarters and serve.
Makes 1 sandwich
Nutritional Information
230 calories
18 g protein
19 g total fat
3.3 g saturated fat
30 g carbohydrates
7 g fiber
220 mg cholesterol
520 mg sodium
Monday, May 4, 2009
Saturday, May 2, 2009
The Soccer Mom weight loss program is here!
It's finally here!!!!!!
The Soccer Mom weight loss program has officially been launched!! This is so exciting! I truly feel that this is a life changing opportunity for women of all ages, lifestyles and sizes!
I have been working on this program for about a year and 330 pages later, it is finished! Finally, a realistic weight loss program for women that allows us to be healthy, happy, fit and lean while still be able to enjoy life!!
Please check out my new program at www.livetheleanlife.com
The Soccer Mom weight loss program has officially been launched!! This is so exciting! I truly feel that this is a life changing opportunity for women of all ages, lifestyles and sizes!
I have been working on this program for about a year and 330 pages later, it is finished! Finally, a realistic weight loss program for women that allows us to be healthy, happy, fit and lean while still be able to enjoy life!!
Please check out my new program at www.livetheleanlife.com
Sunday, April 26, 2009
when in Rome....
Five years ago I was fortunate enough to spend 2 glorious weeks aboard a Mediterranean cruise with my brand new husband of 3 days! It was a fantastic honeymoon that allowed us to discover a number of iconic spots like Rome, Venice, Barcelona, Nice, Monaco and Florence. The trip we enjoyed so much was the epitome of romance for a couple of kids in love.
Kevin and I were both looking forward to tasting the food and wine and let me tell you, we certainly did a lot of that! However I was surprised to see that in countries known for the rich, high fat, high carbohydrate foods the only obese people we saw were the thousands of other North Americans on board. The majority of the Europeans we met were lean and athletic looking. We did see overweight Italians but they weren't from Venice or Sicily, they were from Jersey.
Common sense would imply that pastas smothered in rich sauces paired with copious amounts of wine, bread and cheese would pack on the pounds, but after we had spent some time there, the authentic European diet revealed itself as far more healthy than the American version. Our pizzas here are loaded with fatty meats and pounds of cheese atop thick crusts. The pizza I had in Venice was small with a thin crust, about an ounce of cheese and maybe an ounce of pepperoni. I would estimate it was about one fifth the calories of what I would be served on my side of the Atlantic.
We found this to be the norm in Europe. Yes the food is delicious and rich but the portions are very small and the dining experience is centered more on the social aspect with lively conversation, clinking glasses with good friends and enjoying the evening. Dinner is an event, not a chore and it is not uncommon for it to last for 3 hours or more. People take the time to enjoy the food taste by taste as opposed to wolfing it down as if it were a race.
We should take a few cues from the old world and learn to enjoy the culture of meals. Sit down to dinner with your family or friends and enjoy the conversation while also taking time to enjoy a meal. Not only is this practice good for your relationships, it's also good for your waistline.
Kevin and I were both looking forward to tasting the food and wine and let me tell you, we certainly did a lot of that! However I was surprised to see that in countries known for the rich, high fat, high carbohydrate foods the only obese people we saw were the thousands of other North Americans on board. The majority of the Europeans we met were lean and athletic looking. We did see overweight Italians but they weren't from Venice or Sicily, they were from Jersey.
Common sense would imply that pastas smothered in rich sauces paired with copious amounts of wine, bread and cheese would pack on the pounds, but after we had spent some time there, the authentic European diet revealed itself as far more healthy than the American version. Our pizzas here are loaded with fatty meats and pounds of cheese atop thick crusts. The pizza I had in Venice was small with a thin crust, about an ounce of cheese and maybe an ounce of pepperoni. I would estimate it was about one fifth the calories of what I would be served on my side of the Atlantic.
We found this to be the norm in Europe. Yes the food is delicious and rich but the portions are very small and the dining experience is centered more on the social aspect with lively conversation, clinking glasses with good friends and enjoying the evening. Dinner is an event, not a chore and it is not uncommon for it to last for 3 hours or more. People take the time to enjoy the food taste by taste as opposed to wolfing it down as if it were a race.
We should take a few cues from the old world and learn to enjoy the culture of meals. Sit down to dinner with your family or friends and enjoy the conversation while also taking time to enjoy a meal. Not only is this practice good for your relationships, it's also good for your waistline.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Working out without the workout
Quote of the day
People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas. ~Author Unknown
Tip of the day
There are so many ways to burn a few extra calories without feeling like you are exercising. Incorporate more activity into your everyday routines like taking the stairs instead of the elevator, add an extra ten minutes onto your walk with the dogs or spend a little more time working in the garden.
Having a date night with the hubby? Go dancing or take a walk together in the park or on the beach. You could join a ladies soccer or softball team, take martial arts lessons, join a friend in her yoga class or take tennis lessons.
Play tag with your kids, learn to wakeboard in the summer or discover salsa dancing. Use your imagination and you’ll come up with so many new ways to be active and at the same time, have some fun, spend quality time with your family and make new friends! There are lots of options out there you just have to try them!
Joke of the day
Girl: I'd like a triple vanilla ice cream sundae with chocolate syrup, nuts, whipped cream, topped off with a slice of cucumber.
Waiter: Did I hear you right? Did you say top it off with a slice of cucumber?
Girl: Good heavens, you're right! Forget the cucumber – I'm on a diet.
People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas. ~Author Unknown
Tip of the day
There are so many ways to burn a few extra calories without feeling like you are exercising. Incorporate more activity into your everyday routines like taking the stairs instead of the elevator, add an extra ten minutes onto your walk with the dogs or spend a little more time working in the garden.
Having a date night with the hubby? Go dancing or take a walk together in the park or on the beach. You could join a ladies soccer or softball team, take martial arts lessons, join a friend in her yoga class or take tennis lessons.
Play tag with your kids, learn to wakeboard in the summer or discover salsa dancing. Use your imagination and you’ll come up with so many new ways to be active and at the same time, have some fun, spend quality time with your family and make new friends! There are lots of options out there you just have to try them!
Joke of the day
Girl: I'd like a triple vanilla ice cream sundae with chocolate syrup, nuts, whipped cream, topped off with a slice of cucumber.
Waiter: Did I hear you right? Did you say top it off with a slice of cucumber?
Girl: Good heavens, you're right! Forget the cucumber – I'm on a diet.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Thin is the new Green
I came across an article this morning on CNN.com that offers yet another reason to get in shape and stay that way. It seems being lean and healthy is not only good for you, it's good for the environment too!
Thinner is better to curb global warming, study says
By Elizabeth Landau
CNN
(CNN) -- Here's yet another reason to stay in shape: Thinner people contribute less to global warming, according to a new study.
More than 1 billion adults worldwide are overweight, and about 300 million are obese.
More than 1 billion adults worldwide are overweight, and about 300 million are obese.
Researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine published a study showing that, because of food production and transportation factors, a population of heavier people contributes more harmful gases to the planet than a population of thin people.
Given that it takes more energy to move heavier people, transportation of heavier people requires more fuel, which creates more greenhouse gas emissions, the authors write.
"The main message is staying thin. It's good for you, and it's good for the planet," said Phil Edwards, senior lecturer at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The study offers this novel approach to the global warming problem as U.S. lawmakers discuss the future of climate change legislation. This week, the the House Energy and Commerce Committee is scheduled to begin on a comprehensive energy and climate bill. On Friday, the Environmental Protection Agency announced that six greenhouse gases pose potential health hazards, an announcement that could prompt the regulation of the gases.
More than 1 billion adults worldwide are overweight, and about 300 million are obese, the study said. Generally, the body mass index, a measure of obesity, is increasing in most countries worldwide, from China to European countries to the United States.
BMI is going up because of the availability of food and motorized transportation, Edwards said. People are less active now than they were 30 years ago, and the prevalence of fast food has given people less healthy, more energy-dense options.
Health Library
* MayoClinic.com: Obesity
Using statistical models, the authors compared the distribution of BMI in the United Kingdom in the 1970s -- when 3.5 percent of the population was obese -- with a prediction for the country's BMI distribution in 2010, reflecting 40 percent obesity.
"In terms of environmental impact, the lean population has a much smaller carbon footprint," Edwards said.
The population with 40 percent obese people requires 19 percent more food energy for its total energy expenditure than the population with 3.5 percent obese people, the study showed.
This 19 percent increase in food consumption translates into an increase of 270 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, the study said.
"The findings make sense and highlight an important global co-benefit of losing weight, along with the significant personal health benefits," said Patrick Kinney, associate professor at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, who was not involved in the study.
In terms of obesity rate, the U.S. population is not far off from the overweight population model in this study. The country has 33.3 percent obese people, according to the Mayo Clinic.
The study suggests that governments have a responsibility to encourage people to be more physically active, Edwards said. Active transportation, such as cycling and walking, helps maintain a healthy weight but requires safe streets, he said.
"If the government wants to promote active transport, which would be good for the environment and for individual health, it needs to make the environment safe to do that," he said.
Although climate change has come into the forefront as a major world problem recently, this is not the first time scholars have thought about the connection between fossil fuel and body fat.
In 1978, a year the United States experienced an oil shock, a study in the American Journal of Public Health showed that if all overweight people in the country aged 18 to 79 reached their optimal weight, the resulting energy savings would equal 1.3 billion gallons of gasoline.
After the dieting period, about 750 million gallons of gasoline would be saved every year, said the authors, Bruce Hannon, professor at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and Timothy Lohman, now professor emeritus at the University of Arizona.
Today, research has shown that the obesity epidemic costs the United States about $100 billion a year, said Dr. Martin Donohoe of Portland State University, who runs the Web site Public Health and Social Justice. In terms of energy expenditure, the average food product travels 1,500 miles to get to your table, he said.
Some measures to curb obesity include making healthier meals available in schools, putting nutritional information on food packages and menus, and banning trans fats, he said.
Thinner is better to curb global warming, study says
By Elizabeth Landau
CNN
(CNN) -- Here's yet another reason to stay in shape: Thinner people contribute less to global warming, according to a new study.
More than 1 billion adults worldwide are overweight, and about 300 million are obese.
More than 1 billion adults worldwide are overweight, and about 300 million are obese.
Researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine published a study showing that, because of food production and transportation factors, a population of heavier people contributes more harmful gases to the planet than a population of thin people.
Given that it takes more energy to move heavier people, transportation of heavier people requires more fuel, which creates more greenhouse gas emissions, the authors write.
"The main message is staying thin. It's good for you, and it's good for the planet," said Phil Edwards, senior lecturer at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The study offers this novel approach to the global warming problem as U.S. lawmakers discuss the future of climate change legislation. This week, the the House Energy and Commerce Committee is scheduled to begin on a comprehensive energy and climate bill. On Friday, the Environmental Protection Agency announced that six greenhouse gases pose potential health hazards, an announcement that could prompt the regulation of the gases.
More than 1 billion adults worldwide are overweight, and about 300 million are obese, the study said. Generally, the body mass index, a measure of obesity, is increasing in most countries worldwide, from China to European countries to the United States.
BMI is going up because of the availability of food and motorized transportation, Edwards said. People are less active now than they were 30 years ago, and the prevalence of fast food has given people less healthy, more energy-dense options.
Health Library
* MayoClinic.com: Obesity
Using statistical models, the authors compared the distribution of BMI in the United Kingdom in the 1970s -- when 3.5 percent of the population was obese -- with a prediction for the country's BMI distribution in 2010, reflecting 40 percent obesity.
"In terms of environmental impact, the lean population has a much smaller carbon footprint," Edwards said.
The population with 40 percent obese people requires 19 percent more food energy for its total energy expenditure than the population with 3.5 percent obese people, the study showed.
This 19 percent increase in food consumption translates into an increase of 270 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, the study said.
"The findings make sense and highlight an important global co-benefit of losing weight, along with the significant personal health benefits," said Patrick Kinney, associate professor at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, who was not involved in the study.
In terms of obesity rate, the U.S. population is not far off from the overweight population model in this study. The country has 33.3 percent obese people, according to the Mayo Clinic.
The study suggests that governments have a responsibility to encourage people to be more physically active, Edwards said. Active transportation, such as cycling and walking, helps maintain a healthy weight but requires safe streets, he said.
"If the government wants to promote active transport, which would be good for the environment and for individual health, it needs to make the environment safe to do that," he said.
Although climate change has come into the forefront as a major world problem recently, this is not the first time scholars have thought about the connection between fossil fuel and body fat.
In 1978, a year the United States experienced an oil shock, a study in the American Journal of Public Health showed that if all overweight people in the country aged 18 to 79 reached their optimal weight, the resulting energy savings would equal 1.3 billion gallons of gasoline.
After the dieting period, about 750 million gallons of gasoline would be saved every year, said the authors, Bruce Hannon, professor at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and Timothy Lohman, now professor emeritus at the University of Arizona.
Today, research has shown that the obesity epidemic costs the United States about $100 billion a year, said Dr. Martin Donohoe of Portland State University, who runs the Web site Public Health and Social Justice. In terms of energy expenditure, the average food product travels 1,500 miles to get to your table, he said.
Some measures to curb obesity include making healthier meals available in schools, putting nutritional information on food packages and menus, and banning trans fats, he said.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Almost here!!
Happy Friday everyone! So I'm pretty excited (and a little stressed) about my new program coming out. It's a big one! Kevin and I have started a new company called 'Live the Lean Life' hence the name of this blog, and we are about to launch a series of health, fitness and weight loss products over the next 6 months.
The first product is my baby and it's a complete digital weight loss program designed for the busy woman, career gal and/or soccer Mom! It's super user friendly and realistic with menu plans and recipes that your kids (and your man) will have no problem with! The workouts are designed to take as little time as possible as we are all so pressed for time! That's all I can say for now, you'll have to wait for May 1st to get here before you hear the rest! :) Stay tuned!
The first product is my baby and it's a complete digital weight loss program designed for the busy woman, career gal and/or soccer Mom! It's super user friendly and realistic with menu plans and recipes that your kids (and your man) will have no problem with! The workouts are designed to take as little time as possible as we are all so pressed for time! That's all I can say for now, you'll have to wait for May 1st to get here before you hear the rest! :) Stay tuned!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Quote of the day
Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon.
- Doug Larson
Tip of the day
When it comes to choosing fruits and vegetables always choose fresh local produce or frozen as opposed to canned or imported.
Many people are under the assumption that frozen fruits and vegetables are not as nutritious as fresh, but that is not true. Frozen produce is harvested at the peak of ripeness when nutrients are the most abundant. It is often flash-frozen, locking in all those nutrients that can be lost during packaging and transport.
Canned produce usually has added sugar and/or sodium and isn’t as nutrient rich. Visit your local farmers market for local, in-season fruits and vegetables that have been picked that day or the day earlier.
Fresh local produce and frozen fruits and veggies are the most nutritious and offer the best flavor. Also, with frozen produce you can keep your freezer well stocked with a tasty variety of healthy food and you don’t have to worry about it going bad, making it a cost saving option.
Joke of the day
Pies and cakes should be cut neatly, in even wedges or slices. If not, the responsibility falls on the person putting them away to "straighten up the edges" by slicing away the offending irregularities, which have no calories when eaten. If pie or cake is neatly cut, but the remainder is not easily divisible into equal servings, it's also permissible to even things up ... without calorie consequence.
Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon.
- Doug Larson
Tip of the day
When it comes to choosing fruits and vegetables always choose fresh local produce or frozen as opposed to canned or imported.
Many people are under the assumption that frozen fruits and vegetables are not as nutritious as fresh, but that is not true. Frozen produce is harvested at the peak of ripeness when nutrients are the most abundant. It is often flash-frozen, locking in all those nutrients that can be lost during packaging and transport.
Canned produce usually has added sugar and/or sodium and isn’t as nutrient rich. Visit your local farmers market for local, in-season fruits and vegetables that have been picked that day or the day earlier.
Fresh local produce and frozen fruits and veggies are the most nutritious and offer the best flavor. Also, with frozen produce you can keep your freezer well stocked with a tasty variety of healthy food and you don’t have to worry about it going bad, making it a cost saving option.
Joke of the day
Pies and cakes should be cut neatly, in even wedges or slices. If not, the responsibility falls on the person putting them away to "straighten up the edges" by slicing away the offending irregularities, which have no calories when eaten. If pie or cake is neatly cut, but the remainder is not easily divisible into equal servings, it's also permissible to even things up ... without calorie consequence.
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