Adorned Magazine » food

Avoid the Holiday Bulge

Bre Walt — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 21:18:37 +0000

Simple Tips to Help You Avoid Holiday Weight Gain
The holidays are finally here – and like most women, you’re probably worried about breaking your diet habits and packing on extra pounds throughout the season. Co-workers bring cookies and chocolate to the office, stockings are full of unhealthy treats and the meals are packed full of hidden diet enemies. But don’t fret – it is possible to avoid holiday weight gain, but still enjoy the holidays. Follow these simple tips and your body (and your waistline) will thank you in 2010.

Water, water, water

Whether it’s throughout the day, during meals or at holiday parties, water is still an essential part of your diet. Keeping yourself hydrated throughout the holidays will not only continue to aid in your weight loss (or maintenance) efforts, but will also ease hunger cravings. Often when we feel hungry, we’re simply dehydrated and in need of some good ol’ H2o. If you’re at the holiday party, the drinks are likely flowing. Drink a full glass of water between each alcoholic beverage not only to pace yourself, but also to keep you hydrated.
If you are not thrilled by drinking water, add a crystal light drink mix package to spice it up. A wedge of lemon, lime or both will also do the trick.

Avoid overeating

This seems obvious – don’t eat too much. But there are ways to avoid overeating throughout the holiday. Adopt one or more of these overindulgence tips and see a huge difference in how you feel come January 1st.

Stay out of the kitchen

It’s nice to help the host or hostess, but try to stay out of the kitchen if you’re concerned about gaining weight over the holidays. Being in the same room as all the food preparation is bound to make you fill-up before dinner. You’ll taste everything from the cookies to the gravy, before it’s served. Leave that up to the cook, and make yourself useful by helping with preparations in other rooms. If you happen to be the cook, have some pre-cut veggies and dip handy to snack on so you’re not tempted to fill-up on mashed potatoes and stuffing before serving your guests.

Avoid the second helping

It’s always tempting. Despite how full our stomach might feel, the meal was delicious and we want more! Be sure to avoid those unnecessary second helpings of food. To aid this, make sure you are drinking plenty of water throughout the meal, and eat slowly. Instead of gobbling, focus on the quality and deliciousness of every single bite. By savouring your food and eating slowly, you’ll not only appreciate the meal that much more, but allow your body time to get full. From the time you start eating, it can take up to 30 minutes for your body to respond by telling you your stomach is full. Give it the time necessary and eat slowly to make sure your first helping is your last one.

Don’t deprive yourself

For the same reason that depriving yourself of certain foods on a diet doesn’t work, nor does it work throughout the holidays. You may think it best to avoid the sweets, but my advice is to allow yourself to eat anything you want – but be conscious of the quantity. So, if shortbread is your favourite, don’t spend the night wishfully watching others eat from the baked goods tray. Enjoy a cookie, but leave it at that. By allowing yourself a small dose of your favourite holiday treats, you’re making it less likely that you’ll binge later on.

Eat regular meals – yes, even during the holidays!

We have a tendency to think that when a big meal is coming up, we should spend the day starving ourselves in anticipation. But making yourself especially hungry will do nothing but put you into starvation mode, causing you to overeat and decrease your metabolic rate. So, eat small, healthy meals throughout the day EVEN if you have a big meal coming up.

Encourage healthy eating

Why not make your holiday healthy eating easier if you can? Incorporate some healthy alternatives into the menu if you’re cooking. Bring healthy dishes to parties and potlucks – even if nobody else eats them, they’ll be there for you! And why not try and bake some healthy sweets for your family and friends? They’ll appreciate the caloric intake and the taste!

Don’t cut-out exercise

It’s easy to get distracted by all the goings-on throughout the holidays, and exercise is often the first to get cut from a busy schedule! Even if you don’t have time for your regular workouts, try incorporating 30 minutes of exercise into each day. Take a nice, brisk walk with the entire family after the big meal, play with the kids in the snow, shovel your mom’s driveway, or just offer to take out the trash every five minutes! Regardless of what you’re doing, ensuring 30-minutes of physical activity into each day will make a huge difference in how much weight is gained by New Year’s!

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The Soup De Jour

Katherine Wellman and Anna Wellman — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 04:29:09 +0000

By: Katherine Wellman and Anna Wellman

I am not really one for cooking. If I do cook, I like it to be quick, easy and healthy (if possible).

Soup is one of my favourite things to cook. I can make a big pot of soup at the beginning of the week and then heat it up for meals every day, decreasing the amount of time I actually have to spend cooking. Soups can also be quite filling and inexpensive. As a note, it is simple to make many soup recipes vegetarian friendly by substituting vegetable broth for chicken or beef.
Now, I know what your thinking, soup is all well and good for those cold winter evenings when I just want to curl up on my couch, but summer is just around the corner!
Here is a fantastic recipe for a chilled soup that takes less than 20 minutes to prepare. Delicious, healthy and refreshingly perfect for those up-and-coming hot summer days.

Cold sweet potato and leek soup
This soup is a twist on one of my favourites – the classic cold soup, vichyssoise. The sweet potatoes give this soup a much more summery feel and makes it lighter tasting. The best news is that this soup can stay in your fridge for up to seven days, or you can freeze it for four months.

Ingredients:
2 sweet potatoes, coarsely cut into 2 cm pieces
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/2 leek, finely chopped
1/2 tbsp butter, unsalted
2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 tsp curry powder
2 tbsp orange juice
3/4 evaporated milk (7%)
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
1. Prepare the vegetables: peel the sweet potatoes, then cut them coarsely into 22 cm pieces; finely chop the onion and leek.
2. Melt the butter in a pot over medium heat. Add the onion and leek, then saute 4-5 min, taking care not to let them to burn. Add the diced sweet potatoes and broth. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and cook about 20 min, partially covered, until the potatoes are soft.
3. Purée the soup in a blender, then add the curry powder, orange juice, and evaporated milk. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix well, then cover and chill thoroughly in the refrigerator (about 2 hours).
4. Serve cold chilled.

Researched by Anna Wellman

[SOURCE]

5 Healthy Eating Myths

Sara Koonar — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 01:00:56 +0000

By: Sara Koonar

1. No food after 7 p.m.

For those of us who don’t have an early bedtime and like to enjoy a little Letterman before we hit the sack, no snacking after seven is nearly impossible. My dinner is usually at 8 p.m! The rule really should be don’t eat a meal right before you go to bed. Give yourself time to digest so you don’t wake up with a sore and bloated belly. A small and healthy snack that wont fill you up is fine. As long as you give your body enough time to process it before shutting down.

2. All fats are bad

There are healthy fats and unhealthy fats. You just have to know the difference. We need healthy fats to help our bodies stay strong and fight against viruses and disease. Stay away from saturated fats and trans fats and replace them with with good unsaturated fats.

3. Don’t drink juice

If you are looking to lose a large amount of weight then maybe this rule is for you. Most fruit has natural sugars in it, so when you have fruit juice you are bound to consume sugar. Not all of us have the time to cut up some fruit before heading to work in the morning. Juice can be a great alternative. But, if you want to be super healthy opt for a V8 vegetable juice instead.

4. Desserts are off-limits

Well, this is just not fair! Telling me to not eat dessert just makes me want it more. And please don’t make me eat those low-fat cakes… they don’t taste good. Denying ourselves of these simple pleasures will only make us want them more. So, if you are going to have desert keep it small but make sure it is satisfying enough that you don’t need to go back for more.

5. Cut carbs and lose weight

I love my pasta so this one you can count me out of. Carbohydrates give you energy, if you are not eating enough you body will start burning what you need to get through the day. The weight loss you experience when on a low-carb diet is just the water you are losing from the carbs being burned. Instead of ruling out carbs, reduce the amount of calories you eat. If you reduce 500 a week you will lose one pound a week. It is much easier and you can still eat your pasta!