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Living and Raw Foods Diet

FitSugar — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 03:30:00 -0700

I've been hearing a lot about people on a Raw Foods Diet. It's also called a Living Foods Diet, and many celebrities such as Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson, Bryan Adams, Alicia Silverstone and Robin Williams have reportedly been seen at raw food restaurants and have tried it. Designer Donna Karan and actor Jeremy Piven shed pounds eating raw foods. It was even featured on Oprah.

People following this diet (or you could also say "lifestyle", since there are a lot of folks that eat RAW not to lose weight but for the philosophy) eat only uncooked, unheated, unprocessed, and organic plant based foods. Well...food that has not been heated above a certain temperature. It varies within the different raw food philosophies, but the end range temperature is in between 92ºF to 118ºF (33°C to 48°C). Meals consist mainly of organic and raw fruits, vegetables, sprouted seeds and grains, sea vegetables, nuts, and seeds since they believe cooking destroys precious vitamins and minerals. For instance to eat grains, instead of cooking them, they are soaked. Raw foodies believe their uncooked foods contain essential enzymes, which the body needs to digest foods completely.

They drink only purified water (never tap water), freshly made juices (made with a juicer), and coconut milk. They avoid meat, dairy, sugar, alcohol, coffee (because you make it with boiling water), and all junk food. They only eat foods that are good for you, you know, the ones that are full of vitamins and nutrients.

Why eat just raw and living foods? It is said that you'll have more energy, think more clearly, have improved overall health, and lose excess body weight. Many people have also found relief from migraines, acne, asthma, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, depression, heartburn, anxiety, and Type 2 diabetes.

Fit's Tips: If you want to learn more about it, check out Alissa Cohen's website all about The Raw Food Diet. She even includes recipes for burgers, pizza, cannolis, and chocolate cake - all made with raw foods and no animal products.

Want to see a video showing how to make a pasta dish with raw foods? Then read more

Source

Reality Check: Ashlee Isn't a No Carbs Kind of Girl

FitSugar — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:00:02 -0800

Even though she lives the So Cal lifestyle, Ashlee Simpson-Wentz told Women's Health that she doesn't starve herself for a Hollywood figure; she simply loves food, and one of her favorite feasts features Mexican fare. Once a week Ashlee and her hubby, Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz, invite family and friends over for taco night. Ashlee told the mag that she's not afraid of cheese, eats cheeseburgers with ranch dressing, and indulges in French fries. But don't spread the rumor that she's eating for two, because she's not, and Ashlee shares that she's even slimmer than ever.

She boasts about devouring whatever she wants, doesn't deprive herself of the foods she craves, and still has such a great figure. To find out what she asys is her secret, read more.

Ashlee's secret weapon is Bronx Pilates! Her 1-year-old son is in her arms all day, and carrying around that extra weight has helped to really tone her arms.

Before she gave birth, Ashlee had gained 50 pounds, and her breasts were up to a size E when she was nursing. So once baby Bronx was two weeks old, she was ready to start losing the extra pounds. A home-delivery meal plan didn't work since she's a big eater. She says, "If I want a grilled cheese sandwich, I'll eat a grilled cheese sandwich." So she turned to exercise, and with the help of a personal trainer, the new mama set up a home gym and started circuit training. Four weeks later, Ashlee had lost half her baby weight. Her diligent workouts have definitely paid off. Of course, this young actress also has her youth and genes to thank. Though she looks amazing now, Ashlee dispels the notion that her bod was a result of Hollywood stress. She says, "I wasn't in a rush to get back to this body for anyone else. It was more like, 'I wanna look good [for me]? I wanna feel good.'"

Ashlee is feeling great and very appreciative of her family and all life has blessed her with. On top of a great career and a healthy son, her hubby is a great source of comfort and support. "Pete isn't worried about stretch marks, " she says, "He always makes me feel sexy."

The way she explains it, she doesn't really do anything currently to maintain her figure. Do you believe it?

Gadgets to Inspire Healthy Eating

FitSugar — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:50:56 -0800

Healthy eating is the foundation of healthy living. If you don't fuel your body with nutritious foods, everyday activities and exercise can both feel like a challenge. Here are some gadgets to make eating the good stuff easier and more exciting.

View Slideshow ›

Are You a Carb Queen?

FitSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:47:55 -0800

I'm not going to lie to you. I love carbs. Warm bread with olive oil, real macaroni and cheese, and pumpkin chocolate chip scones are a few of my faves. The big problem is that those foods tend to be high in calories, and if I eat too many, my jeans let me know. I don't live without them, though; I just keep my carb intake in check by eating mostly whole grains and eat them with plenty of lean protein, veggies, and fruits. What about you? Do you find carbs hard to resist?

Healthy Recipe: DIY Yogurt

FitSugar — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 09:00:15 -0700

I think that yogurt should be part of any healthy diet, on the daily. It's great with fresh fruit and granola, contains all the good kind of bacteria we need, and is an excellent source of calcium and protein. Eating yogurt every day can be costly, so I was really excited to discover how easy it is to make at home.

I started out by following the recipes posted on Make Your Own Yogurt and Chow, making a few modifications of my own. The homemade stuff tastes so much better than any store-bought version I've ever tried - it's creamier, tangy, and has a great consistency. There are no added sugars or preservatives, or wasteful plastic containers to throw out. I'm hooked and can't stop looking for cute glass jars so I can gift this homemade treat to my friends.

To find out how to make it, read more.

Heat milk on a stove top to about 185 degrees Fahrenheit.
Remove the milk from the heat and let it cool to 110 degrees, stirring occasionally.
Add a few tablespoons of plain yogurt to the milk to act as the starter culture.
Transfer this mix to a covered container and store in a warm area for a few days. The longer you let the yogurt sit out to ferment, the tangier and thicker it will become.
Refrigerate overnight before eating, stir well, and enjoy!

Find more Healthy Recipes and share your own in our Healthy Recipes group!

Are You On the Twilight Diet?

FitSugar — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:00:27 -0700

Have you heard about the Twilight diet? At first I thought it was a term Twilighters - aka die-hard Twilight fans - used to describe their voracious appetites for all things Edward and Bella - books, movies, pictures, life-size Robert Pattinson cutouts - but it's actually related to food. Twilight vernacular is everywhere, even in the world of health and fitness.

I've written a little about Taylor Lautner's quest to bulk up for New Moon. In order to be a believable Jacob the werewolf, the young star was in the gym every day for two hours to put on the needed 30 pounds of muscle. "I had to eat every two hours," says Lautner. "At one point, my trainer said, 'Put anything in your mouth. Go to McDonalds get the biggest shake possible. I just need to get calories in you.' Because my body fat at the time was only, like, 7.5 percent"

Lautner's fitness routine is what the urban dictionary calls the Twilight diet:

Person A: Yo man, I wanna get ripped.
Person B: Yeah man, follow the Twilight diet!

I wonder what Michael Phelps and Venus Williams would think if they knew they were on the Twilight diet while training, and didn't even know it?

To hear about the "other" Twilight diet read more.

I was curious if the Twilight diet was actually being followed, and not only did I find out that it is, I also discovered that there is another diet with the same name - and it seemed to be at odds with the already mentioned Twilight diet! What's a fan to do?

In the first movie we are introduced to the Cullens, a family of vampires who resist their natural desire to feed on humans. This desire becomes even more exasperated when Edward Cullen falls in love with Bella, a human. Some Twilighters are using this narrative as a model of self-control in their own lives. If Edward and the rest of the Cullens can resist eating humans then they, the fans, can resist eating chocolate cake.

There are tons of posts on Twilight boards and blogs affirming that Twilight has been a catalyst for lifestyle changes. Apparently fans are so busy consuming everything Twilight, they have less time to eat. On top of this they are also adopting the Cullen's method of self-control. This combo has led to some serious weight loss - some fans have lost six pounds, while others claim 25.

I admit that the Twilight diet is an easy target, but you can also look at it as inspiration coming in many different forms. For some it's a vampire series that spawns a lifestyle change. Odd? Perhaps. But it's great to see people making choices for the better, whatever the reason.

Have you ever found inspiration from an unlikely source?

Looking to Move? Try Burlington, VT

FitSugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:00:13 -0700

After looking at the 100 largest metropolitan areas in America, Burlington, VT, came out on top as Self magazine's "fittest, healthiest, and happiest" city to live in for women. The magazine studied almost 8,000 different pieces of data in 50 categories and consulted a panel of experts to come up with its rankings. Information factored into the creation of this list includes rates of diseases, air quality, unemployment statistics, and health habits such as exercise and smoking.

The New England city boasts some of the lowest rates of cervical and ovarian cancer deaths in the country, and healthy habits prevail: women walk to work regularly and don't smoke. Where Burlington really shines is in nutrition and food - the city has six times as many food co-ops than the national average, and its farmers markets accept food stamps.

What to see how your hometown fared? Check out the entire ranking here.

Michael Pollan's Food Rules to Live By

FitSugar — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 09:00:47 -0700

I've had a crush on Michael Pollan for a while now, and though the specifics of his food manifesto may be hard for everyone to adopt, I think his basic rules are ones to live by: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. (And processed food is not food.)

Whenever finishing a book or essay by Pollan, I always walk away with a new food rule myself. I was excited to see that in this year's annual New York Times Magazine food issue, Pollan turns the tables, asking what food rules we the readers live by.

There were thousands of submissions, and of those, Pollan picked the ones he felt made the most sense for a healthy life. What I found interesting was what he said about the ones he didn't use, "a banquet of food policies that even when they made little, if any, nutritional sense . . . nevertheless opened a window on our current thinking about food: the stories we tell ourselves, the games we play and the taboos we invoke to organize our eating lives."

I've been guilty of this myself - eating something "healthy" when it was nothing more than processed crap.

Learn a simple rule when you read more.

The reader-submitted rules are fun and wise, and the NYT's presentation make them a treat to read through. One of my favorites:

Avoid snack foods with the "OH" sound in their names: Doritos, Cheetos, Fritos, Tostitos, Hostess Ho Hos, Etc. -Donna David

In this piece, Pollan offers up another one of his own rules that I adopted years ago: pick butter over trans-fat-loaded margarine. Surely he and Julia Child can't be wrong.

What food rules do you live by?

Health Foodie Community Right Here on FitSugar!

FitSugar — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 08:00:38 -0700

I'm into food - it's hard to live in SF and not become a foodie. I am also a health fanatic. These two parts of my life do not need to be mutually exclusive. One great place they meet up is the FitSugar Community. There are two groups which really get to the heart of the matter when it comes to healthy food.

There's the Healthy Recipe Group, and the name of the group really says it all. It's a place where you can find and share healthy recipes. Many are traditional recipes that have been "rehabbed" to reduce calories and fat. One tasty example is this vegetable-heavy simple weeknight chili.

For the times when you feel a little peckish, but don't want to dive into a bag of Doritos, there is the Snack Attack group. The group is full of quick treat ideas that won't break the caloric bank and many that help fill your nutritional requirements too. I'm hoping to make the baked pears with yogurt tonight.

If you need some inspiration for healthy cooking and eating, these groups are great places start. Please feel free to share your recipes and snacks here too. I am always looking for new ways to satisfy my palate while keeping my health in mind.

How Many Times a Week Do You Eat Red Meat?

FitSugar — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 08:00:40 -0700

It is both Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Vegetarian Awareness Month, so the red meat question was due to come. Studies have found that eating red meat daily increases your risk of breast cancer by 56 percent. These days, I think you would be hard-pressed to find a woman eating red meat daily, but that statistic sure does get you thinking.

I might not be vegetarian, but lately I eat lower on the food chain for both health and environmental reasons. I eat red meat about twice a month and buy the grass-fed and finished meat from a cattle ranch less than 50 miles away (I know I am lucky to live in Northern California). How about you?