FitSugar

Lea Michele Covers Women's Health: "I'm the Only Girl in My High School Class Not to Get a Nose Job"

FitSugar — Mon, 24 May 2010 13:30:42 PDT

If you're like me then you can't wait to tune in to tomorrow's episode of Glee, "Theatricality," to see Rachel (played by Lea Michele) do her best Gaga impersonation. In real life, Lea looks amazing on the June 2010 cover of Women's Health - she even goes indoor rock climbing during her interview! Inside, Lea opens up about her career, family, and what it's like to be a part of such a widely successful show.

Here are the highlights:

On loving herself and still feeling insecure: "[I'm] the only girl in my high school class not to get a nose job [but] I love myself, the way I look, my body but sometimes I can’t help but feel insecure here. It plays with your head."
On always being on the go: "I have to remember to rest, because I have a natural energy and I don't want to burn out."
On eating responsibly: "It's [The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone] about being good to your body and the planet. I'm a foodie, but I think it's much more fun to find things on the menu that are good for me."

Go Shopping With Alicia Silverstone

FitSugar — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 10:00:23 PST

On yesterday's Oprah Show, actress Alicia Silverstone took cameras grocery shopping with her. I have to say that I was surprised at how many processed foods Alicia picked out. Although I know a lot of vegans who rely on synthetic meat and processed foods as the backbone of their diet, I expected Alicia to be different.

In her book, The Kind Diet, the actress really touts the benefits of grains, vegetables, and fruits over convenience food. Because of that, I'm thinking this list might not be reflective of Alicia's normal dietary habits, but her way of showing a mass audience that you can still eat well and indulge if you're vegan.

While shopping, Alicia raved about brown rice ("If you add whole grain rice to your diet, it will change you") and leafy greens ("They're loaded with calcium and make your skin glow"). She also couldn't wait to bite into a mint-flavored ice cream alternative, a Rice Dream mud pie. Alicia said that the mud pies still make her feel "naughty" in the same way that ice cream can.

To check out some of the other items on her list,

Alicia Silverstone: The Kind Diet

FitSugar — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 11:48:53 PST

It's no secret that Alicia Silverstone is an animal lover. Remember how she starred in that sexy commercial for PETA to tell the world she's a vegetarian? Well now she's taking her passionate views a step further with her new book about going vegan, titled The Kind Diet, that's set to hit stores in the Fall of 2009. In case you're not familiar with a vegan diet, it involves not eating any animal products including meat, milk, or honey. Alicia enthusiastically illustrates how choosing a plant-based diet can benefit your body and how you feel about your body. Although Alicia is vegan mostly for humane reasons, the Kind Diet is also healthy since it's high in protein and fiber and low in saturated fat and cholesterol. Even though the foods are plant-based, she makes them sound delicious and indulgent.

A vegan diet doesn't just benefit the people following it. It also obviously saves the lives of many animals, and in her book Alicia explains how choosing a vegan diet can benefit our world as well. Talk about a win-win-win.

I'm curious, will any of you buy this book and try a vegan diet?

Read more about Alicia and her diet: Alicia Silverstone Talks Eating Vegan and Gardening Naked.

Source

Guess Who?

partysugar — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 07:00:15 PDT

Can you guess which celebrity chef was at the book launch for Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet?

Alicia Silverstone Talks Eating Vegan and Gardening Naked

FitSugar — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 04:30:05 PDT

Alicia Silverstone knows that eating well can help the planet, which is one reason she decided to swear off meat and dairy and adopt a vegan lifestyle. But it's not all selfless: she also appreciates how her improved diet makes her look younger and glowing.

In a new interview with Health, the Clueless star talks about her eating philosophy, her line of cruelty-free beauty products, and her book The Kind Diet, coming out in October. Here are highlights:

On why she wrote the book: "Once you're informed, then you can be really gentle and kind to yourself, by giving yourself all the gifts life has to offer - like mental clarity and vitality - all while making the planet better."
On why she went vegan: "I didn't come at it, honestly, from a health point of view. I was 21 when I went vegan. And when anybody told me to be healthy, I thought people were just telling me [to lose weight] because I'm in this business. So I was like, 'Go F yourself!' [Laughs.] Yet when I look at those pictures from back then, I can see the puffiness in my eyes. It's weird to be 32 now and feel and look younger. . . . Right after I first made the switch to a plant-based diet, people were literally telling me, 'What have you done? You’re sparkling.'"

To read more highlights - including what Silverstone has to say about being naked in her backyard -

Fat-Proof Your Life

Health — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 04:06:06 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

By Maridel Reyes

It's true that there are certain times in your life when extra poundage seems to appear out of nowhere . . . and settle on you. In fact, experts have honed in on the exact moments when you're most vulnerable to weight gain.

"Life transitions, having a baby, and going through menopause cause many women to pile on pounds," says Susan Albers, PsyD, author of But I Deserve This Chocolate!: The 50 Most Common Diet-Derailing Excuses and How to Outwit Them. "But with planning and prep, you can stay thin."

We asked top experts for their strategies to help you ward off weight creep - and even shed pounds - at these tricky stages. Solutions ahead.

Getting married

Heavier ever after? It can be the flip side of wedded bliss: "Six out of 10 of my clients come back heavier after the honeymoon," says celebrity fitness and wellness guru David Kirsch.

Health.com: 25 Diet-Busting Foods You Should Never Eat

Young newlyweds pack on an extra six to nine pounds in the five years after getting hitched compared to singletons, according to research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. And most of that gain happens in the first year of marriage.

"Couples start to mirror each other's eating habits," explains Albers. "You might be matching him calorie for calorie without realizing it."

Learn how to keep the pounds down postmarriage and in the mommy years, after the break.

Sweet Treats With Hidden Veggies

Jenny Sugar — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 12:23:54 PST

Since veggies are bursting with nutrition, we could always stand to get more in our diets. If you're having a hard time stomaching one more bite of salad, here are some sweeter ways to enjoy your veggies, without even realizing it.

If healthy eating is one of your goals for the year, be sure to enter our Get Fit For 2012 giveaway for a chance to win a Magimix juicer and a year's worth of KIND snacks.

Little Choices Healthy People Make Every Day

Leta Shy — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 03:06:26 PST

You know what it takes to be healthy - a well-balanced diet, regular exercise, and the motivation to stick to both. But reaching these broad-arching goals can be a tougher than just saying them. A better bet is to break up your healthy must dos into smaller choices that you can make every day while you inch yourself closer to your major goals. Are you making the best little choices for a healthier day? Read on to find out what they are!

If getting healthy is one of your goals for the year, be sure to check out our Get Fit For 2012 giveaways with prizes to jump-start your January: a year's worth of sneakers from Asics, a $500 gift card for Under Armour, a new food processor from Magimix, and KIND snacks for a year

3 Ways to Beat Fat Cravings

Leta Shy — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:08:56 PST

Fat makes food taste good, but as we know, too much of this good thing is decidedly bad. A new study has even found that some people may be wired genetically to crave a higher amount of fatty foods than those who lack the fat-craving gene variation.

Whether or not you're wired to crave fat, being more conscious of how much you are consuming can help you reduce those cravings. Take control of your taste buds with these three ways to beat fat cravings.

Make a "Do Not Order" list: I love this tip from Hungry Girl Lisa Lillien: never order your favorite unhealthy food when dining out. Even when you have the best intentions, you risk overindulging by finishing an entire restaurant-sized order of fries or heaping pile of buttery mashed potatoes. Save those fatty can't-stop-eating-it treats for your next home-cooked meal; you'll be able to make substitutions and tweak the recipe to make it healthier, and practice portion control.

Read on for more tips for beating your fat cravings.

Ruth Reichl: "American Food Is the Best in the World Right Now"

Susannah Chen — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 11:23:06 PST

This weekend, food artisans from around the country are being honored in the second annual Good Food Awards, which celebrate American food producers who enhance the country's agricultural landscape and help to build community. While the awards are relatively new to the gastronomic landscape, they're already backed by some of the country's biggest food influencers, such as Whole Foods, and seminal culinary figures, like Ruth Reichl.
Ruth is currently the editorial adviser at Gilt Taste, another cosponsor of this weekend's Good Food Awards. The author, former New York Times food critic, and final Gourmet editor sat down with me over dinner at Mission Chinese Food to talk more about good food and future projects.

YumSugar: Tell me about the partnership between Gilt Taste and the Good Food Awards. How did it come about?
Ruth Reichl: I've known Sarah [Weiner, the director] for a long time, and we've been talking about this for a long time. When I went to Gilt Taste, it just seemed like a seamless, natural partnership, finding and supporting food artisans in America.

YS: You're the keynote speaker at this year's Good Food Awards. What kind of a legacy do these awards create?
RR: It's hard for younger people to understand how bad things were in America, a time when all food was essentially industrial. There were no farmers markets. I have an interview with Wolfgang Puck that I did in 1982 where he goes, "Six years ago, there was no decent food in America." Now, there's this explosion of farmers markets, and while so much of the world is abandoning their food heritage, Americans are reclaiming theirs before it gets lost . . . We have these two completely parallel, simultaneous, and opposite tracks: on the one hand, people with money who eat organic, sustainable, handmade food. But if you're a poor person, you're stuck eating stuff that's cheaper than food and that will kill you. Food safety in this country becomes a worse and worse issue; we import more and more food; 80 percent of the antibiotics in this country go to perfectly healthy animals. We have a real crisis on the one hand - and on the other hand, we have, for the first time, an awareness of it. Which is quite stunning.

I really do think American food is the best in the world right now, because of the people making the kind of food that goes to the Good Food Awards. We have to nurture it, and make sure that it doesn't just stay with us in this little enclave.

YS: There's movement toward eating a plant-based diet. What do you think of that?

To find out her answer, keep reading.