FitSugar

Yo!Naturals: Healthy Vending Machines

FitSugar — Thu, 17 May 2007 08:45:00 PDT

Wouldn't it be great if you could get your favorite health food from a vending machine? Well, my buddy YumSugar just told me about the San Diego based company YoNaturals, and they are bringing health food to the ultimate icon of snacking convenience - the vending machine.

YoNaturals is on the front line in the battle against junk food vending machine, and I wholeheartedly applaud their efforts. In their Yo!Zone and Yo!Thirsty machines you won't find the junk food staples of your youth. Gone are the fluorescent orange cheddar crackers filled with hydrogenated oil laden peanut butter, in their place you will find Annie's Organic Cheddar Bunnies and Pirate Booty. Instead of candy bars, you can choose from a selection of energy bars, like some of my faves - Luna, Clif and LARABARS. Soda is replaced with organic milk and organic juices. Yippee!!!

Yo!Naturals distribution is growing ever wider and you should be on the look out for their machines in hospitals, hotels, offices and schools - you know large, kind of institutional places. Just the kinds of places where you need a snack and can never find anything healthy to satisfy your hunger.

Energy Bars Are Good For Me, Right?

FitSugar — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 03:30:00 PST

Let's put it this way - they're better than reaching for a Snickers bar.

These kinds of bars do serve a purpose. They are a convenient, portable way to deliver a balance of key nutrients like protein, carbs, fat and some vitamins and minerals. They help maintain energy levels when you are in a bind for a healthy snack.

Eating 1 bar a day in conjunction with a balanced whole food diet won't compromise your overall health, but you shouldn't live on energy bars alone.

Fit's Tips: They're great to have in your purse for a quick snack, if you're on the road, or need an energy boost before working out.

Healthy Dose Link Time: Load Up on Omega-3s With This Easy Salmon Recipe

Michele Foley — Tue, 15 May 2012 11:07:37 PDT

Your easy weeknight dinner: balsamic-glazed salmon - Eating Bird Food
A protein bar battle royale: Nature Valley vs. Clif Mojo - Fit Bottomed Girls
Time to celebrate -a cookie you can have for breakfast! - The Fitnessista
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Learn how experts cope with the big and little stresses of life - Daily Spark
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Disabled one day, running the next; how yoga changed one man's life - Prevention

Get Egg-cited Over These Items For a Healthier Easter Basket

FitSugar — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 16:47:53 PDT

Easter is coming up, and for some of us that means a big brunch followed by a helping of candy - think Cadbury Creme Eggs, Peeps, and lots of jelly beans. While a few Easter treats are OK, weighing your basket down with chocolate, caramel eggs, and jelly beans can be the gateway to mindlessly snacking on candy for the rest of the week. Whether you're making a basket for a friend or the little one in your life, keep reading for some healthy ideas to sneak in amongst the candy.

Photo: Jenny Sugar

Healthy homemade desserts like these pumpkin-carrot bars with cream cheese frosting or vegan peanut butter patties.
Decorated hard-boiled eggs to use later in one of these healthy hard-boiled egg recipes.
Spring flowers like tulips, dahlias, or lilies.
If you're going to put a little chocolate in your basket, choose antioxidant-rich dark chocolate that's organic or fair trade.
Health and fitness magazines, small gadgets, or DVDs.
Carrots - they're the Easter Bunny's favorite snack, after all!
Our selections of pastel-colored fitness gear like headbands, socks, or workout tanks.
Especially for kids: puzzles, small toys, stuffed bunnies, stickers, magnets, disposable cameras, packets of seeds and gardening tools, plastic eggs filled with coins or beads, Silly Putty (it even comes in its own egg), pastel-colored socks.
Need a healthier alternative to jelly beans? Try energizing sports chews like Clif Shot Bloks or Jelly Belly Sports Beans.

Stock Up: 5 Snacks to Pack For Holiday Shopping and Travel

Rebecca M Gruber — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 10:55:01 PST

You don't have to be a Boy Scout to be prepared. Whether simply stocking a bag for a trip to the grocery store, or packing for a cross-country flight, moms know a thing or two about preparing for the unexpected. And while mama's regular stash of goodies can tame a fussy and hungry tot on a good day, when airport delays and holiday shopping crowds are on the agenda, it's a good time to step it up a notch. Check out five snack-time picks that do more than occupy lil ones during the holiday madness!

Clif Mojo Dipped Bars ($15 for 12): Chocolate-covered peanuts? Yes, please! Available in a variety of flavor combinations, Clif's Mojo line of bars combine the sweet and salty by mixing fruits, nuts, and pretzels and then dipping them in sweet vanilla or chocolate. The kids will never know it isn't a candy bar!
Happy Baby Happy Munchies ($3): Happy Baby's allergy-free sticks are perfectly sized for toddler hands. Made with whole grain corn and packed with choline (to help with brain development), the snacks keep sodium to a minimum so your tot won't be begging for drinks as you try to pass through the airport security line!
Funky Monkey Snacks ($12 for 12): All-natural, freeze-dried fruit may sound boring, but with Funky Monkey's fun flavors (like Jivealime, a pineapple and lime combo), kids will love testing them out. Best of all, their satisfying crunch will have lil ones thinking they're eating chips!
That's It bars ($20 for 12): Made from just fruit, these bars are perfect pick-me-ups during a long day. They're nut-free, GMO-free, and just plain good!
Revolution Foods Fruit Shredz ($4): Think of these as the modern-day interpretation of the Fun Fruit. Made without high fructose corn syrup and glycerin, they're healthy, tasty, and unbelievably kid-friendly!

Cool Idea: Carve It Up

Mandy Harris — Wed, 11 May 2011 05:00:48 PDT

Remember when you were a kid, and carving words and pictures into your school desk was an absolute no-no? Well, good news: you're a big kid now, and those rules no longer apply! As long as you do it tastefully, that is.

At Clif Winery's tasting room in Napa Valley (run by the family that invented Clif bars for cyclists), this dining table features a winding path carved into its top, an homage to the switchback-filled roads that avid cyclists often tackle. And at Homeroom restaurant in Oakland, CA, each table is engraved with the restaurant's logo, a tiny paper airplane. In both cases, the artfully done carvings add a subtle, personalized detail to otherwise plain pieces of furniture.

Try it yourself to spice up a tired piece of furniture or a flea market find: just trace your free-handed or stenciled design onto your work surface, then lightly carve into the wood with a sharp X-acto blade. If you're happy with your creation and want to preserve it, apply a stain or sealant over the design.

5 Airlines That Offer Healthy Food Fare

Heather Dale — Thu, 05 May 2011 11:52:08 PDT

When you are purchasing a flight, do you have a favorite airline that you always book with? Or do you just go for the best deal? And what makes you have an airline preference - the service, the extra leg room, or maybe it's the amazing snacks and meals? For me, if the airline has awesome service, great in-flight entertainment, and other perks, it tends to have delicious food as well.

Last year, the Diet Detective conducted an Airline Food Survey, which rated how healthy the food is aboard the top US airlines. After examining the economy class menus of several airlines' domestic flights and taking into consideration the Diet Detective's results - not to mention some of my own personal biases - here are the top five airlines that I think are serving up the healthiest snacks and meals.

5 Tips For Hosting an Informal Wine Tasting

Mandy Harris — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 12:59:49 PDT

Wine tasting can be quite a production: between vying for a space at the bar to begin tasting, paying high prices for comparably tiny pours of wine, and figuring out how to safely get from winery to winery without someone having to miss out on all the tasting, it can feel like more trouble than it's worth.

I recently visited Clif Winery's new tasting room in St. Helena, CA, Velo Vino, where the vibe was decidedly more relaxed. The tasting room in general is inviting, warm, and impeccably wine-country chic, but I was especially impressed with the large communal table where the winery hosts its special Yellow Jersey tasting. On my visit, the table was already set for a tasting, and it gave me a few great ideas for hosting a fun, informal wine tasting at home. Want to host your own? Here are a few tips!

Set the scene: The point of a wine tasting is to enjoy each sip and chat with friends, rather than to power through as much wine as possible, so make your guests want to stay awhile. Set up your tasting somewhere comfortable, and lay out everything your guests will need during the tasting, including glasses, paper for taking notes, a pitcher of water, and a bucket for pouring out unwanted tastes.
Move from lighter to heavier wines: This may be a wine tasting cliché, but that doesn't mean it isn't true! Each wine affects how the next one tastes, so start with lighter wines, like whites, sparkling wines, or Pinot Noirs, and transition to heavier reds like Cabernets and Syrahs.
Provide small bites to pair with each taste: It can be overkill to serve a full meal alongside a wine tasting, but having small snacks on hand that pair nicely with your wines will enhance the overall experience, and keep your guests from getting too hungry! Clif Winery offers a variety of paprika-spiced almonds, dried cherries, and roasted pistachios that pair perfectly with different varietals.

More wine tasting tips after the break!

An OnSugar Blogger Gets Ready For a Family Trip to Yosemite

OnSugar Blog — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 02:29:36 PDT

How did you spend your long weekend? OnSugar blogger houseofanais spent it hiking in Yosemite - with two-year-old twins, no less! She shares how she prepped for her hike.

I recently was asked to test Lifefactory's ecological water bottle made out of glass and covered by a cute silicone sleeve (many people might know this brand better for their glass bottles for feeding babies). I was really excited since so many celebrities such as Jessica Alba and Reese Witherspoon have been spotted using this bottle out and about in LA. Obviously it was heavier than a plastic bottle, but not much more than a metal one. What was great about it, is the fact that glass keeps the water tasting good all day long - unlike plastic bottles. So far I have been very happy with the bottle, but the big test is going to be this weekend when the family hits Yosemite and weather might soar to 100 degrees.

Salty Goodness: Falmouth Road Race Review

Susi May — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 16:33:04 PDT

Clocking in at seven miles, the Falmouth Road Race is an odd distance in a 10K world. The course, dreamed up by Cape Cod local bartender Tommy Leonard, originally went from bar doorstep to bar doorstep, according to the oral history of the race related at the New Balance Media Retreat by Christine Frazier, president of the Board of Directors of the race. Inspired by Frank Shorter's 1972 Olympic marathon gold medal win, Leonard wanted to figure out a way to raise funds for the Falmouth Girl's Track Club; the following year the inaugural race was run by 95 participants of all ages. Only one bar remains, but the course remains the same. And the number of participants has swelled to around 12,000.

Like the first race, the 39th running of the Falmouth on Aug. 14 was also a multigenerational race from grandparents and grandkids running - I saw more than a dozen small school-aged children cross the finish line. And this course is not an easy one, as I naively believed before heading out to the East Coast to participate in the race. It's hilly! The curvy first three miles contain just as many hills; after ascending the first major hill, runners are treated to the congratulatory theme from Rocky. There is also a devilish climb just before the finish line, but once crested, the route to the finish is all downhill.