FitSugar

Low-Cal Frozen Treat Alert: Arctic Zero

Michele Bell — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 12:15:09 PST

If your fave indulgence is ice cream, I've got good news for you. There's a new brand of "ice cream" that won't have to wait for that disastrous breakup to justify you seeing the bottom of the carton. An ice cream critic myself, I wasn't sure I would be sold, but a taste test has made a believer out of me. The new label, Arctic Zero, brags less than 150 calories per pint (yes, per pint, not serving!), and it's actually quite delicious.

When my girlfriend gushed to me about trying it, I pelted her with questions: Does it have artificial sweeteners in it? Does it taste anything like ice cream? Is it full of ingredients you can't pronounce? When she shook her head steadily, I knew I had to try it. And try it, I did. Well, I actually devoured it. On her recommendation, I spooned out the Vanilla Maple and Chocolate Peanut Butter versions. Neither disappointed. While they aren't like the creamy and rich types that leave your lips feeling a bit buttery, they are delicious and light. You don't feel like you've just consumed the whole freezer when you finish the serving of Arctic Zero. And funny enough, I wasn't so inclined to eat the entire pint like I might with a carton of Ben & Jerry's. Somehow, my taste buds were satisfied with just a few spoonfuls of the wondrous dessert.

Want to see more about the nutritional information and other benefits?

You Love Ice Cream, But How Well Do You Know It?

FitSugar — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 11:45:00 PDT

Even though some of us are getting ready for school and starting preparations for fall, it is still really hot outside and ice cream is often top choice for an August dessert. Although it is creamy, cool and delish, ice cream is no friend to those watching their waist lines. It can be loaded with calories, fat and sugar. So if you are looking to go healthy when it comes to ice cream, do you know your facts?

Here's a little quiz to test your ice cream knowledge.

Take the Quiz

Understanding Ice Cream: Light, Low Fat, Reduced Fat

FitSugar — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 02:00:00 PDT

You might be asking yourself what is confusing about ice cream? It is delish, cold, creamy and loaded with fat. Well not always since ice cream manufacturers have become hip to the fact that consumers are watching their waistlines and fat intake. So you might see ice cream labeled "light" or "low fat," but buyer beware those terms do, in fact, mean different things.

Here is a little primer for understanding the different ice cream options out there:

Ice cream contains at least 10% milk fat. Many premium ice creams (like Ben & Jerry's) contain around 13 - 17% milk fat.
"Reduced Fat" ice cream must contain 25% less fat than regular ice cream made by the same company.
"Light" ice cream has at least 50% less total fat than regular ice cream made by that company.
"Low-fat" ice cream can have a maximum of 3 grams of fat per 1/2 cup.

So buy wisely and remember just because it is "low-fat" doesn't mean you should eat more. You can also try just having a few bites of ice cream in a bowl and savor the full flavor (and fat) of the real thing. You know I am going to say it - never eat directly from the container cause you will have no idea how much you have really eaten and quite possibly over eat.

Sisters of DC Cupcakes Share Valentine's Day Baking Tips and Chocolate Ganache Recipe

Rebecca M Gruber — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 03:16:28 PST

What's sugar and spice and everything nice? Cupcakes! And no one knows more about our obsession with the lil confections than Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis, co-owners of Georgetown Cupcake and stars of TLC's DC Cupcakes. The sisters, who learned their kitchen skills from their grandmother ("We followed her around the kitchen and always begged to help"), have been known to bake up to 10,000 lil cakes a day, much to the delight of the patrons who line the block of their Washington DC store. The duo - who just opened their first outpost in New York City - gave me a few minutes of their time to discuss their tasty desserts.

LilSugar: Cupcakes have moved from kiddie birthday party staple to a favorite of adults and kids alike. But kids aren't always willing to try new flavors. Which are most popular with kids?
Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis: Our Vanilla Birthday (vanilla cupcake with vanilla buttercream and rainbow bobbles), Chocolate Birthday (chocolate cupcake with vanilla buttercream and rainbow bobbles), and Milk Chocolate Birthday (vanilla cupcake with milk chocolate buttercream and rainbow bobbles) are the most popular with kids. We think it's the color rainbow bobbles!

LS: Moms are busy; what shortcuts can you recommend to making delicious, beautiful cupcakes without spending the whole day baking and decorating them?
SL and KK: Try to keep a stash of baking staples - butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, milk, all purpose flour, baking soda/powder, salt, and cocoa powder/chocolate on hand in your kitchen at all times and you can make almost any flavor! Our recipes are very simple - we don’t use cake flour or pastry flour - just all purpose - we find that works best. Also, we're big fans of chocolate ganache icing. It's so easy - just two ingredients - chocolate chips and heavy cream. You just melt them down (two cups of chips to one cup of cream), and dip your cupcakes in and you've got a super fast and unbelievably delicious frosting.

LS: Do you ever make "healthy" cupcakes for those who want to skip some of the sugar? If so, what goes into it?
SL and KK: We have a carrot cake cupcake, which has fresh carrots and fresh apples grated in it. We skip the walnuts, to save on calories, and it's a light and delicious cupcake!

The new season of DC Cupcakes begins on Feb. 25, but if you're looking to create their Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes for Valentine's Day,

8 Small Ways to Lose Big Pounds in 2012

Prevention — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 04:06:22 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Prevention here on FitSugar!

Quadruple your weight loss by making one easy tweak to your routine per week
By Alyssa Shaffer

If your goal is to lose weight and exercise more, forget the deprivation diet and marathon workouts. New research shows that taking baby steps - not giant leaps -is the best way to get lasting results. A study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine found that participants who made one small, potentially permanent change in their food choices and/or physical activity each week (such as drinking one fewer can of soda or walking five more minutes each day) lost more than twice as much belly fat, two and half more inches off their waistlines, and about four times more weight during a four-month program, compared with those who followed traditional calorie-restriction and physical-activity guidelines.

"When you focus on just a couple of small changes at a time, you begin to ingrain some healthy habits that last for a lifetime, rather than trying an all-or-nothing approach that more often than not fails because it's too hard to follow," says Lesley Lutes, PhD, an assistant professor in the department of psychology at East Carolina University. We've uncovered these simple steps (with proven results) to help you move more, eat less, and look and feel better than ever. Add just one or two a week to your regular routine and you can lose nearly three inches off your waistline and be about 10 pounds lighter come in a few months. Even better: Once these healthy habits become second nature, they'll benefit you for a lifetime.

1. Pick Up a Pen After Every Meal
Mindlessly munching on a bag of chips could result in easily polishing off the whole thing; write down how much you've eaten and you're more likely to practice portion control. Keeping a food log helps control extra calories in two ways: the combination of plain old reality check (I just ate 30 minutes ago!) and awareness that what you're putting in your mouth will soon be recorded for posterity. In a recent study, people who kept a food journal lost twice as much weight as those who didn't. When they combined it with a moderate diet and exercise plan, they lost an average of 13 pounds in 6 months. Journaling also gives you insight on your eating habits, says Lutes. Do you skip meals? Eat the same during the week as on the weekend? Binge when you're feeling stressed? "Knowing your routine helps you figure out what changes are right for you," she adds.

Avoid these 14 "health food" diet disasters.

2. Limit High-Fat Foods to One Per Week
Tag the high-fat/high-calorie foods that are typically your favorites (our top five: cookies, candy, ice cream, potato chips, and fries) and gradually downshift. "If you're eating six of these foods a week, try to go down to five," says Lutes. Each week, drop another until you're at no more than one or two; at the same time, add in a good-for-you choice like baby carrots, sautéed broccoli, oranges, and other fresh fruits and veggies.

Keep reading for more simple tip to help you lose big.

Starbucks Holiday Drinks: Not So Cheery After All

FitSugar — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 02:30:22 PST

If you're heading into the closest Starbucks for a caffeinated pick-me-up, you'll notice some tasty holiday specials. These fun beverages not only bring you extra holiday cheer, but they also bring you extra calories (and lots of them). Check out the stats on these 16 ounce Grandes.

Gingerbread Latte with whipped cream: 320 calories, 13 grams of fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 40 grams of carbs, and 37 grams of sugar.
Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino with whipped cream: 420 calories, 14 grams of fat, 50 milligrams of cholesterol, 68 grams of carbs, and 64 grams of sugar.
Eggnog Latte: 460 calories, 21 grams of fat, 140 milligrams of cholesterol, 53 grams of carbs, and 48 grams of sugar.

Keep reading to find out which Starbucks drinks are better for your waistline.

5 Diet Foods That Are Making You Fat

Prevention — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 04:10:41 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Prevention here on FitSugar!

Improve your weight loss plan by avoiding these health diet disasters
By Alyssa Shaffer

Thanks to confusing labels and unearned reputations, it's difficult to know what's good for you. You might automatically reach for items with a "health halo," such as spaghetti sauce (love that lycopene!), or labels like reduced fat!, low sodium!, and whole grain! But unless you're a super savvy shopper, be warned: your diet may conceal some nasty surprises. That low-fat cottage cheese you love? It could be higher in sodium than potato chips. And the low-fat dressing you drizzle on your salad? It could contain nearly as much sugar as two chocolate chip cookies.

The truth is that no manufacturer wants to compromise on flavor, so even healthy-sounding products can contain appalling levels of sugar, salt, and bad fats. To save you time, we've flushed out some of the most surprising diet food offenders - and found some truly healthy alternatives.

5 Weight Loss Excuses You Can Overcome

Fast Food Chicken Caesar Salad
Culprit: McDonald's Premium Caesar Salad with Grilled Chicken contains 890 mg of sodium - more than half the recommended daily limit. And that's without the Caesar dressing, which can pile on another 500 mg. (Select the low-fat Italian and it's even 30 percent higher!) In these ready-to-go salads, says Lona Sandon, RD, an assistant professor of clinical nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, "the worst part is usually the chicken, which is often cooked in a high-sodium marinade for flavor and may also be injected with a sodium solution to keep the meat moist."

Smarter choice: Skip the entrée salad and go for the burger with a garden salad on the side. A McDonald's plain hamburger has 520 mg of sodium (250 calories, 9 g fat); add the side salad (20 calories, 0 g fat, 10 mg sodium) or snack-size fruit-and-walnut salad (210 calories, 8 g fat, 60 mg sodium).

Have you fallen prey to other "fake" diet foods? Keep reading to find out!

A Reader Recipe: Chia Cranberry Apple Crisp

Fit Community — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 01:33:35 PDT

FitSugar reader For the Love of Fiber has a healthy recipe to satisfy sweet cravings. She shares it with us in our Healthy Recipe group in the Fit Community.

This dessert is really not all that guilt-inducing. Honest. It's loaded with fiber, thanks to just about every ingredient, and omega-3s, the essential fatty acids responsible for improving heart, brain, joint, skin, mental, bowel, and almost every other kind of health one could possibly imagine. And it tastes good. Total win-win.

Read on for the recipe!

5 Ways Relationships Help You Lose Weight

Jenny Sugar — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 00:21:46 PDT

There are plenty of ways a relationship can lead you to pack on the pounds, but being in love doesn't automatically increase your jeans size. Here are some ways being attached at the hip to someone else can actually help you lose weight.

You have an instant workout buddy: You both need to work out to stay healthy, and it's another way you can spend time together. Sign up for a two-for-one membership at a gym, take your dog for a woodsy hike, or go for a long bike ride. And when you'd rather sit on the couch watching The Office reruns, hopefully your S.O. will give you the kick in the pants you need to lace up your sneaks.
Increased desire to look good naked: OK, so this is a little vain, but if you want to feel good when the lights go down and the clothes come off, there's no way you'll even think about skipping out on your morning run.

Continue reading to find out other ways your relationship can help you slim down.

6 Cool Features Coming With Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich

Kristy Korcz — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 10:21:59 PDT

Android 4.0, codename Ice Cream Sandwich, is set to be rolled out to Android lovers everywhere this November with the launch of the Galaxy Nexus phone, and all signs indicate that this is the best OS yet. The entire system has been revamped and refined, bringing some powerful apps, features, and functionality to the mix. Though there are plenty of new tidbits to learn about inside Android 4.0 (which we'll be uncovering over the next few weeks prior to its release), here are six cool features we can't wait to try out.

Face Unlock - Say buh-bye to passcodes! Thanks to some upgraded face detection software, Ice Cream Sandwich can take a quick scan of your face to unlock your device. The only downside might be low-light situations, but hopefully there's a way to bypass face detection for a code in those instances.
Android Beam - NFC technology takes another turn with Android Beam, which will allow you to share information and content - like contacts, websites, apps, maps, and more - with other Android users within close proximity.
Flexible widgets - Organize your homescreen the way you want it with flexible widgets. You can scale Android's stock widgets up or down in size and store them in a separate space of their own in the app drawer.
Voice typing - This feature allows you to speak your emails, texts, messages, and search queries (or anywhere you want to enter text) just by tapping on the microphone icon on your keyboard.
Panoramic camera modes - Your on-board camera can take full panoramic pics with Ice Cream Sandwich and full panorama mode. Partner this with the new zero-lag shutter on the Galaxy Nexus and you have a sweet way to document landscapes.
New typeface - Hey, lookie here: Android has a new typeface! Gone are the days of Droid Sans - Roboto is on the scene now.

Want to see more? Check out the Ice Cream Sandwich and Galaxy Nexus demo video after the break.