FitSugar

Chip Substitute: Jicama

FitSugar — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 07:30:00 PDT

For me, the word snack is synonymous with crunch. I find snacks more satisfying if they have some snap to them. Needless to say I am a chip lover, but they are not the most nutritious food on the planet and can be rather fattening too.

Luckily, my love affair with chips is cooling now that I have found jicama. It is a Spanish word; so pronounce the "j" with the sound of "h".

Native to the Americas and sometimes called the Mexican potato, and a mix between a potato and a pear. You can also compare it in texture to a water chestnut, and in fact jicama is made up of almost 90 percent water. A cup of jicama has almost 6 grams of fiber and only 50 calories. It is also high in vitamin C, potassium and folate.

Peel the coarse, papery skin and julienne the white flesh, into carrot stick size pieces, and squeeze some lime juice on it to keep it from browning. Add a pinch of chili to the lime juice and you have an excellent treat right there. It is also great in salad. I like to use jicama as a vehicle for salsa, and that is why I call it a chip substitute.

Source

Not So Fast: 4 Ways Post-Workout Snacks Lead to Weight Gain

Jenny Sugar — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:48:51 PDT

After finishing an intense workout, refueling is a must to restore water, electrolytes, and energy. But if you're not careful the snack you choose could end up undoing the good you've done, leading to extra pounds on the scale. Before grabbing just any old snack after working out, learn how the wrong choice can lead to weight gain.

Chowing on a minimeal: A post-workout snack is just that - a snack. And unless it's mealtime, what you eat after an average workout should be around 150 calories. Since healthy foods like trail mix can be high in calories, measure out a serving instead of mindlessly chomping straight out of the bag. If you're looking for some ideas, here are 10 post-workout snacks under 150 cals.
Chugging a sports drink: Liquid calories are still calories, and if you gulp a 120-calorie bottle of Gatorade along with a snack, calories really start to add up. For workouts under an hour (or low-impact activities), good old zero-calorie H2O is the perfect way to rehydrate.
Choose wisely: While you could really go for an enormous brownie after your run, it's not the best way to refuel after a workout. Your body needs carbs and protein, and if you choose a sugary or high-fat treat, you'll be hungry for something else soon after, which means consuming more calories. High-fat and sugary foods are also not the best choices when it comes to repairing the muscles to prevent soreness the next day.
Rewarding yourself with food: I'm all for rewarding fitness goals, but edible rewards are risky business. Hitting the ice cream parlor for a waffle cone or local café for a plate of cheese fries may sound like heaven on earth, but constantly using high-calorie foods as a way to pat your fit self on the back means tons of extra calories consumed. Find other healthy ways to reward your efforts, such as getting a pedicure, buying a new fitness top, or hitting the movies with your running buddy.

Source: Flickr User mary_thompson

How to Splurge This Weekend Without Gaining a Pound

Jenny Sugar — Fri, 04 May 2012 10:49:28 PDT

For many who have stuck to their healthy ways all week long, the weekend is a time to loosen up the reigns a little, ignore weight-loss rules, and indulge in some high-calorie Cinco de Mayo goodness. If you're not careful though, an entire weekend of living it up could make you gain the pounds you've worked so hard to keep off all week. Here are some ways to splurge a little this weekend and not feel guilty on Monday morning.

Sip on this: If you're starting the Cinco de Mayo festivities a little early tonight, pass on the margaritas made with premade sugary mix and go for a glass made with real lime juice and a splash of simple syrup to save calories (opt for no salt on the rim). Or you can skip the margarita altogether and whip up a batch of this low-cal sangria-inspired cocktail made with heart-healthy red wine, unfiltered cranberry juice, and fresh strawberry puree.
Skip this calorie-loaded app: Ordering an enormous plate of nachos topped with sour cream, cheddar cheese, seasoned ground beef, and avocado means devouring a huge amount of calories before your entrée even arrives. Start with a small taco salad instead made with fresh greens, peppers, tomatoes, corn, black beans, a few crushed tortilla chips, and sprinkled with an avocado vinaigrette.

Keep reading for more calorie-saving tips.

3 Ways Cottage Cheese Can Help You Lose Weight

Jenny Sugar — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 12:53:15 PDT

In order to lose weight, eating low-calorie protein is a must. Protein offers sustained energy, satiates your hunger, and curbs sugar cravings. After you eat a protein-packed food, you feel so satisfied you don't have the urge to reach for extra bites, and this translates to weight loss. Choosing low-calorie, low-fat protein sources is a must and while Greek yogurt has gained a lot of recognition, don't leave out the unsung hero of the protein world - cottage cheese. Here are some ways this simple food can help you drop pounds.

Breakfast: High-Protein Addition
You know how after you eat a bagel for breakfast it's tough to shake that sluggish feeling all morning? Protein has the opposite effect. It offers you energy for hours, so you feel bright-eyed and ready to tackle the day. Eggs and yogurt are popular choices, but for something a little different, whip up a smoothie and you guessed it - add cottage cheese to the blender. For 81 calories, four ounces will add a whopping 14 grams of protein to your glass. The blender will puree the cottage cheese into a smooth consistency, so your taste buds won't even know it's in there. Not into smoothies? Enjoy a bowl of cottage cheese topped with fruit for fiber and sweetness, and nuts for even more added protein.

Keep reading to find out two more ways cottage cheese can help with weight loss.

Things to Never Do While on a Short-Distance Run

Jenny Sugar — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 13:14:00 PDT

With last week's Boston Marathon kicking off marathon season, there's been a lot of talk about how to tackle long-distance runs and how to recover from an endurance run once it's over. All great advice, but for many of us, a 30- to 40-minute run is all we want to handle. For all you short-distance runners out there, here's a list of things to never do during your workout.

Skip the warmup: Even though you're not running for very long, you still need to warm up your cold muscles. Walk briskly, do some jumping jacks, or run up and down your stairs for five minutes to get your blood flowing and to prepare your muscles and joints for the workout ahead. Skip the warmup and you might as well sign yourself up for a pulled muscle.
Carbo load: Depending on how much you weigh and how fast you're moving, a half-hour run burns 300 calories, more or less. Compare that to someone burning 1,200 on a two-hour run and you'll see that it's not necessary to carbo load beforehand with a huge spaghetti lunch. Follow these tips for choosing an appropriate pre-workout snack, don't eat a thing during your workout, and when you're run is complete, nosh on one of these low-cal post-workout snacks.

Keep reading to find out more short-distance running mistakes to avoid.

Healthy Snack: Creamy Peanut Buttery Apples With Grapes

Jenny Sugar — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 01:35:34 PDT

Craving something crunchy and nutty but don't want all the calories and fat that come along with straight-up peanut butter? Here's a sweet low-cal alternative that's also high in protein (over eight grams per serving!).

This filling and fun-looking snack is great for a postworkout treat and is even sweet enough to satisfy your dessert cravings.

It's only 150 calories, so keep reading to see this simple snack recipe.

Spring Weather Forecast: Weight Gain?

Jenny Sugar — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 12:58:41 PDT

Warmer, sunnier weather is thankfully blowing in, and with all that celebrating of the sun brings the risk of packing on a few extra pounds. Find out how Spring weather can cause you to gain weight, so you can be proactive and prevent it from happening.

Forget the gym; I'll take a walk instead. The gorgeous weather can't help but inspire us to get outside and enjoy it, but replacing your intense gym workout with a leisurely walk around the block doesn't exactly burn the same amount of calories. To prevent weight gain and loss of the muscle tone you worked so hard to achieve, make sure your outdoor workouts are just as intense as the indoor ones you've been doing all Winter.

Ooh, the outdoor patios are finally open. When you stroll downtown and see all the restaurants opening up their outdoor patio seating, you can't help but want to grab a seat yourself and enjoy breathing in the fresh, cool air as you enjoy a delicious meal. This is fun to do every once in a while, but don't let the warmer weather inspire you to do it all the time. It's easy to get carried away when perusing a decadent menu, and difficult to guesstimate just how many calories you're consuming when someone else prepares your meal. This means you're at risk of overdoing it on the calorie front, which spells out weight gain. Enjoy patio dining occasionally, and when you do, follow these calorie-saving tips.

Read on for more reasons Spring weather can cause weight gain.

Eating Tips From The Bigger Loser's Former Nutritionist

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 04:17:18 PST

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

When Cheryl Forberg - registered dietitian, James Beard award-winning chef, and creator of The Biggest Loser meal plan - signed onto the show for its first season, she was shocked at the contestants' states of health. "Most of what I did was not on camera; at the beginning of every season, the applicant pool was huge. Season five alone had 220,000 applicants. Once we weeded applicants out down to about 75, we could start doing physical tests while I met with them to talk about eating habits and their weight loss and weight gain tendencies," she said. "The first season was shocking to hear their eating habits, but after a few seasons, I realized I was hearing the same thing over and over again."

Read below as Forberg shares her experiences with The Biggest Loser, the nutrition factors she used to make the meal plan, and a healthy spread you can make easily at home.

What were you most surprised to discover about with the diets of the past contestants on The Biggest Loser?

I found all the contestants had things in common, like the belief that skipping meals promotes weight loss, drinking too many calories, having too much processed fast food, not eating very many fruits and vegetables, little to no water consumption, not eating enough whole grains, and forgetting to plan ahead. Everybody had a different combination of one these things, but what they all had in common was prioritizing their family, work, or something else over themselves. They needed to put their head in the game and get healthy so that they could be around to take care of the people and things they loved. They needed to start taking care of themselves.

More healthy eating tips after the break.

Healthy Fast Food Choices For Kids on the Go

LilSugar — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 03:15:07 PST

Gone are the days when McDonald's and Burger King were the only fast-food options for families looking for lunch on the run. Now parents have a plenty of choices when striving to feed kids quickly, without sacrificing quality and nutrition in the process.

But beware of hidden pitfalls, like seemingly healthy meals that are actually loaded with fat and calories or lacking all nutritional value. We break down what's best to buy and what to skip to keep little ones' engines fueled.

Cosi
California, Connecticut, Washington DC, Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin
A parent favorite for its signature flatbread and wide variety of sandwiches, soups, and salads, Cosi also offers a special kids menu. While it's fairly basic, appealing offerings include a gooey grilled ham and cheese, PB&J, and a turkey sandwich. There are also pizza and dessert options.
What to Pick
The low-cal turkey sandwich with a side of carrots is your best bet, but any of the sandwiches stay within a reasonably healthy and well-balanced nutritional range.
What to Skip
With a whopping 777 calories and 50 grams of fat, the Mississippi Mud Pie is an unnecessary indulgence for kids and parents alike. If they're craving something sweet, opt instead for a raisin oatmeal cookie - it's big enough to share.

Three more healthy fast options.

Ditch the Dairy: Milk-Free Snacks That Pack a Protein Punch

Jenny Sugar — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 03:29:22 PST

Dairy products aren't the only choices when it comes to high-protein snacks. If you're eating a diet minus milk, or you just want a low-cal snack that's high in protein, check out these 150-calorie snacks that don't contain a drop of dairy.

One serving of spicy roasted chickpeas (one fourth of this recipe: 134 calories, 5.6 grams protein
Twenty-one raw almonds: 146 calories, 5.4 grams protein
Six-ounce container of vanilla O'Soy Yogurt: 150 calories, seven grams protein
One slice whole-wheat bread (100 calories, four grams protein) smeared with half a tablespoon natural peanut butter (53 calories, two grams protein): 153 calories, six grams protein
Two Mini S'mores Luna Bars: 140 calories, eight grams protein

Keep reading for five more dairy-free snack ideas.