FitSugar

Al Dente Is Good For Your Health

FitSugar — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 08:45:00 PST

There are many ways to measure the health value of a food, and one such way is the glycemic index. Foods rated high on the index create fluctuations and even spikes in our blood glucose and insulin levels, which is something to be avoided. The lower the GI number the better for your glucose levels. The ratings range from zero to 100 and pasta is generally between 30 and 60 on the GI scale.

To keep the GI rating of your pasta low, you need to eat it al dente. The firmer the noodle is the longer the digestion time. Slower digestion means a lower spike in blood sugars, and that is healthy!

So cook your pasta al dente, which literally translates from Italian to mean "to the tooth." Your noodles should give the sensation of slight resistance when chewed.

Source

Happy 26th Birthday Lady Gaga - How the Singer Keeps Healthy

Michele Foley — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:07:53 PDT

Lady Gaga turns 26 today, and to celebrate, we're taking a look at how the singer stays fit - I mean, look at those abs! - while living such a demanding lifestyle. While Gaga isn't without controversy (she's admitted to occasional drug and alcohol use), she remains extremely focused when it comes to her diet and fitness regimen.

She keeps a consistent workout schedule: Without fail, Gaga maintains the fitness regimen created for her by trainer Harley Pasternak. Even while touring, she works out five times a week for at least 25 minutes each day. The secret to Lady Gaga's killer abs? Lots of crunches. Harley starts her on a basic crunch and modifies that into reverse crunches, ending with a double crunch. If you want to get abs like the birthday girl, check out Lady Gaga's favorite ab exercises. When you've finished the ab routine, watch this video of Harley as he takes you through Gaga's butt workout.
She keeps a healthy diet: Besides following Harley's fitness routine, Gaga also subscribes to his 5 Factor Diet, which says to eat five times a day (two meals and three snacks) of foods falling into these five categories: lean protein, low-glycemic carbs, healthy fats, fiber, and a sugar-free beverage. The diet also allows for one cheat day a week. Some of Gaga's favorite foods to munch on are salsa with grain chips, tofu, turkey slices, hummus, and coconut water. Tonight, make yourself a Gaga-approved meal: check out Harley's recipe for five-spice halibut.
She believes in the healing power of yoga: A longtime yogini, Gaga even makes a habit to practice at local studios wherever her travels take her (Bikram and hot power yoga are her styles of choice). She has said, "Yoga makes me feel like I can do anything," and has called her longtime NYC-based teacher Tricia Donegan an inspiration, saying " . . . yoga heals me and so do you."

Source: Terry Richardson, Getty, Twitter

Do You Pay Attention to Your Foods' Glycemic Index?

FitSugar — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 03:47:14 PST

When it comes to losing weight a calorie is a calorie, but when it's time to just maintain, you might want to look at other numbers. A new study found that people who lost weight were less likely to gain it back over time if they followed a high-protein, low glycemic index diet.

As we all know by now, there are good carbs and bad carbs. The glycemic index looks at a food's ability to raise blood sugar: foods with low glycemic index levels are counted as 55 or less, and foods with a high glycemic index have levels of 70 or higher. High GI foods, like white bread, pasta and rice, boost your blood sugar and have been linked to a variety of problems (from acne to Alzheimer's as well as increasing your risk of type 2 diabetes), whereas low GI foods, like veggies, whole grains and legumes, prevent high blood sugar after meals and help you feel full longer.

Monitoring the glycemic load in food is critical for anyone on a diabetic diet. Do you pay attention to your foods' glycemic index?

Ask the Diet Doctor: Is Fruit Really a "Free" Diet Food?

Shape — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 04:56:35 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar. This week Shape turns to nutritional consultant Mike Roussell, PhD, for some help!

Q: Can I really eat as much fresh fruit as I want and still lose weight?

A: Unfortunately, no. Fresh fruit is a healthy choice and loaded with vitamins and antioxidants; however fruit still contains calories and carbohydrates. These are two things that can stop your weight-loss progress in its tracks if left unchecked.

Whether or not you should eat fruit while dieting has always been a controversial topic. The Internet is cluttered with articles claiming that eating fruit will make you fat, while more recently Weight Watchers has deemed fruit a "zero points food" as part of the Points Plus system, allowing dieters to eat all the fruit they want without it impacting their daily points total.

Which is correct? Is your daily cup of blueberries to blame for that extra layer of belly fat you can't seem to burn off? Or is it an innocent bystander in your quest for your ideal body? One of the reasons that fruit is so controversial is because it can be a double-edged sword. While fruit is a very nutritious food that should be included in a weight-loss diet, there may come a time when you will need to reduce or temporarily remove fruit from your diet to reach your goals. Let's take a closer look at both sides of this controversy.

Find out if fruit is good for a diet after the break!

A Reader Recipe: Roasted Ham and Split Pea Soup

Fit Community — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 00:05:27 PST

Split pea soup is a good way to get that much-needed fiber. FitSugar reader For the Love of Fiber shared this roasted ham and split pea soup recipe in our Healthy Recipe group.

If you were like me and roasted a dee-lish (and pasture-raised) ham on Christmas, save the ham bone (and some of the meat) for a body and soul-warming pot of split pea soup. This soup is amazing in so many ways:

It’s absolutely delicious – Really and truly. It warms you from head to toe on a cold Winter’s day or evening.
Filling – Really, filling. This soup packs a whopping does of fiber in each serving (21 grams) and protein (32 grams), which keeps you fuller, longer.
Glycemic-friendly – The soluble fiber content in split peas (16 grams/serving) slows sugar absorption, which eliminates those nasty spikes (followed by the inevitable crash). Diabetics, take note.
Low calorie – For those counting, each serving comes in under 400.
Nutrient-dense – Not only do you get the amazing benefits from the ham-bone and (hopefully) chicken-bone broth (rich in calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and other trace minerals, as well as glucosamine and chondroiton), split peas are a fantastic source of potassium, which is superb for heart health (coupled with fiber, of course!), and iron and zinc, two essential nutrients for building your immunity, which is critical in the coming months, when flu and cold season really peaks.

If after all of these pros, you still can’t get past the green hue, put on a blindfold and go to town. You will thank me later.

See the recipe after the break!

Simple Tips For Staving Off Holiday Sugar Cravings

Heather Dale — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 03:29:20 PST

You know you're getting into the holiday spirit when the movie Elf is on repeat in your DVD player. If this is the case, let's just hope you aren't influenced by Will Ferrell's bad dietary habits, which include copious amounts of candy, candy canes, candy corn, and syrup! We may not be guzzling down bottles of syrup, but when confronted with tables full of cookies, candies, chocolates, and cake, what's a girl to do? Other than exercising some restrain, here are some helpful tips that will help curb your sweet tooth during the holiday season.

A Reader Recipe: Chocolate Chickpea Protein Cookies

Fit Community — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 04:07:42 PST

Here's a sweet protein treat from reader For the Love of Fiber. She posted this chocolate chickpea cookie recipe in our Healthy Recipe group.

Inspired by Jessica Seinfeld's recipe in Deceptively Delicious, after a few rounds and ingredient tweaks, I cracked the code to a not-too-sweet, soft, and tasty chocolate chip cookie, with, wait for it . . . chickpeas. Yes, protein and fiberlicious chickpeas. You can almost hear the "Hallelujah" chorus, can’t you?

If you don’t have palm sugar (get some), you can substitute it with brown sugar. Why palm sugar? Made from coconut tree nectar, it’s naturally low on the glycemic index, meaning that it won’t spike your blood sugar like white or brown sugar, and has significantly more potassium, magnesium, zinc, iron, phosphorus, nitrogen, and sodium than its white and brown counterparts.

Learn how to make the recipe after the break!

5 At-Home Fitness Tips From the American Idol Trainer, Marco Reed

Self — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 06:05:47 PDT

We are pumped to share one of our fave stories from Self here on FitSugar!

If you've seen the new svelte Jennifer Hudson (that's "J-Hud" to you) in Weight Watchers commercials, you know that the transformation from "hopeful" to "diva" can be a big change. And not just from a physical standpoint.

That's why - whether readying clients for class reunions, weddings, new jobs, new chapters, or performing nightly in front of millions of viewers - frequent American Idol trainer Marco Reed's GetBeyondFit program weighs stress management and stamina as heavily as body sculpting and nutrition.

Idol top-three finalist Haley Reinhart buddies up to trainer Marco Reed.

At this time of year, after American Idol has reached its stunning conclusion, and TV audiences are readying themselves to move onto other shows like The Bachelorette, Marco Reed's job is just beginning.

After the initial hoopla has died down, the show's producers recruit this go-to trainer to ready their new pop stars - like David Cook and Adam Lambert in the past - for album releases and solo tours. (Though Casey Abrams and Haley Reinhart have not trained with Reed, they have been in touch.) An avid watcher of the show, Reed confesses, "I really enjoyed Casey Abrams and Haley. However, I would love to work with Lauren once the show ends. She has a sparkle about her, and I think she would benefit from my GetBeyondFit program."

But what makes that program so unique? And how can we get on board? To find out, keep on reading!

The Paleo Diet: Are Our Ancestors the Key to Weight Loss?

Michele Foley — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 14:57:57 PDT

The Paleo Diet, or Caveman Diet, is gaining momentum in the fitness world as a healthy way to lose weight. My trainer is all about the Paleo Diet - a meal plan based on the dietary habits of our Paleolithic, cave-dwelling ancestors. We're talking wild game, meat, and seafood, and vegetables, fruit, seeds, and nuts. What you won't find as part of the Paleo Diet are foods that developed during the agricultural and industrial eras like grains, dairy, legumes, refined sugars, and any other processed foods.

Given the Paleo Diet's low-carb leanings, it makes sense that it's gaining popularity as an effective way to lose weight. On the calorie meter, protein, vegetables, and fruit give a lot of bang for the buck, and the elimination of grains, refined sugars, and legumes can dramatically drop a person's daily calorie intake. The big question is whether or not the Paleo Diet is healthy and can be sustained for the long run.

Keep reading to find out if the Paleo Diet is a healthy solution to weight loss.

Is Agave Nectar Healthier Than Sugar?

FitSugar — Tue, 11 May 2010 08:53:35 PDT

Recently I asked FitSugar readers to share their tips on how to cut down on their sugar intake, and it sparked a whole discussion in the comment section about using agave nectar. Some said it's a natural sweetener which makes it healthier than sugar, and others debated against that idea, saying it is highly processed and just as bad as high fructose corn syrup. So what's the truth?

To see if it's healthier than sugar

As you can see from the chart below, they're pretty similar nutrition-wise. What you can't tell from the comparison is how the body processes and reacts to each. Agave is praised for being low on the glycemic index (GI) rating, which means it won't cause a spike in your blood sugar levels the way sugar does. High-GI foods like white sugar tend to make us feel hungry sooner since they are digested quickly. So foods made with agave nectar may keep you feeling fuller longer than foods made with the white stuff, which translates to eating less.

	One tbsp sugar	One tbsp. agave nectar
Calories	46	60
Total Fat	0	0
Carbs	12	16
Fiber	0	1
Sugar	12	15
Protein	0	0

But many brands of agave nectar are highly refined, containing almost 100 percent fructose, which is a higher percentage than that found in high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Fructose is a sweetener known to raise triglycerides, promote belly fat, and contribute to fatty liver, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure. Another thing to note is that some distributors of agave nectar have been labeling HFCS as agave nectar, so the FDA recommends looking for labels that say "hydrolyzed inulin syrup," which means it's real agave.

Although both sugar and agave nectar come from plants, both are sweeteners and provide little to no nutrition value. I know it's not what you want to hear, but sweeteners like these should be used sparingly in your diet. If you're having a sugar craving, you're better off reaching for a piece of fruit since the fiber will help with digestion and satiate your hunger.