Exercise and Travel is a Great Combination!

Good morning everyone! Life has been a whirlwind for me lately. Recently I decided to meet a girlfriend in Austin for a "boot camp" trip and to pick up my daughter for a spring break visit home. My friend and I decided we were going to take our bicycles and focus heavily on eating right and exercising a lot. If you have not been to Austin, Texas you are missing a great treat. The city is filled with bike trails, lakes, great eateries and nightspots everywhere you turn. This week is the world famous SXSW (South by Southwest) technology and music week but we arrived on Wednesday evening and beat the crowds! We immediately unloaded our bicycles at the local park and rode about 3 miles the first night, not enough to get much exercise before the dark set in. We shared a delicious dinner that evening since neither one of us was really all that hungry. I feel that most meals are worth sharing since at most restaurants they are so large. This not only saves calories, but helps if you are on a limited budget. The next morning we drove over to the beautiful bed and breakfast down the street called The Mansion on Judge's Hill and again shared a delicious protein filled breakfast including a veggie omelet, coffee, a cup of fruit and 2 slices of bacon while skipping the toast altogether. This was the perfect meal and gave us enough fuel to hit the bike trails again! We made it over to Lady Bird Lake which is in the heart of downtown Austin and has a fabulous hike and bike trail system. We rode our bikes for at least 2 hours and really got a workout! Even though my legs felt heavy I felt exhilarated by the riding. The trail is very shady and winds along the banks of the lake formed by the Colorado River. It is hilly in some spots making it a challenging ride for the novice biker. If you go make sure you dress lightly and take plenty of water. I highly recommend this trail as I truly enjoyed the experience. We packed our gear and headed over to Bess Bistro on 6th street. This is a sweet and cozy little basement restaurant that happens to be owned by actress Sandra Bullock. Even though you probably won't see her there you will be treated to a great meal. We had a cobb salad with lots of protein packed grilled chicken and blue cheese. Of course you should always ask for the dressing on the side to avoid loading any salad with needless calories. After our meal our boot camp was winding down, but it was not completely over yet. We headed over to the State Capitol and took the official tour! We walked all over the building with the tour guide giving us a history lesson for at least an hour. I have to say by this point my legs were feeling a bit of a burn! When we walked into the historic capitol building it was warm and overcast, but when we walked out an hour later it was storming and cold! That's the crazy weather in Texas for you! The change in temperature was fine, because our trip was coming to an end the next morning anyway. That evening, we celebrated the start of Spring Break with my daughter and again ate a delicious meal of hot minestrone soup at a local eater called Mandola's. All in all, it was a short 2 day trip packed with lots of activities, exercise and healthy eating. Who says you have to throw your diet out the door when you travel? Stay healthy everyone and have a great week!

Diet Myths Debunked!

Hi everyone! You know what I find interesting? The fact that people survived and thrived back in the old days before our society became obsessed with losing weight and getting fit! We get bombarded daily with everything under the sun that will help us get healthy----information on how to eat, when to sleep, how to breathe just to name a few! The fact is that people did survive just fine without all the weird, suspicious so-called "tips" we all have heard and possibly fallen prey to at one time or another. So don't be tricked. According to the American Council on Exercise here are some common diet myths that some folks follow hoping to shed a few pounds:

Common Myths

• Eating late at night will cause you to gain weight
• You should eat each food group separately for optimal digestion
• Low-carb, high-protein/no-fat diets are optimal for weight reduction
• Carbs are bad for your health and cause weight gain, and therefore should be avoided
• Skipping meals is a good way to lose weight
• The number of meals eaten each day---3 square meals, or 5-6 small meals---has a huge impact on weight management.
• Grapefruit will speed up your metabolism
• Rapid weight loss can be maintained
• You have to stop eating your favorite foods to lose weight

The Truth

Losing weight and achieving your health goals require your commitment and effort. Ultimately, lifestyle behavior changes are normally required to maintain weight loss and anything above 1-2 pounds per week is difficult to keep up. So for healthy weight loss you need to:

1. Get moving! Increase your activity level with an exercise program that makes you comfortable but also challenges you.  Park further from the entrance when you go places, walk up stairs instead of taking an elevator. Even simple things make a big difference. For example, sometimes I don't have more than 30 minutes available in my day to work out at the gym. The important thing is to use whatever time you do have effectively. Work up a sweat, even if it's just for a short increment of your time.

2. Surround yourself with like-minded individuals who will support your weight loss goals. It is extremely difficult to focus on health and nutrition when the people around you are trying to sabotage your efforts. Encouragement is key, especially from close friends and family. If you know someone with similar weight loss goals, make him or her your diet or workout buddy. This makes each of you accountable to the other. I do this with my sister and my best friend and honestly, if I didn't have them cheering me on I don't think I would be as successful as I have been.
Remember! We all should practice Healthy Living Over 50!

Where the Magic Happens--Welcome to My Kitchen!

It's important for you to be comfortable in your kitchen. Try to create your own "happy place" where you look forward to nourishing your body with great meals! I really enjoy working here and creating new recipes that work for me.                                         

I made this great meal last night for dinner. It was very easy, quick to make and nutritious.  It included:
1. spinach salad topped with red and green bell peppers. With a tsp of goat cheese and a sprinkle of sunflower seeds.
2. Some grilled chicken strips. (You can use the frozen ready to use for convenience) 
3. A few sugar snap peas. (You can buy them in the freezer case)
They were delicious!
Served with a tall iced glass of green tea with a handful of blackberries tossed in.

Quick and easy breakfast! Take 1 boiled egg sliced on top of a bed of fresh spinach and red and green bell peppers, add 3 strips of turkey bacon. Serve with  a handful of fresh cherries and a glass of green tea!Very filling, protein packed and nutritious!

 Have a happy and healthy day everyone!