Worried about weight gain during Thanksgiving?? Don't! Listen to what Marc David has to say..

    Last week I was contacted by CNN so they could get some "expert" advice on how not to eat like a pig when eating your turkey. Every year for the last several decades, some major news outlet asks me such questions around Thanksgiving as if they've never been asked before. Seems that too many people are worried about eating too many calories, which would mean too many extra pounds, which means too many subsequent days of punishing exercise and food prison. What a conundrum. We're trying to celebrate the "discovery" of America, which we didn't really discover, by giving thanks for such bountiful amounts of food, which we feel guilty about eating. I wonder if the pilgrims were as concerned about fitting into those cute colonial clothes as we are about fitting into our yoga pants.

So, when the young smart eager-to-learn interviewer at CNN asked me what the best strategy was to limit our appetite around the holidays, I had one rather un-profound answer:

Don't.

I went on to say that I felt we needed, as a culture, more ritual. But the healthy kind of ritual. The type of ritual where we can stop the work, slow down, feast, feel, discuss, giggle, pontificate, resuscitate, inebriate, integrate, and above all else, celebrate. Far too much time is spent in the American way of chasing after more. Yet more never seems to be enough. Giving thanks is a rather odd notion in the material times we live in. Some of us have so much access to so much food that we've become enslaved to our fears of eating, our fears of body fat, and gripped by the massive illogic of media images that would have our women looking like fashion-conscious starvation victims, and our men looking euro-slim and cash heavy.

Ritual can heal us. The human psyche loves repetition, loves eternally returning to a happy and holy place. Thanksgiving is as good as it gets. Calorie-count another time. Give thanks for food, for love, for life, for your body, for what you have right now. Healing happens when love is present. Metabolism gets hotter when we relax. Digestion is empowered when we feel pleasured. And food increases in nutritional value when it's shared with others.

Thank you for your continued friendship and camaraderie and support. Though we likely haven't met, I believe you and I are enthusiastic about and committed to the same positive messages about food, nutrition, health, and Life. The world needs so much healing. Lets give thanks that we are fortunate enough to be up to the task. And for one day, and at least one day, lets celebrate the Journey.

 

My warmest regards,

 

Marc David Founder & Director Institute for the Psychology of Eating 303-440-7642 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              303-440-7642      end_of_the_skype_highlighting info@psychologyofeating.com www.psychologyofeating.com

Fitness Trend: The Shake Weight.

    I know that by now everyone has probably seen the commercials for the shake weight, an "amazing," shaking dumbbell that can tone you up in just 6 minutes a day!  So is it really worth your hard earned cash???

First things first....why "they" say it works...
   The idea of the shake weight is taken from a recent fitness trend of vibration training which uses the oscillation of the equipment to stimulate your muscles, ultimately providing a higher force output during the contraction. Most of the research done has focused on whole body vibration training and yielded mixed results as to whether or not it actually leads to greater levels of muscle force. 
  
Now....why research says it's most likely a waste of your money...
     In theory the weight should stimulate extra muscle activity, but in practice the weight is kind of hard to shake properly and the light weight will not provide enough of an overload to make it an effective tool for developing strength or muscle definition.  Along with that, the DVD that comes with the product only demonstrates exercises for the upper body which will not expend nearly as many calories as if you were doing exercises with all the muscles of the body. 

Your best bet??
   Stick with your normal dumbbells.  If toning is what you want then create a routine that provides a load that allows for fatigue at around 8 repetitions or use plyometric training for muscle definition without an increase in muscle fiber size. 

Did you know??

    Believe it or not, as little as 15 minutes of exercise per day can be enough to help you reduce the risk of all-cause mortality by 14%, and add 3 years to your life expectancy!  Why isn't that info all over the news and magazines??  Anyhow, research studies have been published proving that short bouts of exercise, even with modest efforts, can yield substantial rewards.  You no longer need to feel like your gym workouts need to be over an hour to help you stay fit and healthy ..just get moving!  Take the stairs instead of the elevator, walk up the escalator, park further away, it's these little things that add up, and either help us or hurt us. 

*Be Active, Live Life.*

"Just let me 

be me. 

That's the only 

way I know."

-Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar - Let Me Be Me by Mudge!!!

Wow, Wegmans!

    Earlier this week I made my way over to Northborough to check out Wegmans, a new supermarket that puts a whole new meaning to what a supermarket is and can be.  Wegmans has raised the bar when it comes to better quality products, a crazy abundance of choice, restaurant quality prepared foods, great customer service and beautiful displays.  I must admit, it is a bit overwhelming because of the size and amount of variety..so go in with a list if you want to do your grocery shopping.  Otherwise, I fully encourage all foodies and anyone else that appreciates good food to make the trip, walk around, have some lunch and enjoy what this new market has to offer.  This is more than a supermarket, it's an experience. 

Check out the website for more information:
Wegmans

Food Additives: Do you know what you're eating?

  These days, far too many food manufacturers are cramming harmful additives into the foods we eat each day.  Food additives are substances added to food to preserve flavor or enhance it's appearance and taste, some are of natural origin, such as, pickling or salting, and others of artificial origin.  The problem with many of these artificial, and some natural, additives are the side effects they cause when ingested, being linked with cancer, digestive problems, neurological conditions, heart disease, obesity, and more!

Be proactive about your health, look at food labels, if the ingredients list is a large paragraph full of words you can barely pronounce you may want to think twice.  Products that are especially guilty of this are low-fat/no-fat processed foods.  If they are taking the fat out.....then what are they putting in it's place??  
Know what you're eating! 

Just for curiosities sake - Calorie Calculator

    Ever wonder how many calories you burn during certain activities?  Click on the link below to see what your energy expenditure is when you do anything from sitting to karate!

Physical Activity Calorie Calculator

Excite your salads with a variety of lettuce greens.

  Variety is super important for a healthy diet, it helps supply our body with a combination of nutrients since not one single food can supply them all.  Don't get stuck in a rut, keep your diet interesting by trying different varieties of all types of fruits and vegetables.  One veggie that has many different varieties that I feel are never utilized enough is lettuce.  Salad is a food every dieter will go to in order to help them lose weight, but how many salads can you have before you lettuce yourself out?  Simply changing the ingredients of the salads you eat will help break the feeling on diet monotony.

   Here is the skinny on lettuce varieties and their health benefits.

 Romaine lettuce - one of the oldest varieties of cultivated lettuce and has been consumed for over 5000 years or so. Can be identified by its distinctive elongated head, coarse texture and long, narrow, crispy, dark green leaves with a distinctive rib at the tip of the leaf.

Crispheads - Bear resemblance to cabbage because of their tight, dense heads that form a ball.  Iceberg is the most famous variety but other include imperial, western, vanguard and great lake.






 Butterheads - Got their name from the buttery texture of the leaves, this type of lettuce tends to be a bit sweeter in flavor and mild in taste, so it's perfect for a salad green.  The other butterhead lettuce varieties are the Bibb, buttercrunch, and limestone lettuce. 




Leaf lettuce - This type of lettuce is also rich in vitamin K and vitamin A and are used for taco fillings, salads, etc.  The leaves are mostly lightweight, ruffly, wrinkly with a velvety texture and their colors mostly range from bright green to reddish-bronze.







Also add into the mix, arugula, spinach, watercress, mesclun and more heirloom varieties.

Health Benefits:

• All lettuce is a good source of chlorophyll and vitamin K.
• Lettuce is very good for dieters because it is very low in calories.
• Lettuce is a good source of Iron which is the most active element in the body therefore it must be replenished frequently to meet any sudden demand of the body such as the rapid formation of red blood corpuscles in heavy loss of blood.
• Lettuce magnesium content has exceptional vitalizing powers especially in the muscular tissues, the brain and the nerves.
• The juice of lettuce combined with carrot and spinach juice is very helpful for maintaining the normal color of the hair.
• Lettuce is beneficial in the treatment of insomnia as it contains a sleep inducing substance.
• Lettuce may also help treat the following problems; acid indigestion, anemia, arthritis, catarrh, circulatory problems, colitis, constipation, cough, diabetes, gastritis, gout, insomnia, irritable bowel, obesity, sexual addiction, stress, tuberculosis, ulcers and urinary tract diseases. 

Improve your health and well being by keeping your diet different and interesting.  A healthy diet doesn't need to be a boring diet.

   

Weight loss secret: Breath more to burn more.

     If you want to maximize your metabolism, breathing is one of the most effective tools because the greater your capacity to take in oxygen, the higher your metabolic burning power will be.  I know this may seem strange and many of you are probably highly questioning what I'm telling you, but it's fact...Here's how it works...
 Let's start here...

What exactly is a calorie? 

    A calorie is simply a measure of heat released when something is burned.  Food scientists determine the caloric value of a food by placing it in a special apparatus that basically burns it to a crisp and measures the heat given off.  Everything from a cookie to a couch cushion has a caloric value, and all of these calories need OXYGEN to burn.

 So why would metabolism increase if we consume more oxygen?

     The entire process of digestion is designed to breakdown food into microscopic morsels that can be sent to your cells and combusted with oxygen for energy release.  Over 95% of all energy generated in the body comes from the simple combination of oxygen plus food.  

    Start a fire in your fireplace and two things that concern you most are good wood (fuel) and the right amount of air circulation.  Without oxygen, the fire couldn't exist and the fuel wouldn't burn.  The same is true for your body.

    Do yourself a favor, slow down and BREATH before, during, and after your meals.  Relax and enjoy your meal times.  Not only will more oxygen consumption help relax you in this high stress, fast paced lifestyle many of us today lead, but it will also help boost your calorie burning power!

Restaurant Review - Samba

    Located on busy rt. 9 in Framingham, MA. is a Japanese restaurant gem called Samba, that specializes in steak, sushi, and the culinary experience of Hibachi.  If you have never eaten Hibachi style I certainly recommend you try it, not only is the food delicious but watching the Hibachi masters cook up your meal adds more excitement to your dining experience.  Skilled chefs entertain you with tricks and games while creating culinary delights right in front of your eyes.  No longer must you travel into Boston to get quality Japanese food with an extra serving of fun....and even better they have a DJ, dancing, and karaoke every Thursday through Saturday, sushi making classes and more!  Bottom line, if you're in the area you should definitely check it out.

See everything they have to offer at their website - Samba Steak & Sushi House

Let food be fun!

  On my grocery list for last week were ingredients to make turkey tacos.  After making them I still had a lot of leftovers, so to prevent meal boredom I recreated my turkey tacos into baked tostadas, and they were super yummy!  Here's how I did it.....
   
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Place your tortillas on the baking sheet, brush with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt, black pepper, cumin, and chili powder.
Bake for approx. 5 mins. or until crisp, and golden brown.
Once cool, spread on guacamole, layer on top the seasoned ground turkey, iceberg lettuce, and garnish with salsa.

 Baked Tostada

Baked and seasoned flour tortilla with guacamole, taco seasoned ground turkey, iceberg lettuce, and homemade tomato-serrano salsa.

Mexican kitchen must have's...

    To always have on hand - Tortillas or tortilla chips, mexican spices (cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, oregano, black pepper, salt), fresh garlic.
     Ingredients to pick up - Meat (mine being ground turkey but can be anything you want), tomatoes, onion, avocado, limes, cilantro, peppers (depending on heat preferences you can choose anything from a bell pepper to a habenero)

Is salt really so bad?

    There are many mixed messages when it comes to the effect salt has on the body in accordance to how much we consume.  Salt is essential for health in small amounts, so here's the skinny on how much and what kinds of salt are best.

1. Sea salt:  Derived from the evaporation of sea water, this salt is usually unrefined, and contains natural traces of minerals found in the sea.  
2. Kosher salt:  Refers to flake salt, and is so named because it can be used to prepare meat according to Jewish dietary guidelines.  Both kosher and sea salt are favorites in the kitchen.
3. Table salt:  Comes from salt mines, is refined and, in most cases, iodized.  Tends to be a favorite for bakers because of it's fine grain.

As for which is best...
   Due to being in it's most natural state, sea salt seems to be the most health conscious choice, although, still be aware of consumption amount.  
   Regardless of which you choose, remember that the current recommendation is to limit daily intake of sodium to no more than 2,300 mg, or 1,500mg for people with hypertension, African Americans and adults 51 or older.