5 Ways to Maintain a Healthy Diet

We're almost at Valentine's Day, which means the year has been flying by (and not because I want it to). By now, most people have forgotten about their New Year's Resolutions and feel guilty about it, so if one of yours was to eat healthy this year...look no further! Here are my tips to getting right back on track and maintain a healthy diet (at least for another couple of weeks...hey, spring break is right around the corner!)

• FIBER. Man, if you knew me in real life I could go on for hours on why I think fiber was the best thing Mother Nature ever decided to create.  How does fiber help you though? Well, it keeps you full for longer than any other food product. Because our bodies cannot digest fiber, it is the main component in what we excrete (yes, fiber makes you poop more...I'm telling you, it's God's given gift). It keeps your body nourished, hydrated, and satisfied for 3-4 hours. Sources: oatmeal, popcorn, whole-grain foods, vegetables, fruits, beans. Get in about 25-27 grams per day of fiber, and your body will be thanking you!

• VARIETY. Many people see eating healthy as not being about to eat anything. Yes, healthy eating means clean eating, so there are no processed foods in your diet anymore. BUT that doesn't mean you can't have fun with your meals! I'm going to give you a challenge that my friends and I do at dinner at least once a week. Everyone around us thinks we're ridiculous, but it's so much fun and really healthy! We (and I'm being completely honest) have salad contests. Yes. We compete as to who can make the most aesthetically-pleasing salad from the salad bar in the dining hall. And let me tell you, we go all out! When you think of something that looks nice, do you see just one color? NO. You see all the colors of the rainbow. We add everything from spinach to beets to sprouts to fruit on our salads. And the more colorful usually means the better the taste! Have fun with your clean, unprocessed foods people!

• MEATLESS MONDAY. Now I don't always do this on a Monday, but I do try to get in one day every week where I do not eat any animal product. So, I take meatless to the extreme and do a vegan diet. You can stick to a vegetarian diet for one day a week (some people can't live without cheese, I completely understand). It ties in with the last tip: add variety to your meals! You become more creative, and it makes eating food that is healthy that much more fun when you have to challenge yourself!

• PORTIONS MY FRIENDS. I know, big plates of food are always the best plates of food (Thanksgiving just kills everyone's idea of a portion, doesn't it?), but smaller portions are always the way to go. Try one cup of rice rather than 2. Maybe 3-4 oz of animal meat rather than 6-8 oz. Keep the portions small to keep that waistline small!

• MODERATION IS ALWAYS THE ANSWER. If you are craving chocolate, eat a piece of chocolate. If you're craving red velvet cake, eat a slice of red velvet cake. Don't deprive yourself because that is how you get to the bingeing stage when rather than eat a slice of cake, you just eat the entire cake (been there, done that.) When you want chips or bread rather than the apple at Panera, go for it. Just do so in moderation. Only have the chips/bread 1/4 of the times you go to Panera. Have that slice of cake one night a week. Keep the delicious, processed foods in moderation so that your waistline doesn't go anywhere!

There you have it lovelies! Take these tips and run with the wind--English major jokes are awkward because I'm a science major--and whenever you get a bit off track, just jump right back on to the track. 

I love you all lots!

<3, Jo

Avoiding the Freshman 15

The scariest thing for someone going into college is gaining weight. It's the myth that everyone is scared to death of. Of course, I was scared of it and made sure that it didn't happen to me. I ended up becoming even healthier than I was back home, which gives me the opportunity to give you guys tips to keep the weight off.

• Walk to class! This is especially true if you go to a big school! The shuttle may be easier, but the walking will give you extra calories burned!
• Keep healthy snacks in your room! Instead of buying ramen, candy, oreos, and the like, buy almonds, walnuts, fruits, and instant oatmeal. By making it a task to go get unhealthy food, you are less like to eat unhealthy!
• Limit the alcohol! Remember, as a freshman you are technically underaged. But of course, college is about freedom and independence and many frats obviously don't check IDs, so drinking is going to become a lifestyle for some people. Unfortunately, it packs on the calories. If you are going to drink, try to limit to the equivalent of 3 beers (1.5 solo cups) ONCE a week (pick Thursday, Friday, OR Saturday).
• Mix n Match in the dining hall! Buffet style food can be your best friend or your worse nightmare. For most freshman, it's your worse nightmare. Forget the pizza and burger bar, go straight for the lean protein and veggies. For lunch, I love making a salad at the salad bar with spinach, mushrooms, cucumbers, chicken/tofu/beans, and oil and vinegar for dressing! For dinner, I love steamed/roasted vegetables and some type of lean protein (chicken or turkey or tempeh!).
• Reusable water bottles! Whether you get a nalgene or a camelbak, you need water with you at all times! Not only is it important to keep you hydrated, but it can keep off the feeling of hunger during class so you don't go for the vending machines. Try to drink about half of your weight in ounces! (Example: 140 lbs / 2 = 70 ounces of water per day)

In the next few days, I'll post a grocery list and some breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack ideas as well!

Dieting: 8 Hormones You Should Be Aware Of

When people think of the word diet, they think of losing weight. That weight can come from anywhere: fat, muscles, or water. Whenever people say that want to lose a little bit of weight, I always get discouraged because to be able to keep off the weight, you have to lose the pounds in a way that will speed up your metabolism. By creating a faster metabolism, you are ensuring that you keep that weight off and continue to live healthily. In order to create a faster metabolism, you must lose fat when you lose weight. Not water weight. DEFINITELY NOT muscles. 

Why do you want to lose fat? By losing fat, you are not only creating a faster metabolism, but you are also creating the lean, sculpted, and toned look everyone wants. By losing water weight, you are just asking to regain the weight even faster than you lost it. And by losing muscle, you get the "skinny fat" look. And who wants that?

Your metabolism is linked to the hormones in your body. More of a certain hormone can slow or speed up your metabolism causing fat gain or fat loss. There are 8 different hormones everyone should be aware of when choosing their food choices, so that we are always trying to speed up our metabolism.

1. Adrenaline. We all know what adrenaline is. It's the hormone that gives you that heart-pumping, anxious yet excited, nervous feel before something big happens. Adrenaline signals the body to start burning fuel, and if testosterone and human growth hormone (HGH) are triggered, that fuel can be fat. But, if insulin and leptin are triggered or high in content, adrenaline signals the body to start burning sugar (we don't want that).
2. Cortisol. You have probably heard of cortisol. It's the hormone that can make you gain weight, and all other sorts of things. And for good reason. In the presence of high insulin and low testosterone and HGH, cortisol will signal your body to store fat and burn muscle (yikes!). BUT, if cortisol is released with high amounts of testosteron and HGH, it will block muscle burning and enhance fat burning.
3. Ghrelin. This is the hormone that makes the gurgling noise when you're hungry. It tells your body on a moment to moment basis how hungry it is. When there is a lot of ghrelin, your stomach is growling and you're hungry. If there is a low level of ghrelin, you feel full and satisfied. By eating protein and fiber, you can keep those ghrelin levels down!
4. Leptin. This is another hormone that tells your body if you are hungry by gauging your energy levels on a day to day basis. If you become leptin resistant, you will keep eating as if you are starving (hence how some people become morbidly obese). So, you want to keep those leptin levels steady so that your body knows when to stop eating and start burning.
5. Glucagon. This is the Jekyll to insulin's Hyde. It makes you burn fat! It works in the liver to help regulate sugar and fat usage. How do you get more glucagon? Protein stimulates glucagon, so eat more of it! This is why a lot of fitness/nutrition experts say to eat protein with every meal!
6. Insulin. Oh, the Hyde to Glucagon's Jekyll. Insulin helps you store fat (sad day). With a high level of insulin, any extra calories in the body is immediately stored as fat. This is why the Glycemic Index became so important. Foods with high GI spike your insulin levels, making your body store it as fat. Foods with lower GI keep your insulin levels steady, so no fat storing occurs.
7. (& 8)Testosterone and HGH. These two are the building and burning hormones. They assist with cortisol and adrenaline to burn fat instead of store it.

Now that you know the hormones you need to keep in check, here is a summary of what to remember:

To BURN FAT, keep your glucagon and HGH levels high while maintaining low levels of cortisol, leptin, and insulin.

How do you do this? 

Up protein, eat foods lower on the glycemic index, and LISTEN TO YOUR BODY so you know when you are full, satisfied, and hungry!

MAGIC WEIGHT LOSS PILL?!

So I watched Dr. Oz again today...

Now I don't not like (what?) Dr. Oz. He is obviously a very intelligent person who has a lot of great credentials. I just don't get why he tell people only about quick fixes? Like whatever happened to just eating right? (Hey, I heard that it works for a lot of people).

Today, he had a coffee bean supplement. And yes, the studies are remarkable. There are no side effects, weight loss is superb, and it makes you feel full. It's all good and great, but what happens when you stop taking the pill? Also, the studies had the people do no physical activity and eat just like they would normally. And then, on the show, Dr. Oz did not even try to mention that maybe if you ate well and had regular physical activity, you could lose even more.

So in the end, Dr. Oz was promoting this supplement for a quick way to lose weight. Not helping people learn the right way to eat is what causes yo-yo dieting. I just wish Dr. Oz would just put in a disclaimer that eating right is important. I mean, it is 80% of maintenance in weight loss.