Diet Foods

It's the new year, which makes it the time if year that people are trying their hearts out to keep to their New Years resolutions. I too am working in getting back to healthy (I'm fairly certain I are my own weight in gingerbread cookies over the holidays). I know that over the holidays I didn't run as much as I should have, and I definitely are too much on several occasions and I also had wine way more often than I normally do. 

A super common "trick" that first time dieters, or people who are unfamiliar with nutrition tend to do is eat a lot of "diet food". The 100 calorie snack packs, fat free yogourt, tons if products marked "light". Some of those products are okay, some are terrible. The problem with simply trying to switch to diet food, is that it doesn't really involve changing how you feel about food and health, it's simply a crutch. 

One of the biggest problems with diet food is that despite being sugar free, they actually precipitate our desire for more. Diet foods (like yogourt, granola bars, juices, soda) are full of artificial sweeteners, which actually make us crave sugar more. Artificial sweeteners simply fool our taste buds, not our brains into satisfying a sugar craving. When the body naturally has sugar, dopamine (the reward hormone) gets released from the pleasure centre in the brain. When people stick to diet foods, the body continues to build up a craving for sugars, which makes the craving more intense and makes people more likely to succumb to a larger craving. A happy medium is the have natural sugars (like fresh fruits) in moderation. Top plain yogourt with fresh fruit instead of opting for diet yogourt and you'll be better off! 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Years! I hope that this coming year brings health and most of all happiness to everyone! 2013 has been an incredible year for me! I went back to school, started running more seriously, and managed to find time to eat even healthier this year! 2013 was a year about maintaining lifestyle changes and focusing on what was important to me and my family! I'm excited for what 2014 will bring, including a bunch of running races (including my very first FULL marathon), graduating from school and continuing to focus on a healthy, happy me!

New Years often brings a slew of resolutions, many of which people fail to stick with. I found a few studies that said less than 10% of people actually stick with their resolutions! And to be honest, it isn't surprising. Waiting until the new year to put into action plans you've been meaning to get around to is a terrible way to do things. Why not just start the day you decide you want to make a change? I've been trying to convince a few friends of mine to join November Project  (which I'll explain shortly) with me, and they have all said "I'll think about it in the new year, that's when I'm going to focus on losing weight". Well, why not just start today?

The problem with waiting until you make a New Years Resolution is two fold. Firstly, you're putting something off until an arbitrary date, hoping it will bring you more success, and secondly you're wasting valuable time waiting until the next year to begin. What I like to do rather than wait, and create a resolution, is keep an ongoing bucket list

All of that being said, if you made New Years Resolutions this year, stick with them! Be part of that 8% that keeps their goals! See my post from last year about setting SMART Goals to help get you started and keep you on track! Figure out what works for you and what keeps you motivated. A goal should be about yourself, not about others, and not about comparing yourself to others.

One more tidbit...rather than setting a New Years Resolution, consider a 2014 "Bucket List". I usually keep one each year, and add to it when I find a new goal I want to achieve. I find this to be a more fluid way of keeping track of my goals!

Lets see what an amazing year 2014 can be! 

Homemade Larabars

Medjool dates are delicious all on their own as a healthy snack, but why not incorporate them into a healthy bar recipe, which is refined sugar free, dairy free and gluten free? There are many commercial date based bars available, though many are expensive, and others contain preservatives or for some strange reason added sweeteners. Dates are more than sweet enough on their own, and they certainly do not need any added sugar!

There are many different bars flavours to make, but they all start with a base of dates, nuts and a little bit of water.

Date Bar Base:
2 cups of dried dates (make sure they have the pits removed and are sugar free)
1/8 - 1/2 c water
1 c nuts - I often use almonds as a starter, but any kind will do. Peanuts have a very strong flavour so will alter the bars' taste significantly.

1) In a food processor with "S" blades add in all nuts and blend until coarse
2) Add in all dates to the nut mixture and puree until a paste forms. You may need to scrape the sides of the food processor during the mixing process.
3) Add water slowly as necessary so that dates form a paste (you may not need any water depending on how soft the dates are). The paste should not be overly wet, so add water very slowly
4) Line a Pyrex pan with waxed paper and spray with non-stick cooking spray
5) Press mixture into lined pan and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
6) Remove from pan using liner and transfer to cutting board.
7) Cut into pieces and wrap individually in plastic wrap, or store in a container with waxed paper between layers.

Alternatively these can be formed into balls rather than into bars, and can be rolled in oats, coconut, cocoa powder or anything else to help prevent them from sticking to one another. Store in a container in fridge, with waxed paper between layers.

Mix Ins:
Start with base, and add or omit the following:

Cherry Pie
- add 1 c dried cherries
- add in 1/2 c cashews
- omit 1/2 c dates

Chocolate Coconut Brownie
- add 1/2 c dried coconut
- add 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- add 3 tbsp dark chocolate chips (optional)

Apple Pie Delight
- add 1 c dried apples
- omit 1/2 c dates from original base
- add 2 tsp cinnamon
- use pecans as the nut for the base

Gingerbread Men - I recommend pecans and almonds
- add 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- add 1 tsp cinnamon
- add 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- add 1/8 tsp ground clove
- add 1/2 c nuts
- add 2 tbsp molasses (optional)

Mocha Madness
- add 2 tbsp ground roasted coffee beans
- add 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- add 1 tsp vanilla extract

PB & J
- omit 1/2 c dates
- use peanuts as the base nut
- add 3/4 c dried cherries or other dried berry

Black Forest Cake - I recommend almonds
- omit 1/2 c dates
- add 3/4 c dried cherries
- add 2 tbsp cocoa powder

Tropical Paradise
- omit 1/2 c dates
- add 1/2 c dried pineapple
- add 1/4 c dried coconut
- add 1-2 tbsp lemon or lime zest
- use 1/4 c (or more) macadamia nuts as part of the nut base

Old Fashioned Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies
- add 3/4 c steel cut oats or old-fashioned oats
- omit 1/4 c nuts
- add 1/2 c raisins
- add 1 tsp cinnamon

Carrot Cake
- omit 1/2 dates
- add 1/4 c raisins
- add 1/4 c dried unsweetened pineapple
- add 1/2 c pecans
- add 1/4 c fresh grated carrots
- add 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- add 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- add 1/4 tsp nutmeg

Apricot - I recommend cashews
- omit 1/2 c dates
- add 3/4 c dried apricots

Lemon Pie - I recommend almonds
- add 2 tbsp lemon juice
- add 2 tbsp lemon zest
- add 1/4 c dried coconut

Berry Cobbler - I recommend pecans or walnuts
- omit 1/2 c dates
- add 3/4 dried berries (blueberry is delicious!)
- omit 1/4 c nuts
- add 1/2 c steel cut or old fashioned oats