Marilu Henner's Blog, page 193

Say NO to soda

Trade in carbonated beverages for water, and see your weight change and your health improve. It's not instant, but it's a small change that will add up fast.

Sodas made with sugar or corn syrup add calories without nutrition, and lead to tooth decay (just ask your dentist).

Even diet sodas cause problems. The chemical sweeteners can lead to cravings for more sweet foods, or for salty foods (to balance the sweetness of the soda). Either way, you don't need those extra foods. And we really don't know what all those chemicals are doing in our bodies over time.

Drinking a carbonated beverage means drinking in gas… and then you have to get rid of the gas. No matter which end it comes out, it's not the image you want to project. At least we don't think so.

Stick with water. Do your body good.

 

Featured recipe from Marilu's table * LoriT's crostini spread

Yum, another appetizer for your upcoming holiday entertaining. Or enjoy it while watching a football game, or favorite family movie.

Some of our best family meals were "Snack Suppers" when we prepared a buffet of hors d'ouevres for everyone to choose from. A few guidelines ("you must choose two vegetables," "you may not eat all the shrimp") and a good variety meant everyone had a good meal and a good time. Don't be afraid to mix it up when it comes to family meals.

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LoriT'S Crostini Spread

Green * Serves 10

6-8 whole garlic cloves

2 cups fresh or 1 can crushed tomatoes (with juice)

1/4 cup pine nuts

chopped basil to taste

1/4 cup chopped olives (black, green, or mixed)

olive oil

whole-grain baguette

In an oven-proof dish with a good fitting lid, combine all ingredients except oil and bread. Sprinkle dish with olive oil. Cover and bake at 350F for one hour. Remove from oven, let set 5 minutes, then lightly mash garlic into rest of ingredients.

Slice the baguette into thin slices on a diagonal. Serve with the crostini spread.

 

Spirit Sunday * An attitude of gratitude

Being thankful is one of those things that we think we're doing, when we could give it a lot more attention. Focused attention.

Starting today, take a few minutes each day (or several times each day) to turn inward, to focus on whatever you believe in, to offer gratitude for your day is refreshing for your spirit.

Meditation encompasses a lot of different practices and is used by a lot of spiritual disciplines. Don't get hung up on the details. If it seems "too foreign" you're over-thinking it.

Just sit down. Take a few slow, deep breaths. Then play the song. Sing along, or just listen. Think about what you want to say "thank you" for.

 

/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/01 Thank You For This Day.mp3

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Say NO to negativity

During the month of November, we're reminding ourselves to say NO. Today? Say NO to negativity.

It sounds illogical, but get past the grammar, and it makes sense.

There are plenty of negative people in our lives. Some of them are perpetual victims, always ready to lay blame on someone else. Some of them are glass-half-empty folks, unable to see all the water in the bottom half of the glass. Some of them are probably clinically depressed, and may benefit from therapy or medication.

It gets difficult to be around negativity, so … free yourself from it. If you find yourself being pulled down, excuse yourself or change the subject. Or if someone needs your help with depression, help them – and then find some support to help you regain your balance.

If you're one of the negative people (and we all have our days, you know?), try to be aware of your negative thinking and negative words. When you hear yourself think or say something negative, counter it with a few positive statements. Focus on the good – see the beauty – feel the joy. If you need outside help, then ask for it, and follow through on it.

Make it a great month.

 

Holiday planning * Dinner time!

If you don't have your Thanksgiving Day plans made already, don't delay!

Where are you eating? Home? At a relative's or friend's home? At a restaurant?

What time are you eating? (In some families this means "When is the football game?" or "When does the Parade end?") Are there work schedules or in-law plans or travel plans to work around?

Who will be present? Are there food allergies or preferences to consider? Age-appropriate activities to prepare?

What's the menu? What food are you responsible for? What are other people bringing?

Don't let the holidays sneak up on you. Make your plans now.

 

Fitness Friday * Say NO to excuses

Look, anyone can find a reason to skip exercise. They're everywhere, and some of them are even kind of reasonable. But not every day. And not forever.

Make daily fitness easy on yourself.

Figure out what time of day will cause the fewest interruptions. For most people, that's first thing in the morning. Does that mean maybe getting up earlier? Sure. It also means a metabolic boost all day for your body, and a mental boost to your day for your mind. And as our member Bloodqueen would say, it also feels righteous, which means you'll have a sense of accomplishment and pride to start your day, too. And when it's time to go to bed, your body will know it, and you'll even sleep better.

If you have kids at home, you and your partner may need to trade off days – one with the kids, and one at the gym. That's great – it shows commitment to each other's health as well as your own.

 

Getting sugar out of your kitchen

It's easier to get the sugar out of your menus and diet if it's out of your kitchen.

Don't add sugar to any of your food or beverages. Stop putting sugar in your coffee or tea – use stevia or agave syrup instead. Leave it off your cereal – add a banana or some raisins.

Get rid of the white foods. That's white and brown sugar (brown sugar is just white sugar with added molasses), powdered sugar, white flour, white pasta, white rice, white bread. Replace them with sweeteners that are less refined, whole-grain flour, pasta, and bread, and brown rice.

Read labels. Get rid of anything that contains sugar, fructose, sucrose, or other -ose ingredients. Pay attention to foods that, if you were cooking from scratch, you would never add sweeteners – like chicken broth, soup, canned vegetables, peanut butter, etc.

 

Featured recipe from Marilu's table * Garlicky mushrooms

These mushrooms are from Marilu's book Healthy Holidays – part of the Columbus Day tapas menu. Yes, Columbus Day was last month – but the tapas menu is good any time! A tapas menu is fun for entertaining, but it's great for something different for a family dinner, too.

These mushrooms also make a great appetizer for the upcoming holidays (yeah, yeah, garlic – if everyone eats it, it's not a problem!).

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Garlicky Mushrooms

Purple * Serves 6-8

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1-1/2 Tablespoons unbleached flour

1 cup vegetable broth

dash of red pepper flakes

2 Tablespoons minced parsley

2-1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

3/4 pound white button mushrooms, wiped clean with a paper towel

In a medium saute pan over medium heat, saute the garlic in 1 Tablespoon of the olive oil until almost browned, about 4 minutes. Do not brown the garlic, it will taste burned. Remove from heat and whisk in the flour. Return to heat and cook over low heat for 2 minutes, or until a smooth paste forms. Slowly add the broth, red pepper flakes, parsley, and lemon juice.

In a separate saute pan over medium heat, saute the mushrooms in the remaining 1 Tablespoon olive oil until browned. Add the mushrooms to the sauce and serve.

 

Sugar and calcium

Our bodies have several built-in systems that go into action when we introduce a heavy load of refined sugar into them. Minerals such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium from our bones are mobilized, and neutral acids are produced in an effort to return the acid-alkaline balance of the blood to a more normal state. Consuming a fairly large amount of sugar each day continuously creates an overly acidic condition, so that more and more minerals are required from within our bodies to create this balance. Eventually so much calcium is robbed from the body, bones, and teeth, that decay and weakness result. As I have always maintained, people don't need the calcium from dairy products to strengthen their bones as much as they need to stop eating sugar to avoid the damage it causes to bones.

~ Marilu Henner, Healthy Holidays

Find healthier options here and here.

 

You and me, baby, we're going to get moving

Do you workout better with a buddy?

Then by all means, phone a friend and get moving together.

A workout buddy can encourage you when you feel like quitting. She can keep your mind on other things while you rack up the miles or reps. Just knowing that she's counting on you to be there for her can keep you committed to your fitness program.

Here's a fun song you (and your buddy) can work out to. Get up and get moving!

//www.marilu.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/03 - Stuck Like Glue.mp3

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