Powered by Blogger.

Social icons

HillynHall

HillynHall

Unhealthy "health foods"

Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Being a health/fitness junky,  I council quite a few women on their eating habits. It's usually a very frustrated woman who will message me saying,"IM EATING HEALTHY, why aren't the pounds falling off?"
 I usually start out by asking them to tell me what they are consuming on a daily basis. This is where I i zero in on the problem----
We have fallen victim to "health food" marketing ploys. All this health food that we are being sold, is NOT healthy! So many things that are advertised as healthy are so processed and sugar ridden that they are absolutely horrible for us! Yet we feel good about eating it because the packaging tells us its 'healthy' so in our minds we feel like we're doing the right thing, but our bodies certainly know the difference between health food and health fake!

Here are a few of the most  common ones I hear:


Yogurt 


Not all yogurt is bad, but even weight watchers yogurt can be filled with sugar and artificial sweeteners. I could write an entire blog post about why you shouldn't eat artificial sweeteners but I'll have to save that for another day. To make it short, these sweeteners have been linked to cancer, birth defects,infertility and other ailments. So, even though artificial sweeteners make the yogurt fat or calorie free, it does not make it healthy. Even Weight Watchers yogurt packs in loads of added sugar artificial sweeteners and preservatives. Now, heres the good news! Not all yogurt is off limits! Greek yogurt is wonderful! Just beware of flavored greek yogurt. The fruit that you find at the bottom of greek yogurt from the store is usually saturated in sugar. Instead opt for plain greek yogurt and cut up your own fruit add a little honey and you'll be good to go!

Granola bars


While we've always thought of granola bars as a healthier choice, no matter what kind you choose wether its fruit, chocolate chip, almond, coconut or any other variety they are almost always packed with high amounts of sugar and very low in nutrients and high in calories. Its practically impossible to find granola bars sold in stores that are not loaded up with carbs! Instead opt for making your own! I like this recipe. 
    1 1/2 c. rolled oats, Not the quick kind
    1/4 c. natural oat bran
    1/4 c. almonds finely chopped
    2 tbs vegetable oil
    1/3 c. natural honey
    1/2 tsp vanilla extract
    1/4 tsp cinnamon
Pre heat oven to 350 F
Spray baking sheet with non-stick spray. In large bowl mix all the dry ingredients. In small bowl mix wet ingredients. Combine the two.Mix very well until all the oats are covered in the honey mixture. Wet your hands and press the mixture into a 9" / 7" rectangle. Place in oven and bake for  ten minutes.Remove from oven and immediately cut into 12 bars. Separate them a bit and return to oven for five minutes. Cool on wire rack and store in air tight container.

If you add raisins (1/4 c.) soak them in water for five minute first to allow them to plump up.

Makes 12 bars.



Fruit Juice


I dont know who started telling us fruit juice was healthy, but boy were they wrong! We may as well be drinking soda with all the sugar that is added to bottled fruit juices. Believe it or not fruit juice has on average 2.5 times more sugar than the actual fruit! Stay away from it. Your body will thank you!


Sub sandwiches 


I always try to opt for Subway over McDonalds but you might be surprised how many calories can be hidden in a seemingly healthy sub! A 6 inch Tuna sandwich from subway contains 530 calories 30 grams of fat (6 grams unsaturated fat) and 46 grams of carbs! Thats before you add in all the toppings, mayo, lettuce, tomato, onions whatever else! YIKES! The other thing to watch out for in sub sandwiches is the sodium content. Lunch meat and cheese have a high sodium content which can cause high blood pressure and water retention.Which makes us feel puffy. Instead of devouring 530 calories and 46 carbs in 10 minute, try making your own healthy version of a subway sandwich like, turkey breast in a wheat wrap with lettuce and tomato and cottage cheese, or your best option at subway is veggie delight on 9 grain wheat with all the veggies your heat desires and a little vinegar or mustard! 


Oatmeal


Oatmeal can be a excellent source of heart healthy whole grains!...That is if you make it yourself! Packaged oatmeal is chalk full of sugar! However if you make your own you can ward off all the extra sugar and calories and it becomes a great healthy (and quick) option! I make a big batch of steal cut oatmeal (about 6 servings) on Sunday night then just scoop out a serving every morning. Add my own fruit, cinnamon, Truvia (natural sugar substitute) or honey and it tastes every bit as good as the packaged kind and sans the sugar :)


Frozen "diet meals" Weight watchers, Lean cuisine etc.


To start out there is definitely no denying that even though they boast "no preservatives" they still contain lots of chemical additives (just read the ingredients list) These instant frozen diet varieties generally do have lower calories and sodium than other types of instant meals, but the problem is they tend to lack the nutrition that you should be getting out of a well rounded nutritious meal. A good healthy meal will leave you satisfied until the next meal. Lean cuisine type meals are filled with empty calories that  will leave you famished shortly after you've consumed one. This will cause you to eat more...which means----yep! You guessed it. Weight gain! Diet food will make you gain weight...what a concept!

Slim fast/diet shakes.

I won't waste your time on this one.--- Sugar. All sugar. Do your research. I love Atkins meal shakes for a quick ont he go meal! Low in sugar high in protein! Win win!


Diet Soda



While diet soda is free of calories, it is certainly not free of consequence!  The artificial sweetners found in diet soda have been linked to increasing appetite. A recent study at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, conducted a study on a  group of 474 diet soda drinkers for almost 10 years. It was discovered that the diet soda drinkers who consumed 1-2 cans a day  over a span of  10 years had their waistlines grow 70% more than non soda drinkers. Instead of diet soda I like to substitute with flavored (but unsweetened) La Croix sparkling water. It still has the refreshing fizzy taste but no calories, sweeteners, or sugar. 




Trail Mix

This one can really sabotage your weight loss plan! While it sounds healthy and its packaging usually depicts fit outdoorsy people hiking and biking around and doing all sorts of healthy things, its not a snack you want to indulge in if you are trying to lose weight! Trail mix was designed for just that---TRAILS. Trail mix is high in fat, calories and sugar...and for good reason considering its designated purpose: (to give you sustained energy for long outdoor excursions). It was specifically designed for  outdoor athletes ( people trekking long distances and burning a significant amount of calories through out the day. It's a great snack if you are planning on doing something along the lines of a lengthy bike trip, climb or hike, (activities where you plan on burning more calories than your average day.)  Trail mix is quick and easy to take in a backpack, which is what makes it ideal for outdoor athletes. However for folks trying to lose weight, its just plain bad news! Stay clear!


The bottom line is this: Eat healthy. Eat clean. Limit sugar.



Clean means: Fruit, vegetables, lean meat (like chicken and turkey.) Eggs, whole grains like (brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread) Stay away from processed food. I believe whole heartedly the reason we have seen so many Cancer cases, disease and obesity problems in so many young people in our generation, is because we've become a generation who's constantly fed fake processed food in our attempt to be 'healthy'.  Our bodies weren't intended to tolerate that garbage! If you eat wholesome, nutrient rich food, your body will take care of itself. Your weight will take care of itself! Don't be fooled! Read labels! Remember. Its not all about fat content...not all fat will make you fat. There is such thing as healthy fat!  Polyunsaturated fat, and monounsaturated fat are good! They are the fats that make our hair shiny and our skin supple. Don't be afraid of that F(at) word! Sugar, carbs, trans and saturated fats are the ones we need to look out for! That being said, 'low fat' foods won't necessarily be what will help us reach our weight loss goals!  Read labels. Decide for yourself what is healthy. Don't fall victim to sneaky marketing schemes! I've shared what to look out for and what to avoid! The ball is in your court. You control what goes into your body! Don't be fooled! You are only allowed one body in this lifetime. Take good care of it! Do whats right. Make changes before its too late! <3 :)



Post a Comment