Welcome the June – Summer Kickoff Issue of my
newsletter! I love summer with the warm
air and water fun! Just don’t
let that other W (weight
worries) keep you from enjoying the fun. This month I hope
to bring you more easy ideas to manage weight, prevent
diabetes and feel great! Even though I try to practice what
preach - know that I am right there with you in the struggle
to live a healthy lifestyle. Summer can sometimes be
difficult with cookouts, vacations, games and other events
but hopefully it is easier to balance those extra calories
out with some extra activity as well. Have a great month of
June!
In this Issue:
Beware of Summer Beverage
Weight Gain
Trying to Spot Reduce for Slimmer
Summer?
Recipes
Beware of
Summer Beverage Weight Gain
 Remember that every 20oz bottle of soda is 250
calories. Sports drinks generally have less sugar and
calories than soda. A 20oz Powerade has 160 calories and 41
grams carbohydrate. A 20oz Gatorade has 125 calories and 32
grams carb. Their light versions have about 60 calories and
16 grams carb. Iced tea can be zero calories for
unsweetened or if sweetened will be equal to soda in
calories. An 11-oz bottle of Starbucks iced coffee
has 100 calories. Most energy drinks are about
200-250 calories and 50-70 gms carb for 16oz. Smoothies
can be very healthy because you can put a lot of nutrition
in with fruit, yogurt, milk, and juice. But be careful of
portions because they tend to be high calorie.
Fruit smoothies range from 115-250
calories and 29-47 grams carb for a 12 oz serving.
Drinking alcohol is, as we all know,
only smart in moderation anyway but many are not aware of
the high calorie content of alcohol. Your average 12oz beer
has 140 calories, light beer has 110 calories, a 6 ounce
glass of wine has 135 calories, Mikes Hard Lemonade 11oz -
240 calories, wine coolers are about 230 calories, a
Daiquiri averages 140 calories, Pina Colada averages 325
calories, Margarita about 160 calories, and a Martini 210
calories. Every shot of 80 proof alcohol has 100 calories.
Be sure to get enough water,
especially when you are out in the heat. By the time you
realize you are thirsty you are already getting dehydrated.
If you plan on drinking many calories be sure to do extra
activity to burn it off. Just realize that every 20oz bottle
of soda will require an extra 30 minutes of walking to burn
off.
Trying to Spot Reduce for Slimmer
Summer?
Do sit-ups really work to shrink the belly area? Well, I am
sorry to say no they do not. Doing ab crunches does tone the
muscles but does not burn fat. To burn belly fat, we need
aerobic exercise that elevates the heart rate. The best
combination is a healthy diet, aerobic exercise and strength
training – all combined. The healthy eating will prevent
further excess fat accumulation, the aerobic exercise burns
fat and the strength training builds muscle, which burns
more calories.
Strength training the core muscles does often
get ignored though. Our abs, chest and back muscles
stabilize the rest of our body and you can use inexpensive
equipment to do these exercises. Free weights, exercise
tubing or bands, and stability balls are few ideas. If you
are looking for more info on what and how to do these
exercises contact a certified personal trainer or
email me.
Recipes
Fruit Smoothie
2 cups lowfat yogurt, 6 oz frozen fruit juice concentrate,
thawed, and 1 cup fresh or frozen fruit
Put all ingredients in blender. Cover and blend on high
about 30 seconds or until smooth.
Makes 4 servings. 220 calories per serving, 45 gms
carbohydrate, 3 gms fat, 6gms protein
Fruit Crisp
4 cups cut up fruit (I have made this with apples and
rhubarb and it is great!)
1 Tablespoon flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
Mix these ingredients and pour into greased 8” square pan.
¾ cup oatmeal
¾ cup flour
¾ cup brown sugar
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
½ cup melted butter (I sometimes cut this down to 6
Tablespoons)
Mix these ingredients and crumble over fruit mixture.
Pour about ¼ cup water over all and bake at 350 for 20-30
minutes.
Easy Picnic Salad
12 oz package garden spiral noodles
1 ½ cups cucumbers diced large
1 cup black olives pitted
1 ½ cup Roma tomatoes diced large
8 oz chicken breast cooked and diced large
¼ cup fresh basil chopped (or add dried basil to taste
preference)
1-2 cups Italian dressing (add the amount you like; I try to
use the lesser amount because of high sodium content)
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese grated
Pepper to taste
Cook pasta to “al dente” and drain. Rinse to cool. Toss
pasta with remaining ingredients in large bowl. Chill and
serve.
For more nutrition, diabetes and exercise tips
check out my blog. |
