July Favorites

Welcome to my first edition of my monthly favorites! One thing you may not know about me is I love watching You Tube videos on makeup, hair and beauty products, in fact I waste waaaayyyy too much time doing that! One type of video I watch a lot is monthly favorites where people will show off their favorite beauty products of the month. I felt inspired to share my monthly favorite food and health products. I'm always trying new things and I tend to go through phases with foods, especially as the seasons change. So here goes with my July Favorites!

Seltzer 

I have been completely obsessed with ice cold seltzer this summer. I recently joked that I was "up to 3 cans a day"! I find it so refreshing on hot days and really look forward to this treat. Best of all it's calories free, so my 3 can a day habit isn't setting me back on my health goals!

Berry Shakes I've been loving my berry shakes for breakfast this summer. Just like the seltzer, I find cold shakes totally refreshing in the summer. To make my shake I mix 8 oz. of water, 1 scoop of protein powder (I've been using the Designs for Health Paleo Powder), 1/2 Cup mixed berries, 1 Tbsp ground flax seed and 1 tsp Probiotic Powder. Blend for 1-2 minutes and Enjoy!

Salad 

I crave salad in the summer. I usually try to eat salad a few days a week for lunch, but in the summer I bring salad for lunch almost every day. Recently my salads have been a mix of lettuce, broccoli, beans, seeds, carrots and avocado. I have an ice pack that fits into my salad bowl to keep it cold until lunch time and I bring a small container of dressing to put on top right before I eat it so it doesn't get soggy. Salads can be a really filling meal if you add protein, and healthy fats to it. You can also add variety by mixing up the types of ingredients and dressing you use.

Mango

I was looking for new fruits to add to my mix and picked up a container of pre-cut mango. Mango is a fruit I only recently tried within the the past couple years. I liked the taste, but I found it annoying to cut it up. (If you have any tricks please share with me!). I decided to try the pre-cut mango because let's face it, sometimes you have to pay for convenience! It was so delicious and really easy to pack for a quick snack while working.  A perk of mango is it's on the "Clean 15" list, meaning it contains little to no pesticides and is safe to eat non-organic.

7-Eleven Free Slurpee Day - How Much is it Really Costing You?

Today, July 11, is better known by some as "Free Slurpee Day" at 7-Eleven. Free food can be enticing, but is it worth it? I looked into Slurpee's nutrition facts and found that an 8 oz Slurpee has 18 grams of sugar, that's more than 2 grams of sugar per ounce! The free Slurpee offer is for their Small size, 12 oz, which will fill your cup with a whopping 27 grams of sugar. That's almost 7 teaspoons of sugar! Not to mention this isn't the pretty white sugar you bake with, the very first ingredient in a Slurpee is High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) which spikes your blood sugar, causes inflammation in the body and is toxic for your health. In addition to HFCS, a Slurpee includes other questionable ingredients including food dye and Sodium Benzonate, a possible carcinogen.

Let's just go back to the size of the drink. It really irks me that the nutrition info online is for an 8 oz Slurpee, yet the small cup is 12 oz. Do they even have an 8 oz cup??? I'll have to investigate and add an update. I'm sure the Small size sold out today, but on a typical day how many people go for the small over the larger sizes? Here's the breakdown of the calories and sugar in each size:

12 oz 98 calories, 27 grams of sugar

22 oz  178 calories, 50 grams of sugar

32 oz  260 calories, 72 grams of sugar

44 oz 358 calories, 99 grams of sugar

WOW!!!

So the bottom line is to think twice before reaching for free food because the effect it can have on your health may be pretty costly.

Detoxing After the 4th of July

I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July weekend! Here in NJ it was HOT HOT HOT and we spent time by our pool and fired up the BBQ a few times (OK, we plugged in our electric grill, we're not allowed to have gas grills in our complex!)  It's always hard to return to reality after a long holiday weekend, but here are some tips to get you back on track in no time.

1. Venti Lemon Water, ASAP, and make it a double!

Re-hydrate after a weekend in the sun, especially if your weekend involved America's favorite salty foods like the classic American hot dog, or if you guzzled a couple adult beverages poolside. Lemon is extra cleansing to help your body eliminate those toxins and get you back to feeling great in no time.

2. Lather up on honey and milk...Yup you read that right

Ok, Ok, I know you probably think I'm totally off my rocker, but hear me out. If you spent a little too much time in the sun this weekend you're probably paying the price now with a glowing red "tan" and screaming skin. Believe it or not you may find some relief in your refrigerator! Wipe cold milk on the ailing areas for an immediate soothing affect and dab some honey on burnt areas to speed up your recovery.

3. Hit The Gym, or Better Yet, the Pavement

I left this for last because it may seem obvious, but it's so important that I couldn't leave it out. Burn off those extra calories you indulged in so you won't be afraid to put on your bathing suit next weekend, and help speed your detox process by breaking a sweat. I find exercising outside during the cool early morning or late evening hours more relaxing and rewarding that working out in the gym, so if you're anything like me consider just stepping outside for a nice workout and leave the gym for the rainy and cold days.