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• eating healthy
• dietary guidelines
• daily health

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Written by Lisa Jillanza

Fewer Adults Meeting Daily Food Guidelines

According to a recent study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), “less than 15 percent of adults eat enough fruits daily to meet federal recommendations, but the numbers are even worse in some states, dipping as low as 7.5 percent in Tennessee.”

Researchers also found that even fewer adults eat enough vegetables to meet daily recommendations.

The studies show that while the number of fruit and vegetable intake is low across the entire United States, the numbers are staggering in the Southern states.

Overall, the participants in the study consumed fruit less than once a day, and vegetables less than 1.7 times a day.

According to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the model that the study was measured against, recommend that adults who get less than 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity each day should eat 1.5 to 2 cups of fruit and 2 to 3 cups of vegetables daily.  More active people can eat more fruits and vegetables during their day without adding too many additional calories to their diet.

The guidelines also recommend that we increase our intake of dark green and orange vegetables, as well as beans.

Fruits and Vegetables that are in season year round:

Apples

Bananas

Lettuce

Coconut

Mushrooms

Onions

Snow Peas

Potatoes

Avocados

Celery

Carrots

Bell Peppers

Bok Choy

Cherry Tomatoes

• exercise tips
• safe training
• training tips

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Written by Lisa Jillanza

Trainer Tips: Habits to Avoid for Success

If you feel like you have hit your plateau and aren't seeing any results from your workouts lately, there may be more problems than just diet and exercise that are interfering with your goals.

Many people play the “blame game” and find a host of reasons why things have wrong awry.  But according to fitness trainers, there are a number of habits that you can be doing that will wreak havoc on any diet or exercise program that you participate in.

1. You are doing workouts that you hate : if your schedule is full of workouts that you don't like doing, chances are you are going to continuously skip them often!
2. You always take the same class : if you continuously do the same class then your body will get accustomed to that same workout, creating fewer results.
3. You aren't making a plan : if you are always going to the gym and “just winging it” then you won't be seeing any real results anytime soon.
4. You aren't “fueling” your body : it's not enough to just do the exercises alone, you must fuel your body adequately to have the energy you need to complete your workout.
5. You're skipping your warm up : it is super important to always give your body time to warm up before your workout to prevent injury and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
6. You're not getting enough sleep : lack of sleep is one of the biggest bad habits that all trainers talk to their clients about.  Sleep is critical for strength and recovery.  Your body must be rested in order to gain strength.

• eating healthy
• zucchini health benefits
• eating zucchini

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Written by Lisa Jillanza

Zucchini squash is one of the most popular summer squashes in America and Europe.  Almost all members of the squash family vegetables feature smooth skin, tender, crunchy flesh with small edible seeds and high moisture content.

Zucchini is one of the very low calorie vegetables, providing only 17 calories per 100 grams of zucchini.  It is also a very good source of potassium, an important intra-cellular electrolyte.

Zucchini is also rich in vitamins A and anti-oxidant vitamin C, plus they contain moderate levels of the B-complex group of vitamins and minerals like iron and zinc.

Recipe: Mom's Zucchini Bread

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

2 ¼ cups white sugar

3 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups grated zucchini

1 cup chopped walnuts

Grease 2 : 4x8 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Sift flour, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.  Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour into pans. Bake 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes.

Recipe: Japanese Onions and Zucchini

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

2 medium zucchinis cut into thin strips

2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Ground black pepper

Warm the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in onions and cook for 5 minutes. Add zucchini and cook, stirring about 1 minute. Stir in teriyaki sauce, soy sauce and sesame seeds.  Cook until zucchini are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in ground pepper and serve immediately.

• healthy diet
• healthy eating
• Healthy recipe

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Written by Lisa Jillanza

Spotlight on: Bananas

Did you know that the banana is the most popular fruit eaten in the United States? It's so popular that bananas are eaten in more quantities than apples and oranges COMBINED!

Fun facts about bananas include:

We consume about 25 pounds of bananas per person each year.

• There are more than 1,000 varieties of bananas.
• Bananas don't grow on trees : trees have bark and banana plants don't have bark.
• Bananas are low in saturated fats, cholesterol and sodium.
• A large portion of the calories in bananas come from sugars.

Recipe: Classic Banana Bread

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (about 3 bananas)
• 1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Cooking spray

Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk. Place sugar and butter in a large bowl, and beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, yogurt, and vanilla; beat until blended. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until moist. Spoon batter loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 1 hour. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

Recipe: Banana Chia Pudding

• 1 ½ cups vanilla-flavored flax milk
• 1 large banana cut in chunks
• 7 tablespoons chia seeds
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Put milk, banana, chia seeds, honey, vanilla extract, and sea salt in respective order in the blender; blend until smooth. Pour mixture into a bowl and refrigerate until thickened, at least 2 hours. Spoon mixture into small bowls to serve.

• Osteoporosis
• Bone loss
• prevent bone loss

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Written by Lisa Jillanza

Osteoporosis is one of the most common ailments of adults over the age of 50 and it is definitely a problem that people do not want to live with.  Weak bones lead to fractures and many other scary problems that could leave you disabled.

Before turning into full-blown osteoporosis, osteopenia : the process of thinning bones - precedes the ailment.  There are some warning signs to look for to determine if your bones are in fact thinning.

Here are some warning signs for osteoporosis:

• Warning Sign #1 - You've had more than one fracture in the past two years or a fracture that seemed pretty severe considering the circumstances.
• Warning Sign #2 : You are naturally a small or thin person.
• Warning Sign #3 : You have an autoimmune condition that causes you to take prednisone or another corticosteroid.

• Warning Sign #4 : You are a smoker and have been throughout your adult life.
• Warning Sign #5 : You drink more than two alcoholic beverages a day.
• Warning Sign #6 : You do not drink milk or you have a lactose intolerance that prevents you from drinking milk.
• Warning Sign #7 : You have an eating disorder.
• Warning Sign #8 : You are an Asian or Caucasian female over the age of 50.
• Warning Sign #9 : You have a family member who had osteoporosis before the age of 50 or before menopause.