Recession Pricing on the Pops!

Everyone has felt the pain of this recession by now. While some of us are pulling out of it, for my husband and I it seems as if the end will never come. Between my working outside of the home, and my impending stressful school schedule my online business has suffered. For my followers, I do apologize. As a goal for myself, I have decided to put more time into The Pops. The great news is that with this economic downturn, the Pops are now being offered at special prices! All plans are 20% off, with special savings for those on subscription plans. Installments are also offered for those on the subscription. Also, if you blog, why not make some extra money doing it? Whole Food Nation is free to join as an affiliate, and practically sell themselves. You are on the computer anyway right? Do you take the Pops yourself? You can sign up and get paid for ordering for yourself! How great is that? Think about it. Who wouldn't want to get paid for something you already do?

Green Pops Page
Purple Pops Page
Sign Up An Affiliate

TV Causes Overeating???

I mean really. This is an actual study. How long have people studied this? Way to long in my opinion. Advertising reps get paid 6 figure incomes to know when and how to show these ads to a target audience. Think about Saturday morning cartoons. All the ads are for things kids want. Kool-Aid, Go-gurt, ect. Kids are typically a captive audience. While adults take these opppurtunitues to grab a snack, children will sit glued to the television. The kids see these ads and urge their parents to go out and buy what they saw. Now fast food ads are shown after the news during your evening programs. When dinner is wearing off, and a snack sounds good. Here is the full article. What do you think about all this?

WEDNESDAY, July 1 (HealthDay News) -- Watching food ads on TV leads to a boost in snacking among children and adults, increasing the risk of weight gain, U.S. researchers say.

Yale University researchers conducted a series of experiments to test the effects of food commercials on television. One test found that children aged 7 to 11 who watched a half-hour cartoon that included food commercials ate 45% more snack food while watching the show than children who watched the same cartoon with non-food commercials.

That increased amount of snacking would lead to a weight gain of nearly 10 pounds a year, unless it was countered by decreased intake of other foods or increased physical activity, the researchers said.

In another experiment, adults who saw TV ads for unhealthy foods ate much more than those who saw ads that featured messages about good nutrition or healthy food.

"This research shows a direct and powerful link between television food advertising and calories consumed by adults and children," lead author Jennifer Harris, director of marketing initiatives at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale, said in a news release from the university.

"Food advertising triggers automatic eating, regardless of hunger, and is a significant contributor to the obesity epidemic. Reducing unhealthy food advertising to children is critical," she said.

The study appears in the July issue of the journal Health Psychology.

-- Robert Preidt

SOURCE: Yale University, news release, July 1, 2009

Herbal EVERYTHING?!

I have started some personal research on a very touchy topic. Infertility. My sister recently lost twins at 5 months. This sparked my interest to find out how this happens. I myself have lost 3 pregnancies, 4 years apart each time, and each before 8 weeks. So what causes all these problems? The answers are varied greatly. Each individual can have just as many individual reasons for not being able to either conceive and or carry a pregnancy. Now while I do understand that Chinese herbal remedies have been around for centuries, some of these are not safe during pregnancy. In fact many everyday things are taboo for those who are high risk. Caffeine, smoking, alcohol, certain foods, strenuous activity, the list goes on. So how do you sort it all out? The very first thing to do is get yourself as healthy as you can prior to trying to get pregnant. If you are overweight, you need to change whatever it may be keeping you this way. Whole food nation offers several different plans to get you to your goal weight. This goes for those who are underweight as well. Having to much body fat or not enough can put a fetus at risk. If you smoke, as you probably already know, you need to quit. Smoking causes ovulation problems and can prevent pregnancy. The chances of becoming pregnant are only about 20% each month in a healthy woman and each of the other factors involved can decrease those chances even further. The steps you take to prepare yourself prior to trying to become pregnant are just as important as what you do after you learn you have in fact conceived. It often takes 2 weeks before you suspect it has occurred, therefor making sure your body is ready before can prevent any drastic life changes after you receive the good news. Caffeine with drawls are terrible, so easing off it slowly is best. Try switching up 1 soda a day for water, after about a week replace another. Changing to low caff coffee is also a small easy to handle change. Health care pros say it is relatively safe to have 1 cup of regular coffee a day during pregnancy. So if you can't live without your morning pick me up, remember to limit it to just one. Working out is also vital to your health but don't overdo it. If you plan to have a baby, discuss your routine with your physician and see if you need to change it up. Yoga is a great alternative that helps to relieve some stress and minor aches and pains. There are some poses that cannot safely be done, and you need to consult a pro before starting any new workout regime. Videos can be found almost everywhere that focus on prenatal workouts. The food you eat can also sabotage your body in many different ways. In this fast food, instant gratification society, making good choices is often hard if not impossible to do. Clean out your fridge, make that extra few mile drive to the local farmers market, buy organic produce. The drive thru window is not the way to be healthy. For you or your baby to be. Think of it this way, would you feed that to your child? If you are pregnant or trying to become that way, that is exactly what you are doing. Do you really want your kids eating a double quarter pounder? Another huge issue is vitamins. You need extra nutrients during this time. The pops are an easy to use way to get your servings of veggies and fruits as well as other essential nutrients. Calcium, and iron are found naturally in veggies and fruits and getting them in their natural state is much more nutritious. Also the Pops have zero additives. No dyes, binding agents, or gels. If you are taking a prenatal, good for you, but please make sure you understand what is in them. (previous post about lake #40) As with anything you take, eat, or do, be sure to inform your physician. While there is a multitude of free information on the web, only you and your doctor can decide what is best for your situation.

To learn more about the Pops, or the ER Fat Burn check out my website.
http://www.vitamingirlshop.info

Recession Proof Your Diet

Everyone is feeling the pain of job cuts. Making cutbacks on lots of things is more important in these tough times. So is there a way to still eat right without going over budget? I have found a way. Almost everywhere I know of you have a way to access coupons. Each Sunday I go buy a paper. The 2.00 I spend is made up for by the savings I find. You would be amazed how much money you really can save on everyday items. Shopping at a different store can also help. I have several options available near me, but I have found the cheapest overall is Wal-Mart. They carry just as much of the organic products as every one else, and everything in their stores is at a lower cost. Local farmers markets are also a great way to save on produce. If you have a meat processor nearby, be sure to call them and see if they sell retail. You can typically save anywhere from a few cents to several dollars a pound on the same quality of meats you would buy at a chain store. While it may not seem as convenient to drive a few more miles to go to these stores, the money saved tends to make up for it. I moved several months ago and a trip to town is now a 10 mile drive for me. I try to get to all my stores in one trip. I start at the farthest and work my way back towards home. Before I leave I look in my cabinets, make a list, and look through all my coupons. I make notes on the list in regards to the coupon so I know how many I need to buy. When I get to the store I compare everything. Some stores list price per ounce ect. right on the shelf so you know what is your best buy. Certain snack foods I will only buy if I have a coupon, I buy generic when I can, and freeze all my meats. I buy in bulk, separate the package into meal size portions, and freeze them. You don't need a vacuum sealer, or some other high tech food saving storage. A good selection of freezer bags saves space as well as money. Many stores also have specials on items close to their sell date. You can get bread and meats at a greatly reduced price. You just need to use it or freeze it by the date. Rolls are wonderful for this. You can get a bag of fresh dinner rolls, and place enough for a meal into freezer bags. Then when you are ready to use them it takes a short time to defrost. If you plan meals in advance, you can easily have the things you need thawed before you get home. I take these out prior to leaving for work in the morning, so they are ready when I make home in the evening. Healthy eating does not have to break the bank. Simply changing the way you shop can make all the difference in the world.

http://www.vitamingirlshop.info

Breaking BAD Habits

I can see how easy it is to eat junk. I recently reentered the work away from home world, as well as am taking some college courses again. My school hours are 1-4pm. And I work 1130-730. Now this may not seem to bad. My hours are nice enough. The problem that I have is this: These are the times of day most people are having lunch and dinner hours. I am used to eating lunch around noon, and dinner around 6. So the 2 days a week i am in school, I am driving during my normal lunch time. Work days I am already at work when I usually eat. I spend over an hour a day driving, 6 days a week. When you are in the car that often it's difficult to not stop in somewhere an hit the drive thru. (I had a jumbo Jack and fries on the way to school the other day.) I was starving an had woken up late. My other problem is that no matter how early I set my alarm for, I hit snooze an sleep as late as I can. I have to be up at least 2 hours before I can eat anything, and usually am already on my way by then. (try eating a bagel with cream cheese and jelly while you drive) So bad habits come back. I have been taking meals for lunch. And keep healthy things with me to resist eating junk at work. I do alright on my way home, but when I get home I am so tired and have homework to do and cooking is not in the gameplan. When I went shopping last I was careful about what I bought. I stayed away from frozen foods with a few small exceptions of french fries and taquitos. I have been making snacks of fresh celery and peanut butter with honey. I buy the Jif, it has less of the crap in it an no preservatives. Just peanuts, honey, and a bit of soduim. But all in all peanut butter is not that bad for you. It has far less fat and calories than microwave popcorn and frozen dinners. While fresh whole foods are best for all of us, there are still ways to eat well and fast without eating junk. Read the labels. It may look harmless, but you would be amazed. Look at a Marie Callanders Pot Pie. I love those. but if you eat 2 a day you have exceded almost all of your recommended daily allowence for everything. They have over 1000 calories in one. Even the new smaller ones, (10.5 oz) have about 650 fat grams. I recently quit smoking an took up Yoga in it's place. I made a deal to myself to trade a bad habit for a good one. It's all about the small things we do that make a big difference. The next time you are in the grocery store, make one or two small changes. Instead of can veggies, but fresh ones. Replace the box potatos with a salad. It's very easy to integrate veggies into your meals, think of the colors of what you are eating. Put colorful foods on your plate. Try a fresh fruit salad for dessert instead of chocolate cake. Fresh corn on the cob instead of canned peas. Always trade a bad habit for a good one. Everytime you do your new "good habit" congradulate yourself. You can never have to many GOOD habits.

How your friends and family may be killing your diet....

Many of us already know what I'm about to talk about, but few of us know what to do about it. A good friend of mine made the simplest comment the other day, but I've been mulling it over ever since. She said "It's so hard to eat right when everyone around you is eating the wrong stuff." Now she is not heavy by any means, but in the last year she has put on 20lbs she would rather not have. I am sure her situation is very similar to many other people out there. She has 2 children, a husband, and works full time and goes to college at night. Her job and home life are the reason she gives for her weight gain. She explained to me that with a 8 and 9 yr old in the house, at times it's easier to pick something up on the way home from her night classes. So fast food is often on the menu. Her husbands hours vary at times so he is on occasion not home at dinner time. Quick fix meals, microwave stuff ect. Her job is in an office full of other people who often have lunch together. They either order in, pizza, subs, ect. Or a large group gets together to go eat at a nearby Mexican place. So, between being extremely busy, having children whom are used to fast food, and the people at work eating junk all the time, she has a very hard time making good choices for her meals. This also had me thinking back to my days of working away from home, each place we would order in from had a $15 - $25 min. for delivery. Now if you are really just wanting a sandwich, you would run around and collect orders from everyone. Needless to say, we ate a ton of pizza, chinese, and on ocassion Jason's Deli. Location made a difference as well, only 3 places were within delivery range for us. Making terrible choices is so much easier when everyone around you is eating things like pizza. Willpower is an amazing thing, but I love pizza and a salad just dosn't compare. So, how do we fix these delicious downfalls? Try these suggestions:

1. Find another person at work who is dieting as well, go have lunch with them
   
2. If you must eat fast food, take advantage of the "better" choices they offer. Have a salad instead of fries. Bottle water instead of soda. Grilled chicken instead of fried.
   
3. Take healthy snacks with you, keep them in an easy to see place so you will be less tempted to get a candy bar from the vending machine.
   
4. Make a goal to cut out 1 bad food each day. Slowly increase this until you are no longer eating any junk.

Other people eating badly is not always so easy to fix. Schools offer junk for lunch. Pack a lunch for your child. If they love PB & J, pack that with an apple. A small change will not shock them so badly, and they may not even notice. Add extra veggies to your meals. Trust me, people will notice. My husband has recently started eating better. I didn't do anything but mention it to him. He works on the road 14 days at a time, but he said he has been eating at Subway and getting salads more often than before. He has almost completely cut out hamburgers from his diet. Our house is packed with fresh fruits and veggies. He went and bought celery and oranges the other night for snacks. Hmmm. I thought I was going to have to force this stuff down his throat. All I had to do was change what I have in my house, and not eat junk in front of him. Now I still like the occassional burger, but only about once a month. Just like my freind said, It's hard to make good choices when everyone around is making bad ones. I guess it goes the same for good choices. If people see you eating good for you food, it just may make them take a second look at that plate of nachos they just ordered.