What Liquor to Avoid this Holiday Season

The holidays are a time where family and friends get together and enjoy lots of great food and drinks. BUT if you are trying to avoid those extra pounds, what should you be staying away from in terms of alcohol?

Definitely stay away from those dark liquors such as rum, whiskey, and scotch. If you are into gin, then I would suggest drinking gin and club soda, or of course my go-to drink, vodka soda with lemon. If you usually drink those sweet drinks, and need to add a little flavor to your vodka soda, add a splash of cranberry or grapefruit juice. Tequila and soda with a splash or pineapple juice is also a healthier, yet refreshing drink to sip on at your holiday party.

Here are some drinks you should try this holiday season that won't make you feel so guilty the day after!

Vodka and club soda with lemon or lime
Vodka and club soda with a splash of cranberry juice or grapefruit juice
Gin and seltzer 
Tequila and seltzer
Tequila and seltzer with a splash of pineapple juice
Red or white wine (red tends to add more nutritional value to our lives)
White sangria with tons of cut up fresh fruit, and seltzer... take out the sugary stuff
A light margarita, which consists of tequila and lime juice 
Guinness beer (shocking... I know!). Guinness actually contains less than 10 carbs, and has fewer calories than a Heineken and Budweiser! 

Happy Holidays, and enjoy them as much as possible!!

It’s Turkey Time!

It’s that time of year again, where the holidays are creeping up on all of us! This is the time to indulge in all of our favorite foods, and not feel guilty about it! 

BUTTTTTT

For those of you who are still trying to be good during the holidays, there are plenty of healthy and delicious dishes you can bring to the table as well. I found a recipe online for a sweet potato and spinach mac and cheese, which I will be making this year for Thanksgiving. No, it is not the healthiest, but it is definitely a healthier alternative to mac and cheese.

All you need is elbow pasta, 1 ¾ cups of unsweetened original almond milk, 1 ½ tbsp. of butter, 1 medium sweet potato (peeled and chopped), 2 cups spinach, 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, 1 tsp. nutmeg, 1 cup grated jarlsberg cheese, 2 tbsp. of flour, salt/pepper, 1 large clove of garlic (minced), ½ tsp. of red pepper flakes. Below are directions on how to make it =)

1.       Place the potatoes in a small sauce pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and simmer until fork tender, about 10 minutes. Drain, place the potatoes in a food processor with 1/4 cup of the almond milk and process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

2.       Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

3.       Once boiling, add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente.

4.       Meanwhile, over medium heat, melt the butter with the garlic and red pepper flakes in another large pot.

5.       Once melted, add the flour, stir and cook for about 1 minute.

6.       Add the remaining almond milk and whisk continuously until thickened, about 3-4 minutes.

7.       Add the sweet potato puree to the milk and stir until combined.

8.       Add the nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste.

9.       Stir in the cheese and spinach until the cheese melts and the spinach wilts.

10.   Drain the pasta and transfer it to the pot with the cheese mixture. Stir until fully coated and serve immediately.

I also found a healthy stuffing recipe that looks pretty damn good…. Herb and apple stuffing!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/herb-and-apple-stuffing-recipe.html

Interval Exercises for Quick Weight Loss

Many of us love it and many of us hate, but I personally have found that interval exercises are the most effective. Not only does interval training cut your time at the gym, but you also burn more calories and fat in a shorter amount of time. Below are a couple of interval training's you should try at the gym, and see which works best for you.

Treadmill/Track Interval Training:

Jog for about 5-6 minutes

Run on high speed for about 5-7 minutes

Sprint 30 seconds

Walk on an incline for a minute and a half

Run on high speed for 4 minutes

Sprint 30 seconds

Walk for 1 minute

Run on high speed for another 1-2 minutes

Cool down, walk for 10 minutes

Lunge and Sprint Combos:

Do a total of 30 lunges, 15 with dumbbells

Immediately followed by a 30 second hill sprint on the treadmill

Take about a 30-60 minute break

Complete around 3-5 reps of this

Stationary Bike Intervals:

Start biking as fast as you can for 3 minutes straight.

Bike at a normal or slower speed for another 3 minutes

Take a 2 minute break

Start biking fast again for another 3 minutes.

Bike at a normal speed to cool down for about 10 minutes

Do about 4-5 reps of this exercise.

The Perfect Work Snacks

While many of us are sitting at our desks for 8 or more hours a day, we find ourselves getting hungry, bored, or in need of food. I happen to be a big snacker (which I hate), and am always trying to find healthy snacks to keep at my desk or to bring to work with me each morning. I will only resort to the vending machine if I feel like treating myself to a bag of peanut m&m’s (which I rarely do).

Here is a list of some healthy and simple snacks for all you snackers out there to bring to work. It will certainly satisfy your hunger.

• Sliced apple with organic peanut butter (or almond butter)
• Carrots and celery
• Wasa bread with peanut butter
• Bobo’s oat bars (you can find these at CVS)
• Turkey and ham roll ups
• Mixed fruit
• Nuts 

Having a healthy snack every day will definitely satisfy your hunger, and keep you full for a longer period of time throughout the day.

It's Finally Soup Weather !!

Bundle up, because it is about to start getting real chilly! The fall is upon us, and winter is not too far away. Now is the perfect time to get those soup cookbooks out. Start making those hearty and healthy soups that you can share with everyone!

There are so many different soups you can make that will make you feel warm, full, and satisfied (in a good way of course). One recipe I found, that really seems to stick out to me, is this chicken and white bean soup. I found this recipe on eatingwell.com. It only contains about 15 grams of carbs, 248 calories, and 6 grams of fat (per serving). This may still sound like a lot, but compared to the creamy soups we all love, this is definitely the way to go. Another recipe I am definitely going to try, is this southwestern chicken and vegetable soup. A bit higher in carbs, but lower in calories. Again, if it is a one day/night thing, it won’t hurt to indulge in these great recipes.

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/248881/chicken-white-bean-soup/

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/250624/southwestern-vegetable-chicken-soup/

Hop on the soup wagon this fall/winter!