The Surprising Nutrition Facts of Salad Toppings, 10 Pantry Must-Haves, and Cosmetic Surgery to Give You Dimples
- Risky foods like leafy greens and eggs can cause everything from minor stomachaches to life-threatening illnesses. In fact, contaminated food is such a big issue in the U.S. that we spend an estimated $152 billion annually on doctor visits, medications, and more. [Time]
- In a pinch, wouldn’t it be nice to be able to turn to a well-stocked pantry and whip up something tasty (and gentle on the waistline!) instead of resorting to greasy takeout? Always be prepared by filling your cabinets with these 10 must-haves. [MyRecipes.com]
- From designer vaginas to lethal butt implants, cosmetic surgery has gone a little wacky recently. Following the trend is a new procedure gaining in popularity: going under the knife to get dimples. [Vitamin G]
- One of our biggest lunchtime mistakes is tossing everything at the salad bar into our bowls and calling it a healthy lunch. A salad can be surprisingly fattening, so before you throw your next lunch together, check out the nutrition facts in this list of popular toppings. [FitSugar]
- What’s your best option for birth control? What are fertility rates like in your 40s? Make sure to get the answers to these questions and more the next time you slip into the stirrups; here’s a rundown of questions you should ask your ob-gyn in your 30s. [Fox News iMag]
Previous news from Around the Web:
Fit at Every Level: 3 Steps to Amazing Legs
Transform your legs with help from trainer and former New York City Ballet dancer Brynn Jinnett. These moves are based on her Transfigure class at The Sports Club/LA in New York City; choose your level, then do them 2 to 3 times a week for results in 3 to 6 weeks. View the slideshow.
Style Solutions: Help Me Look Long and Lean
From Health magazine
Stacy London shares style solutions for helping you look long and lean:
- When your legs look longer, you look taller. To visually lengthen your legs, choose high-waisted skirts and pants, empire-waist pieces, or dresses with a waistline above your natural waist.
- Elongate your neck by wearing dresses or tops with V-cut or scooped necklines and avoiding chunky necklaces, which ruin the lengthening effect.
- Keep accessories small. Anything oversize (sunglasses, bags, scarves) makes you look shorter.
If you want to look long and lean, check out Stacy’s clothing guide. View the slideshow.
Why Healthy School Meals Matter
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack explains why our schools are on the front line of efforts to improve childhood nutrition, our collective health, and the future of the nation.
3 Diet Resolutions for National Nutrition Month
March is National Nutrition Month, and March 11 is Registered Dietitian Day. For me, March is a better time than New Year’s to make resolutions to improve your diet and lifestyle for optimal health and well-being. In January and February, it can be hard
Foodie Friday: KIND Snack Bars
What’s better than a grab-and-go snack? One that tastes delicious and is made of natural ingredients.
7 Lucky Irish Recipes
These recipes are lucky, because you’ll get the savory flavors of Irish cuisine without all the unwanted calories.
My Secret Ingredient for Weight Loss
With Health magazine’s March issue boasting a Secret Ingredient theme, I got to thinking about the secret ingredient in my life, the thing that finally helped me reach a healthy weight and stop obsessing about my body. Nope, it wasn’t a diet. It was strength training.
I’d had a weight problem for most of my life. It started early; you can actually look at my school pictures in second and third grades and see the difference—the rounder cheeks, the hint of a more ample chin, the pudgier arms. I spent a good portion of my teens and 20s on various diets and finally lost the weight I needed to in my early 30s, thanks to Weight Watchers. But it didn’t last. Despite my good eating habits and commitment to walking, biking, and skating, my weight crept right back up, leveling off at around 150 pounds, which is a good 10 pounds or so above the top of the healthy range for my 5′4″ frame.
I’m not sure what nudged me to finally take the plunge. Maybe it was turning 40 and knowing I faced an uphill battle on the weight front, thanks to a slowing metabolism. Maybe it was editing story after story explaining that the very best way to increase your metabolism is to build muscle, thereby allowing your body to naturally burn more calories every day. Whatever the catalyst, I finally, finally committed to what, as fitness editor, I’d been urging Health readers to do for years: I started strength training.
Up until that point, I’d dabbled in strength training sporadically. I’d do some half-hearted biceps curls, a few crunches. The couple of times I managed to get into some semblance of a routine, it was always the first thing to go if time ran short—something that happened all too frequently.
This time would be different. I made a vow to myself to do three strength training sessions a week in addition to the four cardio sessions I was already doing (and promised myself a reward if I did so). If something had to go due to a full schedule, it would be cardio. I would start small—10 or 15 minutes spent doing moves taken from workouts we’d run in Health, using 5-pound weights.
After a few weeks, I began to see a difference. There was the definition in my arms, the outline of muscles in my thighs, a new firmness in my waist. My pants felt looser. Spurred on by my changing body, I moved up to heavier dumbbells and found myself extending my strength workouts to 20 minutes, then 30. I began to enjoy the exercises, to appreciate how powerful I felt doing a push-up, a lunge, a chest press. I stopped “dieting” and began to concentrate on simply eating healthy foods, stopping when my body told me I’d had enough.
And the number on the scale? It got smaller. And smaller. I returned to my goal weight for the first time in years, then lost a few more pounds. My weight leveled off at 136, well within the healthy range for my height, and has stayed there (give or take a pound or two) for the past year and a half.
Now, I look strong. My clothes—a size smaller—fit better. When I pass a mirror, I’m pretty happy with what I see. And my brain is finally free to obsess about things other than weight (final season of Lost, anyone?).
A few months ago, my long-time hair stylist, Monier, was snipping away when he suddenly paused. His eyes met mine in the mirror. “You have cheekbones,” he said. “Where did they come from?” I just smiled.
Check out recent Gear Guide posts by Su Reid-St. John:
What Your Cravings Tell You, 25 Takeout Meals to Make at Home, and “Human Barbie” Gives Daughter Botox
- Whether you crave salts or sweets, an intense urge for a certain food can be surprisingly consuming. And for good reason: The subtle messages behind your food cravings may be important signals of what’s lacking in your diet. [MSN]
- A British woman has undergone so many cosmetic procedures that she is known as the Human Barbie. That seems strange enough on its own, but things are getting iffier now that she is administering Botox injections to her teenage daughter. [ParentDish]
- While takeout is certainly quick and convenient, restaurant chefs don’t often have your health in mind. You can make these 25 popular takeout meals at home and take control of the fat, sodium, and other ingredients that could be bogging down your diet. [Huffington Post]
- We’ll admit it: We’re suckers for fancy, new fitness gadgets. Still, there comes a time when you start to realize that maybe last year’s must-have gizmo wasn’t so crucial after all. Here, running gear you don’t need. [That’s Fit]
- Play this nifty little animation about the most consumed grain in America, and the Wheat Foods Council will donate 2 pounds of flour to Operation Homefront, a nonprofit organization that helps needy U.S. troops and their families. [HowWheatWorks.com]
Previous news from Around the Web:
Single at 60? How to Navigate “Gray” Dating
Vikki Smith’s first foray into the dating world after 30-plus years of marriage involved a bit of chicanery on her part. The 57-year-old Austin, Texas–based marketing consultant “tricked” a colleague into meeting her for lunch after sensing some chemistry as they worked on a project. The sparks didn’t fly, but it did get her back in the dating game, which sure has changed a lot since last she played.
When she first got married, dating was more formal. “It’s just so casual now,” she says. “You can say, ‘Let’s grab a cup of coffee,’ and it’s a date.”
That’s not the only difference. Most gray divorcées—the nickname given to those who divorce after age 50—met their spouses the old-fashioned way—on a blind date, at school, on the job, or even at a singles’ party. Now websites such as Match.com and eHarmony offer singles the opportunity to meet online instead of in person.
And there is a learning curve.
“I can scoot all over the Internet for work, but online dating was a brand new experience,” Smith recalls. “I had friends who had done it, but when it first became a phenomenon, I thought it was a wonderful opportunity for every creepy person to start trolling through the masses,“ she says.
Turns out she was wrong. Single no more, Smith has been in a relationship for about a year with a man she met online. While there are no immediate wedding bells in her future, she is not ruling anything out.
“I used to dread the idea of dating again after being married so long, because it seems that every single person you meet who’s over 40 has one horror story after another,” she says. “Imagine my surprise to spend so little time online before meeting someone so decent, down-to-earth, and genuinely delightful. I didn’t have to kiss a single frog and feel lucky to have had this experience.”
While it can be scary, online dating is worth it, according to Smith. “I am happier than I have been in years,” she says.
Want to follow in Smith’s footsteps? From the first text or email to the first date and how to tell your children, these expert-approved, tried-and-true tips for seamless gray dating will get you back in the game.
Next page: Take your time; do it right
