This Is What 200 Calories Looks Like

A quick/simple, yet fascinating view on what 200 calories really looks like with different foods and drink.... 

 

Three Junk Foods You Need To Avoid!

We all like to eat junk food sometimes. There are certain foods you CAN enjoy in moderation, and then there are foods (like the ones listed below) that you SHOULDN'T EVEN CONSIDER CONSUMING!

Here are three of the most calorie dense junk foods popular US fast food restaurant chains offer today!

Carl’s Junior Double Six Dollar Burger
602 Grams – 1520 calories – 11g Fat – ?g Trans fat – 60g Carbs

When you see this hamburger, you can just tell it is full of fat and calories. But, it is still a popular menu item at Carl’s Jr. It is over half a pound of greasy, cheesy goodness that tasted so good, yet is so bad.

Arbys Sausage Gravy Biscuit
238 Grams – 961 Calories – 68g Fat –  0g Trans Fat – 107g Carbs

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. So, what should you eat? If you are looking to stay thin, you will probably want to avoid the Arby’s Sausage Gravy biscuit. While it doesn’t sound too dangerous, this little bundle of flaky dough and creamy gravy packs in almost 1000 calories. Add in an orange juice and some hash browns, and you are almost half way through your daily caloric requirements.

Dairy Queen Chicken Strip Basket
531 Grams – 1270 calories – 67g Fat – 12 g Trans Fat – 121g Carbs

Chicken is pretty healthy, right? It is usually preached as the healthy alternative to beef when people go to fast food restaurants to order a meal. But, that is not always the case. In the seemingly healthy looking dish called the “Dairy Queen Chicken Strip Basket”, there is over 1200 calories! Look back at the Carl’s Junior Double Six Dollar Burger…which one sounds healthier? If you add a glass of orange juice to this meal, you are almost consuming the same amount of calories. Looks can be deceiving!

Take home lesson:
It is OK to have junk food once in a while, but just be sure you know what you are eating. Some things that look relatively healthy can be quite deceiving!

Want more healthy insights, recipes, videos or articles like this? Join us to receive 'inspiration in your inbox'- http://tiny.cc/join-me

Like us on Facebook too!  

See SOURCE

What’s Really in Your Fast Food?

I've never been a fan of fast-food or burger bars 👎....here's some of the reasons why.  If this doesn't put you off, I don't know what will!  😱

French Fries 
The humble potato, fried in a vat of simmering oil, and finished with a sprinkling of salt. What could be simpler? Apparently, quite a lot. Fast-food fries often have more than 15 ingredients, including sugar and artificial coloring. They also have preservatives like sodium acid pyrophosphate and tert-butylhydroquinone, which in high doses has been linked to vision problems.


Hamburgers 
Ground beef, right? Sure -- but there also may be growth hormones and antibiotics, which can end up in your system. And in one study, some burgers had over 100 calories more per serving than the fast-food places said they did.

Soda
It’s the same soda you buy at the grocery store. But when you get it at a fast-food chain, you get more calories because the drink sizes are so large. And we’re not talking “supersize.” A medium soda at a typical fast-food place is about 30 ounces and has about 300 calories. And studies show that if you order it, you’ll drink it.

Breakfast Sandwich
Some of the ingredients listed for what one national outlet calls a “fried egg” include modified corn starch, soybean oil, medium chain triglycerides, propylene glycol, artificial flavor, citric acid, xanthan gum, and -- oh yeah -- egg whites and yolks (listed separately). If you didn’t bargain for all of that, ask for the propylene glycol (also used in fog machines and to make polyester) on the side.

Hot Dog
What’s in them? Let’s just say they make full use of the animals that supply the meat. They’re also loaded with salt and saturated fat (which most Americans get too much of) and with nitrates, a preservative linked to diabetes and cancer.

Chicken Nuggets
A piece of chicken breast battered and fried to golden perfection? Not exactly. There’s meat in there, but there are also bones, blood vessels, nerves, connective tissue, and skin. And they have loads of salt and fat, which are linked to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.

Strawberry Milkshake
Besides milk and sugar, one leading fast-food outlet also adds high-fructose corn syrup, preservatives like sodium benzoate, and artificial flavors and colors to this drinkable dessert. One thing that appears to be missing: actual strawberries.

Sauces 

The first ingredient listed for almost any sauce served at a fast-food restaurant is sugar. It may be called sucrose, dextrose, maltose, rice syrup, barley malt, high-fructose corn syrup, or any number of other things, but the end result is the same: quick delivery of lots of calories with almost zero nutritional value.




Article source and images

How to Balance Healthy Living....and Weekends

When talking about how to keep on track with your healthy lifestyle at the weekend, we really need to talk about what we’re doing the rest of the time...

We’ve all done it, eating a diet of lettuce leaves and apple slices before a big weekend full of meals out and one too many cocktails. The warped cycle of being ‘good’ by nibbling on carrots during the week for substance ahead of a ‘bad’ weekend full of over-indulgence is one that we can all get stuck in, which can not only be damaging for our bodies but our minds too.

The truth is that we should all be striving for a balance. The old 80/20 rule is a firm favourite of the SourcedBox team; eat natural, nourishing foods 80% of the time and allow yourself to enjoy less nourishing foods the other 20% of the time.

All sounds pretty straight forward, but how do we actually put it into practice?

Get Researching

A lot of us don’t actually know what we should be eating and how different foods impact our bodies. For instance, did you know that starting your day with protein will keep you fuller for longer throughout the day? Or that the more sugar you eat, the more you will crave it? Or that eating some fruits after meals will make it harder for your body to digest?

There are so many brilliant resources online and offline that will give you the lowdown on how to shape your diet so that you are getting the most from your foods. Time spent on understanding your nutrition is time well spent.

Get To Know Your Body

You could be deficient in minerals and vitamins and not even know it. You can download the VITL app for free to see which nutrients you might be lacking and what foods you can eat to get back into balance.

It’s also useful to do an analysis of how much food you should be eating, the amount of food you need varies depending on your weight, height and activity levels. You may be unknowingly over or under eating which could be damaging your overall wellbeing and quality of life. This can be easily checked out by your GP or a by doing a quick test online.

Get Experimenting

Are you a creature of habit, constantly remaking the same meals? This could be the reason why you’re reaching straight for the junk when it gets to the weekend and who can blame you? After a week of limp salads, anybody would be craving some flavour.

The good news is that nourishing food can be both healthy and delicious. In an age where healthy living is cool, there are a ton of blogs, Pinterest boards and recipe books crammed full of healthy meals. Give them a go and discover a whole new range of meals to enjoy.

Get Planning
After learning about how to fuel your body properly in an enjoyable way, get planning. If you know you’ve got a birthday at the weekend it makes sense to balance out the rest of your week. Prep a couple of nourishing meals that you can easily grab on the go, this will enable you to stay satisfied all week long and stop you from stuffing yourself with birthday cake at the weekend.

If you’re meeting friends for brunch at the weekend, pick a spot that serves balanced meals. A quick search online will give you a list of the best places to visit. Eating out doesn’t have to mean unhealthy foods, there are lots of restaurants serving healthy meals and with avocado on toast being such a huge food trend, you can guarantee to see this green goodness popping up on most menus.

Relax

And our final tip, relax! If you’ve had a weekend of birthday cake and cocktails, don’t panic and definitely don’t punish yourself by eating way less than required on Monday. The trick is to keep yourself full and satisfied with delicious, healthy foods and enjoy treats occasionally. The more you eat to nourish your body, the more you will naturally eat the foods your body needs.

Article Source

Cost of Eating Healthy vs. Unhealthy Part 2

Yesterday, I posted a rather hotly debated blog post – breaking down the costs of unhealthy vs. healthy eating.  Today, I thought it would be beneficial to look at some of the “hidden” costs of being unhealthy.

First, it’s important to look at some of the things we buy when we’re not necessarily looking out for our best eating habits.  These aren’t necessarily foods – they are expenses we didn’t expect, as Drew started to realize what being overweight really entailed.

Items we bought when Drew was unhealthy that we don’t buy when we’re healthy:

Creams and powders to help with his chaffing= approximately $10 a month
Lotions to try and curb stretch marks (he’d hate that I put this in there)= approximately $20 a month
All the soda & energy drinks as explained yesterday= approximately $30-$50 a month
A LOT more fast food and eating out as explained above going over $130 above what we’d normally spend.

It got me thinking about some of the costs that not even Drew had to take on (since his stage of being overweight was limited to his 1-year journey).  But when you start examining how being unhealthy can affect your pocket book in other ways, the numbers start piling up.  Here are some possible additional expenses:

Doctor’s bills would most likely increase.  Someone would have to pay their deductible and co-payments along with higher insurance premiums. Because Dr. Willey offered to sponsor Drew through his journey and paid for his lab work and doctor bills, we’re not able to gauge and give accurate figures as to what someone may spend on their doctor bills, but I know that if Drew had to pay for all his visits and lab/blood work it was actually a couple THOUSAND dollars…YIKES!!!

Before Drew started this journey he hadn’t needed to go to a doctor in 6 years.

Also, the doctors wanted Drew to go on blood pressure medication (but he didn’t). If he would have, then that would be an additional co-payment cost for his medicine and we’re not sure on what that cost would be. We assume many people that have health problems caused from being overweight may be spending quite a bit on medications and doctor visits.

Then again, it’s not all just cost when you’re unhealthy.  There are some costs that we deal with in our efforts to live a healthy lifestyle:  These are two that come to mind:

$30 monthly membership at a gym
Approximately $200 monthly for supplements/vitamins (cost for a year spread over 12 months). We realize this is pretty expensive for many people and when we were both fit we spent a bit less.
When you take into account our gym membership and supplements our family does spend a little more in the healthier stage of the journey. However, if we had to pay for Drew’s medical bills there is no doubt that the cost for us would be MORE to be unhealthy then healthy. I realize many people live on a certain budget and some people say they make $75 feed their whole family for the week. I think there are ways to cut back on even the healthy grocery list to make it more affordable for those families on a budget. Some of the tips I have are:

Buy fruit that is in season (and therefore less expensive)
Buy vegetables that are in season (and therefore less expensive)
Price Match- I don’t know if your grocery store does this, but mine does. I look through the weekly ads and when I see chicken breast for example on sales per lb. I take it to my store and I load up on a ton of chicken and price match to save money and then freeze it to preserve it until I need it. Same goes for price matching produce or other products we often use.
Buy generic brands- my grocery store sells both name brands and generic brands. The generic is less expensive.
Make appropriate substitutions- if you can’t afford protein bars then don’t buy them. Buy a different healthy snack that is less expensive.
I think regardless of people’s opinions regarding my analysis for my family, it’s hard to debate that overall our health/life is much more important then the few extra dollars you’ll save eating unhealthy. I’m not saying people should go into debt or go broke when it’s out of their budget either, but I feel that everyone should just try to do the best they can.

Part 1 of my blog post mentioned that there are a million excuses we have to not be healthy.  Hopefully, a look into our expenses shows you that being healthy isn’t impossible – even if it costs a few more bucks at the grocery store.  It’s not a reason to hold yourself back, or find the healthier you.

As my husband says, “Commit to a healthier you, regardless of your circumstance”.

Blog Source

Cost of Eating Healthy vs. Unhealthy Part 1

Weight loss (or the attempt) is a funny thing. There are a million reasons why you should lose the weight, compounded by a million and one excuses as to why you can’t. And one of those chief “excuses” is money…or the cost of being healthy.

It is a common belief that it costs more money to be healthy. Organic, natural foods clearly cost more, so if you want to live a healthy lifestyle, you better have a healthy bank account. I was a believer in this. I thought we spent quite a bit of money being healthy (prior to the journey). But Drew’s journey gave me the opportunity to test my own theory, because I’d get to experience both sides of the equation.

In this two-part blog post, we get to compare the cost of being unhealthy with the cost of being healthy, along with some tips on how to stretch the savings even more.

This is a blog post I’ve been preparing and actually excited to write for months now. I must admit as well that I had my preconceived notions of how things would look and I am really surprised at the outcome (this is one of the only times I will openly admit that “I was wrong! Don’t tell my husband though)!

When Drew decided to start this journey and become unhealthy one of the many things that ran into my mind was the budget (which I oversee). I was certain we would save pounds (pardon the pun) of money eating unhealthy and in a weird way was excited to put some extra cash into savings. So I sat down and spent a couple hours charting the amount we spent per month during his Fit2Fat stage and then I started again November 5th to keep track of our expenses for food (groceries and eating out).

I realize this post will be a bit controversial. There are a TON of variables to consider here when comparing costs:

• Where someone shops / The brand someone uses / The type of unhealthy or healthy food someone eats / and so on…

That being said, the figures I’m posting are based on my husband and me. We shopped at the same grocery store during his Fit2Fat stage as we do now in the Fat2Fit stage. For our family this is how it broke down.

In June 2011 we spent $522 that month on groceries (which is also about the average we spent every month. Some months we spent a bit more, some a bit less). We (and I’d like to point out by “we” I really mean DREW on this one) spent a whopping $219 on Fast Food/Eating Out. This gives us a total of $741 spent on Food in June 2011. Wow. I was shocked! I must admit I was surprised how much we actually spent on groceries and then of course, floored, at the costs of eating away from home. Drew would often be too lazy to make something in this part of the journey and since fast food seems so affordable, he didn’t think twice spending $5 here and there…man did it add up! Guess I should’ve crunched the numbers a lot sooner and told him to cut back! Now that isn’t only fast food, it is also eating out at restaurants that gave us that figure. He wanted to eat out in general more often in this stage and each time getting a soda and a dessert easily increases the bill when at a restaurant!

Here is a look at one of the week’s grocery bill showing what I bought and the cost during this stage of the journey:

1 bag of hamburger buns= $1.25 / 1 large container of Beef Patties= $7.98 / 2 boxes of Frozen Corndogs (@ $5.48 each) = $10.96 / 1 bag of sugar= $2.78 / 2 boxes Macaroni and Cheese (@ $1.50 each) = $3.00 / 1 container of shortening= $3.58 / 1 jar of peanut butter= $2.77 / 1 small crown of broccoli = $.66 / 2 zucchinis= $1.49 / 1 red pepper= $1.78 / 1 container meat marinade= $2.00 / 1 bag of string cheese= $3.46 / 2 cans of turkey chili (@$.92 each) = @1.84 / 2 containers of vanilla soy milk (@$3.28 each) = $6.56 / 2 bags of Doritos (@ $2.50 each) =$5.00 / 1 bag of Tostitos= $2.98 / 1lb Turkey= $2.18 / 1 jar salsa= $1.98 / 2 bags of Cinnamon Toast Crunch (@$4.78 each) = $9.56 / 2 cans of spaghetti sauce (@ $.98 each) = $1.96 / 2 boxes of pasta (@.1.12 each) = $2.24 / 3 ramen noodle packets (@$.28 each) = $.84 / 1 can of cooking spray= $1.82 / 2 2 liters of Mt. Dew (@$1.25 each) = $2.50 / 1 2 liter of Coke=$1.25 / 10 plastic bottles of soda (20 oz. size to take on the go) (@$.89 each) = $8.90 / 1 bunch of bananas= $1.25 / 1 watermelon=$3.88 / 1 cake mix in a box= $1.88 / 2 loaves of white bread (@$1.00 each) = $2.00 / 2 cans of an Energy Drink (@$1.00 each) = $2.00 / 1 container Swiss cake rolls= $1.00 / 1 box of protein bars= $5.48 / 1 container chicken breast= $5.98 / 1 container of butter= $2.24 / 1 stick of cream cheese=$1.72 / 1 bag of almonds= $5.98 / 1 package salad=$2.98 / 1 jar of nutella= $3.28:

Total=$130.99 
(Again, this is for one week of groceries during the Fit2Fat stage for our family)
Some weeks I spent a little more, some a little less but the total for a month as mentioned was $522.

Recap June 2011:

• $522 on Groceries +  $219 on Fast Food/Eating Out = Total $741 on Food

Now to the fun part. I already knew approximately how much I spent per month on groceries during the fit stage since this was the “norm” for our family before the journey and I budgeted accordingly. What I did to break it down and be more specific is I took this past week’s grocery list that we had created (WEEK 7) and I went down and priced out each item. Again, based on the brand and where you shop your prices will probably vary:

2 boxes of Protein Bars= $5.78 x 2= $11.56 / 1 container Peanut Butter= $3.26 / 1 packet Celery Sticks= $1.98 / 1 container of Strawberries= $2.98 / 6 pepper (4 yellow & red@ $1.67 each and 2 @ .67 each)= $8.02 / 1 bag carrots= $1.48 / 9 bananas= $2.35 / 1 Package Fajita Meat = $5.88 / Chicken Breast $2.99 per lb x 5 lbs= $14.95 / 1 container Egg Whites= $4.74 / 2 containers of Unsweetened Almond Milk= $3.18 each= $6.36 / 1 container of cashews= $5.74 / 1 package naturally sweetened lemonade packets= $2.78 / 1 package almonds= $5.98 / 2 bags of green beans= $2.44 / 4 onions= $2.40 / 1 container spinach= $3.98 / 1 container mixed green salad= $3.98 / 1 large container mushrooms= $1.78 / 1 head of Cauliflower= $2.12 / 2 avocadoes= $1.48 / 1 dozen eggs= $1.98 / 1 lb fresh turkey lunch meat at the deli= $5.98 / 1 container Raspberries= $2.48 / 1 container of Blueberries= $2.98 / 1 zucchini= $.56 / 4 apples= $2.35 / 1 bunch of asparagus= $2.98 / 2 grapefruit= $.96 / 1 bunch of cilantro= $.44 /  2 bags of Salmon Filets (each bag has 4 pieces for a total of 8 pieces)= $9.88 / 1 container Mayo w/ Olive Oil= $2.50 / 1 container of Sea Salt= $.98 / 1 Low Fat/Calorie Salad Dressing= $1.98 /  1 Jar of Salsa= $1.98 / 1 container spicy seasoning= $2.28 /
1 clover of garlic= $.99 / 1 Package Beef Jerky= $5.98 /  1 zero calorie butter spray= $2.28 / 1 loaf wheat bread= $3.98 / 1 package low-carb tortillas= $3.08 / 1 can of cooking spray= $1.98 / 2 cans of tuna= $1.96 / 1 container Greek Yogurt= $1.98:

Total= $158.78

X 4 (weeks in a month)= $635

So using the above list we spent about $635 on groceries eating healthy in a month’s time. This is actually a bit high because many of the items we don’t buy every week such as seasonings, condiments (like mayo), etc. But I feel comfortable saying about $635 for my family on a monthly basis eating healthy.

During this time period, we spent approximately $20 a week on eating out. This is mostly because during Drew’s fit stage he packs his lunch in a mini cooler when he goes up to Idaho to work instead of stopping at a fast food place. This saves us money. Total spent on eating out for us was $80. So the total amount we spent on food was $715. Wow- less than in June?!! I was shocked.

Recap November 20th-December 20th 2011:

• $635 on Groceries + $80 on Eating Out = Total $715 on Food

I will do a follow up blog tomorrow to outline a few more expenses during the overweight stage aside from food, and also to be fair a few extra expenses we have when healthy that we don’t have being unhealthy. Along with this, I’ll list some tips to keep your grocery bill down and help those to eat healthy even on a tighter budget.

Blog Source

Feed Your Head: Cravings Quenchers

Fruit smoothies, nachos, frozen yogurt, and other snacks make great healthy - and tasty - treats.

Junk food has given snacking a bad name.

"Snacking in itself isn't a bad thing," says Elaine Magee, PhD, RD, author of numerous nutrition books, including 'Someone's in the Kitchen With Mommy' and 'The Good News Eating Plan for Type II Diabetes'.

Magee firmly believes in eating several small meals during the day -- "and that includes quality, healthy snacks," she tells WebMD.

Her philosophy: Eat when you're hungry, stop when you're comfortable. "There's a difference between stuffed and comfortable," she says. "If you truly follow that concept, you should be hungry every two or three hours."

Here's Magee's list of favorite healthy snacks -- plus the "bad guys" -- taken from another of her books, 'Fight Fat and Win: Light Meals and Snacks':



Popcorn. The fat in those microwave brands is the only negative here. Look for the healthier versions -- 98% fat-free. If you opt for plain popcorn, it's OK to drizzle a little margarine (one with no trans-fats) or butter. "It's better than full-fat brands, where you can't control the fat they add," says Magee.  

Fruit and fruit smoothies. "Awesome, awesome healthy snack choice," she says. "For a complete, sustainable snack, make a fruit smoothie -- the dairy will sustain you."

Ice cream. Get real. You know ice cream isn't an everyday snack. "But there are good choices in ice-creamland," says Magee. Breyer's Light Vanilla is one of the best-tasting vanillas. Also, Smart Ones fudge bars are "really delicious -- they hit your chocolate and ice cream craving, plus they have four grams soluble fiber, 80 calories, hardly any fat, and very good flavor."


Cookies. Hmmm..."that's a toughie, because there's no way to get around it -- if they're fat-free, the cookies aren't so great, and you end up eating more," she tells WebMD. "Cookies are something you should enjoy, but not as a regular snack."

Cheese and crackers. Only if you pick a reduced-fat cheese that tastes good, like Kraft 2% and Jarlsberg Light, she advises. Lower fat means more protein, she adds. Crackers should be whole grain, low-fat, for this to be a healthy snack. The more fat in the cracker, the more trans-fat it will contain.


Cereals. Choose high-fiber, low-sugar cereals like oatmeal.  


Yogurt/frozen yogurt. "We don't drink milk at my house, so yogurt is one of our calcium sources," she says. Yogurt doesn't need sugar to taste good. Buy plain yogurt and add something to it, like low-fat granola and fruit, for a truly healthy snack.

Candy bars. If you opt for mini-sized -- not supersized -- candy is OK. "Almost every day, I have a little bit of chocolate," says Magee. "If you deprive yourself, you'll end up compulsively overeating."

Popsicles/frozen fruit bars. Fine snack. "There are some excellent, 100% fruit-juice choices out there."


Vegetables. "Awesome, awesome, awesome snack," says Magee. "I have lot of success with my kids eating vegetables. I usually have a dip, like light ranch dip, and assorted vegetables on a platter."

Cake. Duh. Much as we love it, cake is not a great everyday snack. "When I'm talking about snack, I mean a nourishing snack, a healthy snack, a mini-meal," says Magee.

Peanut Butter. It's OK, but only if you just eat a tablespoon, and just with wholegrain crackers or toast.

Granola bars. The chewier they are, the more sugar and fat they have, Magee tells WebMD. "The healthy ones are crunchy, and not coated in chocolate. You can make your own; there are good recipes out there, then you can choose the oil, fruits, grains that go into them."

Chips/nachos. Low-fat chips, canola oil chips are OK -- "but you're better off eating a real potato," says Magee.
Better yet, make a family-sized nacho platter with reduced-fat tortilla chips, refried beans, chopped tomatoes, peppers, sour cream, shredded chicken, low-fat shredded cheese. "You can make it a meal if you add something nourishing to the chips," she says. Now that's a healthy snack.

Article Source

The Crazy Amount Of Sugar Hiding In Random Foods

How much sugar is really in your food? Sure there's a lot of sugar in Coke, but baked beans?? Also, "healthy" cereal has more sugar than Fruit Loops.