Quick Breakfast for a Busy Morning

Reblogged from My Body, My Temple:

How many times have you either woken up late and had to forgo your breakfast or your morning was just so hectic, you didn't have time to make it? I have a wonderful (and tasty) solution for you! Overnight oatmeal!

What you need:

• Kerr jar or a Mason jar with lid
• Measuring spoon (either 1/2 or 1/4 depending on how much you want)

Read more… 186 more words

:) Delicious!

A Dangerous Hidden Addiction You May Not Know You Have

Fact: The average person eats between 1/4 and 1/2 a pound of sugar a day–mostly without knowing.

It’s alarming, I know. I stumbled across this issue quite by accident. I was mousing over some news articles when one popped up claiming that doctors are arguing that sugar is bad. I’ll admit; I didn’t read the article, but I quickly googled the effects of sugar on the body and the benefits of limiting your sugar intake. That was three days ago. Since then, I’ve wandered through blogs and articles discussing this topic. Nearly every single one of them said the same thing:

Sugar is an addiction and should be considered as serious as drug and alcohol abuse.

Before you roll your eyes and exit out of this post, take this short quiz:

• Have you ever used sugar as a reward for something?
• Have you ever used sugar to change your mood (when you are sad, tired, or when you need a ‘boost’)?
• Have you ever eaten sugar when you weren’t hungry/do you eat sugar when you’re not hungry?
• Have you even had a bite of something sweet and felt compelled to finish the whole thing?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may be addicted to sugar. Don’t be ashamed of this, though; I answered yes to all of them! I am a sugar addict, and I didn’t know until yesterday.

But, this is understandable considering that sugar is listed as a main ingredient in most of our foods–even the ones claiming to be healthy (No, seriously. Go look at your Special K brand cereals and snack bars–go look at the NatureValley brands; you’ll be amazed and alarmed.) Don’t even get me started on all of the sugary, fizzy drinks we are all addicted to (see what I did there?) But even though that the world as we know it is laced with sugar, and now that I’m aware of my problem (since sugar addiction is a really big problem that not many people are aware of), I’ve decided to take steps to correct it and prevent any long term side affects.

What long term side effects does sugar give you, you may ask? These:

• Weight Gain. Most of the sugary stuff that we eat and drink are laced with ‘empty calories’ that build up over time (and more rapidly depending on how many empty calories you eat). This produces fat that can build up around your internal organs.
• High Blood Pressure. Let’s face it; people with high blood pressure are always agitated and frustrated, and it’s extremely dangerous to your heart and arteries.
• Higher Chance of Contracting Disease. I’m not talking about just diabetes but heart disease, stroke, and obesity–which is more dangerous than just weight gain. Obesity contributes to you becoming at rist for Type 2 diabetes and cancer. Didn’t know that, did you?

With these looming in my future if I continue to be addicted to sugar, I’ve begun to completely turn around my diet. After scanning blogs, support sites, and dietician websites, I’ve begun to figure out how to limit my sugar intake (and yours if you’re interested.) I’ve compiled my findings into a list:

• PURGE. First of all, you need to get rid of all unnecessary sweets in your living area/work place/car (I used to have a stash in my center console.) It sounds heart-wrenching and emotionally painful, I know, but the results are worth it.
• READ LABELS. Now that you’ve purged yourself of the temptations sitting in your space(s), try not to eat it when offered to you, and be sure you don’t accidentally eat it in your regular meals (remember the statistic at the beginning of the post?) All you have to do is read labels on everything that you buy. Just see where sugar falls in the ingredient list since the lists are made according to the amounts of ingredients from most to least. If sugar isn’t listed, look for honey, syrup, glucose, fructose, maltose, sorbitol, or corn syrup–just because it’s made from corn doesn’t mean that it’s good for you. If sugar (or other listed sweetness) is in the top 5, put it back on the shelf and hunt for something else. The sneakiest places that sugar is lurking are in snack foods (even ‘healthy’ ones) and drinks.
• LAY OFF EXCESSIVE CARBS. Carbohydrates are chemical compositions in food that turn into sugar one you’ve eaten them. I mean stop eating chips just because they are there (since you may not have purged them when you were hunting for sugary things). Stick to a healthy diet (I don’t mean the term that people use now-a-days that limits what you eat. I mean a daily regimen of food that you should eat.)
• EXERCISE! It burns off unneeded calories and the fat you may have gained eating empty calories in the past. It doesn’t even have to be hard–try your hand at yoga, or just go walking every other night (down the street, at the mall or supermarket–you name it!)
• KEEP A POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE! Don’t tell yourself that you can’t have sugar. That only makes you want to have it more. And, don’t make a big deal when you do eat sugar. If you make a big deal about eating sugar (like a piece of cake at a party, etc.) you feel guilty and are prone to eat more sugar to feel better (remember the quiz?). All you have to do is be sure that you burn the calories that you ate by walking (or whatever your exercise is). No biggie.
• EAT A PROPER DIET (THAT’S NOT LADEN WITH SUGAR). If you look at labels when you shop and refrain from indulging every time you get the chance, this shouldn’t be hard at all. Recommended serving sizes are as follows:
  Veggies–1 cup raw, 1/2 cup cooked
  Fruit–1 medium fruit (an apple, orange, etc.), 1/2 cup canned/chopped fruit. (if you get the canned, be sure that the fruit is in water and not sugary syrup.)
  Whole grains–1 slice of bread, 2/3 cups of cereal, 1/2 cup cooked pasta/cereal (like oatmeal), 1/2 cup cooked beans or lentils
  Dairy–1 cup of low fat/2% milk

Don’t worry; you aren’t alone in your endeavor to limit the sugar in your life. There are other people out there who are attempting to do the exact same thing as you (for example, here’s a blogger who even has a blog dedicated to her fight for a sugar-free life.)

If the thought of living live without sweetness discourages you to even try to live sugar-free, you can always use sugar substitues. But before you go out and buy the most convenient substitute, be sure you read up on the stuff. For example, know that Splenda has potential side effects. For more information specifically about Splenda, see this website. Here’s a quick site I found for the best (and healthiest) sugar substitues.

There are plenty of books and programs you can join that will help you limit your sugar intake. My particular favorite is the 30 Day Sugar-Free Challenge that was designed by a doctor to break the sugar addiction. There are two versions to this–one you can pay for, and one that is free (I use this one). It signs you up for daily, encouraging emails to help you with your journey. The only thing that I don’t agree with in this program is that the creator says to stay away from grains–even whole grains. Since eating whole grains is how I get most of my fiber, I eat my grains in moderation, but I follow everything else.

However, you should know that if you cut your sugar intake cold turkey (especially if you’ve been eating substantial amounts a day), you will have ‘flu like’ symptoms. I’m going through them right now, but they only last for a week or so. Don’t worry; you aren’t really sick. It’s just your body expelling the nasties you’ve begun to stop feeding your body. For more information, see the bottom part of this blog.

I really hope you don’t go into denial and refuse to admit that you are addicted to sugar (if you are, and you know it.) I hope this post has been informative and inspirational to you all. Thanks for reading!

~Love Lindi

Down Time and Egg Rolls

Nothing is more awesome than hanging out with your family and eating some good home-made food, am I right? So, hanging out with my little sister and fiancee while making home-made egg rolls was fantastic! We played Wii Golf and Mario Kart until my parents got home from a graduation party, and I made about 40 egg rolls for dinner (and lunch and snacks since we didn’t eat them all). If you are health conscious, you can load up on the veggies and find wrappers that are made for baking instead of frying and still get the same delicious egg-rolly goodness.

I forgot to take pictures of actually making the egg rolls because the process is pretty quick, and it’s risky to step away while either the filling or the roll are cooking. Overall, it probably took me an hour and a half to make 40 rolls, and most of that time was spent cooking the filling.

All you need to make one batch of egg rolls (about 22 rolls, depending on how many wrappers you get in the package) are the following ingredients:

• 1/2 cabbage
• 1 small onion
• 2-5 stalks of celery (you can substitute this for a teaspoon or so of celery salt)
• 2-5 carrots
• 1-3 chicken breasts (how many chicken breasts depends on how chicken-y you want your egg rolls) (also, if you are a vegetarian, you and substitute the chicken for tofu or for more veggies)
• up to 1/4 cup of soy sauce
• up to 2 tablespoons of ground ginger
• salt to season
• one package of wanton wrappers
• vegetable oil (you can use any type of oil–you can also use a Fry Daddy instead of a pot)
• Butter (optional; can be substituted with oil)

Here are the utensils you will need:

• Deep pot to boil the chicken and most of the veggies in.
• Sautee pan to mix/cook the filling in.
• Fry Daddy (optional; you can fry them in the deep pot used to boil the chicken in. All you have to do is wash it out and add an in and a half of oil.
• Slotted spoon
• Wooden spoon
• Standard eating table spoon (not the super round table spoons, but a soup spoon)
• Food processor (if you don’t have one, just shred things by hand/knife/whatever you want)
• Cookie sheet
• Cooling rack
• Paper towels

Here are the steps to delicious egg rolls:

1. Fill a pot with water, season with salt, and add the chicken. Cube the celery, carrots, and onion and add to pot and bring to boil until the chicken is cooked and the veggies are fork-tender. Once everything is cooked, drain the broth. You can drain it with a bowl underneath it to save the homemade broth–that’s what I like to do since it gives you so much, and it’s really tasty.
2. Next, place the sautee pan on the stove (or next to you, whichever is easier for you) and whip out your food processor. Slice the 1/2 head of cabbage into small-ish chunks and shred them. Depending on how coarse you like your filling to be, shred accordingly. Be sure that all pieces are uniform and that you didn’t chop up any of the stem–it’s very bitter tasting. Add a tablespoon or two of butter (or oil) and sautee until the cabbage is soft. Remove from heat.
3. Now shred the cooked veggies and chicken and add to the sauteed cabbage. Stir together and add your spices to flavor. I wound up adding about a 1/4 cup of soy sauce, a tablespoon of ginger, and a tablespoon of salt, but my fiancee loves the taste of soy in his egg rolls. Keep in mind that the juicer the roll, the more chance the roll has of ripping/tearing or falling apart.
4. I like to make all of the rolls before I begin cooking them. That way, my attention isn’t divided, and I don’t have to constantly stop what I’m doing, etc. Fill each wanton square with one soup spoon of filling. Follow the directions on the back of the package on how to roll and seal the egg roll. Some require you to wet the edges with water, some egg. The back also tells you where to place your filling and how to roll it up. This is the other large chunk of the time. Be sure that your rolls don’t touch one another or they will stick together and break when you have to pull them apart. Just place them on a flat surface that is cool, not warm or hot. Before you move on to step 5, place folded paper towels on the cookie sheet and place the cooling rack on top of that. This contraption drains the excess oil, but lets the rolls crisp up since they aren’t just sitting on the damp, oil-filled paper towel.
5. Once they are all made up and the oil is hot enough, begin frying them 4-5 at a time. Make sure that once you set them in, you nudge them with whatever utensil you have so that they don’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Roll them occasionally, and let them cook until nice and golden brown, about 2 minutes (depending on how hot your oil is, you may cut that time in half.) Always keep you eye on it so that they don’t overcook.
6. Let them cool, and tada! you have delicious, crowd-pleasing egg rolls. You can serve them as a side dish, or you can chow down on them as an entree, but either way, they are a yummy way to get your veggies.

The egg rolls will keep for up to seven days in a Tupperware in the fridge. To heat them up, if you want crispy rolls, you can re-fry them or pop them in the oven. For those of you who can’t wait to continue eating the deliciousness, just pop them in the microwave for about a minute or so. I hope this post has been hunger provoking, and inspiring to you all. It’s always nice to know that just because something looks or seems difficult to make, it doesn’t mean that it really is–most of the time it’s pretty easy!

Thanks for reading!

~Love Lindi

Another Reason to Listen to Your Doctor

I don’t know about you, but I’ve never really liked going to the doctor’s office. I’m the type of person that denies that anything is wrong with me unless I think it is life-threatening. There is no way I am going to willingly let someone poke and prod me like I am some creature and then tell me to do something that I think does not fit into my agenda. For instance, in high school I played (and won) three tennis games on a foot that had a fallen arch and a rolled ankle (all at once) and the entire time, I denied that anything was wrong because I could still hobble around on my own. I had lost my first match because I had rolled my foot, and I was determined to win consolation. Painful? Of course. Worth it then? Most definitely. Worth it now? Nope.

Why? Because when my parents took me to the doctor after the event nurse saw me trying to hop across the street and took me out of the tourney after yelling at my coach for not making me sit out sooner, he gave me the options of either having my foot in a plaster cast for 6 weeks or wearing a (removable) boot for a bit longer. I chose the boot. Naturally, I hated it. It creaked when I moved, I couldn’t walk normally, it was too heavy to wear up and down the stairs, and after a while, it just hurt. That, and I was super subconscious of people staring at me and asking me, “What did you do?” when I really didn’t feel like going into a rant that I had played and won 3 games on that foot and that it was fine blah, blah, blah. So, what did I do?

I ignored my doctor’s orders and took it off after only three days. I was supposed to wear it for like 7 weeks. It hurt, but I was so stubborn that I pretended that it didn’t. I even lied to my school’s sport doctor so that I could play tennis again. He didn’t believe me when I said that it was fine (I had been in a boot only the day before, after all) and made me run around and jump on my foot to prove that it was okay. I did it all with a smile. Even though it hurt enough for me to bite into my cheek, I kept on until I had convinced him.

You see, I had been on Varsity and was playing in a JV tourney when I injured my foot during a play. Tennis was my sport, and I just needed to be back on the courts! I played three games on an injured foot, stopped wearing the boot 6 and a half weeks short, and made myself pass a physical just so that my coach would let me play again. My reward?

 He put me on JV and benched me the rest of the year.

Now, since I disregarded my doctor’s instructions and advice (you know, the things we pay them for in the first place), I can’t point my left foot all the way, I can’t wear any high heels any higher than 2 inches for more than an hour, and if I run on it, it cramps up and I re-roll/pop the tendons in it.

You might be shaking your head right now thinking of how stupid and hard-headed I was (and still am), but admit it: we all do this. The moral of the story is that even if you are dying to get back out there to your own agenda but doing so would be going against your doctor’s orders—don’t do it! You will regret it. I do. Not only did it not bring about what I wanted (to play on Varsity), but it also screwed up my foot for the rest of my life. And it’s my entire fault. I implore you all to seriously listen to your doctors and follow their instruction to the T, because if you don’t, you might actually wind up harming yourselves in your stubbornness.

This isn’t just restricted to physical orders, either. It also applies to medicines and prescriptions.

If you have the flu and the doctor give you antibiotics to kill it, don’t just stop taking them when you start to feel better! Antibiotics are designed to block the virus over a set amount of doses. If you stop half way, the flu virus that was in your system (and still is in your system) mutates and becomes stronger because you quit fighting the virus with antibiotics before the virus was completely gone. Just because you feel better doesn’t mean that you are better—especially when it comes to something as sneaky as the flu (or pneumonia or bronchitis, etc.)

Or a more practical example (at least I think so): if your doctor prescribes you medication and tells you to be sure to drink plenty of water (as in lots of water) while you are on the medicine, don’t just drink water when you take the medicine. After a while, you will begin to get really dizzy and confused and you won’t know why. Your head will hurt. You will feel exhausted. And if you don’t realize what’s happening, you will wind up in the hospital.

My point is this—even though you may not trust your doctors (you know who you are) or you don’t like them, always do what they tell you to do. They are the ones who went to 10 years of school to know what they are talking about. Don’t self-diagnose yourself and change your medicine (or ignore the doctor and continue your physical activity). Don’t complain. Just do it. That way, in the long run, you won’t regret it.

I hope this has been an insightful post for you all. Thanks for reading!

~Love Lindi

Watch Where You Eat

That’s right; this is a health post that’s not telling you to watch what you eat, but  where. Why does where you eat matter? Because it constitutes the attitude of the people making and serving your food. Always be aware of the attitude of your server and the overall atmosphere of the establishment. If it isn’t immedeately apparent that the server loves (or eves moderately likes) his/her job, it’s a good idea to go to another place to eat. My reason for this advice is this: When people  don’t love/like their jobs, they make stupid/rash/careless mistakes that can have an immediate impact on your well-being. These people become more prone to under cooking and sabotaging your food–sometimes without even realizing that they are doing it because they just do not care about their jobs.

Image found via Google

I’m sure most of you have already heard about this, but I’m going to talk about it because this event was the main reason I’m writing this post. A couple days ago, a man went to his local (location unknown) McDonald’s and ordered breakfast. He was chowing down on the hash-brown when he realized that something was stuck to the bottom of it. When he flipped the fried potato bar over, he came face to face with a deep fried cockroach that had been plastered to the side of the hash-brown prior to being cooked. Don’t belive me? Here’s the picture the man snapped of his hash-brown (for those of you who have squeemish stomachs, scroll down quickly to the next paragraph):

Image found on MSN.com

Disgusting isn’t it? This is just utterly unacceptable! Many people may argue that it was an accident and probably rarely ever occurs, but how in the world can the person making and serving this hash-brown  not notice the giant cockroach stuck to the side of it? The person honestly couldn’t not have seen it, but my attention isn’t on the cooker–it’s on the manager. The man showed the manager the contaminated (and possibly health-threatening) hash-brown and she merely took his receipt and wrote on it that he was to be given the same identical breakfast the next day! Who does that?! A person who does not care about their job, that’s who. I think it’s safe to assume that since the manager (the person who pulls the strings) was not phased by the disgusting thing this McDonald’s had just served, she did not order the fryers to be cleansed of the contaminated frying oil. Some of you didn’t think about that, huh? Now the oil that is contaminated is allowed to keep frying and contaminating all of the ohter foods that had been and will be fried!!!  This includes, but is not limited to, more hash-browns, french fries,  and pies. And it’s generally common knowledge that the fryers don’t get dumped but for several days–maybe weeks at a time. Some people would argue, “Oh, that’s fine; it’s just one roach–that’s protein!” but I would like to point out that cockroaches pretty much live in disease in sewers and septic systems. Where did this particular cockroach come from? We don’t know. Where was this McDonald’s so that we can defer where the cockroach came from (like from a cluster of woods versus a sewer pipe)? We don’t know. I know that if I ate at fast-food places, I’d avoid every McDonald’s I see for another month or so.

However, this is not a rant against McDonald’s. Many of you know me personally and have heard my anti-fast food rants plenty enough, but this is a warning against eating at places that are run and served by people who don’t care about their jobs. I could use several more examples, some of which have happened to me recently in which I was served food that had been sloppily cooked and, thus, made me sick, but for the sake of your stomachs, I won’t.

My advice to you all is to just be aware of the attitude of your servers. If they look like they want to be somewhere else (or they just don’t care, like the McDonald’s manager), then they probably won’t care about your meal and, thus, may sabotage your food–consciously or not–which may sabotage others’ meals as well.

I honestly hope that you read this post and gleaned my advice from it–this is an issue in America’s fast food empire that is not just centered around McDonald’s, but so many other establishments! Think back on the Wendy’s that had a finger in the chili, and now think of the recent finger found in an Arby’s sandwich. There’s a reason why I avoid fast-food places, and it’s not just because I read Fast Food Nation when I was in high school. These places are just prone to making mistakes because the workers don’t care about their jobs. This also applies to those who are sick. If your server looks like there’s a bug going around–steer clear. If the server has it, the cook might have it, too!

Please take my advice and use it. Thanks for reading, and sorry for any squeemishness I may have caused.

~Love Lindi