I am sure we all have the best intentions to stick to eating healthy this holiday weekend. The weekend can be a hard enough  time to stick to our goals but a holiday weekend adds that extra challenge. Eating out, BBQs with friends, not wanting to cook… It’s a treat here and some chips there and before you know it we have slipped back into our old habits. 
Keep in mind a few things as you make plans for your weekend:

•The past is the past. We can’t change what you ate for breakfast, yesterday or the past year for that matter. But what you can change is what you will eat in the future or in your next meal. Focus on that next meal and what you are going to do differently and what you wish to change.
•Look up the calorie content of your meals. There are great websites and apps that can calculate calories for pretty much everything we eat; even fast food restaurants and many chain restaurants calorie info is available. Hold yourself accountable for those calories, budget your calories out; if you consumed a lot of calories at lunch then select carefully how you are going to spend your remaining calories for dinner. That leads to the next tip…
•Record your calorie consumption. Write down what you ate so that you can keep track of your progress.
•Cut out the soda. You would be surprised at how much weight you could lose just by eliminating soda. If complete elimination is out of the question reduce the amount you drink. Buy the smaller ounce cans or limit yourself to only one soda a day.
•And lastly the best tip….”If you don’t buy it you won’t eat it!” Stock your pantry with healthy staples that will keep you on track.

The key is to stay focused and not let the freedom of the weekend take you away from your nutrition goals. You will thank yourself come Monday!

Lately there have been several weight loss stories in the news. The latest boasts of a 25 male and how he lost 175 lbs in a little under a year. http://bit.ly/otZB2i There are even many more TV shows about people and their battle to lose many pounds.  We love looking at the transformation these people make and what a hard journey they have endured. With more and more people becoming obese, I am sure we will see more and more people take the first steps to changing their lifestyle.  But what happens between the before and the after?? What gets you from day one to your goal? The latest article about Will Nevin sheds a little insight into shedding the pounds.

“You have to find a reason you want to do this. It can’t be to please other people and it can’t be purely for cosmetic reasons,” he said. “It has to be because you want to make a serious long-lasting change in your life. … You have to find that inner motivation.” – Will Nevin

Eating organic is the new trendy way to eat these days but is it possible that the organic label has turned into another form of illusion for each of us. What does it mean to eat a treat from an organic bakery? Do we get confused into thinking that my organic scone or cookie is good for me? We tend to automatically assume a food item marked “organic” is not only healthy but better for you than a non-organic item.  A study at Cornell University  wanted  to see people’s perception of organic. They fed some people the same food item but labeled them organic and non-organic and then had the people eat and guess on the nutrition content. They guessed the organic items were less in fat and less in calories than the identical counter parts. The take home message: “Organic” and “all natural” labels do not mean calorie free, or healthy. Organic food can contain just as much calories as conventional food so no matter what you need to be looking at the nutrition label to determine if a food is right for you.

Some of the most delicious dishes to eat are Mexican Food. But a lot of Mexican food is fried with lard and topped with cheese and  sour cream and can end up being loaded with lots of saturated fat. Mexican food can be healthy and still taste great. Here are some tips to follow when going out or eating at home.

Instead of Flour tortillas……. TRY corn tortillas
Instead of fried pork or beek……TRY grilled fish or chicken breast
Instead of sour cream and cheese……TRY salsa, pico de gallo, cilantro and peppers
Instead of a Quesadilla………TRY Chicken fajitas, with chicken and veggies like onions, green peppers, tomatoes
Instead of Chalupas and Tacos……TRY Taco Salad (skip eating the shell and ask for no sour cream)
Instead of Chimichangas……TRY Chicken Enchiladas with red sauce or salsa

• Watch portion sizes!  Eat half your meal and take the rest home for lunch the next day.
• Tell your server not to bring chips and salsa to the table.
• Ask for no sour cream or low-fat sour cream.
• Use salsa and lime to add flavor.
• Tomato- based sauces are better than cream or cheese sauces.
Enjoy all your favorite Mexican dishes but with a healthier twist!

Going to a BBQ this weekend? Take this healthy salad. This salad gives any BBQ a unique healthy alternative to all the regular side dishes.

Rice, Black Bean and Corn Salad

Ingredients:
1 cup cold cooked brown rice
½ cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
½ green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1/3 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
½ red onion, minced
2 tablespoons minced cilantro
½ jalapeño pepper, seeded, deveined and minced (wear gloves to prevent irritation)
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon salt

Preparation:
In a large bowl, combine the rice, corn, bell pepper, celery, beans, onion, cilantro and jalapeno.
In a small bowl, whisk the vinegar, lime juice, oil and salt.  Pour over the rice mixture; toss to coat.  Refrigerate, covered, until the flavors are blended, at least 1 hour.

Tip:  All forms of fruits and vegetables count, like frozen, canned, dried, 100% juice and fresh. Get at least 4½ cups of fruits and vegetables every day

Per serving:  119 calories, 4 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 197 mg sodium, 19 g total carbohydrate, 3 g dietary fiber, 3 g protein, 21 mg calcium.  2 points per serving.

*Makes 4 servings- Adapted from Weight Watcher’s New Complete Cookbook

Organic. Is it just a fad that the hipsters are into? What does it mean to eat organic?  Organic” is a designation used by the USDA National Organic Program to certify food that is produced without synthetic chemicals or fertilizers, genetic engineering, radiation or sewage sludge.
Sounds like a great idea but when it comes to the price of organic do you often think twice?? If so, then here is a great suggestion for you. Only buy organic with specific items. The Shopper’s Guide to Pesticide in Produce will help you determine which fruits and vegetables have the most pesticide residues and are the most important to buy organic. You can lower your pesticide intake substantially by avoiding the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables and eating the least contaminated produce. This suggestion is a happy balance between price and exposure to pesticides.
Click here for the list of Dirty Dozen fruits and veggies that have the most pesticides.
http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/

Strawberry-Mango Salsa…. A refreshing summer salsa for those who want something not so spicy. Extremely easy and very flavorful.”

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2/3 cup orange juice
¼ cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 diced fresh mango
2 pints (16 oz each) strawberries, diced
Optional: Stir in the equivalent of up to 2 teaspoons sugar or non-nutritive sweetener if not naturally sweet.

Preparation:
Stir together the balsamic vinegar, orange juice, lemon juice, and lime juice in a large bowl.
Gently fold in the mango and strawberries until blended.
Allow the mixture to rest at least 20 minutes before serving with tortilla chips.

Per ¼ cup serving:  50 calories, 0.3 g total fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 2 mg sodium, 12.5 g carbohydrates, 2 g dietary fiber, 0.7 g protein. A recipe by S. Lynch at www.allrecipes.com