Food Facts: Energy Bars

Food, Sports, Energy, and Protein bars

The problem with food, sports, energy, and protein bars is that they are are man-made products with many ingredients. MOST are just "glorified candy bars". MY DIVA DIET is sure these products were designed with good intentions, but they fail the “real and natural” food test.

* Notes

• There are too many food, sports, energy, and protein bars (alias “food bars”) to list here or analyze, and not all of them are created equal. Some are healthier than others, using real ingredients, while others are just glorified candy bars. 
  
• Food bars (including granola bars) are only marginally better for you than candy bars or fast food burgers. 
• Most food bars are high in calories, contain sugar (or high fructose corn syrup), wheat and other flour, fat and fat sources (like hydrogenated oil), salt, milk products, nuts, cocoa and cocoa powder, caffeine and other stimulants, ginseng, and additives and preservatives. 
• Some food bars add vitamins and minerals to increase their value. 
  
• Some food bars contain fiber and some are gluten-free. 
  

* Food, Sports, Energy, and Protein Bars Rules

• MY DIVA DIET does not recommend food, sports, energy, or protein bars as part of your daily diet—we remind you that you need to get your calories from natural, fresh, and wholesome foods. 
• It’s okay in an emergency situation to have one of these food bars. Try to choose those with fewer ingredients, higher protein and fiber, and no sugars and low to no flavor enhancers, additives, and preservatives. Again—read the labels! 

To learn more about reading labels, check out my blog post "Read Food Labels–Your Health & Fitness Levels Depend on It!"

Remember the MY DIVA DIET Golden Food Rule: 

"If God (nature) made it, it is safe. If it is man-made, it must be examined thoroughly.”

And if you are ready to get fit for life-check out MY DIVA DIET:  A Woman's Last Diet Book 

Tea Does a Body Good!

As noted in my last blog, "diet villain" ALERT:  CAFF, I am posting this information about tea.  

Tea
After water, tea is the most commonly consumed beverage in the world, offering many health benefits if you skip the cream and sugar. The average amount of caffeine in tea is 40 milligrams per cup, compared to coffee, which contains around 100 milligrams per cup.

* Notes
Teas such as green, black, white, and red contain polyphenols, which are rich in antioxidants that help protect our bodies from free radical damage and may reduce the risk of gastric, esophageal, and skin cancers.

• Polyphenols also help prevent blood clotting, lower cholesterol levels, and may lower the risk of ovarian cancer.

Herbal teas are infusions made with herbs, flowers, spices, roots. and other plant parts but do not have the same health-promoting properties as green, red, and black teas. 

• Herbal teas are consumed for their physical or medicinal effects, especially for their digestive, immunity, cleansing, relaxant, and wellness properties.

* Tea Rules

• Drink a couple of cups of tea daily to help boost your water intake and add other health benefits. With such a wide variety of flavors you’re bound to find one or more you love.
• Don’t drink grocery store or convenience store bottled teas that aren’t 100% tea. These teas usually contain sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and other sugar derivatives, all of which are definite no-no’s.
• Try pre-made unsweetened Tejava tea (www.tejava.com), found at Trader Joe’s.
• Some coffee bistros offer a variety of tea choices—just make sure they are plain teas—no sugar, cream, artificial sweeteners, etc.

Here are some articles you may want to read about tea:

Web MD:  Antioxidants in Green and Black Tea 

Health, caffeine, and benefits: is tea good for you?

Tea is good for you, but skip the milk.

Drink up:  White tea is good for you–really?

Health Benefits of Tea 

 Lose fat and gain health NOW with MY DIVA DIET: A Woman's Last Diet Book 

"diet villain" ALERT: VEGG (lack of exercise)

VEGG: Lack of exercise, always inactive and lazy

Americans’ attitudes toward exercise reflect other values in our culture today: we have grown lazy and passive, expecting rewards to come to us without effort and hoping that others will do for us what 

we can and should do for ourselves. In terms of physical activity, the result is that our health & fitness levels have fallen dramatically.

* Notes

• The wide-ranging health benefits of regular exercise include:
  
• Reducing the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, diabetes, and obesity
• Helping keep joints, tendons, and ligaments flexible
  
• Helping increase metabolism, energy, and endurance
• Reducing some of the effects of aging
  
• Contributing to mental well-being (including alleviating depression, stress, and anxiety) and ensuring better sleep
  
• A properly designed and executed exercise program can improve or protect posture, help keep bones and muscles stronger, and maintain joints, tendons, and ligaments injury-free.
  
• Exercise can help improve your skin and enable your internal organs to function better.
  
• Exercise helps you lose body fat by:
• Burning calories when you are exercising and increasing your metabolism for many hours afterward 
• Increasing your lean body mass, which:

Equals a higher sustained metabolic rate

Leads to a firmer, more sculptured physique

• Exercise makes you healthier, feel better, look younger and more alive—it’s sexy!
  

* Exercise Rules

Exercise is FACTOR #5 of MY DIVA DIET'S "Five Factors Affecting Body Fat and Health" 

• There is only one main exercise rule when your goal is to lose fat and gain health: exercise is mandatory. So find something active you enjoy doing and make it part of your life right now.
  
• Exercise is crucial for fat loss and good health. It is also essential for maintaining low body fat and a fit physique. However, the frequency, duration, and intensity of your exercise will vary depending on your goals and other circumstances.
  
• Don’t be extreme with your exercise program.

* A Quick Guide to exercise

• The best thing to do when you’ve been cleared by your doctor and are ready to begin an exercise program is to hire a Certified Fitness Professional. That way you will not waste time, money, or risk injury.
  
• An exercise program should consist of the six components shown in the following chart. Each workout should fit your age, current fitness level, and any medical or physical limitations you may have. Your goals, lifestyle, exercise interests, and commitment level should also be taken into consideration when your exercise program is designed.
  

Six Components to an Effective Exercise Program

Purpose–Types of Activity–Frequency–Duration–Intensity 

#1 Cardiovascular conditioning

• Purpose: Supports your heart and lungs, has many other health benefits; has a major impact on fat loss
  
• Types of activity:
  

1. Biking, running, fast walking, stair climbing, rowing, etc. (outside or indoor) 
   
2. Consider: A spin class or a group aerobics class

• Frequency: 3 to 5 times per week
  
• Duration: Approximately 30 to 45 minutes
• Intensity: 75 to 85% of your maximum heart rate
  

#2 Strength and endurance training

• Purpose: Helps build muscle, strength and endurance, and bone density; has many other health benefits; increases lean body mass, which supports fat loss and makes you look firmer.
  
• Types of activity:
  

1. Weight training with free weights and some machines
   
2. Circuit training
   
3. Consider: Pilates, which covers some strength, core, and flexibility training

• Frequency: 3 to 5 times per week
  
• Duration: Approximately 30 to 45 minutes
  
• Intensity: Depends on the number of sets and repetitions, weight load, and the rest period between sets

#3 Flexibility training

• Purpose: Enhances your joints’ ability to move through a full range of motion. Keeping your muscles flexible will help improve physical performance and posture and reduce the risk of injury, low back pain, and muscle soreness; increase the flow of blood and nutrients to tissues; and help improve muscle coordination. It not only will make you feel better but function better.
• Types of activity:
  

1. Stretching exercises (either alone or within a class setting)
2. Consider: A yoga class
   

• Frequency: 3 to 5 times per week (perhaps after an exercise program)
  
• Duration: Approximately 10 to 20 minutes (or more, if you have the time)
• Intensity: To the point of tightness, not pain
  

#4 Core and balance training 

• Purpose: Supports the balanced development of the deep superficial muscles that stabilize, align, and move the trunk of the body, especially the abdominals and muscles of the back.
• Types of activity:

1. Core conditioning can be done with weights, exercise bands, medicine balls, or a Swiss ball (a large rubber ball used for exercise and physical therapy)
   

• Frequency, duration, and intensity: Core training can be incorporated into your exercise program (either with your weight training or in a class setting)

#5 Corrective exercises

• Purpose: Help improve posture and target ideal posture, defined as “that state of muscular and skeletal balance which protects the supporting structures of the body against injury or progressive deformity.” It is during ideal posture that the muscles function most efficiently.
  
• Types of activity:
  

1. Exercises that help offset any muscle imbalances you may have developed through work injuries, sports, a poorly designed exercise program, or simple neglect. Corrective exercises help put your body back into its proper postural alignment so you not only function better but look and feel better. You can use weight training and flexibility techniques as well as a Swiss ball, foam rollers, and other modalities.
   

• Frequency, duration, and intensity: You can incorporate corrective exercises within your regular exercise routine, as long as they are tailored to your particular postural issues.

#6 Functional training

• Purpose: Improves functional movements that the body is engineered to do in everyday life—walking, running, climbing, lifting, bending, etc.— through a complex series of motions by several of the body’s systems, including the nervous system, the muscular system, and the skeletal system.
• These movements are important because they give us the ability to perform a variety of tasks—at work, at home, for recreation—now and in the future.
• Types of activity:
  

1. Functional training should be a part of your exercise program so that your body can do all the things it was meant to do—even at age 80!
   

• Frequency, duration, and intensity: You can fit your functional training into your weight training sessions.

* Exercise Resources

• Paul Chek of the Chek Institute
  
• ACE (American Council on Exercise)
  
• NESTA (National Exercise and Sports Trainers Association)
  

ACE Certified Fitness Trainer, 

Christine Lakatos 

"diet villain" ALERT: AL and & his twin COLE (alcohol)!

DIET VILLAINS EXPOSED 

Al & his twin sister, Cole:
Drinking too much alcohol

Alcohol
The behavioral problems that can result from alcohol use and abuse are well documented. However, alcohol consumption also has a direct impact on your health as well as your body-fat level.

* Notes

• Alcohol has short-term effects on health and body fat.
  
• Alcohol is easily converted to fat, has empty calories, can cause dehydration, and creates electrolyte imbalances.
• While your liver is busy metabolizing alcohol, it is unable to metabolize fat.
  
• Alcohol has more severe long-term effects on health and body fat.
  
• Excessive alcohol use can result in dependency, nutrition deficiency (mainly B-complex and iron), liver dysfunction, brain cell damage, increased cancer risk, increased heart disease risk, digestive system dysfunction, reproductive problems, and mental health effects (like depression).

Does Alcohol make you fat?  Check out these articles! 

WeightLossforAll.com

RealWomen'sFitness.com

AmericanChronicle.com

How to Attack and Defeat these two "diet villains"!  

* Alcohol Rules

• If you are serious about losing fat and upgrading your health, alcohol has to be off limits during the Diva Reduction Phase of MY DIVA DIET. When you are in the Diva Maintenance Phase, you can have alcohol in moderation, but you will need to monitor it so that the fat does not come back and your health won’t suffer. (If you do-drink responsibly!)  

* FYI’s

The following chart shows you the average caloric content of some common alcoholic drinks.
Drink -- Calories
Wine (4 oz.) -- 90
One beer (12 oz.) -- 150 to 200 (depending on brand)
Bloody Mary --  115 calories
Whiskey sour -- 122
Gin and tonic -- 171
Piña colada -- 262
Vodka / other alcohol (4 oz.) -- 250 (depending on choice)

Calories from wine, beer, alcohol, alcoholic mixed drinks (the mix adds an additional 100+ calories) add up quickly—a few drinks can total up to one half of your daily calories or more.

=================

How do AL & COLE fit into the "Five Factors Affecting Body Fat and Health"?
They are part of Factor #1!
Factor #1: Liquid Consumption
Too many poor liquid choices add unnecessary and empty calories to the American diet, and an inadequate water intake leaves women dehydrated, unhealthy, bloated, and overweight.

Factor #2: Quantity and Distribution of Calories

* Daily caloric intake (uncontrolled calories—too many or not enough)
* Daily nutrient ratio: protein/carbohydrates/fat (unbalanced calories)
* Number of meals in each day (too many or not enough)* Meal size (uncontrolled portions)
* Meal timing (unmonitored timing)

Factor #3: Quality and Purity of Calories

* Fat calories
* Unhealthy calories
* Dirty calories
* Impure calories
* Old and dead calories
* Non-kosher calories

Factor #4: Restrictive and Unbalanced DietingBecause most women look for quick-fix solutions to our obesity and poor-health epidemic, we buy into gimmicks and false promises. We subscribe to dangerous pills and special packaged foods. We suffer needlessly. Sometimes we lose weight only to “rebound”—gaining more weight than when we started and usually at the expense of our health. We end up confused and more desperate. So instead of seeking the proper way to lose weight, we start the cycle all over again.

Factor #5: Exercise
Lack of exercise is a major factor in our health and often explains why we may be fat in the first place. We are a “remote-control” country: we lack physical activity and are frequently too lazy to exercise.

======================

Take the "Diva 32-Question Quiz"  and expose all of your "diet villains"!  

Stay tuned for more diet villains, diva reduction recipes, and diva news! 

See our blog MY DIVA DIET "Tools for Success", giving you practical tools and valuable information so that you CAN win the battle for health and fitness-attain a lean, healthy, fit and more functional body–for life!  

Thanks from SUPER DIVA and PAW! 

Diva Reduction Recipe: DIVA Frittata

Hello to all of you who are looking for great recipes to help you lose weight and gain health.

Diva Reduction Recipes -- “Fit Meals in Minutes”
“Combining quick and convenient with sound nutrition!”

MY DIVA DIET knows how busy women are these days. We try to balance families and friends, church, pets, household, cleaning, and grocery shopping. Then we have our careers, creative ideas, our looks, etc. The younger generation of women and teenagers try to do it all, too—juggling parents, stepparents, grandparents, siblings, pets, school, friends, sports, hobbies, and parties. As women we are often so busy that we put our health & fitness last, including our abilities to cook and eat healthy meals. This, however, is something we need to change—we need to re-prioritize.

Because we truly want you to succeed with MY DIVA DIET, we have designed quick Diva Recipes that meet the criteria for fat reduction as well as sound nutritional guidelines. You don’t have to give up taste when you eat correctly. In fact, you will learn that wholesome and fit foods taste better than junk food.



Diva Frittata

(contains dairy and eggs)

2 whole eggs + 5 egg whites
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup mushrooms, diced
1/2 cup raw spinach
non-stick cooking spray
1 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese, grated

Preparation: Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees. Whip together eggs and egg whites in a bowl. Spray a skillet with non-stick spray and cook veggies on medium heat until al dente. Spray a square baking pan with non-stick spray and pour in eggs and cooked veggies. Top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Place in pre-heated oven. Cook until firm, about 15 minutes or until desired texture.

Photos of recipes are real and have not been touched up!

Makes 2 Servings —

Recommended Serving Size: 1/2 of the frittata
Nutritional Value per serving: 172 calories; 20 g protein; 6 g carbs; 7.2 g fat; 2.2 g fiber; 346 mg sodium

Try your frittata with a sprouted corn tortilla or healthy sprouted bread for a great meal any time!

wwwFoodForLife.com

"Food for Life’s breads are healthier because of the live grain difference! Using freshly sprouted, certified organically grown live grains, our exclusive sprouting process significantly increases valuable nutrients."

Food For Life offers:

• Sprouted Grain / Ezekiel 4:9 / Genesis 1:29®
  
• Low Glycemic / Diabetic Friendly
  
• High Fiber
  

And for Special Dietary Needs!
Specialty products to meet all individual dietary needs:

• Gluten Free / Wheat Free Breads
  
• Yeast Free Breads
  
• Allergy sensitive
  

Here is another way you can turn your Frittata into a complete meal idea–a side of:

+ 1/4 cup white, brown or wild rice, cooked, plain

+ 1 cup blackberries (raspberries and blueberries are great, too)
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Total meal:

301.5 calories
22.3 g protein
35.9 g carbs
8.2 g fat
9.4 g fiber

www.MyDivaDiet.com

Fitness Star Network!

I am pleased to announce that the Fitness Star Network has allowed MY DIVA DIET our own Forum–MY DIVA DIET "Tools for Success" .  Just like my blog (same title), this is where I share information and practical tips and guides to make sure YOU SUCCEED with your fat loss and get healthy goals!  

MY DIVA DIET "Tools for Success" Forum on the Fitness Star Network 

E.C.L. Empower–Challenge–Legacy

The MY DIVA DIET mission is to empower women so that they can get into great shape, to challenge them to better women, and to ensure a legacy of good health to the next generation!  

www.MyDivaDiet.com