Raw, Vegan, Pescatarian...Personally, I'm An Healtharian!

Nowadays there is a label for all possible diet practices. Until not long ago it was all about being either omnivore or vegetarian. Then the macrobiotic diet became very popular (also thanks to Ms Ciccone), and also the vegan diet became part of mainstream food movements.
More recently the rawism is acquiring an important spot (just here in New York raw restaurants are popping out in every neighborhood). But that’s not it, there are flexitarians, pescatarians, pollotarians not to mention paleos and so on...
However, there’s no “official” definition for those (like me) that believe only in healthy eating: healtharian I like to define myself.
I actually randomly searched such term on Google and I found only a couple of websites that talk about it and in very marginal way (sigh!).
This means that time has come to claim our spot in the food movements.
First of all, I really like how healtharian sounds.
I can’t wait to be at the next time dinner party and when somebody will ask me “Are you vegetarian?vegan?” and I will be able to proudly reply “No, I’m an healtharian!”. How cool will it be? I’m already savoring the moment when I’ll start explaining what be an healtharian means (ha!)
And then you know it, once the word is out, it will start circulating and in a heartbeat we will rule the world!
Ok, that might be a bit of a stretch, but I know for a fact that there are many of us that just can’t wait to proudly walk under the healtharian banner.
But let’s move one step at the time...

Raw Chocolate Pudding

I love this pudding for a bunch of reasons:
1) It’s uber-easy to make
2) It’s raw
3) It's vegan
4) Tastes great
5) Packed with nutrients
6) If you add protein powder makes for a perfect post-workout food
I'm positive that after reading this list you’ll be convinced to give it a try. You honestly should, because it’s really worth it.
Just five ingredients: bananas, unsweetened cocoa powder, chia seeds, vegan milk and protein powder (if you feel like).
It takes less than five minutes to "assemble". I like to make it before going to training so that it’s ready by the time I got back home. It’s a great substitute for the post-workout protein smoothie but can also be served to your guests as a sweet treat. And believe me no one would be able to guess that this awesome pudding is also so healthy!

Exercise Can Change (And Improve) Your DNA!

If you think that you’re going to be stuck with your DNA for the rest of your life, think again, because DNA is not immutable as many believe.
A recent study, published in the March issue of Cell Metabolism (a Cell Press publication) has discovered that when healthy but inactive men and women exercise for a matter of minutes, their DNA changes immediately.
One might think: is this a good or a bad thing? General consensus among scientists is that this is a very good thing.
Which means that altering our genomes for better health might be only a jog away.

Do You Know How Healthy (And Good) Kelp Is?

I discovered kelp one day while I was having lunch with my friend Agata at Earth Matters in the LES, NYC. She grabbed a box from the fridge that contained what appeared to be pesto noodles.
They didn’t looked exactly like regular noodles, more of a squishy version of them. I was a bit skeptical, but she made me try them and I must admit, they were awesome.
They were noodles made of kelp, an algae. Now, I know in general that algaes are a pretty amazing food, but what I didn’t know to what extent kelp is  awesome.
Truth to be told we should all try to integrate more kelp in our eating regimens.
Not only because it’s a healthy thing to do, but also as growing algae is cheap and sustainable - hence a good thing for our beloved Earth!

Blueberry Protein Banana Bread

This banana bread is amazing, I’m not kidding, it’s truly amazing. No sugar added, almost fat-free but with lots of good proteins and other precious nutrients: soft, moist and simply amazing.
It’s made with a good amount of whole wheat flour, rolled oats and protein powder.
Its core is bananas. I used organic ones that I found at the local grocery store, and I was very careful to pick the most riped ones from the stack.
This is crucial because the recipe calls for no added sugars. This means that all of the sweetness comes from the banana: that’s why they should be very ripe and delicious.
Also, don’t cheap out on blueberries: they contribute dramatically to this bread.
The end result is...amazing. I know I’m repeating myself but I can’t find any other word to better describe it.
It’s the best thing for breakfast. And if you’re on a diet, check the nutrition facts below, I’m sure you’ll be surprised!

Weight Loss Tip: Plan Your Meals

One of the golden rules for keeping your weight under control and being healthier is to never leave the house in the morning without having a plan for lunch, afternoon snack, and dinner.
If you’re on a diet you probably don’t have to worry about this because you’re likely to be provided with a daily nutrition plan. If you’re not (or you just finished one) you better start thinking ahead and learn to keep in check what you’re going to eat throughout the day.
Over time I discovered that planning meals is really a necessary component in being healthier.
Why? Because there’s nothing worst than spontaneous eating: 9 times out of 10 you’ll make poorer food choices. As it’s always easier to head to a fast food joint or to order-in rather than to create a nutritious and healthy meal at home.
Menu planning doesn't have be complicated: it just requires a small investment of time and some thinking.

Pumpkin Protein Muffins

I had some leftover pumpkin puree and thought to make some healthy muffins that I could enjoy in the morning for breakfast.
Making these muffins is a cinch. You can mix by hand which allows to incorporate all the ingredients quickly without overdoing it, a little touch for decorating them and that’s about it.
Depending on the sweetness of the pumpkin puree you’re using you can cut on the sugar. You can always replace it with Splenda sweetener to make them sugar free. Also feel free indulge on spices. I really enjoy the flavor combination of pumpkin and cinnamon; next time I’m going to add a little more than what the recipe calls for. So feel free to adjust those things to taste.
What came out of the oven were some pretty good muffins, worthy of your palate. Packed with protein, fibers and all the nutrients pumpkin brings along!

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One Grapefruit A Day Helps Lowering Cholesterol, But...

A few days ago, the NYTimes health blog reported a pretty interesting news: the FDA acknowledged that cholesterol-lowering statins carry a risk of cognitive side effects.
If you’re not familiar with this drug, statins help people at high risk of cardiovascular problems, lowering cholesterol, risk of heart attack and stroke. They are one of the most prescribed drugs in the world.
For years doctors have been fielding reports from patients that the drugs leave them feeling “fuzzy,” and have been experiencing big memory problems. Finally the FDA has officially acknowledged that.
This news has raised concern because 21 million patients only in the US were prescribed statins during 2011. It's difficult to assess how many of them have experienced cognitive side effects.
So what’s the solution? Lowering cholesterol through a healthy diet and exercising, easy as that. You can get off statins and no more fear of “losing the mind”.
Among food that help with cholesterol issues one might be particulalry helpful: grapefruit!
A study conducted in Israel demonstrated that eating one ruby red grapefruit a day was as effective as taking statin drugs in the lowering of cholesterol. But beware, you cannot use the two together!

Green Protein Smoothie

This is my favorite green smoothie recipe. I’ve tried several flavors combinations over the years and found this to be pretty awesome. It’s basically banana, spinach or kale, pineapple juice and vanilla protein blended together. The greens slight bitterness almost disappears in the mixture, but still gives a bit of flavor-kick that blends well with the sweetness of the other ingredients.
I like to add chia seeds and bee pollen to make it “complete” from a nutritional standpoint. If you have spirulina add some: this smoothie will get even more awesome!

The Best Sources Of Omega-3s

Omega-3s are a hot topic, everybody keeps talking about how they’re a magic wonder for our brain, heart, skin, joints, and eyes. The consensus is that fish is the greatest source for Omega-3s hence, we should eat it at least twice a week. If not, we should supplement such deficiency with fish oil capsules.
However, most of the people don’t know that Omega-3s are not just a single nutrient. The term refers to a family of compounds that has a wide chemical variety. With each type of Omega-3 playing a different role.
The sources for each Omega-3s are different and sometime fish oil supplementation may not be enough.
Let’s discover some more about this.