Eat Slim, Stay Trim!

Although some people have run rampant with the term and have made a mint by promoting the “miraculous! fountain-of-youth! death-defying!” benefits of superfoods, I hope that there won’t be a backlash against good, old-fashioned, super nutrient-exuberant food.

As I’ve said before, I’m a crusader for most edibles in their pure forms — and the majority of them are superfoods in my book. There are few whole foods from the plant world that don’t have some health-boosting element to brag about — so how to decide what to eat?

That’s why I like to think about (and eat) superfoods by season. Sure pumpkin is an A-plus superfood, but I like to save that for fall when it’s fresh and local, and look towards new fruit and tender green things this time of year. It’s a way to be connected to the planet’s cycle and decrease food miles, while giving your body a diversity of nutrients throughout the year to maximize its potential. And, to me at least, spring produce just tastes its amazing best in, yes, the spring! Funny how that works.

1. Artichokes
Studies have shown that artichokes contain a very high amount of antioxidants in the form of phytonutrients. A study undertaken by the USDA ranked artichokes as the number one fresh vegetable in antioxidant count. Among the most powerful phytonutrients are cynarin and silymarin, which have strong positive effects on the liver — any coincidence that artichokes have been reputed to help in the cure of liver diseases, liver cancer, and to cure hangovers?

One large artichoke contains only 25 calories, no fat, 170 milligrams of potassium, and is a good source of vitamin C, folate, magnesium, and has 6 grams of dietary fiber — 25 percent of the daily recommended amount.

How to prepare an artichoke? Read this.

2. Asparagus
According to the National Cancer Institute, asparagus is the food highest in glutathione, an important anti-carcinogen. It is also rich in two cancer-blocking vitamins (A and C) as well as the mineral selenium. These three nutrients have been singled out in several studies as fearsome cancer fighters.

A 5-ounce serving (only 20 calories) provides 60 percent of the recommended daily allowance for folacin which is necessary for blood cell formation, growth, and prevention of liver disease. Asparagus is also an excellent source of potassium, fiber, thiamin, vitamin B6, and is one of the richest sources of rutin, a compound which strengthens capillary walls.

Recipes:

• Asparagus, Spring Onion, and Mushroom Pasta
• Asparagus Spears With Black Pepper Pesto Vinaigrette
• Savory Orange Roasted Tofu and Asparagus

3. Avocado
They’re rich, they’re buttery, they’re delicious, and they have about 30 grams of fat per fruit. Ouch. But that’s no reason not to love an avocado. Nutritionists have back-pedaled on their gentle warnings about avocados after finding that most of the fat in an avocado is monounsaturated — the happy fat that actually lowers cholesterol levels. Yay! Let’s have an avocado party!

A study published in the Archives of Medical Research found that the 45 volunteers who ate avocados every day for a week experienced an average 17 percent drop in total blood cholesterol. As well, their levels of LDL (“bad fat”) and triglycerides, both associated with heart disease, went down. Their HDL (“good fat”) levels, which tend to lower the risk of heart disease, increased.

Avocados are rich in beta-sitosterol, a natural substance shown to significantly lower blood cholesterol levels. In a review article published in the December 1999 issue of the American Journal of Medicine, researchers pointed out that beta-sitosterol was shown to reduce cholesterol in 16 human studies.

Recipes:

• Chilled Zucchini and Avocado Soup
• Citrus Guacamole

Avocados Slimtrim

4. Blueberries
Jam-packed with antioxidants and phytoflavinoids, blueberries are also high in potassium and vitamin C. Recent research has found that additional components of blueberries may play an important role in preventing and fighting cancer. The results of one study suggest a wide array of potential cancer fighting benefits related to wild blueberry consumption.

Blueberries also have anthocyanin pigments, which may have the ability to halt cancer in the critical stages of promotion and proliferation. A 2005 study published in the Journal of Biochemistry and Cell Biology indicated that, in isolated cells, the tannins found in blueberries are very active at lowering a protein that plays a role in the metastasis of cancer.

In addition to helping prevent and fight cancer, the compounds in blueberries are believed to help against Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease, eye disease, and urinary tract infections. See? Super.

Recipes:

• Blueberry Creamy No-Bake Pie
• Berry Custard Cake

5. Fava Beans (aka Broad Beans)
Mmmm. Spring in a pod — I adore fava beans, even if they are a little work. OK, a lot of work, but so worth it! Not only are the big, fat, creamy beans scrumptious, but fava beans are particularly high in fiber (85 percent of the RDV), and also high in iron (30 percent of a day’s requirement). They contain no cholesterol and are low in fat.

Fava beans are also noted to contain L-dopa, which is used as a drug for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Additionally, as with most whole grains, consumption of fava beans can help reduce risks associated with heart disease.

Recipes:

• Herbed Fava Bean Salad
• French Spring Soup

6. Fresh Figs
Fresh figs put the “va va voom” in fruit — the tender but toothsome skin gives way to a soft and sticky center, dotted with delicately popping seeds, the perfumed and honeyed flesh — you get the picture. In my humble opinion, figs are quite an experience. And beyond their drop-dead flavor is their profusion of life-boosting qualities.

Figs have the highest overall mineral content of all common fruits. With their standout source of potassium, figs may help to control blood pressure. Figs are high in calcium. And as fate would have it, their potassium may reduce the amount of calcium lost as a result of high-salt diets. Figs are also a good source of iron, vitamin B6, and the trace mineral manganese.

The fruit also has tremendous amounts of fiber, more than any other dried or fresh fruit. Insoluble fiber protects against colon and breast cancer — soluble fiber helps lower blood cholesterol, and figs provide both. (Which also makes them a mild laxative, just so you know.) They also are a good source of flavonoids and polyphenols.

Recipes:

• Try figs quartered, stuffed with goat cheese, drizzled with honey, and topped with sea salt and black pepper.
• Fig and Kalamata Olive Tapenade

7. Leeks
Leeks look like cartoonishly big green onions, with a wonderfully sweet and subtle onion flavor. When braised or slowly sauteed, they melt into a sweet and creamy concoction that is hard not to love.

And they are workhorses in the health department as well. Like garlic, onions, scallions, chives and shallots — all from the Allium family — leeks can help the liver eliminate toxins and carcinogens. Leeks contain sulfur compounds that may protect against heart disease and some cancers, they can help the liver eliminate toxins and carcinogens.

Regular consumption of Allium vegetables (as little as two or more times a week — although I could certainly eat them every meal) is associated with a reduced risk of prostate and colon cancer.

Recipes:

• Linguine With Leeks and Lemon
• Creamy Vegan Potato Leek Soup

8. Oregano and Other Fresh Herbs
I love fresh oregano, especially if salty Mediterranean flavors — capers, olives, roasted peppers — are involved. Yum. And superfood-y too!

When researchers at the University of Oslo, Norway, analyzed 1,113 foods to identify those foods richest in total antioxidants, of the 50 foods highest in antioxidants, 13 were herbs and spices. One study found that oregano had 42 times more antioxidants than apples.

You might find that parsley is an excellent source of beta carotene, the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin (essential for preventing macular degeneration), vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin K.

Or try cilantro. In research studies, cilantro’s remarkable components have shown the potential to help promote detoxification, reduce high blood sugar and lower levels of cholesterol.

Recipes:

• Chard and Feta Tart With Oregano
• Parsley and Walnut Pesto
• Cilantro Tabouli

9. Spinach
Spinach, good old spinach. Spinach is an excellent source of folate — the B vitamin that helps to prevent birth defects, heart disease, dementia, and colon cancer (the third most common cause of cancer in women). People who eat at least one serving of greens, including spinach, each week are 20 percent less likely to develop colon cancer, according to Italian research.

Another compound in spinach, lutein, fights against macular degeneration, which causes age-related vision loss — in fact, including at least two servings of spinach a week in your diet halves the odds of macular degeneration (a leading cause of blindness), according to the the National Eye Institute. Eating cooked spinach more than twice a week cuts the need for cataract eye surgery in men by half, according to new Harvard University research.

And in a large-scale Harvard study, spinach singled out as most protective against stroke! Finally, because of it’s high in vitamin K, spinach also helps build stronger bones — lowering the risk of hip fracture from osteoporosis as much as 30 percent, suggests a joint Harvard-Tufts study. Popeye was on to something.

Recipes:

• Spinach Soup With Rosemary Croutons
• Coconut Creamed Spinach

10. Strawberries
A serving of eight medium strawberries provides 140 percent of the daily recommended allowance of vitamin C, 12 percent of our RDA for fiber, 6 percent of our RDA for folate, 210 mg of potassium, and is also high in vitamins K, B2, B5 and B6, copper, magnesium, and omega-fatty acids. In addition, strawberries contain anthocyanin, which has been used for studies in preventing initiation of cancers. Strawberries contain a unique phenolic group, ellagotannins, which are effective in preventing initiation of esophageal cancer.

With more antioxidant punch than most other fruits, berries in general strengthen tissue defenses against oxidation and inflammation, which are underlying factors in most age-related diseases. For example, substances in blueberries help with short-term memory loss associated with aging. All berries help lower risk for breast, oral, and colon cancers in women. With a wealth of phytochemicals like ellagic acid, adding strawberries to the diet lowers tumor risk by up to 58 percent.

For more weight loss tips, don’t forget to visit SlimTrim1.com. Eat Slim, Say Trim!

Source: Shine.Yahoo.com

The first step is to determine how many calories you need to eat daily to maintain your current weight and then try and consume 300-500 grams less per day if your goal is weight loss. Each person will vary depending on gender, weight, height and level of daily physical activity (a sedentary occupation vs. and active occupation). An easy way to start is by only cutting your calories by 300 a day and also exercising an extra 200 to make 500 a day. By doing this, you will be burning 3,500 calories a week or one pound of body fat per week. It is recommended that no more than 2 pounds or 7,000 calories be lost per week for lasting weight loss.

The starting point would be to start being aware of what you are consuming each and every day. One way is to look at the nutrition facts that are labeled on the foods and drinks that you are consuming. Everything you eat these days will have a food label on the back of it. For example, the nutrition label for Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream states that there are 240 calories per serving, 16 grams of fat and 11 grams of saturated fat. You may think that the fat looks pretty bad, but 250 calories isn’t that bad! Unfortunately, it is that bad, because that is only in one serving which, if you read the label, is only ½ a cup.

A half of a cup of ice cream could fit in the palm of your hand. Even worse, many individuals will eat a whole pint in one sitting. If 2 cups = a pint of ice cream and there are 4 servings in that pint, that means that the individual has consumed close to 1,000 calories, 64 grams of fat and 44 grams of saturated fat. That was just dessert!!! So when you are looking at the labels, make sure you read the serving size because you are most likely going to have more 1 serving size.

For weight loss and cutting calories, you will need to learn more about nutrition. If you have a great knowledge of the nutrition tips and healthy calories that will help your body burn more calories just by eating, you have one half the battle. Many fast food chains and family restaurant chains have nutrition facts on their websites.

Looking at how many calories that fast food meal you had for lunch and dinner may be an eye opener for many. You can know what you are eating and how many hidden and unnecessary calories are coming from those meals. Just because you may think you are eating something healthy like a salad, but some of the dressings out there add an extra 100-250 calories. If you get ranch dressing on your salad you are adding about 200-250 to your meal.

Many of us are unaware of the calories we are putting into our bodies each and every day. Starting to look at the labels on the foods we are eating is a great start in trying your calories. Many cookbooks provide nutrition facts at the bottom of their recipes along with ways to modify certain ingredients to make your meal healthier.

Another example where you need to start cutting the calories is in the liquid form. Soda, juice, alcohol, specialized coffee drinks and sweetened teas are all in the high calorie/low nutrition category called “empty calories”. Just by replacing ANY of these drinks with water, you could easy take 200-800 calories out of you day. Beverage calories can add up. For example, a Super Big Gulp contains 800 calories, a 20-ounce cola is 250 calories, one can of beer has 145 calories, and a Starbucks Chocolate Malt Frappuccino with whipped cream has 610 calories! Empty calories in the form of liquid do not help the appetite either as they can lead you to be hungry and eat more also.

Other tips to help lower your caloric intake is to cut down or limit all unrefined sugars that are found in foods such as cookies, cake, ice cream, candy and candy bars. An example of this would be going to subway and getting a cookie to add to you healthy sandwich meal you just bought. That one little cookie will add 200-220 calories to your meal. Also cut out high caloric fried foods such as potato chips, onion rings, French fries, donuts, and fried foods. One example how calories can add up would be if you went to Kentucky Fried Chicken for dinner and ordered two pieces of chicken, Cole slaw, and mashed potatoes.

The two pieces of fried chicken would add up to about 500 calories, which includes nearly 25 grams of fat and around 200 mg of cholesterol. This is almost half of the fat suggested for a whole day and it isn’t healthy fat. The Cole slaw has about 200 calories from its sweet dressing and around 10 grams of fat. The mashed potatoes and gravy add another 125 to 150 calories and more fat grams. The medium soda adds about 175 calories, all from sugar, with no nutritional benefit. This meal just has way too many calories, with more than 1000 calories for only one meal. It has too much fat and a lot of sugar as well. So by limiting your intake of these types of foods, you will be on your way to cutting your calories.

Downsizing your portions is another easy and effective way to lower your daily caloric intake for weight loss. Portion sizes in restaurants have tripled in size in the past 30 years. We are used to super sizing and the word downsizing does not sound good. Some example of downsizing would be to get a to-go box while you order while eating out. When your food arrives, go ahead and put half of it in the box. You can eat it the rest as an afternoon snack. Another is to share a dinner plate with a friend or partner when you go out. A tip when you are at home is to only use smaller plates so that your plate looks like it is full.

We are also used to being told to get more food when we are at a friends’ house or at your families’ house. The hosts want to make sure you get all of their great cooking and then some. You want to be polite and get seconds and even thirds. This is when you can double and triple your calorie intake and will not help with weight loss. Most people are positive when you tell them you are trying to reach some health and fitness goals and that one plate is enough. Cutting portion sizes will help in your quest to cut calories. Remember that in order to lose body fat you have to cut your daily caloric intake more or burn more calories by moving.

So far you have heard three ways to help cut and count calories which will help in weight loss…

1. Look at labels 2. Cut down on empty calories in foods and drinks. 3. Eat smaller portions. An easy staring point to all of this is to get a small journal and start writing down the calories in everything you consume. You may not even change any of your eating habits at first as you write down what time and what all you eat each day in your journal. An example may be that you had a glass of coffee, piece of bread with jelly, and a banana for breakfast. Then you had a glass of coffee around 10am with a doughnut. For lunch you ate out at Jason’s Deli and had one of those great spud potatoes. You were too stuffed to eat in the afternoon but have a coke to give you some energy to finish the afternoon at work. Dinner was spaghetti with sauce, a roll, salad, and a glass of wine. You ended the night with a small bowl of ice cream.

If you were adding the whole days up in your journal, your daily calories would be about 3,200 for the day. Most people need way below that number just to maintain their weight. Having a journal will help you become aware of everything you eat throughout the day and how many calories you are eating. For a lot of people, it lets them know if they have eaten too much or too little for that particular day. For others it is an accountability partner as you have to write down everything that you eat each day. Even those 4 little pieces of Hershey kiss after lunch that added up to 104 calories. Having a daily journal is very important for anyone wanting to cut their calories.

You always have to remember that in order to lose body you need to eat fewer calories or burn more calories. An easier plan would be to do both. A good healthy way to start would be to cut your intake by 300 calories and to exercise to burn off 200 calories.

Moving and staying active will help in your quest to cut and count calories. Counting your calories and trying to cut it will be easy for some people and hard for others. You have to start somewhere. If you have a lot of changes to make in your eating habits, then try only 1 or 2 of these steps at a time. Once you have a handle on those one or two of the steps, make another small change. Before long these simple steps will become habits in your daily routine, enabling you to live a healthy lifestyle.

It is important to note that there are some people out there that do not get enough calories. A diet that is too low in calories doesn’t provide the body with the nourishment and adequate nutrients it needs to perform activities of daily living. If your body does not get enough calories it will begin to start feeding off your muscle and using protein as fuel instead of carbohydrates and fat. Drastically reducing calories is not an effective way to lose body fat because instead of losing fat, you lose muscle. Getting enough calories doesn’t mean big meals. Don’t take all your calories in one or two daily feasts. Instead, eat five or six smaller meals. Amounts and needs vary depending on your gender, body type and activity level. Whether or not you’re trying to lose weight, always strive to eat balanced meals and snacks that provide enough calories to keep you energized.
by: John Manjarres

To get your diet plan started, click here: http://slimtrim1.com