trusting yourself with a BOGO sale.

hi, my name is teachergirl, and i am a serious sucker for a BOGO sale.

in case you have not been recently privy to the amazingness that is BOGO, it means a buy one get one free sale and for a food bargain hunter like me, it's a song that sings joy to my heart and to my pocketbook. i very much like it when i can look at my grocery store receipt and see that half of what i bought was given to me...FREE.

i like free.  free makes me happy.

unfortunately, it's fairly rare (with the exception of bagged salads or the occasional pint of blueberries) that superfoods are on BOGO sale. no, what's mostly BOGO are the things that we try to avoid.  my particular temptation last week was donuts. 

(don't ask, especially after ashlee's transfat post yesterday.  but suffice it to say that i looked at the nutrition fact and my better nature told me to move along.)

yes, the BOGO sale can sometimes be a temptation to stock your pantry with terrible things that will call to you in the middle of the night, telling you that you just need one more cookie to be well and truly satisfied.

if you're anything like me, when you're trying to keep yourself healthy, you spend money on the good stuff. maybe you try to match your fruit needs to what's on sale (cherries have been routinely on sale lately here, so my husband and i have greatly enjoyed that particular treat), but for the most part you might always buy bananas or grapes or whatever fruit or vegetable your family enjoys. if you can get them to eat it, you buy it.  but you might try to stick strictly to that rule of shopping the outsides of the store, venturing into the aisles only for virtuous things like whole wheat pasta and yummy spices to make something extraordinary from scratch.

some days, that's me.

but lately?  lately, i've been quite lucky to cook at all.  someday i'll tell you all about what's been going on in musicboy/teachergirl world, but for right now suffice it to say that convenience foods have quickly gone from THE GREAT SATAN to...eh, maybe?

so when i saw that necessity was quickly forcing me into new choices that incorporated more things that were easy to fix, i began looking at the bogo sales more closely. here's what i'm beginning to realize: discipline and healthy eating can incorporate a BOGO diversion. 

BOGO doesn't always have to be evil is my point, roundabout as may be.

sometimes, you need to relearn how to incorporate some of these foods into your world successfully. for me, it means that i choose the reduced fat chips ahoy instead of the chunky chips ahoy because i get more bang for my serving size buck.  for me, it's choosing to buy the frozen yogurt ben & jerry's instead of the full fat version.  it's stocking up on the whole wheat bagels with lots of fiber, because i know that half of one of those can make a breakfast that makes my online food diary smile at me. 

convenience foods can't make up the substance of your healthy diet.  but sometimes, when push comes to shove, you can make wise decisions and still incorporate them.  just like with any food, whether it come from a box or a produce bin, you need to understand serving size and be diligent about recording what you're eating.  with any convenience food, you need to be aware of sodium and fat content and, of course, the preservatives that are a part of these foods.

but, overall, i'm learning that a little bit of moderation can go a long way.  sometimes, it's about doing the best that you can do with what you've been given.  when we don't have easy access to fresh, whole foods, sometimes we have to do the best with what we have. i am beginning to believe that with some diligence we can make healthy choices in whatever circumstances we're in. 

i'll admit--i feel a bit like the black sheep of this blog right now because here i am admitting to having four packages of chips ahoy in my pantry and being happy to have stockpiled 98% fat free hot dogs in our freezer.  but healthy living has to exist within real life. one of the things that makes me craziest is when people try to tell me how to be healthy in abstract, unrealistic terms.  of course it's easy to lose weight when you work out 9 hours a day. of course it's easy to lose weight when you have a nutritionist on staff. of course it's easy to lose weight when that's your absolute a primary focus. 

of course it's easy to be healthy when life doesn't get in the way.

but if you're anything like me, life routinely gets in the way. it doesn't, however, have to get in the way of your commitment to making good decisions.  when a choice is placed before you...choose the healthy way.  you can do that anywhere, anytime.  you can do that with any circumstance and in whatever particular condition you find yourself. 

do your best.   that's really all you can do.  and you should feel really good about it.

Trans Fat... Why it's bad and how to avoid it.

One thing that I hate about grocery shopping is the plethora of foods containing trans fat. There is no need for trans fat. It makes production more efficient and foods cheaper. That's it.

But let me back up a bit. Let's have a little trans fat 101, shall we?

What is trans fat?

There are small amounts of naturally occurring trans fats in beef and dairy. Those aren't the ones we're concerned with and are thought to be less harmful than the artificially produced fats.

Artificial trans fat results from adding hydrogen to oil, also called hydrogenation. This transforms the liquid fat into a solid one, making foods prepared with it less perishable than their trans fat free counter parts. I won't go into the science of the fat, but it's naughty. Trust me.

Why is trans fat bad?

We all know about saturated fats (most fats that are solid at room temperature are saturated fats). Saturated fats raise your LDL, "bad" cholesterol (the artery clogging stuff), but have no effect on your HDL, "good" cholesterol (helps to clean out arteries). It's bad.

Then there's trans fat. Trans fat not only raises your LDL cholesterol, it also lowers your HDL cholesterol. It's a double-whammy artery blocker.

The combination of high LDL cholesterol and low HDL cholesterol greatly increases your risk of heart disease, the US's leading killer of men and women.

Trans fat also increases triglycerides (contributes to hardening of arteries), increases Lp(a) lipoprotein (type of LDL cholesterol), and causes increased inflammation because of damage to the cells lining the blood vessels.

How much trans fat is safe?

Because of the small amounts of naturally occurring trans fats, the amount of consumption considered safe is already met in the typical 2000-calorie diet. Therefore, the FDA and the American Heart Association suggest avoiding any additional consumption.

What foods have trans fat?

Spreads.

Margarine, shortening, and butter

Packaged foods.

Cake mixes, canned frosting, Bisquick

Soups.

Ramen noodles and soup cups

Fast food.

(here's a sampling of some of my personal favorites)

McDonalds Quarter Pounder with Cheese - 1.5 g trans fat, 12 g sat fat

Burger King Whopper with Cheese - 1.5 g trans fat, 16 g sat fat

Arby's medium Beef and Cheddar - 1 g trans fat, 8 g sat fat

Taco Bell Nachos Bell Grande - 0.5 g trans fat, 7 g sat fat

And Hardee's doesn't even list trans fat content, which scares me.

Frozen food.

Pizza, waffles, pies, breaded items (fish sticks)

Commercial baked goods.

Chips and crackers.

Almost everything Pillsbury makes.

Seriously, the stuff tastes great and is a time saver, but it's loaded in trans fat. Especially their ready-to-bake items.

What can we do to avoid trans fat?

Read the back of a package instead of the front.

Many manufacturers advertise that their food is trans fat free, when it's not. How can they get away with this? In the US, if a food contains less than 0.5 grams per serving, they can list it as containing 0 grams. Manufacturers will then play around with their serving size to get the magic zero. But how many of you only eat 6 crackers? Or 1/2 cup of ice cream?

So what are you to do?

Browse the ingredients. Look for "partially hydrogenated" oil. This is trans fat. If you find a food containing this, give it a "tiss, tiss," shake your finger, and put it back.

Lastly, to avoid trans fat, MAKE YOUR OWN FOOD. I promise it's not all that hard to put a pancake mix together. In fact...

Easy Pancakes

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tbsp white sugar

2 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 egg, beaten

1 cup milk

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1. In large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in milk, egg, and oil. Mix until smooth.

2. Cook on griddle or frying pan.

3. Smile because you just make trans fat free pancakes.

*****************************************

By this time next week, I better be holding my newborn baby girl in my arms. If you don't hear from me, smile and know that my wish came true.

Contest Winner

The winner of our contest last week for Alzheimer's support is:

DLDLoe said...

Done!

August 22, 2010 2:45 PM 

The prize is a Biggest Loser Workout DVD - Power Sculpt! Most of the ladies on this blog have a love/hate relationship with Biggest Loser personal trainer Jillian Michaels. We hope you enjoy this dvd!

Thank you for supporting Alzheimer's research. Email us at:

somaybemomwasright at gmail dot com

and we will get your prize mailed out to you!

What Does Health Mean to Me?

My original post for today involved a trip to the store…but that is getting axed - because Gainesville is apparently in the midst of a monsoon (disguising itself as one of our normal daily reoccurring afternoon summer showers).  Anyone else ready for a little rainy day relief by way of autumn (ahh..college football and temps below 90 - those were the days).

So instead, I decided to take a cue from an awesome site called Healthy Living Blogs (Side Note: This site is an awesome resource if you are looking for new and interesting healthy lifestyle blogs) and write about the topic currently being discussed there – What Does Health Mean to Me?

For those who don’t know, in addition to my job (doing Vocational Evaluations for persons with disabilities), I’m also pursuing a Master of Public Health degree. A huge portion of my time is designated to learning about disease prevention, healthy lifestyles, and epidemiology.   

So...What does health mean to me? You’d think it would be easy enough to lay it all out there…but to me, true health and well-being includes a lot. There are so many facets that go beyond proper nutrition and exercise.

I think of health as being divided into two main categories (and about a million subcategories): mental and physical health.  These two categories work together to contribute to my overall health; and when aspects of any of these categories go by the wayside, I feel my overall health is affected negatively. 

To me, Health means:

Embracing Family Time

             Having dates, family nights, and quiet (or noisy) moments together




Holding fast to my spiritual and religious beliefs

             Always




The ability to help others

             At work, at home, on the street




Constantly learning and maintaining outlets for creativity     

            Whether cake decorating, scrapbooking, or interior design




Keeping excitement, spontaneity, and happiness in my marriage 


A weekend away, just us two? Yes please!

Recognizing when I can’t do something alone and asking for help when I need it       

            Physically and Spiritually




Consuming nutritious foods while always saving room for splurges

             What is Life Without Your just deserts? 




Staying active    
          Physically and Socially

Reading voraciously
            For education, leisure, and spirituality

Noting beautiful surroundings

             At home, in others’ homes, on the radio, outdoors, all around




Knowing and respecting my limits

             …and living within my means

Being happy at work  
          You wouldn’t believe the importance of this

Smiling every time I see a dog
            Without fail

Constantly working on physical strength, endurance, and ability

            Working to always - Run, and not be weary; and walk, and not faint

How do you define health? Do you include sweets, good times, and puppy dogs in your definition? 

If any of our readers would like to guest post on what health means to them – let us know!

Links to Health:

Why are we still smoking in movies?

Newsweek Looks at Changes in How We View Beauty

Can Hand Sanitizers Really Boost Productivity at Work?

Healthy Vices

Newer Isn’t Always Better When it Comes to Birth Control Pills:

Reading, Writing, 'Rithmatic

Don't you love Back to School time? School zones start back up, the line to checkout at Target is out the door, and school buses clog up traffic.

Being a teacher, this time means that my summer vacation is over and I will have about 120 students staring at me, watching my every move (no, not at the same time. I teach 5 classes). For parents, this means not having to come up with activities to entertain your kid (replaced with homework!).

Now, for those of you who do not fall under either of those two categories...you may wonder what I have under my sleeve....I would like to discuss health in schools and how it can influence our actions.

This is what the Mayo Clinic had to say about kids spreading germs:

"Many childhood illnesses are caused by viruses. All it takes is a single child to bring a virus to school for the spread to begin. Consider this common scenario — a child who has a cold coughs or sneezes in the classroom. The children sitting nearby inhale the infected respiratory droplets and the cold spreads. Or perhaps a child who has diarrhea uses the toilet and returns to the classroom without washing his or her hands. Illness-causing germs might spread from anything the sick child touches to other children who touch the same object and then put their fingers in their mouths."
(Reference)

You may think this may not affect you, but it does. Because where do kids go when they get out of school? They go to the grocery store, the movie theater, the playground, Target...all sorts of places. And they spread their germs (cue the terrifying music)...

(I just reread what I have written and I would like to make a side note. I love children and I love my job. It is getting sick that I don't like. Sorry for sounding so doom and gloom!!)

So, how can we combat sickness?

1. Wash your hands with soap and water! Or at least use a hand sanitizer, especially after using the bathroom (I just went to a workshop and they told us that washing your hands with soap and water is the best defense against germs. You can use hand sanitizer, but wash your hands as soon as you get the chance).

2. Cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze. The latest way of teaching how to cover your mouth is to sneeze or cough into your elbow (seriously, there are even posters on how to do in the bathroom at my school).

This exact poster!

3. Keep your hands away from your eyes and face. This is something that my mom told me about last year as I was about to start my student teaching. The eyes are an easy way for germs to get into your system.

4. Be careful with sharing. You never know when someone is on the verge of getting sick, so its best to stick with not sharing drinks or other items.

5. Avoid sick people! Unless you are a doctor, there is no need for you to stand near someone who is sneezing or coughing (for those of you who are married and/or have children, just be really careful when around that person).

I know a lot of these are common sense, but a reminder never hurts. Good luck to all the students (in all forms of school)! I hope you all stay healthy as the school year begins!!

(For teachers: my mom swears by a saline nasal spray called Simply Saline. She says it is what keeps her healthy throughout the year...

(And another side note)
Me and some of my seniors from last year...

Triple Chocolate Zucchini Bread

I'm 39 weeks pregnant and chocolate is basically running through my veins. When I found this recipe at Under the Highchair, I knew I had to try it. Anything beginning with "double chocolate" is something I will probably like. And because white chocolate only makes things better, I decided I might as well make it TRIPLE chocolate... you would have done the same thing.

Oh, and it should be noted that like most vegetables, I don't like zucchini. It's slimy and smells funny. But some kind of magic happens when you mix zucchini with chocolate and bake because you can't see, smell, or taste the green stuff, yet you still get the benefits. Sounds good to me!

Triple Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Ingredients:

1/2 cup cake flour

1/2 cup whole-wheat flour (I use white whole-wheat)

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 cup canola oil

1 cup turbinado sugar (worth the extra money... I promise)

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 medium zucchini

3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup white chocolate chips

(you could also add the zest of one orange to give it a nice zip)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and position rack in center. Grease loaf pan and set aside.

Grate the zucchini, you'll need 1 1/2 cups. Set aside.

Whisk or sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.

Using an electric mixer or hand mixer, beat the oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until well blended, about 2 minutes.

Fold in the zucchini.

Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined.

Fold in chocolate chips.

Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 50-60 minutes. Cool on wire rack for 20 minutes and then remove from pan and allow to cool completely before cutting. Store tightly wrapped in plastic wrap.

Contest Reminder

For those who don't know, I am a strong advocate of Alzheimer's disease research and support. Two of the most important people in my world battled Alzheimer's disease, and it is a pain and suffering I hope that others may someday be able to avoid.

Alzheimer's disease affects millions of Americans and their families. This disease robs spouses of their companions, and children of their parents and grandparents. Often, it can also erode the health and financial resources of caregivers.

I just signed a petition calling on Congress to make Alzheimer's disease a national priority. Will you add your voice and support?

Here is the link

Your signature will be delivered to Congress on September 21, 2010 World Alzheimer's Day. (Put it on your calendar!)

To encourage you to show your support, I have come up with a small prize for one of you who signs this petition. It's a surprise because though I want to encourage you, I also want you signing the petition because you believe in the cause. But it will be good! After signing, leave a comment before Sunday at 6:00pm est, letting me know that you have (we're going on the honor system here). I will post the winner Sunday evening and contact you for your address.

Together, we can make Alzheimer's a national priority.

Thanks!
-Meg