Team Feelgood

Easy Healthy Chili Recipe

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:55:00 -0400

This easy healthy chili recipe is a great way to add a ton of veggies and protein to your diet!

Ingredients:

1 lb of lean ground beef or turkey (or go without to make this recipe vegetarian)
1 large onion
1 large green pepper
Fresh chiles (I am using fresno, could use jalapeño or whatever you like)
4 cloves of garlic
Fresh or dry herbs (I am using fresh parsley and cilantro)
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 can of red kidney beans
1 can of tomato paste
1 tbsp of chili powder
1 tbsp of sugar
Salt (if you must)

In a large frying pan combine the ground beef and chopped onion. Cook for about 7 minutes or until the ground beef is browned and the onion is translucent.

Now add chopped green pepper, herbs and garlic and continue cooking for another 5-10 minutes.

Next add your frying pan mixture to a large pot and add the can of tomatoes, drained kidney beans and chopped chiles.

Mix and add your can of tomato paste along with water (about 1 cup depending on how thick you want it to be). Add chili powder, sugar and salt at this point as well.

Cover and cook on low heat for about an hour.

And this will make about 10 bowls of chili!

I really like this recipe because it lets you be creative. You can play with the chiles, herbs and spices according to how you like it.

This also makes great leftovers and actually tastes even better the next day!

By: Andrew Kobayashi, BSc(Applied Human Nutrition)

Wild vs Cultivated Blueberries

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 12:05:00 -0400

Who doesn’t love a handful of fresh blueberries on cereal or a scoop of frozen blueberries in a smoothie?

Blueberries are well known for their positive health benefits, particularly their high antioxidant content. There are 2 main types of blueberries, wild and cultivated. Let’s see how these compare from a nutritional standpoint.

The role of antioxidants are to protect our bodies from harmful byproducts of metabolism know as free radicals. Without the help of antioxidants these free radicals could cause cell damage and lead to cancer and other diseases.

Blueberries are designed so that they have a lot of antioxidants in their skin. This is to protect the berry from the damaging rays of the sun. These antioxidants are responsible for the dark blue color of the berries skin. The darker the color the more antioxidants.

The main difference between wild and cultivated blueberries is the size. Wild blueberries tend to be smaller. This means that wild blueberries have more surface area and more skin than cultivated blueberries. One cup of wild blueberries may contain 60 fruit where as one cup of cultivated blueberries may only contain 20. The greater amount of skin is the reason wild blueberries are higher in antioxidants than cultivated.

Cultivated blueberries are still among the top of the list for high antioxidant foods, but if you really want those antioxidants choose wild!

notanotherhealthyfoodblog: Quinoa with baked apples and...

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 15:01:34 -0400

notanotherhealthyfoodblog:

Quinoa with baked apples and almonds

click here for recipe

staywellresearch: Are you getting enough iron?

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 20:50:37 -0400

staywellresearch:

Are you getting enough iron?

staywellresearch: Do you know all the benefits of Vitamin K?

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 18:23:14 -0400

staywellresearch:

Do you know all the benefits of Vitamin K?

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Wed, 27 Mar 2013 14:32:58 -0400

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Thu, 21 Mar 2013 12:00:20 -0400

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Wed, 20 Mar 2013 10:52:41 -0400

Damien Walters: Bro, Do you even lift?We have all seen some...

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 09:04:08 -0400

Damien Walters: Bro, Do you even lift?

We have all seen some weird things in the gym, but this is next level. Seriously Bro, do you even lift?

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Mon, 18 Mar 2013 11:24:18 -0400

Team Feelgood: The Fat Tax?! Some places like Denmark and New...

Sat, 16 Mar 2013 19:40:00 -0400

Team Feelgood: The Fat Tax?!

Some places like Denmark and New York City have tried issuing a tax on fried and sugary foods, known as the fat tax. Do you think higher taxes on unhealthy food is a good way to improve eating habits?

Let us know in the comments below! And don’t forget to like and share!

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Wed, 13 Mar 2013 16:16:38 -0400

What is a carbohydrate?

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 17:25:00 -0500

A carbohydrate, or carb, is one of the four ‘macronutrients’ (carbs, fat, protein and alcohol). This means it is a nutrient that we consume in large amounts and obtain energy or calories from.

Carbs are the preferred energy source of our bodies. We have developed a very good system to break carbs down into simple sugars and store the energy (as glucagon or fat) or use it right away.

It is recommended that we get 45 - 65% of our total energy from carbs. One gram of carb has approximately 4 Calories. This means someone who needs 2000 Calories a day would need 900 - 1300 Calories from carbs, or 225 - 325 grams of carbs.

Carbs come from either starch or sugar in foods. These are foods like breads, pasta, root vegetables, juice, soft drinks and fruit.

Low carb diets, like Atkins or South Beach, have been popular for weight loss in recent years. There have been some safety concern with diets like these because if we use only protein and fat as an energy source our bodies make ‘ketones’ as a by product. If these are allowed to build up in the body it could make your internal environment more acidic than normal and lead to a variety of health problems. If you are thinking about doing a low carb diet be sure to consult with your dietitian or physician first.

Bring Food Education Back!

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 22:44:00 -0500

What is a Calorie?

Thu, 01 Nov 2012 22:37:15 -0400

It is almost impossible to talk weight loss without some mention of Calories. You may have heard the term Calorie a million times, but what is it and why is it so important?

The number of Calories you see on a food label tells you how much energy you are getting from a set amount of that food. Just like a light bulb requires a certain amount of watts to power it, our bodies require a certain amount of calories.

If you consume more Calories than you use the extra energy is stored in your body, eventually as fat. If you consume less Calories than you need your body will tap into your extra energy stores, fat, to get the rest of the energy it needs. This is why the amount of Calories you consume is directly related to the amount of weight you will lose or gain.

A rule of thumb for weight loss is that 3500 Calories is one pound of fat. This means if you consumed 500 less Calories per day than you need you would lose one pound a week. This number will vary depending on a lot of factors, but it is a good guideline. Healthy weight loss, that is more likely to stay off for good, is 1 – 2 pounds a week.

High Fiber Granola Bars IngredientsDry:2 cups quick oats1 cup...

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 19:56:00 -0400

High Fiber Granola Bars

Ingredients
Dry:
2 cups quick oats
1 cup Flour
¼ cup Brown sugar
½ cup wheat germ
¾ cup dried fruit (raisins, dried cranberries etc.)
1 tsp cinnamon
½ cup chopped almonds
Wet:
¼ cup coconut oil (or canola)
¼ cup apple sauce
½ cup honey (heat in microwave for about 30 seconds first)
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Mix all together with both hands and place on an aluminum foil covered pan. Cook at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes.

*These are a healthy alternative to store bought granola bars. They are high fiber and low calorie. The coconut oil is great for increasing HDL (good) cholesterol.

What is all the hype over coconut water?

Mon, 15 Oct 2012 20:09:00 -0400

Coconut water has been showing up on the shelves of grocery stores everywhere. Its recent popularity probably has a lot to do with its proposed health claims. So what is in this stuff, and is it really good for you?

Well, coconut water is an electrolyte drink, think of it as a natural sports drink. It has about 630mg of potassium and 230mg of sodium in a single cup. This also comes with only 6g of sugar and 45 Calories.

The daily recommended intakes for potassium and sodium are 4500mg and 2300mg. Many diets are high in sodium, which can offset the sodium potassium balance and lead to high blood pressure.

Coconut water is a great way to increase your potassium intake. It is also a great natural alternative to sports drinks, without all the refined sugar.

- Team feelgood

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Mon, 01 Oct 2012 15:04:56 -0400

attainingfit: One of my favorite veggies, all hail kale!!!

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 17:45:24 -0400

attainingfit:

One of my favorite veggies, all hail kale!!!

What will happen if I don't get enough fiber?

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 13:34:00 -0400

Fiber is an important part of our diet that many of us are not getting enough of. Fiber plays an important role in healthy digestion by helping the body get rid of waste quickly.

Not getting enough fiber can lead to:

Irregular bowel movements -> Dietary fiber is a part of plants that adds bulk to our stool and helps draw water into the digestive tract. This keeps everything running smooth and regular.

Colon cancer -> Studies have shown relationships between high fiber diets and decreased risk of colon cancer.

High cholesterol -> Fiber can lower cholesterol by binding to the bile acids that carry cholesterol and preventing them from being digested.

Increased appetite -> Fiber is an indigestible part of plants that can add volume to food without adding calories. This can make us feel full and satisfied for longer.

High blood sugar -> soluble fiber turns into a gel when it is digested. This slows the absorption of sugar into the blood. You will have longer energy from 15g of sugar from an apple than 15g of sugar from candy.

A diet low in whole grains, or fruits and vegetables is likely low in fiber. The recommended amount is about 30g/day for men and 25g/day for women.