Healthy Cooking by design

Buckle your seat belt because I’m about to give you some truly amazing reasons to add green tea to your daily routine.  I was reading up on some of the health benefits of green tea when I came across an article at one of my favorite websites - World’s Healthiest Foods.  Before I direct you to their site for all the details, let me give you some of the truly amazing highlights of daily adding 2 cups of green tea.

• 22% less likely to develop breast cancer
• 62% less likely to die from a stroke
• lowers LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, and lipid peroxides
• 46% less likely to develop high blood pressure or hypertension
• fights cancer cells at the genetic level
• up to 50% less likely to develop prostate cancer
• 46% lower risk of ovarian cancer
• 56% less likely to die of ovarian cancer if drinking green tea after diagnosed
• hinders tumor growth
• helps prevent cancer cells from growing, moving, and replicating
• improves insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetes
• protects kidneys and liver
• improves bone density and protects against osteoporosis
• promotes fat loss - specifically visceral fat (76% decrease in 16 weeks!)
• increases endurance for exercise by 24%
• protects against Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and other neurodegenerative diseases
• lessens bacterial or viral infections

All the details are available in this lengthy, but inspiring article on Green Tea at World’s Healthiest Foods.  I hope I have whet your appetite for this great beverage.  And, like anything else, keep trying different brands until you find one you like.  My current favorite hot green tea (with a little honey and lemon juice) is Good Earth Green Tea with Lemongrass.   My kids like Bigelow Earl Grey Green Tea as a hot tea.  And my husband likes Luzianne Green Tea iced with lemon and sugar.

Protein for breakfast really keeps you full and satisfied for hours. And it is easier than you think to have it ready in the morning. One of my favorite ways is in casserole form. Eggs, skim milk, chopped fresh spinach, a little Parmesan or 2 percent sharp cheddar cheese, mild rotel, and a little chopped turkey bacon if you like. Bake it in an 8 x 8 casserole dish and now you have 6 large squares that are easy to warm up in the microwave all week. Another favorite is to make a scrambled egg mixture with a small amount of 2 percent cheddar cheese, onions, garlic, peppers, and chili powder. Put your southwest scramble into whole wheat tortillas, roll, and refrigerate or freeze. Very easy to warm up in the microwave.

Another thing we don’t often think about is how perfect that leftover piece of chicken or salmon is to start out our day. An adult pb & j is another great starter. I buy a natural peanut or almond butter and either mix it with some honey or use an all-fruit jam and put it on a whole grain bread, thin bun, or mini bagel.

Try starting your day with some protein and whole grains and see how your energy levels stay constant and how many hours you feel full and satisfied.

Do you know the reason those new Reebok shoes to tone your rear and legs are supposed work?  They are taking something you are already doing (walking) and linking it with exercise.  Now, I don’t know if those shoes really work, but let me share with you a few ways that concept really works for me in other areas.

I take activities I already do and combine them with things I want to be doing - or more specifically, that I want the results of doing.  Like returning phone calls while driving, worshiping in the shower, reading my Bible before and during my breakfast, etc- two birds with one stone.  That method of combining is just as effective with exercise.

I do sit ups and crunches before I get out of bed (or at least before I get dressed).  I started with just 5 sit ups each morning, but now I do a bunch of them and don’t stop until I really feel the burn.  I combine leg lifts with brushing my teeth.  Not only do I brush my teeth for a longer time (like I should anyway), but in about one year my legs were toned and you could see defined muscle.  Now, a year sounds like a long time, but I just tell myself  - if I don’t make any changes to my routine, my legs will be in the same shape (or likely worse) in a year.  So, morning and night, I do leg lifts - alternating which direction I lift, or in circles, etc.  I also combine some kind of exercise with tv commercials.  If I have to sit there anyway, why not do leg lifts or half-sit-ups while sitting on the couch.  When I wanted green tea’s health benefits, I linked it to the dreaded afternoon slump and replaced my afternoon coffee with hot green tea, lemon, and honey.  And to add more walking to my day, I park farther away and walk briskly into the store; or take the stairs instead of the elevator.

The key to any of those being effective is consistency.  Just link the thing you are wanting to do (or that you are wanting the results from doing) to something you are already doing.  And start small!  Just add one thing to your routine and do it every time.  And just remember, combining the new thing to your established routine is the first step to seeing results.