Here are two easy recipe’s for light and healthy snacks. These are great year round.

Vegan Waldorf Salad

• Juice of 1 lemon
• 4 ripe pears, cored and sliced
• 4 sticks celery, thinly sliced
• 3 carrots, grated
• 125 g / 4 1/2 oz walnuts, coarsely chopped
• 150 g / 5 1/2 oz raisins (you can also use dried cranberries for added color and flavor)
• 1 T fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped

For dressing mix the following:

• 2 T red wine vinegar
• 1 t Dijon mustard
• 4 T walnut oil
• 1 T vegetable oil

Drizzle lemon juice over the pears to keep them from turning brown. Add carrots, celery and raisins and toss together.  Add dressing and toss lightly to distribute evenly. Top with walnuts and mint. Enjoy!

Banana Almond Breakfast Delight

• Take one slice of sprouted grain bread
• Spread on one tablespoon of raw almond butter
• Add 5 thin slices of banana
• Drizzle with a little honey
• Enjoy!

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This is the time of year when we head back to the gym with resolutions still freshly in mind.  More often than not, the first thing we do when we get there is sign up for a fitness class.  While this is a great idea for a number of reasons, you are still faced with the decision of which class is the best for you.  Here are three quick tips for narrowing down your choices.

1. Mix it up: Look for classes that focus on interval training and that incorporate both cardio and resistance training. Don’t just burn energy (calories). Make sure you’re producing something with that energy.
2. Ask questions: Ask your instructor to tell you exactly how his or her workouts will build aerobic conditioning, endurance and strength. Ask how often you should take the class and when you should expect to start seeing results. Make sure the answers are in line with your fitness goals.
3. Look for the results: When you are in a good class, you gain real fitness that translates into real health benefits more directly than simply losing weight and body fat. If you’re not getting the results you want, look for a new class.

Follow these pointers and you’ll save yourself a lot of time and effort experimenting with fitness classes that don’t help you achieve your fitness goals.

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The new year is here and health clubs and fitness programs want you!!! They know that you made a resolution to shed some pounds when the ball dropped and they’re eager to capitalize on this ambition by boosting their memberships. However, you can use their desire to recruit you to your advantage by negotiating.

That’s right. The best deals for joining a gym can be had right now. All you need to do is walk into your local health club and negotiate the membership price. Chances are you’ll be able to lower or completely eliminate the initiation fee, lower the monthly fee and get incentives like free personal training sessions… but you have to ask.

Another tip is to strike up these negotiations at the end of the month because the sales consultants needs to make their quota. If the sales consultant doesn’t budge on the price, then ask for some extras they could throw in like towel service, free guest passes or unlimited use of their other clubs. Their are deals to be had if you press a little. Remember, there is no reason not to try to keep your wallet fat while you try to get slim.

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I get excited every year when January rolls around.  The whole month represents a new beginning.  Not only is it a time of reflection, it is also an opportunity to craft a new vision for the 365 days ahead.

Several years back, I made the conscious decision to shy away from the typical resolution list (exercise more, eat healthier, etc.).  I decided to take a more holistic approach, electing to improve my mind, body and spirit.  This approach meant I had to do more than set some loose guidelines (which I would probably loosen and all but forget by March).  It meant permanently shifting certain aspects of my life for a full calendar year.

For example, one year I committed to completing 2 marathons, biking from San Francisco to LA, reading at least 4 books, and (perhaps the most challenging of them all) integrating self-compassion and removing critical thoughts from my mind.  This set of yearly goals demanded dramatic changes in the way I lived.  It made the entire year an incredible and challenging journey.

Through this journey, I learned that all the things we want to achieve in life are possible with full commitment. This upcoming year, dare to do more with your resolutions.  Write down what you really, really want to do this year and do it. Commit and be courageous. You may find that the year long process is more rewarding than the year end results.

Happy New Year.

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In roughly a decade of commercial distribution, Splenda® has taken the artificial sweetener industry by storm. Between 2000 and 2006, the percentage of U.S. households using Splenda® products jumped from 3 to 20 percent. It is presently the nation’s number one selling artificial sweetener. With the FDA having approved Splenda and the knowledge that it even starts off as real sugar, you might think there is nothing wrong with this rapid growth, but you’d be wrong. Here are some facts you need to know before you dump another one of those little yellow packets into your coffee.

The FDA only looked at 2 tests before approving Splenda®

As of 2005, only six human trials had been conducted on sucralose (Splenda®).  Of these six trials, only two were completed and published before the FDA approved sucralose for human consumption. To date, no studies have been done on children or pregnant women.

Most of the tests were performed on animals

McNeil Nutritionals stresses that over 100 studies have been conducted on Splenda. However, what the company neglects to mention is that most of the studies were performed on animals.

Sugar doesn’t think it’s just like sugar

The competition among sweeteners is anything but sweet. The sugar industry is currently suing McNeil Nutritionals for implying that Splenda® is a natural form of sugar with no calories.

No long-term testing

There have been no long-term human toxicity studies published until after the FDA approved sucralose for human consumption. The longest trial at the time Splenda® was approved lasted only four days and looked at sucralose in relation to tooth decay.

Sure it starts off as sugar, but…

There is no question that sucralose starts off as a sugar molecule, it is what goes on in the factory after that is concerning. Sucralose is cooked up using a five step patented process that includes adding chlorine (yup, the stuff in your pool). This process alters the sugar  molucule so much that it is turned into a fructo-galactose molecule, a type of molecule that does not occur in nature. As a result, your body doesn’t have the ability to properly digest or metabolize it, which allows McNeil Nutritionals to make the claim that Splenda® has zero calories.

The bottom line is that Splenda® has not been tested sufficiently and is anything but sugar.  In fact, it  bears more chemical similarity to DDT than it does to sugar.  Yes, that DDT. The synthetic pesticide that is suspected to cause cancer. So next time you decide your coffe is a bit too bitter, you might want to think twice before you sweeten it up with Splenda®.

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