healthy living

currently listening to "the calculation" by regina spektor

happy tuesday! i can't believe that february is almost over... it felt like this month just flew by. has everyone been using the tips suggested over the past month? just to review:

1. drink 3 cups of green tea a day

2. always keep healthy snacks on hand
3. use your time wisely
4. make your meals at home
and as a follow up to last week's healthy living post about cooking at home... today's tip is to read labels. this one isn't news to anyone, im sure, but knowing how to read labels is the important part.

there are probably a thousand things to consider when reading labels but focus on these 3 to get you started:

a) serving size. more often then not, the serving size is the equivalent of your pinky so be sure you know what it is. don't trick yourself into thinking "wow! this entire box of cookies is only 120 calories?!" it isn't.
b) sodium, sodium, SODIUM! this is always the first thing that my eyes avert to when im reading labels. i try to stay away from buying packaged foods, but when i buy things like cereal, crackers, etc. i always make sure to compare the sodium content first. this is especially important when you're buying canned goods (beans, tomato paste, soup, etc).. they are a loaded with salt! opt for "low sodium" or "no salt added", but if you can, just buy the fresh version or drain out the can and rinse the vegetables.
c) take a close look at the ingredients. does everything basically look like its been written in a foreign language? think twice about buying it then because its probably filled with chemicals, preservatives, and basically everything else under the sun that isn't good for you. i gave up meat and meat products for lent (pause for reaction...) so this is something that i've had to really focus on when im at the grocery store.

reading labels can be tricky, but if you slowly start comparing and understanding the products that you're buying then hopefully you'll be more likely to make smarter choices. you'll be surprise at how quickly you're turned off by certain products just by carefully examining it's nutritional facts. to learn more about reading labels check these out: heart.org, realsimple.com, webmd.com.

*ps just because it's labeled "fat-free" or "low-fat" doesn't mean it's better for you. again, compare labels  -- you'll be shocked at the amount of bad additives they use to make up for the fact that it has "less fat".