Healthy Life Lessons

In today's Globe and Mail, there is an interesting piece by Sarah Hampson on parenthood. She argues that it is trendy for women to be publicly proclaiming what was previously taboo to admit: having children is challenging, sometimes unpleasant and does not necessarily lead to happiness. While complaining about domestic duties and economic inequality was the issue du jour for our mothers, complaining about parenting is what women do today. I guess that makes me fit right in. I can't argue with her either. Obviously from this blog it is clear that I find parenting challenging and often unpleasant and I would say that the majority of conversations that I have with my friends who are also parents involves complaining about our children. I have also realized, through my studies in psychology, and anecdotally through my conversations with my girlfriends, that having young children is very hard on a marriage. I don't know anyone who would disagree with this. Is this why so...

I did it, I found a way to use up the seaweed by creating this recipe that even Adam gobbled down! This dish has a stellar nutritional profile, especially for vegans as it is full of healthy fats, protein, calcium, iron and vitamin B12. Of course, it is still healthy and delish if you don't have seaweed on hand. 1 tsp canola oil (or peanut or untoasted sesame oil) 1 lb organic extra firm tofu 1 bunch broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces 2 red/yellow/orange bell peppers 1/2 lb fresh or marinated shitaki mushrooms (or button mushrooms), sliced 100g seaweed, snipped with scissors into strips (optional) 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced Sauce 3-4 tbls fresh ginger, finely chopped 3-4 cloves garlic, minced 1/4 cup tahini 2 heaping tbls miso paste 2 tbls low sodium soy sauce or tamari 1/4 cup rice vinegar 1/4 cup cooking sherry* 1 tsp Japanese pepper blend (optional) Hot chili flakes, to taste (optional) Whisk together all ingredients for sauce and set aside. In wok or large skillet...

I sneaked a lot of nutrition into this kid-friendly meal! 1 lb lean ground turkey or chicken 1 small cooking onion 2 slices whole wheat bread 4 cloves garlic 1 300g box frozen chopped spinach, thawed (or fresh baby spinach) 2 eggs 1 can tomato paste 2 tbls worcesterchire sauce 2 tbls nutritional yeast (optional) 1 tsp dried basil 1 tsp fennel seeds (optional) 1/2 tsp kosher salt Put meat in a large mixing bowl. Place onion, bread and garlic in food process and process until onion and garlic are finely chopped and bread is crumbs. If using fresh spinach, add to food processor at this stage. Crack eggs into bowl with meat and add in thawed spinach, tomato paste, worcesterchire sauce and desired seasonings. Dump onion mixture into bowl and mix until everything is well combined (you can do it with your hands but it worked just fine with a mixing spoon!). Fill greased muffin tins or mini loaf pans to the top with mixture and bake at 375 F for about 40 minutes, or until cooked through (...

This dish is so easy and uses things you often have on hand in the pantry. Nevertheless, it still looks and tastes great and tends to wow people. I love it as a side for fish, because of the lemon, but it would be great with chicken or sausage too. Or, you could add beans or tofu and make it a vegetarian main course. I served it with rainbow trout with my balsamic dijon glaze last night and even the girls were willing to eat some (even though there were vegetables in it!). 1.5 cups long grain brown rice or brown rice/wild rice blend 3 cups water 1 28oz can diced tomatoes, with juice 2-4 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp dried basil 1 300g box frozen, chopped spinach, thawed Juice and zest of 1 lemon Salt and pepper, to taste Pinch hot pepper flakes (optional) Optional add-ins: marinated artichokes, sundried tomatoes, sauteed mushrooms, olives, fresh parsely, etc. Place rice and water in large covered pot over high heat until water starts to boil. Turn heat to low and simmer until all th...

January is coming to and end so too is my little holiday from school. Next week it's back to the books in full force. The time has flown but I am fairly satisfied with my level of productivity over the past few weeks. I am surprised by just how incredibly BUSY I've been. Of course, I have been working on the second last course for my Miscarriage/Infertility Counselling certificate, so that's had be somewhat occupied. This current course is on third party fertility treatments (i.e. donor sperm, eggs and surrogacy) and is incredibly interesting. There are so many layers emotional and ethical issues involved. I still have not got a confirmed practicum placement for May, but I am feeling very optimistic. No word from J.S. at Women's College Hospital, however, so I'm just writing her off. I am disappointed, but frankly, if she is this undependable and flaky, I figure I am better off working with someone else. My radar should have gone up when she started making ...

This tastes decadent but is actually low in fat and sugar. Perfect to enjoy with your afternoon tea. 3 ripe bananas, mashed 1/4 cup canola oil 4 egg whites or 2 whole eggs 1/4 cup agave syrup or maple syrup 1 tsp pure vanilla extract 2 cups organic whole wheat flour 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp sea salt Pinch of nutmeg (optional) 1.5 cups mini dark chocolate chips Whisk together wet ingredients in medium bowl and set aside. Stir together dry ingredients in large bowl, add chips, and make a well in the centre. Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix, just until combined. Batter will be thick and lumpy. Dump batter into greased loaf pan and bake at 375 for 45 mins to 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean. If it starts browning quickly (as mine did), cover with foil after the first 20 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Makes one very large loaf.

When I was a kid, we nicknamed my father "The Condiment King" because he loves to douse everything he eats in some kind of sauce. Given that he has always loved eating and had more girth around his middle than is healthy, this is not a good thing. My parents fridge is always full of mustards, pickles, relishes, salad dressings and bottled sauces of various types. Now I am all for a good condiment because I love food with flavour and think blandness is a culinary sin, but when it comes to your health, there are good, bad and ugly things you can choose to put on your food. A lot of foods we often deem unhealthy or fattening, like white potatoes or pasta (whole grain, of course), are actually very nutritious as long as you avoid preparing them with high fat, high calorie ingredients like sour cream, mayonnaise, butter, whipping cream, etc. My Favs: Vinegar - There are so many varieties and I love the zing they add to food. Cider vinegar and rice vinegar are my favorites. Ci...

I am all about trying new things lately, which is why when I passed a display of "Dulse" at the grocery store, proclaiming it as "The Sea Vegetable Snack" I was intrigued. I've always enjoyed sea weed in salads, stir fries and sushi, so why not? A whole bag of organic dulse (40g) is only 100 cals and has 8g of fibre and 8g of protein. It is also a good source of iron and vitamin B12. I snatched up 2 bags and brought them home. Well my friends, I have to admit this is an experiment that did not go well. I opened the bag this morning and was instantly hit with the smell of rotting fish. I reluctantly pulled out a small piece and put it in my mouth. It tasted like rotting fish...chewy rotting fish. Like something the trainers at Sea World keep in their pockets for the animals. Ick! I ran to the kitchen and quickly grabbed a handful of Babybell cheeses to chomp on and get rid of the nasty taste in my mouth. I am open to trying to cook with it, however, Ada...

No I haven't become bulimic...but I have spent my time off from school this month going room to room through our house and cleaning and organizing. Ah, it feels so good to get rid of stuff and neaten up all of our previously messy, overstuffed drawers, cabinets and shelves! It really is appaulling how much stuff we have that we really don't need. We truly live in a consumumption-driven world characterized by waste and excess. It is actually cathartic to get rid of things and create a more organized environment. In the process, I have also learned a few things about myself: 1. I am a compulsive toothbrush buyer. I am embarrassed to say how may new toothbrushes we have in the house. I can't seem to pass a display of toothbrushes on sale without buying one. It's like I worry I'll wake up one day and I'll have nothing to brush with. I don't know why. 2. I can't throw away even little things I don't want or need, if I think someone somewhere in th...

The cornmeal gives these a more substantial texture than plain flour pancakes. They are good with maple syrup, but I prefer them drizzled with honey. These are also good using blueberries or even dried berries (cranberries, cherries, blueberries, etc.). 2 cups whole wheat flour 1/2 cup cornmeal 1/4 cup Splenda, honey or sugar 2 tbls baking powder 1 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp sea salt Zest and juice of 1 lemon 4 egg whites or 2 whole eggs 1 tsp pure lemon or vanilla extract 3-4 cups water 2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add lemon zest and juice, eggs and extract. Begin whisking everything together while slowly pouring in water. Only pour in as much water as you need - if the batter is too thin, it won't hold berries. Drop ladles of batter onto skillet and press raspberries into each one before flipping. Get as many berries into each one as possible for maximum berry yumminess. Makes 8 large or 16 smaller pancakes.

Unfortunately, the reality of life is that no pain = no gain (for most things). I don't necessarily mean physical pain, but most worthwhile pursuits require some degree of hard work, sacrifice and sometimes discomfort. This is certainly true when it comes to physical fitness. The new 2011 physical activity guidelines for Canadians focuses more on intensity than just on duration. In the past, the government was more concerned about getting people moving for a certain number of minutes each day or week. But now they've altered the guidelines by making more specific recommendations about intensity. The following excerpt is taken from the Stats Can website: New international and proposed Canadian guidelines recommend that to obtain substantial health benefits, adults should accumulate at least 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity a week. According to new data from the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS), 15% of Canadian adults attain this level of activity....

Today's lunch may just become a staple it's so good! Perfect with whole grain pita or baguette. 1 540 ml can white kidney beans, draining and rinsed 2-4 cloves garlic, to taste 300g box chopped frozen spinach or fresh baby spinach leaves 1 tbls lemon juice 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil 1/2 tsp sea salt, or to taste Fresh cracked black pepper, to taste Throw everything in food processor and blend until smooth. You may need a bit more oil if you use fresh spinach, as there will be less moisture. Variation: This is like a low-fat, vegan (if you use vegan parmesan) version of spinach artichoke dip. Same recipe as above but add one can of drained artichoke hearts and 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese or vegan parmesan product. Scrape into greased, oven safe dish and bake at 425 F until bubbly.

In child developmental theory, there is a term called "Goodness of Fit" which refers to the compatability between a child's temperment and his/her caregivers. Adam and I have discussed how being the eldest in his family makes him more sympathetic to Big A in certain situations while me being the youngest in my family predisposes me to being more sympathetic to Little A. This may be why Big A is daddy's girl and Little A is mommy's girl, although their parental preferences are not quite as pronounced as they once were. And perhaps birth order is partially responsible for this, but I also think there are tempermental issues at play too. Little A is very mischievous, which can be trying, but I also find it extremely amusing. In contrast, it drives Adam nuts. Yesterday morning while he was out taking Big A from Hebrew School to swimming and then out to the car wash, Little A and I were at home. She managed to get into all sorts of trouble including shoving handf...

The Indian name for this dish is Methi Mutter Malai, which I think is perfect since the acronym is MMM and this dish is MMM! I have never actually had it in a restaurant, only from a pouch. When Adam and I were both students, we would occasionally eat Tasty Bite Indian meals, or other similar pre-made products, we found in the health food stores. They are actually pretty good and very cheap. But this dish is traditionally very indulgent (lots of heavy cream, oil and cashews) and I knew I could design a healthier, better tasting, from-scratch recipe...and I believe I succeeded! Although it's not traditional for this type of curry, I threw in a head of roasted cauliflower, because in my mind, the more veggies, the merrier, but this addition is completely optional. Don't be intimidated by it, because most of it is done in the food processor, it is very easy. Creamy Cashew Pea Curry 1/2 cup unsalted cashews 1 chunk fresh ginger, peeled 4 cloves garlic 1-3 fresh g...

Do you watch "The Biggest Loser"? Personally, I couldn't stomach more than 2 minutes of this show. But there is no denying its popularity and Jillian Michaels, the female trainer on the show, has become a big celeb. The New Year has me craving change and, along with carrots, I find myself completely sick of Pilates. Unfortunately, I have to keep up my core training to rehab my pelvis/hamstring injury, and I am finally starting to feel some improvement (I can actually sit at my desk or in the car for more than 10 minutes without pain!). Starting next week, I will be teaching a core/Pilates class at a Goodlife club for a few months on Thursdays so I will be forced to keep my training up once a week. But for other days of the week I simply can't handle any of my Pilates DVDs, I am totally bored of all of them. In December I must have rented a dozen Pilates DVDs from our library to see if I could find any worth buying but none were: they were either too easy or too...

My New Year resolutions mostly consisted of resolving some minor, but annoying health problems I have been having, and, of course, being a better parent. Feet The first one was my feet. My family doctor was very wise when she recommended that I needed a new pair of winter boots. I took her advice and my little tootsies no longer get numb when I go outside, nor do they get red, itchy and swollen when I come inside and they start to defrost. Yay! Looks like the podiatrist was wrong: I don't need to move to Florida, start driving everywhere in the winter, or even see a vascular surgeon. Unfortunately, after a few of my regular workouts once we returned from Florida, the blister on my left heel, is as bad as ever. The right one is almost healed, but this stupid one on my left food is really bad. I'm not sure what to do...it probably requires like a month of absolutely no exercise to get completely better but I don't think I can handle that, I'd go nuts! Eyes The next...

I love tahini and this sauce is one of my favorites. I made it today to drizzle on my falafel sandwich at lunch, but it is very versatile. You can thin it out with some rice vinegar or white wine vinegar and make it a dressing for a salad of romaine, red onion, grape tomatoes and black olives, or simply drizzle it over fish, poultry lamb or vegetables. I love sauteeing zucchini, grape tomatoes, red onion and chickpeas and serving it over brown rice with a healthy amount of this sauce and a sprinkle of scallions. Although tahini is high cal, it is also full of good fats, calcium and iron. 2 tbls tahini 1 garlic clove, minced 1/2 tsp ground cumin Lemon juice Pinch of cayenne (optional) Whisk together first three ingredients. Add lemon juice slowly until desired consistency is reached. I like it thick for falafel sandwiches and thinner for pouring over foods or using as a dressing. This makes enough for me for 2 falafel sandwiches but I triple it or make even more if I am using it a...

Are you an Ikea lover or hater? I'm an Ikea hater but I seem to keep forgetting that. I easily get sucked in by their impossibly cute displays and their even more impossibly low prices. But this time I swear, I am never buying any furniture at Ikea ever again! Last week I put together the filing cabinet and drawer thingy I got there to replace the pedestal drawer thingy I currently have under my desk, which is falling apart. It took me several hours, but I was very proud of myself. No leftover parts, I pieced together the drawers and the frame, put on the casters, the wheels, everything. Unfortunately, when I was finished, the drawers would not fit into the frame! The whole thing almost went flying out the window. So today I had to drive all the way back there (30 minutes) to return the stupid thing. Then I had to wait almost another half hour just to get to the service desk since there were only 2 staff helping about 800 people making returns. Thankfully, they accepted ...

Are you chocolate or a vanilla person? I'm guessing chocolate is the more popular answer. Not for me though. I am not a true "chocoholic" or so I am told by most foodies, because I don't like dark chocolate. Nope, for me it's milk and only milk. I won't eat fake chocolate though, you know, the stuff labelled as "cholately" and contains vegetable fats. Just the real stuff, but it can simply be Dairy Milk, it doesn't have to be artisanal chocolate hand made for $50/ounce. I prefer milk because I like my chocolate soft and creamy and I find dark too hard and crunchy. For this reason, I also hate chocolate chips or bits in ice cream or any chocolate, for that matter, that has been refrigerated or frozen. I also prefer vanilla ice cream to chocolate and oatmeal raisin, gingerbread or molassas cookies to chocolate chip. I think Big A is turning out like me, she loves things that are vanilla and has come to appreciate "spiced" sweets...

Check out iNetVideo.ca to find some excellent deals on fitness DVDs. If you are not sure which one is right for you, try Googling it and reading reviews (most are reviewed on Amazon.com). http://find.inetvideo.ca/search?p=Q&lbc=inetvideo-ca&uid=91391222&ts=customv2&w=%2a&af=price:03%20genre:fitness&method=and&view=grid&format=genre%5e&isort=globalpop&lang=en&cnt=48

This is by far the best soup recipe I have ever created. It was inspired by a soup I had once at Fresh, a vegetarian restaurant here in Toronto. But I think my version is even better. This makes a great lunch, along with a whole grain bagel or roll and can even be a complete dinner served with whole grain roles and a simple green salad. Leftovers can easily be frozen. 2 tsp vegetable oil 1 red bell pepper and 1 green bell pepper, diced 1 onion, diced 1 large or 2 small carrots, diced 2 tbsp fresh ginger, grated 2-4 cloves garlic (to taste) 2 tbsp good quality curry powder ½ tsp ground allspice Salt and pepper, to taste 1 can light coconut milk (14 fl oz) 1 large can diced tomatoes, with juice (28 fl oz) 5-6 sweet potatoes (about 6 lbs), peeled and cut into eighths 4 cups vegetable stock (use a good quality organic brand in tetra pak if possible) Hot sauce (to taste) 1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed(19 fl oz) Juice of 1 lime Pour oil into large saucepot or stockpot over me...

Did you know it is not possible to tone/sculpt muscles? I was thinking about this yesterday when I did my Denise Austin Pilates DVD. I still think it's a great workout but she is a complete moron. I almost threw my waterbottle at the t.v. screen. She blabs throughout the whole thing about losing inches and toning particular muscle groups. I have already mentioned that Pilates is not what you should be doing if you want to lose inches (i.e. decrease body fat), but it is really disgraceful that she is helping to propogate so many misconceptions about fitness. In order to get that "toned/sculpted" muscle definition most of us strive for (i.e. Linda Hamilton/Madonna arms), you need to have no excess body fat and some degree of muscle hypertrophy. For most of us this requires a strict diet, regular cardiovascular activity and strength training. If you have any pounds to lose, you will not get that look, nor are you likely to get it if you are just skinny (i.e. do cardio...

I have January off from school because I was granted advanced standing for the research methodology courses that I already have from my MA and PhD. This gives me time to kick-start the research at Mount Sinai and try to secure my practicum placement. Yesterday I sent off the revised ethics proposal and consent form to Dr. M, so if the ethics board expedites our approval, hopefully we can get going. I also emailed a draft proposal for the miscarriage support group that J.S. from Women's College Hospital asked me to put together. I just hope I hear back from SOMEBODY sooner rather than later. Because I am on break from school, I decided I should really teach some fitness classes this month and make a few bucks. I get multiple email requests daily to sub classes and I usually ignore them. But last week I agreed to cover a Thursday lunch hour spin class for an instructor at Goodlife who wants to take paternity leave for a few months. I was dreading every minute of it! Then the ...

The new year seems off to a decent start. The girls transitioned back to school and daycare better than I had expected yesterday. Fortunately for me, Adam has been home the past 2 mornings to help me get them out the door. Although she exhibited quite a bit of jealousy over the attention that Little A and her younger cousins received from everybody over the break, Big A was a stellar traveller. She was great on the flights and generally well-behaved in Florida inspite of taking no naps and tiring herself out completely 2 days in a row with her swimming sessions. Little A seemed to make some big advances in her language skills over the holiday and has finally starting saying her first affirmative word: "Da" instead of just nodding her head (which made for some very silent phone conversations between her and my parents). Although she is not nearly as defiant as Big A was at 20 months, she is already starting to show some signs of the same bossiness Big A used to have: she l...

Anyone who knows me well knows I can't handle throwing out food. For some reason it just makes me crazy. That's why we go to the market for our fresh produce twice a week and why I plan our meals for the week every Sunday. We basically just buy as much as we need. But sometimes you still end up with extra veggies to eat like we did following our New Years Day party. While the fruit tray was completely devoured, there were lots of veggies left that I had prepared for the crudite platter. So last night I came up with this recipe and it was delicious. You can use any veggies you like really. I used sweet yellow peppers, broccoli and zucchini because that's what I had on hand. It is also great because it comes together quickly, or if you have time, you can let it simmer to really let the flavours develop. If you are making it quickly, you may want to microwave or steam hard veggies (like potatoes, cauliflower or broccoli)before adding to make sure they are not too crunc...

One of the things that makes Adam and I so compatible is that we like routine. We are NOT spontaneous people. We are happy to work out and eat oatmeal for breakfast every day. That being said, it is always healthy to take a break from your routine and travelling gives you a perfect opportunity to do so. This is why my nutrition plans always go right out the window when we are on holiday. I love having the chance to try new things. So our Florida trip involved the consumption of far too many calories and too much saturated fat. The outlet mall we go to has a fudge store that makes fresh fudge that is out of this world. I don't even want to admit how much I ate! And then there are the whole wheat oatmeal raisin cookies I found at the Whole Foods...and all the chocolate...oh the chocolate! In fact, for the first time since I have known him, Adam is sick of chocolate. But I think if the snacks were downright decadent, I at least partially made up for it with healthy meals. W...

Big A and I made these for our New Years party. If you can't find mini pb cups, use regular choc chips or crumble up the big pb cups. 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup natural peanut butter 2 eggs 2 tsp vanilla 2.5 cups whole wheat pastry flour 1/2 tsp sea salt 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 cup mini peanut butter cups (I used President's Choice mini peanut butter melts) Cream butter and sugar until like and fluffy. Whisk in peanut butter eggs and vanilla until smooth. Stir together dry ingredients and add to wet mixing just until dough comes together. Add pb cups or chips. Roll into balls and flatten with fork on non-stick baking sheet. Bake at 400 for 12 minutes, for slightly softer cookies, and a few minutes longer for crunchier cookies. Makes 36 cookies.

Well we made it back in one piece. While our time in Florida was wonderful, I can't say the same for the flights there and back. Big A was stellar, she just watched episode after episode of Caillou (thank goodness Air Canada has a tv for every seat where you can choose from a multitude of movies or tv shows...and thank goodness they have lots for kids, it saved us!). Little A, however, refused to sleep so for at least the last hour of both flights she was bananas (keep in mind we didn't arrive in Orlando until 1am!). I imagine everyone else on the plane wanted to push us out the window. In Florida we had a wonderful time. It was so great to hang out with Adam's parents, siblings and their kids and the kids had so much fun together. We shopped (I found Banana Republic jeans for $30!) and ate (way too much and way too much junk including fudge, cookies and chocolate) and relaxed. In fact, I was uncharacteristically unmotivated to be active. Adam and I got to the gym a...