Healthy Life Lessons

Most people see 2016 as a pretty crappy year. Globally it certainly has been for all sorts of reasons! Just to name a few... War in Syria U.S. presidential election Orlando nightclub attack Dakota pipeline protests Brexit And a lot of celebrities and public figures died too, like: David Bowie Prince Alan Rickman Gary Marshall Gene Wilder Arnold Palmer Florence Henderson Fidel Castro John Glenn Alan Thicke Oy vey! But on a personal level, I really can't complain. Life always has ups and downs, but overall I am blessed. Though the girls still make me crazy (I think they probably always will), I am so proud of them. They are good kids, super smart and very athletic.  They are doing so well with all their endeavors. I have a supportive partner and we are financially comfortable.  Adam's career is flourishing, I have a job I love, I have had several new opportunities, and I have had many great times with great friends. Nevertheless, I hope 2017 is...

We humans hate being told what to do. If you are a parent than you know that all too well! But its also true of us adults. Too many restrictions on our actions or choices and we will start to rebel. This is one of the reasons that strict diets rarely work long-term. One thing that can be helpful, if you are trying to cut down or eliminate an unhealthy behaviour, is to change the way you think about it. Researchers consistently find that if dieters tell themselves they 'can't' have something, they are far less likely to adhere to this rule, than if they say, I 'don't' eat that. In other words, its a personal choice, not an imposed restriction. When I read about this, I realized that I have naturally always done that. I don't eat sugar or refined carbs. I don't eat fried foods. I don't regularly consume red meat. And I never feel resentful. Actually, I don't really ever think about it. My diet just doesn't include these things. Now I h...

A few months ago I was asked to review the Zero water filter, and it seemed like timing could not have been more perfect. We were in the midst of our home renos, and had just found out the fridge we ordered didn't fit through our doors so it had to be returned. One of the key features I had looked for was a built in water filter/dispenser and ice maker, like our old one. While searching for a replacement, it didn't seem like I was going to find one with this feature that would fit our space, so this seemed like an ideal alternative. But we did end up getting a new fridge with a water filter.  We are fortunate to live in an area with good water quality, so its not an issue of being concerned about what's in the water. But where ever you live, you may just not like how your tap water tastes. In any case, I passed the Zero to my lovely neighbours who don't have a fridge with a filter and, until now, have been using a Brita. They have shared the following review: ...

After 10 years of doing our New Year's Day drop-in party, we decided that last year was going to be the last one. We weren't enjoying it anymore, it just felt stressful. This year we are doing a low-key games night and dinner with friends on New Year's Eve, but then doing something sort of exciting on New Year's Day. New Year's Day we are all - yes all of us, even the kids - going indoor skydiving! I have been fascinated by this since I heard about iFLY setting up shop just outside Toronto a few years ago. It seems relatively safe, and unbelievably exhilarating and fun! The only downside is the cost. A typical package is $100/person, and includes 4 'dives' that generally last 60 seconds long, over 2 hours (I guess the rest of the time is watching while others take their turns). I cleared the idea with the family (Big A is super excited), but then immediately got cold feet. Its expensive! One of us could get hurt! The kids could be traumatized! I coul...

Remember when I reviewed this book ? I finally got around to making another recipe from it a few weeks ago. While I was home with both girls, who were sick, I figured making something would be a nice, quiet activity to do with them. The girls each had a few recipes they most wanted to make, but in order to keep them from fighting, I told them I was making the choice. My choice, to be honest, was simply based on the fact that I already had all the ingredients in the house. The recipe in the book is called "Shimmer Blush" but modifying it a wee bit to adjust the colour, I am actually using it as more of a bronzer. But I see no reason why you couldn't use it as a blush, or a bronzer, or an eye shadow, frankly, based on the hue you give it. I doubled the recipe, which probably wasn't necessary, because I find so little is needed (I literally shake the container to get a tiny bit on the lid, then gently dip the brush into the lid. Like you really need just a tin...

Good morning and welcome to a new beginning. Beginning of a new day, and of a new week.  So winter finally arrived this weekend. The snow is pretty and its not bitterly cold yet, but already I am dreading the February/March blahs that always come after a few months of this. I'm talking protein bars again today. So now you know how to make your own Quest bars. But if you're not into that, I just discovered another awesome option that is also cheaper than real Quest Bars: Costco's own brand of protein bars! This is the first time I've ever seen them, but maybe they are just new to our Costco location. In any case, they are $25 for a box of 20 bars, compared with $42 for a box of 12 Quest bars!! The macros are pretty much the same: 60g bar with 190 cals, 21g protein, and 15g of fibre. They are sweetened with erythritol and stevia and are gluten-free. The box has half Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough and half Chocolate Brownie flavours. The Chocolate Brownie is good...

It is December and we still have had no snow. It only really started to get cold yesterday. That means we are probably going to get our butts completely kicked by winter when it finally arrives. Us Canadians never get off Scot-free. In any case, here are a few of my favorite things this winter...or pre-winter, I guess. I will do another round up once we get to "When will this fucking winter end" point in time around February/March. Vitafiber This healthy sweetener rocks. I bought the syrup, but I am sure you can do great things with the powder too. Its the base of my homemade Quest bars, and you can use it to make cereal bars, fudge, etc.  I am so excited to continue experimenting with it! BWC Nourishing Eye Gel and Make-up Remover   The skin around my eyes gets red and irritated as the weather gets colder because my eyes tear a lot. The eye gel is so soothing and the eye make up remover super gentle. I love these products! Vega Hydrator I stay away...

Publishers have been sending me all sorts of youth literature, which I have been giving to our little book worm. I am so thrilled that Big A has embraced reading to the same extent as Adam and I. There is only one difference though: she is a much faster reader than either of us! She is in the top 95th percentile for speed of reading!! As useful as this will be for her, it means she is going through books fast, and always begging for more. Here are a few reviews she's done for me on books were were sent: Spies in Disguise: Boy in the Tutu  (by Kate Scott) Its about a boy who's parents are secret agents and they get found out, like their cover gets blown and the boy needs to find this computer chip to save his parents. I liked the part about how the two main characters had to take ballet lessons. The only thing I didn't like is maybe there could have been more conflict. Rating: 9.9/10 Earning my Spots (by Mark Eastburn) Its about this boy and his famil...

If you are feeling a little blue because its Monday, this post might cheer you up. I have a simple way to make your own Quest bars at home! I love Quest bars as a little treat, but, boy are they expensive! Most protein bars are pricey, actually. So when I got my first order of Vitafiber, I knew they were the first thing I had to try making. Vitafiber , by the way, is a sugar-free, natural, low glycemic and lower calorie sweetener made of  Isomaltooligosaccharide  ( IMO ). It is high in fibre and a prebiotic, and is a main ingredient in real Quest bars. I used the basic recipe for a dozen bars posted by Busy but Healthy but I skipped putting the hot batter into a plastic bag, and I am happy to say it still worked perfectly. For these Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough bars I used: Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Quest-Style Bars (based on this recipe ) 1.5 cups Vitafiber 3 cups vanilla whey protein powder (use plant-based for vegan bars) 8 tbsp almond flour...

One of the most stressful things about parenting is when kids get sick. First there is the worry that its something serious. Then there is dealing with who cares for them. I can only imagine how challenging it is for people with low income jobs that are not salaried. Having to stay home to care for your child for an extended period of time could be catastrophic! So I am very grateful that we are comfortable, financially secure, and I have job flexibility because Monday afternoon I had to pick up 2 very sad looking girls from school. Big A barfed and Little A's tummy was hurting because she'd been coughing so hard. Apparently there are several nasty viruses going around their school and we've managed to get more than one of them. Yeah, we hit the jackpot! Since I had a work commitment, Adam's mom was nice enough to take Little A to the doctor, just to rule out bronchitis and pneumonia. Fortunately, we got the 'its just a virus' response, which means its ...

I have a hard time finding clothes that fit me well. You see, I am not only petite (vertically challenged), but I also have, what is diplomatically called by fashion experts, an 'athletic' body shape. This essentially means I have no shape. No waist. No hips. I am shaped like a toilet paper roll. Since losing 3 bra cup sizes to breast feeding, its even worse! So I really have to be careful what I wear or it just looks all wrong and/or is very uncomfortable. Since I am so cylindrical, things often ride up, or slide down, etc. It's maddening! I am on a constant quest for dresses. I love dresses because they can be very comfortable, they are an all-in-one outfit, and they look professional. I don't even mind biking in them. But it is always hard for me to find one that will be flattering and suits my tastes (i.e. no bright colours or huge, loud prints). I also don't like to spend tons on clothes. Oh, and because I am always hot, I refuse to buy any long sleeve...

Good morning and welcome to a new week! I am certainly hoping this one is better than the last one. Unfortunately, we are still without a working oven, but I've been able to do quite a lot in our toaster oven including roasting veggies, baking cakes and cookies. I am feeling better but still not 100% but poor little A is still suffering from this cold and has a wet, hacking cough. Anyways... Let's talk about brain health today. Taking care of your body is not just about increasing longevity, its about improving and maintaining quality of life. A good example is dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Some individuals do experience early onset, but most cases happen to to the elderly. If you are thinking that you need not worry about cognitive decline, because, after all, eventually you won't even be aware you are in it, then just think about the devastation that these diseases will cause your loved ones. If you are thinking that its just an inevitable part of aging...

Hello and Happy Friyay! Happy Black Friyay, in fact! Even here in Canada, though we don't celebrate Thanksgiving in November, we do celebrate the retail craziness of Black Friday. While I've been offline I've been super busy. When I say busy, I am not even referring to being sick, to Little A getting sick, to still having no working oven, or to the power outage we experienced Wednesday morning. Whew! Nope, I am referring to the intensive professional training program I was doing...and only part 1 of 2!! Adding to my repertoire of therapeutic modalities I offer, I am training as an EMDR therapist. EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. Ever heard of it? Here is some info: Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is a type of treatment primarily used for PTSD, or other anxiety-related disorders. The theory is that trauma or other experiences that overwhelm normal coping mechanisms cause pathology when they are inadequately p...

Hello and happy Friday! I am glad its the end of the week, it felt like a tough one. I came down with a cold which has left me with a headache and tons of mucus. I get sick so much less often than I used to that when I do catch something, I feel even more frustrated. But obviously expecting to never get sick isn't realistic! On top of that, its been a crazy busy week between work and the girls' and their activities and our related commitments (last night was parent-teacher night at their school). To make matters even more complicated, our brand new oven died. I know, like WTF? Our research suggests that it needs its electronic panel replaced AND that this is a common problem with this model. Unfortunately, the company we bought it from is offering servicing, not a replacement. If this becomes an ongoing problem with this oven, I am going to lose my shit. Oh and if you think that's bad, last night our downstairs toilet overflowed. Oh yes it did! We had to call the...

Good morning and happy Wednesday! Its rainy here but I'm not letting that make me feel gloomy. Its pretty amazing how gorgeous and mild this fall has been. Like I rode my bike to work on Monday and didn't even need gloves. In fact, I was sweating by the time I got there! I am still enjoying salads and have not needed to transition to entirely hot foods yet. I am sure that time is coming, it always does here in Toronto! As my brother says, where else does the temperature range from +30 Celsius to -30 Celsius on a regular basis?? Speaking of salad, I have a great recipe for you today. I know fat is all the rage right now, and while long gone are the days where any health experts recommend a fat-free diet, the researchers I trust agree that fat should still be eaten sparingly.  Why? no matter how healthy the fat you eat, it is extremely calorically dense and most North Americans don't burn enough calories to justify eating much of it.  Sorry, there is no evidence that...

Good morning and welcome to the beginning of a new week. I can't say I am feeling more optimistic about the state of the world right now, but talking it out with friends and family does help. Alright, lets move on to talking water bottles. After smashing my Lululemon water bottle , I was all set to buy another one and try again.  But on my way to the store, on a trip we took to Yorkdale Mall a few months ago, I made a detour into Home Outfitters.  I decided to just see what my other options were, as I suddenly started having doubts I can handle another glass water bottle.  So far I'm 0/2 in keeping them longer than a few weeks before I break them. After perusing all the options, I decided stainless steel was a better choice for me.  I chose an Aladdin Flip and Seal, though it looks like its for hot drinks, it can be used for both, and it promises to be leak proof.  Not that many of my past water bottles haven't broken that promise! Well, so far so good...

Since Wednesday I have been stumbling through life feeling like I keep waking up into a nightmare that is not going to end. I could write 8,000 posts all about my thoughts and feelings relating to the U.S. election results, but this isn't a political blog, so I won't. I have a list of posts I plan to write, but right now my mind is blank, I can't really focus. One thing that troubles me is explaining what's going on to my children, and I know many parents who are going through the same thing. So here are a few resources to help. This one is serious . And this one is for a laugh (because I don't know about you, but I need one!). I have a busy work day today and tomorrow, but Sunday I am having coffee with a good friend I haven't seen in a while. She is coming to see our new renos, and I will be seeing her for the first time during her current pregnancy (she also has a toddler). For me, there is almost nothing more therapeutic than hanging out with good ...

Are you like so OCD, that you have to arrange all your clothes by colour? Just because you like things organized or tidy, does not mean you have OCD, which, by the way, is not an adjective, its a mental illness. OCD stands for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and its nothing to laugh at. Unfortunately, there are a lot of myths and misunderstandings around the condition, and a lot of silly misrepresentations in the media. Its not something cute and quirky, it is potentially very serious and disruptive to a person's life. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder in which people have unwanted, uncontrollable and repeated thoughts, feelings, ideas, sensations (obsessions), or behaviors that make them feel driven to do something (compulsions).Often the person carries out the behaviors to get rid of the obsessive thoughts, but this only provides temporary relief. Not performing the obsessive rituals can cause great anxiety. OCD is often associated with eating di...

Good morning, how was your weekend? If you're like many people, the weekend is when you fall of the wagon with your healthy habits. You may not get to the gym, you go out and have a few (or too many) drinks, and you indulge in rich, sugary treats. If this is the case, you may start every Monday with feelings of regret. Well fear not! I've got you covered, at least in terms of indulging your sweet tooth while staying on track with a healthy eating plan! Here are a bunch of ideas for you. For those of you who cannot give up the real thing, find a way to incorporate it into your diet regularly. Most people try to eliminate their weakness altogether, which leads to feelings of deprivation, and usually bingeing. Instead, give yourself permission to have a small amount of said item as often as is necessary to make you feel satisfied (i.e. a small square of the best dark chocolate every day after lunch). Just be aware that not everyone is good at doing this, and are vulnerable t...

Though many of us love our salty, fatty foods, it seems that most people have an insatiable sweet tooth. Unfortunately, while we once thought that avoiding fat was the key to health, we now know that sugar is quite possibly more harmful than are even saturated fats. You may have heard the recent headlines about how the sugar industry manipulated research to exaggerate the health risks of fat consumption to minimize the risks of sugar consumption? This doesn't mean we should start gorging on fatty, fried foods, but it does reinforce the point that low fat diets are not necessarily the ideal, particularly if they are high in sugar. So if sugar isn't our friend, how do we satisfy that sweet tooth? Is there a way to do it healthfully? Fortunately, the answer is yes! The ideal is to wean yourself off of sweetened foods altogether and start just enjoying the natural sweetness from fruits and veggies. Ha, ha, right? I know, this is absolutely something we should all strive ...

Are you still in a sugar coma from Halloween? The girls are enjoying their daily treat from their Halloween stash, but to my surprise, we didn't have to cull them down after all. The girls volunteered to give Adam and I a huge portion of the candy they collected. After Adam devoured a pile of mini chocolate bars from their donation pile, I took the rest in to the office. Though I hate encouraging unhealthy food consumption, I've found that if you bring anything junky to an office, it always gets consumed in record time. Now lets talk potatoes. If you love potatoes but avoid them at all costs because you think they are unhealthy, well I have good news for you...you can (and should!) eat them! Potatoes, in and of themselves, are not unhealthy, its just that most people prefer to eat them prepared in unhealthy ways (fried or mashed with a ton of butter and cream). They are high in fibre and full of nutrients. They are also very satiating, meaning that relative to their ca...

As you know, I can rant endlessly about what a toxic, obesogenic environment we live in. Everywhere you go, there is encouragement to eat and to eat crap. This is especially true for kids. I am not exaggerating when I say not a day goes by where my children are not fed garbage food by people outside our home: almost all the school teachers reward with candy (I've finally taken this up with the principal), daycare (snacks are not always that healthy and crafts often involve crap (marshmallows, Froot loops, etc.) which they shovel into their mouths ASAP, samples at Costco, grandparents, birthday parties, Hebrew School, extracurricular activities, it goes on and on. Each person doling it out reasons that its just an occasional treat, but obviously its not when its done regularly and done by practically everyone children come into contact with! So when every day is bad enough, what do you do about Halloween? Every year Adam and I have adopted a different rule: as much a...

Welcome to Friday! Today its Fitness Friday on the blog. Lets talk about doing weighted cardio. Though I applaud anyone who makes the effort to exercise regularly, most folks don't do what is necessary to maximize their results. I am not just talking weight loss, but overall fitness too. People tend to focus on one aspect of fitness (cardio or flexibility) and neglect the rest, or they do the same workout over and over. Our bodies like variety and our bodies need incremental increases in intensity to continue getting benefits (law of progression). Whether you are doing cardio, or strength, you need to continuously change things up and up the level of difficulty. With strength training you can increase weight, add more sets, etc. With cardio you can increase speed, duration or switch to a more intense activity (i.e. walking to running). You can also add weight to your cardio! Back in the 80s when STEP aerobics exploded onto the fitness scene, it was done holding 1-2 lb h...