September 25, 2019 at 01:05PM by CWC Whether you’ve scored an Impossible Burger from a Burger King drive-thru window or grilled a few Beyond Burgers at home, you’re probably figured out by now that meat-like, plant-based burgers are officially the buzziest new protein option. (Oh, and we totally called it, too.) This is one food trend that RDs are generally pretty into. “By reducing meat intake, not only do we have an opportunity to improve our health, but also make a positive contribution to efforts to reduce or slow climate change,” Nora Minno, RDN, a plant-based dietitian and certified personal trainer in New York City. The motivation for choosing plants over meat is three-fold: (1) reduced risk of certain conditions and diseases, like Type 2 diabetes and cancer, (2) animal welfare and (3) the environment. The alt-meat conversation has long been dominated by the Impossible Burger vs Beyond Burger debate, but now more companies are stepping into the fray with their own meat-like burger offerings. Morningstar Farms will launch an Impossible-esque “bleeding” burger in early 2020, and Trader Joe’s is reportedly launching its own plant-based patties this year. So many options, so little time. In order to help you navigate this increasingly crowded space, we talked to dietitians to help us break down the nutritional benefits of each plant-based burger currently on the market right now. 1. Best overall: Beyond Burger Known as the first plant-based burger to actually look and taste like beef, the Beyond Burger (made by Beyond
Category: Vegetarians
The 4-step guide to building a high-protein salad that keeps you full until dinner
September 24, 2019 at 11:01PM by CWC Salads are the quintessential healthy lunch, but let’s be real, they aren’t always satisfying. You may start your day with the best intentions, having a healthy smoothie or protein bar for breakfast and your meal-prepped greens for lunch, only to find yourself digging around your snack drawer an hour later. Sound familiar? But make yourself a high-protein salad and you’ll be satisfied until dinner. According to F-Factor founder and fiber queen Tanya Zuckerbrot, the reason why some people don’t find salads filling is because they’re missing two key ingredients: lean protein and non-starchy veggies. Yes, fiber-rich greens are important, but without the protein, it just isn’t going to be all that satiating. To drive this point home, she posted a four-step salad building guide to Instagram. View this post on Instagram A post shared by F-Factor by Tanya Zuckerbrot (@f_factor) on Sep 24, 2019 at 6:15am PDT //www.instagram.com/embed.js Besides lean protein, which includes grilled chicken, turkey, tuna, and tofu, Zuckerbrot emphasizes the importance of including some non-starchy veggies like cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, mushrooms, or beets, too. Zuckerbrot says this is a crucial step as it’s a low-calorie way to add more fiber, which will keep you feeling full longer. Even a high-protein salad can taste pretty bland without a yummy dressing to top it off, but creamy dressings are also often a hidden source of sugars and other additives. This brings us to Zuckerbrot’s fourth salad-building rule: capping your dressing at
Experts always say to eat seasonally—but what’s really in it for me?
September 24, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC In theory, eating fruits and vegetables in season sounds like a worthy culinary aspiration. When I hear the phrase, I automatically picture Ina Garten buying freshly picked, organic strawberries at a farm stand, then going home and whipping up some sort of tart for Jeffrey. But when actually putting it into practice, the concept can feel straight-up intimidating. There are already so many things to think about at the grocery store, like choosing whether or not to go organic, reading the nutrition panel on the label, and assessing whether that label full of sneaky marketing claims. How important is it, really, to prioritize buying and eating in-season produce? Before we can answer that question, it’s important to define exactly what “eating seasonally” means. According to Brigitte Zeitlin, MPH, RD—founder of BZ Nutrition in New York City—it’s about knowing when certain fruits and vegetables grow naturally in your climate, and then eating them only in those seasons. In the United States, this can vary widely from state to state, and many types of produce grow in more than one season. But, in general, fall and winter are prime time for things like sweet potatoes, cauliflower, citrus fruits, and pears. Spring and summer are when berries, zucchini, tomatoes, and eggplant are at their freshest and most flavorful. (The USDA Seasonal Produce Guide is a good point of reference for a more comprehensive list.) Shopping at a farmer’s market or subscribing to a CSA inherently lends
Your official 10K training meal plan, because something needs to power all those runs
September 23, 2019 at 02:00PM by CWC In high school, I thought the pre-track meet spaghetti dinners were reason enough to take up running. Piling a plate high with noodles and beef-laden tomato sauce to fuel up for a whole two laps around the track (I ran the 800 meters) seemed like an idea I could get behind. You know what, better grab some garlic bread too for some extra carbs. While I still run—and, hey, even a bit further than 800 meters now—my belief that endless carbs equals a better run is long gone. (Just like my high school metabolism.) But knowing exactly when, what, and how much to eat while training for a running event can be confusing—no matter how old you are. Like almost everything in life, it helps to have a plan, and if you’re gearing up for a 10K, this is it. Here, sports and family medicine doctor Del Bolin, MD explains the macronutrient goals it’s important to hit in the weeks leading up to your race. To show you what that looks like, bRUNch Running co-founders Cortney Logan and Alexandra Weissner lay out what a sample day of eating could look like for each phase of your training. Ready to get started? Keep reading for your 10K meal plan for runners. Photo: Getty Images / W+G Creative Weeks 1 and 2 Macronutrient goals: According to Dr. Bolin, most training plans call for a milage increase of about 20 percent per week. “With this, you’ll want
I’m a minimalist makeup advocate—here’s why I converted to matte foundation
September 23, 2019 at 04:30AM by CWC I’ve always been a low-maintenance makeup fan. As a 12 year old, I spent summer afternoons happily posted up in front of my bathroom mirror, practicing mascara-application tips I had read about in magazines, teaching myself how to use an eyelash curler, and trying (and failing) to figure out bronzer. You won’t catch me with my own YouTube channel any time soon, but my curiosity toward makeup has stayed with me as an adult (I recently figured out how to use bronzer, finally). However, one element of my makeup routine hasn’t changed since middle school: my dedication to powder foundation. Ever since my dermatologist handed me a compact of jane iredale pressed powder circa 2007 (true story), promising it wouldn’t exacerbate my raging acne—thanks to its clean, good-for-your-skin ingredients—I’ve been too scared to touch a liquid foundation stronger than a BB cream. Though I’ve since healed my acne (also thanks to jane, also a true story), my loyalty to powder foundation has stuck. So when I was given the opportunity to try jane iredale’s new Beyond Matte Liquid Foundation—a clean, vegan formula designed to nourish problem skin with beneficial ingredients—I was nervous. When you’re a kid walking around with teal eyeshadow and caked-on bronzer, people think it’s cute. When you’re an adult, not so much. To ease my nerves, I asked Shawn Towne, global educator at jane iredale, for his insight on this new frontier, and he told me there are three key
The rules for eating a plant-based burger are the same as eating a regular beef burger
September 21, 2019 at 08:00PM by CWC Not to brag, but we totally predicted 2019 would be the year of alt-meats. Not only do I live within spitting’s distance of innumerable joints slinging Beyond and Impossible Burgers here in vegan-friendly Los Angeles, but I have also spotted them on multiple menus in my Texas hometown, where “meat-free” typically registers as a slur. Alt-meat’s fast becoming a staple on menus at Burger King, Dunkin’ Donuts, White Castle, Carl’s Jr., and Subway, which signals a mainstreaming of the trend beyond any quinoa-eating old-school vegan’s wildest dreams. However, just because they’re plant-based doesn’t mean they automatically deserve a place at every meal. “We know that real burgers are not a health food, and these fake burgers are not meant to be a health food,” cautions Dana Hunnes, PhD, MPH, RD, senior dietitian at UCLA Medical Center. “They are meant to be a direct substitute for a meat burger that doesn’t harm any animals and reduces harm to the environment.” Still, she posits, they are technically better in some ways than a beef burger from a health perspective. Despite being processed, “they’re are not nearly as likely to be potential carcinogens since they are plant-based,” she says, referring to the scientifically-established link between red meat and cancer risk. Nutrition science journalist Max Lugavere takes a somewhat contrary view. “Every ingredient in these fake meat burgers has already undergone intensive processing on their own, often using heat and harsh chemical solvents, which then come together to achieve
5 healthy breakfast recipes with just 5 ingredients (or less!) from Trader Joe’s
September 21, 2019 at 12:01PM by CWC If I were stranded on a desert island and could only choose three items to bring with me, they would be Trader Joe’s Cookie Butter, Trader Joe’s Cinnamon Schoolbook Cookies, and Trader Joe’s Absolute Black Dark Chocolate. The general themes here are fairly obvious: I would want all the sugar and all the TJs. When it comes to choosing a healthy breakfast, the last point still applies. Trader Joe’s helps me pull an a.m. meal together in minutes. One of the many wonderful things about the frugal supermarket the ready-made, starter breakfast kits you can snag in the frozen food aisle—then dress up as you so please. Below, you’ll find five recipes that do just that (with less than five ingredients, I might add). These 5 healthy Trader Joe’s breakfasts require less than 5 ingredients Photo: Unsplash/Brenda Godinez 1. Homemade ACAI bowls My major beef with premade acai bowls is that they’re way overpriced. I mean, who wants to spend $14 on something that essentially boils down to blended fruit and almond butter? No one? That’s what I thought. Part of the joy of making your own bowl with TJ’s unsweetened acai is that you get to choose exactly how much fruit and added sugar goes into your breakfast. That sounds like winning to me. What to buy: Unsweetened Organic Açaí Puree Packets and your desired mix of nut butter and fruit toppings 2. YOGURT PARFAIT Parfait is (obviously) the French word for
What experts want you to know before going gluten- and dairy-free
September 21, 2019 at 01:00AM by CWC It feels like everyone and their sister these days is nixing gluten or dairy from their diets. And it makes sense: many people have an intolerance to these foods, which can lead to a slew of extremely unpleasant side effects, from bloating to indigestion and nutrient deficiencies. Yet, when you need to get rid of both, it means ditching a lot of different foods, making meal prep and eating out way harder. Plus, is it even a good idea to do both at the same time? Before saying goodbye to your favorite charcuterie plate, here’s what the experts have to say about the safety and necessity of a gluten and dairy free diet. Why would someone need to cut out gluten? People who have Celiac disease, a non-Celiac gluten intolerance, or a wheat and gluten allergy all cannot eat gluten for various different reasons. In the case of Celiac, it’s an autoimmune disease where the presence of gluten prompts the body to attack the small intestine, which can cause bloating, digestive distress, malabsorption, and long-term health problems like anemia and even infertility. People with a non-Celiac gluten intolerance do not have Celiac but still experience serious digestive issues when they eat gluten. And for someone with a wheat and gluten allergy, they might experience rashes, hives, sneezing, or a runny nose after eating wheat products. There’s also research showing that gluten can cause leaky gut, says Sam Presicci, RD, CPT, and dietitian for
Once and for all, this is the best way to get your collagen
September 20, 2019 at 08:20PM by CWC We’re in the height of a collagen craze, and I get it. Once upon a time if you needed to plump your skin you could get your fill with, well, fillers. Now there’s so many different kinds of collagen on the market that you can swing by your local drug store and slather it on. Or it’s as simple as grabbing a jar or packet of the stuff and slipping it into whatever beverage is closest to hand. You can doll up your water or even slip it into your morning cup of coffee! Easy peasy, amirite? Actually, that last one is a terrible idea. Though it is tempting to dose your morning cappuccino with collagen powder (because it doesn’t exactly taste amazing) that kind of defeats the whole point of it. For a recent article in The Conversation, scientist and assistant professor of microbiology at Texas A&M University Brooke Russell points out that your collagen powder falls apart at temperatures above body temperature—your steaming hot morning brew turns it into pure gelatin. You know what’s probably not going to give you the health and beauty benefits of collagen? That, literally that. And though it’s an absolute bummer, we’re still learning which collagen products are really making our skin bounce back. Your friend with the fresh Rapunzel locks says hard yes, and research definitely links it to strengthening your hair and hardening your brittle nails. But not all collagen supplements or infused-lotions are
These are the 9 healthiest items to order at P.F. Chang’s, according to a dietitian
September 20, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC Whether you live in a big city with literally hundreds of hole-in-the-wall Chinese places or a suburb with just a handful of hidden gems, people still flock to P.F. Chang’s as if it’s the only place in town serving up fried rice and wontons. Haters will say it’s because the chain—which has over 200 locations in the US—is almost always in a mall, drawing upon a customer base that just got too hungry while shopping at Pottery Barn to venture any further out. But that’s not why your local P.F. Chang’s always has a crowd. The thing is, it’s honestly really good. So good in fact that the chain has ventured into the world of frozen food so people can try to replicate their favorite restaurant dishes at home. Delicious, yes. But healthy? Well, like virtually every restaurant, some menu items are better than others. The P.F. Chang’s menu is about the size of a pocket dictionary, making it hard to zero in on the items that are truly healthy, and even more difficult if you follow a specific eating plan, such as keto, vegetarian, or gluten-free. That’s where registered dietitian Chelsey Amer, RD, comes in. Here, she reveals the healthiest items on the menu for the three aforementioned eating plans, which can also serve as a blueprint to healthy eating at the restaurant regardless of what your food ethos is. Ready to see what she picked? Keep reading to find out. Ketogenic