Tips for a Happier, Healthier Thanksgiving

Right around Thanksgiving, a million articles pop up on the news about what you should do to avoid the dreaded weight gain associated with the holidays, how you need to detox the day before and after Thanksgiving, or how to burn off all those calories from the food you ate.

There's a lot of dieting advice going around the internet these days, which can often times cloud the real reason to celebrate this time of year, to be thankful for what we have, not to burn off all those calories you're about to go eat. This doesn't mean these articles get it all wrong - Thanksgiving shouldn't be an excuse to eat ALL THE FOOD. When people overeat, they don't feel good, which is no fun when you want to enjoy your time with family and friends.

To put things into perspective, most Americans only gain about one pound during the holidays. One pound - this might make a difference in your overall health or sports performance if you're eating heavy, high fat meals plus desserts every day from November to January, resulting in greater than one pound weight gain...or if you gain one pound every year without losing that one pound during the rest of the year.

But, if you're an active individual or a competitive athlete, Thanksgiving can act as a rest day from your normal regimen, sit back, relax, enjoy being around family and friends, and enjoy some of your seasonal favorites. If that means you get a piece of pie, so be it! In fact, if you choose your foods correctly, you can enjoy some of your favorite dishes and be fueled up for a workout the next day. No detox, no diet, no restrictions.

1. Don't skip your other meals on Thanksgiving day.

By skipping meals because you assume you're going to want to eat massive quantities of food later in the day, you're setting yourself up to overeat. Instead, try to eat balanced meals (breakfast, lunch). If your Thanksgiving meal is scheduled for lunch time, a light, high-protein breakfast will help hold you over until lunch. If your meal is around dinner time, two lighter, balanced meals will prevent you from going into your meal feeling ravenous and ready to eat one of each food item.

Good options for a lighter breakfast and lunch:

Breakfast: Vegetable and egg scramble with a side of a banana with peanut butter
or 1/2 cup oatmeal with berries, cinnamon, milk and a sprinkle of walnuts
or a couple slices of nut butter toast with a banana

Lunch: Big salad made with mixed greens salad with 2 hard-boiled eggs, 1/2 cup garbanzo beans, 1 cup raw broccoli, 1 Tbsp sunflower seeds and 1 Tbsp balsamic vinaigrette
or 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt with 1/4 cup raw oatmeal, 1 Tbsp honey, 1 banana and                          sprinkle of nuts
or your favorite bowl of warm soup

2. Be aware of portions.

• The recommendation for what your plate should look like for each meal is: ~1/2 the plate is vegetables and fruit, 1/4 lean protein and 1/4 starches (grains, bread, corn, potatoes, etc.) Your plate should look like this on Thanksgiving, too. Even if the foods are "more unhealthy," at least you have the right idea on how your plate is divided. 



Source: American Heart Association Blog

• Turkey, especially the white meat, is a great source of lean protein. If you're going to have a piece of meat, keep the portion to the size of a deck of cards and move on to the other options.
• Each portion of your favorite foods can have between 150-200+ calories each: 1/2 cup mashed potatoes, 1/2 cup stuffing, 1 cup green bean casserole, 1 biscuit, 1 cup of gravy, several ounces of turkey with skin, a SMALL piece of pie...etc.
• A reasonable serving of pie is as big as the area between your fingers when you make a "peace sign" - Did you make a peace sign? How does your usual slice of pie compare? 
• Don't forget liquid calories - all those holiday drinks (punch, egg nog, hot cocoa, beer, wine, champagne, etc.) add up! Be mindful of how many drinks you're having that aren't water and try to replace some of those beverages with regular water. 

Calories shouldn't be your biggest focus, but it is always good to be aware of how much you're really eating before loading up your plate, and splitting your plate into the different sections can help you keep portions in check.  See tip 3 for tips on choosing foods. 

3. Survey all the options before loading up your plate, and only make one trip. 

This tip is included in Saint Louis University's Whitney Linsenmeyer's list of tips for enjoying the holiday without having to wear your sweatpants - Clean Eaters Can Beat Thanksgiving Food Hangover. You don't have to give up those indulgent foods you love, but by taking a smaller portion and savoring each bite, you'll really appreciate the food more.

This tip is good for anyone confronted with a buffet eating situation - it can be especially tempting to get heaping piles of a bit of everything the first time around...only to go back for seconds (or thirds) of your favorite dishes.

Instead, survey the food options - choose one serving of protein (turkey, ham, legumes, fish), grains/starches (stuffing, corn, roll, mashed potatoes), and fill the rest of your plate with vegetables (green bean casserole doesn't count as a vegetable) and some cranberry sauce.

4. Prepare healthy side dishes with a focus on vegetables.

The Harvard School of Public Health recommends that people prioritize plants, instead of focusing on meats (turkey, ham) and starches (mashed potatoes, stuffing/dressing). Even if you're a meat-lover, there are TONS of seasonal recipes for healthier, plant-based side dishes that help you break away from the traditional green bean goop and creamy mashed potatoes. Load up on the vegetables - they're high in nutrients and lower in calories.

Deep-orange foods (sweet potatoes, squash, pumpkin) are full of antioxidants and fiber, so try to incorporate those seasonal orange foods into your menu for a nutrient boost.

Ideas for plant-based dishes:

Cookie and Kate || 16 Healthy Thanksgiving Sides

Plant Eaters' Manifesto || Plant-Based Thanksgiving Recipe Ideas

5. Sweat a little!

It's a great idea to exercise for 30-60 minutes on Thanksgiving (and really, every day!) Some families make it a habit to go on a walk, throw around the football, run a Turkey Trot, the list goes on. If you can find a way to move your body and get the blood flowing, you're going to feel a lot better than if you sat around watching football and eating all day (not that there isn't room in your day for exercise, sitting, AND football!)

Do you have any favorite healthier Thanksgiving dishes? 

Want to read more about this topic?

Peeled Wellness || Tips for Healthy Thanksgiving Feasting

Real Simple || How to Build a Healthier Thanksgiving Plate

American Heart Association || Healthy Holiday Eating Guide

This time of year is a great time to get in contact with the Sanford Sports Science Institute to set up an appointment with the sports nutritionist, or check out our sports testing offerings for athletes of all ages and abilities. Call today to find out more! 606-312-7870

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How Much Protein You REALLY Need

How much protein should I be eating every day?

This is a common question from athletes and really, protein is a huge topic in magazines, websites and newspapers. Protein has been attributed to promoting muscle growth and recovery, maintaining lean muscle mass during weight loss, reducing body fat gain in teens, and helping with blood sugar control.

With all these benefits, wouldn't it seem that more protein is better? 

Not necessarily...eating more protein won't magically make your muscles grow and you don't store the extra protein as amino acids to use later and you don't just "pee out" the extra protein you eat. Although many athletes like to focus on protein-rich foods and protein shakes/supplements, it's important to focus on building a balanced performance plate, where carbohydrates (think complex carbohydrates like whole grains, vegetables, fruit, starches) are making up the majority of your calories to fuel your muscles and protein is only ~25% of your plate. Because everyone's calorie needs are DIFFERENT, this "perfect amount" of protein is going to be different for everyone. A large male is going to need a lot more calories and a proportional increase in his protein needs compared with a lighter female.

Losing weight

You might have heard that a high protein diet helps you lose weight, but this may be because protein foods can help you feel less hungry if you're cutting calories in order to lose weight and because when you cut calories, you risk losing muscle in addition to body fat. Eating a slightly higher protein diet (~30% protein) can help you spare protein during weight loss.

Building muscle

When it comes to building muscle, you need to focus on several different components, not just protein intake.

Your strength training routine is important for muscle growth. A progressively difficult strength training routine allows your muscles to adapt to the new stressors you're putting them under by growing bigger and stronger.

You need to make sure you're meeting your weight maintenance calorie needs, plus extra calories to build muscle. 

You can estimate your maintenance calorie needs using different equations OR if you're serious about your training goals, you can get your resting energy expenditure tested. Knowing your  individual restring energy expenditure can help you individualize your performance diet by knowing exactly how many calories you SHOULD be eating during the day to support your performance.

Getting your resting energy expenditure tested is a quick and easy tool you can use to help you meet your goals.
Call the Sanford Sports Science Institute at (605) 312-7870 to make an appointment today!

 Many athletes aren't meeting their basic calorie needs to support performance or maintain weight, but may be drinking protein shakes, hoping they'll gain muscle, but that's just not how it works. You have to combine exercise and a balanced diet for muscle growth to occur. 

Protein needs based on your goals

Protein needs are slightly higher for people involved in exercise, for repairing the muscle damage from training and to build to muscle, and because in general, people who exercise have higher overall calorie needs. The recommended amount of protein for most adults (sedentary/currently not in training) is 0.8 g/kg (0.4 g/lb) body weight per day. 

This being said, most people can meet their protein needs through a real food diet and don't need extra protein or amino acid supplements. There hasn't been much research to support the claims made by supplement companies that they help you build muscle or "get lean" any better than real foods with protein.

Individual/Type of Athlete	Grams of protein per kg or lb. per day
Recreational exerciser, adult	1.1 - 1.6 g/kg (0.5-0.7 g/lb)
Endurance	1.3-1.6 g/kg (0.6-0.7 g/lb)
Strength (build muscle mass)	1.6-1.8 g/kg (0.7-0.8 g/lb)
Athlete restricting calories (weight loss)	1.8-2.0 g/kg (0.8-0.9 g/lb) *When you're cutting calories, you will lose fat, but you can also lose muscle, so protein intake is important to spare muscle protein. **The Profile weight loss plan is a personalized high protein plan that has helped many people lose weight and keep it off!

*Source: Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook 

A 130 lb. marathon running female would need between 78 and 91 grams of protein every day:

130 x 0.6 = 78 grams of protein/day

130 x 0.7 = 91 grams of protein/day

This breaks down to only about 26 grams of protein per meal, if she eats 3 meals a day (really, most people are eating pre- and/or post-workout snacks). Think about eating some protein at each meal and snack (beans, nuts, seeds, eggs, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese, fish, meat, hummus, and milk).

Example of protein in meals:

Meal	Food	Grams of protein per meal
Breakfast	2 whole eggs, scrambled 1 handful of spinach ¼ cup part-skim mozzarella 1 banana	23 g
Snack	¼ cup almonds 1 apple	7 g
Lunch	4 cups of mixed greens Chopped bell peppers 1/2 cup black beans ¼ cup pumpkin seeds (pepitas) 2 Tbsp balsamic vinaigrette	17 g
Snack	1 cup Greek yogurt 1 Tbsp honey ½ cup blueberries	22 g
Dinner	1 cup brown rice, cooked 4 oz. grilled chicken breast 1 cup steamed broccoli	40 g

Focus on balance

You can prevent muscle breakdown and maximize strength gains by optimizing your nutrition plan throughout the entire day. Instead of focusing on "protein, protein, protein," you should be providing your body with the "building blocks" it needs for muscle growth by eating a balanced meal or snack with protein and carbohydrates every 3-4 hours.You may have heard of the "window of opportunity" - eating a protein/carbohydrate-rich snack 30-60 minutes after your workout can aid in recovery and promote muscle repair.

If you're struggling in your workouts, check your carbohydrate intake - if you're cutting too many calories and carbohydrates out of your diet, your performance could suffer because you're not fueling your muscles with the carbohydrates needed to work hard.

The Forgotten R - REST

Don't forget how important REST can be in your performance plan. Without rest days, you aren't giving your body enough time to repair from your last workout. By fueling your body correctly and taking time to rest, your body will be able to recover properly and you will ultimately be able to meet your goals.

As with everything in life, meeting your goals takes time. Stray away from programs that promise quick results - you have to put in the work and the time to meet your performance goals.

You can make an appointment to get your resting energy expenditure tested or to speak with the sports nutritionist at the Sanford Sports Science Institute by calling (605) 312-7870. 

Related links:

Today's Dietitian || Athletes and Protein Intake

MyFitnessPal || Nutrition 101 - Protein

Science Daily || Protein-packed breakfast prevents body fat gain in overweight teens

Eat Right || Protein and the Athlete: How Much Do You Need?

Greatist || 31 Healthy and Portable High-Protein Snacks

Stack || The High Protein Food You're Not Eating Enough Of

Profile by Sanford || Grocery Store Picks

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The Quick Guide to Fueling Young Athletes

Consistent good nutrition can support a child or teen's growth, development and immune system, and can also help them be a stronger athlete and a more attentive student. If this is the case, why is the sports environment filled with fast food? Why are athletes choosing supplements to help them perform better when they're choosing junk food for meals and snacks?

We've all been to a youth sports game or tournament where they're serving hot dogs, candy and soda and the half-time snack for the young athletes is a bottle of sports drink and some sort of fast food or prepackaged snack. A busy sports schedule can result in reliance on fast food or pre-packaged snacks and meals, which can be convenient, but don't support your athlete in feeling good and performing well.

If I were to make it really simple, I would tell kids to do these things to have the best "athlete's diet":

1. Don't skip meals. This means eating breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, every day.
2. Drink water throughout the day - carry around a water bottle and fill it up throughout the day. Drink more the day before a competition/game/race.
3. Eat snacks! Eating a snack with protein after exercise can help promote muscle repair and growth.

Source: Teen Being & Choices Magazine 

How many calories does a young athlete need?

This chart can help you determine how many calories your young athlete needs based on their age and physical activity levels. You can see the difference between a sedentary and active been might just be 400-600 calories, the equivalent to a few extra snacks throughout the day (not a free pass to eat whatever they want). 

Moderately active = walking to school
Playing a soccer game = vigorously active

You may feel as if your child is ALWAYS hungry - they may need to add more snacks throughout the day, or even an extra meal during the day. Again, this all depends on how active they are and if they're having a growth spurt.

What foods should young athletes focus on?

A common mistake among young athletes make is thinking they can eat TONS of protein to build muscle, but they're often not meeting their calorie needs. Young athletes need to focus on eating enough calories in addition to exercising (especially strength training) to build muscle.

An easy way to talk about good nutrition to a young athlete is to talk about food being fuel for their activities. Kids usually know that junk food doesn't make them feel good, so help them make the connection that when they eat healthy foods, they feel good!

Of course, if they have the choice to eat junk food at home, they may choose cookies, candy and chips over fresh fruit and vegetables because it's convenient (and tastes good). Make the healthy options convenient by cutting up extra fresh fruit and vegetables and making the junk food unavailable in the home.

Carbohydrates are our muscles' main fuel source, so they should make up the majority of the diet (55-75% of total calories coming from carbohydrates). Carbohydrate foods include: whole grain bread, pasta, and cereal, grains such as oatmeal and rice, vegetables and fruit. Aim to make half of all grains whole grains for added fiber and nutrients (brown rice vs. white rice, whole grain bread and rolls vs. white bread).

Protein helps with muscle repair and growth, but it doesn't need to be the biggest focus. Although athletes need more protein on their plates, they can meet their needs by including protein at each meal and snack. Good sources of protein include meat, poultry, Greek yogurt, beans, nuts, seeds, milk and eggs.

Protein

8 years old: 4 oz 9-13 years old: 5 oz 14-18 years old: 5 oz (Female)                            6.5 oz (Male)

One-ounce equivalent: 1 oz. meat, poultry, fish, ¼ cup beans, 1 Tbsp nut butter, 1 egg, ½ oz nuts/seeds

Healthy fats should be part of your athletes diet - we're talking about nuts, seeds, olive oil and avocados. Avoid trans fats in fried foods (menu items that say "crispy" or "crunchy") and pre-packaged baked goods and snack foods.

Use avocado instead of mayo on sandwiches/wraps. 

Is breakfast really that important?

Children and adolescents need to be eating breakfast every day, especially if they're involved in sports. Skipping breakfast has been attributed to more weight gain, and eating breakfast can help kids have more energy and pay attention more during the school day. We're not talking about a bowl of sugary cereal here - even if breakfast is small and on-the-go, try to choose foods from more than one food group. Good examples include:

• Granola bar and a banana
• Hard boiled egg and an apple
• Greek yogurt with granola and blueberries
• Dry cereal and nuts
• Apple with peanut butter and raisins
• Egg sandwich with 2 eggs and cheese
• Fruit smoothie

Should young athletes drink sports drinks?

The American Academy of Pediatrics reports sports drinks contain extra calories and sugar that children don't necessarily need and that for children participating in normal exercise activities, plain water should be the drink of choice. Children and adolescents should really never be drinking energy drinks, and should only drink sports drinks during prolonged, vigorous physical activity (similar to adult recommendations). 

Children are more susceptible to becoming dehydrated because they sweat less than teens and adults, so young athletes should aim to consume 4-8 oz. (several large gulps) of water every 15-20 minutes of physical activity. They may need even more if they're sweating a lot or wearing protective equipment.

What about sports supplements?

The supplement industry loves to make things exciting and make promises about enhancing performance, helping you lean out, make strength gains or give you energy with little scientific evidence to back up these claims.

Young athletes, especially high school students, can get caught up in these exciting messages pushing protein supplements to enhance muscle growth and athletic performance. In reality, there is no magic pill - all children and adolescents can meet their protein needs through real food sources and there are many real food sources of the same supplements they're spending so much money on.

You can't take supplements to replace hard work or good nutrition. 

You (or your young athlete) might enjoy:

USA Swimming || Growing Swimmers May Need a 4th Meal 

Kids Eat Right || 6 Healthy Ways to Manage Weight for Sports || 8 Gameday Nutrition Tips

Jill Castle, MS, RDN, CDN || Eat Like a Champion
***This book was a great resource in writing this article!

Mark Bittman @ The New York Times || Getting Your Kids to Eat (Or At Least Try) Everything 

Sally Kuzemchak @ Teen Being || Are You Being Snacked to Death?

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Marathon Week Nutrition

We're gearing up for the Sioux Falls Marathon next weekend, which means most athletes registered for the races are going to be reducing their mileage (tapering) and eating more carbohydrates (carbohydrate-loading). You've made it!

This is a great time to look back at all those summer training runs and feel confident that you put in all those sweaty miles in the heat to be able to cross that finish line on race day. In honor of the race being ONE WEEK away (no pressure), we're going to be  talking a little bit about race week nutrition for marathon runners.

Most of the information applies to runners for all distances, and the Sioux Falls Marathon website has some great videos on Steps to running your first 5K, which have great tips for runners of all abilities, but especially for those who want to start running, or have signed up for their first race. 

Source: Sioux Falls Marathon

Hitting the Wall

In the world of athletics, we hear a lot of information about protein, but runners need to be making carbohydrates a priority, especially in the days leading up to a big race. 

Carbohydrates are our muscles' preferred fuel source. When you eat carbohydrates, your body stores it as energy in the form of glycogen. When you're a distance runner, your muscles use up this energy. 

Have you ever hear of a marathon runner hitting the wall? "Hitting the wall" is a term to describe the sudden feeling of fatigue, lack of energy and feeling that you can't even take one more step when a runner has used up all of their stored carbohydrates, often around mile 20 of the marathon. This is why you often hear people say, "The race is half over at mile 20" because those last 6 miles can often feel like an eternity if you haven't taken the proper steps to ensure your glycogen/energy stores are filled and ready to push you to mile 26.2. 

Source: Buzzfeed

I'm sure the new runners are panicking at the thought of hitting that 20 mile mark now. Don't worry! There are a couple steps during this week to make sure you're getting in some good nutrition to fuel your muscles on race day. 

Carbs are King

Most runners think of carbohydrate loading as eating a huge bowl of pasta in the days leading up  to a race. We're not here to tell you that that's not a good strategy - if you've been eating pasta for every meal leading up to all your long runs, you probably don't want to change a good thing. 

A good rule to follow is: "Don't try anything new in the days leading up to a race!" For many runners, a big pasta meal, especially the night before the race (the traditional "carb loading meal"), is probably not going to digest fully before you start the race, so you may feel bloated and heavy while you're running. Instead, start thinking about your nutrition plan after your last long run, the week before the race. After you've finished this run, you're in the taper phase, so your runs over the next couple days should be easy - you've already put in the work, so pushing yourself too hard isn't going to help you gain any extra fitness. During the week leading up to your race, many runners feel like they can't back off the running - they may feel bloated or gain a couple pounds during the week, but just know that tapering is helping your body store the energy it is going to need to fuel your muscles during your big race. The extra weight is from your body storing glycogen (energy) and water, so sit back and try to relax. 

• 3 days before your race (mid-week) is a great time to ramp up your carbohydrate intake to about 3-4 grams of carbohydrate per pound of body weight. 

For a better visual, let's think about what our plate might look like on a "normal" day, with 45-65% of our calories coming from carbohydrates: 

United States Olympic Committee Sport Dietitians and the University of Colorado (UCCS) Sport Nutrition Graduate Program.

The normal plate is great for every day and easy training days. Our carbohydrates come from vegetables and fruits, which should fill up half of our plate, and the rest from whole grains and quality starches, such as brown rice, whole grain pasta, potatoes and sweet potatoes, etc. 

In the 3-4 days leading up to a marathon, we're going to want to make carbohydrates the majority of our plate, which we can do by increasing the amount of carbohydrates we are eating at each meal and snack. This doesn't necessarily mean increasing our portions at each meal to add in an extra piece of bread, but making an effort to cut down on the protein and fats and aim to have carbohydrates make up ~70% of our daily intake. 

Compared to the above plate, this is a better visual of what your plate might look like in the several days leading up to race day: 

United States Olympic Committee Sport Dietitians and the University of Colorado (UCCS) Sport Nutrition Graduate Program.

As you can see, we've really increased the amount of grains and starches, so maybe instead of your daily salad for lunch, you choose a sandwich instead, or instead of an egg for breakfast, you have a peanut butter and banana sandwich so you're just making sure to make the majority of your plate carbohydrate-rich.

Keep in mind that this week is not an excuse to eat whatever you want. Carbohydrate loading is the combination of reducing your activity level and increasing your carbohydrate intake - not eating a full pasta or pizza dinner each night. We also can't push protein and healthy fats to the side. Your plate should be balanced with quality carbohydrates, vegetables and fruits and healthy fats, which is what we should be aiming to include in most of our meals every day.

Don't Try Anything New

You want to remember the above rule - to "not try anything new" in the week before the race. If you've eaten the same meal the day before every long run during your training, you probably want to stick with eating that same meal the day before your race. If you haven't really kept track of what you eat, stick with eating foods that you're familiar with or bland foods you know won't upset your stomach the day before the race. 

In contrast to the common carb-loading strategy of eating a huge pasta dinner the night before your race, we recommend eating your last larger meal for lunch the day before your race, and keeping dinner on the light side. Keep carbohydrate intake high on the day before the race, but if you're going to have your pasta dinner, try having it for lunch instead to ensure you have time to digest and feel good on race morning. 

Some examples of this meal include: pasta with red sauce and chicken breast with a side salad, rice and stir-fried vegetables and tofu or chicken, a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato and onion and an apple.

Race Morning 

The morning of the race is your chance to top of your glycogen stores with a quality carbohydrate-rich meal. It is recommended to wake up several hours before the race, if possible, to eat ~150 grams of carbohydates. You want to make sure you've tried eating on some of your training runs to know how your body will react to eating before running. Some of the most common go-to breakfasts include carbohydrates and a little bit of protein and fat to hold us over until the race starts: bagel with peanut butter and a banana, granola with milk and fruit, yogurt with fruit, granola bar and an apple. Whatever you choose, make sure it's something you've tried before a long run and you know will agree with your stomach. 

Source: RunnerUnleashed.com

This breakfast should be substantial enough to get you to the starting line without being hungry, but not so large that you feel heavy and stuffed when you start running. 

If you've followed your training plan, tapered, and loaded up your plate with plenty of healthy carbohydrates in the days leading up to the race, you should feel confident that you've done everything in your power to cross that finish line. 

Again, if you're running the half marathon, this information is going to apply to you, too, just on a smaller scale. Marathon runners are going to have a larger intake of total calories, but the percentages of carbohydrates can still apply to those running the half marathon next weekend.

Any race week tips?

Favorite carbohydrate-loading meals?

Stories of hitting the wall? 

Questions for the Registered Dietitian?

Leave your comments below!

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The Leek

The leek is a vegetable that is a part of the onion and garlic family. In fact, it's one of the more subtle tasting versions of the onion. It looks like a wide light green stem which is actually a cylinder shaped bundle of leaf sheaths. It can be steamed, sauteed and even eaten fresh. However, its most commonly used to make broth. The season is between October and May

from galleryhip.com             

Nutritionally, leeks are low in calories and rich with polyphenols which are potent anti-oxidants that help protect against oxidative damage. Leeks are an excellent source of vitamin K (the vitamin that is involved with blood clotting) and a very good source of folate, B6, copper, manganese and iron. Moreover, leeks are a good source of vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin E, magnesium and calcium. All these micronutrients help keep a healthy immune system as well as help with multiple metabolic processes that relate also to physical performance. Since leeks taste sweeter than onions, many people once they try it, prefer leeks over onions. Leeks are typically cut into rounds (see picture above). White areas and light green areas are the ones that are typically eaten, however, you can eat the dark green areas as well. The dark green areas are just thicker and might require slightly more cooking.

Here are some ideas of what to do with leeks:

• Leek and potato soup
  Ingredients:
  1 Tbsp butter or olive oil
  3 leeks sliced into rings
  5 medium sized red potatoes peeled and diced
  5-6 cups of chicken or vegetable broth
  1 tsp thyme (or 0.5 tsp dried)
  1 tsp marjoram (or 0.5 tsp dried)
  Salt and pepper per taste
  1-2 bay leafs
  
  Instruction:
  1. In pot put oil or butter and melt on low heat. Add leeks and stir for about 8-10 minutes or until soft
  2. Add diced potatoes and all seasonings and continue to stir for about 10 minutes
  3. Add broth and bring to a boil. Cover partially and let cook on low heat for about 30 minutes
  4. You can serve as is or puree in a food processor/blender
  5. Feel free to garnish with creme fresh, heavy cream, basil, dill or scallions
• Sauteed leek and green beans
  Ingredients:
  1 Tbsp olive oil
  2 leeks sliced into rings
  1 tsp of minced garlic
  3 cups of fresh or frozen green beans
  Salt and pepper to your liking
  1 tsp of dried Italian seasoning
  
  Instructions:
  1. In a deep pan heat oil on medium heat and add leeks. Stir for 5-10 minutes or until leeks are soft and almost translucent
  2. Add garlic and stir for 3-4 minutes
  3. Add green beans and seasonings. Saute until green beans are soft and ready to eat
  4. Serve warm
• Here are some interesting recipes that are not just leek soup
• You can add leeks to your omelette, grits or hash browns in the morning 
• Leeks can also be put on pizza and in a quiche. Here is a simple & healthy quiche recipe

Hope this gives you great ideas to just pick up a leek from the grocery store. Its fairly cheap and located next to the refrigerated root vegetables and herbs. Happy cooking and let me know below how it goes.

Pic from www.health.com

                   

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Good Websites or Blogs to Get Recipes

Many people go on to college with no skills in the kitchen, or limited skills such as making a sandwich and scrambled eggs. Even in college, we may have a food plan so we go eat at the dinning halls 2-3 times a day or/and have random microwave meals, eat out or bake hot pockets/pizza. As athletes, we need to take care of our bodies to help heal and recover from our activities with food and/or drinks, which at times can be missed due to the lack of ability or willingness to cook. Some think it is really hard to cook or that it's too time consuming. However, I believe that if you can read, you can cook and it can be easy and simple. To help out, here is a list of websites and blogs that have easy, healthy and simple recipes:

• I am a big fan of the Nutrition Blog Network - they have a list of many different blogs written by registered dietitians. Every blog concentrates on something else such as sports nutrition. Moreover, the majority of them have great and easy recipes to follow. Find one you like and follow. Here is just one example: I.Run.On.Nutrition - She has many recipes you can try. 
• Minimalist Baker - Is a new find for me and I love it. This couple basically created a website with many recipes that are easy and very simple to make with most of them taking less than 30 minutes. They also have a section of recipes with 7 ingredients or less. I actually bought the recipe book which is great.
• NR website - has really great simple recipes with minimum amounts of ingredients with stunning visuals to show you how each step is made. Most of the recipes are also quite low budget. Note; the website has a lot more to offer but I can not attest to the quality of the other areas in this website as I have not examined it yet.
• Cooking Light - This is also one of my favorites, mainly because you just need to decide what ingredients you have and tada, you get multiple ideas of what to do with those ingredients.
  
  The issue is that sometimes a recipe can be complicated and contain multiple ingredients that you can't even pronounce. Here is an actual article on healthy budget recipes. 
• Interestingly enough the United States Department if Agriculture (USDA) has a cool "Whats Cooking?" website with MANY recipes and you can choose based on what you need to get more of (e.g. more vegetables....), the course, type of cuisine, type of equipment and even if you need low budget (SNAP program). The recipes are very simple and easy to make. Some of these recipes were even created by children.
• My Sports Nutrition - A great resource to get sports nutrition information in general that also has a collection of cheap recipe eBooks (as cheap as $9.99) that you can choose
  
  based on the meal you desire (breakfast, lunch or dinner) as well as a full shake recipe book. All books and My Sports Nutrition are written and run by fellow registered dietitians that specialize in sports. 
• Poor Girl Eats Well - Is a blog written by a young woman that has medical issues that require her to eat healthy but is on a very tight budget and yet finds a way to eat and cook healthy. She shares her $25 week grocery cart as well as multiple easy recipes. She also puts a price tag on each one of the recipes, which is quite helpful if you are on a tight budget. 

These are just a few that you can use but i'm sure there are many more. Remember, all you have to do is just buy the ingredients and follow the recipe. Once you figure out some basic dishes you like, you can start playing with the ingredients and experimenting. Don't fear the kitchen! it's actually quite pleasant once you get the hang of it. Whats cool is you will benefit from it the most, not only in your wallet but also with your health and energy levels.  

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These Are a Few of My Favorite Greens

Most people eat at least one vegetable that's green. Whether it's spinach, broccoli, green beans, peas or all the above, rarely is there a person that does not eat any.From an early age we have our parents and grandparents tell us to eat our greens and even the media, like Popeye, teaches us to eat our spinach so we get stronger. However, these are greens we all grew up on. There are many more greens out there which you may not even be familiar with but should be a part of any healthy and varied diet. Some of my favorites that are currently available are: arugula, chard and bok choy.
                  

Arugula also called salad rocket, Is a very tasty leafy green (picture above) that has a refreshing peppery taste. It is very high with antioxidants and phytochemicals that help fight multiple cancers as well as vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin K, folate and B vitamins. Arugula is also rich with nitrates that are compounds that help dilate the blood vessels. This in turn helps lower blood pressure and possibly improve aerobic performance. Arugula is mainly used in salads, pasta, pizza, soup or to accompany cold dishes. Here are some great recipes to try out with this lovely, tasty green.
              
Chard also called Swiss chard, is also a leafy green very similar to kale. The leaf is dark green but the stalk can be in multiple colors mainly: yellow, white and red. The leaf has somewhat of a bitter taste unless cooked. Chard is also rich with antioxidants and phytonutrients that help fight inflammation as well as contains a high amount of vitamin C, vitamin A and vitamin K. It is also a good source of different minerals such as phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, calcium, iron, copper and potassium. Chard can be eaten raw, in soup, stir fry, tomato sauce or even quiche. Here are some healthy recipes to help incorporate more chard into your cooking.
              
Bok Choy also known as Chinese cabbage, is not a leafy green but a type of cabbage. It has a very subtle somewhat sweet flavor. Similar to the other 2 greens noted above, bok choy also has a good amount of antioxidants and phytochemicals that help fight certain cancers as well as lower the "bad cholesterol", LDL. Bok choy is rich with vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K and multiple B vitamins. It also has a moderate amount of some minerals such as: potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and manganese. Bok choy is not eaten raw but only cooked. It is common in Asian cuisine but can go into anything hot including: stir fry, soup, tomato sauce, chicken saute, etc. Here are 13 recipes to help you incorporate this delicious vegetable.

To combine all 3 together here is a cool stir fry recipe:
3 cups chopped chard
3 cups chopped bok choy
1 medium yellow onion chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp teriyaki
0.5 tsp red pepper flakes
1 -2 cup arugula

Turn stove on medium. Heat oil in pan. Add onions and stir until slightly translucent (4-5 minutes). Add garlic and stir for 2-3 minutes. Add chard and bok choy stir for about 5 minutes. Add teriyaki and red pepper flakes. Stir until stalks are soft (about 5-7 minutes). Move hot stir fry into serving bowl. Add arugula and stir. Serve hot or cold. Note; you can also add chicken breast or shrimp to make this a complete meal

Greens can be way more interesting than just your usual 4 or 5. Experiment a little and you'll be surprised at what you discover.
Enjoy!

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