SkinnyTwinkie » brown rice

Healthy Carbohydrates your Body Needs

Twinkie — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 12:00:37 +0000

When it comes to eating carbohydrates and trying to eat healthy, there seems to be a lot of confusion. I am not surprised that so many people feel that carbohydrates are bad, considering all of the “low carb” diets available today.

Are carbohydrates really bad for you? Is it healthy to avoid them completely? I will discuss the answers to those questions, along with talking about what purpose carbohydrates serve in our body, and what types of carbohydrates you should pick up the next time you head out to the grocery store.

Why you need Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are good for your body, but most people are eating the wrong type of carbohydrates (which I will go into detail below). Your body benefits from Carbohydrates when they are broken down into glucose, which fuels the body with needed energy. Anyone who exercises probably knows how important carbohydrates are in their diet.

Simple Carbohydrates

When you eat simple carbohydrates, such as processed flours and sugar, you will get a quick but short boost of energy. Our cells only need a certain amount of gluose at a time, so all of the extra “instant” glucose that is created by these simple carbohydrates turns into either stored glycogen (in the liver) or converted into fat.

An example of simple carbohydrates would be white bread, doughnuts, cakes, cookies, etc. They are packed with calories but depleted of nutrients. Basically, if you want to maintain or lose weight, stay away from the simple carbohydrates, because they become converted into fat soon after eating them.

Complex Carbohydrates

Complex carbohydrates are typically low in calories, high in fiber, and are full of nutrients that are very beneficial for your body. These types of carbohydrates are digested slowly, which allows for a gradual release of energy. Since your body isn’t overloaded with glucose at one instance, your body’s cells use what it needs and leaves a much smaller amount to be stored or converted into fat. Because of this slower digestion process, you end up being full for longer, which usually helps prevent people from overeating.

An example of complex carbohydrates would be vegetables, grains, and rice.

Healthy Carbohydrates

•Quinoa – This tasty seed (not actually a grain!) is very high in protein and also considered what’s called a “complete protein”, since it contains all of the amino acids, including lysine. Quinoa is also high in fiber, calcium, manganese, magnesium, and low in saturated fat and cholesterol. Quinoa is a gluten free grain, which means those with Celiac disease can enjoy the many health benefits of Quinoa.

•Farro – This grain, similar to the taste of barley, is rich in Magnesium and contains, protein, fiber, and Vitamins B and E. This is an ancient grain used for thousands of years in Egypt and Italy. Not only is Farro very healthy for you, but it has a delicious nut flavor to it and great in recipes. It’s a grain that is growing back in popularity, especially amongst chefs in Europe.

•Brown Rice – This rice is full of nutrients that are very beneficial for your body! Brown rice is full of Vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, iron, manganese, magnesium, iron, fiber, and protein. Brown rice oil, which is only present in brown rice (not white rice), has been proven to help lower cholesterol levels. Brown rice may help reduce cardiovascular disease as well as help prevent cancer.

•Freekeh – This grain is becoming increasingly popular, known as a “super grain” amongst celebrities such as Doctor Oz and Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver. It’s no wonder that Freekeh is getting a lot of attention lately, since it is full of vitamins and minerals such as calcium, potassium, B Vitamins, Vitamin E, and this grain is very high in fiber (four times the amount of brown rice), and also high in protein. In addition to that, Freekeh also acts as a prebiotic, which helps aide digestion.

•Amaranth – Known as a “Natural Weight Loss Food”, Amaranth is high in Calcium, fiber, iron, magnesium, and protein. Amaranth even contains Lysine, which is an amino acid that helps growth and tissue repair. Amaranth is another great source for those who are looking for something that is Gluten Free.

•Chia – This is one of the richest plant sources of Omega 3 fatty acids, which boosts the metabolism and promotes lean muscle mass. Chia seeds are very high fiber, protein, antioxidants, and helps support heart health and stabilizes blood sugar levels.

•Beans – Beans are full of fiber, helps improves digestion, stabilize sugar levels, and maintain energy levels.

•Vegetables – Vegetables are low in calories, very filling and very healthy for you. Just try to eat a variety of different vegetables so you can get a variety of different nutrients.

Carbohydrates to Avoid

• Bleached/Processed Flour – During the refining process, the nutrients are completely lost and destroyed. What does this mean? Half of the calcium and beneficial unsaturated fatty acids, 80% of the iron, 70% of the phosphorus, over 90% of the magnesium, up to 80% of the B Vitamins, and just about all of the Vitamin E is completely gone. So when I say that White flour is “empty calories” or “nutritionally depleted”, you now know what I am talking about. There is just no health benefit to eating bleached and/or processed flour, a.k.a “White Bread”.

• White Bread – Made with Bleached and Processed flour, it holds no nutritional value. I am surprised people are still buying this stuff.

• White Rice – When you take brown rice and process it by removing it’s bran, minerals, vitamins, and strip off the essential nutrients, it then becomes white rice. Why do we as a society strip a perfectly healthy brown rice and make it white? Because once it is white rice, it becomes easier and faster to cook, and it now has a longer shelf life (great for food storage -not necessarily our health). Most people who aren’t used to brown rice, think that white rice tastes better. Now that you know that white rice has nothing left in it after being processed, and how it is now a simple carbohydrate (read: helps you gain fat), I hope you will be more willing to try brown rice next time.

What’s your Daily Carb Fix?

In the past, we were told that our main diet should consist of carbohydrates. Now, every diet seems to tell you to completely eliminate carbohydrates from your diet. So which one is it? Well, we know that carbohydrates are essential for optimal health, as long as you are eating the healthy kinds of carbohydrates. There are a lot of factors that determine how many grams of carbohydrates you should be eating a day, such as weight, fat vs. lean muscle mass ratio, and the amount of exercise you are doing. Because there are so many factors involved, they best I can tell you to do is to start with 100-150 grams of carbohydrates per day. If you are feeling like you aren’t getting enough, slowly adjust the amount of carbohydrates you are eating and add some more to your diet. If you are feeling too full and sluggish all of the time (even with exercise), you should start to lower the amount of carbohydrates you are taking in each day. Be sure that you are only eating healthy forms of carbohydrates, since this will effect your energy levels and determine how many grams of carbohydrates you really need.

Now that you know which carbohydrates are good for you and which ones you should avoid, you can start by making adjustments to your grocery list. Try to remember that eating healthier doesn’t happen overnight. Start by incorporating these healthy grains- one step at a time!

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Kourtney Kardashian Loses 45 Pounds after Pregnancy

Twinkie — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 12:00:26 +0000

Kourtney Kardashian had her baby boy in December of 2009, where she gained a total of 45 pounds. She has spent all year losing the weight, and without any surgery! Kourtney shares her tips and tricks inside OK! Magazine.

Small Changes = Big Results

Kourtney focuses on eating small, healthy meals every 2 hours such as Salmon and Brown Rice. Eating every couple of hours is a great way to stay healthy without feeling hungry all of the time. It’s how I personally maintain, or even lose, my weight!

Kourtney does admit though, that she does have a daily splurge of a cookie or a mini doughnut. She now knows that it’s all about having one or two rather than eating the whole box!

Kourtney now weighs 95 pounds, which is not an unhealthy weight considering how short she is!

“It’s about being a healthy mom, not a certain weight.” -Kourtney Kardashian

I believe Kourtney was focused on the right things, such as being healthy and being a good mom, rather than obessessing about what’s on the scale. A great example for us all, don’t you think?

Workout Partner

Kourtney went to the gym with her sister, Khloe Kardashian, which helped her stay motivated and coming back to the gym every week. Kourtney was motivated to go to the gym knowing that her sister was waiting for her. I am happy for Kourtney who had such a great sister to workout with, which helped her reach her goals.

Strange how it’s easier to bail on ourselves rather than other people. If this is you, find yourself a dedicated workout partner and hit the gym together.

Quick-Trim

I am not too surprised about this, but just like her sister Kim Kardashian, Kourtney is promoting a specific product in her featured weight loss article in OK! Magazine. As you may have already guessed (or known), Kourtney Kardashian, along with her sisters Kim and Khloe, are the official spokespersons for Quick-Trim. It shows by how often Quick-Trim is mentioned in Kourtney’s interview, where she says little blurbs like, “Quick-Trim Fast Shakes are a fave”. Well, for how much money she is getting from Quick-Trim, I bet they are her “fave”!

The question remains, do you need to buy Quick-Trim to have the same weight loss success as Kourtney Kardashian? The answer is “no”. I find that the main reason Kourtney lost weight, by eating healthy and exercising, is all you need to experience the same weight loss success as she did.

What do you think is the biggest contributor to your weight loss success?

Image Credit: Kourtney Kardashian

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Gourmet Waffles

Twinkie — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 12:00:19 +0000

These waffles are extremely easy to make. Very healthy. Very delicious. You’d think that these waffles were made at a gourmet restaurant.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups Brown Rice Flour

1 tsp Baking Powder

1/4 tsp Sea Salt

2 eggs (separate yolks and whites)

1 3/4 cups Rice Milk

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1/2 cup Coconut Oil

Non Fat Whipped Cream

Ground Nutmeg

Maple Syrup

Instructions:

Step 1) Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.

Step 2) In another bowl, beat egg yolks and then stir in milk, vanilla, and oil.

Step 3) Combine both mixtures.

Step 4) In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until peaks form.

Step 5) Stir in egg white mixture partially with the rest of the waffle batter.

Step 6) Cook waffles.

Step 7) Place cooked waffle on plate. Drizzle some maple syrup on the waffle, then add a small amount of whipped cream on top of the waffle. Dash on some ground nutmeg over waffle.

Notes:

Looking for a gourmet tasting waffle? Look no further! I believe that a combination of the vanilla extract, fluffy egg whites, maple syrup, and nutmeg are all key factors in making this waffle “gourmet”.

Let me know what you think of these delicious waffles once you have had a chance to make them!

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Vegetarian Burrito

Twinkie — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:00:31 +0000

Ingredients:

6 soft Tortillas (warmed)

2 cups cooked Brown Rice

1 cup cooked Black Beans

2 cups shredded Lettuce

1 cup chopped Tomatoes

1/2 cup grated Almond Cheddar Style Cheese

Red or Green Sauce, if desired.

Instructions:

Step 1) Place warmed tortilla on a plate, and then add rice, black beans, lettuce, tomatoes and almond cheese on the tortilla.

Step 2) Wrap up tortilla to make a burrito.

Enjoy!

Note:

The variety of colors and flavors mix well together, and this is a delicious burrito all on it’s own! Of course, you can add the red or green sauce to it if needed, but it’s definitely not a “must”.

I always try to cook with as much fresh ingredients as possible, but I understand if that can’t always be the case. If you need to, use a 15 oz can of black beans in replace of the 1 cup of freshly cooked black beans. Also, there are plenty of delicious and soft Gluten-Free tortillas available if needed.

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Organic Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch by Nature’s Path

Twinkie — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 12:00:08 +0000

This cereal has wonderful ingredients to truly benefit from, such as rolled oats, wheat bran, pecans, flax, brown rice flour, sea salt, cinnamon…you name it! As many of my readers know, I am a huge fan of Organic products. I know and appreciate the nutritional value of Organic products, and this is a certified USDA Organic cereal.

What is this cereal missing? Well, it does NOT include things like Trans Fat (which are formed when liquid oils are made into solid fats…not so good), it has Zero Cholesterol, and if you are a Vegetarian…you are in luck! This cereal doesn’t have any ingredients that come from meat, such as fish, fowl, or eggs, which you can thank the wonderful founders for, since it agrees with their personal beliefs and lifestyle.

So this cereal has a lot of healthy “stuff” in it. So the next important question is, “Does this cereal even taste good?” Let’s put it this way. This is seriously one of my favorite cold cereals right now. It has all of Nature’s love packed into one cereal! You will actually look forward to eating breakfast again! This cereal tastes great, and is something you will truly enjoy!

Serving: ¾ cup

Calories: 220

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