White bread is the crack of the carbohydrate kingdom. I had this thought while enjoying a completely fiber-free roasted pork sandwich made with pillowy, white bread. Most of the time I stick to whole grains, and I had almost forgotten how seductive the sweet, soft kiss of white bread could be. As I chewed, the pork mostly since the bread melted instantly in my mouth, I tried to think of metaphors to describe the experience. The bread was like cotton candy, or your favorite 1,000 times washed t-shirt, or like a baby bunny or the under skin of an old lady’s arm. I stopped there. Suddenly the name Wonder Bread made sense. If you had been eating rough, grainy, sandpaper bread your whole life, white bread would seem like a culinary wonder; such a shame that it’s also a nutritional quagmire.

Like most Americans I struggle to get enough fiber in my diet.  I probably think about fiber more then I actually eat it, and I’m troubled whenever I read the statistics. If they are even close to true the Great American bowel is not going anywhere and very slowly.

In a wheat kernel, fiber is the indigestible parts of plant based foods. It acts like dumbbells in your GI track, stimulating the muscles to stay smooth and strong as they move the weights along. White bread is more like pillows in your intestine, fun to play with, but not much of a workout. This probably explains why fiber lovers generally have lower rates of colon cancer. Besides personally training your GI track, wonder fiber also helps lower blood cholesterol, risk of heart disease, diabetes and other digestive track ailments, assists with constipation and probably a lot of other good things they haven’t even figured out yet.

There is lots of fiber in whole grains, but it is taken out, along with almost all the other nutrients during the modern refining process. When people first switched over to modern white bread they started getting rickets and other weird diseases, so in 1942 Congress Passed the US Enrichment Act. This law forced bread makers to put back some of the nutrients they strip mined out during the milling process, specifically iron, thiamin, riboflavin and niacin. The law did not address fiber and the nation has been getting a lot of reading done ever since. Perhaps there will be a million constipated man march on Washington some time soon and Obama will make whole grains the law of the land.

Until then to keep your GI track sleek and buff eat lots of whole grains, fruits and vegetables, beans and brown rice. If it’s been nothing but pillow fights in your pipeline for a while start slowly and drink lots of extra water. You may not be able to show off your hot healthy colon at the beach like the rest of your muscles, but there are lots of other benefits I know you will enjoy.

My cat Smurf will eat just about anything, from the processed concoction that is dry, diet cat food, to the mysterious blend that is wet, and any kind of meat or dairy product in between. This morning I was woken to a slamming in the kitchen and the soft patter of her paws down the wood floor of the hallway. I rose to find her hunkered down over a piece of crust from last night’s frozen pizza. Just about the only things Smurf won’t eat are fruits and vegetables; which makes her palate very similar to the average American’s.

Except for beets!

I discovered this aberration when I spilled a bowl of cooked, cubed beets onto the kitchen floor. Smurf went to town on those beety beets, risking decapitation from the refrigerator door without a second thought. I was surprised and intrigued as I had never seen her eat anything that didn’t have, or come from, something with a face. Was it the blood red color, reminiscent of raw meat that brought her on or the nutty, perhaps vaguely meaty taste of the root itself? Due to the language barrier, we may never know.

What we do know is that even though beets are not as famous as some other rooty vegetables, such as carrots and potatoes, their unique coloration makes them a nutritional treasure trove. Beet roots are rich in a plethora of nutrients including folic acid, potassium, calcium, Vitamin C and Vitamin A. Their telltale redness is an active ingredient that is thought by many nutritionists and natural health practitioners to thwart tumor growth, heal the liver and detoxify blood.

If your first experience with beets involved the pickled or candied varieties then you may be suffering from Post Traumatic Abused Vegetable Syndrome or PTAVS. Chances are you are hesitant to try them again and I understand your pain. I too thought of beets as foul red pickles, used for garnish and torturing children. I truly hope that you will give them another chance and discover their tastiness for yourself.

The versatile fresh beet root can be eaten raw, boiled, steamed, roasted (my favorite), or sautéed. They are great on salads and can be used as a meat substitute on sandwiches or burgers. Their peak season is June through October, but because they store well they can be found year round. If you decide to boil you beets, cook them with the skins on to minimize their magical nutrients leaching out into the water.

I beet-seech you to expand your vegetable horizons and give beets a try! If you hate them, you can always feed them to your cat.

The problem with breakfast is that its preparation often gets lumped in with personal preparation, and while it is acceptable to show up to work sans nutrition, coming in without pants does not fly. Therefore when it comes to preparing everything that needs to get prepared in the morning, breakfast often gets the short end of the spoon. Another problem is that most easy morning meals are high in sugar, while lacking protein and fiber. Easy to grab culprits such as muffins, bagels and many cereals fall into this category. With most carbolishious options you will spend lots of time masticating and getting crumbs on your nicely pressed shirt and then still be hungry again by 9:30.

One good way to avoid breakfast skippery is by doing most of the prep work the week before. There is nothing more satisfying then preparing to retire on a Sunday night and stopping by the refrigerator to check on your ready to go breakfast bundles. Having your AM nutrition plans taken care of in advance is one less thing to worry about as the week spirals and jumps and generally makes a mockery of your plans. If only we could pre-brush our teeth!

Another good way to make sure you eat breakfast is to make sure it is delicious. The thought of the treat that awaits you should help get you out of your snug bed in the morning and on your way to world domination.  One thing that always gets me out of bed is a croissant. I love croissants as much as my grandmother wishes I loved Jesus. In my option they are soft, buttery, little crab-shaped slices of heaven. Problem is they have always been made with very refined white floor which isn’t good for blood sugar levels or intestinal happiness. Humankind has recently taken a very large leap forward with the mass production and distribution of whole wheat croissants. I’m quite certain curing cancer will be next, as we are clearly on a roll.

Heather’s Wonderful Breakfast Bundles

What you need:

Aluminum foil

Tupperware container or Ziplock bag

A bag of whole wheat croissants (they have these at Whole Foods and other health oriented grocery stores)

Pre-sliced cheese (low-fat if you are watching your calorie intake)

Thin sliced low-fat turkey, ham or protein of your choice

A couple of tomatoes

What you do:

Slice the croissants in half length-wise. Layer the bottom half with cheese and meat to your specifications. Put the top back on the croissants and wrap them securely in squares of aluminum foil.  Finally slice the tomatoes and put them in the container or bag. Put everything in the fridge and go brush your teeth. You are ready for the week.

Upon waking pre-heat your oven to 375. Fifteen to twenty minutes before you are ready to eat or take your breakie to-go, toss a foil wrapped package inside.  Cooking times will vary depending on thickness of meat and cheese as well as crispiness preferences. When it’s done to your liking unwrap it and add the tomatoes as well as any condiments you might desire. Wrap it back up to travel or if you can’t wait eat that toasty, cheesy, serving of deliciousness right then and there. Who could blame you?

It’s summertime and the livin’ is easy. Or is it? Seems like unless you are twelve years old, trying to get that easy summer feeling leads to additional stress and schedule clutter. You still have all your usual obligations; household, family, work, nutrition, etc. and now you are supposed to be having a bunch of active fun in the sun? Who has the time?

Meal preparation is one great place to shave time off your usual life maintenance regime. The following breakfast idea takes only a couple of minutes to prepare, capitalizes on the summer bounty of fresh anti-oxidizing fruit and is really, really delicious. To get that summer feeling I suggest putting it all together while wearing roller blades and a bikini. This is not a low calorie meal, but you have a long and active day ahead of you and you are going to need your energy.

What you need:

A freshly made apple pie (preferably with no sugar added). You can score one of these in the bakery department of any descent market for $12 to $15. For a lower-carb version you can use sugar-free chunky apple sauce.

A big carton of cancer fighting wonder balls (aka blueberries).

Non or low fat milk (dairy, soy or protein source of your choice)

(Makes 4-8 servings)

Cut a wedge of pie. Throw it in a bowl and heat in the microwave for 90 seconds. You can use the oven if you don’t like microwaves. Next dump a pile of blueberries on your pie. You are shooting for a two-blue berries to one bite ratio.  Boost your protein intake with a nice, cold glass of milk. Make your blue berry wrangling easier by eating with a spoon.

Enjoy your bountiful breakfast!

If Martha Stewart and Lance Armstrong had a love child her lunch box would be packed with organic fruit, nutritious homemade energy bars and little notes with sayings like “We love you best when you succeed.” For the rest of us there are “You Bars”; nutrition bars created just for you by super-fit parental types (who would definitely love you unconditionally if they met you). These healthy snacks are a great idea for anyone who is trying to eat right and get it all done.

Most people are looking for Strong man nutrition on a 98-pound weakling budget. I was pleased to discover that these custom nutrition bars are quite reasonable and cost only a little more than their disgusting mass produced counterparts; those sad excuses for food that we have all eaten in starved desperation, made and wrapped by automatons that don’t care if you ever have another bowel movement. 

To start your personal nutrition revolution log on to Youbar.com and select “Build-a-bar”. There you will find a virtual cornucopia of wholesome ingredients, from organic acai powder to Ghirardelli Semisweet Chocolate Chips, all vying to be part of your creation. If this seems overwhelming don’t fret, there are suggestions to guide you along the way. The good folks at “You Bar” are so confident that you will love your bars, they will send you a different box for free if you aren’t happy.

Don’t forget to give your bar a name. I suggest “Go to the gym slacker!”, “Muscle To Be” or “Kick Some Ass!”

To wrap it up, there is no good reason to ever gag down another gross, hyper- processed nutrition bar. Take control of your nutritional destiny! It’s all about You!

www.youbars.com/  

Have you ever noticed that eating healthfully can be down right onerous? Unhealthy food choices such as frozen pizza and beer are delicious, easily prepared and have nuclear winter shelf lives. On the other hand, more wholesome options, such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains can go rotten, require chopping and seasoning to make them edible and often call for grueling amounts of mastication. In my option fiber is nothing but a slave driver!

Lately I have been getting around this problem with a delicious and nutritious breakfast smoothie. I simply toss a few ingredients into the blender, hit mix, then froth, then annihilate, then pulverize and wa-la…breakfast is served. Now I have no idea how I used to make time to actually gnaw on a muffin. I see my roommate eating cereal and I role my eyes. What a silly ludite! When will she learn to outsource her chewing like me?

Heather’s Yummy Breakfast Soup*Frozen Fruit (The more you throw in the less you have to chew later in the day. I get mine at Trader Joe’s)

*Protein Powder (amount depends on your needs, boys and muscle growers need more)

*Milk (I use low-fat cow, but non-fat, soy or almond work as well)

*Banana (an excellent thickening agent and will also keep you from cramping up if you have to chew later in the day)

*Dash of wheat germ (lazy person’s fiber)

*Peanut Butter (Extra protein and excellent flavor)

*Bacon (I haven’t tried this yet, but if you do please let me know how it turns out)

Add ingredients and whirl till desired consistency is achieved.**Don’t forget to at least rinse the blender and your glass right away or you will waste all the time you saved not chewing, scrubbing out the cement like smoothie residue.Happy gulping!