Kick the Water Bottle Habit

It’s a common misconception that drinking bottled water is safer and healthier than water from your kitchen sink.  And, of course, since plastic bottles get recycled, we aren’t doing any harm to the environment, right?  Actually neither could be farther from the truth.  Here are 8 solid reasons to kick your water bottle habit. 

1. At least 40 percent of the bottled water in the United States is just filtered tap water anyway.  Check the label.  If it says “from a municipal water source” or “community water system” its source was the same as tap water.  If you want a little extra filtering, just purchase a counter filter like Brita or Pur, and filter your own tap water.
2. Bottled water costs the consumer anywhere from $.89 to over $8.00 per gallon.  Tap water, on the other hand, costs only $.002 per gallon.  If you want to save money, ditch the bottled water.
3. According to the Container Recycling Institute, 30 million plastic water bottles are thrown into landfills and waterways every day.  In fact, only about 12% of plastic bottles are actually recycled.
4. Plastic water bottles often leach dangerous chemicals into the water (such as DEHP, a probable human carcinogen), especially when left in the heat/sun or reused.   
5. The production of the polyethylene used to manufacture plastic bottles takes about 17.6 million barrels of oil each year.  That oil could fuel more than one million US vehicles annually.  Globally, 2.7 million TONS of plastic is used to bottle.  Want to reduce our dependence on foreign oil?  Stop purchasing water packaged in plastic bottles.
6. It can take as much as seven times the amount of water IN the bottle to actually manufacture the bottle itself.  In a world where fresh drinkable water is often in short supply, this is inexcusable.
7. Right now there are about 37,000 tractor trailer trucks cruising the highways across this country delivering water.   Take a minute to think about the amount of gasoline used to fuel those trucks and the greenhouse gases being chugged out into the atmosphere.
8. The Food and Drug Administration sets standards for bottled water.  The Environmental Protection Agency sets the standards for tap water, and their standards are much more stringent.

Have you kicked the water bottle habit?  If you like the convenience that disposable plastic water bottles provide, try a reusable water bottle (just make sure to get one that is BPA free).

Skinny

“I want to be skinny like you.”

I may be lean, fit, trim, healthy, maybe even thin, but I am NOT skinny.  In my brain, skinny is a negative word.  It’s a word used to describe skin-and-bones models, the kind who suffer from eating disorders.  Fashion magazines are laden with images of their protruding collar bones and knobby elbows.

In my brain, skinny is a word associated with illness.  My grandfather dying from cancer was skinny, his body devouring lean muscle tissue.  Skinny means malnourished.  Skinny is what you become after several rounds of chemotherapy, when your body can’t keep food down.

In my brain, skinny is the images of starving children in third world countries or from German concentration camps.  It’s not having the nutrition needed for growing healthy bodies, for proper brain function, for energy to swat the flies away from your face.

I am healthy.  I feed my body with quality nutrition-packed foods.  I limit foods that are full of empty calories (calories with little to no nutritional value) like refined sugar and high fructose corn syrup, but I don’t starve my body of the calories and nutrients it needs to function properly.  I exercise to increase my energy and strengthen my muscles, not to lose more weight.  

I don’t understand why so many women long to be skinny.  Skinny isn’t healthy.  It isn’t chic.  It isn’t stylish.  It isn't attractive.  It’s destructive.  If you want to be skinny, are you willing to abuse your body to get there, starving yourself of what your body needs to function properly and making yourself susceptible to disease?  I hope not.

Instead of wanting to be skinny, desire to have a healthier body.  Desire energy and vitality.  Strive for fitness.  Strive for a body you are comfortable riding around in, not one that’s afraid to even nibble a cookie.

Don't Deprive

The parking lot at the gym was jam packed this morning.  The cardio machines monopolized by a bunch of brand new faces.  The New Year's Resolution Makers are out in droves, bright-faced with the desire to lose weight and shed old habits.  It makes the gym seem like a three ring circus, bustling with activity. 

Unfortunately (or fortuantely, depending on your outlook), it won't last for long.  Most of those optimistic newborn, gym-goers just aren't in it for the long haul.  In fact, the average amount of time a New Year's resolution lasts is only 10 short days. (I heard that figure on the radio, so you KNOW it's true. :-/ ) 

That's because it's hard.  And often people make resolutions because that's what you're supposed to do this time of year, not because they are truly motivated to make lasting life changes.  Plus they go about the whole weightloss thing without solid guidance.  They starve themselves and feel like crap and then decide they were happier before the whole weightloss journey began.

Want to stick with it?  Try adding the adoption of good habits into your resolution list.  Instead of depriving yourself by resolving to "Eat less" or "Give up soda and cookies" try putting a positive spin to it.  Resolve to "drink at least 8 glasses of water each day" or "eat at least 5 servings of vegetables".  It just might provide the psychology you need to stick with the resolution beyond the craziness that is the gym in January. 

And as your new resolutions become good habits, add some more.  Drastic life changes are very hard to stick with long term.  Don't set yourself up for failure.  By adding good habits into your life, you'll be replacing bad ones.  Before you know it, you're on your way to a healthier you.

Top 10 Foods to Buy Organic

Organic foods are one of the fastest growing categories of food products available to consumers. You can buy everything from apples to zucchini and plenty of products in between. Some people may buy organic foods because of the environmental friendliness of their production, but more do so to reduce the amount of pesticides and other chemicals they consume. Numerous studies show that the presence of toxic chemicals in the foods we eat is more prevalent than we once thought, but we can reduce our exposure to them by eating organic foods.

Some shoppers may find it difficult to afford buying food grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticide. According to Consumer Reports, you may consumers may find themselves paying anywhere from 50 percent to 100 percent more for organic foods at their local grocery store. The average consumer probably cannot afford to switch everything on their grocery list to organic products. So in deciding between the organic milk and the organic asparagus, which one should take priority? Here’s a list of the top 10 organic foods at your local grocery store.

1. Meat

You may not think of pesticides when considering which cut of beef to cook at your next outdoor barbecue, but maybe you should. You may want to also consider that conventionally raised meat is also likely to contain hormones to speed up growth, antibiotics to resist disease, and pesticides to grow the grain fed to the animals. And according to The Environmental Protection Agency, those same hormones, antibiotics, and pesticides pose significant risks to both humans and wildlife when they enter the environment. Any meat labeled as organic, according to the USDA, must come from animals fed organic feed and raised without hormones or antibiotics.

2. Milk

Like the standards for organic meat production, certified organic dairies must raise their cows without antibiotics or growth hormones, and feed them an organic diet. While pesticides and other chemicals have been found in dairy products, contaminants have usually been in low concentration levels. The big concern with milk and other dairy products, is the amount consumed by most children. Even low concentration levels can add up over time, especially when children are at such an important age of growth and brain development.

3. Peaches

These sweet fruits top the Environmental Working Group’s list of pesticide prone fruits. Because of their soft skin, peaches are more likely to have pesticide residue under the skin, making washing unsuccessful for removing all of the chemical residue.

4. Strawberries

Also making the EWG’s “Dirty Dozen”, a crop of strawberries may receive up to 500 pounds of pesticide per acre. Strawberries purchased out-of-season are probably imported from other countries with even less stringent pesticide regulation than the United States.

5. Apples (and apple juice)

One a day may keep the doctor away, but make sure it’s organic. Conventionally grown apples ranked second on the EWG’s list for organophosphate pesticide residue. Since scrubbing doesn’t remove all residue and neither does peeling, which also takes away large amounts of beneficial nutrients, organic is a much wiser choice.

6. Celery

Celery has no protective skin at all, making it impossible to wash away all of the many pesticides sprayed on conventional celery.

7. Grapes

Thin skin makes it possible for pesticides to permeate the grape. Grapes are also sprayed with several different pesticides during different periods of growth. Imported grapes may have higher amounts of toxic chemicals than domestically grown grapes.

8. Sweet Bell Peppers

Once again, it’s their thin skins that make it impossible to wash away all pesticide residue from sweet bell peppers.

9. Lettuces (all varieties)

Leafy greens of all types are often sprayed with some of the most potent pesticides allowed on food crops.

10. Coffee

Most of our coffee is imported from countries that may not even regulate the use of pesticides on food crops. Look for coffee labeled as Fair Trade Certified Organic. Not only will you rest easy knowing that your coffee was grown without the use of toxic chemicals, but that fair prices were paid for the trade of the coffee and that farm laborers were treated fairly. Call it coffee that’s easy on the conscience.

Diet and Nutrition Myths

Everyone from your best girlfriend to your Great Aunt Muriel has advice about losing weight. Sometimes it’s hard to know which information is sound and which is just plain fiction. Never fear! Wo40 is here to help.

Here are some common diet myths along with a good dose of reality.

Myth: Low-fat diets make you lose weight.

Reality: Just because a food is labeled “low fat” or “fat free” doesn’t mean it’s low calorie or calorie free. Often low-fat products have added ingredients such as flour or sugar to help improve taste and texture. These added ingredients are low in nutritional value and often higher in calories.

Myth: Restricting calories is the best way to lose weight.

Reality: Both cutting back on calories and exercising more will help you lose weight and maintain the lean muscle mass needed to boost metabolism. Starvation diets just don’t work. A drastic reduction in calories will leave your body without the fuel it needs to maintain normal functioning and may therefore slow metabolism. A starving body enters “crisis mode” and will slow down in order to conserve what little energy a severely restricted calorie diet provides. Don’t starve yourself. Chances are you won’t be able to stick with a drastic change in diet long term.

Myth: As long as I’m eating healthy foods, I can eat whatever I want.

Reality: A calorie is still a calorie. Oatmeal may be a healthier breakfast than your usual doughnut, but that doesn’t mean you can eat 5 cups of it. You still need to be mindful of your portion sizes, even if you are eating whole grains and lean meat.

Myth: Eating late at night will make me gain weight.

Reality: There is no magic hour to turn off eating. This myth probably formed because of the high-calorie junk foods usually consumed after dinner. Deserts and snack foods can be really calorie-dense. Spreading your calories evenly through the day helps prevent late-night binge eating. A healthy snack before bed isn’t going to go straight to your thighs.

Myth: If I’m exercising daily, I can eat whatever I want.

Reality: Even if you are exercising regularly, you should still keep track of what and how much you are eating. It’s easy to reward yourself with cupcakes and fried chicken when you’ve been consistent with your workouts, but it’s probably not the smartest way to treat yourself. It’s common for people to over-estimate the amount of physical activity they engage in, and under-estimate the amount of calories they consume. For example, the average cupcake has about 250 calories. A fried chicken breast has about 360 calories. Since I burn just over 200 calories on my normal 2 mile jaunt, it’s not justifying the cupcake or the chicken. The bottom line is exercise and sensible nutrition go hand in hand for weight loss and general fitness.

Myth: Eating a high-protein diet will make me gain muscle.

Reality: Only strength training and exercise lead to muscle changes. Eating protein may help in the repair of torn muscle fibers that occur after strength training, but protein itself does not grow muscle. High protein diets can actually be detrimental to your health since they increase the risk of kidney stones and osteoporosis.

Check out the article Eating For Fat Reduction to help with developing a good sound nutrition plan.