Here are some things I found out today about sugar. Sure it puts the extra plush on the mid-section and the fluff under the arms, also known as the bat-wings. You know what I am talking about, when you wave goodbye or hello and your arms waves back.
But there are some other things you probably didn't know that you should. For instance did you know that having too much sugar in your diet causes depression? Or did you know that is also affects your libido? Sugar can also prohibit weight loss and cause insomnia, amongst also making you lose focus and make you feel sluggish. Sheesh! Maybe those cupcakes aren't worth it... I'd rather have my libido.
We all have the need to get a sweet fix. It's part of our biological makeup. When consumed, sweets elicit a chemical cascade of events that lead to the triggering of feel-good receptors within the brain. If this happens repeatedly, an emotional bond between happiness and sugar is formed. We become fully dependent on sweets. Sugar addiction is best illustrated by children who break down with temper tantrums if not given sugar, women who consume chocolate in times of stress, and men who suck down soda to make it through the "afternoon blues." In a study comparing the addictive properties of sweeteners, saccharin and sucrose proved more addictive than cocaine!If left unchecked, an addiction to sweets spikes blood sugar and the fat-storing hormone insulin, disrupts satiety (causing users to overeat), and gives rise to age-accelerating molecules known as AGE products (advanced glycation end products). These aging molecules (not cholesterol) are responsible for causing wrinkles and age-related blindness, as well as premature heart attacks and stroke.
But that doesn't mean you should replace sucrose with artificial sweeteners to get your sweet fix. Artificial sweeteners are nothing more than drugs in disguise. Splenda is a perfect example.
Splenda contains the drug sucralose. Invented in a pesticide lab, this chemical is 600 times sweeter than sugar. To make sucralose, chlorine is used. Chlorine has a split personality. It can be harmless or it can be life threatening. In combo with sodium, chlorine forms a harmless ionic bond to yield table salt. When used with carbon, the chlorine atom in sucralose forms a covalent bond. The end result is deadly organochlorine, known simply as RNFOC (a Really Nasty Form of Chlorine). Unlike ionic bonds, covalently bound chlorines are a big no-no for the human body. They yield insecticides, pesticides, and herbicides - not something you want in your sports drink or your child's lunchbox.
Think aspartame (Equal, Nutrasweet) is safe? Think again. Teaching organic chemistry, I taught my students how to identify the active ingredients in soda using a technique known as TLC (Thin Layer Chromatography). The byproducts of sodas containing aspartame are all known poisons (that would slowly kill you): methanol, phenylalanine, and aspartic acid. I never saw my students with a diet soda after that.
Safe alternatives to artificial sweeteners are abundant: erythritol, agave, xylitol and luo han guo.
Choosing which natural sweetener to use depends on which one tastes best to you. Agave nectar usually wins. It stimulates taste buds exactly the same way sucrose does. But unlike common table sugar, very little of its active ingredient - inulin - is absorbed. Therefore, you are protected from the dangers of sugar addiction.
As a "nectar," agave is a bit harder to bake with. This is where the safe and natural erythritol wins. You can replace it gram for gram with sugar. Even better, I like to use 25% table sugar and 75% erythritol in baking and ice cream. You won’t even notice the healthy difference. That’s the real magic here!
Try This Recipie!
Agave Ice Cream
1 Cup Milk
1/2 Cup Volcanic Agave Nectar
1 Tablespoon Mexican Vanilla
Pinch of salt
2 Eggs
2 Cups Unsweetened Almond Milk (can also use cream or 1/2 and 1/2) Place milk, Agave Nectar, Mexican Vanilla and salt in a medium saucepan. Heat at a low temperature for 7-10 minutes. Mix in the eggs and stir lightly until slightly thick. When cool, stir in the Almond Milk. Add this mixture to your ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's directions to make deliciously healthy ice cream with Agave! Add in fruit or chocolate for different varities!
I'm sure you're asking "where can I buy Agave Nectar?" And I did the research for you. Here is a list of national retailers that supply it...
The brand name is Madhava. Enjoy!
EXERCISE AT WORK!
So since today's economy and average family lifestyle isn't what it once was, once upon a time... finding time to exercise is practically non-existent. On average the American General Surgeon suggests thirty minutes of cardio a day... I found a few things that the average working person can do during work.
While you shouldn't give up on your home or gym exercise routine, you can certainly supplement it with exercises done at your desk (and, on those extra-long workdays, it's much better than doing nothing.) Here are a few aerobic tricks to try during your next break between tasks:
- Glance at the wall clock and rip off a minute's worth of jumping jacks. If you're a beginner, try the low-impact version (raise your right arm and tap your left toe to the side while keeping your right foot on the floor; alternate sides)
- Do a football-like drill of running in place for 60 seconds. Get those knees up! (Beginners, march in place.)
- Simulate jumping rope for a minute: Hop on alternate feet, or on both feet at once. An easier version is to simulate the arm motion of turning a rope, while alternately tapping the toes of each leg in front.
- While seated, pump both arms over your head for 30 seconds, then rapidly tap your feet on the floor, football-drill style, for 30 seconds. Repeat 3-5 times.
- If you can step into a vacant office or conference room, shadow box for a minute or two. Or just walk around the room as fast as you can.
- Or do walk-lunges in your office or a vacant room. (You could also amuse your co-workers by doing these in the hall; remember Monty Python's "Ministry of Silly Walks" comedy routine?). Set your PDA to beep you into action.
- No conference room? Take to the stairs -- two at a time if you need a harder workout! Do this 5-7 times a day.
Want Something Less Breathless?
Afraid the phone will ring and you'll sound like a lion is chasing you? Price's book has more than 300 less dramatic -- but equally beneficial -- exercises. "I call these fitness minutes," she says.
Some strength-building suggestions:
- Do one-legged squats (hold onto a wall or table for support) while waiting for a web page to load, the copier to spit our your reports, or faxes to slither out.
- Stand with one leg straight and try to kick your buttocks with the other.
- Sitting in your chair, lift one leg off the seat, extend it out straight, hold for 2 seconds; then lower your foot (stop short of the floor) and hold for several seconds. Switch; do each leg 15 times.
- To work your chest and shoulders, place both hands on your chair arms and slowly lift your bottom off the chair. Lower yourself back down but stop short of the seat, hold for a few seconds. Do 15 times.
- To stretch your back and strengthen your biceps, place your hands on the desk and hang on. Slowly push your chair back until your head is between your arms and you're looking at the floor. Then slowly pull yourself back in. Again, 15 of these.
- Desk pushups can be a good strengthener. (First, make sure your desk is solid enough to support your weight.) Standing, put your hands on the desk. Walk backward, then do push-ups against the desk. Repeat 15 times.
Reach for the Sky
Stretching exercises are a natural for the desk-bound, to ease stress and keep your muscles from clenching up. Here are a few suggestions:
- Sitting tall in your chair, stretch both arms over your head and reach for the sky. After 10 seconds, extend the right hand higher, then the left.
- Let your head loll over so that your right ear nearly touches your right shoulder. Using your hand, press your head a little lower (gently, now). Hold for 10 seconds. Relax, and then repeat on the other side.
- Try this yoga posture to relieve tension: Sit facing forward, then turn your head to the left and your torso to the right, and hold a few seconds. Repeat 15 times, alternating sides.
- Sitting up straight, try to touch your shoulder blades together. Hold, and then relax.
You get to put your feet up for this one! To ease the hamstrings and lower back, push your chair away from your desk and put your right heel up on the desk. Sit up straight, and bend forward just until you feel a gentle stretch in the back of your leg. Flex your foot for a few seconds, and then point it. Bend forward a little farther, flex your foot again, and hold for 10 seconds. Repeat on the other side.
Unobtrusive but Effective
Butt clenches are also helpful in today's booty-conscious society. Tighten your buttocks, hold, hold, hold, and then relax. Repeat 15 times. The same goes for ab squeezes -- just tighten your tummy muscles instead.
Use Every Minute Actively
Whenever possible, "stand rather than sit," Price says. "Walk rather than stand."
- Walk during your lunch break. If you find that boring, buy a camera and walk around taking pictures. Some experts say it's ideal to walk 10,000 steps a day -- this can be five miles, depending on the length of your stride. "Buy a pedometer, wear it five days, and divide by five," Price suggests. "If you're nowhere near 10,000 -- and this takes some doing -- set a reasonable goal. If you clocked 2,000 steps, go for 2,500."
- Join a gym near your office and go during your lunch hour. If your employer provides a gym, that's even better.
- Forget emailing the guy three cubes over -- walk.
- Remember, walks to the vending machine don't count!
