Here’s a great recipe if you’re looking for a delicious fried zucchini recipe with way fewer calories and way less guilt!

Nutritional Information
Serving Size: 1/3 of recipe
Calories: 78
Fat: less than 1 gram
Sodium: 578 milligrams
Carbs: 20 grams
Fiber: 9 grams
Sugars: 4 grams
Protein: 5 grams

Ingredients
2 large zucchini with ends removed
3/4 cup of Fiber One bran cereal (original style) ground to breadcrumb consistency
1/4 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute
1/4 tablespoon powered ranch dressing mix
1/4 teaspoon plus a dash of garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon plus a dash of onion powder
1/4 teaspoon plus a dash of oregano
2 dashes of pepper
2 dashes of salt

Directions
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Cut zucchini into 1/2 inch wide circles
• Blot away excess moisture with a paper towel
• Put egg substitute in a medium-sized dish and season with a dash of garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, salt and pepper
• In separate medium-sized container, combine cereal breadcrumbs with 1/4 teaspoon each of garlic powder, onion powder and oregano then add ranch mix and a dash of salt and pepper
• Mix well
• Spray baking pan with non-stick spray
• Toss zucchini circles in egg substitute mixture until evenly covered
• Coat individual zucchini circles in breadcrumb mixture
• Lay zucchini circles flat on baking pan
• Place in oven and bake for 10 minutes
• Flip zucchini circles over and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until outsides are crispy and zucchini is cooked through

Makes 3 servings

When it comes to healthy eating it is very easy find lot of nutritional supplements that promise to make you lose weight and burn fat with little to no effort. Diet programs and nutritional supplements online and on the shelves of supermarkets shout at you screaming “Buy me!”. The hard part is making sure that these various diet pills and fat burners will help you to eat fewer calories and lose weight.

An easier and more healthy option is to make sure your eating habits are healthy.

Almost everyone would like to eat in the healthiest way possible, but we all need a little help because it is impossible in today’s busy world for everyone to become a nutritional specialist. Most people can make small, easy adjustments to their eating habits and choices that can make a big difference in their health and the way they feel.

Following are 10 “Secrets” that can help you to start eating healthier today!

Secret #1

Mix it up! Be adventurous with foods that you know to be healthy and try some new foods or food combinations. For one thing, when you are trying something new, it is not likely that you will consume a massive serving when you are not sure how you are going to like something. You may also find some foods that you really like that you can eat on a regular basis. For example, if you discover you really kind of like fresh spinach, maybe you can start eating fresh spinach as a side dish with your meal instead of something less healthy.

Secret #2

Make your best effort to avoid processed and fatty foods, like most fast foods, when possible. If you have to have fast food, try the most healthy option available. You’ll feel better afterwards that you made an effort to eat healthy. This is especially important if you have a desk job and have to go out for your lunch frequently.

Secret #3

Research and learn new cooking techniques. If you usually deep fry, pop packaged foods into the microwave or just open a can of veggies when you are cooking, try to find better ways of cooking that will preserve the good qualities of your foods. Try steaming fresh vegetables or broiling or grilling meats to drain away fat.

Secret #4

Try to avoid overusing salt. The best way to do this is to get out of the habit of salting your food before tasting it. Most meals are already plenty salty. You do need some salt in your diet, but in most cases, there is already enough salt in your food after cooking.

Secret #5

Try going easy on the condiments too and try using fresh herbs in your recipes.

Secret #6

Sugar is another major problem in many people’s diet. Attempt to cut back on the goodies you consume. When possible, try using a natural sweetener like honey in your drinks and when cooking. Most soft drinks contain massive amounts of sugar. Go for the diet versions. Check the label on soft drinks to see how much sugar they contain and don’t forget, you are usually consuming more than one serving in a can or bottle.

Secret #7

Don’t forget to drink your milk, eat fresh vegetables and healthy grains like whole wheat bread! You know, the basics!

Secret #8

Try not to eat in a hurry. Take your time and chew your food and enjoy your meals. You will eat less. Pay close attention to what your body is telling you. If you’re full, stop eating. If you’re eating something you love but you’re full, save some of it for later. Also, make sure you are really hungry before eating and you aren’t just eating because it’s “time to eat”. Lastly, make sure you are not eating because you are stressed out.

Secret #9

Check the labels on the foods you buy and pay attention to the servings so you are not tricked into getting something that is not as healthy as you thought. These days, there is usually a more healthy alternative if you look.

Secret #10

As always, exercise! Wait, how is exercise an eating tip? It’s not exactly, but exercise will go a long way in making up for any shortcomings in your diet. You’ll feel a lot better too!

The secrets above are only a few of the things you can do to eat more healthy and have a more balanced life. If you give them a try and you fail, don’t worry about it. Just keep trying. Old habits die hard and it does take some time to form new ones. Remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day and keep in mind that gradual changes that you really care about are more likely to stick than drastic changes that you can’t sustain over time. Best of luck to you!

Put the foods you eat to work for you to increase your fat burning powers!

Lose Weight While You Eat: Five Foods That Speed Up Your Metabolism & Help You Lose Weight!

by Craig Watkins

Here’s the basic concept of dieting: burn more calories than you take in. It’s that simple. But, if dieting is so simple why do most diets fail?

Briefly, most diets fail because as soon as you change the amount of food you are consuming with your diet, your body goes into self-defense mode and your metabolism begins to slow down to preserve it’s stores of energy. You will normally lose some weight at the beginning of a diet, but as you start to see some success you may be tempted to start to return to your old diet. This is where the “yo-yo” effect starts. Your metabolism is slower now because of the diet you have been on and will take some time to get revved back up to it’s normal rate. The result? Your body refuses to burn as many calories as before and you start to regain the weight you’ve lost and then some.

So what can you do? Why not put your metabolism to work for you by carefully selecting foods that will speed up your metabolism instead of reducing your calorie intake to levels that will make your metabolism slow down?

Following are five foods that speed up your metabolism to turbo speed!

1 -  Broccoli

Broccoli is very high in calcium, which has been shown to enhance weight loss,  and Vitamin C, which aids in calcium absorption. So how can you go wrong? And that’s not even the best part. Broccoli is also what is called by some a “negative calorie” food. This means that you actually burn more calories eating and digesting broccoli than you take in from the broccoli itself. Instant weight loss and you don’t have to do a thing!

Other “negative calorie” foods similar to broccoli include lettuce, zucchini, celery, cauliflower and asparagus.

2 – Hot Peppers

Hot peppers of the jalapeno, habanero and cayenne variety contain a chemical called Capsaicin that can cause your metabolic rate to increase by as much as 25%! And the effect may last as long as three hours after you have eaten. Capsaicin causes the release of stress hormones that speed up your metabolism and heat up your body. That explains why your face gets sweaty too.

3 – Lean Red Meat

Recent research suggests that lean red meat should be consumed at least once a week. Red meat contains creatine monohydrate which aids your body in using more of the creatine phosphate (ATP) in your system which is used to build muscle. More muscle means more fat burning!

4 – Garlic

Garlic has been shown to have a thermogenic, or heat generating effect in the body which also increases metabolism. Garlic aids in keeping blood-sugar levels stable helping to control the release of insulin, which helps to maximize the burning of bodyfat.

5 – Grapefruit

High insulin levels cause your body to store fat and grapefruit will lower your insulin levels. Grapefruit is also high in fiber which causes your body to burn the extra calories to break this fiber down.

Now that you are armed with the facts on these five foods that speed up your metabolism, you can make simple changes to your diet to give your metabolism a fighting chance. The best part is, these are only a few of the foods you can use to battle the bulge!

Craig Watkins is the owner and operator of FitnessForBusyBodies.com.

Top 10 Ways to Stop Emotional & Stress Eating Now. Take control over the most sabotaging elements that throw clients off their weight loss and wellness program with these proven methods.

The 10 Most Common Mistakes That Lead to Self Sabotage

by Patrice Ruggieri

Have you ever been unintentionally sabotaged by a coworker, spouse or a complete stranger in the car next to you because of something they said or did? You get upset, feel wounded and wonder why people can’t be nice. To feel better you reach for the bag of M&M’s you swore you wouldn’t touch until you lost ten pounds. Welcome to emotional eating.

Emotional eating is a way to suppress or soothe negative emotions, such as stress, anger, anxiety, boredom, sadness and loneliness. Negative emotions can push the right buttons to make you hunger for the bag of potato chips or bar of chocolate in a nanosecond.

1. No Self Education

Understand the connection between mood and food. Why do our emotions make us run for the cake, ice cream and comfort foods that soothe us? Some foods may have seemingly addictive qualities. For example, when you eat enticing foods, such as chocolate, your body releases trace amounts of mood and satisfaction elevating hormones. Rewards may reinforce a preference for foods that are most closely associated with specific feelings. There is also the simple fact that the pleasure of eating offsets negative emotions.

Food can also be a distraction. If you’re worried or anxious about something or are dealing with an unpleasant event, eating comfort foods may temporarily distract you. While you’re eating, your thoughts focus on the pleasant taste of your comfort food. Unfortunately, when you’re done overeating, your attention returns to your worries, and you may now feel the additional burden of guilt about overeating.

You can use this to your advantage. Knowing that a distraction can take your mind off the anxiety will enable you to substitute another simple activity to soothe you. Often people with anxiety use this type of self soothing to get through anxious moments. The best part is they can be simple things that allow you to zone out for a few minutes to let your body calm down. The goal is to have a strategy planned for when these emotions come up unexpectedly.

2. No Support System

Most people don’t have a support system and having one built into your program is vital to your success. It can help you through those moments that make or break your control when your emotions would have you reaching for the donuts. Having a coach, buddy, family member to text, call and talk to can be the emotional release needed instead of stuffing them down with food.

Instead of plunging head first into a bag of cheese puffs another option to release your emotion can be accomplished by keeping a journal with you to write in it when you feel the need to vent. In addition, checking in at the end of the day with someone by phone or email is enough to keep you on track. Knowing that you will have someone to share your day with as well as the accountability factor is a great help. Being able to say that you handled the situation well verses you went to the drive through and had three happy meals, will build your self confidence each time you overcome the emotional urge to eat.

3. No Rules or Recognition

Sometimes you just need to make a non negotiable rule. Your rule can be- nothing goes into my mouth without me thinking about why I am eating it, is it because of an emotion or hunger? If I am emotionally eating I am going to eat a piece of fruit or small healthy snack or distract myself? Whatever your rule, stick with it without negotiations.

Learn to recognize true hunger. Is your hunger physical or emotional? If you ate just a couple of hours ago and don’t have hunger pains, you’re probably not really hungry. Give the craving a few minutes to pass. The average craving lasts 5-15 minutes, you can handle that.

4. No Trigger Identification

It is hard to avoid something your are not consciously recognizing. If you don’t take time to identify what triggers you it is unlikely you will be able to put the breaks on it. For the next few days, write down what you eat, how much you eat, when you eat, how you’re feeling when you eat and how hungry you are. Over time, you may reveal negative eating patterns and triggers to avoid. This is one of the most powerful tools to use.

5. Lack of Redirection

Redirection is used in many areas of our lives and it works but most people don’t think to apply it when it comes to emotional eating. Start by thinking about other things you can do for comfort. Instead of unwrapping a candy bar, take a walk, go to a movie, get into a book or magazine, listen to music, take a bath, or call a friend, spend 5 minutes deep breathing to calm your body down and change your body chemistry. If you think that stress is propelling you at light speed toward the bag of Frito’s, try talking to someone or research your own unique ways to relive your stress.

Look to see what other people do when they get upset rather than turn to food. Some people like to clean when they get upset, because you get immediate gratification from it, some just recognize the incident as a negative and give themselves a time limit to be mad and then choose to release the anger. Have a list of quick rewards that don’t involve food handy so you don’t have to think about what you should do.

6. Not Keeping it Clean

Many people keep unhealthy food in their house. Often because they say it is for their kids. The funny thing about this is that when our kids were infants we would never dream of giving them unhealthy formula, but now that they are older it seems that we buy them unhealthy food all the time. Don’t use that as an excuse. Your kids need it less than you do because their body’s are still growing. Don’t keep unhealthy foods around. Also don’t go food shopping when you feel hungry or blue, postpone the shopping trip for a few hours so that these feelings don’t influence your decisions at the store.

7. Not Eating a Balanced Diet

If you’re not getting enough calories to meet your energy needs, you may be more likely to give in to emotional eating. Try to eat at fairly regular times and don’t skip breakfast. Include foods from the basic groups in your meals. Go for the whole grains, vegetables and fruits, as well as low-fat dairy products and lean protein sources. When you fill up on the basics, you’re more likely to feel fuller, longer. Try having an apple before a couple of your meals. Studies show that people who consume an apple before their meal eat less.

8. Not Snacking Healthy

Most people don’t put enough thought into their snacks. If you feel the urge to eat between meals, choose a low-fat, low-calorie food, such as fresh fruit, vegetables with fat-free dip, unbuttered popcorn or test low-fat, lower calorie versions of your favorite foods to see if they satisfy your craving. Your snack should be between 100 to 200 calories, not much more.

9. Exercise & Rest

People burn the candle at both ends. Get adequate rest regularly and you will consume less calories and have more control. Your mood is more manageable and your body can more effectively fight stress when it’s fit and well rested. Study upon study shows that people who are tired consume more calories.

10. Lack of Emotional Release

People do not factor in the emotional elements of their day and how it affects their decisions about food. Many times the emotion that we feel is a trigger that makes us turn to food for self soothing. We find our mind chatter telling us that, ‘We deserve it’, because of something that happened in our day. You are feeling frustrated at something or someone. We all have a right to get upset. However, it is how we handle the anger that is important.

Recognize the anger for what it is and how you are reacting to it. Why? Because you are only hurting yourself when you put the food in your mouth, not the person or thing that made you angry. Learn to release the emotion, communicate your feelings so you can redirect the anger to be useful and not self sabotaging. The important word here is learn. This change in behavior is something you need to be conscious about in order to effectively change it.

When we are upset it may be difficult to stop our habitual reactions, so we need to S.T.O.P (Step back, Take a deep breath, Oppose the urge to eat and Pat yourself on the back) and empower ourselves with what meets our long term needs as a whole and not feed an non serving emotion for the moment.

Mentally SLAM DUNK IT!

Patrice M. Ruggieri is a Life & wellness coach, certified personal trainer, & founder of Well-Sense a private and corporate wellness and weight loss coaching website. Patrice is dedicated to helping clients lose weight & achieve their best self. She hosts a free group coaching call on Monday nights to help people get focused on their wellness and weight loss goals and to answer questions. For more information visit http://www.well-sense.net

Article Source: Physical Fitness Articles|Free Fitness Articles|Health and Fitness Articles|Conditioning|Diet

Many people believe that having 5 or 6 small meals a day will make them put on weight but in actual fact it will help them lose weight!

Most people eat three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner. The problem with only having three meals a day, or even fewer meals, is that there is a large gap (greater than 3 hours) between meals. This large gap between meals results in a substantial decrease in the body’s blood glucose level. This causes the body to invoke its ‘Anti-Starvation Response’.

Consuming 5 or 6 small meals a day is enormously beneficial from a weight loss point of view and cannot be overemphasized. It keeps your body’s metabolism elevated, which means you burn up more calories and therefore more fat during the day.

Having 5 or 6 small meals a day (ideally every 2-3 hours) means your body is constantly supplied with the energy it requires to function, as well as the amino acids it needs to maintain and build body tissues.

The feeling of hunger is also dramatically reduced, as is the tendency to over-eat at each meal. People who only eat three or fewer meals a day have a greater tendency to over-eat at each meal because they feel hungrier than people who tend to ‘graze’ (eat more often) throughout the day.

This tendency to over-eat is even more pronounced in people who skip meals to lose weight. Skipping meals results in uncontrollable urges to binge eat, especially during the evening – the worst time of the day to be consuming a large amount of food.

Following is a summary of the advantages of consuming 5 or 6 meals a day:

Increased metabolic rate

This increase in metabolism occurs because the body is being constantly supplied with energy (food) every few hours. Through the process of digestion, the body is forced to expend more energy.

Also, since the blood glucose level remains more stable, the body’s metabolism doesn’t have to slow down as it would if only three meals were consumed.

Positive nitrogen balance

Nitrogen balance is a measurement of how much nitrogen is lost (through sweat and urine) against how much nitrogen (from protein) is gained through dietary intake (food). Nitrogen balance determines whether the body is breaking down body tissue (negative nitrogen balance) or building up body tissue (positive nitrogen balance).

Ideally it is best to keep your body in a positive nitrogen balance at all times. Maintaining or building tissue (particularly muscle) means your body’s metabolism will remain elevated, making it easier to burn off body fat and lose weight.

Having protein in each of the 5 or 6 small meals a day means there is a constant supply of tissue-building amino acids to assist in the maintenance and building of lean body tissue, which includes muscle.

When you eat only three meals a day your body will be in a negative nitrogen balance at some times during the day because of the delay between meals, even if you eat protein at each of these meals.

Reduced hunger

Feelings of hunger are reduced when there is a constant supply of glucose to the brain. This can be easily achieved by consuming 5 or 6 small meals a day and by ensuring there is a slow influx of glucose into the bloodstream.

Sustained energy

By having 5 or 6 small meals a day there is a constant supply of glucose in the bloodstream, sustaining energy levels. This is in direct contrast to having three meals a day, which results in large fluctuations in blood glucose and therefore, energy levels as well.

Reduced fat storage

Another reason why having 5 or 6 small meals a day is so effective for losing weight is because smaller meals don’t affect the blood glucose level and in turn, insulin levels, as dramatically as three larger meals do. A lower insulin level means there is less opportunity to convert carbohydrate into fat.

Eating more frequently also means the body is constantly using up energy digesting food. This is why eating breakfast is so important – it gives your metabolism a ‘kick-start’. If breakfast is skipped, your metabolism and therefore your body’s fat-burning ability stays sluggish until your first meal.

Increased fat mobilization

Your body’s tendency to mobilize fat for fuel increases with smaller and more regular meals. This is mainly due to the fact that insulin levels are low. A low blood insulin level means more fat can be mobilized from the body’s fat stores.

On the other hand, a high level of insulin inhibits the mobilization of fat for fuel and larger meals tend to promote the release of greater amounts of insulin from the pancreas.

So become a grazer and watch the weight fall off your body!

Copyright (c) 2009 Stephen Smith

To receive your FREE weight-loss e-book titled, ‘How To Lose All The Weight You Want In The Next 90 Days!’ click here Stephen Smith is the part-owner of Body Concepts, an Australian supplement company, and Focus On, a health and lifestyle magazine. Stephen has been involved in the health and fitness industry for over 18 years and has a science degree from UWA. His website is: Quick Weight Loss Principles
Article Source: Physical Fitness Articles|Free Fitness Articles|Health and Fitness Articles|Conditioning|Diet