Vitamin B1: is essential in providing your body with the energy you need through the metabolism of carbohydrates and protein. It is also required for the processing of alcohol.

Energy is something that a lot of us today are lacking. Dragging ourselves out of bed, in to the shower and off to work. And most of us will run to the nearest Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks for our much needed energy boost that completely fizzles out by the early afternoon.

Instead of drinking your short lived energy with all the extra calories and sugar, why not take a more natural route. There are many healthy foods that contain Vitamin B1, giving you the energy you’ll need to get you through the day.

Check out our healthy food list below:
Raw sunflower seeds (1/4 cup, 205 calories)
54 percent daily value
Cooked yellowfin tuna (4 ounces, 157 calories)
38 percent daily value
Cooked black beans (1 cup, 227 calories)
28 percent daily value
Cooked corn (1 cup, 177 calories)
24 percent daily value
Sesame seeds (1/4 cup, 206 calories)
18 percent daily value
Oatmeal (1 cup, 145 calories)
17 percent daily value
Cooked asparagus (1 cup, 43 calories)
14 percent daily value
Brussels sprouts (1 cup, 60 calories)
11 percent daily value
Cooked spinach (1 cup, 41 calories)
11 percent daily value
Pineapple (1 cup, 76 calories)
9 percent daily value

Original Source: Men’s Health

Check out tomorrows Healthy Food List for Vitamin B6

To read part 1 of this series on Vitamin A click here.

If you’re just getting into the P90X workout system then you probably still have a few questions. In Todays post we are addressing the importance of the P90X Protein Bars for all of you who have asked. 

The P90X Nutrition Guide breaks down your daily caloric intake into 5 meals:

Breakfast

Snack

Lunch

Snack

Dinner

Notice how you have 2 “snack” slots in there. Well the reason you’re eating 5 meals a day instead of the traditional 3, is that eating several sensibly portioned meals throughout the entire day has actually been proven to increase your body’s metabolism. If you’re introducing food into the body, the digestive system is stimulated and although you’re adding calories you engaging the metabolic process which helps burn calories and keep the body “running” at a higher level of activity. So the next time you think about skipping a meal or starving yourself to lose weight…THINK AGAIN! It’s actually counter productive for this and other reasons.

The P90X Workouts are intense and in order to perform effectively your body needs fuel and that fuel comes from what you eat. The nutritionists who developed the P90X Nutrition Guide understand that protein is a key component as it’s involved in transporting oxygen, contracting muscles, transporting electrons, and is the primary component of muscle tissue itself! That’s where the P90X Protein Bars step in. In fact if you take a look in your nutrition guide you’re going to see it specifically called for in your daily meal plans in the snack categories.

2 of our 3 flavors of P90X Protein Bars have 20 grams of protein! Cafe Mocha trails right behind with 18 grams, still not too shabby! Check out the full list of ingredients by visiting the following links to our P90X Protein Bars:

(By the way our #1 customer favorite is Chocolate Peanut Butter)

P90X Protein Bars (Chocolate Peanut Butter)

P90X Protein Bars (Berry)

P90X Protein Bars (Cafe Mocha)

I wrote about the Dunkin Donut’s Pumpkin Latte yesterday and how unhealthy it is for you. Today I want to expand on that post by talking about the sugar content of soda, specifically pepsi. Let’s begin with the facts. 1 gram of sugar =  about 4 calories. The average sugar packet in the U.S. has 4 grams of sugar. So that’s about 16 calories. (Think about that the next time you dump 5 sugar packs in your coffee, I’ll help you with the math, it’s 80 calories, Yikes!) Ok, so back to soda. According to Pepsi, 8 fl oz (a serving which happens to be less than a can of soda) contains 100 calories and 28 grams of sugar. So let’s figure this out: 28 * 4 = 112. Hmm…. All the calories in pepsi’s serving size are attributed to sugar.

So if you shouldn’t be drinking soda what should you be drinking. Well, water is a perfect substitute considering it has everything Pepsi has minus the sugar and additives. You should be drinking 64 ounces of water every day. I know it’s hard to do so try this. Drink 6 – 8 ounces at the top of every hour. Doing this will eliminate whether you want to or not. 9 am drink water, 10 am drink water, 11 am drink water, etc. You’ll feel amazing if you do this. You’ll notice more energy, your skin will clear up, you’ll feel lighter, etc.

Once you’re comfortable drinking your daily dose of water you can try slipping in some recovery drink into your morning glass or right after your home workout. This provides extra vitamins and minerals your body needs to keep it in its best condition.

Getting on the path to fitness can mean a big life change for most people. It means dedicating yourself to some hard work. It means not only making physical fitness a real part of your life but also taking a serious look at your diet as well. For a lot of us, knowing what to eat and when is tough. If you have considered taking the plunge with P90X you can breath a little easier knowing that the P90X Meal Plan Approach will have you coved in this department.

The P90X Meal Plan makes planning and preparing your meals a breeze. What you’ll find is an easy to follow meal schedule that will give you exact recipes of what to eat throughout the 13 week program. If you’re like me this is a godsend. Not only do the meals taste good, but it takes all the guess workout out of what to make for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It even has your snack recommendations laid out for you too—it couldn’t be easier.

The P90X Meal Plan Approach is just one of 3 approaches that the P90X nutrition guide offers. You can choose one approach or combine the approaches to add a little variety  Here are the options:

1.) P90X Portion Approach

2.) P90X Meal Plan Approach

3.) P90X Quick Options Approach

The P90X Portion Approach

It’s pretty simple. On page 5 of the P90X Nutrition Guide you first determine your “nutrition level” by filling in your current body weight and crunching a few numbers in the formula it provides. Once you figure out what level you are you are you turn to the “P90X Portion Approach”  table which lays out how much proteins, dairy, fruits, vegetables, fats, carbs etc. you should be eating in a given day. So lets say you are a Level 1, as the guide indicates you should be shooting for 5 “servings” of proteins per day. So, if you flip to the next page after the table food recommendations for each category. Now simply locate the proteins section and choice from the many suggestions. For example:

3 oz boneless, skinless chicken or turkey breast

This would qualify as one serving of protein. The portion approach makes it easy to put together interesting, healthy meals while keeping you on course with how much you should be eating.

P90X Meal Plan Approach

If you aren’t interested or don’t know how to be creative in the meal department the P90X Meal Plan Approach will be your best friend. You get a weekly meal planner complete with the actual recipes to make each meal of the day. For example, lets take a look at a dinner:

6 oz Turkey

2 tbs Gravey

1/2 cup of Green Beans

1 cup Butternut Squash Soup

Now flip to the recipe page and it will give you the exact ingrediets and spices you need to make each course of the meal. It’s really hard to mess up. You know exactly what to eat, when and how to make it!

P90X Quick Options

These are really convenience foods and this option cannot be used as the primary focus of your nutrition. What’s great about it though, is if you are pressed for time you can grab these in the frozen food section of the grocery store and whip it up in a flash. No muss no fuss. Look for these brands:

-Amy’s Kitchen

- Weight Watchers Smart Ones

- Lean Cuisine 

- and more!

Keep in mind you should NOT exceed more than one of these meals in a day, and be sure to follow the calorie, fat and sodium guidelines that this section outlines.

Whether it’s the P90X Meal Plan Approach, The Portion Approach or the Quick Option Approach, the P90X Nutrition guide offers really simple ways to eat healthy and give your body the fuel it needs to keep up with the workouts. If you aren’t a five star chef don’t worry P90X still has you covered. While that outlines the 3 Approaches if you want to learn a little about the 3 Phases of the P90X Nutrition Guide checkout this article:

P90X Diet: 3 Phase Nutrition Plan

Vitamin A: is great in helping to fight infection and is crucial in maintaining  your eyesight.

More and more today people are trying to lead a more natural and healthy life style, eating more natural and healthy foods, steering away from processed junk. Trying to changing our eating habits so that a pill filled with vitamins becomes unnecessary.

Growing up my mom would always tell me to eat my carrots because they were good for my eyes. But as a kid I hated carrots, especially cooked ones. There are many other healthy foods that contain Vitamin A that you may not be aware of. So if carrots aren’t your thing try something else. Its good for your eyes!

Check out our healthy food list below:

Raw carrots (1 cup, 53 calories)
686 percent daily value

Cooked spinach (1 cup, 41 calories)
294 percent daily value
Baked sweet potato with skin (95 calories)
262 percent daily value
Cooked turnip greens (1 cup, 28 calories)
158 percent daily value
Baked winter squash (1 cup, 80 calories)
145 percent daily value
Cooked collard greens (1 cup, 49 calories)
118 percent daily value
Cantaloupe (1 cup, 56 calories)
103 percent daily value
Romaine lettuce (2 cups, 16 calories)
58 percent daily value
Steamed broccoli (1 cup, 43 calories)
45 percent daily value
Cooked green peas (1 cup, 134 calories)
19 percent daily value

Original Source: Men’s Health

Check out tomorrows Healthy Food List that contains Vitamin B1

Have you tried the Dunkin Donut’s Pumpkin Latte? Is it good? It better be with all the sugar they dump in it. They put 51 grams of sugar in their medium, that’s too much in my opinion. Consider the following, the average can of soda contains 39 grams of sugar, this means the DD latte has 33% more sugar than a can of soda. So if you thought drinking soda was bad you’re going to want to consider not drinking this.

If sugar isn’t a concern to you perhaps the whopping 330 calories is. If you ate a 350 calorie breakfast and then you bought this on your way to work you’re looking at ingesting 680 calories before you start your day. The recommended daily dose of calories is 2000. So let’s do the math… you eat breakfast and have a Dunkin Donut’s Pumpkin Latte and you’re at 680 calories, subtract that from 2000 and you have 1320 calories remaining for the rest of the day. That’s not very many considering lunch and dinner tend to be larger meals.

Ok, so let’s say you skip breakfast all together and just drink your tasty drink. Not as many calories, good deal you think. Wrong! That 330 calorie drink is mostly sugar with a side of fat. You won’t find anything of substance in there. Good luck making it to lunch without grabbing something to eat and my bet is that if you skipped breakfast and choose this drink as the substitute your before lunch snack probably isn’t baby carrots.

So do yourself a favor and start the day right. Wake up 10 minutes early tomorrow and make some coffee (don’t add to much sugar though) and have some healthy cereal. The blackened coffee and whole-grain cereal might not taste as good as the pumpkin latte but I assure you your body will appreciate it, if not now it will the next time you get your vitals checked at your doctors office.

Think otherwise, let me know.

Ever since you were very little you were always taught to clean your plate, not to be wasteful. Your parents would pile on the food and you were forced to sit at the table until somehow you managed to shove everything down, saving your least favorite for last. Of course your parents had good intentions in mind, wanting you to grow big and strong. But were they really just teaching you bad eating habits? As an adult you have always felt guilty about leaving anything left on your plate. So you willingly scarf every last bit down, knowing that you have had enough and are about to burst, you wouldn’t want to be wasteful!

Stop the cycle of guilt and over eating. Change the way you look at your plate. Think about how much you realistically should eat before you pile it on, not how much you want to eat.

Here are a few easy Healthy Eating Tips that just make sense:

1. You don’t have to clean your plate, eat half and take the rest to go!

Especially when dining out. Restaurants almost always serve huge portions of food, more than anyone needs to eat at one time. Take half of it home, not only will you save your stomach you’ll also save some time and money the next day at lunch.

2. Focus on just eating 1 food on your plate at a time.

Research has shown that if you eat one thing at a time on your plate before moving on to the next food you will eat less. Your taste buds tend to get tired of a single flavor pretty quickly and you’ll be more likely to think you’ve had enough. In a study in the journal Appetite, the researches found that the subjects ate 18% more fries and 16% more brownies when they switched between foods instead of eating just one food at a time.

3. Eat your vegetable first!

It may seem silly but eat the healthiest thing on your plate first. Fill up on sweet potatoes and green beans not your fried chicken.

Check out this article for some great sweet potato healthy recipes.

In this busy world we live in we sometimes skip breakfast. Maybe we are running late this morning or didn’t have anything to make. I often make omelets in the morning but at least once a week I run out of eggs or feel lazy and don’t want to put in the effort. I think back to when I was a kid and what I ate then. I ate cereal almost every day and not the sugary crap that most kids eat today. Cereal is a great thing to have in the pantry. It lasts for ever (so you can stockpile) and it’s a quick and nutritious meal as long as you use skim milk and buy one which follows the below requirements. (based on 1/2 cup)

• Whole grain, in fact it should be the first ingredient
• No trans fat or partially hydrogenated oils
• 5 g of sugar max
• 250 mg of sodium max
• 3 g of fiber
• 100 calories or less

If you follow these recommendations you’ll be giving yourself a powerful start to your day. Do you workout in the morning before eating breakfast? The University of Texas did a study which showed whole grain cereal and milk to be useful in activating proteins in the body after working out compared to people who drank sport drinks. This means you’re getting a complete breakfast and toning up. Let’s not forgot that the fiber in the cereal will make you feel full so you won’t crave as much food before your next meal.

Keeping your skin fresh and young looking starts with what you eat. A great, tasty vegetable that can help you with that is the sweet potato. They are jammed packed with beta-carotene which is what gives it it’s great color. Beta-carotene, which is also found in carrots, is an antioxidant that converts vitamin A in your body and switches on the DNA that produces new skin cells in your body. When you shed your old skin, you’re left with a younger, fresher, sexy looking face.

Check out these delicious & healthy recipes:

Cheesy Sweet Potato Crisps

Serves 8

• 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled
• 2 1/2 oz finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 1 cup)
• 2 egg whites
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 3/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• Parchment paper

Heat oven to 425˚. Finely grate sweet potatoes into a bowl. Squeeze grated sweet potatoes in batches to release as much moisture as possible and place in another bowl; fluff with a fork. Stir in cheese, egg whites, rosemary and pepper. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Spoon 1 rounded tbsp batter onto cookie sheet and flatten into a thin, 2- to 2 1/2-inch round. Repeat with remaining batter, leaving 1 inch between rounds. Bake until edges and underside are crisp and browned, 13 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool slightly and remove from parchment. Serve warm with Rosemary-Balsamic Cream.

144 calories per 3 crisps with cream, 5.2 g fat (3.2 g saturated), 17 g carbs, 1.8 g fiber, 6 g protein

1. Sweet Potato and Avocado Sandwich w/Poppy Seed Spread

Serves 2

1. 1 small sweet potato (about 7 ounces), peeled and cut into three 2-inch-thick slices

Cook sweet potato slices in boiling salted water until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water, then drain again. Let cool for 5 minutes, then cut each slice into two thinner slices. Whisk together honey mustard, mayonnaise, and poppy seeds in a small bowl. To construct the sandwiches, first spread half the poppy seed mixture on 2 of the bread slices, then place half of the onion, avocado, and tomato slices on top of each slice; sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Add a layer of sweet potato slices, cheese and lettuce. Top with remaining bread. Slice each sandwich in half, securing each half with a toothpick. Serve with sliced dill pickles and a handful of baked chips.

If you’re looking for a natural way to lose weight, you’ll probably be interested in a recent study by The British Journal of nutrition. The study found that those who had the highest levels of Omega 3 fatty acids were thinner, had slimmer waist lines, and weighed less than their low Omega 3 counterparts.

While there are a few theories as to why this occurs one major reason may be attributed to the fact Omega 3 fatty acids stimulate the hormone that makes you feel “full” called leptin. Either way it’s great news for those of us looking to shed excess weight! So how do you get Omega 3 fatty acids in the first place? Here is a small yet helpful list of good sources:

1.) Salmon

2.) Walnuts

3.) Soy Beans

Above and beyond, salmon is THE best source for Omega 3 fatty acids without a doubt. However it’s often difficult to eat enough fish to get you where you need to be. Not to mention some people are not into fish. If you’re looking to get Omega 3 into your system without the hassle you should really check out some fish oil supplements. Core Omega 3 is an outstanding choice. The supplement sources fish from the atlantic ocean and is guaranteed to be free of PCBs and heavy metal contaminants. Definitely worth a look for all of us dieters out there!

When trying to get fit, proper nutrition is just as important as a hardcore fitness program. Eating right is crucial in getting the best results. Supplementing with capsule and liquid supplements can help fill in the gaps, so to speak, when it comes to your nutrition. Just like a superior multivitamin can ensure you are getting the vitamins and minerals missing in your diet, so too can vanilla whey protein shakes assist you in getting additional protein throughout the day.

Good vanilla whey protein shakes can serve several purposes in the diet of an athlete. And if you are doing workouts like those in P90X you are already an athlete or well on your way!

Vanilla whey protein shakes are a protein supplement first and foremost. Many high intensity fitness programs require you to increase your protein intake far beyond what you might normally be accustomed to. Supplements like vanilla whey protein shakes make this far easier to take. Because there are times when a chicken breast just doesn’t sound appetizing!

In addition to a basic protein supplement, vanilla whey protein shakes are also a good choice for convenient meal replacement. In a rush? A protein shake for breakfast can jump start your metabolism for the day and it’s super convenient. If you are considering a snack from the vending machine, it might serve you well to bring your protein shake mix to the office. Vanilla whey protein shakes make great snacks as well.

There are several options when considering vanilla whey protein shakes and other ways to up your protein throughout the day. Not only are there additional flavors, there are also protein bars. By keeping a good variety of protein sources in your diet, you will find it isn’t as easy to get ridiculously bored with your new eating habits.

Check out the Vanilla Whey Protein supplement we carry here. You will find that it is filled with premium ingredients and tastes great. We also offer chocolate shakes and a variety of protein bars.

If you know anything about fitness you should know that the best and most maintainable weight loss comes through a combination of diet and exercise. However, too often people think they can just get healthy by drastically cutting calories. This process, sometimes called crash dieting, isn’t only difficult, it’s counterproductive. That’s right, you must eat to lose weight!

Learning how to eat when getting involved in a fitness program can take a lot of work, particularly if your eating habits aren’t all that good to begin with. You may have to unlearn years of faulty thoughts regarding food and diet. Finding simple solutions to assist you on your journey can often make it seem easier and boost your dedication. This is where products like low calorie meal replacement bars come in.

Low calorie meal replacement bars and convenient alternatives like them can be a diet saver when you are pressed for time or simply don’t feel like eating a full meal. These convenient snacks can be used as more than a meal replacement. As a matter of fact they can make a good mid day snack or post workout fuel when you just need something to keep in your gym bag.

Low calorie meal replacement bars are, by far, most useful to people who aren’t normally breakfast eaters. These bars offer you a way to jumpstart your metabolism without feeling bogged down by too much food.

There are many contenders out there when it comes to low calorie meal replacement bars. When choosing one to use in your life, be sure to check out the nutrition label. You want a bar that is going to taste good but also one that will deliver optimal nutrition.

For variety, consider adding protein shakes and meal replacement shakes to your nutrition plan as well. These are two additional convenient health foods that can keep your diet on track when you don’t have the time or desire to cook.

Sure we’re all human. But, we all have unique dietary needs. While there are generally accepted basics of healthy nutrition, the absolute best diet for you may be different than the best one for your friend or even your brother. If you consider yourself an athlete, which you should if you are doing a program like P90X, your nutritional needs are different than your sedentary counterparts. Knowing this and finding a corresponding healthy diet for athletes will ensure you are fueling your body appropriately for optimal performance.

When developing a healthy diet for athletes, you need to consider two reasons you eat. First and foremost you eat for fuel. You need calories for energy. Secondly, you eat to repair tissues that are traumatized during workout sessions. A complete healthy diet for athletes takes both of these into consideration.

This article goes into great detail about when you eat. It outlines the importance of a post workout snack, pre workout snack, and hydration during the workout. For endurance athletes, there is even the potentially necessary mid workout snack. Marathoners can take in nutrition at several points during a race; they need to.

Check out this page from the Colorado State University Extension Office for details on how being an athlete can change your nutritional needs. They explain why extra carbs are needed and how proteins can mend traumatized muscles.

What you eat as a sedentary person and what you might eat as an athlete are likely very different. This is why there are so many options for supplements in a healthy diet for athletes. Not all supplements are necessary however. The basics involve a high quality protein supplement and a recovery formula for post workout nutrition.

Protein supplements can be useful post workout, as meal replacements, and as a convenient snack alternative to the vending machines at work, something that has no place in a healthy diet for athletes.

A top quality fitness program should make it much easier to determine how your nutrition should change as you become more and more athletic. Nutrition guides and training tools do a good job at explaining the need for high quality, high performance nutrition.

When trying to change your body or maintain the one you have, eating is just as important, if not more important, than fitness. If you eat garbage everyday you can’t expect to feel good, let alone look good. The key to staying on the right track nutritionally is being realistic with your diet goals and being flexible. In addition, having a cache of healthy meal plans can ensure you have plenty of options when it comes to mealtime.

Healthy meal plans don’t have to be extravagant. Many superior quality fitness programs include meal plans that coincide directly with the caloric goals of the fitness plan. For instance, the P90X Nutrition Guide offers extensive healthy meal plans and recipes. But what if you are ready for some new meal plans?

There are several places to find meal plan ideas online. The Internet is a huge, albeit sometimes overwhelming, source of information. Here you can find healthy meal plans to fit any diet. Make sure if you are basing your nutrition off of someone else’s meal plans, you look closely to ensure they are healthy, with a variety of nutrients and a low to moderate amount of calories and fat.

Healthy meal plans should always be certain to have plenty of vegetables. If you are doing a program like P90X or ChaLean Extreme, you may want to find one with a higher level of proteins as well. When all else fails, you can design your own healthy meal plans.

One of the alluring features of a good healthy meal plan is the fact that you don’t have to think about what’s for dinner, it’s already decided for you. This is something that can definitely be achieved on your own in a fairly limited amount of time.

Many people find that by determining their healthy meal plans for the week, they increase the odds that they will stick to their diet. Appoint a time (Sunday afternoon, for example), to sit down and plan out your meals for the week. Post the healthy meal plan on the frig and abide by it. If you are reluctant, just try if for a week and see how it works out.

Healthy meal plans can mean the difference between success and failure in your fitness goals. Take the time to make the plans and help ensure you are prepared for the week ahead.

When people think of meal replacement shakes they tend to think of the big named fad diets that were immensely popular in the 1980s and even the 90s. However, truly high quality meal replacement shakes can be used for so much more than weight loss. As a matter of fact, for some people, they can even promote weight gain. The key in using meal replacement drinks effectively is customizing your meal replacement plan to fit your goals.

We’ll start out with the obvious, if you are looking to lose weight with meal replacement drinks, using them as a substitute for higher calorie meals is the route to success. Of course, most meal replacement shakes won’t keep you full between full meals, so remember to add healthy snacks throughout the day. Raw veggies, fruit, and nuts all make great additions to weight loss efforts that utilize meal replacement shakes.

Now, for people looking to add weight or regulate their yoyo functioning scale, meal replacement shakes are a great daily calorie booster that won’t fill you up like other foods. Use meal replacement shakes between meals or as an addition to meals. Protein shakes are an excellent choice here too, providing optimal proteins perfect for people putting on muscle.

Lastly, meal replacement shakes are a great option for people too rushed to eat healthy. Skip the fast food and keep meal replacement shakes at work instead. Don’t think you have time for breakfast in the morning? Think again. Meal replacement shakes are the perfect meal on the go. Remember you mother was right; breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

Meal replacement shakes are multipurpose dietary tools when used to their maximum potential. Don’t let their title limit their potential in your life. Meal replacement drinks have a place in everyone’s kitchen, particularly everyone that cares about their fitness and health.