How to Control Food Cravings

No matter how good the intentions, it can be difficult to curb cravings for sweet or salty foods. The occasional indulgence is no cause for concern but frequent cravings could be a sign of unbalanced blood sugar. Instead of reaching for a high-calorie sugary treat try these alternatives:

? Are you hungry or thirsty? Drink a big glass of water. Your body loves it.

? Too hungry, too often? Fill up on fibre! Soluble fibre fills you up and makes you feel fuller, longer.

? Sugar craving? Grab a piece of fresh fruit or blend a frozen fruit smoothie; naturally sweet nutrition.

Salt and crunch craving? Skip the chips! Crunch some celery or an apple slice. Sprinkle with salt if you like, or better yet dip it in natural peanut butter! You?ll get some crunch, some salt and some fat and protein too!

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Tasty Tuesday: PGX Coconut Blast Shake

Another fabulous (and easy!) PGX SatisFast shake recipe from nutritionist, Kristin Metvedt, RHN.

Made with PGX SatisFast’s delicious French Vanilla flavour and coconut water, try this new shake recipe from Kristin Metvedt! Nutritional sidenote: Coconut water from young coconuts provides minerals and electrolytes that provide valuable nutrition, so this smoothie is both yummy and healthy!

Ingredients:

  • 240 ml  100% pure coconut water (e.g. O.N.E. Coconut Water or Blue Monkey Pure coconut water)
  • 60 ml cold water
  • 1 scoop PGX Satisfast French Vanilla
  • Option: 2 ice cubes

Method:

  1. Measure liquids into a shaker or blender cup.
  2. Add 1 scoop of PGX Satisfast Very Vanilla. If using a blender, add 1-2 ice cubes if desired.
  3. Shake or blend until smooth.
  4. Drink an additional glass of water (375-500 ml) after taking PGX.

Nutritional Information:

Each serving contains: 146 calories; 1 g fat; 23 g carb (2g fibre, sugar 11 g); 10 g protein; 220 mg sodium; 330 mg potassium.

Have questions for Kristin about the smoothie? Or a nutrition question? Ask her here!

Enjoy!

 

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Weight-Wise Wednesday: Olympic Inspiration

A tasty new recipe for you to try from the other side of the world; inspiration provided by the Olmpics!

For this week?s Weight-Wise Wednesday post, I set out to write about out how to eat like an Olympian. However, in my search across the net, I stumbled upon this truly unique and fun blog, Eat The Olympics. Having no idea how one might ?eat the Olympics? I decided to check it out ? and boy was I happy I did!

What I found was a blog full of recipes. But not just any recipes ? these were recipes from all over the world. In fact, the writers of the blog, two Londoners, have set out to make a dish from all 204 countries that are currently participating in the London 2012 Olympic Games. Quite a challenge!

The blog is filled with beautiful pictures of each dish they?ve made, along with the recipe of the dish and country that it’s from. Each recipe is even given a rating on a scale of Bronze to Gold (or in some rare cases Disqualification).

One of the healthier choices I came across is a dish from Lesotho, an African country located within South Africa, called Lesothan Chakalaka. Made with delicious veggies, such as peppers, tomatoes and chillies, and served over rice, this dish is definitely on my To Try list!

You can find the full recipe here! Give it a try and let us know what you think! And, remember, don?t forget to add in your PGX!

 

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5 Ways to Spread Out Your Calories

Stay satisfied, eat healthy and lose weight by spreading your caloric intake throughout your day.

Although eating healthy, nutritious food is half the batltle with weight loss, sometimes one of the biggest challenges people face is figuring out portion and calorie control. With many of us, overeating may happen by accident: waiting too long before eating something and then ravenously consuming more than our body needs; or eating too fast in general.

So, we thought that we would put together a quick guide with 5 simple ways to help you spread your calories throughout your day, enabling you to intake less calories total and, ultimately, shed those pounds!

5 Ways to Spread Your Calories

  1. Have a good breakfast with adequate protein and fibre (if your breakfast is lacking fibre, sprinkle on some PGX!)
  2. Have a small healthy snack mid-morning
  3. Have a healthy lunch
  4. Have another healthy snack in the afternoon (a serving of plain yogurt with bran cereal, for example)
  5. Go head and “spoil your appetite”; eat a high volume, low calorie snack to reduce your appetite before your dinner

And don’t forget! When purchasing PGX Daily products, look for the ones with a BONUS pack of PGX Daily Singles!

 

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Tasty Tuesday: Easy Fish Fillets

It’s Tasty Tuesday!

When it’s hot outside and you don’t feel like making a big complicated meal, try this easy fish fillet for dinner. Any white fish such as cod, halibut, haddock, or grouper will work well.

We found this great recipe that only calls for lime juice, some light mayo, onion powder, pepper, breadcrumbs, margarine and parsley.

You could add a squeeze of lemon if you’re not a fan of lime. Or combine lemon and lime for a zesty flavour! Approximately 1 1/2 pounds of white fish will yield 4 servings. Half the recipe and you’ve got a nice meal for date night!

Pair it up with some asparagus and rice for a light, healthy and tasty meal. Enjoy!

Check out our Pinterest board for even more tasty recipes!

 

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Healthy Weekend Barbecue Recipe

Grilled Oyster Shooters 

The weekend is almost here, so we asked PGX staffers what they planned to do this weekend. A surprizing number were pulling out the BBQ for some summertime grilling.

We found this high rated recipe on AllRecipes and at only 32 calories per oyster this is a healthy, grilling treat. The oysters are cooked right in the shell and seasoned with lemon juice, hot sauce and  Worcestershire sauce. You could substitute hot sauce for salt and pepper if you like your spice on the mild side.

Always be careful when you shuck an oyster. Here are some great step-by-step instructions on how to shuck an oyster. Once you get the hang of it you’ll be enjoying oysters in no time!

Got a great recipe you’d like to share? Sound off in the comments or let us know on our Facebook page!

 

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The London 2012 Olympics

Welcome back to another week of PGXs’ Thursday Obsessions!

PGX is obsessed with the London 2012 Olympics and the inspiration that it provides the world.

The London 2012 Olympics are finally here, so it’s no wonder that this week we’re obsessed with The Games! Like many people around the world, I’ve been tuning into the 2012 Olympic Games since they began last Friday in London. And like many people, I’ve become obsessed with watching the world’s greatest athletes achieve the seemingly impossible, day after day!

Personally, I find that witnessing these extraordinary athletes achieve their personal bests is incredibly inspiring (nevermind that some of their bests are breaking Olympic Records!). Watching an athlete who has given a sport their all, finally reap the benefits of all of their hard work is inspiring. Not that I believe that the Olympic Games are anywhere in my future, but I find myself wanting to challenge myself in my workouts. I want to run faster, longer and train harder. Here’s to hoping that I can hang onto that Olymic Inspiration when the Games are finished!

Some of my favourite Olympic sports to watch are gymnastics (how DO they do all that?!) and volleyball. What are your favourites to watch? Do you find that the Olympics inspire your workouts?

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Homemade Snack: Beet Chips!

Got a craving for chips? Try something different!

Let’s give the potato a break and try homemade beet chips instead!

Every once in while I just crave that satisfying crunch of chips. But when you buy them from the store, most of the time all you can find are potato chips.  Maltodextrin, monosodium glutamate, modified corn starch, swiss cheese (milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes)… not exactly typical ingredients you can find in the store, right?

So let’s go back to the root of the potato chip and use beets instead! All you need are beets, vegetable oil and an oven! The best thing about making these at home is that you can control how much oil you use. Not a fan of frying? Try a straight to baking method and let us know how it goes!

How To Make Beet Chips :

  • Peel and slice beets very thinly or use a mandolin
  • Fry beets in vegetable oil at 350 degrees, for about 2-4 minutes
  • Transfer to a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes

Cool and enjoy!

 

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Weight-Wise Wednesday: Mediterranean diet

The Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean diet uses Mediterranean-style cooking and is considered a heart-healthy eating plan.

The Mediterranean diet is based on a healthy eating plan using the traditional cooking style of countries around the Mediterranean Sea.

Key components of the Mediterranean diet

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes:

  • Getting plenty of exercise
  • Eating primarily plant-based foods, such as fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes and nuts
  • Replacing butter with healthy fats such as olive oil and canola oil
  • Using herbs and spices instead of salt to flavor foods
  • Limiting red meat to no more than a few times a month
  • Eating fish and poultry at least twice a week
  • Drinking red wine in moderation (optional)
  • Enjoying meals with family and friends

As the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid shows the diet includes plenty of antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables! Many people who switch to this diet say they’d never eat another way! For more on the Mediterranean Diet check out the Mayo Clinic website.

Does this look like something you’d like to try out? Let us know in the comments below! 

 

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Matching Music to Movement

PGX checks out the latest in exercise apps!

Match your music to your pace and never miss a beat while you exercise!

Looking for motivation and the right tunes to get you ready for your workout? There’s a new app available from iTunes that allows you to match the music to your heart beat.

Check out this video featuring how Cadence Run DJ matches the rhythms of your music to a corresponding beats per minute number (BPM).

Get your daily fiber and keep on moving everyone!

Cadence Run DJ is available on iTunes.

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