Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--Healthy Gifts for the Holidays

#HealthyGifts
#Fitbit
#HealthyLiving
#ChooseHealth
#ActiveLifestyle
#HolidayGifts
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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--Health Magazine Subscriptions

#HealthyReads
#HealthMagazines
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#ChooseHealth
#NewYearResolution
#FreshStart
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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--Cut Up Veggies in the Fridge

Jumpstart Your Livliga^® Lifestyle
with our Get Started Guide!

#VeggiesInTheFridge
#HealthySnacks
#HealthyEating
#ChooseHealth
#Nutrition
#DiabetesMonth
#HealthyLifestyleTip
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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--Printouts of Healthy Recipes

#HealthyRecipes
#HolidayHealthyRecipes
#HealthyEating
#ChooseHealth
#Nutrition
#HolidayBaking
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Diabetes-Friendly Turkey and Sweet Potato Hash with Fried Egg

There is nothing better than leftovers to inspire creativity. Before I discovered roast turkey as a great year-round food, I relished the leftovers in order to make my favorite comfort foods like turkey tetrazzini and of course, turkey hash.

 

Turkey hash is easy to prepare and is perfect for breakfast, brunch or a Sunday supper. My version is packed full of healthy ingredients that not only include high quality protein but also vitamins, especially vitamin C; minerals, like potassium; and antioxidants found in foods like garlic, onions and cauliflower used in this recipe. Providing comfort food that is also health promoting is particularly welcome during the colder months when we are combatting flu and colds. It nourishes our soul and our bodies. Below is my favorite hash recipe that is perfect for using up leftover turkey.

Diabetes-Friendly Turkey and Sweet Potato Hash with Fried Egg 

Ingredients

• 1 medium sweet potato, cubed and roasted
• 1 ½ cups cauliflower, chunked and roasted
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 yellow pepper, chopped
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 cups cooked turkey, diced
• 4 large eggs
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• Cooking Spray, olive oil flavored

Directions

1. Prepare the cauliflower and sweet potato, placing them on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Roast for 15 minutes at 375°. 
2. Next, spray a cast-iron skillet with cooking spray and add olive oil at medium heat. Add onions, peppers and salt. Cook until tender, about 5 minutes. 
3. Add garlic, paprika and cumin. Cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute. 
4. Add the roasted vegetables and turkey, stirring occasionally until the turkey is heated thoroughly, about 3 minutes. 
5. Meanwhile, heat a skillet sprayed with cooking spray over medium heat. Add eggs and fry for 3 – 5 minutes, or until they are cooked as you like to serve them. 
6. Divide the turkey hash to serve 4. Top each serving with an egg. Sprinkle evenly with pepper and serve immediately. 

Serves: 6
Calories per serving: 221
Total Fat: 9g
Carbohydrates: 13g
Sugars: 5g
Sodium: 430mg
Fiber: 3g
Protein: 21g

Enjoy! And Live Vibrant!

Download Our Free eCookbook:
Living Life to the Fullest with Diabetes

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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--Board Games

#FamilyGameNight
#BoardGames
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#GiveYourPhoneARest
#KnowDiabetes
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Making Happy and Healthy Memories for the Holidays

So many of our happy memories are wrapped around the holidays. We remember special conversations, gifts that were given, an activity unique to the occasion and, of course, the smells of delicious foods from the kitchen, the wonder of the dishes presented and the tastes of our favorites bringing smiles to our faces. These memories compel us to want to repeat them and make those memories into traditions we can look forward to year after year.

The challenge comes when we want to live a healthy lifestyle and know that some of the traditions, particularly around food, need some changing.  We are afraid of the resistance we might get from others, including ourselves, when the time honored family recipe is updated (like my beloved poppy seed bread) or the holiday fudge doesn’t appear. The reality is we can’t be afraid to change things up, make new traditions, and share our desire for healthy living with others, even during the holidays.

Making happy and healthy memories does not mean giving up those special foods only made during the holidays or giving up being with the ones you love or throwing away that ugly Christmas sweater you get a kick out of wearing to the family gathering.

What it does mean is creating an environment setting you up for success. It also means being fully present at each occasion. Additionally, we need to consciously make choices and be mindful as we drink and eat, purposefully choosing. And who says we can’t make the slices of poppy seed bread a little thinner?…who will even notice? And maybe instead of making that extra sweet potato casserole so everyone can have second and third helpings, we make just enough for everyone to enjoy.

Then consider the possibility of adding a healthy new tradition into the mix. What about a new festive drink that is tasty and lighter in alcohol and calories like a Rosemary Tequila Lime Smash? Or provide FitVine wine that is lower in calories and healthier for you. Another fun tradition is to participate in a local holiday Walk/Run or go to your local YMCA to join in on a free Zumba class (they offer free workout classes from kickboxing to spinning to Zumba each Thanksgiving).

These are simple examples of how we can add “healthy” into our holiday traditions still focusing on making happy memories and holding on to the importance of traditions…just making them ones we can enjoy long term, as healthy and happy people.

Wishing you the happiest and healthiest of holidays!

Download Our Free eCookbook:
Delicious Healthy Baking Recipes

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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--No TV in Your Bedroom

#BedroomSantuary
#NoTvInBedroom
#HealthyEating
#ChooseHealth
#GoodNightsSleep
#DiabetesMonth
#HealthyLifestyleTip
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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--Workout Playlists on Your Phone

#MotivatingMusic
#Playlists
#HealthyOm
#ChooseHealth
#WorkoutPlaylist
#DiabetesAwareness
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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--LivSpoons in your Kitchen

#LivSpoons
#KitchenUtensils
#MondayMotivation
#HealthyEating
#ChooseHealth
#Nutrition
#breastcancerawareness
#HealthyLifestyleTip
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Weight bias is real...and very personal

I remember feeling different from a very early age. I made a joke of it saying “I was born big." In fact, I was tall from a young age and therefore bigger than any of the kids in my class, including the boys. I stayed the tallest until high school when I then shared being tall with a few others. My body developed early. I will never forget my second grade teacher having a meeting with my mom and telling her that I needed to wear a bra. Second grade! Then in fourth grade I got my period. All of this made me feel different; but what caused people to be cruel was my weight.

From about age six on I was slightly overweight...it wasn’t until after college and the Peace Corps I became obese. I recognized I was a very imperfect human from a very early age. It was made clear to me just how imperfect I was by how I was treated, the derogatory comments people would make about my size and weight, and the negative experiences I had because the world around me didn’t know how to include a big kid like me. I got the message loud and clear.

During second grade my best friend and I were picked up for lunch from school so we could be taken home and served “diet food.” Oh how I remember having to eat grapefruit and choke down calves liver. I hated every minute of it. My friend and I felt like flunkies... and we were only 7!

Probably the worst and most humiliating experience I had was when I was thirteen. My mom, out of apparent exacerbation and probably in hopes of shocking me into weight loss, took me to a maternity store to buy me clothes, including bathing suits, prior to going on a spring vacation. Describing my reaction as mortified doesn’t come close to how I felt. It seemed so wrong, and I was so hurt. But I deserved maternity clothes, right? After all, I was a fat person and deserved what I got.

www.ObesityCareWeek.org

As someone who has looked differently and felt differently I have always empathized with the underdog or those who have been ostracized or treated unfairly. I want to protect those who need protecting, fight for what is right, and take action to make things better. It feels wonderful to be part of a growing community of like-minded individuals. Each of us is taking steps to promote change and make a difference.

I started Livliga to make a difference and help people live healthier lives. In order to achieve this goal means supporting a world free of weight bias. Each of us deserves to live in a world where we can live our lives to the fullest in our healthiest form...mentally and physically.

National Obesity Cares Week is all about fostering a community that raises a unified voice rejecting weight bias while demanding those living with obesity receive the care, support and access to information that can make an important difference in their lives.

Like so many, my experience may have scarred me but it has also empowered me to not want someone else to be treated in the same horrible way. Each of us can make a difference. Each voice matters. There is so much good we can do together.

Let’s not have one more generation suffer from teasing, bullying, abuse or ignorance. Let’s help each child live well and live vibrant! Let’s start by making a difference now. Take the pledge.

You can join us and take action to change the way that you care about obesity by taking the Take 5 Pledge. The Take 5 Pledge is intended to inspire action by addressing the 5 reasons to care and encourage us to change the way that we care about obesity Visit www.ObesityCareWeek.org to take action and change the way that we care about obesity.



#Take5Pledge
#ItStopsNow
#metoo
#OW2017
#NOCW2017
#NOCWvoices

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Healthy Living is a Family Affair

There are so many pressures in the world we live with today, which cause us to ignore or even eliminate the very behaviors that will help us and our families live a healthy, happier life. We don’t sit down for meals. When we eat we tend to do it in front of the TV or on the run in the car, not really paying attention to what we eat. When we do eat off a plate, it is a very large plate, and with no rim. Then we are so busy with work, children’s activities and the other action items on our to do list, we feel we don’t have time to add in exercise so instead we sit at our desk, sit watching our children in their activities or sit down for a little relaxation in front of the TV or on the weekends we may have some time to be with others to sit and have a meal or a few drinks at the bar. We even build in inactivity to our schedule as the fun in our lives. Compounding our lifestyle challenges is our lack of sleep. It is hard for any of us to go to bed early enough and get the 7-8 hours of sleep our bodies really need.

As parents, we have a tremendous influence on our children’s lives. Not only are we affecting our lives with the way we eat, our inactivity, and lack of sleep, but we are also role modeling these behaviors to our children. In order for our children to live a healthy lifestyle, we have to work to live a healthy lifestyle ourselves. They won’t be able to adopt healthier habits if we don’t help them not only by modeling these healthy behaviors but also by creating the necessary environment for our children to thrive and be healthy.

There are more and more studies that show the benefits of parents being involved in their children’s health and weight management, particularly when their child is challenged with obesity. The rate of successful outcomes dramatically increases when parent’s become involved in their child’s weight management program. It is not just a matter of children mirroring their parents’ healthy lifestyle behaviors, it is also about them having their parent’s support in making the long term changes they need in order to achieve and maintain a healthy weight. They are dependents, needing us to ensure they have the best possible environment to grow up healthy and happy. The truth is it does take a village to help raise healthy children.

The good news is that everybody wins when we talk about embracing a healthy lifestyle. It improves everyone’s quality of life. And the resources available to help us, and our children, have grown substantially. There are lifestyle programs, exercise choices and downright fun activities available through schools, local community centers, YWCAs, children’s hospitals and other nonprofits. It is super helpful to find a group that will support you and your children in the healthy habits you have chosen to integrate into your life and how you live everyday long term. It is hard enough as it is to make better choices to improve your health when it seems the rest of the world is not yet helping you get there… so finding others who get it, who are practicing those healthy habits AND want to support you in doing the same is essential for everyone’s ongoing success.

Download Our Free Kids’ Activity eBook!
Sammie & Sax: Fun, Food, & Fantastic Ideas

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10 Tips on how Livliga can help you Lose Weight

Sheila and Walt before losing weight

We designed Livliga to help people live healthier lives. Not only does it help us eat healthier and in right-sized portions, but it can also help us lose weight.

When I was designing the dishware, I initially created hand-painted prototypes at the local Color Me Mine pottery studio. As we tested the prototypes at home, we found that we were losing weight. Just by right-sizing our portions we were losing weight. We weren't on a diet but we were eating much healthier and using standard serving sizes, the ones I  built into our plates and dishes. I lost over 50 pounds and my husband has now lost over 60 pounds. Our daughter, who was living with us at the time lost 25 pounds. All we were doing was using Livliga dinnerware.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Walt and Sheila after each losing 50 pounds

Livliga now has 3 patents and 3 national awards. We are unique because we have built in a lot of psychology as well as simple measurement into each dish. Below are our tips on how Livliga can help you lose weight.

10 Tips on how Livliga can help you lose weight

1.Reminds you of a balanced meal—the circles on each plate signify one of the food groups that make up a balanced meal to make sure we are mindful of what we eat as well as how much we should eat

2. Design helps make specific portion sizes look plentiful—every dish has a specific size to make the food placed in or on it look plentiful so you don't feel like you are serving up less than you should.

3. Shape of each piece of Livliga helps make measured food look like enough so you don’t feel deprived or denied--take a look at our plate of food compared to the typical dish used today.

4. Colors support taking time and enjoying a meal—we have developed a Livliga palette of non-trigger colors that includes hues of blue since blue has been proven to be a appetite suppressing color helping you feel fuller faster on right-sized amounts of food.

5. Provides measurement built right into the plate—and we always provide a map on the back of each dinner plate to show you what those measurements are for each dish—the serving sizes are according to the USDA MyPlate.gov for which Livliga is a National Strategic Partner.

6. Helps you be mindful every time you consume foods or beverage—because everything we create has fill lines built in you can choose how much you consume.

7. System to help —from the very moment you want to prepare and serve up your meal Livliga has you covered for right-sizing your meals including our LivSpoons and Aveq serving bowl, to the map on the back of each dinner plate to remind you what each measurement is, to a full suite of tableware that provides you with the perfect dishware, glassware or serveware for whatever you want to consume.

8.Designed so you can use it for every meal and with your family and friends so you don’t have to feel isolated or different.

9. Inspires you to keep going—you want to use these beautiful dishes because they make you feel good and better about the food you are eating. Livliga incorporates psychology of eating in each piece, and Celebrate even inspires you with words so you can positively affect your mood and be more in control of what you eat.

10.Works with any reputable diet plan—Weight Watchers, Paleo, Vegetarian, Whole30, South Beach, DASH, LowCarb, Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Mediterranean, plus others!

Download Our Free eBook:
Healthy Lifestyle & Weight Loss

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Ten Quick Tips for Bariatric Friendly Mindful Eating

Eating with Intention and Attention

The key to mindful eating is being fully present when you eat. It is about eating with intention and attention. This allows you to be aware of your food environment and the food you are eating. Being mindful also creates a positive space for you to eat right-sized healthy foods, enjoy the process, and feel satisfied at the end of the meal.

Since we have spent most of our lives grazing when we eat, not paying attention to what we eat or the amounts we eat, it is a journey to become fully mindful and present when we eat. This is particularly true in the bariatric community. Thinking ahead about how to support ourselves in making a manageable space for being mindful when we eat helps us prepare to be present.

Sit down to eat

  Below are Ten Quick Tips for Bariatric Friendly Mindful Eating:

1.  Right size your food environment, starting with your dishes 
2.  Eliminate any distractions at mealtime—turn off the TV
3. Make time for your meal, don’t rush it, slow down and enjoy
4. Sit down to eat
5. Create an attractive environment to eat that makes your feel good as you eat. Feast your eyes as well as your stomach
6. Chew slowly to allow you to savor the flavors
7. Put your cutlery down between bites to help you slow down and appreciate your meal
8. Plan out when you eat and what you eat for each day. Think about making your meals colorful and interesting. Vary your menus. 
9. Measure your food. Busy week? Prepare your recipes and pre-measure multiple meals. This helps you become effortlessly mindful
10. At the end of the meal take a moment to be aware of how you feel both physically and emotionally. Become aware of what it feels like to feel full and satisfied.

Measure Your Food

   There are many benefits to becoming mindful. First and foremost it helps us succeed long term in living a healthy lifestyle. It assists us in changing our relationship with food. Other benefits for the bariatric community are:

    •    Knowing when you are full sooner
    •    Feeling satisfied with less food
    •    Reduces chances of over-eating
    •    Improved digestion

Enjoy! And Live Vibrant!

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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--reusable water bottle

#MondayMotivation
#SignOfAHealthyLifestyle
#Hydration
#Intention
#HidrateBottle
#SelfCare
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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--An Annual Park Pass

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#SignOfAHealthyLifestyle
#ActiveLifestyle
#Intention
#ParkPass
#SelfCare
#OutdoorActivity
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Fathers As Cornerstones To Their Child’s Healthy Life

We know parents are key role models in their children’s lives. There are many studies that show us the power of the parent in influencing a child’s life, both positively and negatively. When it comes to a child growing up healthy, eating healthy and living a healthy lifestyle the behavior a parent exhibits is profound.

Some might think that when it comes to food and eating, it is the mom who is the source and guide. Physical activity from sports to summer fun is often on the mom to organize. Not any more. Roles have shifted and responsibilities are shared between parents. Being a father today is much different than it was just a couple of decades ago. Fathers are often equally engaged in their children’s lives from making meals to hauling kids to and from their extracurricular activities. There are no set rules any more.

My husband and I have shared responsibilities, pretty much equally, our entire marriage. In fact, our youngest when she was little had a name for us “momdad” or “dadmom” that she used indiscriminately. We were equal in her eyes and either of us could be looked to in order to help her with whatever need she had.

I remember when the first movies came out about stay-at-home dads like Mr Mom with Michael Keaton. It was such a big deal. My amazing husband took on that role himself for a few years. The kids learned a lot about how a role isn’t defined by your gender. Instead they see the importance of the responsibilities that need to be met in a family and how we all take on roles that are needed to support the health of the family and make it thrive. 

 

Living a healthy life is not just about the food served at the table. It is about how you live life every day. Especially in the volatile world we live in today, it is about how you meet personal challenges and face crisis. It is also about how you celebrate life and acknowledge the big moments. The choices we make are how our children learn to react to similar situations themselves. They are learning from us and watching how we behave.

Being present in your child’s life can only be possible if we choose to be present in our own life. In the stress-filled lives we all live it is really hard to do. We often would rather escape into our phones, the TV or mindless eating. The good news is life is a journey. None of us is perfect and we all have plenty to improve on to live the best and healthiest life we can. By being willing to change and including our kids in the process we are doing the best role modeling possible. 

My kids are very lucky. They have seen their dad face multiple personal challenges and as a result of them embrace change, however difficult, to make life better for him and his family. Two big changes their dad has made is first to stop smoking and then to stop drinking alcohol. They have also seen him wholly embrace living a healthy lifestyle from working out every morning at the YMCA to bike riding and kayaking to changing the amounts and types of foods he eats. What an incredible gift he has given his children. He hasn’t told his children how to live a healthy life, he has shown them, one change at a time. He is healthier and happier for it and so is our family.

Dads are so important as role models for their children. In this era of global volatility and escalating obesity, especially in our children, dads are cornerstones to their child’s healthy life. Real dads facing real challenges as part of life’s journey with the willingness to change will help their kids live healthier lives.

May we celebrate dads on Father’s Day and everyday. To their health! Live vibrant!

Download Our Free Kids’ Activity eBook!
Sammie & Sax: Fun, Food, & Fantastic Ideas

#LiveVibrant
#Livliga
#HealthyLifestyle
#HealthyLiving
#Fathers
#Parenting
#SammieandSax

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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle--workout clothes in closet

#MondayMotivation
#SignOfAHealthyLifestyle
#WorkoutClothes
#Intention
#Activewear
#SelfCare
#Wardrobe 
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Sign of a Healthy Lifestyle-- sunscreen and bug spray in the cabinet

#MondayMotivation
#SignOfAHealthyLifestyle
#sunscreen
#bugspray

#summertime
#SelfCare 

#Intention 

#Livliga
#LiveVibrant

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