Tuesday Tidbits

Hi everyone! Once again, I kind of disappeared for a short time. SORRY! I have the day off of work and am finally getting caught up on some much needed blogging.

I thought it would be fun to discuss some nutrition tidbits with you today. As a registered dietitian, I am a complete nerd when it comes to nutrition facts and research. And, I love sharing nutrition information with anyone that will listen!
Nutrition research, like other medical research fields, changes all the time. It’s so fascinating how much new information comes out every day. I think it will be fun to share some “new” (at least new to me) facts and information every Tuesday. Please feel free to start discussions in the comment section if you know more about the topic discussed or have questions 

Okay, let the nutrition nerdiness begin!!

• What is green coffee extract??

Have any of you heard of this as a weight loss strategy? It seems to be a new craze in the weight loss world of nutrition. One of my friends called me a few weeks ago to ask if I would recommend trying this supplement for weight loss.

Green coffee extract is a supplement made from green unroasted coffee beans. You can find it in capsule form or a powder form that can be added to food/beverages. It contains naturally occurring caffeine and chlorogenic acid (which is an antioxidant). The chlorogenic acid is thought to be the key ingredient in this supplement. Studies have shown that chlorogenic acid inhibits fat accumulation and reduce weight in animals and humans. Green coffee extract is also thought to reduce postprandial glucose concentrations (glucose in your blood after you eat).

SO…my initial reaction to all the research about green coffee extract is…there is NO magic pill for weight loss!!! Much more research needs to be done to determine the safety and efficacy of this supplement. It is also necessary to determine dosing and the best formulary. Another thing to think about is the negative effects of high intakes of caffeine. A high intake of caffeine can lead to headaches, gastric issues, and anxiety.

Although I find the research behind this supplement fascinating, I would still advise any patients, clients or friends to focus on a healthy lifestyle that includes healthy eating and exercise for healthy weight loss!

• Avocados!!!
o Okay, now let’s focus on a SUPER FOOD! I absolutely love avocados. So, I’m going to share some basic tidbits with you!
o Avocados are a fruit, not a vegetable.
o They are cholesterol and sodium free!!
o They have the highest protein content of any fruit.
o 1/5 of a medium avocado contains at least 20 vitamins and minerals!!
o To reduce oxidation (browning) of an already-sliced avocado, sprinkle lemon juice on the exposed flesh and refrigerate in a plastic bag.
o They are full of healthy fats!
o Avocados are a higher calorie food—so if you are counting calories remember to focus on portion sizes!

Here’s a guacamole recipe to try:

Ingredients:
• 6 ripe avocados, seeded and peeled
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• 2 green chiles, diced
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 1 tsp. seasoned salt
Instructions:
1. In a large mixing bowl, mash avocados, leaving some chunks.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix.
3. Enjoy with some whole wheat chips or pita bread! Also great with veggies!! 

How do you all feel about weight loss supplements?? What’s your favorite way to eat an avocado??

Weekly Meals

Happy Tuesday! I hope you all are having a great week so far! I will be writing the next post about my journey to becoming a Registered Dietitian this week. But, today I am going to share my meal plan for the week. It’s been awhile since I have shared my meals for the week. I’m happy that my life is a little less chaotic now so I have some more time to plan and cook delicious meals 
Here is the plan for the week (Monday already happened and was DELICIOUS!!)

MONDAY: Buffalo Chicken Enchiladas (http://www.preventionrd.com/buffalo-chicken-enchiladas/)
I found this recipe on Pinterest. The original source is listed above. You definitely need to try these ASAP! They are delicious and not very time consuming!

TUESDAY: Skinny Taco Stuffed Peppers (www.skinnymom.com)
This recipe looks nutritious, delicious and easy! PERFECT!

WEDNESDAY: Leftovers
The easiest meal to plan is always leftovers! If there isn’t anything left from Tuesday, we will have salads with the leftover ground turkey from Tuesday.

(readyseteat.com)

THURSDAY: Shrimp Cocktail and Caesar Salads
Easy and light meal! Sometimes by Thursday night I am ready to eat a very light meal. Shrimp cocktail is also a great way to include some fish into the week.

FRIDAY: Date night—eat out!
We are trying to be really good about not eating out during the week. Fridays generally include a dinner out with a couple cocktails or eating at a friend’s house.

I have no food plans for the weekend yet. I will do a quick recap of these meals this weekend!
Are you trying any new recipes this week? If so, please share!!!

Next step: Completing Your Degree in Nutrition!

I’m back with the next step in my journey to becoming a registered dietitian…getting my B.S. in Food and Nutrition. It feels like this step happened such a long time ago (let’s be honest it DID), so I will try my best to be helpful!

(www.womeninamerica.net)

The first step is finding a college or university that offers the major you are looking for. The names for the major vary…Nutrition, Food and Nutrition, Nutrition Sciences, Food Science. When you are researching schools, the website will most likely indicate whether the program is a Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD). DPD is a term used by the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education to describe the program approved under the Standards of Education as meeting academic requirements to achieve a bachelor’s degree in this field. This is an example of what it might say on the website, “A graduate will attain a verification statement upon completing the CADE-approved dietetics program curriculum in addition to a minimum of a “C” or better in each required program course at graduation. A graduate is then eligible to apply for a CADE-accredited supervised practice/dietetic internship or other post-baccalaureate experience.”(www.montana.edu) I definitely did not understand this when I started college…it’s probably best to email the school to make sure that the program will prepare you and make you eligible to apply to a dietetic internship upon graduation.

Once you pick your school and get accepted, you can start tackling all of the classes that need to be taken prior to graduation. Every school will require slightly different courses, so I won’t go too much into this part. Just make sure you find an advisor that you can meet with each semester to make sure you stay on track—it can be really confusing! Some of the classes you will see on your “required” list are chemistry, biochemistry, organic chemistry, anatomy and physiology, micronutrient metabolism and medical nutrition therapy. (Organic chemistry and micronutrient metabolism were two classes that were very challenging for me!)

(I should have probably purchased this book in college

During your senior year, you will likely have a class that focuses on pursuing your career in dietetics. I hope every school offers a class like this because it helped me figure things out for sure! Your professors and advisors will be your best resource during the confusing/stressful process of applying for an internship.

My advice during your undergraduate days is to soak up all of the information that you can! Also, keep your grades up…many internships require a 3.5 or greater to be considered. If possible, try to work in the field of nutrition as much as possible. Any work experience in the field of nutrition looks great on your application…waitressing/cooking, research/lab/teaching assistant for a nutrition course, sanitation jobs on campus, and lots of other options! And, volunteer, volunteer, volunteer! Volunteering in the field of nutrition and in other areas is very rewarding, very educational and looks REALLY good on your applications! Lastly, ENJOY your college days! You can definitely work toward your future career goals while having a great time and making lifelong memories!

(This is from grad school…I couldn’t find my undergrad pics)

Okay, I think that covers the nutrition degree portion of becoming an RD. Next, I will talk about the internship application process and things to look at before choosing an internship! Any other RDs out there that have any advice about the college days of becoming an RD?? Please share!

Weekend!

Hi there! Work has been a little crazy the past couple weeks which has led to a slight blogging break SORRY!! I am working on the rest of the blog series about my journey to become a registered dietitian. But for now let’s talk about weekend workouts!

(www.atozchallenge.com)

Do you guys use weekends as rest days for your workouts? I tend to take a rest day in the middle of the week (usually because something comes up that changes my workout plans!!). So weekends are a time for me to add as much physical activity in as I can! My weekend workouts tend to be outside with friends or family rather than in a workout class at the gym. I love changing things up!

(www.crossfitrebels.com)

This weekend started with a 4 mile walk with my boyfriend. We parked at the start of the trail and walked the 2 mile trail and turned around. It was perfect weather for a walk—at least perfect for Montana weather! I think it was around 40 degrees and sunny. It was a great walk/workout. Now it’s Saturday and time for another workout. I decided to skip my usual 9:00 Oula class and go for a walk with my friend and her puppy instead. We are heading out shortly to face the cold weather and get some exercise! Sunday will include lots of walking around potential houses to purchase! After house hunting I will probably go to the gym to do some weight lifting. To me, this is the perfect weekend, a combination of relaxation and productivity!

(www.city-data.com)

I hope you all are having a great weekend! I WILL have another post up soon!

What’s your favorite weekend workout??

The Steps to Becoming a Registered Dietitian

Hi there! I have had a couple people ask if I could talk about my journey to becoming a registered dietitian. In this post I am going to do a big overview of the whole process. Then, I will break it down into a couple more posts. It was a really interesting experience, and I love sharing it with future RDs. Please feel free to email/comment if you have any specific comments or questions!

Step 1: Getting your Nutrition Degree:
I started my education at Montana State University. I switched my major a few times before deciding on nutrition. Exercise science and education were the first two majors that I chose. I ended up completing my education requirements and my nutrition requirements at the same time. It only added one year to my college days—which I didn’t’ mind at all because I LOVED college! Anyways, once I took the basic human nutrition course I knew that nutrition was the right fit for me.
The best thing to do when starting any program in college is to meet with your advisor to make sure you are taking the right classes for your degree. It can be really confusing at first! Nutrition curriculums include a lot of chemistry classes—be prepared for organic chemistry, it’s not easy (or at least wasn’t for me). I will talk more about exact class requirements in a separate post.
One tip for your college days if you plan to apply to a dietetic internship and/or grad school—be very involved with everything related to nutrition! Most schools have clubs and volunteer opportunities for nutrition students. I was a member of the student dietetic association, worked as the school’s sanitation manager, volunteered to help graduate students with nutrition research projects and volunteered for numerous other events like Relay for Life. I enjoyed doing all of these things and honestly didn’t think of them as a way to get me into an internship—but I was told by my grad school program that these things are necessary for acceptance.

Step 2: Choosing your Internship Path:
The next step is deciding if you want to apply for an internship or a coordinated program. You have to complete a 1,200 hour dietetic internship prior to taking the RD exam. I chose the coordinated program. I will go into more detail of the program in a later post. But, the main reason I chose the program is because I knew I eventually wanted to get my master’s degree, and the internship is one year long and grad school only added one more year. To me, it just made the most sense. But, if you don’t want to go to grad school and do research, applying to an internship is also an option. Both are a huge commitment!
The application process has changed since I applied. I filled out separate applications to all of the schools/internships. Now, it’s a matching process, so you fill out one application and rank your choices. Your advisor or director of the nutrition program should be able to help you with this process. It’s really important to do a lot of research before making your choices!! Some programs will match your needs exactly and others are not what you were looking for. It’s amazing how different all of the programs are!

Step 3: After You Get Accepted!:
Once you find out you were accepted into a program, it’s time to CELEBRATE!! Becoming an RD is highly competitive, so getting into an internship program is a huge accomplishment. Take the opportunity seriously and soak up all of the information and experiences you can! I will share stories from my internship later! The best advice I got from my internship director is “don’t burn any bridges”. Basically treat every internship rotation as if it is your first day of a new job. You never know when one of your preceptors will be the person who decides if you get a job.

Step 4: Take the RD Exam and Apply for Licensure:
The internship process is a lot of work, and when you finish you will probably feel completely drained. But, make sure you save some motivation to study for your RD exam. It usually takes at least a month for the paperwork from your internship to be completed. So, this gives you time to study. I will share all of my RD exam experiences with you guys too!

Step 5: You’re Officially a Registered Dietitian:
Now it’s time to choose your career and start helping people live happier, healthier lives!!

Hope this post helps with the basics. Stay tuned for more specific info! Ask your questions in the comment section so I can address them in the next posts!!!

Healthified Twice Baked Potatoes

Happy Monday! I hope everyone is having a happy, healthy day so far.

Last weeks’ meals were delicious! The only change that I made was that I ended up cooking the chicken on my George Foreman instead of the crock-pot—equally easy and equally delicious.

I am going to share the twice baked baby red potato recipe with you because I made some healthy changes to the original recipe! The original recipe is from http://www.tasteofhome.com, and I’m sure the original recipe is delicious too. So here it is:

Ingredients:
• 12 small red potatoes (thoroughly washed)
• 1/8 cup butter (I used Earth Balance)
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup crumbled cooked turkey bacon
• 2/3 cup fat-free plain Greek yogurt• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon paprika

(The italicized items above are the changes I made to the original recipe. I used less butter than the recipe called for and chose to use Earth Balance. I used fat-free plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. I also used turkey bacon instead of regular bacon.)

Directions:
• Place potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook for approximately 15 minutes or until tender. Drain water.

• When cool enough to handle, cut a thin slice off the top of each potato. Scoop out pulp, leaving a thin shell.
• In a large bowl, mash the potato tops and pulp with butter. Set aside 2 tablespoons each of cheese and turkey bacon for garnish; add remaining cheese and turkey bacon to potatoes. Stir in the Greek yogurt, egg, salt and pepper. Spoon mixture into potato shells. Top with remaining cheese and turkey bacon; sprinkle with paprika.

• Place in an ungreased baking pan. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until heated through.

These potatoes were FILLING!!! We had chicken with marinara and parmesan with the potatoes, but next time I would just serve them with a salad or some steamed veggies. It was way too much filling food. I had one potato and one small piece of chicken and was stuffed! The only thing this meal was lacking was veggies—that will be fixed next time!!

Do you guys have any fun plans for Valentine’s Day??

Stay tuned for another post this week on juicing!!

Weekly Meals: First Week of February!

I am in Las Vegas right now getting ready to watch the Super Bowl, but we have to go back to reality tomorrow! I planned ahead to post my weekly recipes for this week!

I plan on running to the grocery store when we get back home on Monday—so if any of my recipe plans change I will update the recipes!

Monday:

Skinny Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo. I found this recipe on Pinterest! I have always loved alfredo sauce. There is something about the rich, creaminess that makes it hard to pass up! So this recipe immediately caught my eye. The original recipe was from http://www.celebrations.com.

Tuesday:

Leftovers. I will probably add some fresh broccoli and serve leftovers for Monday. Waste not, want not, right??

(www.celebrations.com)

Wednesday:

Crock-pot chicken with twice baked baby red potatoes. Not 100% sure which recipe I will use for the chicken yet. But, probably just a few seasonings, chicken broth and water. The twice baked baby red potatoes look delicious. I found the original recipe from www.tasteofhome.com, but I “healthified” it! I will share the altered recipe with you next week (after I know it tastes good).

Thursday:

Leftovers again! So original!

Friday:

We weren’t sure of our plans for the weekend yet so I didn’t plan for Friday.

(ambirtechnology.wordpress.com)

The meals for this week are simple and healthy, the best kind! Check back for a post about how to maintain healthy habits while on vacation…especially in Las Vegas, the city of indulgences!

What did you do for the Super Bowl?? Any good Super Bowl recipes to share??