Eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring! These turkey-stuffed bell peppers are the perfect meal for those days when you’re bored of eating healthy. Shhhh, your taste buds won’t suspect that this dish is low-carb and protein-filled. Serve over a bed of greens for a complete meal.
Servings: 5

Here’s what you need…

• 5 organic bell peppers
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tablespoons fresh basil, minced
• 1 yellow onion, minced
• 1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• dash of salt and pepper
• 20 oz organic ground turkey, 99% fat free
• 1 organic tomato, chopped
• 3/4 cup spaghetti sauce
• 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil, add a pinch of salt. Cut the tops off the bell peppers and remove the seeds. Place in the boiling water, using a spoon to keep them submerged for 3 minutes or until the skin is slightly softened. Drain and set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a baking pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
3. In a large skillet heat the oil on medium. Add the garlic, basil, onion, rosemary, parsley, salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the onions begin to soften. Add the ground turkey and continue to heat until the meat is browned. Add the tomato and cook for another 2 minutes.
4. Remove from heat. Pour the spaghetti sauce into the turkey mixture and mix well. Add the cheese and mix until well combined.
5. Stuff each prepared bell pepper with the turkey mixture and place on prepared baking sheet. Cook for 15-20 minutes until the bell peppers are tender.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 193 calories, 3 fat, 256mg sodium, 14g carbohydrate, 3g fiber, and 28g protein.

When you eat at home, you know what you’re getting.

Head to a restaurant, and it’s another story.

The ingredients, method of preparation, and portion size can easily add excess calories to your diet.

Restaurant menus have so many choices and are often full of unfamiliar terms. Is a food fried or baked? Does it come with a sauce or dressing? If you’re not careful, you won’t know answers to these questions and more until you ask them.

Before heading out to dinner tonight, here are some tips to enjoy a healthy meal.

So Many Options
When considering what to choose from dozens of options, you can easily become overwhelmed. Just as easy is to be tempted by the unhealthy choices. Thankfully, most restaurants these days include healthy options on their menus and label them accordingly.

For your main course, choose chicken, turkey, ham, or fish over beef. If it comes with a sauce, avoid creamy or cheesy sauces and go with a tomato or vegetable sauce.

Additionally, try to include a salad, fruit, or steamed vegetable, and go sparingly on dressings, cheese, salt, and butter. Instead of chips, fries, or fried rice, choose boiled rice or potatoes. Read more…

Eating out should be a luxury, not an everyday affair. If you find yourself choosing at restaurants more often than you’d like—especially if you’re eating all the wrong foods, cut back on your eating out ways and watch your calorie intake drop instantly!

Salmon is filled with quality protein and omega-3 benefits, making it the perfect center of your healthy dinner. Serve your salmon on a bed of fresh or braised greens.
Servings: 4

Here’s what you need:

• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, fat free
• 1 lime, juiced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 4 (3oz) wild caught salmon fillets

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a baking pan with nonstick spray and set aside.
2. In a small bowl combine the yogurt, lime juice, and garlic. Put half of the yogurt mixture aside in the fridge. Coat the salmon with the other half of the yogurt mixture and marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3. Place the salmon on prepared pan and bake for 20 minutes. Turn on the high broil for an additional 5 minutes until the top of the salmon has browned.
4. Serve the salmon on a bed of kale with a dollop of the reserved yogurt.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 172 calories, 6.9g fat, 62mg sodium, 1g carbohydrate, 0g fiber, and 24.6g protein.

You’re working out and eating well, but just can’t seem to lose weight. Could a slow metabolism be keeping you from your weight-loss goals? It just might.

What is your metabolism and what relationship does it have to weight gain? Can you speed up your metabolism to help your body burn more calories? Hang on tight, ‘cause you’re heading for a crash course in metabolism!

What is Metabolism?
The calories in your food or beverages combine with oxygen and create the energy necessary for your body to function. Metabolism is the complex, biochemical process in which your body takes what you eat and drink and converts it into energy. Your metabolism is constantly at work, even during rest and sleep when your body needs energy to breath, circulate blood, adjust hormones, repair cells, and grow new cells.

Your basal metabolic rate is the amount of calories it takes for your body to perform its basic functions. It affects how much energy your body needs to do its job and helps determine the number of calories you’ll burn each day. Many factors play a role in your basal metabolic rate.

The first is your body composition and size. Larger people and those with more muscle mass burn more calories even while resting. This means overweight people usually have a faster metabolic rate than their thinner peers.

The second factor affecting your metabolic rate is your sex. Men generally have more muscle and less fat and therefore burn more calories, giving them the advantage when it comes to metabolic rate. Read more…