Calories vs. Chemicals Part 1

Happy Monday everyone! Welcome to Calories vs. Chemicals part 1. 

In an effort to not gain the freshman 15 in college, I survived off of diet coke and lean pockets.  I thought diet coke was the most amazing thing since sliced bread and the lean pockets had way less calories than actual pizza... If I only knew what I was putting into my body! Once I stopped obsessing over calories and actually started to look at the ingredients in the food I was eating, (along with juicing) I then became successful in losing 30+lbs. 

 Throughout my year long journey as an avid juicer, I have learned so much about food and the myths behind what the food industry has had us eating up for years.  The biggest lesson learned has been that calories are not scary... the toxic chemical overload in food is.  Toxic chemicals are constantly accumulating in our bodies because the industry has had us obsessing over calories for years with labels like: "Low Calorie" "No Calorie" "100 Calories" 

Let me ask you a question... When you are purchasing your groceries and you turn your food or drink item over to check the calories, protein, fat etc.  How often are you checking the ingredients? 

   

When we focus only on the calories, we miss the fact that in exchange they are filling our food with toxic chemicals.  

& the scariest part about this is 

The more we fill our bodies with nutrient dense foods & empty calories, the harder we make it on ourselves to lose weight and the more we put our health at risk.  

Here is a short 2 minute video on chemicals in our food! I love this video and the way it describes what science and technogoly is doing to our food.

Let's take a look a protein bar.  Most of us think a protein bar is an optimal healthy snack.  They have protein, tons of delicious flavors, they're portable... something we can keep in our car or purse.  In hindsight, it's perfect! Not to mention that it comes off as a healthy alternative. 

At a first glance we see 20 grams of protein 

Flip it over and read

Calories: 280 

Fat: 10g 

Carb: 29g 

Protein: 20g 

Ingredients: 

Soy protein, isolate, beet juice concentrate, organic brown rice syrup, organic dried cane syrup, palm kernel oil, organic peanuts, cocoa, organic rolled oats, vegetable glycerin, soy protein concentrate, natural flavors, peanuts, peanut flour, rice starch, organic sunflower oil, unsweetened chocolate, inulin (chicory extract) sea salt, organic oat fiber, soy, lecithin, calcium carbonate, organic vanilla extract, cocoa butter, vanilla extract, natural vitamin E, calcium, carbonate, magnesium oxide, ascorbic acid, DL-Aplha tocopheryl acetate, thiamine monoitrate, beta carotene, niacin amide, D-Calcium pantothenate, riboflavin, pyridoxine hydrochloride, erocalciferol, cyanocobalamin, potassium iodide.  

Can you pronounce that last sentence?  I know I had a hard time with it.  I am not in any way trying to discredit protein bars or say that you should never eat them. I am just simply trying to bring awareness to the chemical overload in foods we think are better than others.  

3 Rules of Thumb

 If you can't pronounce it, Don't eat it 

Try to stick to prepackaged or frozen foods that have 10 ingredients or less 

If it has a long shelf life, put it down 

If anything, I encourage you to start reading the labels on the back of food.  When you can, buy local. Food should always come from the farm and go straight to your table.  Ditch the diet and just be the healthiest, happiest version of yourself that you can be! 

Stay tuned for part 2 later this week, where we will compare and decode labels! 

XoXo

-Ashley 

For Daily Tips and Recipes follow me on: 

Instagram: ashleynicolemora1 

Twitter: MissAshleyMoora 

Juicing vs Blending

 Juicing is still a new concept for a lot of us therefore, I thought this week I would write about what juicing really is and how it’s different from blending. People tell me all time, “I just started juicing this weekend and I love my Nutribullet!” Although I too love my Nutribullet, using such like products is not considered to be “juicing” So this blog will be entirely dedicated to breaking down the difference between juicing and blending.

What is a juicer?

The sole purpose of a juicer is to extract the water and nutrients from fruits and vegetables. The produce will be fed through a strainer, which extracts all the liquid. Once the juicing process is done, you’re left with a liquid version of all your fruits and veggies making it a lot easier to get your daily dose of nutrients. (Plus, it’s a lot easier to down a quick glass of veggies rather than trying to sit down and eat an entire plate full of vegetables!)  Juicing fruits and veggies provides us with a hefty dose of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that immediately nourish our cells.  When you are juicing your final product should be 100% liquid with no pulp. 

Here is a list of Juicers that I recommend.

(I personally use the Breville Juice Fountain)

The Breville Juice Fountain Mulit-Speed $199.99 at Bed Bath and Beyond (make sure and use the 20% off coupon)

The Jack Lalane $99.00 at Bed Bath and Beyond (make sure and use the 20% off coupon)

The Juice Bullet by Magic Bullet $79.00 at Target 

The Black and Decker $31.43 at Wal-Mart 

*** All of these juicers can also be found on amazon and craigslist! 

 

What is a blender?

Everyone always asks me about the Nutribullet and the Ninja.  Both the Nutribullet and the Ninja are smoothie makers.  What goes into them is exactly what comes out. There is no extracting involved. The main difference between a blender and juicer is the final product.  The texture and taste of a juice and smoothie are completely different. I've tried the same recipe in both a blender and a juicer and they tasted completely different. With a smoothie you are going to be getting more fiber because all of the pulp is left in the drink. 

So which is better….Juicing or Blending?

         Although they are different, the answer is both! 

 Juicing Benefits:

·      No Digestion needed (it’s important to give your digestive system a break every now and then)

·      Disregards indigestible ingredients

·      Makes nutrients more readily available to the body in larger quantities

·      100% Liquid (zero pulp)

·      Nutrients and Vitamins directly go to the blood stream

·      Your body doesn’t need to use a lot of energy to process juice which leaves you feeling more energized

·      Benefits those with weak digestive track 

Blending Benefits:

·      Retains Fiber

·      You can use frozen ingredients

·      More filling than juice

·      Fiber helps balance blood sugar levels

CAUTION: 

All of the recipes on my blog are designed for juicers not blenders.  If you try to duplicate a recipe in your blender, it will probably overflow! You will have to cut the ingredients WAY down in a blender and the taste for my recipes will be completely different as a smoothie because they were intended to be made as juices. 

I hope this helped! If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment! 

XoXo, 

Ashley

For Daily Tips and Recipes follow me on: 

Instagram: ashleynicolemora1 

Twitter: MissAshleyMoora