Eat This, Not That

I have recently been inspired by the new Eat This, Not That book.  It has been featured on Yahoo and Men's Health.  It simply gives examples of "bad foods" that can be swapped out for healthier choices.  So, as a college athlete staying fit is a must.  I have been living by the "No-Diet Weight Loss Solution" philosophy.  I'm currently under what I like to call a lifestyle change.  My days of eating entire boxes of HoHos have come to an end.  The first change that I made was eating breakfast- which has been a huge success.  I don't know who I thought I was... I honestly thought the "breakfast is the most important meal of the day" idea didn't apply to me.  There are truly no exceptions when it comes to this idea.  Before, I was skipping breakfast, having a small lunch, snacking, and binging at dinner which was making my calorie intake skyrocket.  I found that instantly I had more energy throughout the day and was eating well portioned meals throughout the day.

Many of you have heard the talk or maybe seen the commercials about high fructose corn syrup-a sugar replacement.  I happen to be one of the strong believers that it is truly deadly.  It has been linked to various problems such as diabetes, liver disease, even KILLING brain cells!  So, it was an easy choice to cut that out of my diet.  With that change, came the basics of eating organic and buying locally.

Controversial Commercial

Sooo, after this long tangent- I'm back to Eat This, Not That.  One of my all-time favorite treats were Toll House Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches.  After cutting out HFCS these were banned from my "diet" so I had to turn elsewhere for something comparable.  What I found was far beyond my expectations.  A delectable hand-made ice cream sandwich, by the name Ruby Jewel.  So, the calories are comparable with the Toll House treat coming in at 490 calories and it's competitor at 440.  But, with ingrediants such as bleached flour, vanillin (artificial flavor), and HFCS there is no doubt that I would be vying for the Ruby Jewel any day.  They use fresh mint, lavender, and honey in their various flavors as well as RBST-free milk.  Now, I'm not trying to advocate this as a healthy sweet treat that you should be eating everyday, but I do think that everyone needs to try them.  They are only found in select grocery stores throughout the state.  If you are ever in the Berkeley area it would be a huge mistake to not stop by the Bear Market and pick one up.