Starling Fitness: Daily writings on Fitness, Diet, and Health

Fall is the perfect time for squash and one of the more interesting to choose from is eggplant. The Boston Globe has a few recipes on how to cook the purple plant.

• An Eye for Eggplant – The Boston Globe

Eggplant is best prepared over a fire:

“Smoke and eggplant is one of the great flavor pairings, so much so that each of the regions of the Middle East and all the countries that border the Mediterranean have a smoky eggplant dish. Cooked over low coals, the taut skin of the vegetable collapses, the flesh takes on a mild smoky flavor, and when pureed with olive oil and lemon juice, the eggplant turns silky.”

Next time you hit the grocery store, pick up an eggplant and experiment with your barbeque. You might discover a new dish that is tasty AND healthy.

Mary, from fitfemme, opened up in the locker room with a woman who had lost eight pounds in just a couple of weeks. Her secret:

Don’t eat the donuts at work.

• fitfemme: Mary’s fitness blog: In the locker room

They discusses the behavior of coworkers who bring fatty and sugary treats to work every day and came to an interesting conclusion:

“The colleague replied that she had a family member who worked at Krispy Kreme, so she got a discount–and then she added that perhaps by eating lots of doughnuts some of the older workers would vacate their jobs more quickly and create promotional opportunities for the younger ones.”

They’re not only trying to sabatoge your diet, they are trying to sabatoge your life. Next time you see a box of treats in the break room, pass them by. They’re not worth your waistline or your life.

The end of summer has come up so quickly that I almost forgot that the new television season is coming up and with it, The Biggest Loser.

• NBC.com > The Biggest Loser

I was not a fan of this show at the beginning of the season last year, but this year, I’ll be waiting at the edge of the couch to watch! This year they have contestants from every state in the United States. One person from each state makes for a lot of contestants, so I don’t know if I’ll be able to pick my favorites like I did last year. It will definitely be a change.

They have replaced Jillian Andersen Michaels with a blonde named Kim Lyons. A press release from NBC said that Jillian left of her own free will to pursue other interests. Jillian’s website says NOTHING about it, so I guess I just have to believe them. I’m going to miss Jillian. I like her technique much better than the touchy feely stuff Bob does. I don’t know anything about Kim Lyons except what NBC says, and that all sounds like a bunch of hype. I’m kind of bothered that they went with such a cutie. I know it’s not fair to judge someone by their looks (isn’t that what bothered me when I was fat?), but I have nothing but hype and her looks to judge her by. I can’t wait to watch the show to see how it will be.

Last year, The Biggest Loser was SO motivating to me. Watching all those people give it their all really helped me to give it my all. They were exercising four hours a day. I could fit an hour a day into my schedule. I watched them all fall while I exercised. Sometimes I’d watch the episode two or three times a week. I am really looking forward to seeing this season’s show!

Via: Season 3 of “Biggest Loser” features contestant from each state – That’s Fit

Sometimes I forget that not everyone has heard about all the good things to do with food AND keep it low calorie until I am reminded by someone else. Here is a foodie review of No Pudge Brownies. They are a brand of brownie mixes that taste as good as the real thing with far less calories.

• Light Life: No Pudge Brownies – Slashfood

No Pudge Brownies were kind of hard for me to find in my store (until I asked them to stock them), so if you can’t find them, you can order them at Amazon. They come in a variety of flavors:

• No Pudge Original Fudge Brownie Mix, 13.7 oz

• No Pudge Fudge Brownie Mix – Cappuccino, 14 oz

• No Pudge Fudge Brownie Mix – Mint, 14 oz

The best part of No Pudge Brownies is that they have directions to make ONE brownie in the microwave. It turns out not quite as good as a brownie baked in an oven, but the serving size can’t be beat. If you have trouble limiting your servings when a pan of delicious brownies comes out of the oven, you might want to try No Pudge Brownies. You can make yourself one brownie and keep yourself safe from the rest of the pan.

Threadless is a strange company. They let anyone post a design for a t-shirt on their website. They let anyone vote on the designs. If the design gets enough votes, then they will actually make t-shirts with that design on it. The person who designed it, gets a $2000 prize. How’s that for cool?

The above photo is a t-shirt design that is currently being voted upon. It’s called Heart Attack! and it’s a pretty accurate depiction of what fast food does to your body. The little hot dog and hamburger look so mean. They’re just going to beat that heart into a bloody pulp.

If you’d like to vote for this t-shirt, you can do so here (registration required):

• Threadless T-Shirts – Heart Attack!

The best thing about Threadless is that they carry plus sizes for their cool shirts. The Girly T runs a little small, even in XL, but the regular t-shirt size comes in a generous 2X size. They allow their users to post pictures of themselves wearing the t-shirts, so you are able to see what it would look like on you. I find this particularly valuable when I am wondering how the shirt will look on a woman with ample breasts. I hate it when you can’t even tell what’s on the shirt because half the design is on the underside of my boobs.

If you are threadless, be naked no more and get yourself a t-shirt!

The reason you should write down everything you eat is an awareness issue. It’s really easy to eat one potato chip here and five M&M’s here, but when you add up all those little tastes and bites, it can pile on the pounds.

This article from Slashfood talks about just that and gives you the calorie counts for small quantities of food that might end up in your mouth.

• Bet you can’t eat just one – Slashfood

Even after years of eating healthy, I find that I do better when I’m writing down everything I eat. Part of it is awareness and part of it is laziness. If I know I have to log the food, sometimes I’m just too lazy to eat it.

For some reason, I am enthralled with the idea of making my own raisins. I can buy a box of them at the store for cheaper than the fresh grapes, yet I have the compelling urge to try this on my own. You can find the directions here:

• How to make raisins at home – Slashfood – by Nicole Weston

Nicole says that it took a week of blistering heat to go from fresh grapes to raisins. The true benefit is that you know there is nothing in your home-dried raisins. No one added sugar on the outside to make them sweeter. They’re just plump and juicy raisins straight from the sun to you.

My grandma used to make fruit leather during the summer heat waves of my youth. I found a site that gives you detailed instructions on how to make your own:

• MAKING FRUIT LEATHER

Remember, dried fruit and raisins are concentrated fruit. One serving is a quarter cup (instead of a half cup). If you eat large quantities of either, it’s the same as eating candy. Make sure you watch your portions and enjoy fruit in this unique way.

CNN has an article from sport nutritionists that talk about how to eat when you’re working out. Whether you workout in the morning, at lunch or in the evening, they have recommendations for you.

• CNN.com – Get the right fuel for your workout – Jul 25, 2006

I workout in the morning. Sometimes I can just wake up and go for a run with no problems. Other times, I end up shaky and needing to eat when I get home. If I eat beforehand, I’ve had trouble with nausea during the run.

The most important thing is to listen to your body.

I haven’t seen that recommended enough anywhere. CNN has given you guidelines on how to eat healthy, but they aren’t set in stone. Be aware of how your body feels and fuel it accordingly. That’s the best advice you can follow.

This article from Treatment Online talks about how Americans are eating so much. Not the why, but the how.

• Treatment Online – Studying the Rules of Consumption

It talks about unit food. We eat one banana instead of eating enough of a banana to feel satisfied. Since the units of our food are bigger (supersizing) we have been eating more.

It also talks about the differences of our culture from places where food is scarce and teaching immigrants how to eat healthy in a world of abundance.

For me, I know exactly how I eat too much. It doesn’t happen every day. It happens when I binge. It’s not food companies making my units too large. It’s me eating too much to compensate for feeling my emotions.

When I can conquer that, I will finally be healthy.

The Accidental Hedonist brings to mind the thoughts that have been plaguing me for years: why do people think French Food is so good?

• Accidental Hedonist – Is French Food All it’s cracked up to be?

Escargo? Tastes like gritty butter. Lobster bisque? Tastes like fishy cream. Smelly cheese? Well, it tastes like smelly cheese.

It has been even worse for me since the release of French Women Don’t Get Fat. Not only was French Food touted as the height of culinary cuisine, it was supposed to be more healthy for you too.

Maybe my palate is too undiscerning for French Food. I like mac n’ cheese. I like ramen noodles. Neither are very healthy for me, but if I’m going to splurge, I think I spend the evening with Kraft instead of Pierre.