once again heres some more material I used in my past radio show. Enjoy!
Sleep Better For More Energy
By David Zinczenko with Matt Goulding, Men's Health
Thu, Apr 22, 2010
Thu, Apr 22, 2010
Forget what your mom told you: A glass of warm milk before bed might actually keep you up, rather than lull you to sleep. See, the protein in the milk will boost alertness — and unless it's skim, the fat will slow your digestion, making your rest more fitful. Not exactly the best shut-eye remedy. (Sorry, Mom.)
Nothing makes it harder to fall asleep than knowing how important it is to fall asleep. So when the pressure's on, try chowing down on one of these snacks before bedtime to ensure some serious shut-eye; they're all hand-picked and approved by the Eat This, Not That! nutrition team. These eight sleep-better foods and drinks have been shown to induce feel-good relaxation chemicals, calming your nerves and slowing your racing brain. You can thank us... tomorrow morning-after a long, restful night.
A good night's rest will make you feel and look younger. For more ways to make your body leaner, stronger, and fitter for life, try this best body plan.
Nonfat Popcorn
Pop a bag half an hour before bedtime: The carbs will induce your body to create serotonin, a neurochemical that makes you feel relaxed. Skip the butterfat so you don't slow the process of boosting those feel-good chemicals or, as mentioned above, digestion in general.
Oatmeal with Sliced Banana
Sleep is inspired by the hormone melatonin, but stress or excitement can disrupt melatonin's release. Bring your brain back down to earth by whipping up a bowl of instant oatmeal and topping it with a sliced banana, which is rich in melatonin.
1 Cup of Plain Yogurt with 2 Tablespoons of Mixed Nuts
Scientists in Slovakia gave people either 3 grams each of two amino acids (lysine and arginine) or a placebo and asked them to deliver a speech. Blood measurements of stress hormones revealed that the amino acid-fortified speakers were half as anxious during and after the speech as those who took the placebo. Yogurt is one of the best food sources of lysine; nuts pack tons of arginine. Because both contain alertness-inducing protein, you're better off eating this combo a few hours before bed (or even at midday, before a big, stressful presentation at work). It'll reduce the residual stress you feel later in the evening, meaning you won't replay your day over and over again in your head as you try to fall asleep.
A Pile of Sesame Seeds
Sesame seeds are one of the best natural sources of tryptophan, the sleep-inducing amino acid responsible for all of those post-Thanksgiving turkey comas. Hold off on the turkey sammies, though — the protein in the turkey might offset the tryptophan's benefit. Bust more sleep myths and learn expert advice on how to sleep restfully every night.
A Handful of Pretzels
Pretzels are a source of carbohydrates, which make you feel sleepy, but since they're also low in calories and fat, they won't pack on the pounds or give you belly-aching indigestion.
A 4-ounce Glass of Unsweetened Cherry Juice
Cherry juice has serotonin-inducing carbohydrates, which will help relax you. Down the cherry juice an hour before bedtime in case you feel a small jolt of energy from the sugar. There's not enough to keep you up all night or to destabilize your blood-sugar levels.
Red Bell Peppers
Researchers at the University of Alabama fed rats 200 milligrams of vitamin C twice a day and found that it nearly stopped the secretion of cortisol, a hormone released in your body when you're stressed. Calorie for calorie, red bell peppers give you more vitamin C than any other vegetable or fruit. You can protect your heart and prevent diseases, from cancer to Alzheimer's, by eating certain foods. Check out these 15 stealth health foods that work to keep you slim and healthy for life.
Nothing makes it harder to fall asleep than knowing how important it is to fall asleep. So when the pressure's on, try chowing down on one of these snacks before bedtime to ensure some serious shut-eye; they're all hand-picked and approved by the Eat This, Not That! nutrition team. These eight sleep-better foods and drinks have been shown to induce feel-good relaxation chemicals, calming your nerves and slowing your racing brain. You can thank us... tomorrow morning-after a long, restful night.
A good night's rest will make you feel and look younger. For more ways to make your body leaner, stronger, and fitter for life, try this best body plan.
Nonfat Popcorn
Pop a bag half an hour before bedtime: The carbs will induce your body to create serotonin, a neurochemical that makes you feel relaxed. Skip the butterfat so you don't slow the process of boosting those feel-good chemicals or, as mentioned above, digestion in general.
Oatmeal with Sliced Banana
Sleep is inspired by the hormone melatonin, but stress or excitement can disrupt melatonin's release. Bring your brain back down to earth by whipping up a bowl of instant oatmeal and topping it with a sliced banana, which is rich in melatonin.
1 Cup of Plain Yogurt with 2 Tablespoons of Mixed Nuts
Scientists in Slovakia gave people either 3 grams each of two amino acids (lysine and arginine) or a placebo and asked them to deliver a speech. Blood measurements of stress hormones revealed that the amino acid-fortified speakers were half as anxious during and after the speech as those who took the placebo. Yogurt is one of the best food sources of lysine; nuts pack tons of arginine. Because both contain alertness-inducing protein, you're better off eating this combo a few hours before bed (or even at midday, before a big, stressful presentation at work). It'll reduce the residual stress you feel later in the evening, meaning you won't replay your day over and over again in your head as you try to fall asleep.
A Pile of Sesame Seeds
Sesame seeds are one of the best natural sources of tryptophan, the sleep-inducing amino acid responsible for all of those post-Thanksgiving turkey comas. Hold off on the turkey sammies, though — the protein in the turkey might offset the tryptophan's benefit. Bust more sleep myths and learn expert advice on how to sleep restfully every night.
A Handful of Pretzels
Pretzels are a source of carbohydrates, which make you feel sleepy, but since they're also low in calories and fat, they won't pack on the pounds or give you belly-aching indigestion.
A 4-ounce Glass of Unsweetened Cherry Juice
Cherry juice has serotonin-inducing carbohydrates, which will help relax you. Down the cherry juice an hour before bedtime in case you feel a small jolt of energy from the sugar. There's not enough to keep you up all night or to destabilize your blood-sugar levels.
Red Bell Peppers
Researchers at the University of Alabama fed rats 200 milligrams of vitamin C twice a day and found that it nearly stopped the secretion of cortisol, a hormone released in your body when you're stressed. Calorie for calorie, red bell peppers give you more vitamin C than any other vegetable or fruit. You can protect your heart and prevent diseases, from cancer to Alzheimer's, by eating certain foods. Check out these 15 stealth health foods that work to keep you slim and healthy for life.
Natural Ways to Boost Your Metabolism
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A fast metabolism is critical to burning fat and managing body weight. While some dieters use diet pills to speed up their metabolisms, the risks and side effects of these drugs make them risky. You can use some safe and natural methods to speed up your metabolism.
Gain Muscle
The American Council on Exercise recommends resistance training for weight management. Think of your muscles as your body's engine. The bigger your engine, the more energy you can burn. Muscle, unlike fat, is active tissue that raises your metabolism just by being there. Adding a resistance training program is a sure method of naturally raising your metabolism. To make the most out of your time in the gym, train three days per week, training your entire body during each session. Use basic, compound exercises such as the leg press and shoulder press.Keep Hydrated
Inadequate water intake can slow your metabolism. Water is responsible for several metabolic processes, including digestion, waste management and temperature regulation. The Mayo Clinic recommends drinking 2 liters of water daily. You can fight hunger as well as raise your metabolism by drinking a glass before each meal. To provide an extra boost, make sure your water is ice cold. Your body burns extra calories heating it up to room temperature.Cardiovascular Exercise
Cardiovascular exercises such as walking, jogging and cycling are all effective ways to burn calories and keep your metabolism stoked. If you are just starting out, use a low-impact, low-intensity exercise such as brisk walking or moderate cycling. With more experience, you can graduate to jogging or intense cycling like spinning.Coffee
Whether you realize it or not, you might already be waking up to an effective natural metabolism booster. The caffeine naturally present in coffee raises metabolism and can improve fat oxidation. Drinking a cup before exercise can also improve alertness and help fight fatigue.Worst Fast-Food Meals in America
By David Zinczenko
Jul 06, 2010
Jul 06, 2010
As a kid growing up in the early '80s, I made every mistake in the book. I ate fast food instead of smart food. I played video games when I should've been playing outside. By the time I reached age 14, I was carrying 212 pounds on a 5'10" frame. (I wanted to be built like a basketball player, but instead was shaped more like a basketball.)
But I got lucky when I graduated from high school, enlisted in the Naval Reserve, and had the tenets of fitness pounded into me, day after day. Soon after I graduated from college, I joined Men's Health and learned the importance of proper nutrition and—just as important—the health threats inherent in carrying around too much fat in your gut. If you have a bulging belly, it means your internal organs, including your heart, are literally packed in fat.
My biggest lesson: Ordering dinner from a teenager in a paper hat can be like renting a room to an arsonist. (That's one of the reasons Cook This, Not That! came about. The goal was to prove that quickly prepared food doesn't have to be terrible for our health, so we created scores of delicious recipes that can be built in less time than you spend in the typical drive-thru line.)
In the past few years there's been some progress on the fast-food front. Many chains have answered our calls for healthier, lower-calorie options. Thing is, these efforts are almost always undermined by the rest of their menus. Show me a laminated menu (or plastic menu board), and I'll show you a meal that will absolutely obliterate your waistline. To wit: These five caloric calamities—among the worst fast-food meals in America.
WORST SEAFOOD DISHLong John Silver’s Fish Combo Basket
750 calories
42 g fat (10.5 g saturated, 12 g trans)
1,930 mg sodium
Holy deep-fried mackerel! That’s one gnarly fish. In terms of calories we’ve seen worse, but nothing compares to this unruly load of trans fat. According the American Heart Association, you should cap your trans fat intake at just 1 percent of total calories, which is around 2 grams for a 2,000-calorie diet. So with nearly six days’ worth, this plate is—ahem—swimming in trans fat. Blame Long John’s fryer. Because it’s filled with partially hydrogenated oil, everything it touches comes out wearing a greasy jacket of dangerous oils. Do your heart a favor and order off the Freshside Grille menu.
Eat This Instead!
Long John's Grilled Salmon Platter
380 calories
8 g fat (2 g saturated)
1,270 mg sodium
Long John's Grilled Salmon Platter
380 calories
8 g fat (2 g saturated)
1,270 mg sodium
And remember: Just because a food sounds healthy, doesn’t mean it is. Case in point: salads. Check out this shocking list of The Worst Salads in America, and learn which ones from your favorite restaurants can keep you lean and healthy.
WORST BREAKFASTHardee’s Loaded Biscuit and Gravy with Large Hash Rounds
1,530 calories
110 g fat (26 g saturated)
3,020 mg sodium
Biscuits and gravy falls pretty low in the hierarchy of healthy breakfast options, and the two hockey pucks of sausage that Hardee’s throws on top certainly don’t boost its standing. Add another shot of sausage in the gravy and a big sack of tater tot–like Hash Rounds on the side and you’ve got three-fourths of your day’s calories and well over a day’s worth of saturated fat. If this is how you start the day, expect it to be a rough one.
Eat This Instead!
Frisco Breakfast Sandwich
400 calories
18 g fat (7 g saturated)
1,350 mg sodium
Frisco Breakfast Sandwich
400 calories
18 g fat (7 g saturated)
1,350 mg sodium
For a better way to jumpstart your morning and your metabolism, and burn more fat, check out our list of Best and Worst Cereals. Those high in fiber and low in sugar will put your body in the sweet spot.
WORST CHICKEN ENTREEDairy Queen Chicken Strip Basket (6-piece w/Country Gravy)
1,640 calories
74 g fat (12 g saturated, 1 g trans)
3,690 mg sodium
New rule: Once it becomes a “strip,” it no longer qualifies as chicken. That’s because chicken has a reputation for being relatively healthy, and although that reputation is often abused by food processors, no other abuse in the fast-food kingdom comes close to approaching the egregious numbers in this basket. Snarf this thing down for lunch and you’ve just consumed nearly as many calories as you’d get in five Crispy Chicken Sandwiches from Wendy’s.
Eat This Instead!
Grilled Chicken Wrap and an All-Beef Hot Dog
490 calories
30 g fat (10.5 g saturated, .5 g trans)
1,350 mg sodium
Grilled Chicken Wrap and an All-Beef Hot Dog
490 calories
30 g fat (10.5 g saturated, .5 g trans)
1,350 mg sodium
Nutrition tip: Did you know that white chocolate isn't technically chocolate, since it contains no cocoa solids? (It's mostly fat and sugar.) For other free health, fitness, and nutrition secrets that will improve your life instantly, follow me on Twitter here.
WORST BURGER COMBOWendy’s Triple Baconator Combo Meal with small fries and small coke
1,850 calories
106 g fat (43 g saturated, 4 g trans)
2,790 mg sodium
Combo meals are a dangerous breed. The standard pairing at most fast-food joints is a burger with a side of fries. Oh, and that “free” beverage? Fill that cup with soda, even if it’s a small like this, and you’ve just tacked on as much sugar as you’d find in two-and-a-half Hershey’s bars. So here’s a better plan: Skip the combo meals altogether and order what you know will fill your belly up without filling it out. Then drink water—the world’s healthiest beverage—instead of soda. Chances are you’ll save more money, and in this case, you’ll also save more than 1,300 calories while still enjoying a delicious meal.
Eat This Instead!
Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger and Small Chili
540 calories
23 g fat (9 g saturated)
1,520 mg sodium
Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger and Small Chili
540 calories
23 g fat (9 g saturated)
1,520 mg sodium
Liquid calories are the most overlooked culprit behind America’s weight gain. See how many of these you’ve gulped down without realizing the damage it might be doing to your waistline: The 20 Worst Drinks in America.
WORST SUB-SHOP MEALQuiznos Tuna Melt (Large) with Cheetos
1,900 calories
145 g fat (29 g saturated, 2 g trans)
2,230 mg sodium
Don’t blame the chips. They contribute a paltry 160 calories to this meal. And at 110 calories, even the melted cheese is relatively innocuous. The real culprit here is the bucketload of mayonnaise that Quizno’s uses to convert its tuna into tuna salad. That’s how it winds up carrying more fat than two people should eat in an entire day. Best plan at Quizno’s: Skip the large subs. Nearly all eclipse 1,000 calories. Instead, stick to bullets and Sammies, and don’t let the sandwich crafter get too carried away with the sauces.
Eat This Instead!
2 Roadhouse Steak Sammies and Baked Lays
620 calories
14 g fat (8 g saturated)
2,140 mg sodium
2 Roadhouse Steak Sammies and Baked Lays
620 calories
14 g fat (8 g saturated)
2,140 mg sodium
Sandwiches have tremendous potential for loading you up with nutrients and keeping you slim. Unfortunately, too few actually deliver. Check out this handy list of The Worst Sandwiches in America to find out which ones make you large and which ones make you lean.
WORST PASTADomino’s Chicken Carbonara Breadbowl Pasta
1,480 calories
56 g fat (24 g saturated, 1 g trans)
2,020 mg sodium
Domino’s may not boast many drive-thru windows, but its food is most certainly made with speed in mind. This edible bowl is just one extension of that. It allows busy customers to simply gobble up the whole meal, bowl and all. No dishes. (Next thing you know, restaurants will be giving you edible menus and serving you soda from an edible cup. When you’re done, maybe you can just eat the table and chair, too.) This pasta-filled bowl has two days' worth of fat and still manages to squeeze in 1,500 calories of pure carbohydrates!
Eat This Instead!
Hand Tossed Pizza with Grilled Chicken, Green Peppers, and Shredded Parmesan Cheese (2 slices, medium pie)
300 calories
6 g fat (2 g saturated)
500 mg sodium
Hand Tossed Pizza with Grilled Chicken, Green Peppers, and Shredded Parmesan Cheese (2 slices, medium pie)
300 calories
6 g fat (2 g saturated)
500 mg sodium
5 bizarre ice cream flavors that sound crazy delicious
The recent ice cream sandwich makeover got us thinking about our favorite flavors and if they need a makeover, too. Maybe we're in a rut with strawberry and rocky road. Maybe chocolate chocolate brownie and birthday cake batter don't quite have the allure they once did. There are plenty of bizarre, rather unsavory ice cream flavors out there (boogers, anyone?), but we thought we'd whet your appetite with five cold treats you'd actually want to dip into.
1. Bacon Ice Cream
Sure, it's a combination of sweet and savory that raises some eyebrows. But if bacon works beautifully in a chocolate bar, we have a feeling it just might be divine in ice cream. Buy a scoop in Delaware's Rehoboth Beach, or try your hand at pastry chef and blogger David Leibovitz's recipe.
2. Brown Bread
This sounds like something you'd be more likely to eat in Sweden with some smoked salmon, but it's one of the most popular flavors at ice cream parlor Scoops in Los Angeles. Made with Grape Nuts and caramel, it sounds a little weird, but in a totally intriguing way.
3. Rosewater
Doesn't this seem like something a maharani would eat in a gold-domed palace? Rosewater ice cream can usually be found in Indian grocery stores, but Mashti Malone has taken this traditional recipe to a whole 'nother level with rosewater saffron pistachio and ginger rosewater.
4. Black Truffle
If people go nuts for these stinky little 'shrooms in everything else, it only follows that they'd be to die for in ice cream, right? This one you might have to make yourself. One blogger who tried the recipe says it "tastes something like mushroomy chocolate that’s been sifted through peat moss." Yet, she ate two bowls full, so go figure.
5. Strawberry Basil
This is a flavor we can definitely get behind and might be good for those just dipping a toe in non-traditional flavors. Take two of the most summery flavors available and mix them into our favorite cold treat, and you've got a recipe that sounds so right. Purists weirded out by the herb addition might be more inclined towards the strawberry buttermilk from Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream. Like strawberry shortcake made cold and creamy!
1. Bacon Ice Cream
Sure, it's a combination of sweet and savory that raises some eyebrows. But if bacon works beautifully in a chocolate bar, we have a feeling it just might be divine in ice cream. Buy a scoop in Delaware's Rehoboth Beach, or try your hand at pastry chef and blogger David Leibovitz's recipe.
2. Brown Bread
This sounds like something you'd be more likely to eat in Sweden with some smoked salmon, but it's one of the most popular flavors at ice cream parlor Scoops in Los Angeles. Made with Grape Nuts and caramel, it sounds a little weird, but in a totally intriguing way.
3. Rosewater
Doesn't this seem like something a maharani would eat in a gold-domed palace? Rosewater ice cream can usually be found in Indian grocery stores, but Mashti Malone has taken this traditional recipe to a whole 'nother level with rosewater saffron pistachio and ginger rosewater.
4. Black Truffle
If people go nuts for these stinky little 'shrooms in everything else, it only follows that they'd be to die for in ice cream, right? This one you might have to make yourself. One blogger who tried the recipe says it "tastes something like mushroomy chocolate that’s been sifted through peat moss." Yet, she ate two bowls full, so go figure.
5. Strawberry Basil
This is a flavor we can definitely get behind and might be good for those just dipping a toe in non-traditional flavors. Take two of the most summery flavors available and mix them into our favorite cold treat, and you've got a recipe that sounds so right. Purists weirded out by the herb addition might be more inclined towards the strawberry buttermilk from Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream. Like strawberry shortcake made cold and creamy!
Candied Bacon Ice Cream Recipe
149 comments - 03.09.2008
Who doesn't like bacon and eggs?
Ok, maybe vegans. And folks who are kosher. And people who don't eat eggs. Or those who don't like bacon. But I'm not sure that's possible. (I have a great bacon joke, but it's not 'pc', so I'd better keep it to myself.)
I'm a big fan of both bacon and the beautiful, bright-orange yolked eggs we get in France, so why confine them to breakfast? I was pretty sure Candied Bacon Ice Cream would work. I mean, it's got salt. It's got smoke. So why not candy it? Inspired by Michael Ruhlman, l wanted to see what would happened when they all got together.
Candying the bacon was a hoot. Being in an experimental mood, I tried everything from agave nectar to maple syrup to dark raw cassonade sugar.
I lined up five strips and baked them off.
Surprisingly, the best results I had was using regular light brown sugar. The agave nectar I painted on, as well as the maple syrup—which I had impossibly-hopeful hopes for—just slid right off. I suppose I could've reduced maple syrup to a thick glaze before brushing it on, but I'm down to the last quarter of the bottle I brought back from the Greenmarket in New York.
And as much as I love you all, I don't love you more than maple syrup.
Still, for flavor and crisp-itude, the light brown sugar won hands-down and baked to a firm, shiny-sweet glaze. Of course, individual ovens vary and although I asked my charcutier to cut my bacon on the moderately-thick side (around ¼-inch or ½ centimeter)—if yours is thinner or thicker, keep an eye on it in the oven. American bacon tends to throw off lots of fat, so you might want to bake it on a rack.
(Someone came over to write a story about my kitchen last week and was a bit surprised I didn't have a microwave. Unfortunately it came down to a space-issue an the monster espresso machine won out. So I candied my bacon the old-fashioned way.)
As I was scooping the ice cream out of the machine and tossing in the bits of candied bacon, getting ready to lick the spatula (hey, pipe down...no one was looking...) I had a last-minute thought that dusting of ground cinnamon would be nice, so I added it. I tend to be pretty restrained when using cinnamon around here since if I offer a taste of something with more than a very light dusting of it to French friends, they have a hard time getting past the cinnamon and I can't get an accurate evaluation from them.
They do like cinnamon, just not in the vast quantities we American like to shovel in. So I wanted it to be subtle and not off-putting, but present. Aren't I good at pleasing everyone? Très 'pc'.
My final test was when I brought a small container of this to my butcher to see what he thought. I didn't tell him what it was and he took a bite. I waited. He tasted. The priceless look on his face!
Then I breathed a sigh of relief when he polished it off and gave it the thumbs up.
But then again, he's a little biased.
Bacon Ice Cream
About ¾ qt (¾l)
Like my butcher, I loved the salty taste of bacon with brown sugar, but I'm also going to be folding bits of candy bacon into Coffee Ice Cream in the future. Or maybe get really crazy and try little bits in a batch of Avocado Ice Cream.
If you don't have half-and-half, simply mix together heavy cream and whole milk in equal proportions. I'm not sure about dairy alternatives, but since this doesn't fall into the vegan category, I think this time I'm off the hook. ; )
For the candied bacon;
5 strips bacon
about 2 teaspoons light brown sugar
For the ice cream custard:
3 tablespoons (45g) salted butter
¾ cup (packed) brown sugar (170g), light or dark (you can use either)
2¾ (675ml) cup half-and-half
5 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons dark rum or whiskey
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
optional: ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1. To candy the bacon, preheat the oven to 400F (200C).
2. Lay the strips of bacon on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat or aluminum foil, shiny side down.
3. Sprinkle 1½-2 teaspoons of brown sugar evenly over each strip of bacon, depending on length.
4. Bake for 12-16 minutes. Midway during baking, flip the bacon strips over and drag them through the dark, syrupy liquid that's collected on the baking sheet. Continue to bake until as dark as mahogany. Remove from oven and cool the strips on a wire rack.
5. Once crisp and cool, chop into little pieces, about the size of grains of rice.
(Bacon bits can be stored in an airtight container and chilled for a day or so, or stored in the freezer a few weeks ahead.)
6. To make the ice cream custard, melt the butter in a heavy, medium-size saucepan. Stir in the brown sugar and half of the half-and-half. Pour the remaining half-and-half into a bowl set in an ice bath and set a mesh strainer over the top.
7. In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks, then gradually add some of the warm brown sugar mixture to them, whisking the yolks constantly as you pour. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
8. Cook over low to moderate heat, constantly stirring and scraping the bottom with a heatproof spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.
9. Strain the custard into the half-and-half, stirring over the ice bath, until cool. Add liquor, vanilla and cinnamon, if using.
10. Refrigerate the mixture. Once thoroughly chilled, freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Add the bacon bits during the last moment of churning, or stir them in when you remove the ice cream from the machine.
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