Green Bean Bundles

Green bean bundles is a yummy addition to Thanksgiving dinner!

1 lb fresh green beans, trimmed
8 SUGAR FREE bacon strips
3 TBS butter or coconut oil
1 TBS chopped onion
1 TBS coconut vinegar
1 TBS Swerve (or a drop of stevia glycerite)
1/4 tsp Celtic sea salt

Blanch the beans for 4-6 minutes or until the beans until crisp-tender. Wrap about 15 beans in each bacon strip; secure with a toothpick. Place on a foil-covered baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees F for 10-15 minutes or until bacon is done. In a skillet, saute onion in butter until tender. Add vinegar, natural sweetener and salt; heat through. Remove bundles to a serving bowl or platter; pour sauce over and serve immediately. Makes 8 servings.

NUTRITIONAL COMPARISON  (per serving)
Traditional Green Beans = 189 calories, 16g fat, 8.1g protein, 9 carbs, 1.9g fiber
“Healthified” Green Beans = 159 calories, 12g fat, 8.1g protein, 4.5 carbs, 1.9g fiber

 

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YOGA

I didn’t always like yoga. I was a “no pain, no gain” type of a girl. I started yoga because it is known to decrease stress, but lots of other benefits started happening.  Stress, bad food habits, irregular timings for food, junk food, lack of energy, and thyroid problems, could be some of the reasons resulting in weight gain. Practicing yoga can help in all of these problem areas. Yoga isn’t just exercise; it is a mind-body connection. It helps us become aware of our bodies and how it feels. We become more aware of which foods nourish us and which ones makes us feel lethargic and less “alive.”

When Craig lost his job, I started to teach yoga at Andersen Windows Corporate Office over the lunch hour. Just about everyone in the class was brand new to yoga. They expected a break from their desk and a time to relax. I explained that yoga is all about “you and your practice” and to only pay attention to your body; if you need to adapt to an easier practice, I always give options. After the first class, they all were surprised at how much they sweat and felt “the burn,” while de-stressing at the same time. They were hooked. I love how each week I have new participants comment to me after class on how this has changed their life in some way…less back pain, better food choices, happier, calmer and much more.

Yoga is also one of the most helpful workouts for fighting stubborn fat stores, especially the ones that crop up after age 40. Science finds that yoga decreases levels of stress hormones and increases insulin sensitivity, a signal to your body to burn food as fuel rather than store it as fat.

Yoga is a mind-body exercise that can do everything from tighten your buns to change your outlook on life. Most types of yoga don’t have the calorie-burning abilities of aerobic exercise. A 150-pound person will burn 150 calories in an hour of doing regular yoga, compared to 311 calories for an hour of walking at 3 mph. Yoga helps weight loss in a different way; it puts you in touch with your body the way nothing else can.

The effects are subtle, and related to yoga’s mind-body aspects. Yoga creates a sense of “mindfulness,” which is the ability to monitor what is happening internally. When participants achieve this, it helps change relationships of mind to body, and in time, to food and eating. Yoga forges a strong mind-body connection that ultimately helps make you more aware of what you eat and how it feels to be full. In yoga you learn your body is not your enemy, and the conscious awareness of the body that you gain translates into better appetite control. Yoga makes you more inclined to change your lifestyle. So if you are thinking you want to change your routine, the way you think about food, or you want to get over harmful eating patterns, yoga enhances a spiritual connection to your body that can help you make those changes a reality.

To read more check out my book, Secrets to a Healthy Metabolism.

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