Slow Economy is a Positive Start for Diets

We are all struggling in some way because of the slowing economy. We have all cut back on certain things in our lives. Girl Scouts of the USA feel the tight squeeze too. It's cookie season. For some, it's another holiday to add to the calendar. This is the first year that the delicious cookies boxes are cutting it short, 1 whole centimeter short.

The rising costs of flour, cooking oils and cocoa have forced the company to make the decision to shrink the size of their cookie boxes, specifically: Thin Mints, Do-si-dos, and Tagalongs, and reduce the size of its Lemon Chalet Crèmes. This shrink in number of cookies per box will not affect the price of the cookie, even though you are getting less sugar snacks. This is good for your diet, bad for your wallet.

However, this company is positive in that 100% of the proceeds from the cookies are recycled back in the company that strives to teach young girls about leadership and friendship.

Guide to Fresh Produce

$12.82. That is how much I paid for produce this morning at my local Saturday Morning Market. In downtown St. Petersburg we are lucky enough to have a farmer's market at our fingertips. Today I bought bananas, mushrooms, asparagus, bell peppers, strawberries (Plant City style), apples and onions all for $12.82. Normally at Publix I would be paying $15 or more for all those goodies.

This was the first time I have purchased produce from this market, or any market for that matter and I'm cursing myself for waiting so long! I was motivated to buy today from the book I recently purchased, Eat This Not That: Supermarket Survival Guide. I am a huge fan of this book and this is author and Men's Health Editor-In-Chief, David Zinczenko's best yet. Just from the produce I bought today, I'll give you a few facts and benefits of each.

Bananas: available year-round, store green, unripe fruit away from direct heat and sun. If you want to speed up the riping process put those green bananas in a paper bag. The benefits include B6 (USDA says this fruit helps prevent cognitive decline)

Mushrooms: Avoid dark spots or brittle caps. Best from Nov.-April. To store cover fungi with a moist towel and refrigerate for 3-5 days. Great to boost your immune system and tumor-suppressing.

Asparagus: Best when they are bright green from top to bottom with purple-tinged buds. Best to consume March-June. Trim the ends and stand upright in a little water, cover tops with plastic bag, good for 3-5 days. These spears have folate and a B vitamin that reduced inflammation and protects the heart.

Strawberries: Bright red color with no mushy spots. Best from June-Aug. (unless you live in Florida). These berries will last 2-3 days in the fridge. Packed with Vitamin C.

Bell Peppers: Bright and solid green color. Great to eat July-Dec. Can be refrigerated up to 2 weeks. Loaded with antioxidants, vitamin C and vitamin A.

Onions: Crisp skin, no dents or dark spots. Great to use year-round. Store this veggie in a cool, dark place for up to 3-4 weeks. GPCS is a peptide known for reducing bone loss in experimental rates plus has the benefit of the cancer-fighting compound quercetin.

Apples: Firm skin, bright in color with no brusing. Best to eat Sept.- May. Keep apples in a plastic bag away from other veggies to ensure freshness. Contains quercetin which is linked to better heart-health, plus soluble fiber pectic which helps control cholesterol.

Whew. After all that, I think you know what is best. Use your search engines and find your local farmer's market, or if you're near St. Pete check it out every Saturday from 9 a.m.- 2 p.m.

New Year's Resolutions

Are you honestly going to follow through on your New Year's resolution? Let's face it, most of us give up after a day, week or month and decide it wasn't worth it in the first place. 46% of Americans said they make New Year's resolutions every year and less than half follow through after just two months!



Therefore, I want to know: What is your 2009 New Year's resolution? Take this poll and we'll find out!

Sex as a Form of Exercise

For all those responsible adults of a mature age that are emotionally ready to have sex I have good news: exercise has been shown to improve your sex life. Hallelujah! If you thought losing body fat, maintaining lean muscle and fitting into your jeans from 10 years ago was great, think about the possibilities of improving your sex life.

Exercise has been shown to keep our hearts healthy and potentially prolong our lives. A study has been shown that overweight males are more likely to suffer erectile dysfunction (ED) which definitely will not help your sex life. 97 men with an average age of 48 who were defined as "morbidly obese" were studied to determine if weight loss helped their own person sexual function. The results were positive. The men who exercised more had less one-minute or no-minute man syndrome.

Believe it or not sex is a form of exercise. Now, I know what you're thinking: this is great! I can stop going to the gym and have sex all the time! no. No. NO. What I'm trying to say is sex does have it's benefits, but from the cardiovascular standpoint it does not compare to running, biking or swimming.

Here are some activities with the calories burned for a 150 pound person:

Sex 44
Cleaning 119
Mowing the lawn 187
Bicycling 273
Running 341

To find more calories burned for your weight and different activities visit this site.

And remember... be safe, but love every minute of it.