Directions

1. Spread the turnips, carrots, parsnips, and sweet potatoes in a single layer into the bottom of a large skillet. Pour enough water over the vegetables to cover, but not completely submerge; add the sugar and balsamic vinegar. Place the skillet over medium-high heat; bring the liquid to a boil. Cook and stir until the liquid is evaporated and the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to serve.

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 116

• Total Fat: 0.3g
• Cholesterol: 0mg
• Sodium: 273mg
• Total Carbs: 27.2g
•     Dietary Fiber: 5.2g
• Protein: 2.2g

I’ve recently reflected on the difference in the generations attitudes toward fitness and thought I’d share my thoughts on the matter.  In the 50’s, the men were the providers and worked hard to provide for their families.  Women were held in high regard as the homemaker who provided a healthy meal and ensured the kids were safe.  Kids in the 50’s weren’t distracted by electronic devices which encouraged a sedentary lifestyle and they were active after school.  They ran and played outside, listened to the radio, danced, and they were creative in their playtime activities.  Food supplied in the schools were prepared by loving hands and were home cooked meals prepared in larger quantities. 

In the 60’s a change in the social environment started.  Women started to break through the barriers of the steriotypical homemaker of the 50’s.  The younger generation in the 60’s drove toward a more independent lifestyle, but still food was prepared in the home and children played for entertainment.  Women started to learn about exercise as a way to stay fit and trim.  Processed foods and convenience foods were becoming more mainstream in the 60’s as women exercised their independence and desire to get out of the kitchen. 

The 70’s were a pivotal phase in the evolution of modern day health and fitness.  The exercise craze was at it’s peak but so was the insurgence of convenience foods and restaurants.  We were exercising more, modern conveniences were becoming more prevalent but we were eating more poorly.  The moral dilemma between financial gain and supply of healthy food won in the favor of increasing profit margins. 

The 80’s brought in the phrase “obesity epidemic” into our nations focus.  Women were at work and naturally gravitated toward making an easy dinner after a long day.  Kids fitness programs started diminishing in the schools, and school lunch programs changed for the worse.  Less whole foods were prepared and more pre-packaged convenience foods were purchased and served all for the sake of saving a buck. 

In the 90’s the true onslaught of the definition of a sedentary lifestyle was in full swing.  Modern technology demanded more people to fill jobs which were sedentary in nature.  Children’s fitness programs in the schools were diminishing and pizza became a normal lunch time fair.  Walking to and from school was not permitted for fear of the child’s safety and once home, the child is left to his/her own devices as both parents worked outside the home.  Fast food suppers were normal and the economy was booming while we were getting fatter.

The turn of the century brought in a new awareness to what we were doing to our health.  The health care industry was booming as a result of “patching” up our failing bodies due to lack of proper attention.  It became harder for people to break free from their conveniences of mobile phones, convenience foods, sedintary jobs, and easy entertainment while relaxing at home in the evening.  Tired and stressed out American’s were overindulging and getting more obese.   And what are we teaching our kids?

The damage is done and it’s time to reverse the effects of decades of overindulgance!  The mantra should be to keep it simple.  Don’t know how to cook healthy?  LEARN.  Don’t know how to exercise?  LEARN.  In this age of modern technology the internet is crawling with great advice on things you can do to change your lives around.  Need to lose weight?  EAT LESS and MOVE MORE.  What to get healthy?  EAT RIGHT and MOVE MUCH MORE.  Want to feel great and eliminate poor health issues?  EAT RIGHT, MOVE MORE, and DO IT EVERY DAY!  Don’t get caught up in the next gimic or phase and a 10 week boot camp won’t change your life.  Refer to my recipe for a healthy lifestyle and KEEP IT SIMPLE and it doesn’t have to be hard or cost you more money. 

Remember, you are one day away from a healthy life.  What you do today, impacts tomorrow so don’t put it off…make the necessary changes in your life to feel great and be healthy.

Shame on you media moguls!  I’ve seen my last version of a wolf in lambs clothing and I’m ashamed to say that that wolf is impacting the public’s physical well being.  I won’t name names but the local newspaper and a TV station have launched publications and/or websites for purposes of advertising while dressed up as the little lamb promoting health and fitness.   While I’m all in it for health and fitness I take offence when something is published as a healthy recipe and it is flat out is full of crap.  Don’t publish recipes that require a POUND of Velveeta cheese in the soup and call it healthy because it has some broccoli in it.

But that isn’t the half of it.   Don’t promote solutions for health care when it’s too late….promote health prevention.  That’s where it’s at in 2011!  The health care industry has gotten us into this mess and now it’s time to dig back out.  A pill for this, and a procedure for that….well it all seems easy enough but who really benefits!  Obviously, the patient will reap the benefit short term but long term prevention is the answer and the CURE!   And don’t gussy yourselves up thinking that nobody can read between the lines on your shameful promotional attempts to sell more ads.  Where’s the real community in that?  Let’s talk to the real people who are trying to live a healthy life in this confusing world of health and fitness professional advisors.  And speaking of community…claims on providing demographic related information just for the opportunity to again sell more ads.  Sigh…..

It’s time to take matters into the hands of real health prevention professionals.  I’ve seen my last shameful attempt at making a buck at the expense of the true businesses promoting health and fitness and the naive public.  Our voice will be heard and a movement is on it’s way…..Watch out for our thunder as we will be coming through to make a difference!

I just read a blog that was titled something like this “New Year’s Resolutions are for Quitters”.  While the blog referenced the obvious “quitting” theme of “in the new year I will quit…smoking, eating bad food, biting my nails”, I resonated with me.  Quitting is a negative response to the need of a positive outcome.  Isn’t it better to make your resolution around the positive outcome and goal that you have set for yourself?  For example, “I will live a smoke free life and with the money I save take a nice vacation, I will redirect my nervous habit of biting nails to deep breathing exercises, etc.”   The bottom line is “Set a Goal” and stick with it.  Don’t make it too big or too small.  Make it something that is achievable and when that goal is mastered, add a new goal.  It’s simple and applies to fitness.  For example, my goal is to include one session of yoga a week.  I didn’t put ambiguous expectations on my goal like ” I want to be more flexible this year” .   That kind of unspecific goal only brings failure and leads to quitting before your start.   There’s no specific plan on how to get there or be more “flexible”. 

Your new years resolution must be clear, concise, and very specific!  Put a positive outcome as the result rather than dwell on the negative and don’t be a quitter! 

While I’m on the subject, why does America put so much emphasis on New Year’s resolutions?  If this is the only time you set personal goals for yourself then your personality is not destined for success in meeting those personal goals.  Success comes from setting goals when inspired and making a plan to reach those goals.  It is never based on a calendar as that reeks of self sabotage and failure.  When you set a personal goal, you must be prepared for setbacks and a plan on how to adjust and if those setbacks impact a timeline for meeting your goal, you may just give up if the timetable isn’t met.  Goals must be a work in progress and achievable but with the extra burdon of time, you are setting yourself up for failure.  Isn’t life a work in progress?  Don’t give up, learn from your mistakes and keep moving forward. 

Here’s to success and happiness in 2011!

Let’s break down those barriers related to, “I don’t have time to exercise”.   These are disturbing stats on how much time the average american dedicates to watching TV.  If you dedicated just the time commercials rob you from your life and worked out only during that time, you’d be fit and trim in no time!  Read on….

DISTURBING STATISTICS ABOUT TV WATCHING:

• According to the A.C. Nielsen Co. the average American watches 3 hours and 46 minutes of TV each day (that’s more than 52 days of nonstop TV-watching per year). 
• Percentage of time watching TV commercials in an hour:  30% or 18 minutes in an hour.  That’s 1.13 hours an evening that is wasted on advertising time.
• By the age of 65 the average American will have spent nearly nine years glued to the tube. 
• Parents spend 38.5 minutes per week in meaningful conversation with their children is 38.5.

THE EFFECT OF TELEVISION ON DAILY LIFE

• The number of videos rented daily in the United States is six million while the number of public library items checked out daily is three million.
• Forty percent of Americans always or often watch television while eating dinner.

HOW MUCH VIOLENCE IS THERE REALLY ON T.V.?

• The average American child sees 200,000 violent acts on television by the time he or she reaches the age of 18.
• Eighty percent of Hollywood executives believe there is a link between TV violence and real-life violence.

TELEVISION: IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT SHOWS

• An average child sees 30,000 TV commercials in a year.
• By the time s/he reaches the age of 65, the average American will have seen two million TV commercials

TELEVISION: THE KNOWLEDGE BUILDER?

• While 59 percent of Americans can name The Three Stooges, only 17 percent can name three Supreme Court Justices.

If you think you’ve had a tough year just take a look at this bird!  It’s all about how you look at things so if you feed off

Bad Year or Good One?

of the negative then you will see a poor ugly worn out rooster.  If you focus on the positive you will see a colorful bird who’s apparently been having a good time living and running the roost.  Fitness and health are all part of that same perception of negative and positive.  If you think it’s going to be hard or you think you can’t do it, well then, it will be hard and you won’t do it.  If you believe in yourself and believe that the positive gains fitness will provide you, then it will come true with the right attitude. 

This rooster  is no different than most of us and I can only image that it is grateful for being able to run without assistance, grateful for the few beautiful feathers adorning it’s body, and grateful for not being a Thanksgiving meal for the farmer. 

Put your goals into perspective, do you want to feel good as you age, do you want to be productive and active, do you want to dwell on the negative or the positive.  I believe this rooster is having a good year and although he’s missing a few feathers, I”m sure they were lost to a good cause.   It takes alot of work to stay active and fit and the more negative barriers you place in front of yourself the harder it will be to make a positive change.  Lift those barriers and take the first steps toward a longer, healthier life!

Yummy, quick to make, and not too sinful!

Makes 24
**3 ounces prosciutto, thinly sliced
**1 ripe Bartlett pear, finely diced
**1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Directions
Preheat oven to 375. Cut prosciutto into 24 two-inch squares. Place one square (overlapping any tears) in each cup of a mini cupcake tin. Bake until fat turns golden, about 15 minutes. Using a fork, immediately transfer to a paper towel to drain; cool completely. In a small bowl, combine pear and juice. Place 1/2 teaspoon mixture in each cup just before serving.

1-1/2 C. cubed whole wh. bread
3-3/4 C. cubed white bread
1lb. gr. turkey sausage
1 C. chopped onion
3/4 C. chopped celery
2-1/2 tsp. dried sage
1-1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 Golden Del. apple, cored and chopped
3/4 C dried Cranberries
1/3 C. minced fresh parsley
1 cooked turkey liver, chopped finely
3/4 C. turkey stock
4 T. butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread the bread cubes in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Bake 5-7 min. in preheated oven, until evenly toasted. Transfer to a large bowl. In a large skillet, cook sausage & onion over med. heat, stirring and breaking up until evenly browned. Add celery, sage, rosemary & thyme; cook, stirring, for 2 min. to blend flavors. Pour sausage mixture over bread in bowl. Mix in chopped apples, dried cranberries, parsley, and liver. Drizzle with turkey stock & melted butter; mix lightly. Spoon into turkey to loosley fill. This is good for a 10lb. turkey. Could also place in casserole, bake for 25 min. Add more moisture if not placing inside turkey.
Nutr. info: servings 10, Cal. 236, tot. fat 11.6g, tot.carbs 21.8g, fiber 2.1g, Pro 12.5g

Well obesity in America hit home with the new report from the CDC that spirred Douglas County to start a program called Live Well Omaha.   Apparently the CDC has reported that Omaha ranks 142 out of 182 metro areas surveyed for the report.  Well that’s disturbing and some of the stats reveal that Omaha has a 42% obesity rate, 70% who don’t exercise, and 76% who don’t eat right.  Well that’s all good and fine but what are we going to do about it?

Douglas counties answer is to put together a series of public service announcements in the form of a commercial which personally I find offensive.  I’m looking for something that motivates us to get off our duff and work together to make a difference in the lives of the everyday citizens of Omaha.  Be looking for more on this topic as it has spurred a challenge in the Omaha fitness community to engage a more active community….keep watching….

Check out a World Herald article that spells out some of the cost of obesity and how women are affected more than men.

I often marvel at the approaches people use when trying to find a gym. The typical phone call is something like this…”How much do you charge for a gym membership?” Seriously, if you’re price shopping and that is your only concern then you’re missing out on much more. It’s no wonder that most gyms won’t give a response to that question when called and that is the only question asked. Is that really the only thing that is important to you when shopping for a gym? If so, then you need to stay home, pull a couple of cans of fruit out of the pantry and start jogging around your house doing arm curls with the cans in your hands. It’s free and you apparently aren’t looking for anything else out of your gym. If that solution doesn’t interest you then here’s a list of questions you should be asking yourself first:

1. What is my fitness goal?
2. Do I know how to achieve that fitness goal by myself?
3. Am I self motivated to stay focused on that goal?
4. Do I have the time to research fitness techniques?
5. Where will I gain support and who will be there to support me when times get tough?
6. Am I self conscious about my body and will I put myself out there in public with my vulnerabilities?
7. Do I have time restrictions?
8. What are my typical roadblocks I put up when it comes to exercise?

Now that you have done a little self discovery, here are a few questions that you should be asking the gym for a better understanding and opportunity to learn about the programs available.

1. What programs do you offer?  Give the gym a chance to create an open dialog about what they can offer YOU!
2. What kind of educational and group programs are available?  Make sure they are there to support you when you need advice and support.
3. What kind of equipment do you have?  Do they have a variety of equipment to ensure you’re able to progress in your program?
4. Do you have trainers available?  Make sure there are experts available for Q&A or support when you need the extra input into your fitness program.
5. If I have questions, how would I receive assistance or help?  Is the gym staff there for you?
6. What methods are used for accountability and progress?  Does the gym offer anything to help you stay focused?
7. What are the hours of the gym? 
8. Is the gym co-ed? 
9. Tailor questions around things that are barriers for you.  Bottom line is you have to make the committment to fitness but the gym should be a resource that helps you stay focused. 
10. Finally, how much does a membership cost and are there any other charges for services at the gym? 
11. Does the gym offer trial memberships?  Try it before you buy it!   You have to feel comfortable if you’re going to expose yourself in your most vulnerable state…sweating!

Weigh out all the important factors to you against all the gym has to offer.  If price is still the only concern and you’re confident in your fitness plan/program, then why are you looking for a gym at all?  There are so many free opportunities to get and stay fit.  Run outside, buy your own treadmill or favorite cardio equipment for your home,  buy a resistance band and adapt to your surroundings and what’s available.  If you have barriers, need assistance, need focus, need a regimine that is outside the home, then the gym is the right place for you.  Let the experts help you with your fitness program.  Fitness isn’t a short term committment….it’s a lifestyle!  The need doesn’t ever go away and hopefully, a gym can offer the diversity needed to keep it interesting!