by kelsey | Nov 8, 2018 | Cooking Tips, Diet, Food, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day! Yes, you have probably heard this before, but are you a breakfast eater!? Having a good breakfast is a great way to start out the day. It’s not only important for our body, but our mind too. Many times we’ll have excuses such as I was running late, I didn’t feel like eating, I’m not hungry in the morning, and this actually accounts for about a 1/4 to a 1/3 of the population! Starting the day without breakfast is like driving your car on a low tank of gas. We know we can’t go on forever on a low tank of gas, so we shouldn’t do that to our bodies either! Those that skip breakfast tend to snack more on high fat and lower nutritious foods…and are more likely to overeat at lunch because they are over-hungry. Studies have also shown that those working on weight loss are more successful when they eat breakfast as this really jump starts their metabolism and starts their day off right. In addition, eating a healthy breakfast helps our kids excel in school as it helps fuel the brain!
So what should you eat for breakfast? It’s important to get a balance at your meals and especially include a source of protein and a whole grain as these provide satiety. Here are some examples for you:
- Ready-to-eat cereal (>3g fiber, <2-3g fat, a ratio of greater than 4 g carbohydrate:1 g sugar)
- Hot cereal (oatmeal)
- Bagel with low-fat cream cheese or peanut butter
- Yogurt Parfait
- Fruit and yogurt smoothie
- Peanut butter or hummus on whole-wheat toast
- Breakfast quesadilla with low-fat cream cheese and sliced fruit
- Breakfast burrito or taco
- Toasted whole-wheat English muffin with lean ham and low-fat cheese
- Toasted pita with scrambled egg and low-fat cheese
- Low-fat milk and 100% fruit
If you are one who is not a fan of breakfast but understands the importance of it, I encourage you to try a variety of these options and see which one works best for you. I also encourage you to plan ahead. You may need to wake up 5 minutes earlier to fit breakfast in or make your smoothie the night before so all you have to do it pull the bottle or container out of the freezer or fridge in the morning and drink it on your way to work. Starting your day with a full tank will provide long lasting benefits to you and your body!
-Kelsey
by kelsey | Nov 6, 2018 | Diabetes, Diet, Food, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
There’s a lot of buzz about carbohydrates….are they good? Are they bad? How much should you have? , etc etc etc. In celebration of National Diabetes Month, I thought it would be appropriate to discuss carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are the main (and best) source of energy for your brain and central nervous system. Carbohydrates are essential for energy; however they raise your blood sugar levels higher and faster than any other kind of food. Carbohydrates are essential for your body to be able to sustain energy, so just like a car needs the right type of fuel (gas) to run, you need the right kind of fuel (food) to function and be healthy. To sustain energy, your body needs adequate carbohydrates: 50% of your total calories should come from carbohydrates. Cutting out all carbs can be very detrimental to our body, especially our brain, central nervous system, liver, kidneys, and heart. Because they are an excellent source of energy, but they do raise blood sugars, it’s important to recognize the types of carbohydrates and how to count them in efforts of controlling your blood sugars while still maintaining good health and adequate energy..
Carbohydrates are found in the following:
Starches: found in grains, some vegetables, and beans.
•Grains: bread, pasta, cereal, tortillas, rice
•Starchy Vegetables: potatoes, peas, corn, yams, squash
•Beans: kidney beans, pinto beans, black beans, garbanzo beans, and lentils
•**The best and recommended sources of starches are whole grains…choose them over the white, refined grains!
Sugars: found naturally in foods or added to foods.
•Natural Sugars: fruits, fruit juices, dairy products, honey, and molasses.
•Added Sugars: desserts, processed foods, candy, regular soda, and fruit drinks.
•**Natural sugars are better than added sugars, but large quantities of them can still raise your blood sugars…we recommend getting at 2-3 fruits and 3 servings of veggies/day. Anytime you can limit or eliminate the added sugars, do so!
To aid in ideal blood sugar control, we recommend a moderate intake of carbohydrates which means about 45-60g/meal and 15-30g/snack with several small meals and snacks throughout the day. I visit with patients daily about finding the right balance in their intake. If you would like help managing your blood sugars, to learn more about diabetes self care, or a personalized nutrition plan, be sure to contact me for further help!
-Kelsey
by Dan | Nov 4, 2018 | Exercise, Family, Goals, Motivation, Wellness/Health
There have been a lot of memories coming back these last few weeks, some bad, but mostly good. I also found as I was going through some of my things at home I ran across the newsletter that Prairie Lakes Hospital puts out, and this one was dated back in 2002. The article was “The Road to Boston” and it was about my training partner, and friend, Tom Beaudry. Reading that article brought a lot of happy things to mind of those days we were training to try and qualify for the Boston Marathon. It also brought up some issues in relation to running, and injuries. Tom and I were training together for Grandma’s Marathon, which was June of 2001. A week before the marathon, I tore my arch in my foot, the plantar fascia. Many of us may have had issues with pain in our arch, called plantar fasciitis, but that particularly year I actually tore mine. I tore it a week before Grandma’s marathon. I was devastated. Tom and I were both wanting to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Now I was hoping I was just going to be able to run. It was the 25th Anniversary of Grandma’s marathon, and I decided I was going regardless. Qualifying for Boston was no longer in the cards for me, but it was very much a reality for Tom. He did it! I still managed to come in at 3 hours and 48 minutes, but I was off by 28 minutes for a qualifying time. Tom came in at 3:24:36, and he needed a 3:25! This picture is us at the finish line. Tom looks great…I look half dead! But we were both there, and we both had trained, and we were their for each other. Now Tom had to train to keep going to run Boston by April of 2002! I have more pictures to share of Tom at Grandma’s, and then portions of the story that are in quotes came from the article about Tom in the PLH newsletter.
For Tom, it was a dream come true! This was his Road to Boston! “Unlike my past marathons, when only a handful of people would even know I was going to run one, this marathon had me receiving good wishes from friends, other runners, fellow employees, physicians, and many people in the community. The Watertown Public Opinion called and wanted to do an article before I left and KSDR wanted a live interview after my return. The support was incredible, many of the people would say they now know someone who is running the Boston Marathon, it made that person and me feel good. I knew with all the encouragement I was getting that this was bigger than I initially thought.”
“During my long-training runs at home, Dr. Dan Reiffenberger would join me at mile 11 and the route was planned so we would end up at the base of 14th Avenue below the Tree Farm hill at mile 16.5 and then do multiple repeats three to four times up and down, and then go on to finish out 22 miles. I also incorporated that hill into my tempo and race pace workouts two other times each week. The hill work paid off in a big way, as I got stronger as the race went on.”
“My back 13.1 miles were faster than the first half, and I ran my third-fastest marathon. I qualified at Grandma’s Marathon in June 2001 with a time of 3:24:36 (7:49 pace per mile). My chip time in Boston was 3:32:23 (8:06 pace per mile), which I was happy with as this was intended to be a celebration run.” A celebration run it was! I have never qualified for Boston yet. Some day, maybe. But I could not have been happier for my training partner to accomplish this feat! To say it takes a lot of hard work is an understatement. He had his license plate changed to this:
Perfect! What brought all of these memories to light now? Tom sent me a picture that he has hanging in his office. He is getting ready to retire at the end of this year, and it brought up memories for him as well as he starts to get things organized of what will have to be moved.
I gave Tom this picture a year after that Boston run. We did the Twin Cities Marathon together. We have had many long runs together over these many years. And yes, Boston was always the carrot that tried to motivate us, but the real adventure, the real benefit out of all of those runs together…we got to talk! We learned a lot about each other. We became good friends…friends that loved to run! That was what was important out of all of this. It was not the actual time, or where the event was at, at those were all over in under 4 hours. It was the months and months of training together before each one. I believe Tom has done somewhere around 10-12 marathons, and I did my 16th in January this year. Every one of them taught us something different. We were just in Denver a few weeks ago to do the Rock N Roll Half Marathon with a bunch of other friends from our run club. Tom was there, but he could not run as he was injured. He was out there in the crowd cheering us all on, but something was missing. I did not have my long time friend out there running with me. Once again, I have plantar fasciitis, but at least it was not torn this time. I ran just to run, and to be with our other friends that were out there. We were running for another cause, Team FARA this time. But the bottom line cause we were running was to be with our friends, and when one of them is missing who is supposed to be out there, something is definitely missing. Over the years all of us on the run club have had injuries, and have missed time, and there is always something missing when they are not around. The really important part about running is not there…the friendship, the memories! That is what is important.
Here I am at Denver coming over to the sideline just before the start as we heard Tom and Sue cheering us on. I had to go over and give my training partner a high five for luck! Sarah and Jill are in the middle of the picture as we get ready to start. The three of us ran together from start to finish, and now we have memories to build on. I can’t wait for Tom to get back and join us! We will have more races, and someday I may get to Boston, but I would not trade it for any of our training runs where we had time to talk, learn about each other, figure life out, and get through all of its up and downs. All of us have something to teach each other as well, and here Tom and I discuss things after one of our Sunday runs.
Boy, talk about a lot of running knowledge in this picture! We have both learned from each other, and we realize there is always something else to learn from somebody else as well. Races come and go, but friends are forever!
Thanks for all of the memories over the years Tom! I am confident that we have a lot more memories to make. Right now we both need to heal up, and then figure out what adventure we want to take on next. “Success is a Journey, not a Destination”…one of my favorite quotes! Keep moving everybody! Run on!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 4057
by kelsey | Oct 30, 2018 | Etc., Wellness/Health
Our Pharmacist Deidra VanGilder talked at our recent STRIVE 2 Survive lecture. She always does a great job addressing the hot topic of vitamins and minerals. Thus I thought we’d share some of her information on the blog for those of you interested in this topic! If you have any individual questions, please email us at strive2survive@brownclinic.org.
There are many different kinds of multivitamins and it’s hard to know which one is best for you. We always prefer you to get the vitamins and minerals from real food over supplements, so striving for a well balanced diet that is rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low fat dairy, and lean proteins is the first step. If you are cutting calories to lose weight, you have a health condition that needs additional vitamins or minerals, or you just want to stay healthy and aid in disease prevention, a MVI may be for you. There are two types of vitamins: fat soluble and water soluble. Fat soluble vitamins include vitamins A, D, E, and K and can be stored in our bodies. Water soluble vitamins such as the B vitamins and vitamin C cannot be stored in the body, which means we can only store so much and when excess is consumed, they are excreted out. This concept is very important to understand as often times, you may be wasting your money on a supplement if you are already getting adequate amounts through your diet.
Below is Deidra’s take on the various kinds of supplements:
- Basic: contains essential vitamins from vitamin A to Zinc
- Women’s- more Calcium and Vitamin D to help support breast and bone health
- Men’s- more Lycopene for prostate health
- Silver (50+)- Supports eye health, bone health, and B vitamins for energy…Deidra recommends the Centrum Silver as an excellent one for this population.
- Prenatal- More folic acid, iron, and DHA (omega-3) to help support child growth
- Performance/Energy/Metabolism- Contain some herbals thought to help increase energy as well as extra B vitamins…be sure to ask your health care team about these before taking them as they may interact with your meds or contain extra caffeine.
- Cholesterol/Cardio- Contain phytosterols to help lower cholesterol
** Vitamins vary in the levels of vitamins/minerals they contain
** Look at the amount of calcium and vitamin D in each vitamin
** Some multivitamins don’t contain iron
** Grocery store generic vitamins are ok to buy
As you can see there are many different types of vitamins. Overall, we recommend just a basic multivitamin such as One a Day or Centrum Silver to help fill the gaps that your diet is not fulfilling (a multivitamin should NEVER replace real food included in a well balanced diet!). If you have a specific health need such as a woman being pregnant or you are over the age of 50, then you can take that specific vitamin to fit your needs. The supplement industry is not regulated by the FDA like prescription drugs are…thus it is essential to consult your health care provider before taking supplements to ensure it is appropriate for you.
-Kelsey
by Dan | Oct 28, 2018 | Exercise, Family, Goals, Heart Health, Holidays, Motivation, Wellness/Health
The annual Halloween Hustle put on by the Prairie Lakes Hospital Wellness Center took place on Saturday morning. Costumes are encouraged for this event, so it is a great way to truly go out and just have fun while getting some exercise. You could run or walk, and the distance was at most a 5K, 3.1 miles. We had several characters out there: Batman for me; Super Girl for Sarah; Buzz Lightyear for Jason; and the McElroy clan was Sleeping Beauty and 3 good fairies!
We had great weather, and the sun was shining. It was a great time to get out and either run, or walk. Who says you can’t have fun, and still exercise? The kids loved it, but so did the adults! They gave prizes away for the top male and female finishes in each category, but the main point of this one was to see you could be the most creative with their costumes…and still be able to run or walk in them. Try it next year. It is a great way to get some activity. Bring out that inner “child” in you for all you adults. And for the kids, well…just be yourself…just get your parents out there with you. It truly can be a family event. What are you waiting for? Keep moving everybody! And have fun along the way!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 4049
by kelsey | Oct 25, 2018 | Diet, Food, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
To me, one of the most stressful sections/aisle in the grocery store is the yogurt and/or dairy aisle. There are so many options, I feel overwhelmed and then just don’t end up buying any. There is Greek, Icelandic, Australian, Kefir, non-dairy, added flavors, traditional yogurts, etc. All of these add to the confusion. Yogurt has benefits for your health. It can be a great snack, breakfast on the go, or even a small dessert for after a meal. Benefits of yogurt include:
- Probiotics!-these help with digestion, gut health, and boosting immune systems
- Calcium-calcium is needed for building bone tissue, blood clotting, and muscle to work properly
- Protein-can help fill you up, helps build muscle, healthy skin, cell growth, and many other functions of the body
- As you walk down the yogurt aisle you may notice the packages with say higher protein, low fat, no fat, no sugar added, real fruit, added fruit, etc. These labels can be confusing and overwhelming. How do you navigate them all? Read the nutrition label is the greatest tip to use. Read the ingredients list. Try picking yogurts with less ingredients. This helps to reduce amount corn syrup, preservatives and other added ingredients that are consumed through yogurt. Fat free doesn’t mean sugar free! Many producers will take out the fat, but then will add sugar or corn syrup back in to replace fat. This makes the sugar and carbohydrate amount be increased. A light yogurt or low fat yogurt would be a better option if you were diabetic as they usually have the sweeteners like stevia, Splenda, equal, etc. Maybe you are wanting a yogurt with more protein, go for a Greek yogurt or ultra-filtered yogurt. Want to stay fuller longer? Try a yogurt with more fat and protein. This provides more calories to keep you fuller longer. Fruits, honey, and granola will add more calories and carbohydrates. Try a plain or vanilla yogurt and add your own whole fruits or whole grain cereals to it. There isn’t a 1 kind fits all in the yogurt aisle. Explore which one you like the best and which one best fits your nutritional needs.
-Written by Alyssa Kauffman, SDSU Dietetic Intern
