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Your Wellness Lifestyle Score!

Berries are the number one antioxidant-rich food.  They have the power to turn on our body's natural healing and improve cognitive function and boost energy.  If you're worried about fruits spiking your blood sugar, focus more on berries for your daily fruit intake. They are loaded with fiber to help deliver a balanced blood sugar response and improve insulin sensitivity to your body.

This includes all varieties of berries. All forms of berries count whether fresh, frozen, blended, cooked, or dried.

The daily berry intake also counts toward your total daily servings of fruits and vegetables. So you get double credit when you eat berries.

Dark leafy greens are loaded with healing compounds and fiber and very low in calories.  They do not raise blood sugar and are the perfect food to include daily as part of your new wellness lifestyle. Try to include greens in at least one meal per day. Add them to your daily smoothie.
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Dark leafy greens includes spinach, Swiss chard, and all lettuce varieties. Kale and arugula are the two dark leafy greens that are also in the cruciferous vegetable family.
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Tip: Triple your points when you eat kale or arugula!
It counts as one cup of dark leafy greens; AND one cup of cruciferous vegetables; AND adds 1 more serving of veggies to your total servings of fruits and vegetables.

What in the world is cruciferous? Things like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, radishes, rutabaga, turnips, bok choy, and horseradish.

And guess what? Kale and arugula land in this group as leafy green cruciferous vegetables.

Cruciferous vegetables are the powerhouse veggies. They fight cancer and turn on the body's natural healing.  This is food as medicine at its best. Try to include at least one serving every day to your meals.

Tip: Eating cruciferous vegetables gives you double credit. Get 1 point for eating 1/2 cup per day and get credit towards your total daily servings of fruits and vegetables.

I add 1 cup of broccoli or kale to my daily smoothie to be sure I get my daily cruciferous veggies and boosting my daily servings of veggies.

What is whole grain? Grains that are intact and not processed ie. brown rice, quinoa, whole wheat, farro, amaranth, corn, cereals like oatmeal and barley.
It also includes pasta and breads made from whole grains.
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Refined grains like white rice or processed flour don't count here.

You may also include starchy vegetables like potatoes, yams, winter squash like butternut and acorn.

Whole intact grains: 1 serving = 1/2 cup cooked
Pasta or rice, whole grain variety: 1/2 cup cooked
Whole grain breads: 1 slice whole grain bread
Starchy vegetables: 1/2 cup cooked

All beans and legumes count including beans of all varieties: beans, chickpeas, lentils, and split peas. Even soybeans, peanuts, and alfalfa sprouts are all in the legume family.

Did you know just adding 20 beans at every meal can be as effective as a cholesterol lowering medication? You can throw 20 beans into your soup or smoothie if you need to boost your daily beans and legumes.

Trouble tolerating the side effects of beans and legumes? Get started by eating just 10 beans a day and build up to 20 and you will find your tolerance for beans will improve over time. Moving up to 1/2 cup of cooked beans per day is the goal for optimal health. Find the beans or legumes you like best. Blend them up as a spread, throw a few hidden in your smoothie or add them to a salad dressing for a creamy dressing.  Those that don't love beans will never know they are there.
1/2 cup per day at one meal is the goal for optimal health.

Nuts are powerhouse foods grown on trees and bushes and provide quality plant protein, healthy plant fats, fiber and important nutrients our body needs to thrive.

They are loaded with amino acids for muscle protein synthesis and tissue building.

Research shows those eating a handful of nuts 3 to 4 times per week dropped their risk of fatal heart attack by 74%. Nuts are high in the amino acid arginine which produces nitric oxide and relaxes the arterial wall to lower blood pressure for 4 to 6 hours after eating.

Nuts: 1/4 cup nuts or 2 Tablespoons natural nut butter
This includes all varieties of nuts like almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews, pistachios, and even peanuts.

Tip: Add nuts to every meal to get more plant protein on your plate.  You can throw them on your salad or in your smoothie, or just add them to your plate to meet your daily goal for nuts. They will add a plant protein to your meal, shut down hunger, balance blood sugar, relax arterial walls and build muscle.

Healthy plant fats from whole foods add flavor to our meals, are loaded with fiber and important nutrients. It turns off hunger and makes us feel full and helps us balance blood sugar with sustained energy between meals.

Essential omega-3 fats are needed daily to decrease inflammation and pain in the body

Healthy Plant Fats - avocado, olives, coconut, seeds, nuts:
2+ serving daily =1/4 cup, or 2 Tablespoons seed butter or 1 Tablespoons cold pressed oils from olives, avocados or walnuts.
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Essential omega-3's: 1+ servings daily = 1/4 cup flax seed chia seeds or walnuts, or 1/2 cup cooked soybeans, edamame or tofu, or 3-4 ounces of cold water omega-3 rich fish like salmon, sardines and anchovies.

Nuts double count toward daily servings healthy plant fats and the daily serving of nuts. Soybeans, edamame and tofu double count as daily serving of essential omega-3 fat and count toward the daily servings of beans.

Do you crave sugary foods and beverages? The sugar "habit" can become our body's "fix" for mid-meal energy slumps caused from meals too high in sugar. The more processed sugar we consume, the more often we crave them. Right after we drink a sugary beverage, even whole fruits will not seem sweet.

Changing our cravings begins by satisfying our energy needs and balancing blood sugars between meals.

Eating meals high in processed sugars can lead to unwanted weight gain, insulin resistance, heart disease and even cancer. When you start hydrating and eating your daily goals for fruit and making meals that shut down hunger (using The Plate Meal planning tool) your sugar cravings will subside in just 3 to 7 days. This can become an addictive habit that can steal energy and drive cravings for other unhealthy food choices.

This includes sugar-sweetened beverages like soda and juices, candy, cookies, cakes, desserts, and food.
It also includes beverages and foods made processed  sugars or high fructose corn sugar.

Processed meats are cured to preserve or enhance flavor ie. bacon, ham, sausage, hot dogs, salami, pastrami, pepperoni, deli meats.

Red meats are beef, lamb, pork, veal, venison, goat.

Here's why processed meats, red meats and charred or grilled meats are recommended to be limited in your intake. They are identified as carcinogenic by World Health Organization.

There is an abundance of research showing the association of eating red meat and processed meats just 3 times per week raising your risk of fatal coronary heart disease and increasing your risk for cancer. This is why I recommend limiting your daily intake of these foods.

These foods count as your comfort favorite foods on the plate and you can enjoy them as you choose.

Higher wellness lifestyle scores are earned with lower intakes of these foods.

Hydration is the spring of life. Nourish your body with plenty of H2O to feel your best and boost your energy.

Your water needs vary based on your body weight, muscle mass, activity level, age, climate.

Curious how much water your body needs daily?
The simple rule of thumb for water intake is take half your body weight in pounds, and drink that amount of water in ounces.
Example: If your body weight is 160 pounds, divide it by 2 and get 80. Your estimated water needs is 80 ounces of daily to meet goals. There are 8 ounces in a cup of water so this would equal 10 cups of water daily. Don't forget this is an estimate and there are other contributing factors like climate, outdoor temperature, activity levels and medical status like fevers that can increase your water needs even further.
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You can hydrate with any non-sweetened beverages that do not contain caffeine, such as flavor infused waters from herbs, herbal teas, and flavored waters.
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Track your daily water intake and make hydration a top priority in your self-care wellness lifestyle.

Track your daily water intake and make hydration a top prioritiy in your self-care wellness lifestyle.

Alcoholic beverages seem to be the very core of the culture. We drink to celebrate, we drink when we are sad and we drink to simply let down at the end of the day.

Research has been so inconsistent over the years on whether we should drink red wine to prevent heart disease or if the risks from the alcohol outweigh any benefits.
What we know now from research and National guidelines, is if you don't drink don't start because of a health benefit. If you choose to drink, the recommendation is to limit your weekly total servings of alcohol to 5 or less and a maximum servings of 1 or less daily, to get the lowest risk and greatest health impact.
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One alcoholic drink is equal to 5 oz of wine, 12 oz of beer, or 1.5 oz of liquor.

My recommendation is if you love the flavor and enjoyment of alcohol, follow the National Guidelines. My goal for you is when we practice the healthy habits in our new wellness lifestyle, we will have other methods in our daily routine to help us cope with daily stressors and a daily plan with mindful breaks, social connections, spirituality and playdates to not need alcohol to cope with life or to relax at the end of a hard day.

Moving your body helps to boost your energy and mood, improve your digestion, improve your cognitive function, lowers high blood sugars, improves insulin sensitivity, builds muscle, and so much more.

Aim to exercise most days of the week for 30 to 60 minutes per session. Vary your exercise so you get a good mix of cardio and strength exercises over the course of the week. Add strength training exercise 2+ times per week.
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Walk, run, dance, cycle, swim, lift weights, do yoga or pilates, stretch, play... have fun with it.  Move your way everyday. Record what you do and how long you do it. Track your exercise score to gauge your progress.
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You can get fit walking everyday for 30 to 90 minutes. You can change pace, terrain and elevation of your walk to increase the intensity of the exercise. Research shows that just a 10 minutes walk after a meal can improve your insulin sensitivity and lower your blood sugar and help fuel your cells efficiently for more energy.

As you advance in your cardiofitness, you can add higher intensity workouts like HIIT training to further enhance your cardiofitness and your health.

This includes breathing fresh air 24 hours a day and avoiding smoking and vaping.

Remember to keep your home and sleeping areas with fresh air. Open windows daily as much as possible to keep your home environment air fresh.

Daily walks outside taking in deep breaths every day can improve our overall health and wellness.

Good quality sleep is critical to your overall well-being.
Try to get 7.5 to 8 hours per night with a consistent bedtime, without the need for sleep meds.

Check how many hours of sleep you got last night.
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Do you wake up feeling rested and revived?
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A Few Sleep Tips to help you get better Zzzz's.
-Keep your days lighter and your nights darker!
-Avoid caffeinated beverages 4 to 6 hrs before bed.
-Get early morning sunlight to boost melatonin.
-Have a consistent bedtime.

If you crave a well-lived and impactful life with purpose, it's important to create a structured time in our day and our week to connect with those we love in a meaningful way.

Loneliness is a health risk. Spending time on a regular basis with our spouse, significant other, children, grandchildren, and close friends brings us happiness and adds more healthy years to our life.
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Creating and enjoying healthy relationships with those we love is part of living our best life. It helps us cope with the stresses that come along and feel supported and loved.

Taking a few 5 to 10 minute breaks throughout the day will reduce stress and increase joy.
Step away from your computer or work, take several slow deep breathes and stretch. And better yet if you have time, move your body with a short 10 minute walk to clear your brain fog and boost your energy.

Create this micro-habit as a daily pattern.
Set a timer on your phone to remind yourself to pause several times throughout your day.

Focus on shifting your mindset...
Shift negative thoughts to positive ones;
Express gratitude to others;
Replace addictive habits with positive healthy ones.