Let's all go to the lobbyyyyy.... and get ourselves a heart attack

Not such a catchy tune when we put it that way, eh? Well, yesterday and today reports are all over the news about the amount of calories and saturated fat in the typical movie theatre popcorn and pop combo, and it is enough to make even a die-hard fan think twice. Take a read of this story and then come back for a few different perspectives from yours truly:

Some movie theatre popcorn full of fat: Study

OK, so kinda gross right? For many of us, the calories in a large popcorn and regular pop are the equivalent of an entire day's caloric needs, and certainly several days worth of saturated fat. This is not something we need to eat on any regular basis, not for our hearts, or our waist-lines.

I do want to comment on one thing in the article though. It mentioned that AMC is using the highly saturated coconut oil to pop their popcorn and that this isn't a good choice because it is so saturated. Back in the 90's headlines were made on this very topic, because all theatres were using coconut oil back then. The attention of the news reports pressured them to change to a polyunsaturated oil (usually canola, which is touted as being healthy).

In reality, coconut oil, while being highly saturated, is extremely health supportive on all levels. The body doesn't process saturated oil from a plant source in the same way it does from an animal source (due to the different length of the chain of fatty acid molecules). Medium Chain Fatty Acids like coconut oil are processed more like a carb (for energy) than a fat (stored as body fat much more easily), and it has been shown to actually boost the metabolism, and support the thyroid as well. There are many benefits of coconut oil and coconut products, and I'm going to spend some time in my next article (or two) outlining those.

In regards to popcorn, if I'm going to subject my body to eating any movie theatre popcorn, I'll choose the AMC coconut oil popcorn over any canola-popped corn... IF they are using a non-hydrogenated (aka: trans-fat) version. Coconut oil is highly stable, and when being heated to the high levels they use for large batches of popcorn, it is less likely to become a "trans-fat" or damaged in the heating. Canola on the other hand is a highly processed oil (not naturally occurring) which creates inflammation in the body. As well, being less stable, through the process of heating to high temperatures, the oil becomes a trans-fat, which is extremely damaging to our health (Health Canada has stated that daily recommended intake of trans-fats should be less than 1% of daily caloric intake - as little as possible).

So there you have it, another treat spoiled by your friendly neighbourhood nutritionist. Sorrrrrrry! But you know I'm not going to leave you without some healthy alternatives, because what's a movie without snacks? So, here's what I've been known to take with me:

• home-made Kale Chips (yes, really)
• a handful of nuts (cashews, pistachios, almonds, walnuts...), mixed with raisins and/or a small amount of chocolate chips
• cherries or grapes
• brown rice crackers, sometimes I'll also bring some hummus in a small container for dipping
• brown rice chips like Rice Works - super tasty but pretty high in calories so don't eat the whole bag!
• Kashi granola bar
• chocolate covered almonds (not too many)
  
• And for a beverage, I'll have water (plain or soda water), or a nice peppermint or other herbal tea.

Ok, I know, it's not the same as a nice big bag of salty buttery movie popcorn. But that's just what we've been conditioned to want by marketers and by habit. You can break that association, and learn to find healthier options that feel like a treat. And really, isn't it worth it, when you consider the impact to your heart, your brain, your skin, your energy, and your figure?

The Wonders of the Versatile Avocado!

Oh boy is there anything better than an avocado? Yes, I know it's high in fat, that's what makes it so GOOD... and so GOOD FOR YOU! One whole cup of avocado has about 235 calories, and somewhere in the neighbourhood of 80% of that is fat (180 calories). Two-thirds of that fat is monounsaturated (oleic acid), which has been shown to reduce LDL (the bad cholesterol) and increase HDL (the good cholesterol). Oleic acid has also been shown to help reduce the risk of breast cancer. Healthy fats are important for transporting and absorbing other nutrients, and the avocado provides a perfect little package of these fats in combination with carotenoids and tocopherols (other nutrients that are health promoting, including reducing the risk of prostate cancer) that work together to promote good health in a way that can't be replicated by each nutrient on its own. By adding avocado to meals with other vegetables, you can increase the absorption of nutrients from those vegetables too!

So don't fear the fat - just consume avocado (and other high healthy fat foods like olives, olive oil, butter, coconut milk and oil, nuts, nut butters, and seeds) moderately, and in combination with other lower fat selections, and it will all balance out in the end. In addition to the heart friendly benefits mentioned above, healthy fats will also give your complexion that youthful glow, lubricate your joints, AND, certainly not to be discounted, make your food sooooo much more tasty so that you'll be SATISFIED with eating less of it.

Back to avocados ... They are also exceptionally high in potassium (higher than the much touted banana), which helps regulate blood pressure and guard against circulatory system diseases. They're also an excellent source of folate, a nutrient many people are often deficient in and which is also excellent for cardiovascular health.

How to enjoy an avocado:

Have you ever wondered how to cut an avocado or how to remove the pit? Here's a little tutorial for you (ok I tried to do this by video but my camera is having technical difficulties, so a picture tutorial it is!):

Step 1 - Pick your tools: Your avocado - If you want to eat it right away, a ripe avocado will be slightly soft (but not mushy, that's overripe), and have no dark spots or cracks. If it has a slight "neck" (like a pear) rather than round top, it was probably tree ripened so it will have more flavour. If it doesn't give when you squeeze it, it's not ripe enough, and won't come out of the rind easily, and won't have any flavour. ** Your knife - something with a bit of weight to it, this is important for removing the pit. Your "scooper" - a butter knife or a spoon.
** If you want to buy one to eat later, you can buy it harder, and ripen at home on the counter or in a paper bag over 2-4 days. Once ripe you can then store in the fridge for up to a week.


Step 2 - Cut in a circle around the outside the avocado to create 2 halves:


Step 3 - Now take your knife, and give the pit a "whack" and a slight twist, and out will pop the pit!
Step 4 - Remove the fruit from the rind by using a butter knife inserted between the rind and the flesh and dragging your knife around the edge. It should glide fairly easily around the rim, and free the flesh in one solid piece. Alternatively you can use a spoon to scoop it out.


Step 5 - Now you can slice or cube the avocado as desired!


Step 6 - Eat! Some different ways you can eat avocado:

• sprinkle with a bit of sea salt and just eat it!
• slice or cube and add to salads
• blend it with some vinegar or lemon juice, olive or flax oil, and herbs of choice to make a creamy vegetable/salad dressing
• cube it and "sprinkle" over black bean soup
• mash it and use it to top a baked potato
• if it's soft enough, mash it and use it as a sandwich spread
• mash or blend and mix in spices/herbs and use it for a vegetable dip
• use it as a base for a creamy pudding
• or of course, you can always make GUACAMOLE (see my recipe below) that you can eat with veggies, on the side of chicken or fish, or with whole grain tortilla chips or crackers!

Audrey's Famous Guacamole!
This guacamole recipe is a hit at every party I make it for. Play with the amounts of ingredients to make it the way you like it - spicier or milder, chunkier or smoother...

1 avocado, mashed, but slightly chunky
squeeze of a slice or two of lime
a couple tbsp of red onion, finely chopped/minced
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
half a plum tomato, diced
small handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
sea salt to taste
cayenne pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients and enjoy! Soooooooooo yummy!

Can Exercise Make You Fat?

This surprising claim was made in a recent issue of Time Magazine (Aug 17, 2009) in an article entitled "The Myth About Exercise." In the article, the author explains, with the illustration of a few research studies, that it appears that those who spend hours a week huffing and puffing and sweating away their time and energy at the gym are no more or less likely to release excess weight than those who don't participate in any structured exercise routine. Is this just an attention grabbing headline article to stimulate magazine sales? It does seem to fly in the face of everything we've ever been told about how to release excess body fat: eat less, move more. What about all those extra calories we're burning in the gym (or on the road or in the pool or on the court)? Don't tell me that was all for nothing!??!

The conclusions the researchers are drawing to explain their findings (again, based only on a couple of formal studies; beyond that anecdotal evidence is used) are:

• Exercise stimulates hunger, so we eat more to compensate for the extra calories we burned; in fact intense exercise could make weight release harder, as it could make us lose control of our appetites, leading us to hit McDonald's for some french fries or Starbucks for a 400 calorie muffin after our workouts.
  
• By performing "purposeful" exercise (ie: exercise you do on purpose for the sake of getting exercise, gaining fitness or for weight release), we may also compensate for that extra calorie burn by reducing our "casual" exercise (ie: regular movement that may be done throughout the day such as walking, taking stairs, carrying groceries, cleaning the house, doing yardwork, or playing recreational sports).
  
• The author states that "After we exercise, we often crave sugary calories like those in muffins or "sports" drinks like Gatorade."
• Our perception of the amount of food we can "afford" to eat becomes inflated; we may feel that because we exercise so much, we can eat carte blanche and not have to worry about it.
  

Now, I'm not going to flat-out refute these points, but I am going to argue against them. Yes, when we exercise, our energy requirements to maintain our weight increases. In other words, we can eat more and maintain our current weight. If we want to release excess weight, we do still require a caloric deficit, and exercise can help us to create that.... IF we do not overcompensate by eating as much or more than we burn. Of course if you go and eat french fries and muffins, and Chocolate Frappuccinos you're not going to reduce your body fat. Putting some numbers behind it to help illustrate the point, the article gives the example of a blueberry muffin, at 360 calories. To burn that off, a 154 pound 30 year old female will need to jog for a half hour at 5mph, vacuum for an hour and a half, bike ride for 1.25 hours, or mow the lawn for an hour. Exercise may help prevent you from gaining extra weight in that case, but your weight release goals will be reached very slowly if at all. This article really highlights what we've been told in recent years: Weight release is about 20% exercise, and 80% food. Don't fool yourself that exercise gives you free reign.

While the author states that we often crave sugary foods after exercising, in fact the opposite is more likely. While you may have strong hunger after a hard workout (although many people, myself included, often have little appetite after a hard workout), exercise is not likely to stimulate a craving for sugars in particular. What stimulates a craving for sugar, in fact, is eating sugar. If you make wise selections focusing on complex carbohydrates (whole grains, fruits, veggies, and beans/legumes), adequate amounts of protein, healthy fats, and stay well hydrated, you will not crave for sugar. Exercise, in fact, will minimize your cravings for sugar. Sugar is often craved due to its effect on the reward centres of the brain, stimulating "feel good" neurotransmitters to be released. Exercise does the same thing, stimulating the release of endorphins to increase pleasure, relaxation, and feelings of contentment. Exercising can be an effective means for reducing sugar cravings.

In addition, as I'm sure many of you will attest, when you make the effort to workout, it often reinforces your commitment to healthy living. It improves your mood and you feel more inclined to take the time to take care of yourself with healthy food choices too. Speaking from personal experience, as well as experience of people I've known and seen in the gym myself, I'm going to default to my common sense here: Exercise supports my goals of managing my weight. I feel stronger, I'm fitter, my mood is better, I sleep better, my cravings are reduced, I think more clearly, and yes, I burn SOME extra calories.

The author does also mention that psychologist Dr Kelly Brownell, a longtime expert in the study of obesity who treated obese patients at a lab at Yale, found that while only 5% of participants could keep the weight off, those 5% were also more likely to regularly exercise than those who regained the weight. He states that if he were to run this lab today, he would probably orient the focus more toward food choices than emphasizing exercise, but fails to explain his rationale for that.

The case is made for exercise as beneficial for health purposes, stating that "people who regularly exercise are at significantly lower risk for all manner of diseases - those of the heart in particular." The risk of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease (the big three killers in North America) are all significantly reduced through exercise. As well, cognitive function is 30% more likely to be maintained, and chronic back pain is reduced by 36%. However, all out sweaty exertion in a gym is not necessarily required to gain those benefits. Simply adding more movement into your daily activity can "enhance various aspects of cognitive functioning." As well, releasing excess weight itself may be more important for improving cardiovascular health and for reducing the risk of developing diabetes than exercise itself is.

Articles such as this one with sensational headlines can do more harm than good. The article is written from a slant that leaves the weary weight-reduction-seeker feeling that they may be better off to stop spending time in the gym. While it does promote exercise for health benefits, it leaves you feeling that if your only reason for working out is weight release, you might as well give it up.

I wish they had taken a different approach, namely: Those who are exercising regularly and adding more movement to their waking hours are doing great things for the health of their bodies, as well as mood management. Keep it up! Those who aren't yet active, start building more movement into your day, and consider adding some "purposeful" activity when you can. But put it in perspective: keep your eyes on the prize and focus on healthy eating as your main method to reach your weight release goals.

As for me, you'll find me in Body Combat 2 times a week, Body Step 2 times a week, and weight lifting 2 times a week. I love how I feel and seeing the results of my hard work, whether I lose weight not! Anyone wanna join me?!!?

ADDENDUM SEPT 9: An article published today commenting on this very same Time article : Experts weigh in after "Time" questions value of exercise