Clarity Wellness

Everywhere I go on social media this month I see posts on how to stick to your dietary plan over the holidays, nasty ingredients that are in your favorite dishes, and recipes for healthier options.  I'm all for eating healthier (obviously!) but aren't the holidays stressful enough?   Case in point: one of my family favorites at Thanksgiving is a corn pudding that we've been eating for as long as I can remember.  It's pretty basic—corn, butter, yogurt, and a corn muffin mix packet.  I saw a post this week on the ingredients in the corn muffin mix that was quite horrifying, along with a link to a healthier option you could use.  The price difference?  Twelve dollars!  Now, I'm all for healthier options (especially the gluten-free varieties), and quite honestly, I don't recommend eating corn muffins—even the twelve dollar ones—at all, but if you're only eating them once a year, why break the bank and stress over it? I will be making the cheaper versi...

One of the most frustrating things I see people struggle with is when they hit that dreaded weight-loss plateau. It happens to everyone. You start a new plan, you lose a few pounds, you're super-stoked, and then a few weeks or months into it you stop losing weight. What's going on? I'm working so hard--why isn't this working for me anymore? Here are the questions I ask them, and often just a tweak or two will get them headed back in the right direction.  1. Are you hitting your protein goals each day? This is a game-changer for most people--especially women. For some reason, many women seem to think that they don't need much protein. That couldn't be further from the truth--especially as we get older. If you want to avoid sarcopenia (loss of muscle) and osteoporosis, then you need to prioritize protein, to the tune of one gram per pound of ideal body weight per day. Protein is the most satiating macronutrient, and your body burns more calories digesting it than...

Yes, I’m in the business of building meal plans for people who want to improve their health and (usually) lose weight. Most people, however, use my meal plans as “training wheels” to ultimately build their own meal plans, and that's the way it should be. Building a healthy meal plan doesn't have to be complicated.  In fact, the easier the better, IMHO. Here are the basic tenants that will start you on the road to better health almost immediately! 1.  Eat   two or three full meals a day . Build nutrient-dense, satiating meals, so you won't feel the need to snack later. If you find yourself getting "snacky" between meals, add a little more protein to your meals, drink plenty of water, and take a look at whether or not you're really hungry. You might just be bored, upset, or in the habit of eating at that time.   2.  Start with a savory,  protein-packed breakfast (whenever that is) .  Save your carbs for later in the day. Eggs, Greek yogurt, a prote...

  5 "healthy" foods I don't eat anymore I have been interested in nutrition for as long as I can remember, and the more I learn the more my diet evolves.  Here are five things I used to eat that I've realized were really not as healthy as I thought. 1 .   Dried fruit .  Sure, dried fruit has fiber and a few vitamins, but it's also a highly concentrated source of sugar that will spike your glucose and insulin levels quite quickly.  And yes, that goes for dates too.  Eat your fruit whole, and preferably with some fat or protein to blunt the glucose spike. 2 .   Fruit smoothies or juices .  If I make a smoothie these days, it includes a lot of protein, some fiber and fat, along with a small amount of fruit--usually in the form of berries.  Most juices have as much, if not more, sugar as a soft drink, with no fiber to slow down the sugar rush. 3 .   Whole grain bread or pasta .  I know t...

I've been hearing a lot lately in the nutrition stratosphere about the fact that our metabolism doesn't really slow down at menopause, and as a woman knocking at that door herself, I find that very frustrating.  I talk to women every day who tell me that the tricks they used in their 20s and 30s to slim down don't seem to work anymore.  They tell me their weight is redistributing itself and their clothes don't fit the same way.  They tell me they are doing all the things they've been told to do (move more/eat less) and nothing changes.  How can you tell these women that their metabolism hasn't changed? I wish there were an easy answer. There seem to be a multitude of answers--some of them biological, and some lifestyle related. Let's start with the biological. As we age we tend to lose muscle mass, and when you add declining hormone levels, you're going to see a change in body composition. Loss of estrogen causes weight to accumulate around your middle i...

  I noticed this morning during my walk that I was ravenously hungry about an hour into it. This doesn't usually happen to me. I can typically go all morning without a twinge of hunger. However, I've had a couple of weeks of not-so-low-carb eating and I can definitely tell a difference! Give me a teacher appreciation donut, some graduation cake, or a couple of pizza slices with the kids, and boom! I'm right back on the blood sugar rollercoaster.  You know how I can tell? I wake up in the middle of the night a hot mess, I run hot periodically throughout the day, my brain is foggy, my running injuries are aching, my nose is stuffy, and I'm hungry more often than usual. I'd like to think that I can have a little bit of sugar and feel ok, but every experiment fails and I find myself scrambling to get off the rollercoaster and back onto solid ground. Here are some key ways I've found to get back on track and feel better soon. Get it out of your house (and work...

Habits make our lives easier. They make things automatic and free us from the decision fatigue that hits us near the end of the day. However, you probably already know how hard it is to create a new habit. The old ones are so deeply ingrained. It should be simple—there really are only 3 steps involved. Trigger, behavior, reward. With some things it really is that easy. Walk into the bathroom, brush your teeth, enjoy the reward of fresh minty breath. Unfortunately, other habits are not so easy to implement. Habits around food can be the hardest! That’s where we bring in the big guns: habit stacking. Throw every trick you’ve got at it. There are lots of things you can do, but here are some of the most powerful tools I have found for creating better habits around food: 1. Put it in front of your face. If you want to drink more water, fill your water bottle and take it with you everywhere. If you want to eat according to a plan, print it out and post it on your fridge....