Look Good Naked's blog

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 1-1/4 cups regular or non-dairy milk, divided
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch of sea salt
• ¼ C blueberries 
• Drizzle of agave nectar, honey, or maple syrup 

Instructions

1. Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add the quinoa. Cook and stir 3 minutes until toasted and fragrant. 
2. Stir in the 1 cup milk, water, cinnamon, and sea salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low.
3. Cover and cook about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally heat until the porridge is thick and grains are tender, about 25 minutes. (Add a small amount of water if needed if the liquid has dried up before it finishes cooking). 
4. Serve, drizzled with some of the remaining 1/4 cup milk, and fresh or dried fruit, and 1 tsp agave nectar per serving.

That’s because dieting is about more than just counting calories. If dieting and exercising doesn’t helping you shed the pounds, the problem could lie in one of the following issues.

Food sensitivities 
Food sensitivities can lead to cravings, inflammation, and water retention. Antihistamines also increase your appetite and decrease your energy levels. If you suspect you are sensitive to food, try eliminating all of the suspected culprits (dairy, gluten, peanuts or soy are common allergens) for three weeks to identify which one is a problem for you. You could also try natural antihistamines like flavonoid quercetin, vitamin C, or the herb butterbur.

Stress
Chronic stress increases the “fight or flight” hormone cortisol, which can hurt muscle fiber, impair blood sugar metabolism, and spark food cravings. Additionally, lack of sleep can increase ghrelin hormone levels, which stimulates your appetite, and decrease leptin hormone levels, which tells us when we’re full. To help you de-stress, try meditating or doing yoga.

Thyroid problems 
Nearly one-third of all men and women have a thyroid that operates in a suboptimal range. This can happen when you are stressed, have a genetic predisposition, work out more than an hour a day, or restrict calories too much. Thyroid problems affect your metabolism and cause weight gain. To help combat thyroid problems, you can eat Brazil nuts, which are rich in the mineral selenium, which is key for proper thyroid function.

Hormonal ruts 
Restricting calories and losing body fat can decrease insulin, leptin, ghrelin, and other hormone levels, prompting an increase in hunger and a decrease in metabolism. This hormonal rut typically occurs 10 weeks into a weight-loss program and can last even after you have stopped dieting. Try taking a daily omega-3 supplement to raise hormone levels and decrease your hunger levels.

Another hormone that regulates food intake is leptin, which tells your brain when you have had enough to eat.. For more than 50,000 years, humans relied on leptin to send signals to the brain to regulate what we ate. If the brain isn’t able to accurately read the messages that leptin sends it, you continue to feel hungry.

Eating too much sugar hinders our brain’s ability to read l¬¬eptin messages. Excess sugar calories are stored as fat, which releases leptin. The chronic elevation in leptin levels eventually leads to leptin resistance. As a result, the brain continues to send you hunger signals, even when you have had enough food.

Additionally, eating sugar triggers the production of your brain’s natural opioids, a key initiator of addiction. Essentially your brain becomes addicted to the sugar-induced opioid release. The abnormally high stimulation of your brain’s pleasure receptors by a sugar-rich diet generates excessive reward signals and overrides normal self-control mechanisms.

Limiting sugar intake is the one of the most effective way to stop overeating.

• 3 eggs
• 2 Tbsp half and half
• 1 tsp minced fresh thyme
• ½ tsp salt
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 4 asparagus spears
• ½ C shredded gruyere cheese (or swiss cheese)
• 1 Tbsp bread crumbs
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 C coarsely chopped arugula leaves (can also use fresh spinach)

1. Preheat the broiler
2. Beat the eggs, half and half, thyme, salt and pepper together in a medium size bowl.  Set aside.
3. Cut the asparagus into 1” pieces.  Bring a sauce pan of lightly salted water to a boil, add the asparagus, and reduce the heat.  Simmer for 2-3 minutes.  Drain the asparagus and pat dry.
4. Combine the asparagus with the cheese and bread crumbs in a mixing bowl.  Toss to combine.
5. Melt the butter in a 10” flameproof skillet over medium heat.  When it has stopped foaming, add the arugula.  Sauté the arugula until just wilted, 1 minute.  Lower the heat to medium low and our in the egg mixture.  Cook until the bottom is set, the top should still be wet, 3-4 minutes.  Sprinkle with the asparagus mixture.
6. Place the skillet under the broiler and cook until the frittata is golden, 2-3 minutes.  Serve immediately.

• Increase your endorphin levels with exercise
• Nourish your body with healthy foods
• Don’t binge eat or drink to relax
• Address conflicts with others
• Devote time to hobbies
• Don’t be afraid to say no – manage your time wisely, consider your priorities, and discard any unnecessary activities)
• Ask for help
• Take advantage of short relaxation times
• Address your tensions head on with a massage or hot bath
• Stay optimistic
• Connect with others 

• 1 cup long-grain brown rice
• 1 cup red quinoa
• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 1 carrot, sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick
• ¼ pound shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded and caps thinly sliced
• 1 small zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick
• Salt
• 1 head of broccoli—stems peeled and sliced into coins, heads cut into small florets 
• One 12-ounce bunch kale, large stems discarded
• ¼ cup tahini, at room temperature
• ½ cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons warm water
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 ripe avocado, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 1 cup mung bean sprouts 

1. In a medium saucepan, cover the brown rice with two inches of water and bring to a boil.  Cover and cook over low heat until the rice is just tender, about 40 minutes.  Drain and return the rice to the saucepan; keep covered.
2. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the quinoa with two cups of water and bring to a boil. Cover the saucepan and simmer over low heat until the quinoa is tender and all of the water has been absorbed, 20 minutes.
3. In a large skillet, heat two tablespoons of the oil. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until translucent, about four minutes.
4. Add the carrot and cook until starting to soften, about three minutes. Add the shiitake, cover and cook until tender, about four minutes.
5. Add the zucchini, season with salt and cook, stirring a few times, until tender, about three minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
6. Add the remaining two tablespoons of oil to the skillet. Add the broccoli, cover and cook over moderate heat, stirring a few times, until deep green, five minutes. Add the kale, cover and cook, stirring a few times, until the broccoli and kale are just tender, four minutes. Season with salt. Stir in the other vegetables.
7. In a small bowl, whisk the tahini with the lemon juice, garlic, warm water and crushed red pepper. Season with salt.
8. Transfer the brown rice and quinoa to bowls. Top with the cooked vegetables, diced avocado and bean sprouts. Serve, passing the tahini sauce at the table.

Adapted from Food and Wine.

While heatstroke and hyponatremia (low sodium levels in blood caused by drinking too much water while exercising) are certainly a factor in marathon deaths, the vast majority of people die during a marathon because of a heart attack. Marathon running puts enormous stress on your heart.

According to a study by the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress, regular exercise reduces cardiovascular risk by a factor of two or three, but the extended vigorous exercise performed during a marathon raises cardiac risk by seven-fold. During a marathon more than half of the segments in your heart lose function due to an increase in inflammation and a decrease in blood flow. Elite runners in the 100 marathon club (people who have run a minimum of 100 marathons in their lives) often have heart muscle scarring as a result.

Research now suggests that the best fitness regimen is actually short bursts of high-intensity activities, not long-distance running. Here are some tips for optimal workouts:

• A variety of exercises performed regularly (e.g., weight training, cardio, stretching, etc.)
• Alternate difficult days with easier days
• Interval training sessions
• Weight training
• Ample time for rest after physical exertion 

 Learn more here.

Ingredients

• 1 lemon, zested
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, plus more for seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
• 1 1/2 pounds sugar snap peas, stemmed
• 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
• 1 orange bell pepper, sliced
• 1/2 cup white wine (you can substitute vegetable broth)
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 4 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 (4-ounce) trout, salmon or tilapia fillets, skinned
• 8 thin slices lemon
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped mint leaves 

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
2. In a small bowl mix together the lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
3. Layout the 4 sheets of aluminum foil or parchment paper.
4. Place 1/4 of the sugar snap peas, 1/4 of the yellow bell peppers, and 1/4 of the orange bell peppers on each sheet of foil.
5. Over each pile of vegetables drizzle 2 tablespoons of white wine (or vegetable broth), 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon of olive oil.
6. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and gently toss. 
7. Top each pile of seasoned vegetables with a piece of fish.
8. Sprinkle the fish with some of the reserved lemon zest mixture. 
9. Top each fish with 2 slices of lemon.
10. Fold up the foil/parchment paper into an air-tight packet. 
11. Place the packets in the oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish. 
12. Sprinkle the fish with mint just before serving. 

NOTE:  This recipe is very lemony.  You may want to cut out either the lemon juice or lemon zest.

Recipe adapted from the Food Network