Premier Protein #MixedBerrySmoothie Review

I was recently sent some Mixed Berry Smoothie's to try from Premier Protein. I was excited to receive this product as I'm always looking for fast, quick and affordable protein options. There are many mornings and afternoons where this would be a perfect energy boost, especially with a very active baby running around the house and being limited in time or on-the-go. These smoothies have a great balance of carbs, fats and proteins that provide a long-lasting source of energy.

Let me just say, I was shocked by how great these smoothies tasted.  I rarely, if ever, find protein drinks that I like and I was pleasantly surprised at the flavor and that they didn't taste chalky at all. They tasted awesome and definitely a product that I'll be purchasing!

Another thing that I really liked about this product is that it has 60% less sugar than the leading refrigerated protein smoothies. I find that most contained WAY too much sugar for my liking. Each serving has 5 grams of fiber, 15 grams of protein and 140 calories, which makes it a healthy, delicious choice for a morning boost. midday snack or post-workout fuel.

Since I'm still breastfeeding and continuously training for various running races (10k trail run this weekend!), I'm constantly trying to add additional protein to my diet to help keep my supply up and keep my body fueled. Nursing women need 20 grams more protein a day than they did before pregnancy to support milk production so having just one smoothie daily helps me to nearly reach that goal. Plus, it's also loaded with many other essential vitamins and minerals.

Check out all those nutritional stats friends!

Mom and baby approved!

If you're interested in trying these awesome smoothies yourself, check out the following links to grab a $4 off coupons from Meijer and/or Kroger (don't forget to #ShareGoodEnergy and these savings with others):

• Meijer (its their mPerks so no printing necessary!)
• Kroger (digital coupon to load onto shopping card)

Disclosure: I received this product for free in exchange for writing a blog review. Although this post is sponsored, all opinions are my own.

An Easy Way to Improve Your Health - Meatless Monday!

As much as I love a sizzling steak now and then, I do try to be conscious of how much meat that we eat and make efforts to add more meatless options to our menu. At first I had difficulty with finding meals that were satisfying and filling, but over time I have accumulated a rather extensive collection of recipes that have become new favorites.

Meatless Monday is a great public health campaign that has been gaining momentum for years. The premise of Meatless Monday is to reduce your meat consumption by not eating meats on Mondays. By participating weekly you reduce your meat intake by 15% which has huge effects on your personal health and the health of the planet.

Below are a few health benefits of going meatless once a week as suggested on the Meatless Monday website:

- Limit Cancer Risk: Diets rich in fruits and vegetables have been found to reduce cancer risks. Diets high in meats has been found to be associated with some cancers.
- Reduce Heart Disease: Replacing saturated fat-rich foods (meat and high dairy fat) with foods that are rich in polyunsaturated fats (veggie oils, seeds, and nuts) can reduce heart disease risk by 19%.
- Fight Diabetes: High consumption of red and processed meats can potentially increase the risk of Type 2 Diabetes.
- Curb Obesity: Studies have shown that people with low meat intake or vegans have lower body mass indices and lower body weight.
- Live Longer: Red and processed meat consumption is linked to higher mortality rates, cardiovascular disease and cancer mortality.
- Improve Your Diet: Consuming more beans results in a higher intake of fiber, protein and other nutrients. Increase in vegetable and fruit consumption ("eat the rainbow") will also add more nutrients and have lower calorie per density than meats.

Source: Mom Favorites

Meat has the largest impact on the environment that any other food that we eat. Livestock consume a large amount of food and water, while also using immense amounts of land and energy to raise and transport.

Below is what goes into just one quarter pound of ground beef:

Source: NPR.org 

For even more information check out this infographic (click to see larger):

Do you participate in Meatless Mondays? 

My plan for the next few months is to photo and post some of my favorites meatless meals to share. Hopefully some of you will find them helpful. I'd love to hear about some of your favorite meatless meals too so please share your favorites! 

Join my #SummerOfBliss team and challenge!

The other day I came across a social workout challenge that I thought would be really fun to do with a group of people. All of the goals are attainable and having the extra support from other people may make it a bit easier when people are struggling. I know that I am one of those people that needs someone to hold me accountable for goals because it keeps me on track and in line. The goals of the challenge are:

1. Limit the drinking of sugary beverages. No more than four sugar sweetened drinks a week. Check out this infographic to see some of the disastrous effects of sugar on the body.
2. Log your happiness, or "level of bliss" at least once a day. Record your level at least once a day and contemplate what factors make you blissful and which make you bliss-less. This activity can help you make changed to a more positive outlook and life and help you weed out those things that drain your happiness away. 
3. Meditation: Take 5 minutes a day. Take 5 minutes a day to disconnect and reflect. Take those 5 minutes for yourself to center yourself and get in some deep breathing exercises.
4. Welcome in summertime by eating at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily. Substitute your not-so-savory or healthy snacks with some fresh produce. Step out of the box and try something new. You may find a new favorite. Eating Well has some great info for what a fruit serving size consists of.
5. Log 5 workouts a week. Aim for at least 30 minutes a day for maximum health effects (assuming you've been cleared by your doctor). With summertime cruising in there are many options even if you don't have a gym membership: Run, bike, swim, hike, row a boat...anything that gets your heart pumping.
6. Plank pose: 1 minute per day. Core strength is key and this exercise will engage all those muscles. There are variations so do the one that is best for you. Check out Tina Reale's site for 22 different variations.

The challenge starts this upcoming Monday, June 11th and ends July 8th. Four weeks towards living a healthier life and establishing new habits. 

Also..you could possibly win prizes too from Bestowed.com so it's an extra bonus.

Be sure to sign up for the team HERE.  

The team name is: Love, Laugh, Live Well Body Rocker's. Once you've joined the team click on Summer Of Bliss and join the challenge from there. Starting Monday you'll begin logging your progress. If anyone has any questions be sure to let me know and we'll figure it out!

Would an in-store nutritionist help you shop healthier at the grocery store?

I was reading this article the other day and it really got me thinking. The article discusses a study in which a nutritionist was available in the store for a 10 minute in-store counseling sessions with a nutrition educator to understand labels better. It was found that those who had received the counseling had carts with a greater number of fruits and veggies, particularly fruit, green and yellow vegetables.

I think that many people have the intention of eating well, but often times are unsure of what a healthy diet really consist of and the labeling used on a lot of food packaging make it even more confusing to eat healthy. During a trip to the supermarket we are bombarded with claims and labels that elude to items being healthier than they often are (often obscuring what's really in the foods). A few examples of these misleading food labels are as follows:

• "All Natural" - FDA and USDA have very lenient rules on these claims (although they are working to make them more strict). It may claim "all natural" but still be loaded with high fructose corn syrup, additives, and other not so natural products. Many juices claim natural fruit flavors, but that's nothing more than concentrated fruit extracts that have little to no nutrition benefit.
• "0 grams of trans fat" - While it's great there is no trans fat, it doesn't mean that it doesn't contain other harmful things such as high levels of saturated fats, high sodium, total fat and so on.
• "Whole grains" - Being made with whole grains is great, but don't forget to check the sugar content too. Lots of cereals and breads are made with whole grains, however are loaded with sugars and sodium (breads are guilty of having high sodium levels so keep an eye out).
• "Fat free" - A lot of foods with high sugar contents will label it as fat free to elude to being healthier than they are. While it's great that it's fat free, the sugar content is usually much higher than is recommended and that can lead to adverse health effects.

The above are only a few examples of some labels that can misleading. For those that are trying to eat healthier and lose weight they may believe that they are eating "healthy" based on the foods they buy due to misleading labeling. I think that having a nutrition educator or nutritionist would be a great opportunity for some people to address their food concerns. Not only could they have a better understanding of what these labels mean, but also have a greater understanding of what a healthy diet consist of and what these labels may also be covering up. 

Earlier this year, I planned a program during my internship called Know Your Nutrition. This program was set up on campus to allow students an opportunity for a mini-assessment with a registered dietitian (Kati Mora from Around the Plate). During the evaluation we found that many students found this to be an enlightening and educational experience in which they were able to gain much knowledge and answer many questions that they had and something that they wished would be available more often (or even on a regular basis). Incorporating something like this in a large scale setting, such as grocery stores, could have a great effect in creating awareness and educating consumers on the importance of a healthy diet to their and their families long term health. 

Do you think that you would utilize a program such as in-store nutritionist/dietitian sessions?