As you're planning meals for the rest of this week, take to heart this simple yet profound tip from author and activist Michael Pollan.
Sure, Mother's Day brunches are all the rage, but I love getting grateful by celebrating Mom with a big supper. The matriarch of your family will appreciate a delicious dinner in her honor, and maybe she'll even get a chance to kick back and relax for once. Instead of a classic seated dinner where someone is busy serving up a storm, consider these family-style dishes that will allow everyone to lounge around the table and talk. Prepare to pass around the platters and get inspired as you click.
While refreshing your yoga routine may mean trying out a new class, it can also translate to sprucing up your Spring gear. If you've already got more cropped pants and built-in-bra tops than you know what to do with, maybe it's time to give your mat a new home. You'll love these picks of yoga bags at every price range that are both functional and fashionable. Time to click through and spring forward into all the yoga goodness.
When you're at work, leaving the office for some fresh air can change your day. But if you're swamped with work and tied to your desk, this isn't always a viable option. Even if you can't leave, you can still treat your body to a quick stretching session. Watch this video for three moves that will relieve stress in your shoulders, neck, back, and wrists in less than a minute.
Turn off your music and tune in to a quality podcast. Whether you're an experienced yogi looking for a led flow class or you just want to listen to experts talk all things yoga, you'll find a new favorite in one of these podcasts.
Yoga and Other Useful Stuff With Tara Stiles
Yogi extraordinare Tara Stiles has a video podcast series that covers everything from living your best yoga life to weight loss. It's appropriately named Yoga and Other Useful Stuff With Tara Stiles, and we love listening to her perspective.
CorePower Yoga
The CorePower Yoga podcasts offer a mix of information in their various shows. Asana of the Month offers a short video demonstrating yoga poses, while Ask a Yogi answers questions beginners might be afraid.
Kripalu Perspectives
The Kripalu Center For Yoga and Health, a retreat center for yoga and holistic living in western Massachusetts, hosts an enlightened podcast called Kripalu Perspectives. If you want to listen to a traditional podcast format where experts are interviewed, then try Kripalu. You won't be disappointed.
Keep reading for two more yoga podcasts.
For new vegans who were once dependent on dairy and meat, having an arsenal of quality vegan recipes is necessary from the start. Vegan ingredients and techniques might feel foreign, but these cookbook picks feature delicious recipes for anyone following an animal-free diet. Best of all, once you get them to taste, even skeptics will love the results.
For new vegans who were once dependent on dairy and meat, having an arsenal of quality vegan recipes is necessary from the start. Vegan ingredients and techniques might feel foreign, but these cookbook picks feature delicious recipes for anyone following an animal-free diet. Best of all, once you get them to taste, even skeptics will love the results.
Don't waste precious time squeezing your legs together on the boring adductor machine. Instead, opt for these three effective exercises that require no equipment whatsoever.
Pilates Side-Lying Leg Lifts
This Pilates move will help tighten up and tone your inner thighs for bathing suit season:
Keep reading for two more equipment-free inner-thigh moves.
Treat Mom this year with a beautiful brunch celebration. This special spread is completely dairy- and meat-free, perfect for the vegan women in your life. Even family or friends who regularly partake in animal products will enjoy all of the delicious dishes on this Spring menu.
Champagne With a Berry Float
Toast with Giada De Laurentiis's fruit-filled bellini recipe that's only 78 calories per four-ounce serving, or go even lighter by just floating (or muddling) a few berries in a glass of Champagne. Set up a bar of low-calorie brut Champagne and a sampling of fresh berries to keep things simple, light, and elegant.
Veggie Scramble
Instead of an egg-filled quiche, casserole, or scramble, opt for this bright and colorful vegetable scramble starring sweet potatoes, zucchini, and chard. Watch our video recipe and learn how to cook this produce to perfection.
Vegan Eggs Benedict
There's no replacement for the texture and gooey center of a poached egg, but this vegan benedict's lemony, plant-milk-based hollandaise sauce will surprise your taste buds with its dreamy consistency. Top off everything with fresh steamed asparagus and shiitake mushrooms for extra Spring veggie power.
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
End on a sweet note with vegan carrot cake cupcakes. This recipe offers all the traditional flavors of the classic but cuts the amount of sugar and calories in half. Best of all, these cupcakes don't taste vegan in the slightest — they're moist, sweet, and plain delicious.
If you choose to cut carbs in the evening but you're tired of a dinner that's light, then look to these seven satisfying recipes for inspiration. These delicious dishes might cut things back in the carb department, but not at the price of flavor. Click through to see what's for dinner next week.
A healthy home-cooked meal is always best, but some mornings are just too hectic. Since skipping breakfast altogether isn't an option, you're forced to resort to fast food. For mornings when you want something other than oatmeal or yogurt, order right with one of these low-calorie fast-food breakfasts. These six options from popular chains have lower saturated fat and sodium than nearly every other option on their menus.
Starbucks Chicken Sausage Wrap
Calories: 300 calories
Total Fat: 10 grams
Saturated Fat: 3 grams
Total Carbs: 33 grams
Fiber: 5 grams
Sugars: 7 grams
Sodium: 700 milligrams
Protein: 14 grams
Burger King French Toast Sticks (three pieces)
Calories: 320 calories
Total Fat: 11 grams
Saturated Fat: 2 grams
Total Carbs: 29 grams
Fiber: 1 gram
Sugars: 8 grams
Sodium: 260 milligrams
Protein: 3 grams
Wendy's Baked Oatmeal Bar
Calories: 280 calories
Total Fat: 10 grams
Saturated Fat: 4.5 grams
Total Carbs: 46 grams
Fiber: 5 grams
Sugars: 24 grams
Sodium: 220 milligrams
Protein: 4 grams
Keep reading for three more options for breakfast.
If you suffer from lower back pain and have woken up stiff and sore this morning, it's time to roll out your yoga mat. This simple sequence will strengthen the lower back muscles, alleviate aches, and help prevent future injury.
Depending on your level of comfort and overall flexibility, choose wisely — only practise the poses that suit your needs at this time! Be sure to listen to your body and breathe deep as you flow.
Photo: Jenny Sugar
If you suffer from lower back pain, it's time to roll out your yoga mat. This simple sequence will strengthen the lower back muscles, alleviate aches, and help prevent future injury.
Depending on your level of comfort and overall flexibility, choose wisely — only practice the poses that suit your needs at this time! Be sure to listen to your body and breathe deep as you flow.
Photo: Jenny Sugar
Instead of loading up on her favorite sweets, treat Mom with a healthy gift this year for Mother's Day. Whether she's a fitness lover, a healthy foodie, or on a mission to get fit for good, check out all our gift ideas perfectly tailored for every mom you need to shop for.
It's time to upgrade your standard bowl of steamed edamame. Roasting the fiber-filled soybeans brings extra crunch and flavor and serves as a satisfying post-workout snack or creative salad topper. Keep reading for this healthy recipe.
If you grew up in a house where red meat and butter always took center stage in your kitchen and on your plate, then healthy cooking techniques might feel a bit foreign. Whether you're a seasoned chef looking to make conscious changes or a kitchen novice, there's a healthy and helpful tip on this list for everyone.
— Additional reporting by Susi May, Michele Foley, Leta Shy, Emily Bibb, Jenny Sugar, and Zelena Montminy
If you just can't manage to drop your fork once you're full, Jillian Michaels has some advice that could help. The celebrity trainer shared a tip with Fitness magazine for people with overeating issues. "Pour salt on it [leftovers] or put your drink on it" — just wreck any remaining food.
Jillian explains that even tossing leftovers in the garbage doesn't always do the job, since "we've all had that Miranda [from Sex and the City] moment where we'll eat it out of the trash." If you're concerned about being wasteful, Jillian has an answer for that: "It's not going to children starving in Africa, it's going to the trash. It's not worth cellulite, muffin top, cancer, or heart disease." It's a little extreme, but Jillian might have a point here if your self-control has been failing you in the face of temptation.
If you just can't manage to drop your fork once you're full, Jillian Michaels has some advice that could help. The celebrity trainer shared a tip with Fitness magazine for people with overeating issues. "Pour salt on it [leftovers] or put your drink on it" — just wreck any remaining food.
Jillian explains that even tossing leftovers in the garbage doesn't always do the job, since "we've all had that Miranda [from Sex and the City] moment where we'll eat it out of the trash." If you're concerned about being wasteful, Jillian has an answer for that: "It's not going to children starving in Africa, it's going to the trash. It's not worth cellulite, muffin top, cancer, or heart disease." It's a little extreme, but Jillian might have a point here if your self-control has been failing you in the face of temptation.
Many pre-workout snacks involve too much prep time, but this quick fix will help you reserve all your energy for the gym. These peanut butter protein balls taste like chocolate chip cookie dough but offer the ideal blend of protein and carbs you need before a tough strength-training session. Roll these up ahead of time, and pop two an hour before your workout. If you need this simple snack in your life, keep reading for the recipe.
Feeling bored with your everyday cardio workout? Shake up your routine with this challenging 45-minute interval plan that uses two machines. Kick things off with a lengthy session on the low-impact elliptical trainer, and end on a strong note with a quick treadmill session to torch calories.
| Time | Resistance | SPM* | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00:00 - 03:00 | 3 | 130 | Warmup |
| 03:00 - 05:00 | 5 | 130 - 140 | |
| 05:00 - 07:00 | 6 | 140 - 150 | |
| 07:00 - 09:00 | 7 | 160 - 170 | |
| 09:00 - 10:00 | 8 | 190 - 200 | Sprint |
| 10:00 - 12:00 | 5 | 130 - 140 | |
| 12:00 - 14:00 | 7 | 140 - 150 | |
| 14:00 - 15:00 | 9 | 190 - 200 | |
| 15:00 - 17:00 | 6 | 140 - 150 | |
| 17:00 - 18:00 | 10 | 190 - 200 | Sprint |
| 18:00 - 20:00 | 7 | 140 - 150 | |
| 20:00 - 22:00 | 5 | 150 - 160 | |
| 22:00 - 23:00 | 9 | 190 - 200 | Sprint |
| 23:00 - 25:00 | 6 | 150 - 160 | |
| 25:00 - 27:00 | 5 | 160 - 170 | |
| 27:00 - 28:00 | 7 | 190 - 200 | Sprint |
| 28:00 - 30:00 | 3 | 140 |
*SPM = strides per minute
Incline = 20 percent
Keep reading for the 15-minute treadmill segment.
