Make friends with your scale… or put it away. Either use your scale as an impartial tool,* or get it out of your sight.**

*Impartial tool method – weigh yourself once a day at the same time (like in the morning right before you shower), or once a week (like Saturday mornings), or even once a month (the first day of the month, or the first day of your cycle).

**Out of sight method – there’s the garbage (but that’s not very environmentally friendly) or the give-away box. Instead of your scale, use your favorite jeans as a barometer of your body’s changes.

Photo by Peter W

Do you know how long to brush your teeth? Sing “Happy Birthday” to yourself twice – once for the upper teeth, once for the lower teeth.

Brush your gums and even your tongue, not just your teeth.

You can reach the back teeth more easily by closing your mouth about halfway.

Brush at least twice a day – but after every meal is best.

Photo by Sanja Gjenero

It’s a big day in the United States of America. A changing of leadership, with a lot of pomp and circumstance, and lots of media. All the best to both the outgoing and the incoming Presidents.

What does this Inauguration mean to you?

Do you need a change of leadership? That is – is it time to vote out the current voice in your head, and vote in a new voice? Create a voice that can help you change your habits. A voice that can bring you hope for a healthier life.

Is it time to recommit? Time to take a hard look at your goals or resolutions or whatever you call them, and make sure they’re specific and measurable? How about rewriting them into small-step action plans?

Do you love a good party? Make a nice dinner, serve it on your best china, and toast the future. Dress up, put on good music, and dance the night away (well, not too late – tomorrow is a weekday).

Make today count for you. Inaugurate yourself as commander-in-chief of your life.

…and live it!

Pick three things you would regret not accomplishing or experiencing in your life (getting a degree, having a baby, going on a safari in Africa, starting a business, etc.).

Now design a plan to make all three happen in the next five or ten years. Set interim goals in your plan (for example, get college info, find out about financial aid, register for a class – or set aside $200 a month in a special trip account, investigate safari companies, contact travel agent, etc.). Promise to repeat this exercise every time you achieve one of your dreams.

Here in the U.S., President-elect Barack Obama has issued a national call to service. You may have heard that our new national leaders, including Joe Biden, are planning to spend the day before the Inauguration — Martin Luther King, Jr. Day — performing activities devoted to serving others in neighborhoods across the Washington, D.C. area. They are calling on all of us to join in service activities in our communities, on that day and on a continuing basis.

Visit this new website for information on finding or hosting an event in your area. You can also sign up to receive messages about future opportunities.

If you can’t find somewhere to help today, how about dropping off some groceries at your local food shelf? Or call your local Habitat for Humanity group and get your name on their volunteer list. Or check with your local elementary school about dropping off extra kids’ coats, boots, mittens, and hats.

More about eggs, because… well, because. Plus, another recipe!

Egg Substitutes: Liquid egg products formulated as substitutes for whole eggs. Such products contain egg white. The yolk is replaced with other ingredients such as non-fat milk, tofu, vegetable oils, emulsifiers, stabilizers, antioxidants, gum, artificial color, minerals and vitamins. Because of the dairy and additives, these are not generally part of the THM® program.

Cholesterol: One Large egg contains 213 mg cholesterol. Despite rumors to the contrary, eggs laid by Aracauna fowl, eggs laid by free-running hens and fertilized eggs do not contain less cholesterol than regular supermarket eggs. Cooking does not affect the cholesterol content of eggs. The only way to avoid the cholesterol in an egg is to eat the egg white only.

Yolks: The yolk of an egg is the food sack reserved for the developing chick. The yolk or yellow portion makes up about 33% of the liquid weight of the egg. It contains all of the fat in the egg and a little less than half of the protein. With the exception of riboflavin and niacin, the yolk contains a higher proportion of the egg’s vitamins than the white. All of the egg’s vitamins A, D and E are in the yolk. Egg yolks are one of the few foods naturally containing vitamin D. The yolk also contains more phosphorus, manganese, iron, iodine, copper, and calcium than the white, and it contains all of the zinc. The yolk of a large egg contains about 59 calories. It is the yolk that is responsible for the egg’s emulsifying properties. This is because the yolk contains lecithin, a very powerful emulsifying nutrient. Lecithin keeps the fats in the yolk in a liquid form. Taking lecithin supplements will also help keep the fats in your blood from solidifying and forming plaques.

Whites: In THM®, we mostly cook with the whites of the egg. The whites are low in calories and can produce a high protein, highly satisfying meal that is low in calories. Egg whites contain about 15 calories each.

Baked Egg White, Broccoli, and Mushroom “Cupcakes”
Purple * Serves 5 (2 cupcakes each)

These make a great treat for the whole family. You can bake up several, eat some now and put the others in the fridge for afternoon snacks, or an easy meal. You can put just about any type of protein and any vegetable you have around the house into these.

1 tablespoon cold-pressed, non virgin olive oil
1 pound mushrooms, thinly sliced – any kind
1 cup broccoli florets
12 egg whites

Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly oil a cupcake tin with a little extra olive oil or use a non-stick tin.

Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tablespoon of oil. Add the mushrooms and sauté` until they become brown and crusty on the edges, 10 to 15 minutes.

Transfer the cooked mushrooms to a food processor and blend until minced. (if you don’t have a processor, you can chop the mushrooms.)

Place the broccoli florets into a steamer basket over boiling water and steam until tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the broccoli from the heat and place in a mixing bowl. Mash the broccoli lightly with a fork until chunky.

Add the mushrooms to the broccoli. Season with a smidgen of salt and pepper, if desired. Mix well with your hands. Divide the mixture evenly among the prepared cupcake tins.

In a bowl, beat the egg whites with a splash of water until light and fluffy. Pour the eggs over the vegetables. Each tin should be about three quarters full.

Bake the cupcakes for approximately 10 minutes. Serve immediately or wrap each cupcake in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator or freezer.

Use this Spirit Sunday for a personal time out. What can you do for yourself?

• Take a nap.
• Relax in the bath.
• Read a magazine (not one related to work).
• Read a novel.
• Give yourself a manicure, pedicure, or both.
• Write in your journal.
• Give yourself a facial.
• Wrap up in a blanket and watch your favorite movie.
• Sit down for a cup of tea.

We’ve been eating them all our lives. We use them in all kinds of recipes, literally from soup to nuts. We’ve eaten them for every meal and even mix them in some of our beverages. But how well do we really understand the simple, everyday egg?

The eggs commonly used in the American diet come from chickens. These eggs are unfertilized, which means they can never hatch and grow up to be chickens, so when you eat a standard egg, you are not eating baby chicks. Chickens are not forced to lay eggs. Egg laying is a natural bodily function of birds and reptiles. Eggs will be laid whether or not there ever was a rooster in the hen house.

Definitions –
Fertile Eggs: Eggs, which can be incubated and developed into chicks. Fertile eggs are thought more nutritious than non-fertile eggs, but do not keep as well as non-fertile eggs and are more expensive to produce. These are not generally available in the grocery store.

Free Range Eggs: True free-range eggs are those produced by hens raised outdoors or that have daily access to the outdoors. Due to seasonal conditions, however, few hens are actually raised outdoors. Higher production costs and lower volume per farm means that free-range eggs are generally more expensive.

Cage-Free Eggs: Some egg farms are indoor floor operations and these are sometimes erroneously referred to as free-range operations. The chickens are not in cages, but probably are not outdoors, either. The nutrient content of eggs is not affected by whether hens are raised free-range or in floor or cage operations.

Organic Eggs: Eggs from hens fed rations having ingredients that were grown without pesticides, fungicides, herbicides or commercial fertilizers. Due to higher production costs and lower volume per farm, organic eggs are more expensive than eggs from hens fed conventional feed. The nutrient content of eggs is not affected by whether or not the ration is organic, but there may be residual chemicals in non-organic eggs.

The big difference between commercial eggs and eggs from the health food store or local farmer: The eggshell is very porous. This means it’s full of holes. Liquids from the inside of the egg easily evaporate through these little holes, causing the yolk and white to shrink and dry up. Commercial eggs are waxed to prevent this evaporation and will keep some time when refrigerated. Locally purchased eggs are most-likely not waxed and, therefore must be used within a few weeks of purchase.

Here’s a quick and easy recipe for a delicious breakfast.

Scrambled Egg White, Tomatoes & Onion
Blue * serves 1

Olive oil spray
3 egg whites
1/4 of a small onion, chopped
1/2 of a small plum tomato, chopped

Coat a small fry pan with olive oil spray. Whisk egg whites with a little salt and pepper. On medium high heat sauté onions until soft. Add egg whites and then tomato. Scramble until well mixed, and set to your liking.

Option – add one handful of washed spinach, chopped, with the onion. When the onion is soft and the spinach is wilted, add the egg and tomato, and cook until scrambled.

Photo by Sanja Gjenero

When I was interviewed for Professional Development magazine recently, they asked me if I were stranded on a deserted island with no hope of rescue, what three items would I want with me and why? (note: an item is not a person)

Here’s what I chose – a flint for fire, a knife for cutting, a tarp for shelter. Can you tell I’m a Survivor watcher?

So what would YOU choose? If you had two more items – what would they be?

Get yourself in the mood for a fun Saturday night.

Turn on your speakers, and press the green button. I dare you to play this only once