Hi friends! This is going to be a quick one about two things that have little to do with each other. 

The first thing:

If you're like me and completely lose self-control when it comes to eating pasta or other starchy foods, try this trick that has worked for me since I first wrote about it in 2011: give yourself one portion, fill the rest of the space with veggies, and put the rest of your starch in a leftovers container for the next day or for later. An example is a box of macaroni and cheese. I can easily eat an entire box of macaroni and cheese, even if I'm feeling so full that I think I will explode. To prevent myself from doing this, I microwave 1-2 cups of frozen broccoli in a bowl and then add half of the cooked macaroni (see blurry picture below). I put the rest in a tupperware container and put it away in the fridge. 

If you're cooking a regular old bag of pasta, stick to 1/2-1 cup of pasta at the most (and "tupperware" the rest of it). And don't forget your veggies! They're nutritious, colorful, and add bulk to your bowl that will prevent you from feeling sad that you're not eating that extra 1-2 (or more) servings of starch that's chilling in your fridge! Look for non-starchy veggies, or vegetables that are NOT potatoes, peas, or corn (which are FINE to eat, but you want to look for ones that have fewer calories per serving, which are most other veggies). To make this even more filling, add a protein source such as chicken or fish. Also, whole wheat > refined, or white, grains.

The second thing:

I got a Yosh Universal Dry Bag for my iPhone 6 in case I need to go running in the rain. 

I prefer to have my phone with me at all times while I'm out on a run (for GPS tracking, music, photos), and being outdoors in the summer always comes with the risk of getting wet. ​This fancy version of a zip-lock bag (only  $6.99 on Amazon) is supposed to keep my phone dry during a downpour and still allows me to use my touchscreen! I've tested putting my phone in the case and using the screen (it works!), but I have yet to test it in the waters. I'll trial it with something of lesser value first, and then I will report back soon. If I can go outside in the rain without worries of destroying my iPhone, I will be one happy girl. 

​That's all for today!

Cooking oils are a hot topic in the world of nutrition. If you watch cooking shows (or cook yourself), then you probably know that not are oils are created equal.

There are two big variables to consider when picking out your cooking oil. First, you want to be aware of the smoke point of the oil. The smoke point is the temperature at which the oil, or fat, begins to smoke. If you've ever forgotten about oil on a hot pan and then it starts smoking, your eyes burn, and it smells terrible, that means that the oil has exceeded its smoke point. These oils become rancid and may be harmful to your health if consumed over time. As a general rule, you want to choose oils that are appropriate for your cooking temperature.

Second, you want to consider the composition of the fatty acids of the oils. In short, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are essential to our health. We can't MAKE them ourselves. We must consume them in our diet. The typical Western diet is very high in pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids and relatively low in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids. We ideally want our omega-6 to omega-3 consumption ratio around 1:1 or 2:1, but it's generally much higher than that. While we need inflammation as a barrier to infection and injury (we couldn't survive without it), too much of it can contribute to a whole host of chronic diseases that are common today. 

Oils that are heavy in omega-6 fatty acids include safflower oil (133 omega-6:1 omega-3), sunflower oil (40:1), corn oil (83:1), peanut oil (32:1),  sesame oil (138:1), and grapeseed oil (a whopping 676:1). These oils are already in so much of the processed foods that we eat. If you don't already notice that, start reading labels when you're at the grocery store. That's one of the many reasons that I'm an advocate for cooking at home! If you do that, you have complete control over which oils you use. 

In general, I cook with coconut oil, olive oil, and butter for low-to-medium heat. For higher temps, refined olive oils such as virgin or extra light olive oil should be used over extra-virgin (although these are more processed and less nutritious). Canola oil also tolerates high heat, and its ratio is only 2:1. It's not my favorite because of the way that it's processed, though (shown in this video). I plan to start using avocado oil and ghee (or clarified butter), because they also  have very high smoke points! I don't deep-fry, but these would be good for high heat in the stove or in the oven.


*****
 This site is a good reference for smoke point and fatty acid content.  ​

Full disclosure on the photo: I  just ran out of coconut oil and used the oil that I rub on my face and under my eyes in the photo (not like it really matters, because I can still cook with it!). 

Please comment below if you have any questions on this post. I may do a follow-up post in the future that delves into more details about specific oils. Enjoy your Cinco de Mayo, and remember to read your food labels and pay attention to smoke points!

Happy Monday! I hope everybody had a great weekend. If you live in Chicago, maybe you took part in the St. Patrick's Day craziness that sweeps over the city once a year. I wore my green and took part in the festivities on Saturday, but I went for a five-mile run first. 

 The Lakeshore path was eerily foggy on Saturday morning. It was one of those Chicago days where it was so foggy that I couldn't see the skyline heading south. It felt like I wasn't in a city at all. I went one mile to the lake, one and a half miles on the trail, and then I turned around to go home. Here's my running summary from last week:

Total miles logged: 8 (3 on the treadmill on Tuesday; 5 outside on Saturday).
Aches and pains: the underbelly of my right foot at the start and both knees towards the end of the 5-mile run. The lower back is stiff but just needs to be stretched and strengthened. 
Goal for next week: 7-8 miles total.

Once I was showered, stretched, iced, and presentable-looking, Al and I squeezed ourselves onto an overly-crowded train car on the Loop-bound Red Line. It was disgusting for the first stop or two, and then it thinned off as people in green got off the train to go to their respective parties. We got off in the River North neighborhood and went to a friend's apartment in the Trump Tower. 

As a side note, Chicago has a crazy St. Patrick's Day celebration. There are two parades, the Chicago River is dyed green, and the city goes nuts with parties. Everybody can pretend to be Irish for the day. I haven't been able to celebrate for the past three years due to exams or other commitments, so I was looking forward to this  year.

​The group we hung out with does something called a St. Patrick's Day Progressive. This year, we started at the Trump Tower, took pictures by the river, and then went to two additional apartments. Each host had everybody for about three hours and provided food and drinks. Each person paid each host $10. It was much cheaper than going to the bars, and we didn't have to deal with horrific crowds (other than the Red Line). We had a great time, and we took some good pictures. It's a nice view from the 48th floor!

The food was good, too. The second apartment served Lucky Charms treats (like Rice Krispie Treats), and they deserved a photo op! There was also crock pot mac'n'cheese, which was absolutely delicious. Many carbs were consumed on Saturday.

                                                                                 Making a Grocery Shopping List

I'm going to switch gears now and talk about grocery shopping. As much as I love recapping part of my weekend, this is still a healthy-living blog. At the end of the weekend, it's time to think forward to the coming week and plan meals. That's what I started doing when I was living in Australia, and it changed the way that I eat. The more that you buy food from the grocery store and prepare it at home, the more you'll save money and control what you're putting in your mouth (which could help you lose or maintain your weight). It's a win-win situation. While you have to put extra work in by planning and prepping, it gets easier with practice. 

Here are the simple steps I do each week for meal planning and grocery shopping:

1. Review your schedule for the week. Figure out which nights you will be home. This way, you will know exactly how many meals you need to plan. (Yes, schedules can change last-minute. If you make dinner plans after you did your shopping, you can move meals around or freeze foods that you're not going to use.)
2. Create your menu. As you see on my old shopping list above, I wrote out my daily meals on the bottom. You can see that I was going to be out on Friday, so I didn't plan anything for then. For Monday, I picked a Cajun salmon recipe from a cookbook. I also generally search through recipes that I've saved on Pinterest or Facebook to figure out what to make. If you need inspiration, blogs are a great way to start. Just look through the recipe sections of your favorite blogs and pick out recipes that you like. The possibilities are endless!
3. As you create your menu for the week, you can make your shopping list. You can organize it however you want. I usually do mine based on the grocery store sections. In addition,  I'd recommend making your list while you're in the kitchen. This way, you can review your current food inventory.  You want to look at what you already have so that you don't make accidental unnecessary purchases. For example, you don't want to buy eggs if you already have a full carton at home.You can also use your kitchen for inspiration. If you have celery and peppers that need to be used before they go bad, you can plan your recipes around those. 
4. Once your ingredient list is finished, add other foods that you want for snacks. I usually write down apples, bananas, and almonds. 

Now, you're ready to shop! It takes extra time to plan (as you see, there are two steps before you actually start making your list), but it's worth it! Make the list and stick to it. That's all there is to it.  

If you want to go the extra mile to save yourself time during the week, you can prep on Sunday night. Chop your veggies, grill your chicken or meat, and do whatever else is necessary to make the cooking process faster during the week when you have less time. 

Happy grocery shopping, friends!

P.S. I was reading my shopping list above and see that I abbreviate a lot. Bals ving=balsamic vinegar; mac nuts=macadamia nuts; chicken br=chicken broth; 3 ch br= 3 chicken breasts; diced tom w/ gr chilli= diced tomatoes with green chillies; TUPPERW= tupperware.