The Thrill of Being Healthy

When I tell people that I have cooked a healthy meal for dinner the response that follows is usually along the lines of, "I bet that's nasty." But I beg to differ. I love living a healthy lifestyle. I love opening up a cook book to any page and trying to change a heavy, greasy dish into a much healthier one. Does it always taste like mama's classics? No, not all the time but in general it turns out to be quite tasty. Just knowing that it's healthier for me makes me feel better too. There are several healthy cook books and online sites with great healthy recipes to try (See Jessica Lynn's last post for a site she uses).

Here are some tricks I use to make my meals healthier:

• Use wheat noodles, pasta or bread. Panko is great for adding some crunch to meats and vegetables.


• Spray your cooking pan (lightly) instead of dredging it with oil


• Use non-fat sourcream or yogurt to keep food together (in most cases these items can be used instead of an egg)


• Buy low sodium items and refrain from adding salt to your food.

Another thrilling part of living a healthy lifestyle is all the new activities yous get to try and people you get to meet. I never thought that I would start the day with a Sun Salutation I learned in yoga, bust out some Zumba moves when I'm out dancing with friends, or challenge my friend in Spinning. There are so many activities and fitness classes that it's hard to get bored with your workout. Recently, I've decided to start back up with boxing and to enroll in a beginners ballet class to help with my flexibility.

Who said being healthy isn't fun?