Functional Strength for the Body: Knees

Functional movement is a key component to lead a healthy, happy lifestyle. Without functional strength in parts of your body like your knees, shoulders and back, you can find it difficult to complete simple daily activities. Playing with your children or grandchildren or even picking up a fallen object can become a painful task.

We have put together a 3-part series filled with basic movements to help you gain back functional strength. Today, we'll start by strengthening the knees. See the moves demonstrated in the video below.

Hamstrings

Hamstring Curls: Hold on to the back of a chair or a wall for balance.  Bend your affected knee and raise your heel towards the ceiling as far as possible without pain.  Hold for 3-5 seconds, and then return to the start position.

Calves

Calf Raises: Stand with your weight evenly distributed over both feet.  Hold on to the back of a chair or a wall for balance.  Lift your unaffected foot off the floor so that all of your weight is placed on the affected foot.  Raise the heel of your foot as high as you can, then lower.

Quadriceps

Straight Leg Raise: Lay on your back with one leg bent and one leg extended out straight.  Tighten your muscles on top of the thigh of the extended leg.  While keeping the knee straight, lift your leg up about 12 inches. Hold for 3-5 seconds, and then return to the start position.

Glutes

Side Lying Clamshell: Lay on your side with your legs stacked and bent to a 90-degree angle in front of you.  Your head is rested in your hand.  Keeping your feet together, slowly rotate the upper leg towards the ceiling using your gluteals.  Keep your upper body still.

A large majority of our Guests perform all these exercises10-15 times each. Your range of motion may be small at first, but will improve as the muscles strengthen.

Stay tuned for part 2 of our 'Functional Strength for the Body' Fitness Series next Friday!

Unwise, Better & Best Food Choices

Anyone that comes to Hilton Head Health (H3) can remember hearing these three very important words from our Director of Education, Bob Wright:

"Unwise, Better, Best"

Those of you reading today's blog that are new to this phrase are about to learn a simple but pivotal tips to help you achieve your balanced, healthy lifestyle.

During the summer there are: holidays, weekend cookouts, dinner and cocktails with friends on the weekends and sometimes weekdays, plus sweets and goodies waiting for you in the office. Not to mention right after summer there's a myriad of well-know holidays, that we won't mention, ready to do wreck havoc on your healthy diet.

Prevent the disruption of your healthy diet; get into these healthy habits to make better food choices:

1. While at a cookout, party or event, scan the food options before you eat and categorize each option into 1 of 3 choices: unwise, better or best. Weigh each choice considering where each food option would lie on a unhealthy to healthy scale. Use that to scale to guide you with your food choices.

2. If you have a treat, make sure you eat it slowly and mindfully. Savor every single bite. This tip helps with not only treats but your daily food intake. By taking time to eat and taste your food, you're able to easily gauge how full you are getting and this can help prevent overeating.

3. Don't underestimate calories. More times than not, half of an entree or salad has more than enough calories for a full meal. Something on a menu might sound healthier than other items but you might want to double-check calorie counts using websites/apps like: My Fitness Pal, SparkPeople and Calorie King.

Could you use more healthy guidance from our Healthy Lifestyle experts? Email us your questions at getinspired@hhhealth.com; you're question could be the inspiration for our next post.

 

Desserts under 100 Calories: Strawberry Shortcake

Strawberry shortcake is a classic, summer dessert. Here in the Healthy Kitchen, we love giving classic recipes a healthy twist for our Guests. With minor tweaks here and there, we were able to keep the delicious flavors of this dessert while cutting the calories by more than half.  Not to mention, you get plenty of added healthy benefits from strawberries: fiber, vitamin C and potassium. Even more reason to enjoy!

Ingredients:

3 pints Strawberries, fresh

½ cup Sugar, granulated

2 ¼ cups All-purpose flour

4 teaspoons Baking powder

2 Tablespoons Sugar, granulated

¼ teaspoon Salt

2/3 cup Skim milk

3 Tablespoons Butter, unsalted

3 Tablespoons Cream cheese, fat-free

1 Large egg

Steps:

• Slice the strawberries and toss them with ½ cup sugar.  Set aside.


• Preheat oven to 425˚F. (220˚C)


• In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, 2 tablespoons sugar and the salt.


• With a pastry blender cut in the butter and cream cheese until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.


• In a small bowl, beat the egg and milk.  Make a well in the center of the batter mixture and add the beaten egg and milk. Stir until just combined.  Make sure to avoid over-mixing.


• On a lightly sprayed sheet pan, drop ¼ cup batter into individual biscuits, about 2 inches apart.


• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool partially by placing the sheet pan on a wire rack.


• Slice partially cooled biscuits in half.  Top with ½ cup Strawberries.


• Presentation tip: Cut the ½ biscuit into 2 pieces, placing one flat on the plate and angling the other against it.  Top with strawberries and garnish with low fat or sugar free cool whip or whipped topping.

Nutrition:

Servings: 30

Serving size: 1/2 biscuit and 1/2 cup strawberries

Calories: 60 kcal

Fat: 2 grams

Leave us a comment with a recipe you'd like to see the Healthy Kitchen remake into a healthier recipe.  Each month we'll remake one new recipe and post it on the blog!

Freshman 15 Fitness: Core

by Casey Walker

Our Freshman 15 Fitness Series started with the upper body, moved down to lower body and now it's time to target that core. Grab some water and get ready.

List of moves:

1. Squats with Leg Lifts


2. V-ups


3. Dead Bugs


4. Penguins


5. Scissor Kicks

Complete 20 reps of each exercise and repeat this round of moves 3 times for best results. See each move below:



Create your own healthy college lifestyle by:

• staying active (join an intramural team or go play football/kickball/swim/etc. with a group of friends,)


• drinking at least a half an ounce to an ounce for each pound you weigh (according to WebMD)


• and replacing pizza, burgers and that order of french fries/onion rings with lean meats, whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables.

If you have specific fitness or exercise-related questions, email us at getinspired@hhhealth.com. We'd love to answer your questions and we may even use your questions to create new workouts!

Health and Nutrition Experts Weigh in on Weight Loss Myths

Our Health and Nutrition Experts weighed in on the weight loss myths and shared simple healthy lifestyle tips on Power Up Your Health with Ed Forteau. Hilton Head Health Director of Education Bob Wright and Registered Dietician Lindsay Martin talk about decreasing your plate size, why you should hide your danger foods, what to eat before/after a workout and more to help you on your weight loss journey. Plus, they shed some light on a few weight loss myths

Listen to all their health and weight loss tips from episode 31 here:

Freshman 15 Fitness: Lower Body

By Maria Hartung

Today, we're bringing you part 2 of our 3-part Freshman 15 Fitness Series. Today, we're working out the largest muscle group; oh yes, it's leg day! There's no equipment necessary so you can do this workout in your dorm, apartment, outside, or even at your favorite gym. Grab plenty of water and get moving!

List of moves and tips:

1. Standard Squats

2. Jump Squats

• For squats: Keep chest upright and try to bend knees at a 90º angle. Inhale while going down into the squat position and exhale while coming up.

3. Reverse Lunges

4. Standard Lunges

• For lunges: Try to touch your knee to the floor with both lunges but if you can't quite make it, get as close to the floor as possible without injury. Continue to work your way down to the floor with each workout.

5. Wall Sits

• For Wall Sits: Keep your knees at a 90º angle and your shoulders against the wall.

Complete 15-20 reps of each exercise to get the best results for your H3 Leg Day! See each move below:

Grilled Kale Pesto Chicken and Vegetable Skewers

by Healthy Kitchen Chef Carrie Adams

 

Whether you're grilling out for a bunch of friends at your house or just sitting down with your family for a summer dinner, this recipe will be the star at any meal. The H3 Healthy Kitchen Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Skewer combines fresh summer vegetables, juicy chicken and a delicious Kale pesto. You can even mix it but by using other proteins, like beef or shrimp and different vegetables like eggplant.



Ingredients:

2 each Chicken breast (4 ounces), large dice

½ each Yellow bell pepper, large dice

8 each Cherry tomato

½ cup Zucchini, skin on, large dice

4 each 8-inch wooden or metal skewer

Pesto:

1 bunch Kale, stems and ribs removed

½ bunch Flat leaf parsley, chopped

3 Tablespoons Pine nuts, toasted

1 each Garlic clove, minced

1 Tablespoon Lemon juice, fresh

Pinch Red pepper flakes

¼ teaspoon Kosher salt

1 Tablespoon Olive oil



Method:

• Preheat grill and oven to 375 degrees F.

Pesto:

• Bring a pot of water to a boil.


• Wash and roughly chop the kale. Blanch the kale in the boiling water for 2 minutes.


• Remove the kale from water and strain, press water from the leaves.


• Add parsley, nuts, garlic, lemon juice, red pepper flakes, and salt into a food processor. Pulse until coarsely chopped then scrape down the edges.


• Transfer drained kale into the food processor. While the processor is on, slowly add oil in a steady stream.


• If the kale mixture is too thick, thin it out by adding water. Pulse until desired texture is achieved.

Assembly:

• Soak wooden skewers overnight in water.


• Mix vegetables and chicken with ¼ cup pesto, massaging the pesto all over these ingredients.


• Skewer alternating chicken and vegetables on each of the four skewers.


• Mark on the grill, rotating to each side after 1 minute (4 minutes total on the grill).


• Place on a greased sheet pan and cook in oven 7-10 minutes or until chicken has reached 160 degrees F, checking with a meat probe.


• Let it rest 3-5 minutes so they can carry over and cook to 165 degrees F.


• Serve and enjoy!

Nutrition:

Servings: 4

Serving Size: 1 skewer

Calories: 100

Fat: 3.5 grams

Freshman 15 Fitness: Upper Body

By Jesse Salazar

After starting college, many students are plagued with the dreaded 'Freshman 15'. Between consuming unhealthy food, drinking high caloric beverages, irregular sleeping patterns and a decrease in physical activity; many students, not just Freshman, can gain excess weight.

Hence, the name of  our new 3-part workout series, Freshman 15 Fitness. For the next 3 weeks, Hilton Head Health will share simple exercises and tips that can be done without any fancy equipment and limited space. Let's get started with 5 upper body moves. Complete 15 repetitions of each move for the best results.

Bicep Curls

Shoulder Press

Push Ups

Alternating Rows

Extension Rows

Thanks for watching! Stay tuned for our lower body Freshman 15 workout next week.

 

 

Body Image Vs. Self-Esteem

Self-Esteem

For most of us, carrying excess weight becomes a heavy burden on our self-esteem. We look in the mirror with self-loathing and the way we feel about our body slowly becomes the way we feel about ourselves.
I was reminded of this dynamic recently on an invigorating power walk. Pumping my arms and taking long enthusiastic strides along my favorite work-out route, Pit Bull blasted through my headphones. Passing a familiar home with a for-sale sign in the front yard I took notice of an addition to the sign that read, “I’m Beautiful Inside.” Wow, what a great reminder!

Body Image

As our body image takes shots at our self-esteem, we need to learn to fight back. Changing our body takes time, so some unsavory messages are bound to surface on occasion. It’s important that when that happens,

"we turn our attention to our inner strengths so that we don’t provide fertile ground for those negative messages to grow. Remembering that we are not our bodies, our bodies are where we live."

What are the qualities contained within the body that you admire or love? What are things you love about yourself that have nothing to do with your body? For instance, I love my sense of humor, my compassion, my ability to be non-judging and accepting of others. Those are things that make me beautiful inside, just like the real estate sign says.

Inner Beauty

When we remind ourselves of our inner beauty, it makes us more accepting of our body and preserves our self-esteem. That’s really a win-win situation. You can love your body and still want to change it, but reminding yourself of some of your virtuous qualities makes it a lot easier to do.

Give it a try. Write down five things you like about yourself that have nothing to do with your body for the next ten days straight. I guarantee that at the end of the ten days you will feel infinitely better about both yourself and your body!

2-Step Basil Vinaigrette

by Executive Chef Hicham Elmadi

Want to make healthy, gourmet-quality meals for your family but don't have the time? Make this 2-step Basil Vinaigrette to add extra flavor to any family dinner. With only 7 ingredients, you won't break the bank but you'll impress your family with this flavorful addition. Enjoy this healthy recipe and look out for other healthy recipe items from our new, True dinner menu!



Ingredients:

1 ½ oz. Basil, fresh
½ cup White balsamic vinegar
1 ½ T. Dijon mustard
1 ½ T. Honey or sugar
¼ tsp. Kosher salt
Pepper, to taste
¼ cup Extra virgin olive oil

Method:

• Add everything but the olive oil to a blender and begin to blend.


• While the mixture is blending, add the olive oil until mixture is smooth.

Nutrition:

Serves: 25
Serving Size: ½ ounce
Calories: 25
Fat: 2.5 gm

Stay tuned to get the recipe for the Pistachio encrusted salmon pictured along with the basil vinaigrette in August!