Gluten Warrior

Ok everyone, the next big step in our Pantry Takeover is a HIGH-IMPACT one for your health and weight goals…
⭐ CHALLENGE: Reduce your added sugar intake (and the sugar in your pantry!)
You may be surprised to learn that there are some pretty pain-free ways to do this! That’s because a lot of sugar is hiding in foods you can swap for better choices. You can also use healthy natural sugar alternatives.
Why do we want to limit sugar? Get this:
While the average American adult consumes 68-77 grams of added sugar per day, the American Heart Association recommends no more than 25–35 grams per day. (And no more than 12–25 grams for kids.) [This is a conservative amount, it is often much more as we have dessert at each meal and snack. Our blood sugar amount is one teaspoon. Same with kids, toddlers. Think what happens when 10 tsp of sugar from a glass of apple juice or soda goes to the brain of a child. Orange juice…It is faster than cocaine.
Annnnnd… (you knew this was coming), excessive sugar intake can contribute to many health conditions, including:
Insulin resistance
Weight gain
Inflammation
Elevated lipids
Weakened immune system
How does sugar add up in your diet?
Sweetened flavored yogurt for breakfast – 15 g
PB&J for lunch – 22 g
Granola bar snack – 20 g
Pasta sauce with dinner – 9 g
= 70 grams of added sugar!
Isn’t that crazy?
That’s 2x more than what the AHA recommends.
Here’s what you can do to reduce your ADDED sugar intake:
Avoid sugar in “hidden” places. Read your food labels and see how much added sugar is in your sauces, dressings, condiments, and packaged foods.
Make simple swaps (see below!) and look for other unsweetened or low-sugar options.
Use healthy sugar alternatives in moderation.
Next time you are shopping, check your labels for how much added sugar is in your foods.
Put your Comment below or share a picture in the Comments of your favorite foods to eat when you have a sugar craving. This just might give someone else a good idea!
Please check out these excellent references, below!
References:
Aeberli, I., Gerber, P. A., Hochuli, M., Kohler, S., Haile, S. R., Gouni-Berthold, I., & Berneis, K. (2011). Low to moderate sugar-sweetened beverage consumption impairs glucose and lipid metabolism and promotes inflammation in healthy young men: a randomized controlled trial. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 94(2), 479–485. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.111.013540
Malik, V. S., Pan, A., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2013). Sugar-sweetened beverages and weight gain in children and adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 98(4), 1084–1102. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.113.058362
AlEssa, H. B., Bhupathiraju, S. N., Malik, V. S., Wedick, N. M., Campos, H., Rosner, B., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2019). Carbohydrate quality and quantity and risk of type 2 diabetes in US women. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 110(3), 576–584. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqz132
Jentzmik, F., Bauersfeld, U., Kämmerer, U., & Jentzmik-Sturges, U. (2018). Effects of fructose and glucose on lipid metabolism when consumed at energy-balanced levels. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 107(6), 978–989. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqy062
Vighi, G., Marcucci, F., Sensi, L., Di Cara, G., & Frati, F. (2008). Allergy and the gastrointestinal system. Clinical & Experimental Immunology, 153(Suppl 1), 3–6. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2249.2008.03713.x
https://www.heart.org/…/sugar/how-much-sugar-is-too-much
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/sugar-and-inflammation

Ok folks, grab your phone and take a picture of your pantry right now, as is! Don’t clean it, don’t throw away any trash, don’t hide any unhealthy foods you may be embarrassed about having in your pantry (trust me, we have our favorite treats too).
By the end of this Challenge, we are going to have an organized, clean pantry, filled with healthy food options, plus a plan of how to get there!
➡️ We will be sharing our pantry before and after pics at the END of the class, so you’ll want to take your BEFORE we start the group. 😊
I don’t know about you, but I’m a bit daunted by this one – a freshly organized pantry I LOVE the tought of but going to be an interesting week. Still, an organized pantry makes clean eating simple by making healthy options easy to find and showing me what needs to be restocked.
Over the next few days, we will be diving deeper into what foods to ditch or switch, and why.
TOMORROW, we’ll begin our CHALLENGE with these daily habits:
· Eat whole grains in replace of refined grains
· Eat 3-5 servings of fruits or veggies
· Spend 10 minutes cleaning out or organizing your pantry
· Toss 3-5 unhealthy or expired items from your pantry
TODAY: START YOUR INVENTORY
For today, snap your pantry photo and start taking an inventory of what you have and need:
1. ⭐ What are the healthy items you want to keep? You will want to keep your whole grains, beans, lentils, rice, fruits, veggies, olive oil, baking supplies, healthy fats.
2. 🚫 What items do you want to toss immediately? Discard expired or unhealthy items. Check expiration dates on all items and discard anything that is past its expiration date. Items you should consider tossing: Unhealthy processed snacks, high sugary treats or foods, sugary drinks, and high-fat foods. Out of sight, out of mind, right?!
3. ♻️ What are some foods you don’t want to waste but could replace with a healthier option when they run out? For example, you may have a whole bag of white pasta. You want to switch this for whole wheat or chickpea pasta, but you don’t want to waste what you have. (Don’t know which foods to switch? Don’t worry! We’ll learn about that soon.)
4. 🛒 Assess what you need to stock up on. What are you running low on? Use this Sample clean grocery list for inspiration. Make a note of what you want to buy.
What are you tossing out today? Post pictures of what you’re purging below!
Print or save this Clean Eating Grocery List to keep track of what you have, what you need, and what you need to swap out for a healthier option when your current stock runs out.
👇 Save the Habit Tracker image here to check it off digitally. Prefer to track by hand? Print the PDF version from the Files tab.

WELCOME April and our latest Wellness Community Challenge: Pantry Takeover! 🎉 We are so excited to have you with us!
The foods we eat have a huge impact on our health and it all starts with what we keep in our kitchen. We’re going to talk about how to make simple swaps for better health!
🥕Nutrition is one of those topics where we see SO much conflicting info out there. We want to make sure you have accurate information! That’s why Shaklee’s scientists and nutritionists have guided us in what we’ll be sharing with you. 🔬
We’ll dive into:
· Which foods to ditch and switch
· Nourishing foods to stock your pantry with
· Easy, healthy snack recipes
· Tips and tricks to keep your home filled with nutritious food and snacks
· Budget-saving tips
· Pantry-organization hacks
Plus, by the end of the class, you will have a clean, organized pantry!
You don’t have to spend a lot of money to take over your pantry! Don’t be overwhelmed, you don’t need to buy an entire new pantry at once. As you run out of foods, choose to buy the healthiest option next time you shop. Keep making better choices and eventually all of your small habits will add up to a HUGE change!
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How to participate?
1. 📝 Fill out your daily Habit Tracker each day. (Save the image we’ll share in the next post and check it off digitally OR print the PDF version from the Files tab.)
2. 📲 Post your Tracker in the comments section of our daily Check-In post.
3. 💬 Join the discussion! Share fun recipes or tips in the comments––we want to see!
4. 🎉 Have fun! Invite a friend!
➡️ So your thoughts:
– How often do you do a pantry makeover?
– Do you have a regular pattern around Spring and cleaning?
– What are your typical Spring activities?
Starting tomorrow,April 8th through the13th. Wellness 360-#GenH.
This is going to be interesting. Msg me with your questions and and for an invitation…

I’m going to borrow from Michael Pollan today, from “Food Rules”, which is a double entendre. “Cook” In theory, it should make little difference to your health whether you cook for yourself or let someone else do the work. But unless you can afford to hire a private chef to prepare meals exactly to your specifications, letting other people cook for you means losing control over your eating life, the portions as much as the ingredients. Cooking for yourself is the only sure way to take back control of your diet from the food scientists and food processors, and to guarantee you’re eating real food and not edible foodlike substances, with their unhealthy oils, high-fructose corn syrup, and surfeit of salt. Not surprisingly, the decline in home cooking closely parallels the rise in obesity, and research suggests that people who cook are more likely to eat a more healthful diet.” (me, now) This is leading up to something I will discuss tomorrow, unless the power goes out and my sump pump stops pumping. Maybe I’ll make that flourless chocolate cake I just saw on the computer earlier, so we will have something to eat…if we do lose power. Be safe everyone!!!

Black Bean Stew: can become a burger, enchilada, served with salmon, huevos rancheros and about 45 more ways in RD, LDN Bill Bradley’s book-“Things to do with Black Bean Stew”. A bowl of BBS has 216 calories, almost 2 servings of vegetables, half the dietary fiber the average person needs in a day, 4 grams of fat (3 grams from healthy monounsaturated fats), 11 grams of protein(maybe more), 43 grams of complex carbohydrates, and a small amount of sodium if you use unsalted beans and no salt added tomatoes, 880 mg of sodium if you don’t make the substitutions. Remember to have a nice side salad and some homemade cornbread (an easy way to fortify with more protein, ask me how) Look below for the wildly creative recipe: (if my photo doesn’t work let me know)

he last light on Mt. Tom on a beautiful and sunny Easter Sunday. The body of water in the center is the Ox Bow of the Connecticut River and the light just below and left is the light from my house beckoning me home. Supper is ready…

Well, we are at the finals of our Protein Up week long challenge. Here is the math. Some will require more for certain situations, some less, such as with some kidney diseases. These will be better covered individually and with an experienced clinical dietitian, or Naturopath. People in their 70s and 80s can easily have lost 50% of their muscle mass.
Protein Needs as You Age
🌞 Good morning, wellness warriors! It’s time to share more about the protein amounts story!
While the amounts we’ve talked about here are a good guide for most adults, needs will vary, especially based on gender, age, and pregnancy.
Here’s the lowdown…
♀️GENDER/SEX
Did you know women build muscle mass at half the rate of men? And, at age 40+, women begin losing muscle mass at an alarming rate of 3-8% every decade! Most of us aren’t even getting close to the amount we need. One simple shift in your diet can be a complete game changer: prioritize protein!
👵AGE
We don’t use protein as efficiently for muscle repair and building as we age. That’s why eating protein is essential for maintaining muscle mass and strength as we get older. Muscle mass is as important in fracture risk as bone quality is, and bone quality tends to decrease with age. Loss of muscle is linked with accelerated degradation of bone.
Infants and kids have their own unique protein needs, too. As children grow, a critical natural strength develops. Keep your kids active and fueled with enough protein!
🤰STAGE
Pregnant women need more protein to help build the baby’s muscles, bones, and other tissues, especially in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. For breastfeeding women, the protein requirements are even higher so they can maintain muscle mass while providing adequate nutrition to the baby through breast milk.
DAILY PROTEIN NEEDS
Kids

Infants (0-6 months): At least 1.77 g/kg (about 0.80 g per pound of body weight)
Infants (7-12 months): At least 1.6 g/kg (about 0.73 g per pound of body weight)
Children (4-13 years): 0.95 g/kg (about 0.43 g per pound of body weight)

Aging Adults

50+ years: 1.0–2.2 g/kg (about 0.45–1.00 g per pound of body weight)

Pregnant Women

Early Gestation: 1.66 g/kg (about 0.75 g per pound of body weight)
Later Gestation (32-38 weeks): At least 1.5 g/k (about 0.68 g per pound of body weight)

Breastfeeding Women

Recent research suggests 1.7 to 1.9 g/kg is ideal (about 0.77–0.86 g of protein per pound of body weight)

➡️ Did you learn anything new that might change your protein intake?
https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/moms-nutrients.html.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7257931/

Why Leucine
🔥 Have you met the most powerful amino acid to help you preserve muscle and burn fat? It’s called leucine.
What is leucine, exactly? Leucine is a branched-chain amino acid (BCAA), which means it is transported to various tissues, including muscles, after your body processes it. This essential amino acid, found in protein-rich foods, is crucial for muscle health and can’t be produced by your body.
What makes leucine so special?
Your muscles are in a continuous state of breakdown and repair called “protein turnover.” Leucine plays a unique role in stimulating muscle protein synthesis. Muscle repair is necessary for physical activity because exercise causes muscle protein breakdown. This makes leucine important for maintaining lean body mass.
How does it help you maintain a healthy weight?
If you’re trying to lose weight, you want to lose body fat but maintain lean body mass, as lean body mass supports your metabolism. This is where leucine comes in. It helps you not only keep but actually build muscle so that you preserve your metabolism. That way, when you stop cutting calories, you still have that metabolically active tissue to help you burn fat rather than muscle, even at rest!
It’s all about balance
Studies have shown that adequate protein enhanced with added leucine used as a meal replacement can be effective in promoting weight loss from fat while preserving muscle mass. This is why products like Life Shake™, Shaklee 180® Meal-in-a-Bar, and Performance® Advanced Physique® 100% Grass-Fed Whey Protein* contain leucine to help you preserve and build lean muscle. Keep in mind that leucine isn’t the only player in the game––it needs to team up with exercise and adequate protein to help you achieve a healthier weight.
Let us know if you have any questions about leucine or leucine products. We are happy to answer! Check out this research paper: Where to find leucine in food and how to feed elderly with sarcopenia in order to counteract loss of muscle mass: Practical advice. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2020.622391 (Frontiers in Nutrition, Jan 2021, vol 7, article 622391)

OPTIMIZING YOUR PROTEIN INTAKE, (PART 2)
Hey everyone, have you wondered: “Why should I eat protein with every meal and snack? Why not eat most of my protein in 1-2 meals?”
Good question! 🤓
🔬 Here’s why:
First, studies show that eating more than 40 grams of protein in one meal is no more beneficial than having 15–30 grams in one sitting. So if you try to stack all your protein into one or two meals, you’ll likely to lose the benefit of that extra protein.
Plus, unlike carbs and fat, your body can’t store protein for later. Surplus carbs are broken down and stored in your body as glycogen or fat. Surplus fat is mostly stored as body fat. But protein isn’t squirreled away for later. Rather, after your body does everything it needs to with the protein that you eat in a meal, it uses anything left for energy or converts it into fat or glucose.
In other words, because your body isn’t storing protein AT ALL, you need to regularly fuel up on it! Otherwise, you don’t have much to work with to build and maintain your muscles, produce hormones, build and repair tissues, maintain your bones, support your metabolism, and so on. THAT IS IMPORTANT!! And DO NOT skip breakfast. Make sure it has 1/3 of the days protein and eat it before your carbs so you aren’t chasing blood sugar all day. Chase proteins instead, at each meal. (thank you Sue Lamdin)
Check out this excellent article:
https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/…/are-you…
➡️ I’D LOVE TO HEAR ANY TIPS THAT HAVE HELPED YOU EAT MORE PROTEIN THROUGHOUT THE DAY. PLEASE SHARE!!

Water, water everywhere, not a drop to drink, because it is all over the basement floor. We have a little artesian spring in a floor crack and the sump pump is going every few minutes. One might say the water table is high, or my house is floating. I used some extra protein tonight using the squeegee to get more water into the sump hole. I am counting that as resistance training. It is good to help prevent sarcopenia. How are you doing with adding protein to each meal and snack. See today’s picture below for some ideas. Bon appetit