10 Tips for Eating Out
By Olivia Horvat-Benson on
It can sometimes be a bit “too hard basket” to eat out when you’re on a “diet” or a specific health/food plan that limits what you can eat/drink, not to mention socially isolating; But it need not be like this. Firstly you need to remember that if you are on a “diet” or a specific plan, whether you’ve done it yourself or a healthcare practitioner has advised you of it, the intention for it was clearly to maximise optimal health, so it was a choice and when you make a choice you can’t say that you are missing out, because you’re not. All this means is that you’ll need to think outside the box a little from what you would normally opt for.
Here are some tips to help you.
1) Read the menu thoroughly & ASK questions.
Fancy words and...
My problem with your drinking: Australia’s hate-love relationship with alcohol
By Paul Harrison on
In the 2015 annual alcohol poll, 34% of Australians said they drink to get drunk, 43% said they had vomited as a result of drinking and 75% said Australia has a problem with excess drinking or alcohol abuse.
But in the same Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education poll, 92% of Australians identified themselves as responsible drinkers.
As the young people might say, what the …? A majority of Australians agree we have a problem with alcohol. But almost all say it’s not a problem of theirs – it’s a problem that exists somewhere outside of their world.
There are both contradictions and abstractions in this discussion. But it makes perfect sense to me.
It’s simply easier to say others are flawed than admit you might be...
Cherry Burst
By The Mindful Mocktail on
Ingredients
- 5 cherries roughly chopped
- 1 lime, quartered
- 6-8 mint leaves
- 1 cup soda water
- Sweetener of your choice to taste, optional (see notes)
Method
- Place chopped cherries and lime in a glass. Add a little sweetener if using. Muddle together for about 1 minute. If you don't have a muddler, use the back end of a wooden spoon. The idea is to get it small enough to fit though a straw.
- Clap mint together in your hands a few times to release the scent and add to the glass. Give the mint a gentle press with the muddler.
- Add ice and top with soda water.
- Garnish with lime wheels, mint and/or extra cherries.
For more recipes like this, follow @themindfulmocktail on Instagram
Raspberry Lime & Mint Mocktail
By The Mindful Mocktail on
Ingredients (serves 1)
- 8 raspberries
- 1 lime, quartered
- 8-10 mint leaves
- 1 tsp sweetener of choice (opt)
- Sparkling water
Method
- Place raspberries, lime, mint and sweetener (if using) into a glass.
- Muddle together for about 1 minute to release the juice from the lime and raspberries, and the flavour from the mint. If you don’t have a muddler, use the back of a wooden spoon or similar.
- Top with sparkling water and stir gently.
- Add ice and garnish.
For more recipes like this, follow @themindfulmocktail on Instagram
Three ways to achieve your New Year’s resolutions by building ‘goal infrastructure’
By Peter A. Heslin on
Every year most of us make New Year’s resolutions. Eat healthier. Exercise regularly. Invest more in valued relationships. Learn a language. And so on. Often they are the same resolutions as last year.
Why do our resolutions often so swiftly wither away?
A prime culprit in this annual rollercoaster of optimism and disappointment is overconfidence in the power of our intentions.
The excitement of a new year (and perhaps the fruit of celebrating a little too hard) cloud remembering a hard fact of life: good intentions readily evaporate without a trace in the face of everyday experiences such as exhaustion, temptation and long-standing habits.
Fortunately, academic research on goal-setting can help. Studies over several decades have...
Using Meditation to Curb Cravings
By Geraldine Coren on
Sugar cravings. We all know how powerful they can be, whispering to us that we MUST have that chocolate, that glass of wine, that cake! It’s like a voice in our ear – and an impulse felt in the body too – distracting us from our goals to be healthy and vital. Yet we all know where acting on our cravings too often leads us. The cycle of trying to resist, then indulging, feeling guilty and even sick, berating ourselves when we know our behaviour isn’t good for us ... and then setting up the sugar craving pattern to be repeated all over again.
Most of us have heard of the benefits of meditation, how it can slow down a busy mind and calm the nervous system. But meditation is more than just focusing and relaxing. It is a powerful tool for...
Kickstart Yourself Back Into Movement
By Leanne Hall on
We’ve all been there. Hitting the gym regularly, eating really well and feeling fabulous. Then it happens. Maybe we over eat at a work function, or take a week off the gym because we’ve been feeling unwell. Or maybe we just feel bored with our current fitness routine. Whatever the trigger, the result is the same. Motivation takes a drastic nose-dive and we find ourselves frustrated, and perhaps even depressed at the fact that we just can’t seem to pull ourselves together and get back on track.
So how can you get back on the health and fitness wagon? Well, here are my tips to help get you back to your healthy self again!
Identify Obstacles
When motivation disappears, the first question you need to ask yourself is this: “Why?”
Identifying...
How much alcohol is OK? Balancing risks and benefits
By Emily Banks on
For many of us, alcohol is an enjoyable backdrop to life: wine with dinner, beers with friends, a glass of bubbly to celebrate a special occasion, or nip of something heavier to unwind after a long day.
But alcohol is the fourth-largest cause of disease in Australia after excess weight, smoking and high blood pressure. So, how do you decide whether – or how much – to drink?
Unfortunately, the answer is far from simple and falls into the murky realm of “it depends”. Let’s consider what the science says about the positive and negative effects of alcohol.
Injury
Drinking alcohol increases your risk of accidents and injury. Only tobacco outranks alcohol as the leading preventable cause of drug-related death and hospitalisation in Australia....
What is a Balanced Diet
By Warren Maginn on
With health as the new currency, having a balanced diet plays an integral role in every path to wellness. What a balanced diet means, though, is open for interpretation. Clinical Nutritionist and Spokesperson for Nordic Naturals, Warren Maginn, shares his simplified guide to a balanced diet.
A balanced diet should contain a mix of vegetables, protein, carbohydrates and foods rich in omega-3s. Proportion is key to getting the ‘balance’ right.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when meal planning.
1. Colour Your Dinner Plate
Regardless of your fitness/weight loss goals, every diet should have a sufficient amount of vegetables. For the average adult, 5 serves of vegetables is the recommended amount. You can improve the nutritional value...