The Nutritionist Reviews

Healthy Super Bowl Swaps by Rachel Berman, RD

2012-01-25T07:09:00.000-05:00

I am proud to bring you these expert tips for staying healthy with the superbowl by Rachel Berman, RD, CSR, CD/N, the Director of Nutrition for CalorieCount.com (a healthy-living website with more than three million members).

Besides watching the game and enjoying the commercials, Super Bowl snacking is a one of the main attractions of game day. In fact, Americans consume more calories during the Super Bowl than nearly any other day during the year – second only to Thanksgiving!

We all know the major culprits. One serving of nachos can add up to more than 550 calories and 30 grams of fat, while a serving of chicken wings packs in 440 calories and 26 grams of fat. So, instead of mindlessly eating your way through a Super Bowl celebration, try utilizing the following tips:

To save on saturated fat:

•Add more beans instead of meat to a chili recipe, look for reduced-fat cheese for nachos, and swap Greek yogurt for sour cream when making dips and spreads

•Make a healthier version of chicken wings by baking chicken tenders that are lightly seasoned with your favorite spices – and serve reduced fat blue cheese.

To save on refined carbohydrates in lieu of chips:

•Serve a big crudite platter with interesting veggies like artichoke hearts, radishes, mushrooms, grilled asparagus, and jicama and pair with hummus or salsa.

•Make a healthier version of chips by slicing whole-wheat pitas into wedges and then lightly toasting these in the oven

To save excess calories:

•Beer, even light beer, can pack on the calories. It can also lead to mindless munching. Keep track of how much you drink and steer clear of any specialty cocktails prepared with juice or soda.

•When it’s time for kick-off, relax and enjoy the celebration – but keep an eye on portion size and make a plate of food when hungry instead of grazing throughout the day.

Do you have any tips for keeping your Super Bowl party healthy?

Maggie's Organic Clothing Review

2012-01-24T07:04:00.000-05:00

What first got me interested in Maggie's Organic clothing is that it is local to me! It is about 40 minutes from my new home and actually located in the city that my husband goes to school in (Ypsilanti, MI). It is a line of organic and fair trade clothing. The company sells socks, scarves, clothes, tights, and baby & kids items.

For my review, I was sent the pair of heart socks seen below and a red heart scarf. These are perfect and just in time for Valentine's Day! They both are very soft and nice seeming quality. The items are reasonable too. The socks are knee high and retail for $9. I like both of the items that I was sent and will definitely get some good use of them in this cold Michigan winter.

Here is some information about the company: Maggie's Organics was founded in 1992 on the premise that workers should be treated ethically and that clothing should be durable, affordable, and constructed of environmentally sustainable materials. They were also recently Fair Trade Certified which is very neat. All of the products are made with certified organic cotton or wool.

Husband quits smoking cold turkey

2012-01-23T20:32:00.000-05:00

Thanks for the guest post, Vernon Lowe

My husband decided to quit his job. I think he is crazy and I am worried about our family. Obviously, this was not a decision that he chose to discuss with me. He just came home one day and told me he would not be going back to work. Well, we had to make some major changes to our lifestyle. My job pays most of the bills, but it is not enough to live off of. I decided to cut back our bills by finding one of the better New York Electricity Rates. I also told my husband he was going to quit smoking. I made him quit cold turkey. To be honest, we didn’t have a choice. Without his income, there was no way we could spend money on cigarettes that should be spent on food. He has been handling it pretty well. I know he sneaks one every now and then, but a few a week is a huge improvement from a pack a day. I have no doubt we will make this situation work and it will get better, but right now times are a little tough.

January 5 and 19 Winners

2012-01-20T07:16:00.000-05:00

Here are the most recent winners of my giveaways:

Erin Condren Gift Card Giveaway (1/5)

kui900@

Therapearl Giveaway (1/19)

howardreviews@

Winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email. Thank you everyone for entering!

Enjoy this picture of my 2 crazy dachshunds under a blanket at our new house. We have not moved in yet but are working on the house and these are a couple of our helpers : )

Tervis Review

2012-01-19T07:27:00.000-05:00

Tervis is a company that that I have been wanting to try their products for some time now. I first started seeing them on Peanut Butter Fingers blog when she put her smoothie in them. They have tons of different designs and sizes to choose from so everyone can get something they like.

For my review, I chose to review the deer cup and a cup with my initials on it. For part of my dad's Christmas present, I gave him the deer cup and he loved it since he is a hunter. The cups work for both hot and cold products which is great! In the summer, I can keep my smoothie cold in this mug and in the winter on the way to work, I can keep my tea hot. They are microwave, dishwasher, and freezer safe. I love mine!

Eat Drink & Be Merry Mug

Something else neat that I learned while writing this review is that the company first started in Detroit, MI which is very near to where I am from. Since then, they have moved to North Venice, FL.

My favorite feature about Tervis is that they have a lifetime guarantee. These cups/mugs will not chip, crack, shatter, etc. If they do, you can get your mug replaced. Now that is some great customer service!

Giveaways Ending Soon

2012-01-18T06:37:00.000-05:00

Hello, I am so glad that I got the email problem fixed! Sorry you have not been receiving my blog emails for an entire month now.

I just wanted to remind you of a couple of giveaways that I have going on that will be ending soon:

Therapearl Giveaway (1/19)

V8 Smoothie and Vera Bradley Giveaway (2/2)

Life has been super busy but I will still try to find as much time as possible for blogging. Stay turned for some neat giveaways coming up soon.

eos Lip Balm Review

2012-01-17T07:08:00.000-05:00

I have been a fan of the eos shave cream for awhile now and finally got to try their lip balms. They come in a really cute round container with a round ball of balm. I was sent four scents including tangerine, sweet mint, honeysuckle honeydew, and summer fruit.

The lip balms are 95% organic. They smell really good too. My favorite is the sweet mint because I love really fresh smelling chapsticks like that one. The tangerine one is medicated which is good for the winter when lips are chapped and cracked. They are very moisturizing and has a fun way of getting put on. You just open up the top and rub it on your lips as if it is in a tube. The company also sells hand lotions, body lotions, and shave creams.

Here is some information on eos from the company: eos lip balm is 95% organic, 100% natural, and paraben and petrolatum free. Packed with antioxidant-rich vitamin E, soothing shea butter and jojoba oil, eos keeps your lips moist, soft and sensationally smooth.

I love my new lip balms and will be using them all through the winter on my chapped lips!

Email Subscribers

2012-01-16T18:17:00.000-05:00

Hello!

I have heard from a few people that you are not getting your email subscription from The Nutritionist Reviews. They say that it has been happening for about 2 weeks now. Can you please let me know if this is true? Is anyone still getting my email? Also, does anyone know how to fix it?

Thanks so much,
Amanda

V8 Smoothie Review and Vera Bradley Giveaway

2012-01-15T07:36:00.000-05:00

V8 recently came out with some new products called V-Fusion Smoothie. I was interested to try these because I like the V8 Splash drinks and also like smoothies. The company contacted me and asked if I wanted to try these and I was very excited to.

On Saturday morning, my husband and I opened up the strawberry banana smoothie for breakfast. We enjoyed it with eggs, canadian bacon, and a piece of toast. We both really liked the smoothie. It tasted similar to other V8 products but was thicker (like a nectar consistency). The banana flavor was real tasting and not too overpowering. I added a little bit of water to mine because it was a little bit too sweet. My husband liked it and drank it straight. The mango smoothie is also great! It is tropical tasting and fresh.

Here is some information about these new products: The delicious V8 V-Fusion Smoothies are available in three flavors— Strawberry Banana, Mango and Wild Berry. This healthy treat makes it easy to enjoy a real-fruit smoothie without a blender or trip to a smoothie bar. V8 V-Fusion Smoothies provide one full serving of fruit and one full serving of vegetables, with no added sugar, artificial colors, flavors or preservatives – all for only 130 calories per 8-ounce glass.

***Also, I just noticed on the company's website that they have a coupon for $1 off any V8 Smoothie product if you want to buy one in stores.

Giveaway

This fabulous gift pack will contain 3 bottles of V8 Fusion Smoothies, a Vera Bradley Tote Bag, and a neat glass water bottle for taking your smoothie on the road with you!

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