Wellfie Wednesday Tip #144: Know Your Seasonal Produce

Happy Wellfie Wednesday! Welcome back! This week is brought to you by Patrick (@TheFuelPhysio) and is a perfect mention for the Spring Season!

Spring is finally here!! Well at least for where I am in upstate South Carolina. The temperatures are finally where they should be, everything is COVERED in pollen, and it’s forecasted to rain… like every day. But we do have some beautiful weather forecasted for the future. But enough about that, lets talk PRODUCE!

Spring is an amazing time to start being on the lookout for fresh produce, which if you didn’t know can be very specific to your region of the country. Fresh produce is not only important to get the best flavors, but also that time of the year they become a bit cheaper. For example, early this week I took advantage of buying a larger quantity of strawberries and they’ve been fantastic!

A great resource that you can use to find what’s available in your area, and even specific to ANY time of the year, is the Seasonal Food Guide. I love this resource because it’ll also link you to info on storing and even cooking methods for specific fruits or vegetables.

So check out what’s fresh in your area and let us know! Thanks for all of the support, be sure to post your pictures this week and tag the WW crew members in your post (@TheFuelPhysio, @Eric_in_AmERICa, @FreestylePhysio, @DianaKlatt) and keep the wave of healthy change going!

- WW Crew

Wellfie Wednesday Tip #104: Don't Wish for a Veggie Garden - Plant Your Own

     Happy Wellfie Wednesday! Welcome back! This week is brought to you by Patrick (@TheFuelPhysio). And I've got gardening on the mind! Not because I'm busy tending to garden, but because I'm getting bombarded at work with folks bringing in all their EXTRA vegetables.

     It's around this time of the year (if I didn't plant) that I start to regret not having planted any veggies, and wishing I was reaping the benefits of saving a few bucks and having the freshest of foods. Last year's garden was great. We had picked a small area of the yard, 8'x8', and planted a variety of things. We had some peppers (always the easiest if starting out), tomatoes (I always have better luck with roma), eggplant (surprising easy and delicious), brussels sprouts (never knew when to pick them), and zucchini/squash (which grow like wild fire!). But this year, I wasn't totally ready, nor had the time to set up a new garden at our new house. Mother nature played a small role as well. 

     But my point is, don't make excuses, you can always find a way to have a veggie garden. It doesn't have to be an elaborate, perfectly tilled landscape. It can simply be a plant within a pot. If you water it, it'll produce, most of the time. Though if you do get the feeling this time of year (probably just me), look into planting a veggie garden next spring, you won't regret it! (I normally start end of March/early April). 

     However, I did end up last minute planting some fruit plants, which have surprising taken off. My two blackberry bushes (growing more like vines) are already producing and my two blueberry bushes are well... being bushes. 

     Let us see your garden if you planted this year! And Thanks again for all of the #WellfieWednesday support, be sure to post your pictures this week and tag the WW crew members in your post (@TheFuelPhysio, @Eric_in_AmERICa, @AaronPerezPT, @DianaKlatt) and keep the wave of healthy change going!

- WW Crew

Wellness Wednesday Tip #47: New Fruit Juice Guidelines for Kids

Welcome back folks! Happy Wellfie Wednesday! 

     This week we wanted to highlight the new American Academy of Pediatrics' guidelines on fruit juice for kids. These are written for pediatrician use, but the information is extremely important for all parents, grandparents, and caregivers alike. The full document can be found here: Fruit Juice in Infants, Children, and Adolescents: Current Recommendations.

     A few of the key conclusions and recommendations:

• "Fruit juice offers no nutritional benefits for infants younger than 1 year" and "should not be introduced into the diet of infants before 12 months of age unless clinically indicated"
• After 1 year, limited to 4oz/day for ages 1-3 years, 4-6oz/day for ages 4-6 years, 8oz(1 cup)/day for ages 7-18 years.  

• "Excessive juice consumption may be associated with malnutrition (overnutrition and undernutrition)" and "diarrhea, flatulence, abdominal distention, and tooth decay"

• "Juice is not appropriate in the treatment of dehydration or the management of diarrhea"

• "Consumption of unpasteurized juice products should be strongly discouraged in infants, children, and adolescents"

• "Children should be encouraged to eat whole fruit to meet their recommended daily fruit intake"

Please share this information with anyone and everyone!

Thanks again for all of the #WellfieWednesday support, be sure to post your pictures this week and tag the WW crew members (@PBernerSPT, @Eric_in_AmERICa, @AaronPerezPT, @fitnerdaimee, @DianaKlatt) and keep the wave of healthy change going!

- WW Crew

Wellness Wednesday Tip #38: Drink Your Salad

Happy Wellfie Wednesday folks! Welcome back!

     This week's tip come from Aimee Depelteau, PT, DPT, CSCS, a new member of the WW crew! Be sure to be out her blog at fitnerdphysios.com. Aimee's tip this week is Drink Your Salad! Smoothies are one of the best ways to get a nutrient dense snack or meal. Here are some great ways to ensure your smoothie is healthy and tasty! 

Tips for making a healthy smoothie:

1. Avoid adding fruit juice to reduce the sugar content of the smoothie. Instead try using foods such as oranges/apples in the smoothie and then adding water for liquid. Another alternative is using unsweetened nut milk such as almond or coconut milk to give a creamier texture.

2. Pack it with greens. One of the best things about smoothies is that you can put a tremendous amount of healthy leafy greens in them and barely taste it! This is especially helpful when trying to get kids to eat more veggies! Some great leafy green options are spinach, kale, and collard greens.

3. Freeze your greens. Even if you make smoothies regularly, sometimes the greens can still go bad in the refrigerator so a great way to avoid this is to put them in the freezer once you buy them. They last so much longer this way! You can buy bunches of different greens and pack them into gallon freezer bags or Tupperware containers and you’ll have greens for days!

4. Use frozen fruit. Frozen fruit is a great option for smoothies because it avoids having to add ice to the smoothie. Plus frozen fruit lasts much longer than fresh fruit! You can also buy fresh fruit and freeze it yourself!

5. Use add ins such as chia seeds and flax seeds. These are both great sources of Omega-3s and Fiber so they make a great addition to smoothies. When using flax seeds try to find ground flax seed and add it in the smoothie before blending. When using chia seeds add them in after the smoothie is blended before drinking because they need to absorb liquid to access their health benefits. Chia seeds will add a bit of texture to the smoothie, but they don’t change the taste. 

     Having a high quality blender such as a Vitamix can make the world of difference in smoothie making. While it is very expensive, I like to think of it as an investment in my health. I believe that Vitamix offers the option for financing a blender so that could make it a bit easier to buy one. A less expensive brand that still works decently well is the Ninja Kitchen System, and it also comes with single serve cups and a food processor! Regardless of what you use it’s better to have any kind of blender than not having one, but if you get the chance to use a Vitamix it will change your life!   

     Get out there and make yourself a smoothie and let us know how it goes! Thanks again for all of the #WellfieWednesday support, be sure to post your pictures again this week and tag the WW crew members (@PBernerSPT, @Eric_in_AmERICa, @AaronPerezPT, @fitnerdaimee, @DianaKlatt) and keep the wave of healthy change going!

- WW Crew

Wellness Wednesday Tip #29: Eat the Rainbow!

     Welcome back folks! Happy #WellfieWednesday! This week we have another guest promoter of health, Dr. Andrew S. Rothschild, with a special message!

     You’ve probably heard it somewhere before: “eat the rainbow.” (I don’t mean from those annoying “Skittles” ads). Although it may sound like one of those old wives tales, there is in fact some significant health benefits to following this advice. Different colors are those colors for a reason—they contain different vitamins and minerals, often referred to as “phytonutrients,” often unique to that palette, not to mention that the color variety makes your plate look more appetizing and appealing to the eye.

Here are some examples:

Fruits and veggies of the blue/purple variety include blueberries, blackberries, eggplant, and plums, to name a few. Blueberries are considered to have the highest antioxidant properties of all foods.

Green vegetables are excellent sources of vitamin K, folic acid, potassium, and omega-3 fatty acids. Examples include kale, spinach, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, bok choy, and cabbage

Lycopene is a major component in red fruits and vegetables, particularly tomatoes. Lycopene has been associated with risk reduction in certain cancers including prostate cancer. While some fruits and vegetables are considered to have greater health benefits when eaten raw, lycopene is one that appears to have more benefits when cooked. Cooking allows carotenoids, such as lycopene, to be better absorbed. So, enjoy that tomato sauce!

Yellow/green foods have an abundance of lutein, which is excellent for eye health. They are also high in vitamin C. Examples include kiwi, avocado, spinach, and even pistachio nuts.

Orange/yellow foods such as carrots have long been well-known to contain beta-carotene. They can also be high in vitamin C help with blood-sugar regulation, and have anti-inflammatory properties. Popular examples also include mangoes, cantaloupes, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and apricots

     While it certainly may be challenging to “eat the rainbow” every day, try at least to do it every week and in the meantime, get as much variety as you can.

Thanks for reading!

- Dr. Andrew S. Rothschild, PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT

     As always, thanks again for all of the #WellfieWednesday support, be sure to post your pictures again this week and tag Andrew (@ARothschildPT), Eric (@Eric_in_AmERICa) or Patrick (@PBernerSPT) and keep the wave of healthy change going!

Wellness Wednesday Tip #27: Sprinkle Fruit Throughout Your Day

Welcome back folks!! Happy Wellfie Wednesday and Happy New Year!

     We hope everyone is recovering well from all the holiday festivities. As we all know, it is New Year Resolution time, and the gyms start to get packed, the dieting goes into overdrive, and in about a month or two life goes back to how it was.

     So for this week’s tip, I want to emphasize the small victories towards health, the little things that can be sprinkled throughout your day to make a lasting difference. Start by adding nutritious options, not eliminating foods. I want to use fruit consumption as today’s highlight. Ideally, the concept can be applied for both fruits and vegetables, but we’ll emphasis just one for today.

     Research shows that roughly only 25% of Americans meet the recommendations for fruit consumption, which is about 1 ½ to 2 cups a day. (1) Check out this link from the USDA for serving suggestions. So why is fruit consumption important? Fruits not only taste great, but they provide your body with an abundance of beneficial nutrients, such as fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, potassium, magnesium, and antioxidants. And what do these nutrients provide? Adequate intake of these may help reduce the risk of diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and some cancers, by normalizing blood pressure and cholesterol levels, improving bowel function, and provided satiety (feeling of fullness) with less calories.

     The easiest way I find to meet my servings of fruit is to spread it throughout the day. You can easily add a serving to breakfast, by including some blueberries or strawberries on your plate. A banana works well as a mid-morning snack, perfect for those of us on the go. Lunch can have a small orange or apple. If you would rather, you can move that banana to a mid-afternoon snack or try a different fruit. That little sprinkle of fruit, puts you at 3-4 servings! And if eating fruit isn’t your thing, maybe a texture issue, blend them! That is honestly the only way I eat apples. A quick smoothie can meet those recommendations is one sitting!

     So sprinkle some additional fruit servings throughout your day and let us know how it goes. And as always, thanks again for all of the #WellfieWednesday support, be sure to post your pictures again this week and tag Eric (@Eric_in_AmERICa) or myself (@PBernerSPT) and keep the wave of healthy change going!

-       Dr. Patrick Berner, PT, DPT

-       Dr. Eric Uveges, PT, DPT

1.     Van Horn L, Carson JA, Appel LJ, et al. Recommended dietary pattern to achieve adherence to the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology (AHA/ACC) guidelines: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association. Circulation 2016.