Author Archives: Around The Plate

About Around The Plate

The Around the Plate team brings together nutrition experts, recipe gurus, and healthy eating champions to help the world eat better one plate at a time. By focusing on realistic and sound nutrition advice, Around the Plate has successfully helped thousands of individuals learn to not only live healthier, but eat happier.

4 Health Resolutions it’s Safe to Break This Year

By Kati Mora, MS, RD from AroundThePlate.org

Let’s face it. Some rules are just meant to be broken and with less than 80 percent of people actually achieving their New Year’s resolutions anyway, maybe its not such a bad idea to break a few of them this year. Instead of completely giving up on your resolution though, consider the reasons why your resolution was set to fail. If you can identify the reason, chances are you will be much more successful the second time around.

Although goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely, they should also be fun and challenging. If they fail to be the latter it is often much harder to stick with, no matter how well-defined or memorable. So this year consider ditching your previously set resolution and unresolve to do something. It sounds counterintuitive, but if you take a look at these four resolutions to break, you will see that sometimes breaking ties with your staple resolution can help you achieve your ultimate healthy goal.

Working out at the gym. Who says that a gym membership is the only way to get ripped this year? Instead, consider working out in the great outdoors. Not only will you save a little money, but you’ll reap the benefits of being one with nature. In fact, multiple studies have shown that exposure to natural light improves mood, concentration, and may even help you heal faster. Winter activities like skiing, snowboarding, tubing, sledding, and cross-country skiing are just a few ways to get moving outdoors during the colder months. Snowball fights and snow fort building will also work up a sweat with a lot of fun along the way. (more…)

Posted on January 17, 2024 by Around The Plate

4 Fun Ways to Exercise (and Play) with Kids

By Rachel Larkey from AroundthePlate.org

Believe it or not, it is recommended that a healthy adult get 150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity. This can range from household chores to hitting that cycling class you’ve always wondered about. For your children, at least 60 minutes of activity a day is needed. Luckily for all of the busy moms and dads out there, exercising with your kids can be a fun way to share family time while getting fit! Working out with your kids can also be a fun way to teach them the value of physical activity and to lead by example. Here are four ways to be physically active with your kids:

Dance!

Small children LOVE to dance, regardless of the music choice. Take this opportunity to dance with them! It doesn’t matter if you look silly because you will both be having fun, and dancing is a great way to burn calories. Make sure that while you bust a move you keep your core braced by pulling the belly button in towards the spine. For toning, try to incorporate moves which twist the midsection back and forth. For cardio, try keeping the arms above the head to get the heart pumping.   (more…)

Posted on October 2, 2023 by Around The Plate

4 Healthy Breakfasts You Can Eat on Your Way to Work

By Kati Mora, MS, RD

In a perfect world, eating every meal at the table would be ideal. Yet in today’s busy world, that isn’t always possible. And unfortunately, breakfast is one meal that often gets left in our daily schedule’s dust.

If you have a busy morning getting yourself, your kids, and maybe even your spouse up and out of the house, don’t let breakfast pass you by! It really is the most important meal of the day and can help you feel more energized and perform your best at your day job. So instead of missing breakfast completely, choose one of these four meal ideas that will not only quench your hunger, but travel with you as you get up and go!

Four Healthy On-the-Go Breakfast Ideas

Power Up Smoothie. Smoothies are a great way to get a lot of nutrients fast! Pick out your favorite fruits, veggies, and protein sources, hit blend, and voila! You’ve got a healthy, on-the-go breakfast you can carry with you in a cup.

Need some smoothie inspiration? Check out these four phenomenal recipes from AroundthePlate.org. My favorite is the Vanilla Melon smoothie. Just mix together honeydew melon, an apple, avocado, lemon juice, vanilla extract, almonds and ice cubes for a delightful morning treat. (more…)

Posted on September 11, 2023 by Around The Plate

The Anatomy of an Unhealthy Snack

By Kati Mora, MS, RD

There has been lots of debate over snacking as of late. Is it good for you? Is it not? Really, it could go either way. And although a lot of attention has been focused on what a quote-on-quote healthy snack looks like, we should probably take a look at an unhealthy snack so that we are able to know the difference. After all, if you can’t identify a snack that you shouldn’t eat, how will you know to stay away from it?

To identify an unhealthy snack, you might notice the following qualities:

It is Loaded With Calories. If your snack has as many calories as a meal, it is probably not your best bet. In fact, a snack with approximately 150 to 200 calories should be sufficient to hold off hunger and give you a little nutrient boost if needed. Be sure to always take a look at the nutrient label of the food you’re packing or grabbing while on the go. If it doesn’t have a label, just remember to keep the portion sizes relatively small and to listen to your own hunger cues to determine how much of the snack you actually need to eat to satisfy your hunger. (more…)

Posted on September 7, 2023 by Around The Plate

Deliciously Creative Ways to Use Your Melon

By Kati Mora, MS, RD for Around the Plate

Melons might just be one of the most overlooked fruits of the season. And although other summer treats like berries and peaches are great, melons shouldn’t be forgotten.

Of course, watermelon is often a summertime staple, but what about the other members of the melon family like honeydew and cantaloupe, just to name a few? Melons are great fruit options worth enjoying during some of the warmest months of the year, and not just because of their high water content! Melons are virtual nutrient powerhouses. Let’s take a closer look at two of my personal favorites: cantaloupe and honeydew.

Cantaloupe Melon

Although the cantaloupe isn’t quite as orange as a carrot, it’s still a great source of vitamin A. In fact, some studies even claim that cantaloupes can have as much as 3,138 micrograms of the carotenoid beta-carotene for every 100 grams of fresh weight. That’s 30 times more than vitamin A’s poster child, the carrot. (more…)

Posted on August 9, 2023 by Around The Plate

Frankly You Can Celebrate National Hot Dog Month in a Healthy Way

by Rachel Larkey from Around the Plate

The hot dog we all know and love has been around for a long time. In fact, some records indicate hot dog-like foods going as far back as the 9th century B.C. And although they are one of the most popular processed foods around, the health concerns associated with eating them has caused many individuals to rethink their hot dog consumption.

In honor of National Hot Dog Month, here are a few ways to ensure that you can still enjoy one of America’s favorite summer foods without sacrificing your health.

Find Your Healthy Hot Dog

Many of the concerns surrounding hot dogs have to do with their long list of ingredients. This list can often include many harmful or just plain icky substances such as nitrites, fillers, and meat “trimmings” (the leftover parts of animals). While none of this sounds appetizing, there is a surefire way to avoid these unsavory and worrisome ingredients: read the label! (more…)

Posted on July 19, 2023 by Around The Plate

4 Sure-Fire Weight Loss Strategies to Keep You Satisfied

By Lauren O’Connor MS RD for AroundthePlate.org

Weight Watchers has shown us that we can eat cake and lose weight, too! Today there are a variety of weight loss plans and meal planning services that can appeal to our taste buds and keep the promise that (as long as you follow their plan) you’ll lose the weight. Finding your own healthy lifestyle without the structure of a weight loss program can be a challenge. But there are simple things you can do to instill a lifestyle that promotes good health, gradual weight loss and healthy maintenance. And that includes a healthy diet and exercise.

“Not every calorie is created equal – the bulk of your diet should be wholesome, nutritious foods in order to achieve sustained weight loss, improved health and satiety,” says Theresa DiMasi, VP Editor and Chief at WeightWatchers.com. “Eating well and exercising are two key strategies important for long-term success.

Here are some other strategies for weight loss success (and maintenance, too): (more…)

Posted on July 6, 2023 by Around The Plate

Throw a Stone at Obesity: How Stone Fruits Support Weight Management

By Kati Mora, MS, RD

Summer is the perfect time to explore fresh produce. Whether you are purchasing it at a local farmers market, your favorite grocery store, or receiving it as part of a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), you don’t want to miss all of the fabulous flavors, aromas, and textures that summer brings through its in-season produce.

Yet some fruits may garnish more of your attention than others, and it can be easy to forget just how many fruits there are to choose from. Nevertheless, it is important to keep an open mind and an open eye out for a variety of fruits to adorn your table with. Why? Because each type of fruit has its own unique nutritional benefits to offer.

For example, let’s talk about stone fruits – or drupes as they are sometimes called. Not sure what a stone fruit is? The best way to remember or identify a stone fruit is to recall if it has a pit or not. Apricots, prunes, cherries, nectarines and peaches would all belong in this category because each of them have a pit or a stone surrounded by a fleshy outside. (more…)

Posted on June 25, 2023 by Around The Plate