In last week's blog post, I talked about 3 easy steps you can take to avoid gaining weight this holiday season. Sticking with the holiday theme (because isn't that where all of our minds are this month?), I want to address a common issue raised to me this time of year, i.e., the challenge of fitting in workouts with packed calendars, lots of travel, and no access to exercise equipment on the road. So to simplify working out for all of you busy road warriors this holiday season (or for anyone else challenged with fitting exercise into his/her busy schedule), I have designed a simple workout template to create big-bang-for-your-buck workouts that can be done in a small space, with virtually no equipment, in just 6 minutes, scaleable for a total beginner up to the most advanced athlete. Just follow these 4 steps to design your own, individualized workout.

Before beginning any new exercise program, consult with your doctor and/or medical professional. Even working out at the Beginner level can be strenuous if you are injured, out-of-shape, have a medical condition, are drunk (or hungover), or just having a bad day. So please be safe rather than sorry and check with your doc.

Identify your fitness level, from Beginner - someone who is either brand new to exercise or returning after some time away - to Intermediate or Advanced. Extreme fitness fanatics with a high-level of skill might enjoy the Advanced Challenge moves provided below.

Based on your fitness level, select one exercise from each of the following categories: Upper Body Pull, Lower Body Push, Upper Body Push, Lower Body Pull, Core and Power. Note that Upper Body Pull movements are notoriously difficult to do without equipment, so I have included a few that require either bands and a door attachment, which you can purchase for very little money on Amazon and easily pack in a small carry-on, or an apparatus to do a chin-up/pull-up for the advanced level, which you likely can find while traveling at a local playground (monkey bars!) or in a hotel gym. I have also included a few exercises with my absolute favorite piece of travel-friendly exercise equipment - the Valslide - which is also inexpensive, compact, and can provide you with a gym's-worth of exercise moves (If you are going to workout on hard floors and not carpet, be sure to order the Valslide Booties as well; or you can get the Valslide Essentials Kit, which comes with the booties and a DVD to teach you lots of great Valslide exercises).

The exercises in each section are listed in the order of difficulty, starting with Beginner and moving up to Advanced Challenge moves. For descriptions of how to perform any exercises for which I do not directly provide a link, I highly recommend using Bodybuilding.com's Exercise Guide, which lists exercises alphabetically and provides videos of the moves. Of course, there's always the Goog and YouTube, although I caution you to only use quality sources. If you have any questions or concerns about any of the exercises, please email me, and I'm be happy to help.

Upper Body Pull
Wall Slides - Beginner
Band Pull Apart - Beginner/Intermediate
Inverted Table Row (Caution: Use a sturdy table) - Intermediate
Chin-up - Advanced
Pull-up - Advanced Challenge

Lower Body Push 
Wall Squat - Beginner
Bodyweight Squat - Beginner/Intermediate
Reverse Lunge - Intermediate
Bulgarian Split Squat - Advanced
Pistol Squat - Advanced Challenge

Upper Body Push
Wall Push-up - Beginner
Incline Push-up - Beginner/Intermediate
Push-up - Intermediate
Decline Push-up - Advanced
Close-Grip or Plyometric Push-up - Advanced Challenge

Lower Body Pull
Hip Bridge - Beginner
Valslide Leg Curls - Beginner/Intermediate
​Single-Leg Hip Bridge - Intermediate
Single-Leg Bodyweight Deadlift - Advanced
​Single-Leg Valslide Leg Curl - Advanced Challenge

Core
Plank (On knees) - Beginner
Bird Dog - Beginner/Intermediate
Plank (On elbows) - Intermediate
Plank (Push-up position) - Intermediate/Advanced
​Valslide One-Arm Slide - Advanced
​V-ups - Advanced Challenge

Power
Total Body Extensions - Beginner
Jumping Jacks - Beginner/Intermediate
Jump Squats - Intermediate
Jump Lunges - Intermediate/Advanced
Skater Jumps - Advanced
Burpees - Advanced Challenge

Based on your fitness level, choose an interval combination for completing each exercise. Intervals are highly effective means of boosting your metabolism by combining intense periods of work followed by a period of rest. I like to keep interval combinations (including work and rest periods) to a total of one minute.

Beginners should spend less timing working during the minute than resting, so good combinations for beginners are 15 seconds of work followed by 45 seconds of rest, or 20 seconds of work followed by 40 seconds of rest (but starting with 10 or 15 seconds of work and 45-50 seconds of rest is great if that is what works for you). Some exercises may be more difficult for you than others, so adjust your intervals accordingly.

Intermediate exercisers should strive for equal work to rest periods, so 30 seconds of work followed by 30 seconds of my rest is my favorite combination.

Advanced exercisers should strive to spend more time working than resting, e.g., 40 seconds of work followed by 20 seconds of rest, or 45 seconds of work followed by 15 seconds of rest. 

Because it is important to follow these work-rest periods exactly and not guesstimate, I highly recommend downloading the free ​Gymboss app, which will allow you to easily set your interval time and number of intervals. Or you can invest in an actual Gymboss timer (I have one and love it), which is relatively inexpensive, tiny, and includes a band so that you can easily wear the timer on your arm while you workout.

Design your workout and get moving! Once you have selected your exercises from each category and your interval combination, all you need to do is figure out how many sets (or rounds) of the exercises you want to do, set your timer and go! An example of a Beginner workout might be one set (i.e., a single, 6-minute round) that might look something like this...

Beginner Workout Example
Perform WALL SLIDES for 15 seconds, rest for 45 seconds, then move directly to WALL SQUATS. Hold the Wall Squat for 15 seconds, rest for 45 seconds, then move directly to WALL PUSH-UPS. Perform the push-ups for 15 seconds, rest for 45 seconds, then move directly to HIP BRIDGES. Perform the bridges for 15 seconds, rest for 45 seconds, then move directly to the PLANK (ON KNEES). Hold the plank for 15 seconds, rest for 45 seconds, then move directly to TOTAL BODY EXTENSIONS. Perform the extensions for 15 seconds and then congratulate yourself for a job well done!

If you have more time and want an additional challenge, you can do 2-5 total rounds of the workout, totaling up to 30 minutes at most. Take a one-minute break between rounds, and be sure to keep yourself well hydrated.

You may be wondering whether you need to perform a warm-up before completing this workout. While doing a brief warm-up is always preferred, if your time is limited, a warm-up is not required since these exercises use only bodyweight and are therefore self-limiting (i.e., your body will only let you do as much as it can physically do). If you do have an extra minute or two to complete a brief warm-up, I recommend dynamic movements like forward and backward arm circles, high kicks, and marching or jogging in place. If you have a few minutes to cooldown, finish with a few basic stretches like those found here. 

And there you have it. A short and simple workout template that allows you to workout anywhere, at anytime, with no excuses! Wishing you a healthy and fit holiday season.

Until next time, be happy and healthy,
​Kathleen

​Hello, friends, and welcome to the inaugural bells & peppers Q&A post – you asked, and I deliver! But first, the recovering attorney in me feels compelled to include the following disclaimer: I am not a doctor, a nurse or a health professional. As a certified nutritionist, I am not licensed to TREAT illness through nutrition or other lifestyle changes, and it is important that you seek the advice and recommendations of your medical professional, particularly when dealing with a medical diagnosis such as high cholesterol.
 
OK. Attorney hat is now removed. 

​Several of you asked me this week to address the issue of high-cholesterol, and this is not a surprise, since 1 in 3 Northern Americans suffer from this problem. Cholesterol is a sterol (fancy that – chole“sterol”…), which is a molecule found in animals that is essential to the production of certain hormones, including the all important vitamin D (Did you know vitamin D is a hormone and not a vitamin? Now store that in your memory bank for your next game of Trivial Pursuit.). Cholesterol is also a component of all of our cell membranes. Our bodies produce cholesterol – our livers to be more exact – to the tune of 1-2 grams per day. You also get cholesterol from foods, more specifically, from animal-derived foods like meat and dairy (plants do not have cholesterol). Strangely, your body produces more cholesterol when you eat certain foods with more cholesterol, such as saturated and trans fats, providing a double whammy. 

​There are 2 types of cholesterol – HDL (high-density lipoprotein) and LDL (low-density lipoprotein), although technically, HDL and LDL are not really forms of cholesterol but rather lipoproteins (as their names suggest) that carry cholesterol throughout your body (another Trivial Pursuit factoid). HDL is often referred to as “good” cholesterol and LDL as “bad” (or “lousy”) cholesterol, basically because HDL transports extra cholesterol to your liver for disposal, and LDL transports cholesterol and fat from your liver to the rest of your body. LDL is also the main ingredient in blood vessel plaque, which can build up and cause blockages that lead to cardiovascular disease (CVD). So when assessing your cholesterol levels, you want your LDL levels to be a good bit lower than your HDL – having a high HDL level is actually a good thing. 

Historically, individuals with total cholesterol levels over 200 mg/dL were considered to have “high” cholesterol, although new research suggests that 150 mg/dl might be a better cut-off. There has been a significant amount of controversy recently over the impact of cholesterol on health and whether it really is as problematic as we were once led to believe, since there are some cultures in the world where cholesterol levels are generally “high” but whose populations do not suffer the same cardiovascular issues we have in this country (and nearly half of all heart attacks occur in people with “normal” cholesterol levels). In fact, researchers are now even questioning whether the egg, which has been maligned for years as a major culprit in the high cholesterol epidemic, actually is a problem at all when it comes to your cholesterol levels. 

​I have done a good bit of research on the issue of high cholesterol and its relationship to heart disease because my family history includes individuals who have suffered from both, including my dad, who passed away of Alzheimer’s Disease in 2013. What the most updated studies suggest is that our emphasis on cholesterol numbers does not provide a holistic picture of our health or propensity for cardiovascular disease. The research suggests instead that the combination of your cholesterol levels and the level of internal inflammation in your body, measured by the level of C-Reactive Protein (CRP) in your blood, a substance released by cells during the inflammation process, is more telling in terms of your risks of heart disease. 

​Basically, atherosclerosis, or the hardening and narrowing of arteries that is responsible for heart disease, is an inflammatory disease, and as the walls of your arteries become more damaged due to inflammation, it becomes easier for LDL particles to “stick” to the walls, build-up and cause blockages (my apologies to the heart doctors out there for this simplistic explanation). Ultimately, if you have high cholesterol or are concerned about heart disease, ask your doctor to test your CRP level. A level under 1 mg/L is considered “low” and over 3.0 mg/L is “high,” while levels between 1.0 and 3.0 mg/L are considered “average.” 

​One interesting side note is that they are finding that plaque build-up in the brain might be responsible for Alzheimer’s Disease (and my dad suffered from a blocked artery, a heart attack and later Alzheimer’s – a coincidence?), which may explain why renowned American neurosurgeon Dr. Sanjay Gupta has declared that when it comes to lifestyle habits “what is good for your heart is good for your brain.” 

​Now, what you really want to know is what to do about high cholesterol. Again, your first step should be to visit your doctor, get your cholesterol and CRP levels tested and discuss a comprehensive treatment protocol with him/her. Depending on the results of the tests and your risk factors, that protocol might include taking statins, cholesterol-lowering drugs that are among the most widely used medications in this country. With about 28% of Americans over 40 taking a cholesterol-lowering drug and more than 90% of these individuals on statins, it is clear that statins are big business.

​While statins play an important role in treating some patients with high cholesterol, like all medications, they can cause undesirable side effects, such as memory loss, type 2 diabetes, diarrhea, headaches, nausea or vomiting, dizziness, etc., and the reality is that most cases of high cholesterol (not all, but most) can be managed through nutrition and lifestyle changes alone with only positive side effects. In fact, the research shows that by making certain dietary changes, in particular eating a more plant-based diet, you can lower cholesterol as much – if not more – as you can by taking statins.

Now let’s get to the “meat” (pun intended) of this post – what dietary and lifestyle changes do I recommend for someone suffering from high cholesterol (and remember, this is not a “treatment” for high cholesterol, it is merely my suggestions for leading a healthier lifestyle). It turns out, the same habits that have been shown to lead to overall good health, vitality and longevity are those that seem to play an important role in naturally reducing high cholesterol levels.

As I discussed in a previous post, one of my absolute favorite books on health is The Blue Zones, by New York Times best-selling author Dan Buettner. This book discusses the research conducted by National Geographic on five of the healthiest and longest-living populations in the world, analyzing the commonalities in their diets and lifestyles, as well as other scientific findings, to create a “prescription” for lasting change that may add years (healthy years) to your life. As I re-studied the list of recommendations from The Blue Zones, I was struck by the fact that they are almost identical to the recommendations provided in recent studies on how to lower your cholesterol and your risk of heart disease. These recommendations include:

1. Eat more plants (remember, plant foods do not contain cholesterol), limit your intake of meat and dairy, and eliminate your intake of trans fats. Try to work your way up to 10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day (start with just adding 1 serving more each day than you currently eat and gradually work your way up to a total of 10).
2. Fill up on whole grains and legumes/beans and reduce your intake of highly processed and refined grains and sugar (the soluble fiber in these foods binds to cholesterol and helps transport it out of the body). Add at least 1 cup of whole grains to your diet each day, for example oatmeal at breakfast, and at least 1/2 to 1 cup of legumes/beans per day.
3. Eat a handful of nuts/seeds daily (studies show that eating 2 oz. of nuts every day can lower your LDL by 5%). An easy way to add nuts to your diet is to eat a handful as an energizing mid-morning and/or late afternoon snack.
4. If you choose to drink alcohol, drink it in moderation – 1-2 servings at most per day. Also, limit (or reduce or eliminate) your intake of caffeine, which has been shown to increase cholesterol levels as much as 10%.
5. Take an Omega-3 supplement daily (or, if you eat fish, incorporate fatty fish such as salmon 3 times per week). If you struggle to take supplements every day, start by taking an Omega-3 just one day this week and build up day-by-day until it is a daily habit.
6. Make purposeful movement a part of your everyday life. If exercise is not currently part of your daily routine, start by just adding a 10-minute walk to your schedule each day, or reach out to me for easy ways to add more movement into your everyday life to get leaner, stronger and healthier.

To learn more about foods that can help lower cholesterol, check out this article from a little university called Harvard.

​For more tips on simple steps you can take each day to live a healthier and happier life, please contact me at kathleen(at)bellsandpeppers.com. Or post questions on this topic or others in the Comment section below. As always, I look forward to your questions, ideas, recommendations and requests for future Q&A topics. And stay tuned for next week, when I will give you some of my favorite, healthy and super tasty recipes that fit today’s recommendations!

​Until next time, be happy and healthy,
Kathleen

​Hello, friends! We all know that a key part of being fit - in addition to working our hearts with cardiovascular exercise and our muscles with strength training - is including stretching in our exercise regime to improve our flexibility. And yet with the exception of the dedicated yogis out there, stretching is often the part of a workout that most of us skip (or skimp) because we are pressed for time and don’t think it pays the same dividends as more vigorous types of training. 

​The research suggests, however, that flexibility training is as critical to aging gracefully as cardio and strength training, and it may even be the “fountain of youth” when it comes to fitness, as proclaimed by Tony Horton, the uber fit and unbelievably youthful 58-year-old creator of P90X. Certainly, if we do not continue to work on our flexibility as we age, we will end up becoming one of those individuals who can’t bend over to tie his or her shoes, and we will be more prone to injury and incapacity in our later years. 

The good news is that working on your flexibility does not require much time. Just 5 minutes of stretching a day is generally sufficient, and there are numerous free online resources to help you develop a daily flexibility routine, for example this quick-and-easy routine from Real Simple. There are also incredible resources to help you add yoga into your life (do a search on YouTube), including my new favorite resource, which is designed for beginning yogis, Beachbody On Demand's 3 Week Yoga Retreat.

While flexibility training is important for your physical health, learning to be flexible in all aspects of your life is important for your mental health, your emotional health and for the health of your relationships.
 
I am someone who has never been particularly flexible. I have never been able to do a split. I do not enjoy yoga - although I aspire to be the type of person who enjoys finding her zen. I am a dedicated to-do lister and find great pleasure in creating lengthy and ambitious daily to-do lists and diligently crossing off each item on the list before the end of the day. I am committed to be timely at all times, and I do not have much tolerance for being late or for those who are late. I do not like clutter, and I do not like things in my house being out of place. 
 
Basically, both my blood type and my personality type are A+.

​Since having my first child 12 week ago, however, I have learned the importance of working on my flexibility. During the early weeks of Beautiful Baby A’s (BBA’s) life, I realized that I would have to minimize the number of items on my to-do lists, and now I have come to terms with the fact that it is better to ditch the daily to-do list entirely. Instead of being the person who arrives perfectly on time (or likely a little early), I now ensure I give others a range of time at which I might arrive, since you never know whether a nap will go long or whether there will be a last-minute diaper change or feeding. And with little time or energy to spend on housework, I am learning to accept that my dining room table has toys strewn across it and that there are unwashed dishes currently sitting in the kitchen sink.
 
This transition has not come easy, and it is very much a work in progress – I am only in the beginning stages. But like yoga, learning to be more flexible in other aspects of your life is a practice – a journey. A process of self-development and self-improvement that is as critical to your ability to age gracefully as stretching your muscles. Because research suggests that having a Type A personality increases your risk of high blood pressure, heart disease and depression, among other ailments.
​ 

​So, I encourage you to spend some time each day focusing on your flexibility. Touch your toes. Do some side bends. Let some items on your to-do list slide. And leave your bed unmade. Commit to practicing flexibility in all aspects of your life, and you may just be setting the stage to live a longer, healthier and happier life.  
 
Until next time, be happy and healthy,
Kathleen

​Hello, friends! Over the years, I have developed a true love of cooking. I generally find my time in the kitchen therapeutic, and it serves as both a creative outlet and a means of providing the gift of health to my family (and myself!). I fully subscribe to the theory that the less time we spend in our kitchens, the more time we spend in doctors’ offices. Renowned food writer Michael Pollan wrote an entire book centered around the hypothesis that the increase in the obesity epidemic and obesity-related health problems in the U.S. and other parts of the world (such as Type II Diabetes, or “diabesity”), is directly linked to the decline in the amount of time we spend in our own kitchens (versus at restaurants or drive-through windows). The book, aptly named Cooked, provides a strong case for the proposition that if we only did one thing differently, i.e., cooked more of our own meals, we would be significantly more healthy. After all, do you have a bottle of high-fructose corn syrup or a can of trans fat in your pantry? 

Prior to having a baby, on most weeknights – and for several hours on Sundays – you would likely find me in my kitchen, sipping a glass of wine while I put together relatively elaborate plant-based meals for The Man and me. In fact, last summer, I embarked upon a 100 Healthy Days Challenge, in which I made 103 different healthy (and often complex) meals (and finished 100 different workouts) in 100 days, chronicling my experience on Facebook.
 
This spring, as I entered the third trimester of pregnancy, I followed the advice of my friend and amazing vegan chef and cookbook author Tess Challis, purchased a box freezer for the garage and made double of every meal I cooked, freezing half to eat after baby arrived. I called this endeavor Operation Freeze Food Before Baby (Operation FFBB), and for the first 6 weeks or so of Beautiful Baby A’s (BBA) life, my freezer meals played a key role in providing The Man and me with nutrition, since almost all of our time was spent tending to our newborn (or trying to catch a few minutes of sleep). 
​

As my freezer meals began to dwindle, I was faced with the dilemma of wanting to cook healthy meals at home for the two of us, but struggling to find blocks of time away from baby to do so. I certainly did not have the time to make the types of elegant meals I was putting together pre-baby. “Hacks” are defined as “clever solutions to tricky problems,” and my current tricky problem – and likely many of yours as well – has been finding the time to prepare homemade, healthy meals.
 
Trying to figure out a solution to this problem, I remembered a simple meal formula I first encountered in the book No Meat Athlete, in which the author Matt Frazier wrote about creating simple meals out of “a grain, a green and a bean.” 

​Elaborating on this concept a bit, I decided to experiment with different variations of “Meal Bowls,” using my own (somewhat less poetic) formula:
 
Starch + Produce + Protein + Sauce & Seasoning (or SPPS for short)
 
For the base of my bowls, I choose a Starch – think brown rice, polenta, potatoes (roasted, mashed, sweet, baked), oatmeal, couscous, quinoa, etc. These are generally easy to make (throw in a pot with water or in the oven and let the appliance do all of the work), and you can easily make several varieties in bulk (e.g., during one of BBA’s naps), and use them to mix-and-match meals during the week.
 
I then select one or more fruit or veggies to layer on top (the “Produce”). Fruit just requires a little chopping. Vegetables are often kept raw (or lightly steamed) – particularly since it is summer and there are so many glorious veggies in season (and record high temperatures make using heat in the kitchen less appealing). To make this step even easier, I have been purchasing pre-chopped and pre-washed veggies at Trader Joe’s, such as shredded carrots, shredded cabbage, brussels sprouts, etc. If you wanted to roast or steam some of your veg, you can also do so in bulk on a day when you have a little more time.

​Next, I add a plant-based Protein. Some favorites are Simple Baked Tofu from my absolute favorite cookbook in my extensive collection - Tess Challis’ Food Love - (the tofu is as easy to make as the name suggests); canned beans (while I aspire to be the type of person who cooks only with dried beans, in reality I am the less-than-perfect type of person who enjoys the convenience of BPA-free canned beans); steamed tempeh; nut butters (great with oatmeal and fruit for Breakfast Bowls); veggie burgers, veggie meat(less)balls; and lentils (Trader Joe’s has pre-steamed brown lentils in the refrigerated section). Again, nothing complicated here that can’t be thrown together in a matter of minutes. If you eat animal products, in addition to a few meatless options, you might want to choose 1 or 2 versatile animal Proteins (such as chicken or ground beef) to cook in bulk once a week and use in various dishes.

​Finally, you have the Sauces and Seasonings (S&S). I have been experimenting with different themes of Meal Bowls – Mexican, Italian, Thai, Indian, Burger Madness, etc. – and the theme has dictated the S&S. Pre-made marinara, salsa, guacamole, hummus, BBQ sauce, etc., are all great options on busy days, providing flavor and pizazz to your Meal Bowl. On days I have a little more time, I’ll consider making some homemade sauces and freezing them in advance. Fortunately, I still had a wonderful Thai green chile sauce and some homemade marinara left in the freezer from Operation FFBB, which came in handy this week with several of my creations.

​The result is a quick and easy meal that is as healthy as it is tasty, allowing me to deconstruct some of my favorite meals and get them on the table in a matter of minutes. So far, I have mostly created my own bowl concoctions (although I also made the yummy Mexican Polenta Bowl from Food Love), but I also purchased a new cookbook called Vegan Bowl Attack! that I look forward to using to make additional bowl concoctions when my ideas run dry. These Meal Bowls have become my favorite nutrition hack as I try to navigate life with baby and perhaps Meal Bowls will become a favorite of yours as well. Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts - or share your own creative Meal Bowl ideas!
 
Until next time, be happy and healthy,
Kathleen

Hello, friends! Welcome to my new blog “bells & peppers”. Many of you know that this is not my first foray into the world of blogging, and I had a short but relatively successful run on my blog “Life and Other Minor Complications.” This is, however, my first experience blogging on my own web site – a site I eventually hope to expand to include health and wellness coaching, fitness programming, etc. For my first blog entry, however, on my brand spankin’ new (and still work-in-progress) web site, I thought it would be prudent for me to explain the why behind this site and the title “bells & peppers.”
 
Now for a little context setting…I have been engaged to my amazing fiancé (affectionately referred to as “The Man” to protect the identity of the innocent) since October 2013, after a romantic proposal at the finish line of the Cleveland Rock ‘n Roll Half Marathon. The following month, I paid a visit to my gynecologist for my annual exam, and after hearing about my engagement and in light of my impending 40th birthday that same month, she encouraged us not to wait to try to have children if we were considering it. I took her advice to heart, and The Man and I spent the next 2 years trying to have a baby, with no success. Having decided against pursuing fertility treatments, we were monumentally disheartened last summer when tests revealed that my egg supply was almost dried up, and my doctor told us that without fertility, we had basically no chance of having a baby (and even with fertility, chances would be slim).
 
After hearing this news, I allowed myself an appropriate amount of time to pout, and then I decided to take action rather than take the news lying down. As a lifelong athlete, Precision Nutrition Level 2 certified nutritionist, certified Turbulence Trainer and certified Food for Life cooking instructor, I turned to what I have always felt are the keys to all things health and wellness – daily movement and healthy eating – and I decided to challenge myself to 100 days of completing 100 different workouts and making 100 different healthy meals, not so creatively calling my experiment the 100 Healthy Days Challenge.