Nutrition In The Puerperium

The puerperium is the period after delivery when all the physiological changes in the mother revert back to its pre-pregnant, or normal state. This usually takes about six weeks.

Pregnancy is an anabolic state in which the body tries to conserve proteins and essential foods for the developing fetus. On the other hand, the puerperium is a catabolic state: to revert back to normal, it has to shed what is unnecessary and retain what is needed.

It must be appreciated that during pregnancy, the growing fetus has called upon the mother’s reserves, especially her elemental stores, such as iron, calcium, zinc etc for its own. The mother must put these things right during the puerperium.

Be honest: How often do you really have a designated driver?

There's a holiday party tonight with my friends and it occurred to me as I made my prep check-list – cute sequin top, fun little hostess gift, invitation details, babysitter – that what was most pressing was making sure I scheduled a cab to drop me off and pick me up from the festivities.

It seems like so much more of a hassle to stand in the slushy snow in my new suede boots to wait for a ride than it would be to hop in my own car and head downtown, a trip that takes only a few minutes when I take it on my own. And I can't say I am amped about handing over $50 or more in taxi fares instead of popping a few dollars' worth of quarters in a meter. But really, those snags in the schedule are small.

5 small food swaps to make you instantly healthier

As a registered dietitian and the nutrition editor for EatingWell, I’m immersed in nutrition research and news 24/7—and I love it! (Heck, nearly every night I try—always unsuccessfully—to convince my husband that reading nutrition news Tweets from fellow RDs at 9 p.m. is not work, it’s fun.) But despite the fact that I like to be in the know about what’s hot and what’s not, I still love basic, simple nutrition advice. So here—just in time for New Year’s resolutions—I’m offering up simple swaps to get healthier instantly. For once, make achieving your “get healthy” resolution easy!

Swap Out: butter

3 Tips for Avoiding Weight Gain Over the Holidays

The holidays are a difficult time for those of us who both enjoy eating and worry about our waistlines. Chances are good that if you overindulged a bit at Thanksgiving, you are now looking ahead to the month of December with a wary eye - - only too aware of the minefield of cookie platters, holiday parties, family dinners, and gift baskets that you will have to somehow navigate.

You know from experience that you cannot get through these trying times on willpower alone. So here are three very simple and proven-effective motivational strategies for ending up in your current pant size on January 1st.

Supercool tools to melt the pounds off

With a master’s degree in nutrition, focused in weight management, I know what you need to do to lose weight: Pay attention to portions. Plan healthy meals and snacks. Write down what you eat. Exercise. Effective, yes. But also booooooring. I’ll admit it. So why not just do the latest diet fad, the one that promises faster weight loss with less effort? Answer: The pounds will come creeping right back. The better solution is to embrace those arguably “tedious” diet rules and make them more fun and inspiring—and with cool, new tools. Here’s what I mean:

Diet rule #1: Set goals. We know that if you really want to get thinner, you need to set goals that are specific, measurable and realistic. How much will you lose? By when? (Don’t forget the realistic part! Your answer should not be 20 pounds by next week.) Weigh yourself and calculate your body mass index (BMI), an estimate of percent body fat calculated from height and weight. Click here for our BMI Calculator and 5 more essential weight-loss tools. Next, calculate your daily calorie goal by multiplying your current weight by 12; subtract 500 calories from your result to lose 1 pound per week. For healthy weight loss, we don’t advise losing more than two pounds per week. If you calculate a daily calorie goal that’s less than 1,200, set your calorie goal at 1,200 calories. Below that, it’s hard to meet your nutrient needs—or feel satisfied enough to stick with a plan.

5 Healthy Ways to Post-Holiday Detox

So the holidays are almost over and you're probably feeling like the rest of Americans right now: bloated, tired and a little heavier than usual. Instead of going on a crash diet or thinking that you have to go to the gym for hours on end to start feeling like your pre-holiday self, follow these five tips to post-holiday detox in a healthy way!

1. Break the sugar and salt habit. If you feel especially bloated, cutting out the extra sugar, refined carbs and salt you've been having at holiday gatherings is the first step to getting back to your usual self. Do this for at least three days to get back on track and give your system time to reset.

11 Ways to Transform Yourself in 2012

It's New Year's resolution time ... and while sometimes vague notions like "lose weight" or "get more exercise" are just fine, other times nothing short of transformation is required. If you're looking to be a master of at least one aspect of your life at this time next year, read on for ideas.

1) Take up a sport: Not only will this help with the perennial lose-weight-and-exercise resolution, this might just turn you into the kind of person who thinks of herself as an athlete. And once you find the activity that ignites your passion versus just mindlessly griding it out at the gym, finding time for those workouts is going to be lots easier.

The Best Holiday Diet Tips

Last week, I went into the Allure holiday party with the best intentions to drink seltzer and snack on vegetable crudites; instead, I downed a glass of wine and puff pastry-hors d'oeuvres. It can happen.

Factor in a lot of people having big family feasts over Christmas, and the upcoming New Year's Eye parties, and there are a lot of opportunities to enter 2011 heavier than you want to be. Here are some easy ways to curb over-eating.

1. Don't eat anything tan. That cardboard color usually means it's a fried little caloric bomb. Instead, go for brightly colored foods like vegetables or salmon. Most hors d'oeuvres are about 100 calories per bite, which doesn't seem bad until you realize you consumed hundreds of calories but still feel hungry for a real dinner.

13 Essential Thoughts for Joyful Living

1. Honor your health. Make time every day to tend to your body, mind and spirit.

2. Start! Do it now.

3. Thoughts are things. Are you creating the life you want?

4. Speak your word. Mean it.

5. Love is the basis for everything. Love yourself best and first. Then sprinkle freely!

6. We all have choices. Choose what is right for you while respecting others.

7. Show up! Be present.

8. Have fun! Smile. Laugh. Play. Celebrate.

9. Give. Be generous. There is plenty for everyone.

10. Jump. Risk it. Action banishes fear.

11. Release what you don’t need or it will slow you down.