Healthy Halloween Help

Help For a Healthy Halloween
Here are some tricks to avoid the bad treats!
Halloween is generally the start of the holiday season. Many Americans exercise less and eat more during this time, and therefore end up gaining body fat. Avoid it this year! In fact, I hope you can get into better shape this holiday season, and that your family enjoys doing it with you!

I have a recipe for carrot cake that I would like to share. It is perfect for Halloween, thanks to its orange color. Plus, while it is yummy, the cake part is almost healthy. I will give you two options for cream cheese frosting, so you can let the angel or the devil in you decide which one to make. 🙂

INGREDIENTS:
1 Cup Old Fashioned Oats (either quick or regular)
2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Allspice
1 tsp Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Salt
1/4 cup Coconut Sugar
1/2 cup Chopped Walnuts, plus some to sprinkle
4 Egg Whites
2 cups Pureed Carrots
1/3 cup Plain Nonfat Greek Yogurt
1 TBS Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Crushed Pineapple Bits, plus some to sprinkle
1/2 cup Raisins (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Put oatmeal into a food processor, and process until a fine powder. Put into a mixing bowl, and add all dry ingredients. Mix.
2. Add all wet ingredients, and stir until smooth and blended.
3. Spray/coat muffin tins or a small baking dish with olive oil, and place batter evenly in pan or tins.
4. Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees. The cake will still be moist when done cooking, but will firm up when cool. (If you still don’t like the consistency when done, don’t put the pineapple bits into the batter– keep them out and just add them over the cake or muffins when serving.)
5. Add frosting when cool. Sprinkle with remaining walnut and pineapple pieces when serving.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING RECIPE (DEVIL VERSION):
8 oz Cream Cheese, or Neufchatel Cheese
1/4 cup Mascarpone Cheese
4 TBS Powdered Sugar
2 TBS Condensed Milk
1 TBS Vanilla Extract

Mix all ingredients together with a mixer.

-OR-

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING RECIPE (ANGEL VERSION):
8 oz Cream Cheese, or Neufchatel Cheese
1 TBS Vanilla Extract
1/4 cup Coconut Sugar or Nectar

Mix all ingredients together with a mixer.

Tone those Triceps!

Doing some weight training helps tone lean body mass. Lean body mass is metabolically active, so it helps keep our metabolism higher when we tone and challenge it. Skullcrushers are a great exercise to help tone those upper arms. Start lying on the floor with a pair of free weights, or anything heavy that you can hold easily. Extend your arms straight up in the air–like the first picture above. Keep your elbows still, directly over your shoulders. Bend arms at elbows (elbows don’t move!) and bring the weights down toward your head, carefully! You should look like the second picture above. Extend arms back up, until arms are straight. Repeat until the back of your arms are burning (not painful!), hopefully around 12 or 15 or 20 reps. Take a break for about a minute, and then repeat. Can do three or more sets if desired.

LAST TIP: AVOID TEMPTATION
So, eat healthy treats instead of evil ones this Halloween, incorporate some weight training into your day, and you will start this holiday season off right and on the best track for a healthy you. Another trick to avoid ghoulish body-fat-creating candy is to keep it out of your house. Yes, handing out candy is a tradition on this holiday. Buy candy that you don’t love, so it is less likely to tempt you. Afterwards, if you have leftovers, donate it to the local food bank. The kids they serve likely don’t get candy very often. To find the food bank in Arizona that is closest to you, click here:
Food Bank Locator

Remember that great company makes the holidays happy, not the food and drinks. 🙂 I wish you a very Happy Halloween!
Jacky