You Lift Like a Girl

Ditch the crust and boost your veggie intake with these eggplant "pizzas"! Ingredients : 1 eggplant - 3 inches in diameter, peeled and cut into 4 half-inch thick slices 2 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper 2 leaves fresh sweet basil (torn/chopped) 1 oz. tomatoes (sliced thin) 4 slices raw mushroom 4 oz. cooked chicken (shredded/chopped) 1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese Directions : Preheat the oven or toaster oven to 425 degrees F. Brush both sides of the eggplant with EVOO and season with sea salt and pepper. Arrange on baking sheet and bake until browned and almost tender - 6 to 8 minutes, turning once. Place tomatoes, mushrooms, sweet basil and chicken on each eggplant slice and top with mozzarella. Bake until cheese melts (approx. 3 minutes). Serve hot. Nutrition : Calories in FOUR slices: 428 Fat: 23 g Carbs: 9 g Protein: 44 g Sugar: 3 g Fiber: 5 g Contributed by: SparkRecipes iPhone application

Action Plan For those who try to go without sleep by choice, don't cheat yourself of the rest that will help keep blood sugar regulation and hunger signals in balance. This is simply a matter of changing your nighttime habits. Instead of getting stuck on a movie late at night, try relaxing with a good cup of chamomile tea and a book or magazine. Commit to an hour earlier bedtime and slowly work your way to getting at least 7 or 8 hours of sleep. For others, stress reduction cannot only improve sleep; it may be absolutely necessary to re-establishing the ability to sleep. If you have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep: • Have a blood or saliva test to measure cortisol and DHEA levels. • See a mental health counselor or life coach. • Learn stress-reduction techniques like meditation and yoga. • Increase exercise during the day to help burn off those stress hormones. Avoid overtraining, however, as intense exercise can actually increase cortisol and contribute to the inabilit...

Introduction Over sixty percent of Americans will have trouble sleeping this year. And as most of you have experienced, stress is the principle reason why most people can’t sleep well or deeply. More troubling is the fact that research over the last few years has found a clear link between lack of sleep and being overweight. Some people choose to sleep less than they should, while others simply can’t fall asleep or stay asleep, which is where chronic stress comes into play. Not sleeping enough can start a dangerous cycle that disrupts the production of hunger hormones, disturbs glucose regulation, lowers resistance to colds and flu and alters your ability to regulate metabolism. Fortunately, lifestyle and dietary changes, coupled with smart supplementation, can bring you back in balance. The Stress-Sleep-Weight Gain Connection Do you stay up late trying to squeeze more productivity into your day? Or watch late night programming for some down time? While it was once thought to be...