Healthy and Affordable Homemade Protein Bars

Have you ever gone to the grocery store, or health food store, looking for protein bars and have no idea where to start? There are 100’s of different brands lining the shelves and even more health claims decorating the boxes. You grab the box that says heart healthy, fat-free, gluten-free, more protein than the leading brand, etc.. All of these claims are great, but did you know that many of these companies have to only meet the lowest standards to post such things on their boxes. I recommend ALWAYS checking your ingredient labels. Most of the time fat-free just means added sugars. When they take one thing out, they compensate by adding more of something else to keep their same great taste. What a joke right? You can’t trust everything you read on the front of the box. Sometimes you’ll get a box that says sugar free and the ingredients label will have 10 other ingredients that you cant pronounce, like sucralose, sucrose, dextrose, aspartame, fructose, etc . Why is that? These are all sugars, or sweeteners that are named differently because they have different chemical make-ups from one another, but what they don’t tell you is that they are all equally as dangerous as simple table sugar! What?! Yes, and the worst part is, that our body will digest these sugars very similarly to how it will digest sugar. So what's the difference? Not much. My point is, you should always read your ingredient labels and don’t be fooled by ingredients that you’ve never heard of. I’m sharing this awesome protein bar recipe with you, so that you will always know what goes into your body without being tricked by these companies! It’s great to know exactly what your putting into your body and they are quick, affordable and easy. 

                                                      Protein Bar Recipe

Ingredients:

4 cups of Whole oats

  1 cup of sugar-free natural peanut butter

    16oz bar of sugar free dark chocolate 

    4 scoops of favorite protein powder (chocolate in this case)

     Between 1tbsp-1/4 cup of water (will vary)

                                                                                Directions:

• Preheat Oven to 300 degrees
• In a large bowl, add the Oats, peanut butter, and protein powder and mix it all together. 
• Once mixed, slowly add small amounts of water at a time, just to help combine everything together. (You don’t want it to be too mushy. Just add enough to bind the ingredients.)
• Once combined, grease a baking dish and evenly spread the mixture in the dish.
• Bake the bars for 6-10 minutes, keeping a close eye on them.
• Next, take the sugar-free chocolate, and melt is using the double broiler method, making sure the water doesn't touch the bowl. Take the chocolate and drizzle it over, or spread it over the top of the bars, to your liking. 
• Once finished, let them cool for about 20 minutes
• Cut and enjoy!

Tips: 

*Grease your knife when cutting the bars, it will help to keep anything from sticking to the knife.

*You can switch out many of the ingredients for things that you may like better. For instance the protein powder could be any flavor you enjoy (chocolate, strawberry, etc.), switch the peanut butter for any kind of nut butter, and the chocolate could be milk chocolate or white chocolate.

*You could also add fruit, honey, spices (cinnamon, nutmeg) or nuts that complement the flavors of your other ingredients. 

* If your just looking for a healthy snack, without the protein, you can skip it completely.
* You can totally skip the baking step if you would like, they will still taste delicious!
* Feel free to melt the chocolate in the microwave, if this is quicker for you. 

The trick is to have fun with it, make it your own and keep it as healthy as possible. The point is to know exactly what you put into your bars and not be fooled by pricey store bought protein bars that are LOADED with sugars, preservatives and countless other ingredients that you cant pronounce. I really hope you enjoy this recipe, and please feel free to share your own creations!

Sources: http://emufarm.hubpages.com/hub/Fructose-versus-Sucrose-How-Your-Body-Digests-These-Two-Common-Carbs

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jennifercohen/2012/07/25/14-healthy-foods-that-are-actually-bad-for-you/

Simple Breakfast Options for a Healthy Lifestyle

Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day, and I guarantee you that you've heard that a million times in your lifetime. It is a very true statement. When it comes to your health and either losing weight, or maintaining weight, it all starts with breakfast. We naturally tend to feel very hungry in the day if our breakfast wasn't sufficient enough to sustain us. The trick is to eat food that will make you feel full, and I don't mean a breakfast buffet, to maintain a healthy lifestyle! I mean food that your body will take time to digest. This will allow you to feel fuller longer, and will keep you from grabbing at unhealthy snacks until lunchtime! I definitely recommend eggs, oatmeal, fruit, yogurt, whole wheat bread, etc. These few things are very simple to make. I tend to prefer food that is sweeter in the morning, so I will probably eat a sweeter breakfast 4 days a week and the other three days I will try something more savory, like egg whites with peppers. Oatmeal has always been a struggle for me to eat but I finally came up with a way where I can enjoy it and still keep out the sugar! Below I will post the recipe for the oatmeal, along with an image and two links that I think are great for ideas on simple breakfast options for a healthier lifestyle!

Additional Resources!
http://www.prevention.com/food/cook/fast-and-healthy-breakfast-ideas?s=1

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/top-20-foods-eat-breakfast/story?id=19295525#

Healthy protein packed smoothie to help you slim down!

Smoothies are my go to before, and after the gym and also when I need a light snack. They are great for providing the nutrients that you need to keep going but are low in fat and added sugars. They can be made with frozen or fresh fruit, and pretty much any combination that sounds good to you! Try to steer away from any frozen fruit that has added sugars because this will defeat the purpose of being healthy and it will not help you slim down.  If you are going to have one before or after the gym, I recommend adding one scoop of your favorite protein to the mix. This will help with muscle recovery and prevent soreness. If you are using it as a meal replacement, I also recommend using the protein, so that you are getting enough nutrients and calories in your diet. This is low fat and delicious smoothie recipe thats very simple to make and I just wanted to share it will everyone! You can get fancy with flavors if you'd like, but again fruit has calories and if your plan is to slim down, be careful not to add too much!

Eggs: A Powerhouse Nutritional Food

Most people don't realize how nutritional eggs can be for you. If cooked properly and not fried... you can take so many nutrients away from eating an egg.  A large egg contains 77 calories, with 6 grams of quality protein, 5 grams of fat (good fat I may add) and trace amounts of carbohydrates. Most of these nutrients come from the egg yolk. The white of the egg contains mostly protein. There have been studies that have proved that eggs can raise your HDL (the good cholesterol) and lower your LDL (the bad cholesterol), which in turn can lower your risk of heart disease; feeling healthier just reading about it? :) The great thing about eggs is that you can eat them for breakfast and they will keep you feeling fuller longer and this will result in less eating throughout the day. I tend to boil mine and eat them as a healthy snack, that way I feel full from two and can avoid reaching in the bag of chips!I wanted to include a HOW TO: boil eggs that I made, because when I first started eating them I had no clue what I was doing and I always ended up overcooking them, and the yolk would be a green color. I hope this helps you to be able to enjoy eating healthier!