Pumpkin Pie Bars

1 c. Low-fat Graham Cracker crumbs (crumbs can be made in food processor)
*Note: Gluten Free Graham cracker crumbs work great! Try “Out of the Breadbox” brand!
2 Tbsp, Land-O-Lakes light butter, melted (or substitute with brand of choice)
4 Egg whites
15 oz. can solid pumpkin
14 oz. can fat free sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated!)
1 Tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 Tsp. pumpkin pie spice
½ Tsp. salt
½ C. fat-free whipped topping


Preheat oven to 425º. Spray an 8 x 8 inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Combine graham cracker crumbs with melted butter and mix well. The crumbs should almost stick together. Pour the mixture into baking dish. Press into a crust, using waxed paper.

In a large bowl, mix egg whites, pumpkin, condensed milk, vanilla, pie spice and salt until well combined. Pour mixture over crust and bake 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350º and bake an additional 30-35 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool, then slice bars. Serve with ½ TBSP fat-free whipped topping on each piece.

Serves: 16
Calories: 117
Protein: 3
Carbs: 21
Fat: 2

Ratios: 10-74-16

Elegant Cranberry Chicken

1 c. Kraft Free French Style Fat Free Dressing
1, 16 oz can Ocean Spray Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
1 Pkg. (4 TBSP) Lipton Onion Soup Dip Mix (1 Envelope from a package of 2)
4, 4 oz. Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

Preheat oven to 350º. Spray an 13 x 9 inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Place chicken in the baking dish. Mix the dressing, cranberries and soup mix together in a medium size bowl. Pour cranberry mixture over the chicken. Bake for approximately 30 minutes. (Juices should run clear from chicken or check with a meat thermometer.)
This recipe also goes well with Cornish Game Hens. Cook hens according to package directions. Pour sauce over hens during the last 30 minutes of cooking!

Serves: 4
Calories: 444.9
Protein: 35.5
Carbs: 66.5
Fat: 4.1

Ratios: 32-60-8

Staying Healthy During the Holidays..........

Staying healthy through the holiday season is a challenge and I strongly believe that there are two tips that are the most critical. Staying on track with a healthy diet and maintaining a regular exercise program are key. You also need to make sure you are getting adequate rest and are paying attention to keeping a good balance in your schedule. Some people would tell you to avoid stress but they obviously live in an alternate universe!

Exercise activity is as crucial now as it is in any season. Working with weights and doing aerobic exercise are vital to staying fit and strong to support immune function and circulation. A strong, healthy body is less likely to get sick. As the weather cools, stretching is even more important, as is having indoor exercises we can do. Yoga, Pilates and other flexibility-enhancing movements are helpful at keeping us youthful. Strength training offers benefits beyond physical strength. It improves bone density, weight maintenance, boosts your metabolism, improves self image, strengthens the heart and circulatory system and prepares you for physical activity and reduces stress! It’s also important that you take time to relax and recharge your body with adequate sleep to assist in exercise recovery. Make time for your workouts and don’t cheat yourself on this during the holiday season.

Good nutrition supports our health and immune system during times of stress. Eat a diet that is low in refined carbohydrates and sugar. It decreases blood sugar fluctuations and helps us to maintain a healthy weight. Eat 5-6 small meals a day that are low glycemic and include protein, which supports muscle growth and keeps your blood sugar stable. If you feel tempted to eat the M & M’s at the office, try a handful of nuts instead. Immune supportive nutrients can help us prevent common illnesses and assists our body in detoxification. USANA health pack 100 offers exceptional immune system support by supplying Optimal Daily Intake amounts of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. (There is a link to USANA on the right of the page!)

Stay healthy and enjoy the holidays!

Exercise Benefits for Type II Diabetes

Type II diabetes has both a genetic and environmental trigger. In people who are prone to type II diabetes, cells reduce the number of receptor sites for insulin if the amount of insulin in the bloodstream increases. That is, if the body makes more insulin, cells changes so that they are less, rather than more, able to respond to it.

When overweight people with a hereditary tendency towards diabetes become inactive, diabetes can result. Even while cells all over the body are losing their ability to respond to insulin, fat cells undergo changes that make them accumulate fat more readily and release them more slowly, compounding poor circulation caused by lack of exercise. As fat cells become stuffed with triglycerides, even if sugar reaches them, they can’t process it. Gaining weight becomes easier. The muscle cells are forced to do more and more of the work of keeping blood sugar levels normal, even while their own insulin resistance eventually forces them to use fats and their own proteins for fuel.

If you do not manage your type II Diabetes, you will probably have to take insulin injections. Most type II diabetics have a grace period of about five years before they effectively become type I diabetics if they do not rigorously control blood sugars and exercise. Even when people have a genetic tendency towards type II diabetes and become overweight, however, diabetes is not necessarily inevitable.

Vigorous daily exercise maintains circulation. If increased circulatory health keeps the blood flowing, the fat cells that use insulin to “catch” circulating glucose and turn it into fat can keep blood sugar levels normal. Expanded muscle mass, from exercise, also enables muscle cells to use more glucose and keep bloodstream glucose levels low.

Exercise improves many parameters of diabetes. Physically trained diabetics experience many benefits: enhanced insulin sensitivity with a consequent diminished need for exogenous insulin, improved glucose tolerance and reduced total serum cholesterol and triglycerides with increased HDL levels and improved weight loss in obese diabetics. Exercise should be carefully adapted to the fitness of the diabetic patient and should be avoided during periods of hypoglycemia.