18 Jul Fat and Happy

Last week I was traveling for work. Honestly, I think business travel can really age a person. While I packed some healthy snacks for the road, I never did find the time to pick up more nutritious snacks during the trip. By the time I got home, I looked and felt ten years older. The reason? On the trip, I stayed up late, got up early and had to contend with a different time zone (jet lag). I didn’t eat healthy fat, unless you consider biscuits and gravy a good source — I couldn’t resist having one serving!

 Here are my favorite anti-aging tips for home or away:

Keep your fat. If you cut out healthy fat from your diet, it will show in your skin in the form of dry skin and loss of elasticity. Make sure to have at least two servings of healthy fat on a daily basis. My favorite healthy-fat foods are walnuts, almonds, flaxseed, avocados and wild Alaskan salmon.

 Hang with your homies. When I get busy, I have a tendency to go into my cave and not talk much with my friends or family. So, I was shocked by research that shows that maintaining your social network can lower your risk of heart disease and obesity. Just don’t meet at the donut shop!

Head to bed. Staying up past your bedtime can increase your risk of heart disease, obesity and diabetes. Set a reasonable bedtime and stick to it as often as you can.

Manage your stress. When stress levels are high, your hormones get off balance. Studies show that this can actually cause your brain to shrink. I don’t know about you, but the last thing I need is a smaller brain!

Protect your ears. Eighty percent of us listen to music too loudly on our headphones, which can lead to permanent hearing loss. Let’s face it; there’s nothing more aging than saying “Huh?” when someone asks you a question.

SUPERPOWER Simple Salsa

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped tomato

1 cup chopped sweet onion

¾ cup of chopped cilantro

½ of a finely chopped jalapeno pepper (I add a little at a time to the recipe. The temperature of peppers varies, so proceed with caution!)

1 diced avocado

Juice of 1 lime

Salt to taste

Directions:

In a glass bowl, add the first 5 ingredients. Stir and add in lime juice. Add salt (I taste as I go to get the right level of flavor). Grab some healthy chips, I like popchips, dip and enjoy!

Salsa Options:

Add a big scoop of salsa on top of a green salad.

Sprinkle the salsa on top of scrambled eggs or a breakfast burrito.

Add salsa on top of rice and beans.

Use it as a topping on a baked potato.

Puree it in a blender and you have gazpacho!