Top 3 Cooking Tips From 12 Seasons At The Ranch

In my 12 seasons as nutritionist on The Biggest Loser, interviewing and coaching each and every contestant, I learned a great deal about the most common mistakes people make around the kitchen that can lead to weight gain. I also spent a great deal of time working with the contestants and developed simple and easy-to-follow guidelines.

When the Food Network's Healthy Eats blog asked me about some of my top cooking tips for weight loss, recently these are the three I thought of immediately:

Put Flavor First! Steamed broccoli and grilled chicken may help you drop pounds but it’s not a sustainable eating plan -- too boring! You have to put FLAVOR FIRST. Having the right condiments, dressings and sauces on hand can turn a ho-hum meal into an extraordinary culinary experience. My favorite store bought items to keep on hand include, salsa, capers, no-sugar fruit spreads, guacamole, horseradish, mustards galore, low-sodium soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and I’m the Queen of homemade dressings, sauces, dips and “mayos.”Make extras or big batches: Whenever you cook, freeze half in individual containers. When hunger strikes you’ll always have a cup of soup, a pasta dish or a scrumptious leftover to reheat in minutes or take with you. No excuses for visiting the drive thru!Always have a bowl of fresh fruit in sight: Keep containers in the fridge of freshly cut veggies to graze on or to quickly heat or sauté. Most of us eat mindlessly much more often than we realize. If you’re going to graze anyway, feel good about it!

Read the full interview on The Food Network's Healthy Eats Blog. And learn more about putting Flavor First at FlavorFirst.com.

View the original article here

Top 3 Cooking Tips From 12 Seasons At The Ranch

In my 12 seasons as nutritionist on The Biggest Loser, interviewing and coaching each and every contestant, I learned a great deal about the most common mistakes people make around the kitchen that can lead to weight gain. I also spent a great deal of time working with the contestants and developed simple and easy-to-follow guidelines.

When the Food Network's Healthy Eats blog asked me about some of my top cooking tips for weight loss, recently these are the three I thought of immediately:

Put Flavor First! Steamed broccoli and grilled chicken may help you drop pounds but it’s not a sustainable eating plan -- too boring! You have to put FLAVOR FIRST. Having the right condiments, dressings and sauces on hand can turn a ho-hum meal into an extraordinary culinary experience. My favorite store bought items to keep on hand include, salsa, capers, no-sugar fruit spreads, guacamole, horseradish, mustards galore, low-sodium soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and I’m the Queen of homemade dressings, sauces, dips and “mayos.”Make extras or big batches: Whenever you cook, freeze half in individual containers. When hunger strikes you’ll always have a cup of soup, a pasta dish or a scrumptious leftover to reheat in minutes or take with you. No excuses for visiting the drive thru!Always have a bowl of fresh fruit in sight: Keep containers in the fridge of freshly cut veggies to graze on or to quickly heat or sauté. Most of us eat mindlessly much more often than we realize. If you’re going to graze anyway, feel good about it!

Read the full interview on The Food Network's Healthy Eats Blog. And learn more about putting Flavor First at FlavorFirst.com.

View the original article here

Top 3 Cooking Tips From 12 Seasons At The Ranch

In my 12 seasons as nutritionist on The Biggest Loser, interviewing and coaching each and every contestant, I learned a great deal about the most common mistakes people make around the kitchen that can lead to weight gain. I also spent a great deal of time working with the contestants and developed simple and easy-to-follow guidelines.

When the Food Network's Healthy Eats blog asked me about some of my top cooking tips for weight loss, recently these are the three I thought of immediately:

Put Flavor First! Steamed broccoli and grilled chicken may help you drop pounds but it’s not a sustainable eating plan -- too boring! You have to put FLAVOR FIRST. Having the right condiments, dressings and sauces on hand can turn a ho-hum meal into an extraordinary culinary experience. My favorite store bought items to keep on hand include, salsa, capers, no-sugar fruit spreads, guacamole, horseradish, mustards galore, low-sodium soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and I’m the Queen of homemade dressings, sauces, dips and “mayos.”Make extras or big batches: Whenever you cook, freeze half in individual containers. When hunger strikes you’ll always have a cup of soup, a pasta dish or a scrumptious leftover to reheat in minutes or take with you. No excuses for visiting the drive thru!Always have a bowl of fresh fruit in sight: Keep containers in the fridge of freshly cut veggies to graze on or to quickly heat or sauté. Most of us eat mindlessly much more often than we realize. If you’re going to graze anyway, feel good about it!

Read the full interview on The Food Network's Healthy Eats Blog. And learn more about putting Flavor First at FlavorFirst.com.

View the original article here

Meet Cara - New Trainer at the Ranch

A two-time Golden Gloves winner once ranked No. 2 in the nation by USA Boxing, Cara Castronuova is a certified trainer whose passion for her sport and being fit began early in her childhood. She and trainer Brett Hoebel join the Biggest Loser family this, our 11th, season.

Recently I asked Cara a few questions about her background and motivations.

What is your training/exercise philosophy?

My philosophy is to train hard and push yourself mentally and physically - and to know no limitations. Limitation is a word I have deleted from my vocabulary.

What led you to become a personal trainer?
My passion to help fight obesity.

How do you keep yourself up to date with the latest/greatest advances, techniques, research and trends in the fitness industry?
I love to take classes, work and collaborate with other trainers, and try new things out so I constantly evolve and get better.

What’s your greatest strength? What’s your greatest weakness?
My greatest strength is my mental fortitude and perseverance.  My greatest weakness is New York pizza.

What’s your biggest struggle with motivation?
To truly help a person, they have to first want to help themselves. You can't force them to want to get better. It's a hard pill to swallow as a fitness trainer when you have the true desire to help a person but they don't have the same desire for themselves.

Have you ever been overweight?
No - but I work hard day in and day out to maintain a healthy weight by working out, eating healthy food and taking care of my body.

How do you deal with failure/disappointment?
Adversity and failure are like medicine to my soul - they make me stronger and drive me to fight harder.

What’s your biggest goal/wish for the contestants?
I want them to leave the Ranch and live amazing, healthy lives - and to never forget how strong they are. If they get knocked down, I hope they've learned to get right back up and fight even harder - no matter what.

Anything else you'd like people to know about you?
I do one hundred push-ups every day.

Learn more about Cara here

View the original article here