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Halloween-related stories

Regis and Kelly Halloween Costumes: Hosts Dress Up As Biggest Loser Trainers

Celebs & Entertainment

Regis and Kelly are known for going all out for Halloween. This year, they dressed up as our favorite trainers, Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels from The Biggest Loser. Click on the video below to see their hilarious impersonations.

Tricks to Avoid Halloween Candy

Diet & Weight Loss, Motivation

This just in: Candy will still be available after Halloween! Here are tips to help you avoid being "tricked" by candy and to let you indulge in a treat that won't wreak havoc on your good habits.

1. Give the treat of healthier snacks.

The grocery shelves are crammed with 100-calorie snack packs that are healthier options than candy. Snacks like pretzels, roasted nuts and baked chips and crackers are better options than some candies, and if you indulge in a pack, too, you can do it guilt-free.

2. Recognize your intent.
"Sometimes it's not the candy we want at all; we are just craving a particular feeling, like comfort or excitement," said Pam Wood, a Weight Watchers meeting leader in Austin, Texas. "We need to ask ourselves, 'What is it that I really want to satisfy: the craving for the candy or the craving to feel fabulous?'" If it's the latter, she advises that you say "no" to the candy and determine the best way to satisfy your true desires. If it is candy, go ahead and have a small piece to satisfy the craving.

This Halloween, Tweet What You Eat

Diet & Weight Loss

How can you keep your Halloween candy consumption to a minimum? Tweet it.

Halloween Costumes: Let Fitness Inspire You

Fitness

Closet full of fitness gear? Work it into your Halloween costume this year.

Halloween Treats: The Best and Worst

Diet & Weight Loss

Some Halloween candy can be a calorie nightmare -- know the bad from the good before you shop.

Halloween Costumes With a Fitness Theme

boxer halloween costume

This boxer costume is just about a knock out.
Photo: Kristen Seymour

OK, you have less than a week until Halloween, and you still don't have a costume. Don't worry -- for a fit beauty like you, looking festive and fabulous is a piece of (low-fat, sugar-free) cake!

Seek your inner athlete (doesn't matter if you actually play the sport) and put together a fun, fitness-focused costume using the suggestions below.

Marathon Runner
What You Need: Short little shorts, knee socks, a headband, tennis shoes and an old race tee (ask friends and family, or check your local Goodwill).
Bonus: A Walkman (an iPod will do, but I think the old school Walkman is a lot more fun) and a water bottle (fill it with whatever you like!).

Halloween Candy: How Much Will You Eat?

Your Turn

It's that time of year again -- that wonderful Halloween season when gorging on bags and bags of candy is not only rationalized, it's expected.

But those of us who've survived a few Halloweens know that treats can do your diet in if you're not careful. You're surrounded by temptation -- especially if you have young kids -- and it's up to you to make sure you don't overdo it.

So how many goodies will it be for you this year?

Last week, I asked you if you keep a food journal or if you record what you eat some other way. Your response?

  • 33 percent have tried but just can't keep it up.
  • 27 percent definitely can keep it up -- they keep track of everything.
  • 26 percent try their best, but they might miss a day every now and then.
  • 14 percent can't be bothered, it's too much work.
One good reason to keep a food journal? It might be good for your love life.

Best and Worst Halloween Candy

Diet & Weight Loss, Reviews & Products

Halloween is this weekend, and we all know what that means. A few pieces of chocolate before the doorbell starts ringing, a few more in between the ghosts and goblins and plenty of leftovers when the night is over. Halloween may be fun, but it can wreak havoc for even the most diligent dieter. That's Fit recently took a walk down the candy aisle to investigate, and while we can't say any particular candy is healthy, there are definitely some choices that are better than others.

Tricks:
5th Avenue (1 full-size bar) -- 280 calories, 14g fat
Snickers (1 full-size bar) -- 280 calories, 14g fat
Twix Caramel (2 bars) -- 280 calories, 14g fat
Baby Ruth (1 full-size bar) -- 280 calories, 13g fat
Butterfinger (1 full-size bar) -- 270 calories, 11g fat
Milky Way (1 full-size bar) -- 260 calories, 10g fat
Mr. Goodbar (1 full-size bar) -- 210 calories, 14g fat

Treats:
Trident Gum (1 stick) -- 5 calories, 0g fat
Smarties (1 roll) -- 25 calories, 0g fat
Tootsie Roll (1 piece) -- 50 calories, 1g fat
Pixy Stix (7 straws) -- 60 calories, 0g fat
Hershey Kisses (3) -- 75 calories, 1.5g fat
Jolly Rancher Gummies (10 pieces) -- 120 calories, 0g fat
York Peppermint Patty (1 piece) -- 140 calories, 2.5g fat

If you want the best treat of all, look no further than your jack-o-lantern. Pumpkin is loaded with nutrients, beta carotene, potassium and fiber. Plus, it's fat-free and low in calories. Mix some in with your oatmeal, mashed potatoes or soup. And don't forget the pumpkin seeds, too.

Don't Let Halloween Do Your Diet In

Best Life with Bob Greene

Exercise physiologist and certified personal trainer Bob Greene has helped millions of people slim down, most recently with his online program TheBestLife.com. The best-selling author shares the sure-fire strategies for losing weight, protecting your health and living your best life.

halloween candy

Photo: Corbis

For many people, the giant plastic pumpkin filled with tempting treats is what's most frightening about Halloween. Sure, the goodies are supposed to be for the trick-or-treaters, but many of us find ourselves dipping into the candy bowl to satisfy our sweet tooth. This year, instead of being haunted by this diet derailer, use my simple strategies to conquer candy cravings.

Buy late. Avoid stocking up on Halloween candy ahead of time, even if it's on sale. Giant bags of sweets sitting on your table or in your cabinet several days or even weeks before the big day is way too tempting. Head to the store next week, or even the day before, and buy only as much as you think you'll need.

Be picky. When shopping for Halloween candy, choose sweets you don't like. If you can't fight your love of chocolate, opt for Skittles or Sour Patch Kids instead of M&Ms and Hershey bars. That way, even if they're lying around, you're not tempted to dig in.

Give out other goodies.
The neighborhood kid may not agree, but you don't have to give out candy on Halloween. Healthier treats, like packaged pretzels or dried fruit, are good alternatives. You can even opt for non-food goodies, such as pencils or stickers.

Candy Cravings Already: Is a Healthy Halloween Possible?

Diet & Weight Loss

Keep track of the latest in diet and fitness Twitter trends and opinions with this weekly post. Not only will AOL Health's Twitter alias Healthpop and That's_Fit ask fitness-related questions and share the best responses with you, we'll scour the Twittersphere for the latest buzz on everything from good eats to exercise routines gone bad.

There's candy wrappers all over the office, and when we get home, the first thing we reach for is the Halloween dish. Turns out all the cool Twits out there are craving seasonal treats now, too. Here's how they try to strike a balance between indulging and eating mindfully:

MobiMom
MobiMom
MobiMom Finally broke into the "hidden" bag of Halloween candy - oh, no - this is NOT good....
JaredCastle
JaredCastle
JaredCastle Halloween trivia: A cup of candy corn has fewer calories than a cup of raisins. Candy corn (22 pieces) is 140 calories. http://short.to/sl7q
leslie_dennis
leslie_dennis
leslie_dennis Halloween candy should be counted as a food group unto itself. I've already had 3 Smarties and a Now & Later. I'm wired!
pbsparents
pbsparents
pbsparents Plan for a healthy Halloween. Instead of candy, give stickers, pencils or small change w/ a note saying "Treat yourself!"
khat0511
khat0511
khat0511 Just bought enough halloween candy to choke a whale.. it's all staring at us now.. if i don't look, the calories don't count, right?
ColletteAM
ColletteAM
ColletteAM @Thats_Fit I couldn't care less about Halloween candy. 1) I'm vegan & 2) Its junk. If I want chocolate it's gotta be the best.

Read any good Tweets? Give us a shout on Twitter and let us know all about it!

Halloween hoarding - do you pinch your kids' candy?

Your Turn


As a parent, it's your duty to make sure the candy your child picked up from the neighbours is safe for consumption. But all that candy can be mighty tempting, and I'm willing to bet that a few of you have a tendency to label some of the candy 'unsafe' -- and promptly stash it in your super-secret parental hiding spot so you can enjoy after the kiddies have gone to bed. Last week, I asked if you did this -- let's see what you had to say?

  • 48% of you said yes, with 17% saying you only pinched a couple of pieces, while 12% say they can't help gorging.
  • 6% of you don't pinch any candy. Wow -- that's willpower.
  • 10% of you don't like candy.
  • 33% of you don't have kids so you have no candy to pinch.

The best Halloween advice came from reader Tim. He says, "We dump everything into one large bowl and each person in the house can take one piece a day unless they exercise with me, then they can have two a day. I always have more company in November." Great suggestion!

Halloween - a time for healthy habits? Or letting loose?

Your Turn


Halloween is a frightening time of year -- and I'm not just talking ghouls, ghosts and goblins here. No, even more frightening is the thousands of potential empty calories lurking inside tiny, irresistible, snack-sized candy wrappers scattered throughout your house. Oh, the horrors!

For obvious reasons, Halloween is not the optimal time to be dieting but if you stick to your guns, you can have a healthy Halloween. So last week, I asked you if you were going to try to have a healthy Halloween, and here's what you had to say:

  • 43% of you said no way -- it's only once a year, so why bother?
  • 21% of you are avoiding all candy -- good for you!
  • 16% of you are boycotting the whole thing. Fair enough.
  • 7% of you are rationing candy to your kids.
  • 5% of you planned on giving out healthy treats instead of the usual sugar-filled junk.

Thanks for sharing -- check back for more polls and results.

Genotype Diet, strong abs, and hugs from Cameron Mathison - Week in Review, October 27 to November 2

appleIf you missed our daily postings this past week, we invite you to take some time to catch up on our prior week's news and gear up for a new week of healthy living information and inspiration.

Oprah's touting The Genotype Diet. Maybe soon she'll start a "Diet Fad of the Month" club.

Want strong abs? Do what your grandmother told you and stand up straight.

Take a closer look at your lunch and make sure you're not falling for one of these salad slip-ups.

Stand up once and for all to the office vending machine with these healthier afternoon snacks.

Have your healthy habits taken a vacation? Get your groove back with these five tips.

Trick-or-treating is over for another year. Bev tells us how to handle the Halloween candy fallout.

What does faith have to do with weight loss? Karla shares her story.

Fitz talks to Cameron Mathison and scores That's Fit readers free hugs.

Is Victoria Beckham the latest celebrity marathon mama? Kristen has the scoop.

Have a great week everyone!

Your Turn: Trick or treat?

Your Turn

Here at That's Fit, we're constantly telling you what we think about things, but sometimes it's nice to know what you think. So from time to time, we'll ask you a question. Don't be afraid to speak up -- we love feedback.

It's that time of year again -- when tempting little tasty bits of candy dance around in front of you like a red flag in front of a bull. Yes, it's Halloween, and I'm willing to guess that it won't just be your kids who are suffering from sugar hangovers on November 1. You say you're rationing the treats so they don't eat them all at once, but who's keeping you from bingeing on all that chocolatey goodness? Maybe you are your own diet police, or maybe you let your stomach guide you. That's the question this week ...

Do you pinch your kids' Halloween candy?




Source

Daily Fit Tip: Pick the candy of most resistance

Daily Fit Tip

Scared you'll binge on Halloween candy? Here's a little trick that can keep you from overdoing it.
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