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cake-related stories

Michelle Obama Gets Chocolate Cake

Celebs & Entertainment

Michelle Obama and Barack Obama
Michelle Obama got to sink her teeth into a Triple Chocolate Enrobed Brownie Cake for Valentine's Day. The cake, a $40 gift from her sweetie, President Barack Obama, was a "moist & fudgy brownie cake ... enrobed in rich chocolate, then ... completely blanketed with a shower of dark chocolate shaves." It was also topped with "milk and dark chocolate glazes drizzled all over and [a] Belgian chocolate plaque." Oh. My. Goodness.

The First Lady's cake arrived early (February 4) due to security reasons, so I'm betting the sweet treat is long gone. And Michelle is likely in the gym working off the overload of calories that came with her perfect present (which happened to come with the message "I Love You"). Knowing how attentive Michelle is to diet and fitness, though, I wouldn't be surprised if she ate just a slice and shared the rest.

Bake Me a Wish had the honor of baking the Obama cake. And while they advertise their "cakes for every occasion," we suggest you minimize your cake-eating occasions. It's Valentine's Day -- so go ahead and have some. Then get back to healthy eating and get your butt back on that treadmill.

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Isla Fisher Hides the Damage with Spanx

Celebs & Entertainment

Isla FisherAfter giving birth to daughter Olive almost a year and a half ago, it was up to Isla Fisher to lose the 60 pounds of pregnancy weight before filming the much-anticipated (by me, anyway ...) upcoming Confessions of a Shopaholic movie. But she says she's lucky because "I was blessed with good genes because I had a really bad attitude towards exercise - like stopping when it hurt or got boring and having a cup of tea and a slice of cake. Apparently you are not supposed to do that in Hollywood."

Thank goodness, then, for Spanx, those miracle undergarments that tone and trim in all the right places. Of the popular product she told reporters: "I swear my waist now is skinnier than it was when I was pregnant -- how do they do that?" She's not alone -- mega celebs like Oprah and Eva Longoria-Parker owe allegiance to Spanx too. And I'm with them.

So, ladies, us common folk aren't the only ones who've made Spanx a regular part of out wardrobe. Nice to know, isn't it?

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Fitz's Fat Free Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

Diet & Weight Loss, Reviews & Products, Nutrition & Supplements

fitz absFrosting, of course, will never reach the 'healthy factor' of fresh fruit and vegetables. It can, however, be made more wisely to preserve the sweet flavor and creaminess while excluding all the fat.

My Fat Free Cream Cheese Frosting tastes amazing, spreads on easily and is the perfect substitution for the full-fat stuff. And ... if you're eager to go a bit further with it, substitute the sugar for Splenda and you'll have yourself a sugar-free treat as well.

Find this recipe on page 11 of my online recipe book at Fitzness.com. For more great recipes, pre-order my soon-to-be released book, The Everything Flat Belly Cookbook here.

Bake Up a Hot Body in 7 Steps

Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

chef du jourBaking up goodies for parties, gifts and Santa is a terrific part of this festive holiday season -- even for me, your loving fitness trainer. Baking doesn't have to be bad for your body though, nor does it have to contribute to that traditional December weight gain.

If I weren't a fitness professional, I'd be a baker. It's fun and allows me the ability to be creative while making people happy. I love making people happy. I don't, however, enjoy putting fat on my hips or the hips of others. This has lead me to be really creative.

I've got a few suggestions for you to follow and a link here to my favorite baked treats in my online recipe book at Fitzness.com.


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Undoing Turkey Day Damage

Diet & Weight Loss, Fitness, Nutrition & Supplements

fat bellyHopefully, most of you made great choices for your health yesterday, on Thanksgiving Day. You exercised in the morning, avoided too many appetizers and stuck to only one piece of pie. If you did that, congratulations -- I'm proud of you!

If you went a little nut-so on the nuts and gobbled up several different desserts, though ... it's time to get to work. Weight gain comes as a direct result of consuming more calories than you burn. It's quite possible that you actually gained anywhere from a half a pound to three in just one day. Yeesh!

Your second priority is to force vigorous exercise into each day during the next week as well. Vigorous exercise leaves you huffing, puffing and sweating profusely. Do lots of it.

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Faith Hill Shares Her Favorite Recipes

Celebs & Entertainment, Nutrition & Supplements

Faith Hill
Faith Hill celebrated her 41st birthday by appearing on the cover of Shape magazine in a bikini and a cardigan. There's no question that she looks smokin' hot. Though there is a question about why anyone would ever wear a cardigan with a bikini ... but we'll blame that on the stylist.

Hill said that she loves to exercise, and she cooks with fresh veggies from her own garden -- Mediterranean dishes are a favorite. I'm glad to hear it, because based on the recipes she says are her go-to dishes, she obviously needs the balance healthful meals and exercise give her. Hill's favorite dishes are:

While they may be yummy, these are certainly not figure-friendly recipes. If you want to try out any of Hill's favorite recipes, be sure to follow the "Make it Healthier" instructions Shape magazine provides. And, if you want to look as sexy as Faith Hill, balance treats like this with healthier foods and plenty of exercise.

Sexy Country Music Stars(click thumbnails to view gallery)

Faith HillKeith UrbanShania TwainKenny ChesneySara Evans

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The Belly Buster

Ask Fitz!, Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

ask fitz

Have fitness questions? Fitz has your answers. Our ThatsFit.com fitness expert -- and now your own virtual personal trainer -- will help you get fit, increase your overall health and do it in a fun way. Drop your questions here in the Comments section below and we'll choose one per week to publish on That's Fit! Learn more about Fitz here.

Q. Fitz, I'm sick of feeling sick at the end of Thanksgiving Day. I seem to eat all day, even when I'm not hungry. I literally feel like the clothes I put on that morning don't fit me anymore. I'm dreading it this week. What do I do? Alex

A. Gobble Gobble, Alex! I mean ... don't Gobble Gobble, Alex. (Bad joke, I know). Holidays, particularly Thanksgiving, often lead to really weird amounts of mindless eating. It doesn't help that this particular day is actually based on a feast. Darn Pilgrims! Why couldn't they show their gratitude with a running race? I can help you avoid this scenario, though. No one likes to unbutton their jeans to be able to sit down. It's uncomfortable, embarrassing and depressing. So let's get proactive, make a plan and stick with it.

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Kate Beckinsale is in better shape than ever

Celebs & Entertainment


Kate Beckinsale, the pretty and petite star of films like Serendipity and Pearl Harbor, is gracing the cover of this month's UK addition of Elle. But we're more interested in what's inside the magazine -- the 35-year-old actress is opening up about size, healthy habits and body image in an industry where appearance is all that matters.

Here are some of the highlights:

  • On Body Image: "I'm amazed that people obsess over my body image so much. Why do we encourage this war on women's bodies? It's a horrendous way to live, and I refuse to. I'm entirely normal. I have my good days and my bad days. I am a lot more body confident now I'm in my thirties, and am in better shape, too."
  • On Diet: "Now my typical daily diet is eggs or oatmeal for breakfast, a chicken or vegetable wrap for lunch, then fish and vegetables for dinner. But if someone turns up with cupcakes mid-afternoon, I'll have one. I'm not aiming to be Gisele. And I'd hate to be one of those people who won't allow themselves a slice of birthday cake."
  • On Fitness: "I just can't make it part of my daily life. I go to the gym when I have to, and if I have to bulk up or slim down for a film, I will. I've recently got back into exercising four times a week. I run for half an hour at a time but never outdoors as I don't exercise in public. My gym's in my garage at home."

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Twinkies join the 100-calorie bandwagon

Nutrition & Supplements

100-calorie Twinkie Bites packageTwinkies are the latest junk food to come out with a 100-calorie snack pack. So if you crave that spongy cake with the creme filling, you can now enjoy three miniature cakes in a controlled 100-calorie pack.

But are all these calorie-controlled packages really a good thing? I often wonder if people who would normally pass by chocolate chip cookies and other processed treats buy these items just because of the implied weight control benefit. But really, 100 calories of junk is still junk.

Rather than choosing small amounts of nutritionally-void food, why not make your own 100-calorie packs? You'll still have all of the convenience, but you'll have a lot more nutritional quality. That's a much better way to get some bang for your buck.

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How Many Calories ... in a slice of carrot cake?

How Many Calories?

I'm not a sugar addict, but I do have a bit of a problem with willpower. More specifically, when something sweet is offered up, I sometime find myself powerless to resist. You know the occasions I speak of -- birthdays, anniversary parties, dinner at a neighbours house. You tell yourself it's rude to turn down a slice of cake, but the truth is, it's just too hard to say no.

But if you're counting calories do you have to say no? How much harm can one slice do? Can you make up for a sweet treat with an extra half hour on the treadmill? Good question. Let's find out, using one of the healthier-sounding desserts as an example:

How Many Calories ... in a slice of Carrot Cake?

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Cake a new fix for kids' allergies

Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

For kids with allergies to eggs, the best medicine might just be cake. Yes, cake.

Here's the deal: Heat modifies certain egg allergens and allows some kids to be treated by feeding them increasing amounts of egg baked in cake. After six months of this cake desensitization process, 90 percent of kids in a University of Athens study had effective tolerance.

The bad news, besides the amount of sugar these kids will ingest while attempting to kick their egg allergies, is that this is not something you should try at home. Kids with known food allergies should be treated under the supervision of a physician only. So, hand over this issue to your kids' doctors and see what the professionals have to say. In the meantime, mull over this topic here.

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Calorie Free Cakes and Cocktails

Healthy Habits, Womens Health, Cellulite, Obesity, Healthy Events, Diet & Weight Loss, Fitness, Reviews & Products, Alternative & Green Health, Nutrition & Supplements, Men's Health

There is more in the world than sugary treats. If you're one of those folks who has no interest in indulging in the traditional not-so-good-for-you birthday celebration ... 1-800-FLOWERS has come up with an adorable alternative. They've made beautiful cakes and cocktails out of flowers! The arrangements are beautiful, fun and absolutely guilt free!

Now, I'm not a girl who brings cake into my home or even orders it at a restaurant. I am, however, someone who enjoys a piece on my birthday. If true cake is a special component of your big day, than by all means ... have some! But if it's not, I think these cakes made of flowers make a wonderful celebratory substitute.

The other thing that struck me is that they'd make an incredibly thoughtful gift as well. We've all had the standard bouquet brought to our door, but these little masterpieces are the kind of flowers that would make me squeal! As a fitness trainer, I hold myself to a very high standard. I want to be a role model and I'd never want to contribute in an unhealthy way to a friend. I personally could never just grab a basket of chocolate and give it to someone I love. How contrary that would be!

CFPT(click thumbnails to view gallery)

Slice o' Cake!Happy Hour CollectionDeliciousMmmmm.Over the Hill?

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No birthday cakes for these school kids

Healthy Kids, Diet & Weight Loss, Celebs & Entertainment, Nutrition & Supplements

Children in one New Zealand school can celebrate their birthdays at school but they can't bring cakes to share with their classmates.

Oteha Valley primary school, north of Auckland, has banned birthday cakes as part of a larger fat crack-down by the area's Ministry of Education.

Here's why cakes are a problem: Oteha Valley has a large number of pupils born in September and October. As a result, there's the potential for up to four cakes to arrive per week in some classes. Parents were starting to believe they were required to provide a cake for their child's birthday. Since this was both untrue and unhealthy, the school has advised parents in a newsletter to stop sending cakes to school.

Not such a bad idea, I'd say. What do you say?

12 "healthy" foods that really aren't:



Why? Click to find out!

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The appalling truth about doughnuts

Healthy Habits, Womens Health, Healthy Recipes, Healthy Kids, Cellulite, Obesity, Diet & Weight Loss, Fitness, Reviews & Products, Nutrition & Supplements, Men's Health

I'm always shocked and amazed that anyone would actually consider the doughnut an appropriate part of breakfast. I imagine most folks would snub the idea of eating cake as a good idea in the morning. The doughnut is literally FRIED CAKE! Who the hell thought that would be a good idea for a meal?

In my younger years, I suppose I just considered doughnuts, well.......doughnuts! My parents always seemed to have a bag or box of them on the counter and they were a fairly regular part of my breakfasts growing up. (My Mom probably never thought about what she was actually feeding me either!) Then one day I had the epiphany. Doughnuts are made by frying cake batter in oil for about 90 seconds. They're also often filled or covered with cream, chocolate or just pure sugar.

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Brides say, "Take the cake!"

Nutrition & Supplements

Some brides are saying "no thanks" to wedding cakes these days. It's not because of the calories, the sugar, or the fat dripping from these decadent displays. It's the expense that has them ditching tradition.

As the costs of weddings soar, some couples are cutting corners by ditching the real cake and using a replica made of foam. With cakes costing an average of $543, the $100 foam knock-off becomes quite a steal.

Trade the real deal for a fake cake, and no one will even know a switch has been made. The fake cake looks completely authentic and even has a special compartment tucked in the back for hiding that special first piece. After the bride and groom take their tastes, the cake gets whisked away and guests are served something less pricey.

What's your take on the fake cake?

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