I don't know about you, but more often than not, my mornings are spent rushing around -- to the train, the coffee shop and eventually work. I always seem to be a few minutes later than I should be, and though I usually manage to bolt into the office doors on time, I usually do so in a frazzled fashion, having run all the way across London Bridge to make my start time.

I usually try to grab a healthy breakfast before I leave the house, but you know as well as I do that sometimes, there's just not enough time. So I'm faced with choices -- a donut, a bagel or a muffin. Usually, I go for the muffin -- it seems to be the healthiest of the lot. You too?

But is a muffin really the best on-the-run morning meal?

Source

Hey, have you heard about the importance of a good breakfast? OK, I jest, because we all know that a healthy start to our day is one of the most important things we can do for ourselves. From helping keep us slim to supplying our bodies with enough energy to tackle our busy day, a good breakfast does it all.

Tough to find time for a good breakfast, sometimes, isn't it? What if you could have a solution for a balanced breakfast that is full of nutrition, easy on the pocketbook (about 50 cents each) and a snap to prepare? If that sounds appealing, then you'll want to try this recipe for all-in-one breakfast muffins.

Loaded with protein like eggs, ham, and cheese, these muffins will stick to your ribs so you won't crave the sugary snacks come mid-morning. Plus, scallions and peppers add veggie nutrients.

Source

"They can be," I told him.

Sure enough. Pumpkins can be for cooking. Now my boys know. Here's what you should know about pumpkins, according to the American Cancer Society.

• Pumpkins can be a tasty main ingredient in many autumn dishes.
• The pumpkin is a versatile food -- bake, steam, mash, cube, or puree it and you can't go wrong.
• Pumpkins have vitamins -- A, C, and K, especially.
• Pumpkin puree is full of fiber.
• Try pumpkin like this: Cube and add to a medley of roasted vegetables, toast pumpkin seeds, and for a sweet seasonal treat, give this pumpkin muffin recipe.

Source

One writer over at College Candy says the season is ripe for muffin tops -- not the actual tops of actual muffins, but the excess skin that hangs over the tops of shorts, pants, and skirts when these items of clothing are just a tad too small. This problem, coined the One-Size-Too-Small Syndrome by said writer, affects lots of college-aged girls (one might argue it affects more than just college girls) and should not be mistaken for an overeating problem at all. It's clearly a size issue. You can be a size four and still have a muffin top. All it takes is a size two piece of clothing to cause this all-too-annoying problem.

This female writer from NYU knows what's it like: "I'm definitely not a tiny girl by any means, and I completely understand the battle with body image," she says. "I get a little unhappy anytime I have to purchase something in a large instead of a medium, but if the medium makes me look like a sausage trying to escape its skin, is it really worth wearing? Is it really going to look like you're a size medium to anyone but yourself? Of course not! I may groan when I have to reach for a size larger in that cute little dress or jeans but if it lays just right and fits as intended, so be it."

NYU girl draws from comments made by Stacy London of What Not to Wear when she makes these points: (1) The only person who sees the size of your clothing is you. (2) What matters is the look and if you can pull it off. (3) If you must go up a size to look like you can breathe (or to actually be able to breathe), then bite the bullet and do it.

I get it -- I'm all about feeling good in my clothes. And as for breathing: It's a must have for me. How about you?

Source

You've hear it before: Eat smaller portions. Use smaller plates. A little friendly reminder never hurt, though, and to drive these points home, consider this: A muffin once weighed 1.5 ounces and housed about 210 calories. Today's muffin is not so dainty with its hefty four ounces and 500 calories. I know. I know. I ate a pumpkin muffin recently and was appalled at what actually went into my body.

The point here, according to the Publix Greenwise magazine is that everything, from bagels to burgers, is ballooning in size. So are our waistlines. It's more important than ever then to watch ourselves. Watching how we distribute the food on our plates is a good starting point. So start with a nine-inch plate and proceed as follows.

Divide your plate into quarters. In three of your quarters, pile on the whole grains, the veggies, the fruit. Fill the remaining quarter with lean meat, fish, or poultry. That's it. The smaller plate, dominated by plant-based foods, is key for keeping calories in check. Simple stuff, right?

Source

I celebrated today, celebrated the outcome of a six-month cancer follow-up that turned up nothing more than a referral for massage therapy. Not a bad deal.

The bad deal is what I chose to eat for my celebration. It started out well, with a cup of Panera low-fat chicken noodle soup and accompanying hunk of sourdough bread. OK, the bread part is questionable but still an indulgence I normally order when I eat out. The pumpkin muffin -- what I normally do not choose, with good reason -- is what set me back today. I had no idea exactly how deep I put myself in food overload, though, until I checked out my muffin's nutritional information. Let me just say this: If you are watching what you eat and striving for the healthiest of foods, do not eat a pumpkin muffin. Here's why.

Total calories: 530
Total fat: 20 g
Saturated fat: 4 g
Cholesterol: 30 mg
Total carbohydrates: 82 g
Sugars: 47 g

I can feel the sugar-induced headache coming on. I can feel the fat creeping onto my thighs. And I'm scared to peek at my scale tonight once all the gunk has distributed itself all over my body. Really, though, I'm OK with my treat. I was celebrating after all. Celebrating the fact that I no longer have cancer. A pumpkin muffin was in order. And yummy it surely was.

Source

If you haven't heard about the benefits of flaxseed yet, where have you been hiding? The superfood is full of fiber, can lower cholesterol as well as reduce the risk of heart disease, may protect again breast cancer and contains tonnes of Omega-3 fatty acids. So if you haven't added it to your diet, now is as good a time as any.

Many people choose to grind the seed, which can be found at most local grocery and health food stores, in a coffee bean grinder and then sprinkle it into yogurt, cereal or even pasta sauce. If you'd like a few new ideas, take a look at the three tasty recipes listed here.

You can treat yourself to a Raspberry Smoothie, try a delectable Banana Chocolate Chip Muffin or whip up some Flaxseed and Blueberry Pancakes, which include another superfood (blueberries) as a main ingredient. Having taken a look at the recipes, I'm already craving one of the Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins.

Source