That's Fit

I'm on board for this whole grain thing. If it's the best for my body, then I'm game. And yes, I'm just now committing to it. I happen to be one of those people who considers her diet a work in progress. I can't change everything at once and amazingly, while I've known certain things are bad for me for quite some time -- excess sugar, lots of fat, loads of sodium -- other Aha! moments strike me long after others catch on. Case in point: Whole wheat.

I guess I've known for longer than I let on that whole wheat is the way to go. Maybe it's just that I like the whiter versions of breads better. Perhaps preference and habit have kept me grabbing at that honey wheat bread for so long. Well, no more. Because yesterday, while grabbing my two loaves at the grocery store, I checked out not only the nutritional label but the list of ingredients too. My kid's school newsletter tells me this week that the word "whole" should be listed first on the healthiest of products -- manufacturers must list ingredients in descending weight order so you want your whole grains to be tops -- and sure enough, things just didn't read this way on my bag of honey wheat bread, which also happened to hide the bad words "high fructose corn syrup" amidst the tiny typed paragraph I tried to decipher. So the bread went back on the shelf. And whole wheat, without any of that fructose stuff, became content in my cart. One-hundred percent whole wheat, I should add.

Today, I'll have a sandwich for lunch on my new bread. So will my kids. Not so sure how they'll react but it's just got to be this way. For my health. And theirs.

For a bunch of whole grain guidance and inspiration, check out The Whole Grains Council here.

While visiting family over the holidays, I was treated to a piping hot bowl of oatmeal made with steel cut oats -- perfect for the freezing temps that kept us holed up inside, swarming around the warm fireplace. I kept hearing about how healthy the "steel cut" part of this oatmeal was.

Isn't oatmeal just oatmeal? Does the type of oats used to make this tasty treat really matter?

Yes, it does matter.

Steel cut oats, also known as Irish or Scotch oats, are less processed than their rolled counterparts. These longer-to-cook oats are heartier, healthier, and come with a chewier texture. Steel cut oats are a definite oatmeal upgrade and come with these stats: 150 calories, 4 g fiber, 2.5 g fat, and 1 g sugar.

Grains, like steel cut oats, are the way to go. Here are some others you might add to your menu.

Wheat Germ
It contains more nutrients than any other vegetable and more protein than most meats. Sprinkle on a smoothie or add to your favorite (healthy) cookie batter and you'll fill yourself with 102 calories, 3 g fiber, 3 g fat, and no sugar.

Bulgar
Often used in tabouli, this one is has a low glycemic index and is far healthier than rice or couscous. It's quick to cook and can be added to almost any recipe. The basics: 151 calories, 8 g fiber, no fat, and no sugar.

Quinoa
Pronounced keen-wah, this protein-packed grain is complete -- this means it supplies the body with the amino acids it can't make on its own. Considered a rice substitute, this go-to grain is gluten-free, easy to digest, and high in all sorts of good stuff. Eat it like oatmeal or add it to stew for starters. The lowdown: 159 calories, 3.5 g fiber, 2 g fat, and 1 g sugar.

Flax Seed
Check out the fiber packed into this omega-3 gem: 11 g. And check this out: Flax might fight certain cancers and can be added to just about any food or snack you can dream up. Anyone aiming for weight loss or a boost in energy ought to try this grain with its 190 calories, 13 g fat, and .4 g sugar. Did I mention the fiber? 11 g. Wow.

Have fitness questions? Fitz has your answer. 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 two per week to publish on That's Fit! Learn more about Fitz here.

Q. Dear Fitz. My high school offers very few sports, but I'd like to play something. I'd like to try out for football, but my old-fashioned mother thinks that will make me a "tomboy". What do you think? Katie

A. You've come to the right place Katie! I happen to have embedded myself in the traditionally male sport of full-contact kickboxing, and you know what? It made me a better woman! Sports are sports. Whether you play with a ball, racket, gloves or sneakers...sports are just a more fun way to exercise and flex your competitive muscles. Period.

I loved getting in the ring to try and knock an opponent out. I loved the strategy, speed, and power of the event. Fighting, in fact, is one of my favorite things to do. Some of the girls I've competed against thought they had to take on some sort of macho persona. Short hair, yucky jeans, and mean snarls. I, on the other hand, preferred to act like a monster in the ring and show up to the after-party like a lady in a pretty dress and heels. Embracing my athleticism, strength and courage has allowed me to appreciate how wonderful it is to be a woman. A strong, athletic, educated woman who loves to have the doors held for her.

Looking for a better bread to go with dinner? French bread is a thing of the past and whole wheat is the choice for those who want the best for their bodies. Check out page 17 of the recipe section at Fitzness.com and give my Cheesy Whole Wheat Breadsticks a try. They are easy to make, fairly quick, a healthier option and really yummy.

Bread of any kind is still bread. So stick to enjoying one sick alongside your fruits, veggies, legumes and lean meats. Share the rest with your friends and family!

Whole grains make for delicious foods (breakfast especially), and the more you eat them, the lower your risk of developing pancreatic cancer later on, according to a new study.

In addition to eating more whole grains, consuming more fiber was also linked with a lessening in pancreatic cancer risk. The study concluded that those eating both whole grains and fiber several times per day decreased their pancreatic cancer risk by 40 percent. That's significant, yes?

Instead of those sugary breakfast cereals, how about oatmeal made with whole-grain (not refined) oats? Add some wheat germ in there and sweeten it with organic cane sugar or stevia. Once you get used to it, it's miles ahead of Frosted Flakes, in taste and nutrition.

Gluten is the talk of the town. The six-letter word is no stranger here at That's Fit and now that Hollywood's Jenny McCarthy has revealed that removing gluten from her autistic son's diet is helping him emerge from his disease, gluten-free diets may become all the rage.

The whole gluten topic really has me thinking -- I admit, I was a bit in the dark about the whole topic prior to just now -- and what I'm thinking is this: Do I really need to be eating wheat?

Gluten -- the protein found in wheat products such as breads, pastas, pastries, rye, barley, and some oats -- isn't a problem for many people. But for those sensitive to it, gluten can cause a sickening reaction. In fact, experts believe an underlying allergy to gluten may be to blame for some neurological disorders. It may also be connected to problems like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Celiac sprue.

Our bodies need a lot of stuff for proper functioning, like fiber, calcium, iron, water, a whole lot of exercise, and so much more. Like vitamin B.

The water-soluble vitamin B, in this case known as Thiamine, helps our cells operate like they should. It helps convert calories to carbohydrates and fats and proteins to energy. And thankfully, it's in many of the items we consume, even white flour. Vitamin B deficiencies are therefore rare. Still, we should be mindful of how much we need and how to get it.

Women need 1.1 milligrams (mg) of vitamin B per day. Men need 1.2 mg. Green peas, cooked dried beans and peas, wheat germ, and pork are all excellent sources. Also good are whole and enriched grains, fish, peanuts, and other nuts. Get creative and add black beans to salad, nuts to cereal, and wheat germ to muffin batter and you should satisfy your B requirements. It's that easy.

Most of us can eat gluten with few problems, but for people who have a gluten sensitivity or who suffer from celiac disease, a gluten-free diet is a way of life. If you're having trouble figuring out how to cut gluten out of your diet, here's a helpful article that can guide the way for you.

The main thing to remember when avoiding gluten is to avoid wheat-based products. This isn't the easiest thing to do, since bread and pasta are such a staple of our diets these days, but many grocery stores and restaurants are starting to cater to the gluten-free lifestyle. How do you follow a gluten-free diet?

It seems like the more health-conscious we all get the more confusing grocery shopping becomes because food manufacturers keep coming up with new gimmicks and catch phrases to try and trick us into buying their not-so-healthy products. One area that can be especially confusing is whole grains. Whole grains are great for you because of all the nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants that are left intact due to less processing, but finding them can be tricky due to terms like 'wheat' and 'multigrain' that are intended to be misleading.

The best way to get around all the hype is to go straight for the ingredient list, and in the case of whole grains you'll want to see 'whole wheat flour' at the top as the #1 ingredient (as opposed to'wheat flour' and 'unbleached enriched wheat flour' which are the refined versions). Of course you can also look to the nutrition label and get a fiber reading -- whole grain foods will have at least 2.5 grams of fiber per serving in most cases.

Now that trans fats are widely recognized and on their way out (ever so slowly, however), gluten seems to be the latest dietary "fall guy." Many people are beginning to swear that when they cut out gluten they feel more energetic, less irritable, and have better skin. Some even claim a gluten-free diet helps lessen anxiety and help solve infertility problems.

Up until recently, most of the people bothering to avoid gluten were those diagnosed with celiac disease or a gluten allergy. Going on a gluten-free diet is hardly easy, as gluten is found in so many foods. Avoiding wheat, rye, and barley might not sound that daunting until you consider just how many products have some form of one or the other. Besides bread and bread products, even foods like soy sauce, malt vinegar, and treats like Twinkies and Ho Hos have gluten (well, you should really be avoiding those two anyway!).

I haven't seen one yet, so maybe I should invent it: a candle that smells like freshly baked bread. They have every kind of pie scent you can think of, and cookies too, so why not hot fresh bread? It's one of those comfort foods that helps the winter season earn the reputation "cozy." I'll have to work on that one.

But in the meantime, I'll have to fill my apartment with baking smells the old-fashioned way -- by actual baking. I came across this recipe for delicious (and healthy) sounding whole wheat bread, and I'm totally gonna be cooking it this weekend! It's definitely not a fast or "time saving" recipe, but I'm still excited to try it. It's perfect for a Saturday afternoon, and then I'll have something healthy and filling to eat all week (not to mention the aromatherapy!).

With many of the foods we eat these days being produced in mass manufacturing fields that have nutrient-deplete growing condition, there growing public interest in this has made the term "organic" incredibly popular recently -- and it's not slowing down.

In that vein, scientists have found a way to boost the protein, zinc and iron content in wheat. With wheat being a main grain staple in the diets of billions -- accounting for about 20 percent of overall global calories consumed -- this potential breakthrough really does have the capability to help bring more nutritious food to many millions of people globally.

Although without more in-depth research, I remain a little skeptical on the gene that has been identified in wild wheat that raises the grain's nutritional content. The University of California research team indicated that the gene became nonfunctional for unknown reasons during humankind's domestication of wheat.

Researchers have rediscovered an ancient form of wheat that has more nutritional value than our current varieties. Scientists at the University of California at Davis identified a specific gene in the wheat that is responsible for the grain carrying a higher percentage of zinc, iron, and protein. It is unknown how or why, but somehow the gene became non-functional over the years as wheat was domesticated by humans.

This is big news because wheat represents 20% of all calories consumed worldwide, and the numbers are staggering at how many people get too little zinc, iron, and protein in their diets. Other positives about this new "old" wheat variety is that, having been achieved through conventional cross-breeding methods, it is not genetically modified and there is no difference in taste.