Wellness

@ Moraine Valley

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10 Ways to Enjoy More Fruits and Vegetables This Summer!

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Put those fresh in season fruits and vegetables to use this summer. Below are 10 ways to boost your produce intake this summer!

  1. Stuff an omelet with vegetables. Turn any omelet into a hearty meal with broccoli, squash, carrots, peppers, tomatoes or onions with low-fat sharp cheddar cheese.
  2. “Sandwich” in fruits and vegetables. Add pizzazz to sandwiches with sliced pineapple, apple, peppers, cucumber and tomato as fillings.
  3. Wake up to fruit. Make a habit of adding fruit to your morning oatmeal, ready-to-eat cereal, yogurt or toaster waffle.
  4. Add grated, shredded or chopped vegetables such as zucchini, spinach and carrots to lasagna, meat loaf, mashed
    potatoes, pasta sauce and rice dishes.
  5. Make fruit your dessert: Slice a banana lengthwise and top with a scoop of low-fat
    frozen yogurt. Sprinkle with a tablespoon of chopped nuts. Or freeze some grapes for a quick evening snack.
  6. Grill colorful vegetable kabobs packed with tomatoes, green and red peppers, mushrooms and onions.
  7. Keep cut vegetables handy for mid-afternoon snacks, side dishes, lunch box additions or a quick nibble while waiting for dinner. Ready-to-eat favorites: red, green or yellow peppers, broccoli or cauliflower florets,
    carrots, celery sticks, cucumbers, snap peas or whole radishes.
  8. Make a veggie wrap with roasted vegetables and low-fat cheese rolled in a whole-wheat tortilla.
  9. Place colorful fruit where everyone can easily grab something for a snack-on-the run.
    Keep a bowl of fresh, just ripe whole fruit in the center of your kitchen or dining table.
  10. Variety abounds when using vegetables as pizza topping. Try broccoli, spinach, green peppers,
    tomatoes, mushrooms and zucchini.

Kelly Devine Rickert MS RDN LDN

Moraine Valley Wellness Coordinator

Covid-19 Vaccine

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Benefits of Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine

Per CDC Website, 5/5/21

COVID-19 vaccination will help keep you from getting COVID-19

Once you are fully vaccinated, you can start doing more

  • After you are fully vaccinated for COVID-19, you may be able to start doing some things that you stopped doing because of the pandemic. For example, you can gather indoors without masks with other people who are fully vaccinated.
  • We are still learning how vaccines will affect the spread of COVID-19. Until we know more about how vaccines will affect the spread of COVID-19, people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 should keep taking precautions in public places like wearing a mask, staying 6 feet apart from others, avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated spaces, and washing your hands often.
  • People are not considered fully vaccinated until two weeks after their second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, or two weeks after a single-dose Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen COVID-19 vaccine. You should keep using all the tools available to protect yourself and others until you are fully vaccinated.

COVID-19 vaccination is a safer way to help build protection

  • COVID-19 can have serious, life-threatening complications, and there is no way to know how COVID-19 will affect you. And if you get sick, you could spread the disease to friends, family, and others around you.
  • Clinical trials for all vaccines must first show they are safe and effective before any vaccine can be authorized or approved for use, including COVID-19 vaccines. The known and potential benefits of a COVID-19 vaccine must outweigh the known and potential risks of the vaccine before it is used under what is known as an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). Watch a video explaining an EUA.
  • Getting COVID-19 may offer some protection, known as natural immunity. Current evidence suggests that reinfection with the virus that causes COVID-19 is uncommon in the months after initial infection, but may increase with time. The risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 far outweighs any benefits of natural immunity. COVID-19 vaccination will help protect you by creating an antibody (immune system) response without having to experience sickness.
  • Both natural immunity and immunity produced by a vaccine are important parts of COVID-19 disease that experts are trying to learn more about, and CDC will keep the public informed as new evidence becomes available.

COVID-19 vaccination will be an important tool to help stop the pandemic

  • Wearing masks and staying 6 feet apart from others help reduce your chance of being exposed to the virus or spreading it to others, but these measures are not enough. Vaccines will work with your immune system so it will be ready to fight the virus if you are exposed.
  • A growing body of evidence suggests that fully vaccinated people are less likely to be infected without showing symptoms (called an asymptomatic infection) and potentially less likely to spread the virus that causes COVID-19 to others. However, further investigation is ongoing.
  • Stopping a pandemic requires using all the tools we have available. As experts learn more about how COVID-19 vaccination may help reduce spread of the virus that causes COVID-19, CDC will continue to update its recommendations to protect communities using the latest science.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective

We understand that some people may be concerned about getting vaccinated now that COVID-19 vaccines are available in the United States. While more COVID-19 vaccines are being developed as quickly as possible, routine processes and procedures remain in place to ensure the safety of any vaccine that is authorized or approved for use. Safety is a top priority, and there are many reasons to get vaccinated.

None of the COVID-19 vaccines can make you sick with COVID-19

None of the COVID-19 vaccines contain the live virus that causes COVID-19 so a COVID-19 vaccine cannot make you sick with COVID-19. Learn more Facts about COVID-19 Vaccines

Moraine Valley Covid 19 Vaccine Clinic!

Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic offered by Osco
Monday, May 17, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. (first dose)
Moraine Valley Community College, Building M, Moraine Rooms
Link to register for an appointment: https://kordinator.mhealthcoach.net/vcl/1620140873290

Moraine Valley faculty, staff and students have priority registration through Wednesday, May 5. The link to register will open to the public starting Thursday, May 6, so save your spot today! You may share the registration link with your family and friends. A follow-up clinic for the second dose of the vaccine will be on Monday, June 7.

Any questions?

Kelly Devine Rickert

devinerickertk@morainevalley.edu

Avoid These Diet Pitfalls in 2021!

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Looking to meet your 2021 goals?  Want to jump start that weight loss?  Here are some diet pitfalls I often see and how to avoid them.

Diet Pitfall #1: Skipping Meals
Skipping meals only leads to being more hungry later in the day which leads to overeating and loss of control in the evenings.  Start your day with breakfast, then try and eat something every 3-5 hours to maintain steady blood sugars.  Skipping meals or fasting does NOT equate to long term weight loss.

Diet Pitfall #2: Eating diet, sugar free or fat free foods all day
Real food will fill you up and satisfy you. Eating 4 sugar free Jellos will not.  Eat real, wholesome foods. Fruits, veggies, nuts, eggs, whole grains, protein, etc.  You will feel better, look better, have more energy and less cravings.

Diet Pitfall #3: Not exercising
You can lose weight by diet alone but it is very rare when someone can maintain long term weight loss without some exercise involved.  Get moving!!!  30 minutes a day for long term results.  You will have more energy, fit into your clothes better, and lose more inches with exercise AND diet vs. diet alone.

Diet Pitfall #4: Not drinking enough water/drinking diet pop or coffee all day.
Water is the BEST way to hydrate yourself. Add a slice of lemon, cucumber or sliced berries to flavor your water naturally.  Increasing the water will hydrate you better, give you longer lasting energy levels AND help you burn more calories when you work out.

Diet Pitfall #5: Jumping on the Fad Diet Bandwagon
If you want to make lifelong changes to your health and body, you need to start eating in a way that is realistic and able to be incorporated in your day to day routine.
Instead of starting the next fad diet, take a step back. What changes can you make that would get you that one step closer to losing 5 pounds?
Can you bring your lunch to work daily and 1-2 healthy snacks? Can you start walking on lunch breaks? Can you drink water instead of pop? can you start eating breakfast at home? Cutting portions at dinner?

~Kelly Devine Rickert, Registered Dietitian

Fitting in Fitness Around the Holidays!

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Don’t forget about your fitness this holiday season! Here are some ideas to help you fit more physical activity into your day. Even just 10 minutes of exercise can blast 100 calories!

• Look for short periods of time (at least ten minutes) during the day in which you can do some physical activity.
• Do a 10 minute interval workout.
o Alternate the following exercises for the first 30 seconds of each minute followed by 30 seconds of rest.
 Pushups
 Sit-up’s
 Planks
 Burpees
 Jumping Jacks
 Stairs
 Walk/Run in Place
 Lunges
 Squats
 Tricep dips

• Park at the far end of the parking lot when you are out and about (When safe to do so!)

• Be active during lunchtime! If you bring your lunch to work, you may have time to take a brisk walk.

• Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

• Plan and prepare meals ahead of time, so you’ll have time to exercise.

• Get your family to exercise with you. It’s a fun way to spend some quality time together.

• Leaves still hanging around? Rake leaves for the evening.

• Keep a daily log; this can help you see where you can fit in more physical activity.

• Exercise inside using machines or DVD’s (PX90, Leslie Samsone, On Demand etc)

• Track your pedometer steps. Increase your goal each week!

  • Walk around the neighborhood and look at the holiday decorations!

Happy Holidays!

Kelly

What’s for Dinner?

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The age-old question…. what’s for dinner? (or the question most mom’s dread!)

In the last 13 years as a Registered Dietitian, I have noticed that the one meal a day people struggle with the most is dinner. Why?
Here are some of the common responses I receive:
– no time
– too busy rushing around with work/kids/extracurricular’s
– don’t want to just cook for 1 or 2 people
– don’t know how to cook/I am not good at cooking
– too many picky eaters at home… and many more.

But the fact is, it is MUCH LESS expensive and MORE healthy to eat at home than anywhere else. If you sit down once a week and plan your dinner meals, you are more likely to stick to your menu decreasing any chance of you ordering last-minute take out food.

Not only is it less expensive to eat at home but it also has some other great benefits as well!

– You consume less sodium, fat, sugar and overall calories when eating at home.
– Family dinners are more important than play, story time and other family events in the development of vocabulary of younger children.
– Frequent family meals are associated with a lower risk of smoking, drinking and using drugs in preteens and teens ages 11 to 18.
– Adolescent girls who have frequent family meals and a positive atmosphere during those meals are less likely to develop eating disorders.
– Children who eat most often with their parents are 40 percent more likely to say they get mainly As and Bs in school than children who have two or fewer family dinners a week.
– Dinner with family can be a stress reliever. Believe it or not, if you have a demanding job, finding time to eat with your family may actually leave you feeling less stressed.

Tips for dinner meal planning:

  1. Sit down once a week with your calendar to see what nights you will be at home to make dinner and what evenings you need to have something quick and easy to go (grilled chicken wraps with fruit)!
  2. Shop the sale ads on the weekends to plan which protein’s you will have that week with dinner.
  3. Start with your protein first, then figure out your sides (add a whole grain starch and some veggies to each dinner).
  4. Prep ahead when you can. Example: When making kids lunches at night, I boil my noodles and brown my ground turkey to make a pasta bake for the next night. All I have to do is throw in the oven when I get home from work!
  5. Cook once, eat twice! This is my motto! Example from earlier. If I brown my turkey tonight, I may season some turkey and make into patties for the next night. Make your life as easy as you can!

Do you have any time-saving tips in the kitchen for dinner? Do Share!

~Happy planning!

~Kelly Devine Rickert MS RD CSSD LDN

Quick Healthy Dinner Recipes!

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Pasta with Zucchini and Roasted Garlic
Ingredients
• 1 pound Rotini, Twists or Spirals, uncooked, whole grain
• 8 medium cloves garlic, peeled
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 3 medium zucchini, coarsely grated (about 5-6 cups)

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven or toaster oven to 450. Place your garlic on a 12-inch square piece of foil on the counter. Sprinkle with thyme and rosemary. Pour the oil over the garlic and herbs. Draw up the edges of the foil and make a sealed packet. Bake 20 minutes.
  2. While the garlic is baking, cook pasta according to package directions. Two minutes before pasta is done, add the zucchini to the pasta cooking water. Cook two minutes. Drain zucchini and pasta.
  3. Open the foil and mash the garlic lightly with a spoon. Toss with the pasta and zucchini, season with salt and pepper and serve.

Sides: Serve with a side salad and whole-wheat dinner roll. (Open to bake chicken breasts to add more protein).
http://www.ilovepasta.org/resource-center/recipes/pasta-zucchini-and-roasted-garlic

Egg Flatbread Sandwiches
Ingredients:
1/8 cup finely chopped broccoli
1/8 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1 green onions, finely chopped (or sub any veggie you wish!)
2 egg whites
1 Tbsp shredded Parmesan cheese
dried dill weed to taste
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 multi­grain Sandwich Thins

Instructions:
Spray a nonstick 10­ inch skillet with cooking spray. Heat over medium heat; add broccoli, bell
pepper and onions. Cook and stir about 5 minutes or until tender.
Beat egg whites, cheese, dill weed, salt and pepper together with fork. Pour into skillet
over vegetables. As eggs start to set, lift the edges with a spatula, allowing uncooked eggs to flow to bottom of skillet. Cook until eggs are set but still moist and place on sandwich thin.
Substitution: Top eggs with a handful of baby spinach, arugula leaves, or a few thinly sliced tomatoes

Tilapia Fish Tacos
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
Fresh tilapia, 1 lb, cut into 1-inch strips
1 Tablespoon Cajun spice
3 Tablespoons Olive oil, divided
3 Plum tomatoes, chopped
1 Green onion, chopped
1 Teaspoons ground cumin
2 Lime, juiced and divided
8 Corn taco shells
1/2 Cups Sour cream, low fat
1/2 Cups Mexican style finely shredded taco cheese
1 Cup Romaine lettuce, shredded
1 Avocado, sliced
1 Lime, juiced
Lime wedges

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325°F.
  2. In a bowl, toss fish with Cajun spices and 2 tablespoons of oil.
  3. Place tilapia on a baking sheet and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until fish turns opaque.
  4. In a bowl, mix tomatoes, green onions, cumin, 1 tablespoon oil, juice of one lime, salt
    and pepper.
  5. Divide tilapia among taco shells and add desired toppings.