Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Good Fats--Yes, You Read that Right

Missy, here. I was going to title this post MUFA's but was afraid y'all might think you needed to wash my mouth out with soap. ;)

So what's a MUFA, you ask?

Monounsaturated fatty acid.

In yesterdays comments, Kav mentioned sunflower seeds for busting belly fat, which reminded me of eating sunflower seeds with my breakfast while I was on the Flat Belly Diet a couple of years ago. I did the online plan for a while, and I also own the book. I thought I'd share a little about it today since we've been talking about going low carb and eating better for the new year.

Wait! I shouldn't say we're talking about it. I should say we're DOING it! (Now picture me jumping up and down, shaking my pom poms, cheering us on.) :)



On the Flat Belly Diet website, they say their "program is based largely on eating a fairly high-fat diet. But not just any fat. The fats we're talking about are called MUFAs, which stands for monounsaturated fatty acid.

"And not only do MUFAs target your belly fat, but experts believe they help prevent and even eliminate central fat distribution in your body."


Now, I'm all for getting rid of this belly fat! That's what sent me to the website in the first place. Among other things, the diet program recommends eating a serving of MUFA at each meal. Thus, the sunflower seeds with my breakfast! :)

Since I was on an egg white omelet kick a while back, I got my MUFA in the olive oil I cooked it in. More recently, I've been eating a half a whole wheat bagel with my MUFA: peanut butter.



Trying to get MUFA's in every meal isn't too difficult. You just need to be creative. I thought I'd list some sources of healthy fats in case any of you would like to try adding these to your meals.

Nuts and seeds (walnuts are best from what I've read, but also sunflower seeds, almonds, cashews and peanuts)
Avocado
Olive, safflower or canola oil
Olives
Flax seed (freshly ground in my old coffee grinder) and flax seed oil (cold pressed)
Nut butters (almond, peanut, cashew)



[Just a side note here, from personal experience, of course. If you're thinking of going the avocado route and making guacamole, you'll have to resist the temptation to eat it with five dozen deep fried tortilla chips. ;)]

I've been eating healthy fats for the last couple of years, and my recent blood work showed a better-than-ever cholesterol level and ratio, all well within healthy ranges. I'm pleased! Now, if I can just make the belly fat disappear. Though, I have a feeling I might have to resort to cutting a few more calories and adding some sit-ups. :)

So who would like to join me? What MUFA's can you add to your diet? :)


15 comments:

  1. wow I've been on an avocade kick lately - maybe I was needing some MUFAS! I had mine with those extra thin corn tortillas from Mission and scrambled egg and homemade salsa a coworker's wife makes (sooo good). I cooked the egg and put in the tortillas and put in the toaster oven to get crunchy then added the salsa and avocado - kinda messy since they always tear on me.
    I already do the canola oil and olive oil and eat olives sometimes.
    I guess I get my MUFAS but also get too much other stuff along with them!
    Susanna
    now I"m craving peanut butter...and I was on that kick about a month ago.

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  2. Missy, I love this post!

    I've been reading a lot lately about the need for fats and how the whole low fat craze was just that - crazy. There's so much e interesting research to show that vitamin k2 which is only available in some fats is really essential in preventing calcification in the arteries.
    I've taken to buying Irish butter at my supermarket because it's made from milk from pasture-fed cows. Pasture-fed is the key in the same way grass fed beef is actually good for you.

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  3. Sorry about the stray e in the above comment. My iPad wouldn't let me erase it. Weird!

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  4. Mary, all stray "e'"s are welcome here. We're equally opportunity letter welcomers.

    Hey, Missy, this is a great follow up, chica. Yes, the seeds and nuts do the trick and I love that you actually know WHY... MUFAS indeed!

    Stinkin' smart girl. But how nice is it that they just taste good? And they crunch?????

    I love me some crunch, LOL!

    Susanna, I'm an olive lover too. And calorie wise, they're high. But carb-wise, they're low.

    I think it's probably (and I know they talk about this in Atkins and South Beach and other low-carb and no-carb diets) good to trick our bodies first...

    That's what the HCG diet does, only with hormones.

    If we can shake up our bodies into believing they need to break fat down, they do it. Because our body likes to be LAZY....

    It's just easier to break down body fat than protein. So it gloms onto the stored fat.

    Staying low-carb makes me feel less guilty for those times when I just have to have desserts with the girls...

    Because I won't give up fun to live healthy, but I think you can do both.

    (watch me get sick again as I right this. Oy. Oy. Oy!)

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  5. Susanna, that sounds yummy! I'll have to try that.

    Mary, it really is all about balance, and eating a broad spectrum of foods. I'll have to try Irish butter. I've always wanted to try it. Something about the packaging makes it look appealing! :)

    Ruthy, yes on the CRUNCH. I'm big on crunch for the sense of satisfaction it gives. Unless, of course, I'm craving sweet. Then only soft and gooey will do. :)

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  6. Yeppers -- you've got it downpat, Missy! I took notes from the Dr. Oz show (the perils of recovering froma a nasty flu and watching tv instead of writing. Shame. Shame. Shame on me!) Anyhow -- here's a list of supplements that are supposed to help your body blast those fat cells.

    Calcium Pyruvate – 1000 mg.

    Chitosan

    Gamma-Linolenic Acid (omega-6 fatty acid from plant oils like evening of primrose and black currant seed. And bonus -- reduces inflammation.)

    The suggestion was to try the evening primrose oil for a month first and then add in other supplements one at a time if you want to. Evening Primrose Oil is supposed to be great for your skin too.

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  7. Oh yes, I'm all for healthy fats, too. Too many of our important vitamins are fat soluble, and there are way too many amino acids that are connected to fats and oils...

    One healthy oil that's often given the boot by people like Dr. Oz is coconut oil - and only because it's a saturated fat. BUT, the right saturated fats are as necessary for your body as the unsaturated ones.

    And these healthy fats (both saturated and unsaturated) are vital to our nervous systems (brain synapses and all that).

    Enough about fats. They just need to be reined in and brought under control.

    Whole wheat toast with peanut butter...eggs cooked in coconut oil...butter and a dab of honey on a whole wheat english muffin...Guacamole with oven crisped corn tortillas...

    Oh my, it's time for breakfast...

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  8. Jan, I've been hearing about coconut oil lately. Have always thought of it as bad. I've wanted to research it but haven't had a chance. Thanks for the info. :)

    Oven crisped chips sounds great! I recently went to a Christmas party where they had the best homemade chips. I was eating them like crazy with a black bean and corn dip. Then I made the mistake of asking how they were made (assuming oven baked). But no, they were fried! Uh oh. :)

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  9. Kav, thank you! I'll have to get some evening primrose!

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  10. I'm dying for food right now. I'd eat this screen if I could chew it...

    But I'm doing edits tonight and those are getting done first... Then food is the reward.

    And now: to open the envelope, LOL!

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  11. Ruthy! Edits! That means a new book is getting closer, right?

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  12. Rewarding with food. A gal after my own heart. ;)

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  13. finally finished the sausage and kale soup! pretty good stuff! I think Iused the wrong sausage though because it was raw and did NOT slice into those nice sized slices so I finally squished it out of the casings? ick and used the totally cool pampered chef meat twirly thingy and mixed it in with the cooked onion and garlic(that garlic was another nightmare - had my new pampered chef 'press' and got this huge thingy of garlic - it had no cloves unless that thing the size of my hand was the clove - I whacked it up and shoved it in the thing and squished it and managed to get garlic in it but I swear I've never seen garlic that huge...) anyways, it smelled so good cooking - slight scent of apple. started it yesterday but the taters wouldn't cook before work so I put it in the fridge and continued it this afternoon. good stuff!

    did ya'll hear that penny jordan passed away? I remember my mom having some of her harlequin romances a looonnng time ago. she was the same age as my mom - cancer I saw mentioned somewhere but dont' know what kind.

    Susanna

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  14. Susanna, I'm glad you made the soup! The sausage I used is already cooked, smoked turkey sausage. Just slice and heat. But it sounds like what you did worked!

    Yes, I heard about Penny Jordan yesterday. She wrote tons of books for Harlequin/Mills & Boon. I remember reading her many times over the years. So sad.

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  15. I'm a sausage rookie ;-) I usually eat it already cooked and served with the meat lovers scramble at denny's or the stuff you make sausage balls with the bisquick and cheese... yep it worked! next time I'll do extra shredding on the kale! was still a bit big in places!

    still drooling over that apple dish though...

    Susanna

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