Check out this blog!

A really good friend of mine Nicole has a blog that includes a healthy workout routine and a nutrition track.  Prepare to be inspired! :) Here's the link:

http://str0ngforlife.tumblr.com/

Nutrition Articles from The New York Times

U.S. Cuts Estimate of Sugar Intake:  http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/27/business/us-cuts-estimate-of-sugar-intake-of-typical-american.html?ref=nutrition&_r=0

Get Up.  Get Out.  Don't Sit.:http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/17/get-up-get-out-dont-sit/?ref=nutrition

Energy Drink Disclosures Expose Gaps in Safety Policy:  http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/27/business/energy-drink-disclosures-expose-gaps-in-safety-policy.html?ref=nutrition

"An apple a day keeps the doctor away!"

Getting tired of eating the same old apple? Why not try different ways of using this healthy fruit?! Here are some ideas to further enhance your imagination.

• applesauce bread
• noodle and apple kugel
• apple-walnut drop scones
• sweet and pungent apple and cabbage slaw
• red cabbage and apple soup

Interested in making these? Check out the recipes at http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/13/beyond-apple-pie/?ref=health

The Paleo Diet

I know that my blog isn't about dieting but I have to make this diet an exception. Besides, it's not really any type of extreme diet. You don't have to skip any meals or have to follow one of those TV diet food meals. It's super easy.

My parents and I have been on this diet for about three months now and it's called "The Paleo Diet." Now, I've never been much of a diet person because since I swim, I usually eat everything. Pasta, salad, dumplings, chicken tandoori, you name it. But this diet requires you to eat mostly vegetables and meat, and less on the starch like pasta and potatoes. I'm not saying that you shouldn't eat starch at all, just less. The first few weeks of this diet, I was a bit annoyed because we used to have rice every night (it's an Asian thing) and now, there's no rice to be served anymore. I was not used to feeling so light and not full after dinner. I would ask my mom why we're on this diet, and she would just say, "It's good for you!!"

However as the weeks past and I continued swimming every day after school, I could actually feel myself getting stronger within each practice and less tired. I could actually be seen at swimming bouncing off the walls, filled with complete energy. I didn't know what was happening but I had to conclude that it must be the diet. The amount of protein in the vegetables and meat that I eat account for the amount of energy I have and it also helps when I'm working really hard in practice. The past 2 months of swimming, I've been dropping my swim times and have been getting personal best times. It's amazing how much the way you eat, in addition to a bunch of little things, can affect your physical abilities and confidence.

So I guess the moral of the story here is to try something new, but don't go to the extreme. If it works for you, GREAT! Keep going with it. If not, no one's making you. It's up to you to finding out what's best. It's just a simple process of trial and error into finding out what fits you.

For more information, please visit: http://thepaleodiet.com/ or check out this book!

Recent News

Check out some of these articles on the latest healthy eating news! :)

Michelle Obama's Agenda Includes Healthful Eating

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/11/dining/11lady.html?pagewanted=all

The 11 Best Foods You Aren't Eating

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/30/the-11-best-foods-you-arent-eating/

Healthy Eating Tips for Teens

http://www.betterhealthusa.com/public/268.cfm

Recent Updates

It's already been about a month and a half since I last updated my blog... oops. I'm so sorry! Everything has been so busy with the start of junior year and the swim team season. Also, my parents and I are already looking into colleges... I'm not sure how I feel about that yet. Anyway, how bout I make it up to you? I'll give you a super long post! YAY! :)

Okay so just an update on my garden...

On August 19th, I had three other Girl Scout troops come help me harvest! They had a great time learning about gardening and healthy eating. I just want to give a big thank you to Mrs. Sotos and Troop 40147, Mrs. Gregory and Troop 40980, and Mrs. Metzger along with her two troops! I had about a total of about 22 girls come and help me harvest that afternoon. Thanks again and I couldn't have done it without you!

Troop 40147 and I after harvesting our herbs!

I've finished my garden as of September 5th. Yes, I went out on Labor Day to do some actual physical work. It only took about three hours. I cut the bottom of the stems and placed the remaining herbs in bags. And let me tell you, there were a TON of herbs left. My plan was to dry the rosemary, thyme, and oregano for later use. As for the basil, I wanted to make basil sauce and give them as gifts to my volunteers. Once I finished packing the herbs into the bags, I looked back and the beds were empty. It was sad to see all of it cleared away. :(

Once I got home, I washed the dirt off the rosemary, thyme, and oregano and soaked them in water two times. Then, I dried them by leaving them on the counter for several days. The house smelled so herby and fresh! :)

For the basil, I went home and plucked every single healthy leaf off the stems (that took a while). Then, I placed them in the fridge so they could stay fresh until we made some pesto sauce. Since my mom was going to be away during the week, my dad offered to help me make some pesto just to make sure that the kitchen wouldn't be destroyed or anything...

Two days later, my dad and I decided to make the pesto sauce using the recipe from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything (the recipes can be found under the "recipes" tab). We placed about 1/4 of the harvested basil leaves into the blender and added the other ingredients. Then we pressed the button, "blend". Suddenly, this weird whirring noise occurred making the both of us jump. So we tried another button, and another, and another... After trying several buttons we peered over the edge of the blender to see our creation. What we saw was what looked like green vomit. I tried some of it and it didn't taste very good either. So, we decided to add some more salt and olive oil, while also stirring the mix with a wooden spoon, while the blender was working. We kept stirring and stirring until... CLUNK. My dad and I both stared at each other with a scared look on our faces. Sure enough, once I pulled out the wooden spoon, a chunk of it was missing. That meant that there were wood strings in our pesto. Frustrated and sad at the same time, we said our good-byes to our sauce as we threw it away in the trash can and decided that we would make it once mom got back home. It's amazing how much you need your mother. And another lesson learned: never use wooden spoons when stirring things in a working blender.

Even though my pesto plan didn't work, I've decided to use the dried rosemary, oregano, and thyme as gifts for my volunteers. But don't tell them, it's a surprise!

Girl Scout Herb Harvest with Troop 1441

August 12th, 2011 - Last Friday at 1 p.m., Junior Scouts Troop 1441 (four girls total) came to help me harvest my herb garden at Elawa Farm! Not only did they help me with my Girl Scout Gold Project, but they also obtained a "Journey" (the new version of the badges that Girl Scouts used to achieve). It was a win-win situation for everyone and I believe that everyone had a great time.

Before the girls arrived, my mom took a picture of me with my Girl Scout Overseas shirt (which is a tad small for me; I had to keep pulling my shirt down..) and my new Elawa Farm cap. According to Mrs. Cartwright, I am an Elawa Farm Ambassador when I wear that hat. Guess I'm a Girl Scout Ambassador AND an Elawa Farm Ambassador :)

Once the girls arrived, I gave them a tour of Elawa Farm and let them explore the Garden Market (for more info, check the Garden at Elawa located in the "Links" section). There the girls met Mrs. Cartwright and she showed them nasturtiums which are edible flowers! In addition, the girls were able to take a look around at the organic products grown from the Garden itself!

Once we entered the Garden, we first took a look at the sheds containing the gardening tools and materials. Suddenly, my mom and Mrs. King spotted a small birds nest above a doorway and there were tiny newborn birds in there, chirping for their mother! It was so cute and the momma bird came flying in with food to feed to them. They are momma's children from the start :)

The girls and I explored the Garden to see what great, organic products would end up at the Garden Market next! We saw almost everything you can imagine: potatoes, pumpkins, squash, okra, lettuce, broccoli, and more. The picture above shows hot peppers ready to be ripened into spicy-ness.

In addition to a vegetable/fruit garden, the Garden contained a whole flower section near the back. The flowers were very fragrant and gave off this sweet smell of summer :) Bumblebees buzzed from flower to flower as they happily exchanged nectar between each. Any beautiful flower you can possibly imagine is grown right at Elawa.

Now the harvesting begins. The girls were very ecstatic about these fresh herbs and taking them home to cook with. They couldn't wait to find out what they would be having for dinner that night and sharing with their families. Each girl got their own plastic bags and each bag contained one type of herb. I explained to them that they should use their herbs within two days max because they taste best when they're fresh. I allowed them to take three rosemary stalks, five thyme stalks, three oregano stalks, eight basil stalks, five basil stalks, and all of the parsley.

The many plastic bags that the girls got to take home to share with their families for dinner!

The troop and I standing next to the herb beds. They're happily holding their bags of goodies :)

Thanks Mrs. King and Troop 1441 for coming to help me harvest my herb garden. I hope that you enjoyed all of your fresh herbs in your cooking and in making your food flavorful! Good luck with the rest of your Girl Scouting years ahead!

Harvesting Herbs 101

August 10th, 2011 - Thanks to Mrs. Cartwright (for everything!), I've been able to learn how to harvest herbs since it is almost the end of the season and school is just coming around the corner (yay...). She has been wondering when I would start harvesting my herbs and she told me that I had to do it ASAP because the plants would soon die. That's when I got to work.

Mrs. Cartwright explained to me that you should harvest the herbs before they start flowering and that you should harvest little by little as time progresses because that's when the herbs taste best. In addition, herbs continue to grow as you keep harvesting little by little. She also recommended using a "snipper", a tool used to easily cut off the stalks of plants. Here's the jist of harvesting each type of herb...

ROSEMARY: Cut from the bottom of the stalk to obtain a whole stalk filled with rosemary leaves. When cooking, pluck off the leaves.

THYME: Same as rosemary.

OREGANO: Same as rosemary and thyme.

BASIL: Cut off stalk or pluck off leaves right from the plant. Harvest before it flowers.

PARSLEY: Pull plants out of the ground when ready. Remember, parsley needs drainage in order to survive.

CILANTRO: Harvest before it flowers. If it does grow too much, cut off the leaves from the bottom of the plant; these are the herbs used in cooking.

DILL: Harvest before it flowers. If it does grow too much, cut off the leaves from the bottom of the plant; these are the herbs used in cooking.

It's best to use the herbs when they're fresh. But if you wish to store them, you can dry or freeze them for later on. Happy Harvesting!

THANKS CROYA!

I just want to thank CROYA (Committee Representing Our Young Adults), Robert, and Joanne Yorro for helping out with my herb garden! CROYA also has gardening beds at Elawa Farm and every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, volunteers come and help out with the garden from 10 am - 1 pm. They've been so generous with helping me water my garden every two days while I was gone in the Netherlands and in Florida. They've also lent me gardening tools, like a spade and a pitchfork used to discard weeds and break down the soil. Thanks so much! I couldn't have done it without your help.

For more information on CROYA, please visit http://www.croya.com/ for more fun activities.