Monday, October 5, 2009

Tricked by a Treat

I’m the type of person that likes to plan ahead. This includes Halloween candy. I don’t wait to run out the day of Halloween when you have to wrestle the Bride of Frankenstein for the last bag of orange suckers. However, there is a downside to buying early. I start raiding the candy bags and end up having to buy more.

True to tradition, when shopping this weekend I started filling up my cart with chocolate bars, peanut butter cups, and my favorite, Kit Kat bars. I promised myself that this year would be different. I would not open any candy until the first trick-or-treater came knocking at the door.

Out of curiosity, I picked up the bag of chocolate bars to read the nutrition information. Ninety calories, that’s not too bad, considering it’s probably for 3 of the Fun Size bars. What!! This can’t be! Ninety calories for ONE bar, ONE tiny little bar!


Back to the shelf goes the chocolate bars, back go the peanut butter cups, and after a moment’s hesitation, back goes the Kit Kat bars. With over three weeks until Halloween I can not have these temptations in the house. I head over to the orange suckers ( 1 sucker – 26 calories), no temptation there!

Once home I went online to find the calorie counts of some popular Halloween treats. Remember, these calorie counts are for the snack or fun size packages, NOT full size servings.

NestlĂ©’s Crunch – Fun Size 1 bar = 70 calories

Peanut M&M’s – Fun Pack 1 bag = 40 calories
M&M’s – Fun Pack 1 bag = 90 calories
Snicker’s – Fun Size 1 bar = 80 calories
Milky Way – Fun Size 1 bar = 75 calories
Kit Kat – Fun Size 1 bar = 50 calories
Hershey Chocolate Bar – Fun Size 1 bar = 90 calories
Reese’s Cup – 1 miniature = 36 calories, classic size=80 calories
Butterfinger – Fun Size 1 bar = 100 calories
Twix – Fun Size 1 bar = 80 calories
York Peppermint Pattie – 1 patty = 70 calories
Twizzlers – 1 treat size package = 45 calories
Almond Joy – 1 snack size bar = 90 calories
Milk Duds – 1 treat size box = 40 calories
Butterfinger – 1 snack size bar = 100 calories
Milky Way – 1 snack size bar = 90 calories
Sweet Tarts – 1 treat size pkg. = 50 calories
Tootsie Pop – 1 pop = 60 calories
Tootsie Roll – 1 small roll = 13 calories

So, sorry kids, come this Halloween we’ll be THAT house. The house you’ll not waste your time stopping at next year. The house that hands out the dreaded orange suckers!


R

Friday, October 2, 2009

Candy and cookies and cake. Oh my!

Carmel apples, pumpkin pie, hot chocolate, apple cider donuts, mashed potatoes and gravy, candy canes, ham, sweet potatoes. Yes, the eating season is upon us! In my quest to make it through a visit to the apple orchard, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas without gaining weight, and possibly even lose a few pounds, I turned to the Internet for inspiration and came upon Jillian Michaels’ website, www.JillianMichaels.com.

Jillian is the demanding trainer on the hit TV show, The Biggest Loser. If The Biggest Loser isn’t enough to get you off the couch and exercising and eating healthy, then maybe Jillian’s website will.
While the main focus of her site is to sell her “free” weight loss program, books, and DVDs there is still a wealth of information that is truly free. Jillian’s newsletter, delivered to your e-mail account Monday through Friday, is full of fitness advice, recipes, and meal tips. Her diverse Wellness Team writes about nutrition, beauty, health, and overall well-being.

For even more motivation, pick up one of Jillian’s books and DVDs at the library. Visit our on-line catalog at
http://search.prairiecat.info/?c_library=JHLY to hold your copy today!

Armed with Jillian’s latest book, Master Your Metabolism, and DVD, Banish Fat Boost Metabolism, I am ready to win the battle against those apple cider donuts! Who knows, maybe you’ll be seeing me on her website as the next Success Story!


R