Stepfanie Romine is a writer, recipe developer, published author and certified yoga teacher who has lived--and cooked--on three continents. She currently calls Asheville, North Carolina home. 
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CONTEST CLOSED: 7 Million Pounds Lost! We're Celebrating!
Thanks for entering! The contest is CLOSED, and winners will be annouced soon!
Congratulations, SparkPeople Members! We've hit another milestone on our road to healthy living.
This weekend, we surpassed the 7 million pound mark! 7,000,000 pounds! That's 3,500 tons of body fat gone forever! Woo-hoo! 7 million pounds equals about 467 elephants, 45 loaded passenger airplanes or 23,333 NFL linebackers. Pat yourselves on the back for that accomplishment.
That's quite a feat.
To celebrate, the dailySpark is giving away four sets of Pilates body bands by Savasa (see below).
Posted 3/1/2009 6:00:00 PM By: : 1714 comments 12,111 views
Meat-Free Fridays: Lean Lenten Fish Recipes
Each Friday during Lent, the dailySpark will feature a different non-meat main dish. You'll find plenty of dishes to swap for your meaty favorites, all with far less fat, fewer calories and more nutrients than a fried fish sandwich, a ubiquitous choice during Lent.
Today marks the first Friday of Lent, meaning many Christians are abstaining from eating meat. Through the years, meat-free Fridays have become associated with fish fries and batter-dipped sandwiches at fast-food restaurants. Often battered, fried, and dunked in mayo-based sauces, fish is a versatile and healthy main dish!
Abstaining from meat for several meals a week, usually for health, environmental or personal reasons, is a growing trend. "Flexitarianism," as it's called, is a healthy way to eat, according to experts.
If you observe meat-free Fridays during Lent, use this as a time to experiment a bit with your menus. Instead of reaching for the same-old fried fish, choose another lean protein from under the sea.
Posted 2/27/2009 3:00:00 PM By: : 100 comments 24,318 views
Study Spills the Secret to Weight Loss--Surprised?
As it turns out, you can eat whatever you want and still lose weight. You just have to pay attention to the amount you eat. (Sound familiar?)
A major study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine reinforces the SparkPeople philosophy. For two years, 811 overweight people were placed on four diets--low carb, high carb, low protein and high protein--and all lost weight. What they ate didn't matter. Portion control and tracking calories helped them, just as that has helped millions of SparkPeople members.
By the end of those two years, study participants lost an average of nine pounds and two inches off their waists.
Posted 2/26/2009 4:00:16 PM By: : 132 comments 35,390 views
I Stuck to the Habits of Fit People on Vacation!
Vacations are great. They're a chance to visit new places, spend time with loved ones, and take a break from the daily grind. While I would never consider the dailySpark "the daily grind," (I truly LOVE my job!) it is nice to get away from real life from time to time.
I recently had the opportunity to spend 10 days in Guatemala with a wonderful nonprofit, Cooperative for Education. I try to travel internationally at least once a year, but sometimes it makes sticking to my healthy habits a bit tricky.
This trip was a success in more ways than one. Not only did I recharge my batteries, see amazing places and learn about a wonderfully rich culture, but I also managed to work in exercise every day and stick to my healthy eating habits. Unlike some other vacations, this time I didn't come home dreading the scale and feeling bloated and lazy.
How did I do it? NEAT, exercising control at the hotel buffets, and sticking with many of Coach Nicole's Habits of Fit People.
Posted 2/26/2009 6:05:09 AM By: : 69 comments 13,409 views
A Minute With: Triathlete, Firefighter and "Engine 2" Author Rip Esselstyn
World-class professional triathlete turned firefighter Rip Esselstyn knows how to eat right and stay in shape. The son, grandson, and great-grandson of renowned physicians, he had been eating a plant-based diet for years.
So when he discovered that one of his fellow firefighters had dangerously high cholesterol (344), he created and implemented the Engine 2 Diet to help others at his fire station reduce their cholesterol and improve their overall health.
His fellow firefighters adhered to a fully plant-based diet for 28 days. They significantly reduced their cholesterol levels and lost weight by eating foods that were nutrient-dense, naturally low in calories and high in fiber--not to mention delicious and easy to prepare.
The results were astounding.
That firefighter whose cholesterol was a whopping 344 dropped his levels to somewhere in the 270s a year later. Then he agreed to try Rip's plant-based plan. Three weeks later, his cholesterol was down to 196! In 2008, 15 people started the second 28-day Engine 2 pilot study. At the outset, the group's average cholesterol was 196. By the end, participants' average cholesterol levels declined 62 points. The average weight loss was 14 pounds.
Rip's book, The Engine 2 Diet: The Texas Firefighter's 28-Day Save-Your-Life Plan that Lowers Cholesterol and Burns Away the Pounds, comes out today.
We recently chatted with Rip about his healthy eating habits, the book, and how anyone can adapt the Engine 2 Diet for their lifestyles.
Posted 2/25/2009 2:22:50 PM By: : 61 comments 17,927 views
Quick Tips: Make Your Beans Less Musical
"Beans, beans, the musical fruit.
The more you eat, the more you toot."
We've all heard that tune, and most of us have unfortunately experienced the reality of it.
Beans are an excellent source of fiber, and they are a great source of protein, especially for vegetarians. So many people are scared to eat them because of the digestive ditties that their bodies play later.
Fear no bean.
TreeHugger recently shared some tips on how to make your beans less musical.
I make a big pot of dried beans once a week and rarely have much "trouble" eating them.
Now that you know how to quiet your beans, how do you cook them?
Posted 2/24/2009 2:20:00 PM By: : 108 comments 69,905 views
Happy Hot Breakfast Month!
Think back to this morning. What did you have to eat?
A. Coffee and a doughnut
B. A granola bar
C. Nothing
D. Cold cereal
E. A hearty, hot breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and it's one that too many of us often skip. This month is Hot Breakfast Month.
Sure, it's a silly holiday created as a marketing gimmick, but if it gets you to fill your belly with a square meal in the mornings, it has served its purpose.
Think you don't have time for hot breakfast? Think again.
Posted 2/20/2009 2:01:45 PM By: : 168 comments 27,278 views
We Read It: 'Your Big Fat Boyfriend'
Healthy eating is hard enough when every significant person in your life is on board. If you're the only person you know who is trying to get to get fit, it's an additional roadblock for you to overcome. If you're newly in love and your significant other isn't exactly a good eater or avid exerciser, it's that much more difficult to stick with even well-established healthy habits.
Studies have shown that women almost always gain weight in relationships. When you're in love (especially new love), it's easy to forget to count calories and record food intake--especially when you're sharing a nibble with your honey.
Jenna Bergen, a Spinning instructor and yoga fanatic from Philadelphia, had always been a healthy eater. Then one day she tried on her favorite jeans and realized they no longer fit. She had gained 13 pounds over the course of her relationship.
From sharing his nachos during the game, to munching popcorn together at the movies, ssnacking on peanuts at the ballpark, ordering takeout on weekends and skipping morning workouts to cuddle--those calories and missed workouts take a toll.
Jenna knew she wasn't alone and wrote "Your Big Fat Boyfriend: How to Stay Thin When Dating a Diet Disaster" (Quirk Books, January 2009, $14.95).
Posted 2/19/2009 6:00:18 AM By: : 137 comments 18,440 views
Habits of Healthy Eaters: Quit the Clean Plate Club
Was your household one that enforced the "Clean Plate Club"? Did you know that could be hurting your weight-loss efforts?
Our parents might have had good intentions, but teaching us that we had to eat everything on our plates was not a helpful lesson. When we only stop eating when our plate is empty, our brains never learn to judge when we're actually full.
Posted 2/18/2009 4:01:24 PM By: : 145 comments 19,017 views
Stuck in a Snack Rut? It's Time to Break Out
Think outside the 100-calorie pouch. Beyond granola bars, apples and vending machine junk food, there's an entire world of snacks out there. Shake up your snack routine with one of these 10 savory snacks.
Fill a small corn tortilla with 3 ounces of chicken. Sprinkle on 2 T cheddar cheese and top with 2 T salsa.
189 calories, 3 g fat
Posted 2/17/2009 1:00:00 PM By: : 92 comments 26,102 views
3 Lessons from the US Airways Hero Pilot Chesley Sullenberger
"I was sure I could do it."
That was the response of US Airways Flight 1549 Pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger during an interview with Katie Couric on CBS' 60 MInutes on Sunday.
Sullenberger safely landed a flight from New York to North Carolina in the Hudson River after a bird blew out the plane's engines on Jan. 15.
All 155 passengers survived, and Sullenberger has been called a hero.
Thanks to his training and experience, he knew he could safely land the plane, he just never imagined he would ever have to do so.
"I had this expectation that my career would be one in which I didn't crash an airplane."
Those comments and others he made are reminiscent of the journey we're all on. Some of us arrive to SparkPeople on a downward spiral. We're hurdling toward Earth at alarming fast rates, calling mayday, and heading for a crash landing.
Heading for crash landing in life can be just as terrifying as heading for one in the air. Thankfully, that pilot and each of us has the resources to avert catastrophe.
Posted 2/16/2009 10:54:47 AM By: : 89 comments 16,266 views
Read the Label: The 411 on Olive Oil
Have you taken a look at your olive oil label lately? Cold-pressed, organic, light olive oil. Extra-virgin olive oil. Expeller-pressed organic oil. What do all those terms mean?
The folks at Gourmè Mist, a line of oil and vinegar spritzers, shared a glossary of oil terms with us.
Posted 2/15/2009 4:00:00 PM By: : 112 comments 16,862 views
7 Healthy Ways to Celebrate Valentine’s Day with Gal Pals
By Debba Haupert, creator of GIRLFRIENDOLOGY.com – the online community for women focused on female friendship 
Remember when we were schoolkids and we gave Valentine’s Day cards to everyone? The anticipation of seeing whether each person gave you a greeting and the feeling of having a room full of friends was one of the simple joys of childhood.
For grown-ups, Valentine’s Day is often considered just a romantic holiday for couples--complete with boxes of chocolate, roses and occasional bling, but it doesn’t need to be just that. In fact, in other parts of the world, Valentine’s Day is celebrated as a day to recognize and appreciate friendships. There is even a humorous holiday celebrated on February 14 called “Singles Awareness Day”--a day to gather to celebrate single life and the belief that one needn’t be in a relationship to celebrate the date.
So, in honor of Valentine’s Day, Singles Awareness Day, or any day with friends, here are a few healthy ideas on how to celebrate girlfriends:
Posted 2/13/2009 4:00:00 PM By: : 39 comments 13,740 views
Before You Bite: A Valentine's Day Guide to Chocolate
Valentine's Day is fast approaching. Whether you're celebrating with a sweetie or you're celebrating with friends, you're probably going to encounter sweets and treats, particularly chocolate.
In honor of the day, the dailySpark is giving you a chocolate lesson. You know dark chocolate is the "good stuff," but what should you look for before you take that sweet first bite?
Posted 2/12/2009 2:05:21 PM By: : 94 comments 10,839 views
Study: Daily Vitamin Doesn't Help Your Health
Do you pop a multivitamin every morning?
It might not be as beneficial as you think.
A recent, quite sizable study of more than 160,000 women found that a vitamin regimen doesn't lessen one's chances of developing cancer or heart disease.
The findings were published in the current issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine. Earlier research had offered mixed results.
Posted 2/12/2009 6:10:40 AM By: : 322 comments 19,375 views
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