Social Workout

Impractical Eating

The Worst of the Worst in Restaurant Orders

The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is out with a new list highlighting the very worst in restaurant food. The worst offenders:

• Cheesecake Factory Pasta Carbonara with Chicken: 2,500 calories and 85 grams of saturated fat.
• P.F. Chang’s Double Pan-Fried Noodles Combo: 1,820 calories and 7,690 milligrams of sodium. 

Impractical Eating

"Nutella Is A Healthy Breakfast For Your Kids." Really?

I was changing in the Reebok Sports Club locker room the other afternoon, absentmindedly listening to the TV in the background, when this sentence snapped me out of my daydreams: "As a mom, I'm a great believer in Nutella..."

So began a 30 second spot, in which Nutella attempted to sell the message that chocolate hazelnut spread is a healthy snack for kids: "Moms, Nutella is a healthy snack for your kids! Spread it on multigrain bread, and they'll love it!" Really? Nutella? The Nutella that contains 200 calories, and 11 grams of fat, per a 2 tbsp serving?

Impractical Eating

Daniel Vitalis and Raw Water

Some people drink San Pellegrino, others Poland Spring. Some love their Brittas, and others spend thousands on PH-balancing water machines. Old school types are cool with tap. It's fashionable to hate the bottled water crowd, but, guess what? Everyone's got it wrong. Why? We're all drinking dead water. Wake up tame souls! As you cultivate your inner feralicious, you need to know about RAW Water, the brainhild of Daniel Vitalis, creator of FindASpring.com (referenced yesterday) and an expert in a range of "multidisciplinary modalities" including "Ancient Herbalism, Alchemy, Science, Mysticism and Indigenous Shamanism." We'll let Mr. Vitalis make the case....

Impractical Eating

DIY Kombucha!

A new study finally proves what an old Russian taxi driver once told me: Soda makes you weaker. (Seems the ingredients in your typical cola actually disturb the potassium levels in your blood, and can weaken muscles.) This is, of course, why alt beverages are big these days, and especially trendy probiotic drinks like Kombucha, a fermented tea that's got all the fizz of a soda but actually shows some health benefits. Kombucha helps the good bacteria in your gut to thrive, improving digestion, and may also help to relieve joint or muscle pain. AT $4 a bottle, however, you can quickly go broke if you drink alot. [Eds Note: It's true. We've seen Manhattan moms strap their children into car seats and hit the road to find bulk Kombucha discounts not available at local Whole Foods.] 

There's a better way: Try making your own. The following may seem a bit like a high school biology class, but it's easy to do, gives excellent results, and is eco friendly and very easy on the wallet. (There's even a whole Flickr community dedicated to the DIY kombooch.) Without further ado, the first step is to grow your own living SCOBY (i.e. Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast)...