Wendy's - Bring Back the Spicy Black Bean Burger!

Last year I got to taste Wendy's Spicy Black Bean Burger when they had a test run in just two states. I was in Kingsland, Georgia, and I just happened to be there at the right time. Check out my reaction and reviewed to the Wendy's Spicy Black Bean Burger, and let's get them to bring it back!

5 Meal Prep Tools You Cannot Live Without

Prepping your meals in advance and taking them with you on-the-go makes for easy weight loss compared to eating out. Here is a list of five meal-prep tools you cannot live without.

1. A food flask is a leak proof vacuum insulated portable food bowl that can be used for storage for meals on the go. Soups and foods heated up at home in the morning will stay warm until you are ready to eat them when you use a double-walled thermo canteen.

This food flask is perfect for prepping hot foods to go!

2. Small meal prep bowls are a great way to control your portions sizes. Often times reusable or disposable BPA free plastic meal prep containers are too big and one of two things happens, you either overfill it or you fill it with an appropriate portion size but the size looks too small in the container making you feel like you are missing out. Small containers at the ready help you stay on track.

These multi-compartment bento box containers help portion control.

3. Three compartment portion control bento box containers remind you not to load up on just one thing. With single compartment containers it is easy to take too much pasta or other main dish without taking the two servings of veggies you know you need to stay on track with weight loss. These bento box containers ensure you have a place to put all of the food varieties you need to maintain your weight loss plan. 

4. Sometimes all you need is a zip to lock plastic bag, but these can be a costly solution over time. These extra thick and leak proof BPA-free reusable freezer-safe lunch bags for food are a great solution. 

Reusable freezer safe BPA free lunch bags are great on the go.

5. This is a no-brainer, yet people do not drink enough water in general, let alone when on a weight loss program. Your body needs water to digest foods properly and the quickest way to derail weight loss is to dehydrate the body. That is why a reusable portable water bottle with filter is a necessity. Seriously, do not leave home without it! Ensure you always have fresh healthy water anywhere at any time.

Who says hydration can't be easy AND fun?

So as you can see, prepping your meals in advance and taking them with you on-to-go for easy weight loss does not have to be a difficult chore. You just need the right tools! So shop the links here and discover for yourself why these are five meal-prep tools you cannot live without.

Five Tips for How to Lose Weight the Healthy Way

Eat veggies at every meal to aid healthy weight loss

Here are five tips for how to lose weight the healthy way. Start making incremental changes and remain consistent with these five tips to lose weight. You will soon find you are well on your way to achieving your weight loss goals.

1. Limit your portion sizes. Use smaller plates or smaller food-prep containers. If you put a small amount of food on a big plate, you might feel like you are missing out. Trick your brain with smaller plates and containers. You will be amazed at how satisfied you are with smaller portions when the container you are using is full.

2. Eat vegetables at every meal. Yes, even at breakfast. Try starting your day with scrambled eggs for protein and stir in some frozen spinach or collard greens. The fiber will help fill you up, and you will be getting more nutrients right off the bat. These nutrients will signal to your body that it is getting what it needs and it will be less likely to trigger a binge response that often accompanies attempts to lose weight.

3. Stay hydrated. The rule of thumb is to drink 8 oz. of water for every 20 pounds of body weight. If you are morbidly obese this may seem like a gargantuan task, and if it doesn't feel right for you definitely consult your doctor for recommendations. In general, though, just start drinking more water than you are drinking now. Among the benefits, drinking more water helps your food digest and get out of your body quicker.

4. Walk. This is seriously the best thing you can do for your body no matter your weight. Even if you cannot walk easily, get out there and do it for five minutes a day. If you can do more, do more. Park at the edge of the parking lot instead of in front of the door. Walk around up and down every aisle of Wal Mart just to get in the steps. Go to the local park, or just walk around the block. Your core will thank you as you begin burning fat more efficiently.

5. Create an accountability network. It is easier to lose weight when others are on the journey with you. Whether it is a health coach, coworkers, family members, or folks from church, you will find that sharing your struggles as well as your successes with others will make losing weight easier than if you simply go it alone.

Good luck! I'm on this journey with you. Stay tuned for more.

Despite M*A*S*H movie theme song lyrics, suicide's not painless

As we remember actress Sally Kellerman, the original "hot lips" Houlihan in the M*A*SH movie, who can recall the words to the original M*A*S*H theme song? TRIGGER WARNING.

It's called Suicide is Painless, and its tone and lyrics left the listener feeling an indifference toward the act but treating it almost like self-care. "Suicide is painless. It brings on many changes. And I can take or leave it if I please."

I remember seeing the deeper contextual meaning of the song, that suicide may be a desirable alternative to being forced by duty or circumstance to live out one's destined role in a war. And even though the series dropped the lyrics, I feel that in a way the melody was seared into our collective GenX minds, which were in adolescence at the time. The words for many of us became imprinted on the prime real estate of our GenX souls.

Suicide took a step brother from me as well as the brother of my best childhood friend. Not to mention, I survived my own brush with suicide during my hopeless closeted teenage years. GenX and subsequent generations have been hit hard by suicide. As it is, and as each of us has learned by experience, suicide is anything but painless for those left behind.

National Suicide Prevention Hotline (U.S.): 800-273-8255