268/365 Placate Cravings with Flavored Tea

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

Clearly my month-long diet and exercise challenge has affected my blog topics...all about food! I don't think this is bad. In fact, I think this is great because it shows y'all that I am no better than anyone else. I too crave delicious food, chocolate, sweets, and everything else under the sun. One tip that I subscribe too and I hope you will too is to stay hydrated. Drinking water before satisfying a craving ensures that you're not dehydrated and makes your belly full, somewhat hindering you from letting more food pass through your lips. Other than water, you can try different kinds of tea.

There are many kinds of tea that you can find in the grocery store. If you have the means, I suggest going somewhere that sells loose leaf tea like Wegmans, Rostov's, or Notting Hall. These establishments usually have people who can tell you lots more about tea than you could ever dream; their passion makes the experience special. Tea is a 0 calorie drink except for the spoonful of sugar, glob of honey, or cream with which you may take your tea. I picked up two teas today from Notting Hall: Raspberry Truffle and Chocomint. I cannot wait to go home and try them; the aroma is intoxicating. I have been jonesing for some chocolate/sweets the last few days and I know these teas will hit the spot. I'll let you know how they go.

In health,

Lauren

PS: There are proper ways to make tea. Here's the break-down:

Black Tea: Water should be at a rolling boil when you steep your tea for 3 minutes. Do NOT leave your tea leaves in the water and do NOT squeeze the bag (if you're using bagged tea) as it will become bitter and the flavor will be diminished.

Green Tea: Water should be almost at a boil, like the bubbles are about to start. Steep only for 1 minute then remove the tea from the water.

Tisanes (Herbal Tea): Water should be almost at a boil but can steep for 5-10 minutes.

For greater detail, check this site out.