Look, I get it. You know you’ll feel better if you work out. But maybe your alarm was extra-unwelcome this morning or you’ve had an exhausting day. And you know that with a little bit of a boost, you’re not just more likely to actually feel up to exercising — you’re also more likely to crush that workout.

And that makes a pre-workout pretty appealing, but that quick high comes with some serious lows you need to be aware of.

Why I don’t use pre-workout

You all know I take my sweat session seriously. So a lot of people are surprised when they hear that I never make pre-workout part of my routine. I mean, it’s a pretty standard part of that fitness lifestyle for a lot of people.

But here’s the thing. Pre-workout is FILLED with synthetic sh*t like artificial sweeteners and untested supplements. Like, you’re truly getting that boost from chemicals paired with a VERY heavy-handed dose of caffeine. And that means it comes with side effects like:

• Jitters
• Nausea
• An energy crash afterward
• Tingling and flushed skin
• Digestive problems
• Water retention (read: bloating)
• Heart palpitations
• Headaches

You might think those side effects would probably be pretty rare — but you’d be wrong. A 2019 study found that 54% of people who took pre-workout experienced side effects, and those side effects were more common in women than in men. That means that if you and your friend both take pre-workout, the odds are pretty darn high that at least one of you will have to deal with feeling sick, getting a skin reaction, or some other issue. 

On top of all of this, pre-workout raises your heart rate. If you’re going to be getting into some serious cardio, that can put excess (read: dangerous) strain on your heart. 

As we learn more about what pre-workout does to the body, more and more health and fitness experts are coming out against it. And I’m right there with them.

What to watch out for

I’m not saying all of this to freak you out. But I do think that if you’re using pre-workout, it’s important to put some thought into it. Read the label and look up ingredients you don’t know. Here are a few common ones I would steer clear of:

• Excess caffeine: A lot pre-workout products have upwards of 250+ mg of caffeine per serving. Factor your daily cup (or two) of coffee on top of that and you’re quickly hitting or exceeding the FDAs recommended caffeine intake of up to 400 milligrams. It’s important not to shock your system and overload it too quickly. 
• Beta-alanine: This compound is supposed to help prevent muscle fatigue and soreness. But it also affects your skin. If you’ve ever felt tingly after taking pre-workout, beta-alanine was probably to blame.
• Niacin: A.k.a., vitamin B3, niacin does play an important role in your metabolism. But if you’re eating a healthy diet, you should already be getting plenty of it. And the high levels of niacin in pre-workout cause skin flushing, so much so that a lot of people get red patches on their skin. 
• Creatine: Creatine is a pretty popular fitness supplement because it helps to boost muscle mass and enhance athletic performance. But do you know

If you are irritable after skipping breakfast, or your mood goes haywire an hour before dinner, you’ll know that being hungry can affect your emotions. Here we examine the science behind being ‘hangry’, and why how you feel often depends on what you eat

We’ve all seen the Snickers advert with the tagline: “You’re not you when you’re hungry.” While it’s a lighthearted take at feeling ravenous, it turns out that the science behind hunger impacting your mood is actually pretty solid. And there’s plenty of reasons why being hungry can actually affect your mood, and even your relationships.

A study of married couples found that anger towards spouses was greater when glucose levels were lowest, which is when we feel hungriest. But how exactly does hunger impact our mood and, more importantly, what can we do about it?

Let’s start by talking about why it happens. Whatever we eat (whether that’s a full English breakfast or a superfood smoothie) is digested into helpful things like amino acids and sugars, which are then absorbed into the bloodstream and used around the body for all sorts of functions to help keep us alive. A few hours later, our blood sugar level drops, and that’s what makes you feel hungry.

This is actually a really useful cycle, but if we’re rushed off our feet, or don’t have food close to hand, then other changes start to kick in to remind us that we need to start eating again. That’s when our fight-or-flight mechanism gets going, thanks to a big adrenaline boost, making us feel emotions such as anger, anxiety, or a general sense of stress and panic.

This was ideal in caveman times, when we needed a signal to hunt, but less useful nowadays if you’re in the middle of an important work meeting, and suddenly feel rage.

If you’re not eating, your brain wants to boost blood sugar, so it sends signals to other parts of your body to release more hormones to help. These include our stress hormones, which also trigger perceived ‘negative’ emotions like stress or anger.

Nutritionist VJ Hamilton explains: “When blood sugar gets low, which may happen when you haven’t eaten for a while, it triggers several hormones to be released in the body, including adrenaline linked to the fight-or-flight response, and cortisol, known as the stress hormone. These hormones are released to bring blood sugar back into balance, but both adrenaline and cortisol can affect mood and cause aggression in some people.”

There’s plenty of research to show that being hungry can make you feel more negative: research on university students found people who were hungry reported more unpleasant emotions – such as feeling stressed, or even hateful – and had a more negative attitude to the researchers in the study.

If you’re not eating enough throughout the day, this can cause physical symptoms, too. “Often people feel tired and develop headaches if their blood sugar regulation is not in check, especially if they develop a couple of hours after eating. You may also feel hungry and crave sugary foods,” says VJ.

Of course, it’s worth m

This sweet and spicy coleslaw has plenty of crunch! It’s an unforgettable side dish.

Sweet and spicy flavors are almost always a sure win with my family. However, coleslaw? That has not always been a reason to cheer. A few years ago that changed when we tried this recipe for classic coleslaw.

Since then, we’ve tried some pretty amazing coleslaw recipes. This Sweet and Spicy Apple Coleslaw was eaten down to the very last apple slice and ribbon of cabbage.

The comment “Best Coleslaw I’ve ever tasted” was heard and there were echoes of that from almost everyone at the table. I made this for dinner guests again last night and was thrilled that it turned out so well.

A certain non-coleslaw-loving brother of mine just might have taken the serving bowl back to his chair and finished off every last bit.

Spicy Apple Coleslaw

This was the first apple coleslaw we tried, but it certainly hasn’t been the last.

We’ve been making this Sweet and Spicy Apple Coleslaw and the Cranberry Apple Coleslaw now for several years.

I love adding apples to traditionally savory dishes like these Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Apples and Bacon or this Blueberry Apple Walnut Salad. They add a terrific sweet bite to the dish and we all love that.

Spicy Coleslaw Recipe

We love spicy flavors and in coleslaw the heat is balanced by the creamy sweet dressing. Mexican Street Corn Coleslaw and Jalapeno Coleslaw are two awesome examples of that.

The Sweet and Spicy Apple Coleslaw includes a couple of ingredients that I wouldn’t have thought to include without inspiration from Chef John.

When I saw corn nuts in the original recipe, I may have stopped and stared. I don’t really even like corn nuts. It just sounded so unusual, I had to try it. And they worked!

Just a couple of tablespoons of crushed corn nuts changes the flavor and texture of the salad from very good to delicious. This is an excellent summer salad that I have made many times over the past few years.

For what it’s worth, the Tabasco sauce doe

Are you a people pleaser? If so, Psychotherapist Tasha Bailey (AKA Real Talk Therapist) has some words of wisdom, practical tools and alternatives that might help you live a more colourful life without resentment

“I describe people pleasing in two ways,” Psychotherapist Tasha Bailey explains on Happiful’s podcast I am. I have. “The first way is more general, it’s a tendency to put ourselves last and we put everyone else’s needs above our own. That might come from a place of wanting to be liked or a fear of rejection.

“The second definition is people pleasing as a trauma response,” she continues. “If we’ve grown up in a household where our needs were never met, or always at the bottom of the list, we’ll learn to do that to ourselves as if we don’t matter. We become caretakers. We might end up being in friendships or relationships where we look after other people’s feelings, or even in jobs where we do that, and forget to look after ourselves.”

These descriptions will resonate with so many readers who struggle with this trait. In many ways, as Tasha expands upon, people pleasing behaviours can be all too easy to adopt when trying to find or maintain our place in the world from an early age. However, that’s all the more reason to address them in adulthood.

“Niceness, being a hard worker and all giving, especially as a woman or a person of colour, is really glorified in society. So when you’re thinking about looking after your own needs, you can often go to a place of thinking ‘that’s selfish of me’, or go to a place of guilt but then you’re not being looked after.

“What will happen is that will tire us out emotionally and physically, so we have to work out how to look after a bit of both. Me first, yes, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to drop everything, it just means I’m going to be more considerate of how I put myself first here.”

Crisp and salty on the outside with fluffy baked potato inside, these Roasted Fingerling Potatoes are a great way to change up the average weeknight meal.

Ah, potatoes. They do so much for us! When it comes to side dishes, some kind of potato is almost always fitting. In my house, potatoes show up on the dinner table several nights a week in every form from roasted to mashed and even smashed.

I love how versatile potatoes are and how they’re equally appropriate to serve to company on a special formal occasion or on a weeknight when everyone’s in their pajamas.

This Fingerling Potatoes Recipe is like that–something about them feels a bit more “special” than your everyday Baked Potatoes (though I do still love baked potatoes), especially when paired with the chipotle garlic sauce. Yet, they’re so easy to make (and loved by my kids) that these roasted potatoes have become a permanent fixture of our everyday meals.

What are fingerling potatoes?

Fingerlings are a  small and narrow type of potato. They resemble stubby fingers in appearance, thus the name. They have a delicate and thin skin that doesn’t need to be peeled and their unique look makes them so much fun to serve!

These tubers are often confused with new potatoes, although they aren’t interchangeable. While new potatoes are potatoes that are small due to being harvested early in the season, fingerling potatoes are fully matured.

Oven Roasted Fingerling Potatoes

Fingerlings are much quicker to prep and roast than