Author: Lily

Maybe you used to run, but your knees don’t like it anymore. Maybe you played tennis for years until your shoulder started complaining. Or maybe exercise was never a big part of your life in the first place. Regardless, getting older doesn’t mean your physical world has to keep getting smaller. Are you ready for a “fitness reinvention” yet? Maybe you want to get back to exercise, or maybe you want to make your first start. Either way, we are here to help. Aging bodies are changing bodies, so we need changing goals and tactics to stay on top of…

Welcome to another month of Cook With Sam Club! 💚 Every month, we cook one recipe together as a community, and you voted for my Easy Vegan Meatballs for September! 🙌 They’re hearty, protein-packed, freezer-friendly, and perfect with pasta, tucked into a meatball sub, or stashed in the freezer for an easy dinner later. 👉 How to Enter the September Challenge Make my Easy Vegan Meatballs anytime in September, then leave a comment + star rating on the recipe by September 30. That’s it! You’re entered to win a $100 gift card. 🎉 Want bonus entries? ⭐ +1 entry: Email…

Are you always craving for potato chips, pickles, and salty snacks? This may sound okay to many, but health-wise, too much salt is dangerous for the body. The body needs salt for fluid retention and proper functioning. However, when salt craving begins much, it causes more harm to the body than good and can systematically break down the body system over a long period. One of the immediate symptoms of excessive salt intake is swollen hands or feet, increased thirst, and headache in some cases. In the long run, it can attack vital organs of your body, causing more severe…

Creamy, garlicky pepper white beans with spinach, finished with an irresistible crispy chickpea crumble, is the high-protein pantry meal I make on repeat, because it doesn’t even taste like a pantry meal. (20g protein, 13g fiber, 8mg iron. Soy-free with gluten-free and nut-free options) This creamy garlic pepper sauce with beans and kale or spinach is fantastic on its own. But then we level it up with this crispy chickpea breadcrumb topping, which adds texture, another pop of flavor, and more even protein and fiber. Think high protein croutons! There is tons of protein in this recipe (80 grams in…

We went to the farmer’s market this morning, the way we do most Saturdays. Tomatoes still warm from the field, peaches you can smell before you see them, a man at the end selling honey out of his own hives. Near the last row there was a booth for the American Cancer Society. Volunteers in matching shirts, a donation jar, information sheets fanned out on the table. Good people giving up a Saturday for a cause that has touched almost every family in America, ours included. They were handing out free ice cream. Ann saw it before I did. She…

Stress is part of life. Work, family, finances, health concerns and even the daily news can keep your mind and body wound up. And chronic stress can affect sleep, digestion, blood pressure, mood and the immune system. Fortunately, exercise is one of the best ways to manage it. Here’s why. It boosts your mood. Physical activity affects brain chemicals associated with mood and wellbeing, including endorphins. You don’t have to experience a “runner’s high” to benefit. A walk, strength-training session or other workout can help you feel better. It helps your body handle stress. Exercise helps regulate the body’s response…

This Vegan Vanilla Cake is soft, fluffy, and packed with rich vanilla flavor. Made with simple pantry ingredients, it bakes into a beautiful two-layer cake that’s perfect for birthdays, celebrations, and special occasions. The texture is light yet tender, the frosting is creamy and classic, and no one will guess it’s dairy-free and egg-free! FEATURED COMMENT: I have tried many vanilla cake recipes but this is by far the best one. I keep coming back to it. My non-vegan family absolutely love this cake. Thanks for sharing! – Mo ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’re making a vegan birthday cake for the first…

At 51 and postmenopausal, Jill broke a frustrating weight-loss stall and went from 164 to 134 pounds. Discover how midlife macro tracking and the Sugar Free Mom Tribe helped her reach her goal. At 51, Jill had spent years trying to take care of her health. She had followed Sugar Free Mom almost from the beginning, made recipes from my cookbooks, completed the 30 Day Sugar Elimination Diet, and even tried Weight Watchers. But after menopause, the scale stopped moving. Despite her efforts, Jill found herself stuck at 150 pounds. She knew she needed a different approach—one that would help…

Some aspects of coaching are intuitive (like, be friendly), and some aspects are paradoxical and upside-down. For example, in Motivational Interviewing, an effective communication style used in coaching and counseling, there is something called the “righting reflex.” The righting reflex is the instinct to help or “fix” a client, as well as give them directions on how best to change. Often, the righting reflex is particularly strong in people who really, really care. Sounds like a great instinct to follow if you’re a coach, right? WRONG. We are now entering upside-down-land. Motivational Interviewing describes how this (beautiful, well-intentioned) instinct to…

By Paul and Ann Malkmus Two waves of questions come through our office every winter, and they arrive about a month apart. The first shows up in the last days of December and the first week of January. Church has announced the fast, the sign-up sheet went around after the service, and the questions are all practical ones. Can I have coffee. Is bread out. What about the oil I cook with. Does peanut butter count. The second wave comes in February. There are fewer of those and they’re quieter. They don’t ask what’s allowed. They say some version of: I…