Marc Wellness International Blog

Fruit Icy

Richard & Joey Marc — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 11:29:58 +0000

Berry Fruit Icy!

Ingredients:

8 Strawberries

6 Raspberries

4 Blackberries

2 tablespoons berry sorbet

1/2 cup crushed ice

1/2 cup water

Mix it together:

Wash all fruit ingredients and cut strawberries in half.

Place all the berry fruits, sorbet, ice and water in the blender

Mix all ingredients till smooth then pour into a cup and enjoy!

*Option: add 1 cup of skim/soy milk to turn into a smoothie

THE TO DO LIST TOWARDS A HEALTHIER YOU!

Richard & Joey Marc — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 07:19:22 +0000

The ‘To do’ list
  Start fresh today! Complete this check list this week and you will be on your way to a healthier, happier you.
ü      Stairs not the elevator .Use the stairs. A great leg, butt and amazing calf workout.
ü      H2O bottle on your desk. Set a daily goal to consume at least 2 x 500ml bottle of water before the day is out. Use a bottle not glasses as you will lose track on the number you have drank
ü      Stretch break- Toilet and coffee break use this time to stretch your body, take a walk around the office or do some arm and leg stretches.
ü      Get some sunshine. With short days and long work days getting sunshine may seem like luxury. That’s why people are happy and bright in summer. Get some well needed natural vitamins today
ü      Devote two lunch times to exercise. The opportunity is here and the feelings that you get is amazing. It will speed up your workload in the afternoon. “If you don’t make time for exercise now, make time for sickness later”
ü      Park your car the furthest away from the door. It might not seem like 40 more steps but at the end of the year you would have walked an extra 10,000 steps! The extra here and their makes a difference.

ü Stop making excuses Don’t prolong or make excuses to avoid starting a health program or exercise.

ü
Find an exercise buddy at work. Team up with a work colleague, your partner or a friend, that you can train with. This is great for motivational to get the both of you attending the exercise sessions, drinking the water and doing the incidental exercise that makes the difference.

ü Write down your goals. Don’t just wish to achieve something. Write it down on paper. Studies have shown if you review your goals daily you will have a much higher chance to achieve them. Once you have set a goal, set a time limit to achieve it.

Would you like FAT with that?

Richard & Joey Marc — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 08:41:08 +0000

Honestly and truely do we really need a burger that contains 70grams of FAT? Of course NOT…

It is disgusting that in society today we are more aware then ever about the problem of obesity but fast food chains continue to place food products out there that are only contributing to the problem further!

A brand new Quad Burger from Hungry Jacks, which comes with four beef patties, four slices of cheese, two rashers of bacon, barbecue sauce, and two buns and has no lettuce or vegetables has gone on sale in Australia this week.

The burger has more than 70g of fat and over 4520Kj (1000 calories) – half the daily recommended calorie intake for a woman and nearly one-third for a man.

Not only is it going to effect the calorie intake and health for adults, imagine what this burger will do for the body systems of kids who eat it?

And lets be realistic not only is the Fat content a concern in the burger, we also need to think about how long it is going to take for the body to digest the 4 beef patties & 2 rashers of bacon it has in one meal sitting - from one burger!It is definately not a friendly meal for the digestive system that’s for sure!

Given the extent of the worldwide obesity problem I just can not believe that fast food chains are aloud to continue come out with new and improved burgers that contain endless amounts of empty calories which do absolutely nothing for any persons health and wellbeing.

What do you think? Share your opinions with us below.

Have Fun & Get Fit with the Sydney Running Festival!

Richard & Joey Marc — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 04:43:52 +0000

Well Spring is just around the corner in Australia and the weather is definately slowly warming up which means not long till we can get outside and enjoy the sunshine and the beaches. The winter months are often famous for hibernating to keep warm and eat enjoyable hot foods. This is also a time of year famous for the slow addition of extra pounds that sneak onto our bodies. This year don’t leave it too late to start getting in shape for summer. Make exercise and activity part of your daily lifestyle. Better still set a goal and work towards looking great for the summer months!

Last month I set a goal of increasing my fitness levels and thought a great motivation tool would be to enter in a fun run! So with this in mind I hoped online to search for a fun run to enter into and came across the Sydney Running Festival which is held on September 21.

With only 4 weeks till the event I am running the beachsides of Coogee, Bronte and Bondi beach to get myself fit for the run. Plus, something else I am running for a charity, the McGrath Foundation, which was co-founded by Jane McGrath and her cricketing husband Glenn after Jane’s diagnosis and initial recovery from breast cancer. So this is a great motivation tool, as I have the support of family and friends who have sponsored me for the run and to also be involved with raising some money for a great foundation as well!

If you are interested in taking up the challenge of entering the Sydney Running Festival there are 4 different events:

The Sunday Telegraph Family Fun Run (4km)
The Sunday Telegraph Body + Soul Bridge Run (9km)
Blackmores Half Marathon (21.0975km)
Blackmores Sydney Marathon (42.195km)

For more information about the Sydney Running Festival or raise money for a charity click here to visit the website.

Happy Running!

Joey Marc

Obesity costs nation $58bn

Richard & Joey Marc — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:23:26 +0000

The Australian today has written an article “Obesity costs nation $58bn” with information from a new report, released at a government forum in Tasmania, which shows the full cost of obesity to be $58 billion, far exceeding the $21 billion bill estimated in 2006.
Whilst we as a nation have of late been told we are now the “fattest nation” in the world, now we are being told how much it is costing us! My question is when will we be told initiatives on how to prevent obesity from occurring?

It is Richard and my passion of helping as many individuals as possible to live a healthier life and we know the implications obesity has on individuals and with this in mind we knew we had to do something about it. And believe the best way to help with this epidemic is to start educating families about the correct eating habits and lifestyle habits in the environment they live and lead starting in the home. With the true emphasis on leading a healthy lifestyle starting with the lifestyle habits we develop from dad and mum.

We know parents are in an uphill battle with environmental and social factors in our society today influencing the kids to become more inactive such as playstations, internet, fast paced society and stranger danger. All of these contributing factors are affecting our kids today to become more sedentary and inactive but we can not just say these factors are to blame… If the government and society really wants to make a difference to the fast growing rate of obesity, it is time to step up and take action.
Let’s make a difference in our lifestyle today. But without change there is no change.

And individuals need to make the decision to live a healthier lifestyle. However for some the decision may be a difficult one as they are not too sure of where to start making the changes in their lifestyle. Some may be afraid to go on a diet as they know that it is only a short stint and after the diet they are back to their old habits. You see… to live a healthy life it is all about making lifestyle choices in your everyday life. It is not about a short diet then jumping back into the old eating habits, it is about making changes and changing unhealthy lifestyle habits in the everyday life for a healthier future. And this is the reason why we wanted to take action and help families, parents and kids to lead a healthier longer life! We wanted to provide families with a simplified guide to a healthy family that they could implement and use. We spent years researching and developing our book called “Please Mum, Don’t Supersize Me!” which was released in all good book stores throughout Australia earlier this year. It is an awareness atlas and an essential guide for a healthy child. Don’t believe me, see what others have said about it!
“It’s the most successful diet of all… no pills or potions”A Current Affair – March 2008

“It’s a timely and worthwhile publication” Alan Jones, 2GB Radio

“A valuable resource and essential reading for families” Alan Thompson, head coach, Australian Swim Team

“It is a perfect fit for families who want to lead more healthy lifestyles” Christopher Guerriero founder & CEO of the National Metabolic & Longevity Research Center

We have all heard many statistic after statistic that is released but it is time for action. And we are here to take action and make a difference to assist with this growing epidemic. And as a follow up to our book “Please Mum, Don’t Supersize Me!”, we are currently in the final stages of finishing the development of a new program called “The Secrets of a Healthy Family” where we share with you what we believe are the 7 Secrets of a Healthy Family whilst also interviewing 7 health and wellness experts from around the world with their views. Because we are about helping individuals to live a long, healthy, happy life!

Report Cards for Fat Kids?

Richard & Joey Marc — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 08:15:29 +0000

I heard about Britians plan to organise fat report cards on primary-school children in a bid to fight obesity and I did wonder if us Aussie’s were going to lead the path and follow too. And it seems in an article released today Western Australian health industry experts have cautiously backed the controversial British plan to compile fat report cards.
The article “Report card for fat kids gain support” said:
Under the British scheme, which starts in September, parents will be sent notification of their children’s weight at the ages of five and 10. The information will reportedly be accompanied by advice on healthy eating, exercise and details of local support services. Australian educators say the plan should be considered because research shows parents often fail to recognise if their children are overweight or obese.
Interesting isn’t it that research shows parents often fail to recognise if their children are overweight or obese. Why is that? The way I look at it is, we love our kids that we would do absolutely anything for our kids, so why wouldn’t we be concerned about their health and wellness? With t

he rising concerns of obesity constantly climbing more and more each year. The article continues…
“At least one in four WA primary school children is overweight or obese and the problem is growing. The rates have doubled for WA boys and almost trebled for girls between 1985 and 2003″.

Whilst initiatives such as the report cards and weighing kids on the scales are discussed, I challenge to ask “Is this the solution?”

Is identifying that a child is a certain weight or if they are classified as healthy, underweight, overweight or obese the solution?Well…obviously it will be a start to gauge what healthy range the child is situated in for their age group but I really believe the emphasis needs to be on education in the environment we live. There needs to be education and action on the truth about how active a family is? & how well balanced is the families eating habits and daily diet?

It is all good and well to find out a statistic or a status of a child’s weight range but it is only the beginning there needs to be a follow up plan!
Parents and families today live in a society where temptation surrounds us everywhere. The temptations to eat junk food, to sit in front of the TV, for kids to play DS or WII instead of get outside and play. The environment we live today is different compared to when we were growing up. There is no such thing as riding your bikes in the street or to your friends house and come home before dark, no way - not today! Today there is stranger danger and kids would rather hang out inside and play online or with their technology tools. Well, not all kids but most enjoy these pastimes.

We have got to help our kids to be motivated and to get up and get active. And the secret is to get them motivated to be active from a young age. Teach them different sports and games and enroll them in the local sporting club playing a sport they enjoy. I know when I was young I had no time to hang out at shopping malls or do ‘nothing’ because I was busy playing sport and training. I played hockey and was so busy training and traveling to my sporting matches that there was no time to do ‘nothing’! And not only did it keep me busy, it kept me active, I had fun socialising with a bunch of different friends to my school friends and it taught me ‘discipline’ to play as a team, work with others and support others.
But in saying this remember it is not all about sport, we need to also acknowledge what we eat! What do we eat as a family? Do we cook home meals that are grilled and are healthy or do we prefer to get take away and eat fast food that is convenient? So there are a few factors to consider here and it is about knowing how to lead a well balanced lifestyle with activity and diet.

So what do you think? Do you think the Report Cards for fat kids is a good idea or not?

7 Simple Steps to Carrot, Sultana & Walnut Loaf

Richard & Joey Marc — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 01:09:35 +0000

I made this Carrot, Sultana & Walnut Loaf for my mum’s birthday last weekend. And many of my relatives and friends wanted the recipe. So here it is!

2 grated carrots
4 eggs (2 egg whites, 2 whole eggs)
½ cup coconut
½ cup walnuts
½ cup sultanas
½ cup brown sugar
2 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
3 ½ cups wholemeal self raising flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
200ml apple sauce
3 tablespoons macadamia nut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup soy or low fat milk

Pre heat oven on 180°C and grease loaf tin or line it with baking paper.
Grate the carrots, chop up walnuts in half to make a little smaller
Mix eggs (2 egg whites and 2 whole eggs), sugar with a mixer and add apple sauce and macadamia oil.
Stir in grated carrots, walnuts, sultanas and vanilla.
Add and stir in the flour, coconut, baking powder, cinnamon and mix all ingredients together
If the mixture looks a little dry add in some milk. The mixture should look like a thick smooth mixture.
Pour loaf mixture into the baking tin and place in oven to cook for around 1hour. It may take a little longer if the centre is not cooked within an hour.

Enjoy!

Joey Marc

Sydney the city of Spirit with WYD!

Richard & Joey Marc — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:47:31 +0000

Last week Sydney was the city of Spirit as World Youth Day hit with thousands of youthful pilgrams from all around the world gathering in our beautiful country to celebrate and learn about their faith. Organised by the Catholic Church with a special visit from His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI. World Youth Day was a major success! As Cardinal George Pell, Catholic Archbishop Of Sydney said “We’ve experienced a tsunami of joy and faith.”

Sydney was buzzing and we were blessed enough to go and get involved in the celebrations. Some of the highlights were at Barangaroo where we were meters away from Pope Benedict XVI at his arrival as well as the moving Saturday night Vigil and Sunday Mass with 400 000 people attending, held at Randwick Racecourse.

Check out our pictures below!

The Pope Arrival At Baranagroo
Richard chatting to the Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, at The Pope Arrival
Our Candles at the Saturday Night Vigil Pope Benedict XVI driving past us in his ‘popemobile’ at the Sunday Mass

5 Simple Steps towards a Healthy Family!

Richard & Joey Marc — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 21:48:02 +0000

1. LIMIT TELEVISION TIME
• Limit the TV time to less than 2 hours per day. Also incorporate a TV free day where you can allocate 1 day per week where the TV does not get turned on.
• A remote control free household. Yes… even getting up to change the channels will burn more calories than sitting down.

2. WHERE TO EAT
• Avoid eating food in front of the TV, when reading or on the computer.
• Have specific dinning areas to eat meals away from the TV or any distractions. For example the only place food can be eaten in the house, is on the kitchen bench or dining area.

3. SMALLER PORTIONS
• Use smaller plates at home when serving up food, most people serve up food the size of the plate.
• If children want seconds let them wait a few minutes then ask them again.

4. GET ACTIVE
• Instead of directing your child “You need to go for a walk”, suggest to them “Why don’t we go for a walk together?” This will increase their motivation and provide a bonding time between parent and child.
• Make Sunday active family day. Let each family member take turns to choose what activity they would like to do eg. soccer at the park, hire a tennis court, gardening together, riding bikes.

5. EAT BREAKFAST & HEALTHY MEALS
•        Make it a standard rule no one in the family can walk out the door without having breakfast.
•        There isn’t enough time to eat. Grab a muesli bar, bottle of water and a piece of fruit to eat on the way to school.
•   Choose healthy cooking options for meals for example grill instead of fry foods.
•    Include fruit & vegetables in your daily diet.

Remember it is the environment in which you live which will determine the lifestyle your child will live. what changes will you implement to assist your family in living a healthy lifestyle?

FAMILY HEALTH COMES FIRST!

Richard & Joey Marc — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 00:56:56 +0000

With the rising concern of obesity in children and adults today, it is very important for parents to take time to stop and evaluate the lifestyle habits in which they live. Many people may have no idea they are living an unhealthy lifestyle until they take the time to stop and assess what activities they carry out and what food they eat consistently every day.

It is of high importance to recognise that the lifestyle habits that children undertake are those that are lead by their parents. The environment in which the family lives will determine the habits of each child and individual within the family. For example is play encouraged after school or are the kids inside watching TV, is an afternoon snack a piece of fruit or a packet of chips. These are some of the questions a parent needs to ask themselves in regards to is my family healthy and active. If children are raised with healthy options they will lead a more healthier lifestyle.

The habits in which a child develops is something that they are going to have for life. For instance do you butter your bread? Why? Is it something you just did when growing up, did your parents butter your bread and now you are doing the same? Interesting! So this is just a very small example of a habit but does this kind of unconscious unhealthy habit need to be passed down to your kids? Did you know butter on 2 slices of bread a day is equal to 25,000 calories per year. If this is not introduced into your child’s daily diet, how will they know any different. But what would I use as a spread? Try avocado or low fat cottage cheese.

Like the saying - like mother like daughter, like father like son. Changing your child’s habits are not as hard as it seems, children will eat the same meals that you eat, so it is important to ensure the food choices within the family are healthy.

Educate your children on healthy food choices at home and they will eventually know the difference between what healthy foods are and what are not. If unhealthy eating and lack of exercise or activity is consistently present in a daily diet then a person is going to be more prone to becoming overweight. If a person is overweight it can cause an abundance of diseases. Some include: sleep problems, tiredness, diabetes type 2, decreased mental performance and cardiovascular risk factors. In an American medical journal, it was reported that an overweight’s child’s quality of life is 5 times more likely to be worse than a normal healthy weight child.

So it is important we ensure our families health comes first! That means paying attention to the little lifestyle habits we practice on a daily basis and evaluate are these healthy habits???

Remember as a parent you are a role model for your kids and kids will copy and learn from mum and dads choices, behaviours and habits.

Tune into our blog tomorrow to find out 5 simple steps to getting your family healthy!

Have a wonderful day!

Richard & Joey Marc

PS. For more info about children and family health and wellness click here