Marissa Dawn Nutrition

Thursday was the first official day of summer but here in Lloydminster, this last week has been hot! With temperatures in the high 20's on a daily basis, and only dropping into the high teens overnight, staying hydrated has been crucial to beat the heat.  The more time you spend outside, the more active you are in the heat and the more you sweat, the more important it is to be hydrated to prevent heat-related emergencies. The Canadian Red Cross states that "heat-related emergencies occur when the body becomes dehydrated" and when a person is in the sun too long, "heat cramps, heat exhaustion, or heat stroke can occur".  It is important to be aware of the signs and symptoms of heat-related emergencies which include muscle cramps or tightening, headaches, nausea and dizziness, weakness or feeling faint.  For more information on heat-related emergencies, check out the Red Cross  Website. The average man (age 19 and over), needs about 12 cups of fluid per day to...

Sometimes, a simple recipe is the best recipe.  There are lots of recipes out there that have a full page of ingredients or take hours to make, but what about when you want a meal that is simple, delicious and nutritious?  That's what I was looking for when I came up with these Taco Rice Bowls.  I was going through my cupboard and found taco seasoning and rice and was inspired to make something using them.  I don't know if Taco Rice Bowls is a good name for this recipe or not, seeing as there is nothing about it that is really like a taco, other than taco seasoning.  And, when I ate it for supper the other night, I served it on a plate, but Taco Rice Bowls was the name I had in mind for some reason, so I am going to go with it.  In all reality, I think this recipe is more like a burrito bowl, but that doesn't matter.  What does matter is that this recipe is absolutely delicious and is super easy to make. Taco Rice Bowls Ingredients: 1 cup brow...

The temperature is heating up, and kids will be out of school before you know it, which means summer vacations, road trips, camping and living at the lake.  You often hear of people wanting to get their "beach body" ready for summer by slimming down and losing weight, making changes that aren't sustainable for the long run.  Summer comes, and they choose unhealthy snacks, consume too much alcohol, eat at irregular times and have unbalanced meals.  Food is also often more readily available in the summer with food trucks, hot dog carts, food festivals and more.  Summer is the time to take advantage of all of the fresh, local fruits and vegetables, check out the local farmer's markets, or even try planting your own garden.  While there are many gatherings and events in the summer that involve food, check out these healthy eating tips to help you make healthy choices during the summer! Eat Balanced Meals and Snacks Meals should contain at least three out of the ...

I have never been one to make good, chewy, moist, homemade granola bars.  I always seem to do something to burn them, overcook them to the point of being dry, or not packing them into the pan well enough, so they crumble and turn more into granola than granola bars when you go to cut them.  My younger sister, on the other hand, seems to have the granola bar making talent.  Nine times out of 10, her granola bars are more than just good, they are delicious, and I have to credit her and her granola bar making talents for inspiring me to write this post. When she began making granola bars, she used this recipe (link) , but over time, she wanted to cut back on the added sugar and fat, and replace them with the healthier, natural sugars. There are many substitutions you can make in lots of recipes to cut back on things such as added sugar and fat, or to replace an ingredient if you find out once you have started that you are missing it.  Here are some examples of subst...

I love a good salad for lunch, but my salads usually consist of me either picking out a bagged salad at the grocery store and then modifying the toppings (usually not including everything that it comes with, only using some of the dressing, and adding some roasted chickpeas, eggs or nuts and seeds), or just putting all of the vegetables I have in my fridge into a container, adding some protein (roasted chickpeas, eggs or nuts and seeds) and calling it a salad. Last week I saw a Sweet Potato and Chickpea Salad from Tasty Vegetarian on Facebook and decided to make my own little spin off of it.  The original salad can be found  here  and here is my version. Roasted Chickpea and Vegetable Salad Ingredients: Spinach Sweet Potato, cubed Carrots, chopped Snap Peas, chopped 1 x 19 oz can Chickpeas, rinsed and drained Kraft Tuscan Italian Salad Dressing Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees 2. Rinse and cut sweet potato into bite-sized cubes.  Rinse and c...

Sunday, May 27th marked my second official half marathon and my experience this time around was quite different from my first one in September 2016. Since September 2016, quite a few things have changed in my life.  I have gone from being in school to working and from living at home to living on my own in a different city.  With the changes in my life came changes to my ability to train and thus my race experience.  This time around, I was not able to consistently follow a training plan or get in as many long distance runs as I would have liked, as I was on the road for various events each of the four weekends leading up to the race.  I was also trying to figure out starting a new job, as well as starting Marissa Dawn Nutrition.  As a result, I headed into the marathon not feeling as prepared as I would have liked. Saturday was the race expo where my Dad, who would also be running the half marathon, and I picked up our race packages, followed by the pas...

I am gearing up for my second official half marathon this weekend, back home in Saskatoon.  I have known about the Saskatchewan Marathon for years, as my Dad and Grandma have both participated in it.  This weekend, I am going to check out the Race Expo and attend the Pasta Supper on Saturday, take in all that the race weekend has to offer.  I am curious to see how this half marathon experience is different then my first one.  I know my training hasn't been as good this time around, but things never go perfect in life.  I guess come Sunday morning we will see.  Since it is only my second official race of this kind, I thought it would be a good chance to look back, reflect on and share what the first one was like. I ran my first official half marathon in September 2016 in Regina.  I trained all summer and was feeling ready for it until I hurt my back three weeks before the race.  It hurt to run, and I struggled to move without being in pain. ...