POWER PACKING......
For children who need to gain weight....
Power Packing is a way to add calories and protein to meals without increasing volume. When I was doing my rotation at the hospital, we gave out Power Packing handouts which sometimes encouraged unhealthy eating to the cancer patients or patients that needed to gain weight. We wanted them to gain weight anyway they could. However, I don't think unhealthy eating is the answer especially in children who are still growing. We want them to have healthy sources of calories! However in saying this, I want to make it clear that there may be some children that will not power pack the healthy way, if this is your case, you may want to look at the benefits of Power Packing the unhealthy way.....butter and sugar! So this page is going to focus on healthy power packing ideas.....for kids and adults who need more calories!
PROTEIN: Load up on nuts (all kinds) which are calorically dense and contain healthy fats and have high amounts of protein. Try adding almonds, walnuts, peanuts to muffins, breads, salads. Use Eggs to your advantage: when making bread, muffins, treats add an extra egg for extra protein., also add eggs to salads, and meats. Try all different kinds of meats, and also add meats to everything...salads, casseroles, omelets, sandwiches, vegetables etc. Add peanut butter to everything bread, french toast, pancakes, muffin batter, swirl through ice cream, puddings, cookies. Also try these protein shakes:
Rise and Shine
12 to 16 ounces fresh squeezed orange juice
2 scoops egg white powder or vanilla whey protein powder
1 banana
1/4 cup Greek yogurt
2 teaspoons organic vanilla extract
1 tablespoon ground flaxseed (optional)
1 tablespoon lecithin (optional)
Blend together for 30 seconds.
Blueberry Blast
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 frozen banana (peel before freezing)
1/2 cup blueberries
1 scoop unflavored or vanilla protein powder
Mix in a blender for 30 seconds.
Daddy Shake
12 ounces fresh orange juice
2 scoops egg white powder or whey protein isolate
1 banana
2 tablespoons almond butter or natural peanut butter
6 ice cubes
Shake, stir, or blend.
*shake recipes from http://fitbie.msn.com/eat-right/10-tasty-protein-shake-recipes
GRAINS: Continue to choose whole grains but load up bread with peanut butter, almond butter, and cream cheese.
FATS: Continue to choose Healthy Fats like olive oil, canola oil.
FRUITS: Load up on dried fruits: mangos, apricots, apples etc. Use both fresh and canned fruits.
VEGETABLES: Avacados, olives are high in healthy fats! When cooking vegetables use plenty of healthy cooking fats like olive oil and canola oil.
DAIRY: Choose Whole Milks and other whole dairy products! Try Greek Yogurt has a lot of protein! Add cottage cheese to fruit and vegetable for extra protein!
Fortified Milk: To one quart of whole milk add one cup instant non-fat dry milk. Mix until power dissolves. The flavor usually improves after refrigeration. Best if used in cooking...
Power Packing is a way to add calories and protein to meals without increasing volume. When I was doing my rotation at the hospital, we gave out Power Packing handouts which sometimes encouraged unhealthy eating to the cancer patients or patients that needed to gain weight. We wanted them to gain weight anyway they could. However, I don't think unhealthy eating is the answer especially in children who are still growing. We want them to have healthy sources of calories! However in saying this, I want to make it clear that there may be some children that will not power pack the healthy way, if this is your case, you may want to look at the benefits of Power Packing the unhealthy way.....butter and sugar! So this page is going to focus on healthy power packing ideas.....for kids and adults who need more calories!
PROTEIN: Load up on nuts (all kinds) which are calorically dense and contain healthy fats and have high amounts of protein. Try adding almonds, walnuts, peanuts to muffins, breads, salads. Use Eggs to your advantage: when making bread, muffins, treats add an extra egg for extra protein., also add eggs to salads, and meats. Try all different kinds of meats, and also add meats to everything...salads, casseroles, omelets, sandwiches, vegetables etc. Add peanut butter to everything bread, french toast, pancakes, muffin batter, swirl through ice cream, puddings, cookies. Also try these protein shakes:
Rise and Shine
12 to 16 ounces fresh squeezed orange juice
2 scoops egg white powder or vanilla whey protein powder
1 banana
1/4 cup Greek yogurt
2 teaspoons organic vanilla extract
1 tablespoon ground flaxseed (optional)
1 tablespoon lecithin (optional)
Blend together for 30 seconds.
Blueberry Blast
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 frozen banana (peel before freezing)
1/2 cup blueberries
1 scoop unflavored or vanilla protein powder
Mix in a blender for 30 seconds.
Daddy Shake
12 ounces fresh orange juice
2 scoops egg white powder or whey protein isolate
1 banana
2 tablespoons almond butter or natural peanut butter
6 ice cubes
Shake, stir, or blend.
*shake recipes from http://fitbie.msn.com/eat-right/10-tasty-protein-shake-recipes
GRAINS: Continue to choose whole grains but load up bread with peanut butter, almond butter, and cream cheese.
FATS: Continue to choose Healthy Fats like olive oil, canola oil.
FRUITS: Load up on dried fruits: mangos, apricots, apples etc. Use both fresh and canned fruits.
VEGETABLES: Avacados, olives are high in healthy fats! When cooking vegetables use plenty of healthy cooking fats like olive oil and canola oil.
DAIRY: Choose Whole Milks and other whole dairy products! Try Greek Yogurt has a lot of protein! Add cottage cheese to fruit and vegetable for extra protein!
Fortified Milk: To one quart of whole milk add one cup instant non-fat dry milk. Mix until power dissolves. The flavor usually improves after refrigeration. Best if used in cooking...