Barley Tea

Man, today is a high of 98 degrees. I'm dying out here. T_T  To make matters worse, every time I drive somewhere in the car my arm gets darker each second (due to the fact that we had to remove our limo tint on the driver and passenger window after the police gave us a freaking ticket!!!!!) My arm is the darkest part on my body right now so today I strategically wore a light long sleeve shirt. :P


Days like this are perfect for a nice cold glass of bori cha also known as barley tea. I remember as a kid I believed that all water in Korea tasted like bori cha. Lol. Not until I got older I realized that it was actually a tea and not a type of water flavor. Silly me........


Even though you're suppose to drink 8 glasses of H20 a day to stay hydrated and keep up nice skin, it was really hard for me. I hated the taste of water for the longest time and would try to get by with just 2 glasses all day with maybe some sweet tea squeezed in every now and then.

After we moved to Tucson, I realized that this lack of water lead to dizziness and headaches early in the day that would effect my work performance and social life.

I bought barley tea one day at the Korean market (after realizing that this was what bori cha consisted of.)
It was heaven to my mouth! Every time I quench my thirst with this I'm reminded of Korea and how all the restaurants offer this to the customers. I couldn't believe one time I dined at a Korean restaurant (in the states) and they actually charged for bori cha???? Thats upsurd!! That's almost like charging for tap water!! It's suppose to be free, darn it! That was the last time I ate there!!


If you ever go to Korea town in California, every Korean restaurant you go to offers bori cha (at no charge of course.) It's great!!


This tea is soooooo easy to make. All you need to do is buy the barley tea, dump the bag in a water pitcher and take out after 4-5 hrs. After that just keep it chilled in your fridge and serve at your convenience!! It can also be served as a hot tea as well. Mmmmm......so good for the winter!!! I usually carry it in my coffee mug..haha.

Korean Diet

How is it that Korean women look so slim and fit? Well, I believe most of it is being genetically blessed and the other 30% is their diet. Korea's obesity rate is the lowest among other countries. (Guess who's one of the highest? haha) How can I start to follow in these girls' slim & trim waist footsteps? Well, the American diet has to end, that's for sure. Lately I've been doing pretty good and steering away from microwavable foods. (which is highly packed with sodium that causes water retention=bloating and extra water weight) Let's see what needs to done in order to start sliming down-

-Eat less sugar (which is a no brainer.) By less sugar though I don't mean just the sweets. A lot of food products are made out of high fructose syrup....a lot! Everything in my house has it execpt for my rice, kimchi and seaweed. On that note-

-Eat more vegetables. Koreans have vegetables everyday and if not more than twice a day. The panchans served during the meal are always healthy servings of spinach, radish, garlic, and cabbage. This is every mom's dream! *Did you know Kimchi helps aid with digestion? :D*
-Eat more fish! Enough said....but hard to do when you live kinda far from the sea....like the desert! Korea's fish is sooo fresh and prepared daily. Finding "good" fish is a little difficult here especially for me. I hate cooking it ......and scared that I might mess it up or burn it somehow. I usually stick with the frozen mackerel. haha. Not as good as the fresh ones served in Korea's restaurants but it'll do until I get there next year. :D Did I mention I even tried the "tuna diet?" I wouldn't recommend it unless you're allergic to all the other meats and have no other choice. Just after 3 days I couldn't take it anymore! *blaaah* It just doesn't taste as good without the mayonaise.
-Eat small amounts of many types of food. A typical American meal is just the main entree with 1 side. E.g.- spaghetti/bread sticks; Hamburger/fries; Pizza/buffalo wings; Steak/baked potato; pot roast/corn. Koreans have a small amount of rice with- seaweed, egg, kimchi, cucumbers, squid, anchovies, bean sprouts..etc. By having many options you're less likely to over eat. Your brain is "tricked" into thinking that the stomach has had "a lot" of food. Therefor, you feel full faster or atleast satisfied and comfortable enought to quite eating. Ideally, it is best to stop eating when you feel 80% full. (This rule is a hard one for me! I love food too much! Especially if it's a meal I haven't had in f-o-r-e-v-e-r, like samgyupsal!! Mmm...my favorite!)
-Exercise! Yes, it doesn't necessarily have to be excessive exercise but a pretty moderate amount. Walking just 30 minutes a day helps you get the jump start. A little tip I received from a body trainer that I was not aware of. Apparently it takes your body 30 minutes to warm up. In that time it's best to do warm up exercises and weights. After that is done THEN do the cardio. (running, kick-boxing, treadmill..etc) Man! All along for the first 3 months when I went to the gym the cardio machines were my first destination. No wonder I was seeing results quick enough. :(

-Korean walk a lot! Walking or riding a bike is the majority of the Korean lifestyle.
-Eat rice instead of bread. This can be hard at times too! I love tuna sandwhiches, garlic bread, and breakfast biscuits. :P But rice is actually better than the bread, (especially white enriched) for a lot of it is full of sugar. (not all though)

-Last but not least......EAT BREAKFAST! Eating breakfast gives your body the energy needed to start your day. Breakfast also increases your rest metabolism rate earlier in the day, and reduces snacking before lunch. I hear that eating a banana every morning helps lose weight as well.....I've been following that one lately. :D



Between now and next May, I plan on having to lose 10-15 pounds. (Just in time for my Korea trip) I know to some this sounds a lot....but..........I don't care what you think. Hahaha. (Plus, 5-7 pounds is water weight I'm sure) I'll see if my "Korean" diet helps any.....




UPDATE:


I even found a workout video to get things rolling