Sam Kaplan/Fitness MagazineBy Paige Greenfield

Feeling stressed? Consider yourself blessed. Stress is essential to a happy, healthy life. Really! Recent research has shown that there's an "anxiety sweet spot," in which short bursts of stress are actually good for us. "The adrenaline our bodies produce when we feel threatened makes our brain function better, sharpening our focus, improving our mental and physical performance, and making us feel ready for anything," says Bruce McEwen, PhD, a neuroendocrinologist at Rockefeller University. Bonus: Your immune system also gets a boost, which can make you healthier too. So stop fretting and read on to learn how to stay perfectly on point.

Related: Beat Your Blahs: 5 Natural Mood Boosters to Fix a Funk

Turn All Stress into Good Stress
Most of us consider stress a negative, but it actually covers a spectrum from good to bad and is vital to our survival, McEwen says. "The sweet spot is achieved when the kind of anxiety and arousal you experience while giving a speech

by Keri Gans, R.D.

Just one more reason to add yogurt to your diet: Yogurt eaters are healthier!As if you didn't already love yogurt enough, now there's more reason to dig into this delicious, creamy food at breakfast or for a snack: People who eat yogurt consume better-balanced diets than those who forgo it, Tufts University researchers say.

A recent study of more than 6,500 adults found that those individuals who included yogurt in their diets on a regular basis had overall healthier diets than those who didn't. Surprised? I'm not, but what I am curious about is what came first: the chicken or the egg? Did these people start eating more fruits, veggies, and whole grains, and then decide to add the yogurt, or did it happen the reverse way? Or maybe even all at once?

I guess you can say that, in the end, it doesn't really matter. Because what does matter is that they are consuming more key nutrients, such as calcium, potassium, magnesium, and B12, in their diets than those who don't consume the creamy snack. Calcium is so key for bone health and prevention of

Whether they're chock-full of trans fat, or processed beyond recognition, these staples may be sabotaging your health. Ditch them from your diet now, says Clean Plates founder Jared Koch. By Ava Feuer, REDBOOK.

Canned tomatoes
The red veggie is known as the best source of lycopene, an essential nutrient, but beware of the canned variety. All canned food contains the harmful chemical BPA, but it's especially concerning in tomatoes, whose acidity causes the BPA to cling on. "It's not the tomatoes that are bad," says Koch. "It's the way they're stored." If fresh isn't an option, look for tomatoes in glass jars or BPA-free cardboard containers.

Deli meats
Rethink tomorrow's low-calorie turkey and cheese sandwich. Salami, ham, roast beef and other deli meats are poor quality, packed with sodium, made from animals raised on hormones and antibiotics, and filled with nitrates. They may also contain chemical flavoring and dyes, so opt for fresh meat - like roast turkey or chicken - or

By QuickieChick Laurel House

Five Guys bacon cheeseburgerMore than the beefy football players, the ball whizzing through the air, and the face-painted screaming fans, tailgating can be the best part of football season. You get to pre-game with your slap-happy friends, gorging on brats, wings, and dogs, and washing it all down with pitchers of full-bodied beer. Translation: Calories, Fat, Carbs… oh and lots of fun! Fun aside, football season can be torture for any diet-dedicated fan. In fact, it can even result in a 10 pound weight gain. Yes.

Thankfully, you can still have just as much fun without packing on the pounds (transforming from a tight end into a wide receiver by season's end). And you don't have to rain on the game to do it.

How?
1. DO: Animal Style, Protein Turkey Burger (ala "In n' Out") no cheese
Lean Turkey, grilled onions, ketchup, wrapped in lettuce (not bun). Be aware though that many brands of Turkey burgers are LOADED with as much fat as burgers.
Bite with

FitSugarSource: 4 Lunch Ideas That Help Beat the Afternoon Slump

If you want to stay energized all afternoon, then choose your lunch wisely. Meals made of verve-inducing foods like lean protein, iron-rich leafy greens, and healthy fats will keep your spirits up well into the evening. Here are four energizing lunches to try this week.

• Tuna Salad Pitas: Tuna salad can quickly quiet hunger, but the mayonnaise found in traditional recipes racks up (empty) calories fast. Instead, make this protein-packed tuna salad pita sandwich to reduce fat and calories but not flavor.
• Quinoa Avocado Salad: Quinoa is a great source of protein and fiber, both of which help fuel the body throughout the day, and avocados provide sustained energy through their high amount of healthy monounsaturated fat. Both avocados and quinoa are also good sources of potassium, which is important for metabolism and muscle growth. Keep your body's engine running smoothly with this quinoa avocado salad recipe, which

Source: No More Excuses! 10 Tricks That'll Motivate You to Work Out

It's true what they say: 80 percent of success is just showing up. Once you're there - you're there. This advice can be hard to take when, after a late night of fun, your alarm goes off before the sun is up. Propelling yourself to the gym, pool, mat, or trail can feel like a hurdle in its own right, but it's always one worth jumping. If you've resolved to work out more this year and get fit for 2013, motivate yourself to keep on sweating with these tricks.

• Channel that glorious post-workout feeling. Whenever you feel the instinct to skip a sweat session, imagine how accomplished and energized you feel after just 30 minutes or an hour of exercise. Just get there already.
• Make a date with a friend or fitness trainer. If you set a time to meet someone, you'll feel obligated to go, even when your mind and body are telling you otherwise. If you're looking to get your sweat on outside of the gym, here are some of our

Gluten-free: trendy diet or something more serious?The gluten-free diet has become a popular trend, not in its original incarnation as a recourse for gluten-intolerant people with Celiac Disease, but as solution for people with the murkily defined "gluten sensitivity," or those who want to lose weight. And now some experts are saying that in fact, "gluten free" may be an especially convenient cloak for an eating disorder.

Restricting Gluten Conveniently Restricts Almost Everything

There's gluten in nearly everything. Aside from the obvious things like bread, pasta, and pizza, you'll also find it in many sauces, medications, pickles, cheese, French fries, even hot chocolate. In many restaurants, or homes of friends, forgoing gluten means forgoing dinner, the perfect scenario if one's goal is to eat less, or not at all.

It's Socially Acceptable

"If someone with an eating disorder went to a party, he or she could get out of eating a lot of things like cookies, cake, or pizza simply by claiming gluten intolerance," Laura Meagher, an RN

January is nearly over -- how are those New Year's resolutions coming along? One of the most popular resolutions is always to lose weight and get fit. If you've had a hard time sticking with a new fitness plan, it's not too late to start over. However, when you're also working towards a better budget, it can be difficult. Healthy foods are often more expensive, and gym memberships are a big obligation. But, you don't have to spend a lot of money to lose weight. Here are 7 great ways to get fit on a budget! - By Heather Sokol

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