Although sushi in general has a reputation for being very light, many sushi eaters find themselves stuffed after a tasty roll. Enter the Hawaiian roll. The Hawaiian roll tastes light and refreshing, and unmistakably Hawaiian.  

Made with cooked shrimp, avocadoes and mangoes, the Hawaiian roll is an easy way to satisfy your appetite without feeling heavy and lethargic afterwards.

Let’s take a closer look at Hawaiian roll nutrition facts.

Major Nutrients Found in a Hawaiian Roll

The Hawaiian roll nutrition chart above proves that making sushi lighter takes just enough off fat, cholesterol and sodium so you can eat it guilt free. With more than 600 calories per roll, the Hawaiian roll is definitely a full meal, and the sodium count is much lower than other sushi rolls. Keep an eye on fat and sodium intake before and after eating a Hawaiian roll and the weight should still come off!      

Storing/Selecting

The Hawaiian roll should be eaten fresh due to the fresh seafood, fruits and vegetables contained within. The shrimp should be pink in color and easy to bite and the mango and avocado should be bright and colorful. If it isn’t, your Hawaiian roll isn’t fresh.

To store your Hawaiian roll, keep it in the fridge until you’re ready to eat it, but no longer than a day. Once the avocado and mango begin to age, they will turn brown and mushy. Even prepackaged Hawaiian rolls should be stored for no longer than a day…and don’t forget to check expiration dates for store-bought sushi.   

Eat It With:

The best way to enjoy a Hawaiian roll is to dip each piece of the roll into the soy sauce, wasabi and ginger mixture. Many Hawaiian rolls are served with kewpie mayo, ginger and wasabi because the kewpie compliments the shrimp taste. Either option is delicious, but the kewpie mayo is made with egg yolks.   

Burn Off A Hawaiian Roll

To burn off the calories in a Hawaiian roll, you would have to complete:

• 40 minutes of rollerblading
• 60 minutes of rock climbing
• 65 minutes of jumping rope

When we think of eel, a slimy snake-like creature is the first thing that comes to mind. That’s the last thing people think of however, when they bite into an eel roll, also known as a Unagi roll. Made with freshwater eel, the eel roll tastes light and refreshing.

{Eel rolls stand out because of the deep brown unagi glaze. Mmmmmmm!}

The eel roll is a unique combination of ingredients that includes cucumber, broiled eel, daikon sprouts and sesame seeds. An acquired taste, those who love eel rolls simply refuse to eat any other roll! 

Let’s take a closer look at Eel roll nutrition facts.

Major Nutrients Found in an Eel Roll

At first glance one would think an eel roll is to be avoided at all costs, but that is not the case. Although high on saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium, the eel roll is also a great source of calcium and protein. With just 506 calories per eel roll, it’s a delicious and refreshing way to feed your body.      

Storing/Selecting

When choosing an eel roll, choose a roll that has bright and vibrant colors. Dull colors in the eel or cucumber means that your eel roll isn’t fresh. Although the eel is broiled traditionally, a fresh eel roll should be tender, not tough. 

Store your eel roll in the fridge until you’re ready to eat it, but no longer than one day. Fresh cucumber and daikon sprouts will begin to soften and brown after a day, so store your eel roll no longer than that.   

Eat It With:

The best way to eat an eel roll is with Unagi glaze. Unagi glaze takes the place of the soy sauce, and is mixed with ginger and wasabi for dipping or to drizzle on top of the eel roll. Unagi glaze is made with sake, mirin, sugar and soy sauce.  

Burn Off An Eel Roll

To burn off the calories in an Eel Roll, you would have to complete:

• 70 minutes of circuit training
• 60 minutes of hiking
• 80 minutes of dancing

One of the best thing about having sushi restaurants on practically every corner is the creative ways they come up with to make dragon rolls more enticing. Typically made with eel, avocado, cucumber and unagi sauce, the dragon roll now comes in seafood and tempura variations.

Often made to look like a dragon or caterpillar, the dragon roll will give you enough calcium to fight off a dragon!

Let’s take a closer look at dragon roll nutrition facts.

Major Nutrients Found in a Dragon Roll

This dragon roll nutrition chart proves that making sushi more enticing also adds calories. The dragon roll would be a filling meal at 520 calories, but the sodium and cholesterol means you should be extra watchfun of those in your other meals. With nearly 20 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber, there is still plenty good about the dragon roll.     

Storing/Selecting

The dragon roll should be eaten fresh because the longer the avocado is exposed to the air, the browner it will become. A dragon roll with a brownish color should be avoided, unless of course the eel is on the outside!

Store the dragon roll in the refrigerator up to two days if there’s no avocado in it, but do not attempt to store a dragon roll with avocado as it will turn brown and gross (also known as oxidation) from the air. The eel in a dragon roll is traditionally grilled so there’s nothing to worry about there. 

Eat It With:

The traditional way to eat a dragon roll is with unagi, also called eel sauce. The unagi is usually drizzled on top of the dragon roll so there is as much as you need with each bite. Dragon rolls can also be eaten with traditional wasabi-soy sauce-ginger mixture common to most types of sushi.  

Burn Off A Dragon Roll

To burn off the calories in a dragon roll, you would have to complete:

• 43 minutes of swimming
• 60 minutes of racquetball
• 45 minutes of jumping rope

The tempura roll is the perfect choice for the sushi eater with a fried food craving! The tempura roll is quite similar to the crunchy roll, the major difference is that the meat—usually shrimp or prawns–is fried tempura style and then rolled traditionally.

Often seen as the fattiest of sushi rolls, the tempura roll is almost as light as it is delicious! 

Let’s take a closer look at tempura roll nutrition facts.

Major Nutrients Found in a Tempura Roll

As shown by the tempura roll nutrition chart above, the calories are fairly friendly for all. The downside of the tempura roll is how much sodium you take in. Without water you’ll be super thirsty! The cholesterol and carbs are slightly on the high side, but with regular exercise the tempura roll can be an occasional part of your diet.     

Storing/Selecting

When you choose a tempura roll, make sure it has been made fresh to order so the batter is crunchy and the meat is fresh. Although the tempura roll is fried, it is still crucial that all ingredients are fresh.

Store the tempura roll in the refrigerator for a few hours, but keep in mind that tempura rolls do not re-heat successfully. A tempura roll that’s been reheated may result in dry or soggy shrimp that’s not so tasty, so as with all sushi, freshness is key. 

Eat It With:

The tempura roll is eaten with traditional sushi dipping sauce. Combine the soy sauce, wasabi paste and ginger that accompany a tempura roll and quickly dip each piece of the roll in prior to eating. The flavor combination highlights the tempura style shrimp, while enhancing the overall flavor of the tempura roll.  

Burn Off A Tempura Roll

To burn off the calories in a tempura roll, you would have to complete:

• 150 minutes of walking
• 60 minutes of racquetball
• 83 minutes of cycling

If you’re stopping off at McDonald’s for a bite on the run, one sandwich option that proves to be quite popular among many is that of a Big Mac. But before you sink your teeth into this extra large sandwich, you may want to take into account what nutrients it will be providing you with.

It may taste good with it’s melted cheese and “secret sauce”, but it’s no secret that a Big Mac can wreak havoc on your fat loss if you’re not careful. Let’s take a closer look at Big Mac nutrition facts so you can see for yourself what this sandwich can do to your weight loss efforts.

Major Nutrients Found In A Big Mac

Potentially one of the biggest problems with the Big Mac is its high saturated fat content. At 29 grams of fat total as well, this is going to put a huge dent in your daily fat intake. In addition to this, a Big Mac also packs in a whopping 1040 mg of sodium, which is half of what most people should take in during the course of the day.

When your goal is weight loss, a Big Mac can spell trouble with 540 calories per sandwich. If you add fries and a soft drink to complete your meal, your calorie count can easily exceed 1,000 calories!

The Big Mac is also relatively high in cholesterol so anyone who is concerned with their heart health will want to take note of this and possibly avoid it for this reason. If however you monitor your cholesterol before and after your trip to the golden arches, you can eat this with less guilt!

On the plus side a Big Mac will supply a whopping 25 grams of protein, an essential fat burning nutrient and a small amount of potassium and calcium so you can easily meet your daily requirements for those nutrients.

Storing/Selecting

When selecting your Big Mac, if you can request it to come without cheese or any special sauces, this will improve the nutritional value for it, so something that you may want to consider. A special order will help you reduce calories, but if you want the real thing make sure it’s fresh without wilted lettuce. If you can’t part yourself from all Big Mac ingredients, forego the special sauce and use plain old ketchup!

{This so-called “Mega Mac” will do twice the damage as a traditional Big Mac!}

Always consume a Big Mac fresh for best taste as even if left for a few hours it will definitely not be tasting nearly as good. But if you can’t eat it right way, microwave it for less than a minute inside the box. You may also want to cover with a damp paper towel to keep the bun feeling and tasting, like a Big Mac bun.

Eat It With:

Sadly, the Big Mac is most often served with fries and a large soft drink, but in order to do your diet justice if you are going to have this, opt for a salad without dressing instead and serve with a water. Since the Big Mac is technically 2 burgers (it is), don’t eat it with anything else. Simply order water or tea and enjoy this hearty sandwich. Eliminate a few additional calories by taking out the middle bun!

Burn Off A Big Mac

To burn off the number of calories in a Big Mac you would have to do:

• 60 minutes fast jogging/running
• 120 minutes cycling
• 70 minutes boot camp class

Looking for a quick breakfast on the run? Before you pull into Starbucks and order up your favorite breakfast sandwich, you’ll want to think about the nutritional stats contained in these meals.

Let’s take a look at what you need to know before adding this into your day and potentially ruining your diet plan.

Major Nutrients Found In A Starbucks Breakfast Sandwich

The one good thing about the Starbucks breakfast sandwich options is that they do offer up a good dose of protein, with the sandwiches and wraps ranging from 16 to 23 grams of protein total. The calorie count also varies considerably from as low as 320 calories for a Reduced Fat Turkey Bacon with Egg Whites on an English Muffin all the way up to a high 500 calories for a Sausage, Egg & Cheese on an English Muffin.

If you’re watching your weight, try and choose the egg white varieties and request it to be made without cheese. This will be your best bet for keeping your diet in check.

The fat contents of these sandwiches also very from 7 for the Turkey and Egg White muffin up to 23 grams of fat for that diet-destroying Sausage, Egg & Cheese English Muffin.

Storing/Selecting

Order up these sandwiches fresh and enjoy immediately for best taste and nutrition.

Eat It With:

Since your breakfast sandwich will be fairly balanced with a good mix of carbs, proteins, and fats, it’s really a complete meal on its own, however if you like you can serve it along side a small piece of fruit for additional nutrients.

Burn Off A Starbucks Breakfast Sandwich

To burn off the number of calories in a Starbucks breakfast sandwich you would have to do:

• 28-50 minutes of running
• 42-60 minutes of circuit training
• 3 hours-4 ½ hours of desk work

Ever looked in the mirror after six months of hard, intense training, and utter the words, “this isn’t worth it“? It’s happened to me on a few occasions and it’s painfully disappointing.

Busting my butt, working out HARD 4 days a week with cardio on my “off days” seemed like a good plan. Hell, more then a few books and programs told me this was the only way to lose body fat and achieve great results in the gym.

Wrong!

It’s the classic “more is better” mentality, or what’s better known in the fitness world as over training.

[Yes, we all like the burning sensation during and after a workout but too much of a good thing can be detrimental to your fat loss goals and could be a sign of over training!]

Sounds pretty strange to say your training too much but trust me, it’s very real and can become a dangerous obsession.

Researchers have identified more than 130 signs of over training, including elevated heart rate, changes in blood-lactate levels, hormonal imbalances, and weakened immune response.

Throw in the mood swings and change in attitude that is often associated with over training and it’s amazing this topic isn’t talked about more in the mainstream.

At the gym I’ll hear men and women constantly complain they can’t lose any body fat after training five days a week for 60 minutes. That’s 5 hours a week!

Almost the equivalent of one work day a week in a typical office environment. Absolutely nuts!

I personally know fitness pros and athletes who exercise 50% less and they rely on being in the best shape possible for their livelihood!

Let me put it another way.

Do you pop a handful of aspirins for your headache thinking the more you take the faster your pain will go away?

Of course not!

So why do people apply the same logic to fitness?

Only a certain amount of exercise is required. Beyond that, you’re wasting valuable time and energy.

How do I take it down a notch.. or two?

1. Shorten the length or frequency of your workouts

Space your workouts farther apart or take days off for rest and recovery. Instead of 60 minutes, try 30 minutes.

Doing the same amount of work in less time always gets my blood flowing and it allows for the same intensity but more recovery time between workouts. Efficiency is the name of the game!

2. Nutrition and what you eat

Half the battle starts in the kitchen, not in the gym or on the treadmill. Meals that include lean protein, and low glycemic carbohydrates (think vegetables and fruits), and fats (yes I said Fats, read why here) will supply the body with all the nutrients it needs to maintain stable energy levels inside and outside of your workout sessions.

Eating smarter and training less is way better then training all the time and eating 8 times a day (another crazy obsession to avoid) just to recover in time for tomorrow’s workout.

Fitness expert and author, Tom Venuto does a great job exposing all the lies about training too long and why this is not the best way to achieve the results you and I want in his book Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle.

Check it out if you want some more evidence as to why this obsession is killing your fat loss progress and how to rebound and break on through to the other side.