5 Ways to Make Your Day at the Beach Healthier

Up until Labor Day, most of America will flock to their favorite beaches to gaze at the rippling ocean and bask in the warmth of the sun all while making unhealthy dietary choices. To help you avoid packing on the pounds and stay lean all summer long, I have listed my top five ways to make your day at the beach healthier to have you making smarter choices and saving calories at beach.
1. Say no to lemonade: Because of lemonade’s natural sour taste, vendors will add a great deal of sugar to the mix to give it the sweetness we expect. Boardwalk lemonade usually contains as much sugar as the average cola beverage, which can wreak havoc on your teeth and provide you with a big mid-afternoon crash. Instead, opt for unsweetened iced tea and add a lemon (or my personal favorite, the JCORE Zero-lite Metabolism-Boosting Drink Mix available in lemonade and raspberry lemonade).
2. Walk this way: Did you know that you burn between 20 to 50 percent more calories by walking on the beach as opposed to walking at the same pace on a hard surface? The foot is subjected through a greater range of motion, strengthening the doris and plantar motions of the foot. Walking on the sand can assist in development of proprioception, which is basically the feedback loop between the body and the brain. When an individual is performing exercises on an unstable surface, they are training their brain to fire more rapidly in order to make adjustments to the body's position based on the circumstance. It also assists in the development of stronger stabilizing muscles in and around the hip, knee, and ankle. When body reacts by re-stabilize, which has multiple benefits.
3. Build a castle: Building a sand castle burns approximately 100 calories an hour. But build that masterpiece a lot further away from the water and you'll be burning up to two or three times that amount. Reason: running back and forth across the uneven sand, in order to fetch a bucket of water, will have you getting your cardio in but, and will also have you firing up the three largest muscles in your body (gluteus, hamstrings and quads), a surefire way to crank up your metabolism.  
4. Don't burn your meat: Did you know that people who often consumed burned or charred meat have a 60 percent greater chance of developing pancreatic cancer than those who didn't? Grilling until meat is charred actually produces several cancer causing compounds. So to help avoid overcooked meat try one of the following: A. microwave your meats for two minutes on medium power before firing up the grill. Reason: Studies have shown that microwaving meat for up to two minutes prior to cooking decreased heterocyclic amines (HCAs) by 90 percent (research has linked HCAs with an increased risk of certain cancers). Also, be sure to throw out the juice—that’s where the HCAs lurk. B. Marinate your meat before throwing them on the grill. Reason: Marinating meat can actually help reduce the carcinogens by up to 88 percent. It is believed that the marinate creates a protective coating between the meat's protein and the heat of the grill.
5. Be clear: That is with your choice of alcoholic beverages. The next time that you are wanting to indulge in a summer afternoon or evening cocktail be sure to choose clear over dark alcohol. Darker alcohols are not only higher in calories, they also contain a higher number of toxic compounds. Clear alcohol is a healthier and safer choice.