Try incorporating any of these five foods into your diet and you will see and feel the positive health benefits. Seems daunting? I’ve even included some ways to sneak these foods into your everyday meals, so now you’ve got no excuses not to get healthy.

1. Fruit: Raspberries
These cute lil’ red things are a great source of fiber, potassium, and Vitamin C. As translation, eating just a cup of berries a day will reduce cholesterol levels, maintain organ balance, and improve your immune system. In fact, studies have shown that these great tasting berries even diminish risks for cancer. Snack on them in between classes, top them on your breakfast parfaits, or cool down in the summer heat with a raspberry-peach smoothie!

2. Nuts: Raw Almonds
Yes, that says RAW. That means no added sugar, salt, “honey-roasted”, or “dipped in chocolate”. If you snack on 20-23 of these organic nuts, you can be guaranteed some heart-healthy fats, 6 grams of protein, and over 35% of your daily need of Vitamin E. Okay, so “raw” and “nuts” doesn’t sound tempting for your belly? Slather some almond-rich, homemade beauty products on your face! Almonds have been proven to create an awesome complexion and soft skin.

3. Vegetable: Broccoli
Personally, I absolutely love broccoli. Not only does it taste good, but it can also be added to any dish! Put it in pasta, salad, soup; have it sautéed, broiled, eaten raw. Whatever you do, it’s a guaranteed yum. Imagine my great surprise when I learned that this super food was rich in fiber for a healthy digestive system, and abundant with calcium for my bones that endure so much shock from my daily runs. Oh and get this: adding this green healing machine to your diet may even reduce risks of Alzheimer’s. So don’t forget it!

4. Grain: Brown Rice
This replacement for white long grain rice may be difficult to adjust to at first, but the benefits are amazing. Brown rice contains a great source of manganese and magnesium, which can reduce the severity of headaches and migraines (goodbye boy drama!). In fact, studies have shown that when you replace white rice with the brown alternative, you lower not only your blood pressure, but your risk for atherosclerosis, too. Yay for long, healthy lives.

5. Fish: Salmon
Salmon is great because it has low mercury levels (if that’s what you were worried about), few calories (only 127 calories for 3 ounces), and good levels of Omega-3 Fatty Acids (necessary for proper brain development, and more). Bake it, grill it, eat with the above brown rice, make Salmon burgers, put it on top of your sushi…the possibilities are endless.

Let me know what your other favorite super foods are. Better yet, share some of your favorite recipes with me! Body blog cook off, anyone?

I’ll admit it, I was captain of the Boy Band Train when I was a tween. I was a loyal BSB fan (that’s Backstreet Boys, for you non-fans) with a room full of posters, pins, pens, t-shirts, jackets, action figures (from their quick Burger King stint), and every single CD ever made. Ever. In fact, I was almost convinced I would marry one of them. It was my destiny.

Despite my loyalty to the Boys, I was still a fan a few songs here and there from rival bands like N*Sync, 98 Degrees, and Hanson. But now that I’m older (and still a BSB fan…it will never die), I listen to these songs and watch their videos and can’t help but chuckle at how cheesey they are. So here’s a list of the worst boy band songs that you have to love.

1) Even though I think BSB’s ish don’t stink, their first attempt at video making and being gangsta just doesn’t work. Thank god they decided to go down a different path. We tried to put the video here, but BSB must be pretty embarrassed by the performance because they won’t let us! Click here for “We’ve Got It Goin’ On.”

2) 98 Degrees had some pretty damn good hits. I’m still obsessed with “Invisible Man.” Nick’s voice is just so sexy, even though I thought little Drew was the hottest. But when they came out with “Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)”, their stab at Spanish just killed it for me. I think I might have died a little on the inside, for real. 

3) I don’t think LFO had any other hit besides “Summer Girls,” but I remember that song like it was yesterday. I rocked out to it on my Discman with my BFF in 7th grade and we both wondered WTF Abercrombie & Fitch was. Now I realize that A&F is overpriced cotton and LFO lyrics are awful, but I will still get excited whenever this song comes on. “New Kids on the Block had a bunch of hits, Chinese food makes me sick….”

4) The second I hear the first beat in ‘N Sync’s “I Want You Back” (you know the…dun da da dun dun. Ok, nevermind.) I’m up and ready to dance. But check out this video; what were they thinking?! What’s with the metallic sheet floating in the wind? And the hair? And the dancing? Even though I definitely memorized the dance. I LOVE YOU JUSTIN!

5) Remember O-Town? No? They were the original Making the Band band, and they didn’t go very far. Sorta like Danity Kane… Maybe it was because of their first single “Liquid Dreams” was absolutely awful. It was just….weird. I mean, at its core, wasn’t it a song about “liquid” dreams? Ew. Sweet dance moves, though.

6) Ok, so I was a big Hanson fan. “MmmBop” was my favorite all through 5th grade. I still don’t entirely know what they are saying in the chorus, and I still make it up as I go along. But man was that a great beat. And the hair! Those guys had it all.

7 ) They definitely weren’t the greatest thing the U.K. ever gave us, but 5ive was definitely nice to look at. They were a one-hit wonder by definition with their naughty song, “When The Lights Go Out.” They did a great Disney special one year, though, so I made my dad buy me the album. He thought the song was funny; I thought it was genius. Till now. I don’t know – there’s just something weird about an English guy rapping. At the same time, there is something awesome about that song that you can’t help but sing along (and this one even has the karaoke words on the bottom!)

Can you think of any other classics?