ALERT: Lean Cuisine Recall

Three Lean Cuisine frozen entrees are being recalled because they might contain small pieces of blue plastic. The meals affected are:

• Pesto Chicken with Bow Tie Pasta
• Chicken Mediterranean
• Chicken Tuscan

Production dates for these products are from 8/18/08 – 10/27/08.

If you have purchased any of these meals or would like additional information, you can contact the Nestle Customer Service Center hot line at 1-800-227-6188.

Sensei subscribers who have one of these meals in their menus can simply use the ‘Replace Meal’ feature to find another option, or substitute any other healthy frozen meal (Lean Cuisine, Smart Ones, Kashi, etc) of similar calories.

- The Sensei Team

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Food for Thought

“Your body is the baggage you must carry through life. The more excess the baggage, the shorter the trip.” – Arnold H. Glasgow

I don’t know about you, but I have a chronic “over-packing” problem. It doesn’t matter if I’m going somewhere for a day or three weeks…I always bring way too much stuff! This problem frequently finds me frustrated and exhausted as I struggle my way through the airport, jealous of all those people breezing by carrying only their purse or maybe a small backpack (I just don’t understand how they do it!).

This quote totally reminds me of that situation. The more “weighed” down you are (regardless if it’s luggage or extra fat), the harder it’s going to be for you to get around. You’re going to get tired sooner and eventually it’s going to take a toll on your body.

I know many of us feel the pressure to drop weight for aesthetic purposes, but today I want you to really think about the affect the extra weight is having on your body. The strain on your joints and the overtime your vital organs are putting in to keep up. Because he’s really not kidding when he says “The more excess the baggage, the shorter the trip.”

- Lauren

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One Pot Mediterranean Chicken

By now you should know that I ALWAYS cook with lots of colorful fruits and vegetables. But what you don’t know is that I do not like to wash dishes! So, I made this great dish that fits any busy schedule (with only one roasting pan to wash) so I’ll have healthy lunches all week.

Mediterranean Chicken

• 1 whole chicken cut into large pieces or 4 chicken breasts or 6-8 thighs, skinless
  
• 3 lemons cut in halves
  
• 2-3 smashed garlic cloves (to taste)
  
• Salt, pepper
  
• Basil, parsley or rosemary - fresh or dried (to taste)
  
• 1 cup of your favorite pitted green olives
  
• 1 cup of your favorite pitted black olives
  
• 1 pint of crimini mushrooms
  
• 1 cup of frozen pearl onions or 2 red/yellow onions, chopped bite size
  
• 1 pint of grape tomatoes
  
• 1 pint or 12 small sweet peppers or 3 sweet bell peppers, chopped bite size
  

Preheat oven to 375º F.

Place chicken in a large oven safe dish and squeeze lemon juice over chicken pieces (remove any seeds from the lemons before doing this). Leave the lemons in the dish for added color. Next, season with garlic, salt, pepper and herbs to taste. I recommend at least 2 tbsp parsley, 1 tbsp basil & 2 tsp rosemary dry. Double that if using fresh. Be liberal, as the flavors get diluted from the vegetable juices during cooking, plus this will increase your phytochemical intake. You can also add pepper flakes or hot peppers if you like. Mix all ingredients well to infuse the chicken. If time allows you can marinate the seasoned chicken in the fridge (even overnight) from this point on to intensify the flavors.

Before putting in the oven, add the drained olives, onions and mushrooms. Cook uncovered at 375º F for about 45 minutes or until the chicken juice runs clear when making an incision near a bone. Take out of the oven and add the grape tomatoes and sweet peppers. Next, place under the broiler until the peppers and tomatoes have charred a little and start to blister (about 10 minutes). Serve with baby red or any other potatoes or just a piece of toasted crusty bread.

This is a perfect one dish healthy meal! You can throw it in the oven and do something else like exercise, meditate, read or entertain guests while it cooks. It takes no time at all to assemble so try it! Don’t be afraid to add your own personal touch. Use vegetables that your family likes. Experiment with different spices like oregano, marjoram or sage. Try artichokes, fennel bulb or baby zucchini next time. The possibilities are endless! It’s also a great dish to entertain, as you can prepare it ahead of time in a nice roasting dish then bring it right to the table.

Enjoy!

- Josee

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Sensei on CNBC: Turn Your Phone Into a Health Partner

Check out our CEO Bob Schwarzberg today on CNBC's Power Lunch. Way to go Bob!

For more on the story read CNBC's article Sensei: Turn Your Phone Into a Health Partner.

- The Sensei Team

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Sensei for Weight Loss in Forbes

Check out the article "Eight Weight-Loss Tech Toys" in Forbes yesterday. We're very excited to see Sensei for Weight Loss mentioned!

A big thanks to Allison Van Dusen and everyone else at Forbes for taking the time to write about us.

- The Sensei Team

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Sensei in the News

We're thrilled that people are talking about Sensei! Recent articles to check out include an excellent review by dietsinreview, Exercise TV writes Give Yourself a Gift, plus mentions in the St. Petersburg Times and The Patient's Doctor blog.

Be sure to watch the segment aired on WPBF last week too...

- The Sensei Team

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Happy Holidays from Sensei

Wishing you health & happiness this holiday season and throughout the coming year!

- Your friends at Sensei

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Sensei in the News

Lots of exciting things happening here at Sensei!

We're thrilled to announce that URAC named Sensei for Weight Loss as a finalist in first-ever Best Practices in Consumer Empowerment and Protection Awards. Woo Hoo! Click here to check out the press release.

Another big thanks to that'sfit blog for mentioning us again. According to their article new research reveals automated exercise reminders are effective (we knew it all along). Click here to read more.

Stay tuned...

- The Sensei Team

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Sensei in the News

Very happy to announce Sensei was featured in the news recently on a CBS affiliate...



We've also been mentioned in some more blogs...Woo Hoo! Check out the articles at Chip Chick, DollyMix, Shiny Shiny, and DotGizmo.

Thanks to everyone for talking about us. It's all VERY EXCITING!

- The Sensei Team

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Sensei in FitSugar blog

Hey FitSugar! Thanks for writing about us...YOU ROCK!

Be sure to check out their blog!

- The Sensei Team

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Sensei in that'sfit blog

Thanks Bev for the awesome article about Sensei! Be sure to check out the post and the rest of the that'sfit blog.

- The Sensei Team

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The iPhone Phenomena

I find the iPhone fascinating, from a number of perspectives. First, of course, is its unique approach to interacting with a user. The paradigm shifts Apple has put into place will change the mobile ecosystem.

After wathcing the hype here in the States, seeing the same reaction in Europe, and now the latest region of the world to be conquered by Apple coming into view, one has to sit back and think about the overall social ramifications that a phone is having!

It’s awesome to see how a phone can change the world. Ten years ago, if you asked a technology pundit if they would wait in line to buy a phone, the laughs could be heard echoing up and down Silicon Valley. Today, however, the answer is very different, a phone CAN change things. It has become a part of every person’s life, it’s always there and always on.

One of our core beliefs here at Sensei is that expanding how a person uses their phone is part of the next frontier. A cell phone is a very personal asset; look at how much customization folks do to their phones. Weight loss is just as personal and we believe that a cell phone is the best way for an individual to lose weight and better manage their lifestyle and real time choices. Bring on the iPhone, cell phones are changing the world!

- Tim

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Sensei featured in Wall Street Journal

Today Sensei was featured in the Wall Street Journal article "don't 4get ur pills:Text Messaging for Health". The article discusses Sensei as part of the "emerging wave of technology that allows consumers to get instant health information through their cellphones".

We are all very excited about being featured here. Woo-hoo! Thanks for having us Wall Street Journal!

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Open Standards

Sensei is a big believer in open standards and fully endorses use of open source tools, standards and practices. Google is making great strides in the mobile community by starting the Open HandSet Alliance (OHA). It’s even better to see carriers jumping on the bandwagon to support this new OS. Carriers have long been supporters of closed systems where most of the control lies internal to their own processes and mechanisms. Kudos to Sprint for pushing the envelope even further and joining the alliance! Click here to read more.

While all of this movement is good for the consumer and the community at large, there are still many issues with standardization in the mobile ecosystem. Manufacturers each have their own interpretation of “industry standards”, carriers support standards in different ways, and each network provides its own rules for usage and access.

Today, in Boston, this approach was challenged by many of the thought leaders in the mobile space. A quote from the report is particularly powerful to me. Jack Dziak, senior vice president of corporate strategy at Sprint Nextel said:

“Open source is a truly powerful development opportunity, and we will have to embrace it wholeheartedly, It's an opportunity to create a new economy and open the door to new growth for us and the industry."

- Tim

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What Phones Work With Sensei?

Ah, my first Sensei blog! It’s been very exciting for all of us as Sensei went from a vision to a fully operational company.

We have worked closely with the major carriers and manufacturers to ensure that each Sensei users experience is the best it can be! We’ve set things up so that each phone is optimized for its capabilities while interacting with the overall Sensei platform. We’ve faced some challenges along the way and we are working hard to overcome those hurdles. We will be continuously adding more and more phone models to support more and more of our users.

As we launch, we are running on two of the three major carrier networks, Sprint and AT&T. We have a number of phones on each network with a plan to roll out another set of supported phones in the near future! We will most likely be able to support users of the Verizon network after the first of the year.

We are at a very exciting point in our industry, standards are becoming more prevalent, manufacturers are producing more and more innovative products, and everyone is using their cell phones for more than just calling people. Stay tuned…

- Tim

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Heart Rate Monitors

Whether you're just beginning a fitness routine or looking to improve your current performance, monitoring your heart rate can assist you in meeting your overall health and weight loss goals. A heart rate monitor acts like a personal coach giving real time feedback on how hard your heart is working (intensity). Knowing this allows you to exercise smarter, not harder!

A good reference to explore before you buy a heart rate monitor is here. This site provides an all-in-one online experience for buying a monitor.

In the future Sensei plans to roll out a program that will support a number of biometric sensors for heart rate. Supported monitors will work interactively with your cell phone to help you achieve and maintain your goals. Stay tuned...very exciting stuff!

Remember, a healthy heart is the foundation for a healthy life!

-Lauren

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