Fresh is better: Fact or fiction?

"Fresh vegetables are healthier than frozen." Fact or fiction?

You might think fresh beats frozen every time, but according to Karen Ansell, a representative for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, "many frozen vegetables are equally as nutritious as fresh and sometimes more so."

That's because vegetables begin to lose nutrients as soon as they're picked, and with the exception of what's offered at your local farmers market (if it's still open), most fresh produce for sale is past its nutritional prime.

Frozen vegetables, on the other hand, are picked at peak ripeness and flash-frozen the same day. So what's the bottom line? You'll get the biggest nutritional boost from fresh, local produce, but if that isn't available, frozen veggies offer a good nutritional alternative.

McClatchy News Service

DIY yoga

Yoga's health benefits are widely extolled. But it can be awkward for a beginner to get started, especially someone wary of appearing in public in a yoga tank and leggings. Even experienced practitioners sometimes have problems making it to a scheduled class.

One option: DoYoga­WithMe.com. This Canadian website, founded by yoga instructor David Procyshyn, offers hundreds of streaming videos, each about an hour long. It also has yoga information and multi-week programs for specific audiences: beginners who want to progress to intermediate level, for example, workouts for office workers, etc. If you're just starting, take a look at "Melt Into Gratitude," a gentle introduction to hatha yoga, in which instructor Nicky Jones — doing slow, graceful poses in a spectacular British Columbia coastal setting — repeatedly urges you not to overstress, to do only what's comfortable. Very peaceful and nonthreatening.

Also nonthreatening is the pricing policy: Pay only if you want to. "Videos and programs aren't free to create," the site says. "If you can, please make a contribution."

Washington Post