A healthy start

5 websites to feed your health kick, from build-your-own energy bars toeco-friendly bath products

Honest Company co-founder Jessica Alba wanted to provide parents with safe,sustainable and affordable products.
Photo courtesy of We're A Big Deal
Build your own nutrition bar at Elementbars.com.
Element Bars/Facebook
Greenling delivers fresh local produce to your home.
Photo courtesy of Greenling
YumUniverse has free gluten-free, dairy-free and meat-free recipes.
YumUniverse/Facebook
Klutchclub is like the Birchbox of the health world.
KLUTCHclub/Facebook

The start of a new year often inspires a renewed interest in wellness. And because we also value convenience, we turn to online resources that we can explore from the confines of our cozy home. From eco-friendly home and bath products to gluten-free meal plans, these five websites help us satisfy the the need for a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle.

The Honest Company
Co-founders Jessica Alba and Christopher Gavigan started the Honest Company to provide parents with eco-friendly, affordable and safe home and baby products. Sign up for a Discovery Kit (free plus shipping) to give the goods a trial run, or shop the store for things like biodegradable and plant-based disposable diapers and organic bug spray. The Honest Company manufactures all of its own products and promises the highest health and sustainability standards.

Greenling
Greenling supports local and sustainable farming and provides Texas residents with the highest quality foods, delivered straight to their homes. Here's how it works:

Choose your products online.
Greenling picks up the goods from local producers.
Your box arrives on your doorstep.

Opt for the local box, which includes an assortment of produce, or a recipe kit tailored to diet meal plans and juices. The website also has recipes and information about the "farmer heroes."

YumUniverse
This is more than a website for free recipes focused on delicious meat-free, gluten-free and dairy-free meals. Founder and recipe developer Heather Crosby sells eBooks — including meal plans, a holiday survival guide and a dairy-replacement guide — a three-month meal plan subscription and a lifetime subscription. When you sign up for life, you get access to the YU library of eBooks, and you receive meal plans, members-only discounts and more. Joining Crosby are other food and fitness experts, from trainers to chefs and drink enthusiasts.

KLUTCHclub
Klutchclub is like the B irchbox of the health world. Subscribe for one, three or 12 months and receive a box filled with a variety of health and fitness products. There are different packages for men and women, but if you sign up for the Best of Box, items are gender-neutral. What's inside? Fitness DVDs, health bars, body butter, acai energy chews, blueberry juice and more.

Element Bars
On this website, you can build your own nutrition bar or granola. Select the core (chewy, crispy, oaty, datey, fruit and nut), then add fruit, nuts, sweets and boosts. As you pick the additions — from whey protein to apricots and almonds — the nutrition facts get tallied. For the cereal, choose from regular granola or gluten-free granola and add fruit, nuts and sweets. Once you customize your bar, create a name, order a box of 12 and wait for the goodness to arrive.

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A New Ernie

Local TV star fights back from bike accident, loses 60 pounds in dramatic weight battle

Photo by Clifford Pugh

Manor of Speaking, Downton Abbey, Jackson Hicks, Helen Mann, Ernie Manouse, Robert Patten, Roseann Rogers

September 2011 marked the beginning of a rough patch for local public television celeb Ernie Manouse.

"I was literally laid up for two-and-a-half months after the accident," he says of a bike crash that left him with two broken hands . . . just in time for pledge drive season.

"All that time wearing pull-on clothes and just laying around . . . really took its toll. I just let myself go."

"During the recovery, I never really felt much pain. All that time wearing pull-on clothes and just laying around, however, really took its toll. I just let myself go."

While he's always battled weight issues, Manouse says he noticed how differently he was treated as he became heavier.

"It was like my energy changed in some way and people could see that. I used to go into a room and everybody would be like, 'Hey, it's Ernie!' But as I got bigger, it was almost like I was invisible. At first, I chalked it up to getting older or having been around long enough that I wasn't as unique to see."

In the end, Manouse found his weight was affecting not only his health, but his overall mood and outlook.

Enter, Sean Burks — the Houston personal trainer who Manouse credits with creating a "nearly perfect" program that has helped him shed more than 60 pounds since this past summer.

"I finally realized you just have to concentrate on these two funny little things called diet and exercise."

"After trying all the fads through the years, I finally realized you just have to concentrate on these two funny little things called diet and exercise," he laughs, noting how easy Burks' plan was to follow.

The diet period called for the total elimination of sugar as well white carbs like potatoes, rice and bread. Exercise requirements involved training with Burks for an hour twice a week.

With his weight once again under control, Manouse has returned to biking in recent months, clocking as many as 14 miles a day.

"I feel like I have one more period in my life when I can feel young and thin and healthy," he says. "It's great to be actively doing something about it."

Be sure to check out Manouse's current Downton Abbey talk show, Manor of Speaking, which airs Sundays on HoustonPBS at 10 p.m. The station runs episodes of the award-winning series InnerVIEWS with Ernie Manouse throughout the week. See the KUHF Ch. 8 website for details.

Ernie Manouse, NoH8, December 2012

Ernie Manouse Facebook

Ernie Manouse, NoH8, December 2012

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