Get Fit, Win Big with Louisiana Seafood Post-Mardi Gras

NEW ORLEANS, Feb. 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board (LSPMB) is teaming up with Louisiana Cookin' magazine and WWL Radio in New Orleans to give Mardi Gras revelers a little incentive to get healthy now that the party is over.

LSPMB's Louisiana Seafood Fitness Challenge officially kicks off the day after Mardi Gras, February 22, and lasts 40 days. The Challenge encourages contestants to incorporate Louisiana seafood into their diets while adding more exercise into daily routines to shape up, tone up, or lose weight.

"The Challenge was conceived to help spread the word about the many health and nutritional benefits of Louisiana seafood," said Ewell Smith, LSPMB Executive Director "We want people to enjoy fresh Louisiana seafood because it really is one of the joys of a sensible diet." 

According to Smith, seafood is an excellent source of high-quality protein, and is low in saturated fat and rich in many vitamins and minerals.  In 2011, the USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) updated their dietary guidelines to include more seafood in diets, recommending consumers eat at least two servings of seafood each week and that women who are pregnant or breastfeeding eat 8-12 ounces of seafood per week.

Former New Orleans Saints quarterback, Bobby Hebert, and his WWL Sports Talk Radio co-host, Deke Bellavia, have pledged to take the Challenge. The popular local sports personalities will compete to lose the most weight during the 40-day promotional period by integrating healthy Louisiana seafood recipes into their diets.

Hebert said, "People often think of seafood being prepared in an unhealthy way, battered and deep fat fried, but when it's grilled or baked, it can be an easy, healthy addition to any diet."

For more information and to participate, visit SeafoodFitness.com. Participants are encouraged to submit "before and after" success photos and/or YouTube videos documenting their experiences at the end of the 40-day contest period. The participant with the best success story will win a meal personally prepared by Hebert and Bellavia and a prize package from LSPMB of fresh Louisiana seafood.

Louisiana Cookin' magazine is calling for unique, healthy seafood recipes to be submitted through April 8, 2012 as part of the Louisiana Seafood Challenge Recipe Contest. This contest invites amateur cooks nationwide to submit recipes incorporating Louisiana seafood, including shrimp, alligator, oyster, crab, crawfish and/or finfish. Cash prizes will be awarded for contest winners; the grand prize winner will be featured in the August 2012 issue of Louisiana Cookin' magazine and on LouisianaSeafood.com.

"As the trusted national voice of Louisiana's cuisine and culture, Louisiana Cookin' wants to promote a healthy lifestyle that celebrates traditional ingredients — this contest is an exciting way to do it," said Daniel Schumacher, Editor-in-Chief at Louisiana Cookin'.  "Louisiana oysters, shrimp, fish, crab and crawfish are the best of their kind in the world and are an integral part of Louisiana cuisine."

LSPMB was created in 1984 by the state of Louisiana to support their vast historical commercial fisheries industry. The Board is composed of 15 members and each member represents a sector of the industry: harvesters, processors, wholesalers, restaurateurs/retailers, fisheries resource managers, public health officers and marketing specialists.

SOURCE Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board