Ideal Bite's Top 10 Tips for Eco-Friendly Summer Fun

Wanna have a happier, healthier summer? Check out our favorite Ideal Bite Tips for having hot eco-fun in the summertime.

1. Kick the can.
If you’re a fan of the fizzy stuff but not so fond of sugary soft drinks, try quenching your thirst with natural, healthier, benzene-free sodas. Not only are they better for you, but they are also better tasting and come in a bunch of great flavors like red raspberry and Clementine. Bonus: To save money (not to mention packaging), try making your own soda with a DIY kit like the Soda-Club kit. Get the full Bite.

2. Where’s the bison?
At your backyard BBQs this summer, try serving up something healthier for your guests (and the planet): bison burgers. Bison — the other red meat — has less fat then most white meats, is richer in flavor than beef, and can add 69 percent more iron and 25 percent more protein to your diet than the same serving of beef. Get the full Bite.

3. Pic-nic me up.
Cut down on trash AND save some cash at your summer picnic by reducing prepackaged foods and using reusable utensils. Liven up your lunch with Preserve plateware, sold in festive colors and dishwasher safe, made from recycled yogurt containers. Also, score some major style points with cloth napkins instead of the paper kind. Get the full Bite.

4. Lawn logic.
This summer, make sure your lawn is chem free and safe for your own kids and critters to crawl on. Try using slow-release, organic fertilizers to grow a more lush lawn that enriches the earth without risking your health. Also, make a safe DIY weed killer using white vinegar. Get the full Bite.

5. Score some herb (the legal kind, that is).
Grow some smokin’ herbs in your garden or kitchen window this summer. Keep ‘em alive, and you’ll have fresh, “free” herbs for a long time to come, saving you green at the grocery store. Bonus: Growing fresh herbs can help absorb CO2 in the air. Get the full Bite.

6. Take it outside.
Stay out of the sweaty gym and take your workout to the streets. You can get even better fitness benefits (not to mention some vitamin D from the sun) by doing your cardio routine outside on foot rather than inside on a treadmill. Ten treadmills in your average gym use about 13,500 kilowatt hours of electricity each month — the same amount of energy as running your hair dryer nonstop for more than a year. Get the full Bite.

7. Don’t feel the burn.
Leather might be nice in your handbag, but it isn’t a good look for your skin. This summer, slather on some mineral-based sunscreens that will block the rays without exposing you to the harmful chem Parsol 1789. If you miss a spot, there’s organic aloe vera gel to soothe the burn, paraben-free. Get the full Bite.

8. Go for a spin.
Take your bike out for a spin rather then driving to work once a week this summer. Not only will you be burning roughly 173 calories per hour, you will be saving some serious cash on gas. If you’re not a biker, don’t fret — try using your two feet for short errands to walk your way to fitness and a healthier planet. Get the full Bite. 
 
9. Gas it up.
Love the taste of lighter fluid on your soy dog? Didn’t think so. Gas barbecues produce half as much C02 as charcoal grills, and put fewer carcinogens into your food. If you can’t resist your charcoal grill, try the Weber Chimney starter and use Cowboy Charcoal — made in the United States from maple and oak scraps. Get the full Bite.

10. Have a cold one.
Sit back, relax and enjoy an icy cold beer — organic, of course. Swap out your conventional ales for organic microbrews, which typically have more antioxidants and aren't shipped half-way around the world. Or if vino is more your scene, try a biodynamic version which means the grapes are grown with an eye to nature’s biorhythms (whatever that means). Not only are they chemical and fungus free, they might also boast a gentler hangover than the conventional wines, since biodynamic versions don’t add extra sulfites. Get the full Bite.

For more tips on healthy ways to save cash this summer, visit www.idealbite.com and sign up for the Daily Tip. Be sure to also check out the latest issue of Experience Life, which features Ideal Bite cofounders Heather Stephenson and Jen Boulden.