A Love Affair with Food: Ways to Enjoy Treats While Still Maintaining Your Weight Loss Goals

I recently asked the question, "What is the greatest barrier to losing weight?" The answer was, "I love food way too much."  It's natural that we tend to love food.  We live in a culture where food is a focus, and often times, not in a healthy way.  The rise of fast food chains, quick and easy on-the-go meals, and inexpensive ways to manufacture food drives our economy.  Let's face it, in many aspects food is vehicle for creating community.  Much of what we do is centered around food, and not participating often makes us feel left out. 

How then do we change our relationship with food in order to better care for ourselves without giving up that sense of comfort and enjoyment.  The answer lies in balancing what we eat by simplifying our choices 80% of the time.


Indulgences are necessary for some people.  If you are one of these people, allow yourself the right to do that.  More importantly though, don't focus on these occasional moments, focus on what you eat the majority of the time to determine if you are really going to be successful in your weight loss goals.  The simpler you eat during your non-cheat moments, the better off you will be.  Here are ten tips you might consider in order to help you find balance in your food choices:

1) Sandwiches: Skip the cheese.  If you enjoy cheese save those slices and pair them with almonds and an apple for a snack later in the day.

2) Hamburgers: Add vegetables such as lettuce, onions and tomato but skip the ketchup which can add sugar to your diet.

3) Flavored waters: Pass on the additives you dump in your drinks.  Instead, add your own lemon or cucumber for a naturally refreshing drink.

4) Nuts: Stay away from the bags that add salt and opt for non-salted options.  Better yet, pick non-salted nuts in their raw form rather than the dry roasted brands (which often contain added oil).

5) Coffee: Try adding soy milk or almond milk as coffee creamer rather than half and half and flavored creamers. 

6) Pancakes and Waffles: Skip the syrups high in sugar.  Add fresh fruit to sweeten the taste.

7) Vegetables: Veggies should be eaten in their raw form.  If you are dipping carrots in ranch dressing consider that your treat.  The same goes for adding cheese to broccoli, mayonnaise to artichokes, and butter to corn.  The more you eat it plain, the less you will crave the toppings.

8) Oatmeal: Buy oatmeal in the form of plain oats or steel cut oats.  The prepackaged options may look healthy but they often contain additives.  This goes back to understanding and reading the ingredients carefully. 

9) Pasta: Avoid marinara sauce which can be high in sugar and add unnecessary calories.  Try adding fresh tomatoes and basil instead.  For moisture, you can spritz a bit of pure olive oil to provide you with a healthy serving of fat.

10) Brown rice: Skip the soy sauce.  Soy sauce is off the charts when it comes to sodium.  Try mixing vegetables in for added flavor.

Ensure that you follow the "simple is better" rule 80 percent of the time when it comes to eating.    What you do EVERYDAY is more important than what you do once in a while!  So concentrate on making good decisions every day and this will allow you to a treat of your choice once in a while!

Eating Clean: A Place to Start



Breakfast: Plain Greek yogurt, blueberries
raspberries, cashews, 1 pack of truvia



There are so many healthy eating tips out there it is hard to know where to make changes in your diet.  Eating clean is a great place to start. A little research quickly reveals that there are several different definitions for what eating clean really means.  When I personally talk about eating clean it means sticking with whole foods in their most natural form as much as possible and avoiding added chemicals, sugars, added sodium and unnatural ingredients.    


Here's an example of the types of food I eat regularly:


Lunch: Steel cut oats, egg whites,
red peppers, mushrooms

Whole Grains: quinoa, brown rice, barely, steel cut oats

Vegetables: Sweet potatoes, green beans, broccoli, asparagus, mushrooms, tomatoes, cauliflower, spinach, bell peppers

Fruits: (whenever possible opting for those low in sugar) blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, pears, apples, bananas 

Lean Proteins: Ground turkey, chicken, egg whites, fish

Healthy fats: unsalted nuts, avocado, olive oil, salmon



Dinner: Sweet potato, lean ground
turkey, low fat cottage cheese



In addition to eating clean, I am also an advocate for drinking clean!  Often times we consume a lot of unnecessary chemicals in the form of liquid, which detracts from the amount of water we consume.  Water is essential for our health and helps with our metabolism, so it's important we consume enough every day.  If you like to sip on things, try a smoothie for lunch made with fresh blueberries, raspberries, ice, plain Greek yogurt, a banana and honey.

The most important thing you can do when you are changing your diet is to pay attention to you body.  While one person might react adversely to dairy, others may tolerate it well.  Pay attention to how you feel after you eat certain foods.  The foods above are an excellent starting point to construct your daily eating plan. Combining these food groups within each meal will give you the healthy balance of nutrition you need to fuel yourself through the day.

One of my favorite sites to find recipes on eating clean is http://eatingcleanrecipes.com/  If you have recipes you like or other sites you frequent for ideas, feel free to share them.  Happy eating!

The Competition Diet - A Personal Journey of Lessons Learned

I'm the first to tell people how making changes toward a healthier lifestyle can better them.  I did it first hand but its like childbirth, once you've done it you forget how hard some of those moments were.  I was reminded of those challenges over the past 6 weeks when I decided to participate in a fitness competition.  I knew the required diet was rigid but I figured I eat clean, I don't eat a lot, how hard it could be?  Harder than I thought, and not for the reasons I suspected.

I received the diet and it listed exactly what foods to eat each day and the order in which I should eat them. There are about 15 foods on this diet.  I eat them day in and day out.  Almost everything on the diet  is a "one-ingredient" food.  I eat things like quinoa, egg whites, mushrooms, oats, salmon, broccoli, lean ground turkey, apples, chicken, brown rice, green beans and nuts. Six weeks and counting and here is what I've learned.

Week 1: I clearly need to spend a little more time preparing food.  Life is beginning to revolve around eating.  I am hungry all the time and since many of these things are hard to eat while out and about, I feel like I am running back home to eat constantly.  I spend a Monday afternoon preparing, measuring, and bagging all the food I'll need for the week, as to insure I don't find myself in a bind without what I need. Lesson Learned: Pay it forward - a little preparation can simplify your life, making it much more manageable in the long run.

Week 2: I am already growing tired of the diet.  I've had a hard week and I am dying for frozen yogurt, or red wine, or both!  My kids sit in front of me eating a treat while I choke down plain ground turkey, green beans, and quinoa.  I finish and am left with a terribly unsatisfying feeling. Am I feeding my body what it needs?  I've gotten so good at that over the years.  Is this really a healthy life-style? I decide this will only last four months and I will stick it through.  As I watch the kids eating their yogurts, I literally find myself breathing through my urge to eat more, to eat anything other than what's on my diet.  Let it pass, I tell myself, and I go for a walk.  As I do, the urge slowly goes away. Lesson Learned: Sometimes you have to give yourself  time for the urge to pass: the urge to eat more than you might need, to eat something you know you shouldn't, to stop working out sooner than you planned because your tired, even the urge to munch on your kid's leftovers after dinner.  The urge will often come, and if can distract yourself long enough, it will go. 

Week 3: I'm still having moments where I have to talk myself down but not nearly as many.  The desire to eat a lot of things I previously ate and loved, like hummus, Kashi Go Lean, protein bars and watermelon is slowly going away.  These are all good foods but they are not on this diet, so they will not come near my lips...period.  Everyone I know asks me how competition training is going. It reminds me to stick to the program.  I never would have had the will-power to do this before, but I have a specific goal in mind.  Lesson Learned: Setting  a specific goal (e.g. a fitness competition, a race, a weight lose challenge with friends, a 30 day yoga cleanse) makes it much easier to endure something and succeed. Telling people you are pursuing a goal and that they should hold you accountable to stick with it helps you achieve your goal.

Week 4: I'm not feeling right.  Apparently rigorously following this diet has worked to lean me down to extremely low levels.  On the other hand, it's also left me feeling depleted.  I am craving fat like I never imagined.  All I want to do is eat nuts.  I visit trainer Scott and tell him this just does not seem right.  He takes one look at me, checks my body fat and agrees.  He adds more fat to my diet.  I'm hoping this makes me feel more alive, brings my color back, improves my skin tone and texture.  All things I felt where going downhill.  I have to be very lean for competition, but I certainly don't need to get any leaner at this point with over three months to go. Lesson Learned: While you should take the advice of the experts, you should not blindly follow.  Listen to your body.  You know yourself best. 

Week 5: I wake up in the morning and cannot wait to eat egg whites and mushrooms.  I've never liked mushrooms.  I forced myself to start eating them as they were one of only 4 vegetables on the competition diet.  I'm also find myself savoring the taste of sweet potatoes, salmon, and cashews, some of my favorite foods on the diet.  I might not have chosen these foods all that often before but now I've learned to love them. Sometimes when you try foods enough times, they grow on you. Lesson Learned: Giving things up more fully allows you to appreciate other things you might not have previously. 

Week 6: I'm doing well on the eating plan.  Thinking back six weeks ago, I remember how far away the competition was and wondered how I would possibly make it 4 months.  I looked at the end goal, rather than the goal of making it to the next day.  I tried to change my mind set and start taking things one step at a time.  Now I am beginning to feel like this is completely doable.    Lesson Learned:  Don't be overwhelmed thinking about all the things you need to do in order to achieve your goals, whether it be weight loss, or anything else you want to accomplish.  Take it one step at a time, go day by day.  You'll be surprised at how much you can achieve by doing this.

    

Daily Nutrition: 12 Strategies that Work

When I started my journey to health all of the daily eating plans I saw seemed a little overwhelming.  I wasn't willing to jump right from my delicious diet to egg whites, quinoa, plain Greek yogurt and ground turkey overnight.  I wanted my transformation to be a lifestyle change, something I could live with long term.  I'm glad I did it that way, the results came slow but I didn't fail. 

When asked now about my eating habits I typically shy away from the question.  Unless you have worked hard at eating right for a long time the diet I adhere to would be daunting, particularly now that I am eating to prepare for competition, and not just to live a healthy lifestyle.  I'm very glad I didn't try to adapt to the diet I am on now two years ago, I would have failed.  All things come in good time.

I'm not a dietitian, nor a nutritionist, but I do know what worked for me.  When discussing diet I'm asked a lot about how I did it, what worked, and those are some of the things I'll share.  I've given these tips to a number of people and have seen them have success.  I hope some work for you.

Tip #1
Apply ONE tip at a time!  Don't do them all at once.  Give yourself time to adjust and you will have a better chance at success.

Tip #2
Stop going through the drive-thru.  Allow yourself the freedom to eat your regular foods, but just commit to not ordering fast food anymore.  It is just as easy to run into the store and grab an apple and a yogurt as it is to go through the drive-thru. 

Tip #3
Don't EVER be without food! Always carry a few snacks in your bag.  Ideas include 100 calorie bags of almonds, a banana, a protein bar or drink, an apple, turkey jerky or a pack of instant oatmeal.  You will always at some point find yourself hungry, and if you have something with you then you are more likely to eat that.  Plus, studies show when we allow ourselves to get too hungry we over eat.  Why wait, eat it before you need it!

Tip #3
Drink water!  Enough said.  It's non-negotiable.

Tip #4
Pack your lunch.  How many times have you found yourself at an event, been hungry and eaten what is being served?  I always use the example of taking my kids to birthday parties at Pump It Up and staring at the pizza.  The pizza they provide is not good, it's really not.  If I am eating pizza, it better be worth the calorie hit!  I always bring a snack or meal with me so when everyone is eating I have something too, even if I don't think I'll be hungry.  My snack prevents me from "wasting" calories. 

Tip #5
Read labels.  I'm not saying you can't have something, just know exactly what you are putting in your body. (Look at the calories, the saturated/trans fat, and sodium as you get started). Quit frankly, some things amaze me with their poor nutritional content, others are pretty good bang for the buck. 
Tip #6
Eat In.  The reality is, chances are even the healthiest things on the menu at restaurants are far less superior to what you would make yourself.  If you have to eat out, opt for restaurants that will cook to order or offer fresh fruit and vegetable selections.  If you really enjoy going out, resolve to eat something before you go, so you can share a dish, or just have an appetizer.

Tip #7
Look up nutritional content online.  A lot of restaurants post their information.  In addition, many times you can ask for a nutritional guide.  Educate yourself on the choices.  Finally, many restaurants will cook to order. McDonald's, not so much, but they will hold the ketchup, which is very high in sugar.

Tip #8
Eat every two hours, and only enough to last you about 2 hours.  You should never feel full, but you should also never feel hungry.  Once you are really hungry, you've missed your opportunity.  Don't let yourself get to that point.

Tip #9
Keep a food journal.  Write down everything that goes in your mouth for a week and be honest.  Three handfuls of your kid's gummy bears, bite of chicken nugget, a handful of cheese-its, 5 sticks of gum.  We don't always count these as foods we eat during the day, but they add up.

Tip #10
Always eat breakfast!  Put something in your mouth with one hour of waking up, preferably sooner.  Breakfast kick starts your metabolism.  When I talked to people about weight lose one of the first questions I usually ask is do you eat breakfast.  The answer is almost always no.  I can relate, I never ate breakfast either before I started working on my eating habits.  Oh, and by the way, coffee does not count as breakfast.

Tip #11
As a general rule of thumb, I try to remember not to drink my calories.  People are more satisfied when they have something to eat (e.g. - swap orange juice for oranges).  Here's a tough one to follow, this rule includes alcohol.  The bottom line, if you want to get healthy and loose weight, you can't drink every night.  Try limiting yourself to a few times a week and limit what you drink on those night.  When ordering, opt for wine when you can.  Studies show wine has some health benefits.  Fruity, sweet alcoholic drinks pack tons of calories.  Limit then to the very occasional treat. 

Tip #12
Begin to slowly transition your food choices.  Here are the common ones I tackled one at a time.
*From white carbs to whole wheat (e.g., bread, pasta, tortillas, rice).
*From salted nuts to unsalted.
*From yogurt, to Greek yogurt (Chobani was my preferred for a long time), to plain Greek yogurt (plain Greek yogurt seems to be easier to eat with some fresh fruit, or honey mixed in).  I think Fage total 0% gets the gold standard, but Trader Joe's makes one that has added fiber that seems to taste a little better.
*From flavored beverages (e.g., lattes, teas), to sugar free drinks.  Then slowly cut down the amount of sugar-free syrup or add-ins.
*From ANYTHING canned to fresh, especially when it comes to vegetables. 
*From eating any fruit you want to choosing berries first.
* From baked potatoes to sweet potatoes or yams.
*From butter, to non-fat no calorie spraybutter to no butter at all.
*From liquid sauces you marinate meats and poultry in to salt-free seasoning or lemon juice.
*From dressing, to low-fat dressings, to vinegar.  If nothing else, make this one thing you resolve to do.  Dressings can be ridiculously high in calories.  Also, try putting dressing on the side and dip your fork as you eat.  Chances are you will eat much less of the dressing.  I also think making salads using things like salsa or nonfat cottage cheese on them add moisture while still keeping the calories low.
*From soda to water. A tough one!  Start by just cutting back on soda slowly.
*From peanut butter to natural peanut butter to natural, organic, salt-free peanut butter.
*From ice cream to frozen yogurt.
*From any cereal to something high in fiber and low in sugar (Kashi Go Lean is my favorite).
*From regular chocolate to dark chocolate.
*From adding toppings such as chocolate on desserts to adding fruit.
*From full-fat dairy to non-fat dairy items.
*From beef to chicken (I have a rule at home.  I eat red meat, but only as an occasional treat when I am out to eat.  I never cook it at home ). 
*From regular lunch meats to higher quality low sodium lunch meats, then  possibly to no lunch meat (substitute chicken or fish you make at home).
*From items with ingredients you cannot pronounce to items with one ingredient.
*From pre-packaged lunches like Lean Cuisine to items you make or prepare.  Pre-packaged lunches market themselves as low calorie and good for you but in reality they rarely are.  They extremely high in sodium and highly processed. 

Finally, and I really can't stress this enough.  Do these one at a time.  If you are going to aim to take foods out of your diet, take one out at a time.  Allow yourself room for set-backs and indulgences.  Incorporate exercise into your routine.  That paired with diet changes are the best way to getting healthy.  To this day I can't figure it out, but when I exercise, I crave better foods, and I typically eat less.

A lot of the tips I share here I picked up from friends along the way.  If you have ideas I'd love to hear them.  I'm always looking for new snack ideas and healthy eating tips.  Good luck in getting started, and if you are already started, let me know how your journey is going!