Practical Weight Loss Advice - Eat, Drink, and Be Merry
Following weight loss advice is a dicey proposition, to say the least.
Who do you trust? And why would you trust them? Changing your diet to lose weight along with learning to eat right is a key component to losing weight.
With the adoption of healthier eating habits, you can not only lose the extra weight but also maintain a healthy weight for years to come.
Food Diary.
To understand your current weight and how you got there, take at least one week and write down everything - EVERYTHING - you ingest.
If you eat one saltine cracker or two jelly beans, write it down.
oCalorie count.
Start with that first cup of coffee in the morning and follow through with each and every morsel that passes your lips.
Read your packaging labels and follow portion sizes to correctly assess how many calories you are eating for each food you consume.
oBe honest.
If you exceed portion limits but really do not want to document the banana cream backslide, you are only deceiving yourself.
Avoiding the truth is hurting no one else but you.
Keeping an accurate daily diet record will allow you to more efficiently make adjustments that will produce the most favorable results.
oNot just what but when.
What you eat is important, but also when you eat it.
If you make a habit of a midnight snack, you have no opportunity to burn the calories.
Avoid eating significant calories after 6pm, opting for low calorie snacks.
Substitutions.
Changing your eating habits does not always mean to sacrifice what you love.
If you feel deprived, you are less likely to follow through with your commitment.
Try these substitutions of your favorite foods to maintain your obligation to weight-loss and better health: oInstead of a cheeseburger...
choose a grilled chicken sandwich on a wheat bun.
Add some romaine lettuce and mustard to replace the cheese, white bread, and saturated fat.
oInstead of macaroni and cheese ...
choose a baked potato.
Skip the butter and sour cream and add pepper and fat free ranch dressing to your baked potato.
Carbs are not necessarily a bad thing, but there are healthier preparations from which to choose.
oInstead of chips ...
choose lowfat, crunchy options and mix your own snacks.
For example, homemade Chex® mix can satisfy many a taste preference without packing on the pounds.
Try mixing Honey Nut Chex®, wheat Chex®, square cheese snack crackers, and twisted pretzels for a satisfying snack without the high fat content of chips.
oInstead of a soda ...
choose bottled water with a twist of lemon.
Soda has no nutritional value - NONE.
Plain water can be a bit bland and artificial sweeteners are not recommended in large quantities.
The reduction in sugar will result in an immediate and noticeable difference.
oInstead of ice cream ...
choose sherbet.
Sherbet has no milk fat but tons of flavor.
If you simply cannot stomach sherbet, opt for sugar free or low fat ice cream instead.
Snacks.
Embrace snacking in your new weight loss world.
Snacking does not always mean a king size candy bar or a pint of ice cream.
Snacks should consist of (ideally) about 150 calories and should be spaced between meals to maintain your metabolic rate while avoiding excessive hunger.
Try these snack suggestions to stay on your weight loss track: oFruit.
Grapes have roughly 4 calories each.
So, 15 grapes paired with 8 low fat vanilla wafers are only 170 calories.
oVegetables.
Baby carrots have the crunch many find necessary to sustain their days but low calorie content.
At 5 calories each, 7 baby carrots (35 calories) paired with 2 tablespoons of fat free ranch dressing (30 calories) and 5 saltine crackers (60 calories) are a 125 calorie hunger buster.
oDessert.
For those who feel like chocolate is one of the basic food groups, sugar free pudding is available.
Prepackaged choices can take the guesswork out of portions.
Combined with 2 tablespoons of fat free whipped topping, you can curb that sweet tooth with a mere 60 calories.
Regardless of whether a quick bite seems trivial to you, to your body it is calories.
Changing your eating habits to lose weight does not necessarily mean eliminating your eating altogether.
There are healthy choices that can satisfy your cravings and fulfill your nutritional needs.
The key is to follow portion recommendations and limit your fat and sugar intake.
It is time to eat to live rather than living to eat.
Who do you trust? And why would you trust them? Changing your diet to lose weight along with learning to eat right is a key component to losing weight.
With the adoption of healthier eating habits, you can not only lose the extra weight but also maintain a healthy weight for years to come.
Food Diary.
To understand your current weight and how you got there, take at least one week and write down everything - EVERYTHING - you ingest.
If you eat one saltine cracker or two jelly beans, write it down.
oCalorie count.
Start with that first cup of coffee in the morning and follow through with each and every morsel that passes your lips.
Read your packaging labels and follow portion sizes to correctly assess how many calories you are eating for each food you consume.
oBe honest.
If you exceed portion limits but really do not want to document the banana cream backslide, you are only deceiving yourself.
Avoiding the truth is hurting no one else but you.
Keeping an accurate daily diet record will allow you to more efficiently make adjustments that will produce the most favorable results.
oNot just what but when.
What you eat is important, but also when you eat it.
If you make a habit of a midnight snack, you have no opportunity to burn the calories.
Avoid eating significant calories after 6pm, opting for low calorie snacks.
Substitutions.
Changing your eating habits does not always mean to sacrifice what you love.
If you feel deprived, you are less likely to follow through with your commitment.
Try these substitutions of your favorite foods to maintain your obligation to weight-loss and better health: oInstead of a cheeseburger...
choose a grilled chicken sandwich on a wheat bun.
Add some romaine lettuce and mustard to replace the cheese, white bread, and saturated fat.
oInstead of macaroni and cheese ...
choose a baked potato.
Skip the butter and sour cream and add pepper and fat free ranch dressing to your baked potato.
Carbs are not necessarily a bad thing, but there are healthier preparations from which to choose.
oInstead of chips ...
choose lowfat, crunchy options and mix your own snacks.
For example, homemade Chex® mix can satisfy many a taste preference without packing on the pounds.
Try mixing Honey Nut Chex®, wheat Chex®, square cheese snack crackers, and twisted pretzels for a satisfying snack without the high fat content of chips.
oInstead of a soda ...
choose bottled water with a twist of lemon.
Soda has no nutritional value - NONE.
Plain water can be a bit bland and artificial sweeteners are not recommended in large quantities.
The reduction in sugar will result in an immediate and noticeable difference.
oInstead of ice cream ...
choose sherbet.
Sherbet has no milk fat but tons of flavor.
If you simply cannot stomach sherbet, opt for sugar free or low fat ice cream instead.
Snacks.
Embrace snacking in your new weight loss world.
Snacking does not always mean a king size candy bar or a pint of ice cream.
Snacks should consist of (ideally) about 150 calories and should be spaced between meals to maintain your metabolic rate while avoiding excessive hunger.
Try these snack suggestions to stay on your weight loss track: oFruit.
Grapes have roughly 4 calories each.
So, 15 grapes paired with 8 low fat vanilla wafers are only 170 calories.
oVegetables.
Baby carrots have the crunch many find necessary to sustain their days but low calorie content.
At 5 calories each, 7 baby carrots (35 calories) paired with 2 tablespoons of fat free ranch dressing (30 calories) and 5 saltine crackers (60 calories) are a 125 calorie hunger buster.
oDessert.
For those who feel like chocolate is one of the basic food groups, sugar free pudding is available.
Prepackaged choices can take the guesswork out of portions.
Combined with 2 tablespoons of fat free whipped topping, you can curb that sweet tooth with a mere 60 calories.
Regardless of whether a quick bite seems trivial to you, to your body it is calories.
Changing your eating habits to lose weight does not necessarily mean eliminating your eating altogether.
There are healthy choices that can satisfy your cravings and fulfill your nutritional needs.
The key is to follow portion recommendations and limit your fat and sugar intake.
It is time to eat to live rather than living to eat.
