Category: The Right Foods for weight loss

Exercise Alone Makes It Hard To Lose Weight

Have you been exercising regularly without seeing much weight loss?  If so, you may need to make some simple adjustments to your eating plan.

Five hours a week for 12 weeks and only 1.5 lbs lost!


A recent study at the University of Texas has shown that exercise alone without adjustments to diet produces minimal weight loss.  The University studied two sedentary control groups.  One group of 50 people made no changes to their diet or activity levels at all and were monitored for 12 weeks.

The second group of 50 people exercised with a personal trainer up to five hours per week for a total of 12 weeks and made no changes to their weekly diet.  This group lost a mere 1.5 lbs in 12 weeks.  I know what you’re thinking, not that impressive.

Please understand, this DOES NOT mean you should quit exercising.  Quite the opposite!  The study reveals that exercise alone makes it hard to lose weight.  The trick to losing weight permanently is a combination of a healthy eating plan AND regular exercise.

Five Simple Diet Changes to Boost Weight Loss

 

1)  Plan your meals.  Meal planning helps you plan out your caloric intake for the day.  For tips on how to meal plan,  see Meal Planning Helps You Lose Weight.

2)  Snack wisely. A small serving of chips is about 150 calories on average. But, did you know you can eat four cups of popcorn for only 60 calories? Popcorn is way more filling, and will keep you satisfied longer. Not crazy about popcorn? Eat a piece of fruit.

3)  Limit the fast food! I realize this may be obvious to some. However, with 25% of our nation eating fast food daily, I do not like to ignore this one. Most of us picture a drive through window when we think of fast food. However fast food can be healthy take out as well. When you let someone else cook the meal, you have zero control over the calories.

Find out how many calories are in your favorite take out and decide if it meets your weight loss goals.  If not, look for lower calorie take out options. Or, have some healthy frozen food on hand and combine it with a fresh salad for a last minute dinner option.

4)  Watch the sweets! There are 196 calories in a large chocolate chip cookie. Switch to a piece of dark chocolate (60 calories), a small cookie (49 calories), or a small serving of sorbet (110 calories).

5)  Eat Breakfast! This important meal jump starts your metabolism. Once you are awake the body has already been fasting for an average of 10-12 hours depending on eating and sleeping patterns.

Skipping breakfast increases the fast to approximately 15-20 hours. This keeps the body from producing the enzymes needed to metabolize fat to lose weight. When you skip breakfast, you risk sabotaging your weight loss efforts.

Not hungry in the morning?  Start with something simple like a piece of a fruit, and have the rest of your breakfast as a mid-morning snack.

A low calorie, high volume eating plan is critical for weight loss. When you combine exercise with the right nutrition, it will be easy to lose weight and keep it off for good.

Any questions?  Please ask me in the comment section below.  I’m happy to help!

Blessings!

Jennifer

 

Healthy Seasonal Foods For Fall

The Fall season is officially here!  And, the new season brings a great variety of fruits and vegetables that can help you stay on track with your healthy eating plan without compromising great taste!

Explore local farmer’s markets, roadside stands, and grocery stores for an abundance of good eats this time of year.  To help you get started, here’s a list of in-season fruits and vegetables and ideas on how to incorporate them in your weekly diet.

Try these tasty fruits and vegetables for fall!

1) Apples.  Harvest Season: August-November.

Apples make great on the go snacks.  Use them in salads, with savory dishes like pork chops; or chop them up and put them in yoghurt.

2)  Dates.  Harvest Season: September-December.

Dates are great in baked goods. Try chopping up a few for your oatmeal or over the top of frozen yoghurt.  For savory dishes, look for low-cal middle eastern recipes that include dates.

3)  Grapefruit.  Harvest Season: September-April.

Add over greens or squeeze fresh for a healthy juice.

4)  Kiwi.  Harvest Season:  September-March.

Kiwis are a great add to spice up a fruit salad or a smoothie.

5)  Pears.  Harvest Season: August-February.

Pears are one of my favorites because they are so versatile.  This fruit is great as a snack, added to mixed greens, used in savory dishes, or poached with a bit of cinnamon for a low-cal healthy dessert.

6)  Tangerines.  Harvest season:  November-April

Add these sweet little low-cal treats to yoghurt, pack in lunches, snack on them, use as dessert, or add to a salad.

7)  Brussel Sprouts.  Harvest Season: September-March.

I must confess, it took me awhile to like these wonderful little cabbages.  Now, they are one of my favorites this time of year! Try roasting brussel sprouts with olive oil, or sauteing with butter and garlic.  Serve with roasted meat and mashed potatoes.

8)  Cauliflower:  Harvest Season: September-June.

Use cauliflower to make fantastic soups, in stir-fries, or steamed with other vegetables as a side. Chop up cauliflower with other veggies and serve with a low-cal yoghurt dip for parties.

9) Squash.  Harvest Season:  October-February

There are so many varieties of squash and ways to prepare them. Try them steamed,  stir-fried, or in soups.  I’ve even used butternut squash to make a low-cal bechamel sauce!

10)  Pumpkin.  Harvest Season:  October-February.

Pumpkin is used mostly in desserts like pies and cakes. You can use it for waffles, pancakes, and breads.  Search for low-cal substitutes of these sweeter treats and keep portions in check.

11)  Sweet Potatoes.  Harvest Season:  September-December.

Not just for Thanksgiving Day anymore. Roast them. Make mashed sweet potatoes, or baked french fries.  If you’re cooking for 1-2 people, save time in the kitchen by microwaving a large sweet potato.

12)  Turnips.  Harvest Season:  September-April.

Try these tasty root vegetables roasted with olive oil or in stews.

13)  Parsnips.  Harvest Season:  October-April.

Add parsnips to other root vegetables and puree for a sweeter soup, or roast with potatoes and carrots for a wonderful blend.

14)  Rutabaga.  Harvest Season:  October-April.

Honestly, I haven’t cooked with this one yet.  I discovered it when researching my list for this article.  It’s a cross between a turnip and a cabbage.  Suggested uses include  roasting, or adding to casseroles and soups along with turnips and carrots.  I’ll report. You decide!

Decide which fruits and vegetables you’d like to incorporate into your healthy eating plan and use low-cal recipes that include these foods as ingredients.  You can find great low-cal seasonal recipes in Cooking Light  and Eating Well magazines.

Have fun experimenting with healthy seasonal foods. Browse your produce stand and farmer’s market.  When eating out, ask your food server what’s fresh — and depending where you live — ask what’s local on the menu.

Please feel free to share any great recipes or snack ideas you come up with.  I want to hear from you!

Blessings!

Jennifer

 

How To Handle A Food Craving And Avoid Binging!

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Food cravings can lead to binging and sabotage your weight loss efforts!  If you haven’t already, read part 1 — Cravings vs. Hunger: How to Tell the Difference  The last thing I want is for you to ignore true hunger signals. 

Food cravings are normal!

We all experience food cravings from time to time.  Don’t worry!  It’s normal.  You just need to follow some simple steps that will help you handle the craving and avoid the binging.

First off, there is a difference between craving food and experiencing real hunger.  Part 1 gives you detailed steps on how to tell the difference.

Have you ever heard that if your body is craving a certain type of food, then “it probably needs it?”  This is not always true.  If your body is craving a big salad with lots of raw vegetables, that concept is totally reasonable.  However, I don’t think there is anyone on the planet that has to eat Chocolate Chip Cookies to survive!

Simple Tips to Stop Food Cravings from Controlling You!

1)  Give in!  Yes, you read that correctly.  Years ago I was taking classes from a well known nutritionist in southern California.  Because of her location, many of her clients had eating disorders.  She told me a story about a young model who would eat an entire bag of baby carrots in one sitting to keep herself from eating a chocolate chip cookie.  She told the nutritionist she was trying to avoid the “bad” food.

Fortunately, she got some health benefits from  eating the carrots.  But, she consumed more calories with the carrots than if she ate one small cookie.

The point of the story is that when you attempt to eliminate a food from your diet entirely, it can trigger binging. You’ll may redirect the binge to another food. Or once you allow yourself to eat the “forbidden” food, you are at risk of over doing it.  Better to have a small amount of the food you are craving than to try avoiding it entirely.  For example, if you crave ice cream, find a low calorie flavor you like and measure out a serving.  You may even find a half serving will do the trick.

Don’t let food control you!  If it’s only certain foods, try keeping them out of the house for awhile until you can practice moderation.

2)  Go to bed!  When you are in need of rest your body will crave sugar for a pick me up.  Go to bed early that night.  Your body will thank you for it.

3)  Drink some water!  Dehydrated bodies can send a hunger signal.  If you have eaten a full balanced meal within the last few hours, then try a glass of water before you eat more.  If you are still hungry, have a small snack.

4)  Redirect!  Find yourself digging through the cupboards for no reason?  You could be bored.  When you find your self mindlessly foraging for food redirect that behavior.  Try walking, doing a household chore, meditating, catching up on phone calls or email, or reading.  Make a list of replacement activities and keep it posted.  Use the list when the craving begins.

5)  Avoid using food for comfort! We’ve all heard of “comfort food.”  There’s no such thing as comfort food.  Food does not offer comfort.  We can associate a positive time in our life with certain foods, which is why you may feel warm and fuzzy when you eat them.

With that being said, elevating your serotonin levels does help fight depression.  But, turning to the sweets to elevate your serotonin levels is not the best choice.  You may feel great for a moment after eating a large piece of cake.  However, when your blood sugar drops, you can go right back into the dumps and may experience guilt for sabotaging your weight loss goals.

Choose a balanced meal with complex carbohydrates to elevate the serotonin in your body.  If dessert is really your thing, have a small serving that will fit into your daily calorie expenditure.

Just remember we all have food cravings from time to time.  It’s how we deal with them that will make or break our weight loss and management goals!

I hope this has been helpful.  Please let me know if you have any questions or tips you’d like to share to control food cravings.  I love to hear from you!

Blessings!

Jennifer