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Six Little Changes
This is an article from everydayhealth.
Diet experts say one of the best ways to make lasting changes in the way you eat is to start small. Here are 6 LITTLE WAYS to eat healthier and to cut calories.
1. Go green. Try one new vegatable or vegetable recipe every week. Think of various ways to cook vegatables so you're not just reheating them in the microwave. Try a stir-fry, for example. Cook vegetables with garlic and olive oil, (my personal favorite) which is also heart healthy in small amounts.
2. Cut back on the main dish. If you cut your entree in half and double up on the vegetables everyday for an entire year, you can lose a whopping 35 pounds.
3. Try the plate method. When you fill your plate, half of it should be vegetables. The other half should be devided into a serving of starch and a serving of protein (the latter should be about the size of a deck of cards). This style of eating will help you fill up on fiber and control your calories.
4. Dress your own salad. Restaurants typically top salads with 4 tablespoons of dressing (or as much as 300 calories). All you really need is 1 or 2 tablespoons, so ask for your dressing on the side. (I personally dunk my fork into the dresing and then into my salad, you'd be amazed how much dressing is left over.) If you eat 5 salads during the week, you'll save 150 calories per salad and 750 per week. If you save 150 calories per day, you'll lose 15 pounds in a year.
5. Add snacks. Cut back on the size of your main meals and add 2 small snacks. Some healthy snacks are a piece of fruit, celery w/ peanutbutter (I recommend "Old Fashioned"), a container of low fat yogurt, or 3 whole wheat crackers with low fat or fat free cheese.
6. Make it skim. If you have 2 liquid creamers in your coffee, you're adding 60 calories per cup to your daily intake. The same amount of skim milk has 5 calories. If you drink 2 cups of coffee a day, you'll add 120 calories (with cream), versus 10 (with skim). This may not sound like much, but over a year, you'll lose about 5 pounds if you switch to skim. That's a clothing size.
Diet experts say one of the best ways to make lasting changes in the way you eat is to start small. Here are 6 LITTLE WAYS to eat healthier and to cut calories.
1. Go green. Try one new vegatable or vegetable recipe every week. Think of various ways to cook vegatables so you're not just reheating them in the microwave. Try a stir-fry, for example. Cook vegetables with garlic and olive oil, (my personal favorite) which is also heart healthy in small amounts.
2. Cut back on the main dish. If you cut your entree in half and double up on the vegetables everyday for an entire year, you can lose a whopping 35 pounds.
3. Try the plate method. When you fill your plate, half of it should be vegetables. The other half should be devided into a serving of starch and a serving of protein (the latter should be about the size of a deck of cards). This style of eating will help you fill up on fiber and control your calories.
4. Dress your own salad. Restaurants typically top salads with 4 tablespoons of dressing (or as much as 300 calories). All you really need is 1 or 2 tablespoons, so ask for your dressing on the side. (I personally dunk my fork into the dresing and then into my salad, you'd be amazed how much dressing is left over.) If you eat 5 salads during the week, you'll save 150 calories per salad and 750 per week. If you save 150 calories per day, you'll lose 15 pounds in a year.
5. Add snacks. Cut back on the size of your main meals and add 2 small snacks. Some healthy snacks are a piece of fruit, celery w/ peanutbutter (I recommend "Old Fashioned"), a container of low fat yogurt, or 3 whole wheat crackers with low fat or fat free cheese.
6. Make it skim. If you have 2 liquid creamers in your coffee, you're adding 60 calories per cup to your daily intake. The same amount of skim milk has 5 calories. If you drink 2 cups of coffee a day, you'll add 120 calories (with cream), versus 10 (with skim). This may not sound like much, but over a year, you'll lose about 5 pounds if you switch to skim. That's a clothing size.
Thanks for sharing such an informative article. When people ask "where do I start" ... this is a great place!
It also helped to use salad plates rather than dinner plates; visually it still looks full and keeps the proportions in check.
It also helped to use salad plates rather than dinner plates; visually it still looks full and keeps the proportions in check.
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