2014-02-06

Recognizing Roadblocks in Weight Loss


I've just read an interesting item from AHA but I'm not quite agreeing with their advice,  entirely.
Here is mine, based on my own experience. Your experience might be different, who knows?

"If I go to a buffet, I just can’t control how much I eat."
Don't rush to fill your plate like you haven' t eaten for days. Anyway, it's not "elegant". If possible: select from the buffet what looks healthier and arrange small portions on your plate, artistically,  following the rule: a quarter of the plate some proteins, half the plate veggies and fruits, a quarter of the plate starches or, much better, beans or nuts. Take your time. Eat slowly, don't rush for a second serving, or if you do, try other foods. Better be only proteins and veggies or nuts, the second time, they'll cut hunger.

"I usually grab something on the way home from work because I am so tired, I don’t feel like cooking."
Cooking your meals, if you're not used to do it, it's the most difficult change in your life.
Start simple: salads, stir-fried lean meats, mushrooms, canned beans, canned egg-plant or favorite veggies.
Take your time to shop once a week and fill your fridge with healthy vegetables, fruits, lean meats, low fat cheese a.s.o.
Even if you're dead tired, it takes less than an 1/4 hour to fix  a healthy sandwich and a salad. Add a fruit, an yogurt, a handful of nuts.
Then learn to make a soup. Any soup. You can make enough meat and vegetable stock to last a week and use it to prepare quickly soups. Add tomato juice and a handful of cooked pasta or par-boiled rice and you have tomato soup. Or, add a handful of cooked par-boiled rice, an yogurt and a whisked egg and you have a "Greek" soup. Add a bit of spinach and broccoli and you get a "green" soup.
Or don't add anything else, just a squeeze of lemon.
You can learn more recipes, whenever you have the time. Just keep it simple.

"Cravings for sweets and salt is a bit difficult to get rid of, but you can do it in two weeks if you're determined to change your lifestyle." Drinking a glass of water is always good but I doubt it will help with your cravings.
I suggest the South Beach Phase I for sweet or starchy cravings.
It will take 1-3 weeks but IT WORKS.
Cut sugar and sugar replacements from your recipes!
Salt is a different story. First of all, you have to read carefully the labels and skip salty food, at least for a while.
Try to avoid processed meats. No chips - cut them out.
If you're cooking your own  meals, change your recipes. Add less and less salt. Replace at least part of the salt with spices and herbs. Lemon juice is a great replacement.
Don't add salt to a green salad, but lemon juice. It'll be more crispy.

"I love dessert. I can’t give it up!"
Oh, yes you can. If after 2 weeks of SB Phase I diet you still can't resist a dessert,  always ask for a small portion. Eat verrrryyy slowly and try to stop after three bites. Maybe it'll work :D
Try eating a piece of fruit instead of a "classic" dessert. Once in a while, indulge yourself and don't feel guilty about it.
Once a month in a diet for life isn't quite like a drop in the ocean but it won't fatten you. Take care what else you eat that day and exercise a bit more the next day.

"I don’t like working out. It’s boring."
Oh, come on! What do you want your life to be like when you're old? Or in ten years? I like that Glasbergen cartoon: "What fits your busy schedule better: exercising 1 hour a day or being dead 24 hours a day?"
Of course you can find some exercise and make it less boring. Just walking half an hour a day in fresh air can make the difference. Invest in a music player or a camera or a dog, to make walking more interesting. Invest in a pedometer and compete with others. Try swimming. Any physical activity is better than sitting  all day long. "Any" is the magic keyword.






2014-01-19

Portion Size

Portion size counts, this is generally accepted.. 


But it could be awfully boring and stressing  to weight everything that goes on your plate, all the time


A fine trick of all diet has been to associate portion size with objects form everyday life.  Like a meat portion is a pack of card size, a pasta portion is like a tennis ball, a veggie size is what goes in a bowl, a potato portion is the size of a computer mouse a.s.o.  

But... We do have cups and bowls all sizes.  Computer mouse? A disappearing specie. 
At the beginning of your diet is a good thinking to choose recipients and a method to measure your portions.

A cup size is defined here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cup_(unit)

I'm in Europe so I use a 250 ml cup. USA cups are around 240 ml. 
The difference won' t fatten me, I'm sure.
A bowl is a cup and a half.


I'm using this chart and rules to quickly size my meals:




Beans: 1/3 bowl
Veggies: what goes in my both hands
Meat: half my hand 
Fish: my whole hand
Cheese: my thumb
Dairy: 1 yogurt unit or a cupa of milk or kefir
Bread: 1 slice
Pasta, rice, other starches: what would fill my cupped palm or 1/3 bowl
Nuts: what would fill my cupped palmWine: 1 glass if you're a woman, 2 glasses if you're a man, but not everyday.Other liquors? Just a dash, a taste now and then.
Sweets: no more than 100 calories a day and it better be dark chocolate.
Fruits: one of these 1 apple, 1 mandarin, 4 apricots, a cup of grapes, a cup of cherries or raspberries a.s.o.



Portions are really small, shocking isn' t it? But don't worry. You are not supposed to suffer hunger in a correct diet. You will feel better in time. You can find more in Dr Agatston's  book about the South Beach diet or on the South Beach Community site. 
A quick way to solve portioning is to place food on your plate using these simple rules:
 - 1/4 plate, a protein portion (eg. meat, fish)
 - 1/4 plate, starches or beans, 
 - 1/2 plate, veggies

For example, 1 portion of chicken meat, a similar portion in size of rice, and veggies twice as much in size.  

Use some artistic skills to make your plate look like in a good restaurant. Eat slowly and go for more only if you're still hungry.
Better wait for 10 minutes and then decide if you want some more food.
Your brain need time to process signals from your body and decide if more fuel is necessary.

This could work also in your vacation, to help you eat as usual, even there are many temptaitons.









Nature's Diet Pills: Peanuts



Peanuts provide over 30 essential nutrients and phytonutrients. They’re a good source of many vitamins and minerals and contain 25% protein. 

Roasted peanuts rival the antioxidant content of blackberries and strawberries, and are far richer in antioxidants than carrots or beets. Natural sources of fiber and with a very low glycaemic index, they have also the reputation to lower LDL cholesterol.

They are filling,  meaning hunger is tamed for much longer, and therefore fewer calories are consumed in the long-run.

But… there’s always a “but” with good food, isn’t it?
One serving of peanuts should be only a small handful or 2 tbsp of peanut butter. This means around 200 Kcal, quite a lot!



Take care also what brand you buy. Some add a lot of salt or, worse, peanut butter is “enriched” with sugar or even hydrogenated fats.

One funny fact: Peanuts are not nuts but legumes, like beans.

PS. A delicious healthy snack: peanuts or peanut butter with a bit of cheese ( cottage cheese or Swiss Cheese are fine). A fruit with it won't hurt.