Keeping track of your food intake is one of the most important steps to getting control of what you eat and changing your lifestyle. I know for me it was definitely a life changing experience! I had no idea I ate so much food, or that what I ate was mostly empty calories.
Just grab a notebook or some scrap paper and keep track of what you eat every day for a week, even before you start to change your habits. Once you have a journal of what you’re eating, work on making improvements, and portion control.
For me it didn’t work to change my diet drastically in one day, but it has worked to improve my diet over time. Journaling my food intake is an important part of that process.
When I quit writing down what I eat, I start to slip back into my old habits. I guess writing things down is my way of being accountable… to myself… for what I eat.
There are many nights I’d like to head for the nearest drive through, because there just doesn’t seem like enough hours in the day to get supper on the table. For those nights I like to use some quick but healthy ideas to help me get the family fed.
Here are a couple of my favorite tricks:
On days when I do have a little extra time I cook a little extra, then freeze or refrigerate the extras to use another night. One food that’s great for this is chili. The first night we have the soup, and another night we might throw it over some baked corn chips with some lowfat cheese for some instant nachos, or over some whole grain pasta for chili spaghetti. Both take minutes to throw together.
Chop your fruits and vegetables ahead of time, so their ready to go when you’re cooking.
Add some frozen vegetables to a can of low sodium soup to bulk it up a little and make it heartier.
On pizza night (which is usually Fridays here), if I don’t have time to make my own crust I’ll use a premade crust, whole grain if I can find it. Then I’ll throw on my own toppings like fresh mushrooms, peppers, olives, onion, tomato, and basil, with a little mozarella sprinkled over the top. Quick and yum! You can also use whole grain pita pockets and make personal pizzas for everyone, still quick and easy!
I just constantly try to think of shortcuts I can take for busy nights, and still put a healthy meal on the table for my family. If you have some favorite shortcuts please feel free to share.
My goal for 2010 is continuous improvement on my eating habits, but my goal for the year is to achieve and maintain an 80/20 balance of good food to bad.
So what does the 80/20 food rule mean? It means that 80% of the time you’ll be choosing healthy foods that are low in fat, high in vitamins, have good low glycemic carbohydrates, and plenty of fiber. These foods include whole grains, most fruits and vegetables, low fat dairy, and lean meats.
The 20 part of the 80/20 rule is the 20% of the time you can eat foods that aren’t quite so healthy for you, just because you enjoy them.
Check out this video for even more details on the 80/20 food rule:
I’m planning to follow the 80/20 rule this year with my whole family. I’ll be back to share some of our recipes and healthy eating tidbits along the way.
One of my New Year’s resolutions this year of course is to improve my eating habits. Instead of making a drastic change or trying a drastic diet this year, I’m going to go for continuous improvement as my diet motto for the year.
I’ve been reading and studying healthy eating for several years, and I’ll do really great for a while, then I fall off the band wagon and beat myself up about it. For the new year this year I adopted a motto, ” continuous improvement” in all areas of my life.
Small changes can make a big difference and they can definitely add up after a while. The bonus is, it’s easier to stick to small changes in your diet or eating habits than it is to try to stick to a life altering diet and suddenly making the change within a day or two.
So stick with me this year while I work on making healthy changes to my own life, and sharing what I’ve learned with you.
One of my favorite things to do during the summer when the garden and orchard are in full swing is to freeze some of my berries, and peaches to use later in snacks and recipes.
Then in January and February when the snow’s flying I can pull them out of the freezer, and taste a little of summer’s sunshine in the middle of winter. It’s a great winter pick me up.
I love to pull out some strawberries, blueberries, or peaches and add them to a little plain or vanilla yogurt, then sprinkle on a little granola cereal for a home made fruit and yogurt parfait.
I don’t have a specific recipe. I usually throw in about a cup of fruit, about a half of cup of yogurt, and a sprinkle of granola for crunch.
Get $10 in valuable coupons when you subscribe to the Eat Healthy America newsletter. The coupon booklet also has helpful tips and favorite healthful recipes. Sounds like a win win to me.
What’s in your pantry, refrigerator, cabinets? What foods do you have stashed away so no one else sees you eating them? Guess what? Whether someone sees you eat the food or not, it will still show up on your hips, belly, and behind that you’ve been eating a little extra on the side. So your secret eating binges are not really so secret.
How can you prepare your pantry and fridge to help you in your weight loss goal, and not sabotage you every step of the way?
Here are a few tips to get your kitchen (and you) going in the right direction for the new year.
If there’s something in your pantry that calls to you or tempts you every step of the way, get rid of it. Especially if its high in calories from sugar or fat without much to redeem itself in the way of vitamins and fiber.
Plan ahead by chopping up your vegetables and fruits as soon as you get home from the market whenever possible. Bringing home that fresh pineapple, or stalk of celery does no good if it just sits in the fridge and turns to juice before you throw it out. If they’re chopped and ready to grab for a quick snack you’re more likely to eat them.
When you’re cooking a healthy soup, or some chicken for supper, make a little extra for lunch the next day. That way you have something to grab and heat quick when you’re on the go, instead of heading for the nearest drive through. It’ll be cheaper and healthier.
Fill your pantry and your fridge with natural foods, whole grains instead of white flour, look for foods that aren’t loaded with sugar, salt, and fillers. Buy products as close to how they were naturally produced as possible.
Check the labels on foods before you purchase them, check the calories, fat grams, fiber, sugar, and nutrients. Make informed purchases at the grocery, then you’ll know what you’re grabbing from the pantry.
Buy organic whenever your budget will allow. I know budgets are tight these days, but whenever you can afford the organic version, buy it. Even better grow your own garden and raise your own produce. There’s nothing better than a tomato straight from the garden in mid July.
If you need sweeteners use honey, maple syrup, or pure cane sugar. You’ll use less and still feel satisfied.
What tips can you share to help prepare your kitchen for weight loss success?
I got a new Wii Fit right before Christmas. We’ve had a blast with it as a family. We all plugged in our info and created a Mii. We played right up until midnight on New Years Eve.
Do I think the Wii Fit can be part of an overall plan to lose weight and get healthy? You bet I do.
The Wii Fit has several great features to help map out your weight loss goals, and it can make moving and exercising fun.
We started by mapping out our fitness goals individually. I, of course, would like to lose a few pounds. So I set lose 10 pounds in 2 months as my goal.
The Wii Fit also tells you where you’re at on the BMI chart. You plug in your height and age, then step up on the balance board and it captures your weight.
If there are several family members using the Wii Fit you can password protect your information to keep it private if you don’t want everyone to see your weight information.
The Wii Fit games are varied, and fun. You can choose from balance games, aerobics, or have a personal trainer help you with yoga, or strength training.
My personal favorites are the step aerobics, the ski jump, and yoga poses.
Back to my original question, can you lose weight with the Wii Fit. My answer is yes, I think the Wii fit can definitely be a part of your overall weight loss tool arsenal.
Use it to chart your progress, and play a couple of the fun games every day you can to help kick up your movement and burn some calories. If I can make exercise fun, I’m more likely to do it.
Do I think the Wii Fit should be your only weight loss tool? Probably not. But you can add it as part of a healthy lifestyle, like healthy eating, and a regular exercise plan.
Do you have a Wii Fit? How effective do you think they are for weight loss?
Cooking Gadgets~ Cyndi is wondering if there are any food trends that you’d like to see disappear in this coming year… Hmmmm…
Homemade Ranch Dip and Salad Dressing Mix~ A dry mix you can make ahead and add to light sour cream to make your own (lighter version) homemade ranch dip. For parties or anytime.
Make Your Favorite Recipes Healthier ~ What can you do with old family favorite recipes, those personal treats you grew up with but now avoid because they contain too much fat, cholesterol, whatever? Jean tells you how to create your own recipe swaps!
Have a wonderful first weekend of the new year. It’s back to a normal schedule on Monday here.
right before Christmas. We’ve had a blast with it as a family. We all plugged in our info and created a Mii. We played right up until midnight on New Years Eve.
