Showing posts with label Portion Control. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Portion Control. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Weight Management for a Healthy Lifestyle

Weight Management 
for a 
Healthy Lifestyle

Managing your body weight, as some of you know, can be challenging! Especially with today's wide availability of tempting foods that work their way into your mouth, like convenient, high calorie, grab and go foods. 


It takes will power and determination to resist salty snack chips, cookies, donuts, candy, chocolates, pizza, burgers, bacon, mayo, sugary drinks, subs, processed meats, cheese, high fat fries and fried chicken. These abundant, nutrient-poor or high-salt, high-sugar, high-fat foods affect the waistlines and arteries of all people (regardless of income and status). 

My standard recommendation for everyone is to eat more GardenCuizine! More fruits, more vegetables and whole grains = more dietary fiber, nutrients and a healthier you.

Weight Management recommendations


  • Make half your plate cooked or raw non-starchy vegetables like: tossed garden salad, tomatoes, cucumber, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, onion, zucchini, and carrots
  • Select low fat foods (technically 3 grams or less total fat; 5 grams or less may be more attainable
The best way to tell how much fat, salt, sugar or fiber
 is in a food is to read the food label
  • Select low sodium foods (140mg or less)
  • Select foods low in sugar (5 grams or less)
  • Select high fiber foods (5 grams or more per serving)
  • Don't skip meals!
  • Eat balanced from all the food groups
  • Don't forget a daily calcium source (low fat milk, soy milk, yogurt, powdered milk, collard greens, spinach, kale, okra, white beans, calcium fortified OJ...)
  • Be honest to yourself and with your dietitian 
  • Set and write down realistic goals, then take action!
  • Keeping a food diary/journal has been shown to help dieters be successful at losing weight
Related Links
Weight Management and Calories
Health Risks of Being Overweight
Use the Nutrition Facts Label for Healthy Weight Management
Blog post Copyright (C)2012 Wind. All rights reserved. 

Thursday, March 1, 2012

"March" into National Nutrition Month! @EatRight @kidseatright @Fruits_Veggies #gardencuizine

National Nutrition Month®

Time to "March" into National Nutrition Month® - presented by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (formerly the American Dietetic Association). The Academy's goal is my goal as a registered dietitian, which includes the promotion of disease prevention and nutrition education for healthful eating along with exercise as part of a healthy lifestyle. Try these simple suggestions to "Get Your Plate in Shape."
 

"Get Your Plate in Shape" declares this years theme for National Nutrition Month. After all, if your plate is out-of-shape with oversize portions on a regular basis, it makes sense that the human body would get over nourished and therefore store the extra calories as adipose tissue (fat).

  • The Centers for Disease, Control and Prevention reports that approximately 17% (12.5 million) of children and adolescents age 2 to19 are obese.
  • And, since 1980, obesity among children and adolescents has almost tripled.
How can "we" get our Plates in Shape? 

Start by using the plate method for portion control. The plate method is based on imagining three sections on your serving plate. All ages have success with this method. Get your whole family educated on how to do this. 
  • Simply imagine your 9-10-inch lunch or dinner plate as being divided in half.
  • Then imagine the other half divided in half again, into quarters. A portion size the size of your clenched fist or a deck of cards should fit nicely on a quarter of your plate.
How to Portion Control your Meals
On half of your plate
  • Portion non-starchy Vegetables and Fruits on half of your plate. Many of us eat fruit whole as a separate snack before or after a meal, that is good too. 
  • Can't fill the whole half plate with veggies and fruits? No worries...
  • The point is to try and eat more Fruits and Veggies!
  • Beware of unbalanced, "out-of-shape" plate portions when eating out, such as half a plate full of french fries or potato chips.
  • Controlling portion sizes will enable you to better control and manage your body weight.
For each quarter-sized sections on the other half of your plate
  1. Portion a serving of Starch or starchy Vegetables 
  2. Portion a serving of a Protein food 
  • Starchy vegetables get a quarter-sized portion because starchy vegetables raise your blood sugar, similar to starchy foods like breads, pasta and rice. 
  • See some suggestions listed below.
    On the side
    • Serve a glass of fat-free or low-fat Milk or Soy Milk; or have a Calcium-rich food, such as yogurt or almonds as a healthy snack during the day.
    Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables and vary the colors
    Vary your protein choices
    Make at least half of your grains whole grains
    Enjoy sweets and desserts in moderation
    I'm Blogging National Nutrition Month
    That's all there is 
    to getting your plate in shape!

       Non-starchy Vegetables: Amaranth, Artichokes, Asparagus, Green Beans, Wax Beans, Beets, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Chayote, Cucumber, Daikon, Eggplant, Bitter Melon, Scallions, Collards, Kale, Mustard or Turnip Greens, Turnips, Jicama, Kohlrabi, Leeks, Mushrooms, Okra, Onions, Peppers, Radishes, Rutabaga, Spinach, Zucchini or Summer Squash, Sugar Snap Peas, Swiss Chard, Tomatoes,

       Proteins: Beef, Eggs, Cheeses, Fish, Lamb, Pork, Poultry, Shellfish, Beans (both a protein and a starchy vegetable, which would matter if you are diabetic), Tofu, Edamame

       Starch: Bagels, Biscuits, English Muffins, Buns, Rolls, Tortillas, Waffles, Grains (like rice, kasha, barley, bulgur, millet, quinoa), Cereals, Grits, Pasta, Cous Cous, Crackers, Matzoh, Rice Cakes

       Starchy Vegetables: Potatoes, Corn, Popcorn, Pumpkin, Winter Squash (like acorn, butternut), Sweet Potatoes, Beans, Baked Beans, Lentils, Split Peas, Green Peas, Parsnips, Plantains