Beverages : Non-fat and sugar free
-carbonated waters, soda, tea, coffee, club soda, lemonade, etc.
*Condiments: Mustard, Ketchup, Vinegar, Herbs, Spices, Cooking Wine, Soy Sauce,
Tabasco, Steak Sauce, Barbecue Sauce
*Be careful of hidden sugars in some condiments such as Barbecue Sauce
Now a little about serving sizes. Most of us know which foods to eat to help us maintain
a healthy lifestyle but do we know what an appropriate serving size is? One book I
recommend for checking serving size and the caloric value of food is
The Complete Book of Food Counts, by Corinne T. Netzer. This book also includes
values for carbohydrate, cholesterol, protein, fat and fiber content.
In the meantime here are some easy guidelines:
Your palm ( minus fingers ) = about 3 oz. Cooked meat poultry or fish
Your fingertip = about 1 teaspoon
Your thumb tip = 1 tablespoon
Your thumb = about 1 oz. of cheese or meat
Your fist = about 1 cup or 1 medium whole fruit
*Adapted from Weight Watchers 33
As I mentioned before there are no quick fixes when it comes to weight loss or maintaining
a healthy weight. The key is behavior and lifestyle modification. Here are a list of very
easy rules to follow to help you make those behavioral and lifestyle changes and make
them work for you for the rest of your life.
Keep a food diary for several weeks and be honest! Include food eaten and how
much, also include drinks and snacks that have caloric value, i.e., wine, cookies,
etc.
Break meals down into several small meals a day ( about five )
Eat about 25 grams of fiber per day and stick to whole grain foods instead of
processed and refined foods. Why? Your body works harder to metabolize these
foods!
Cardiovascular exercise: at least 30 minutes 5 days a week or 40 minutes
4 days a week at 60-80% of maximum heart rate
Strength training: Minimum of two days per week making sure all the major
muscle groups are worked
Limit total fat intake to <30% of total caloric intake
Beware of the “fat free” label there is usually a lot of hidden calories in these foods
due to the increase in sugar the manufacturer uses to make these foods more palatable
Drink 8-10 glasses of water each day