Jerry and I have been making a concerted effort to change our lifestyle and be more healthy all around.
- We gave each other Planet Fitness memberships for Valentine's Day (he got off cheap),
- I am logging everything I eat and analyzing the nutritional content and passing the knowledge onto him,
- We are moving to a more temperate climate so we will be able to enjoy the outdoors more of the year (the heat kills me ever since I finished chemotherapy),
- Jerry takes lunches made for him with love from home,
As I learn new things I am sharing with my friends in an un-obtrusive way. So with that in mind here's some helpful hints to help you cut calories without really "dieting" (if you have any tips I would love to hear them, please leave a comment):
1. Choose Liquid Calories Wisely. Sweetened drinks pile on the calories and don’t reduce hunger pains. Choose water (add a lemon for flavor), skim or low-fat milk, or 100% fruit juice in moderation.
2. Eat More Produce. These water-rich, high fiber foods are excellent for making one feel fuller longer, without the added calories. Eat them at the beginning of the meal to help yourself feel fuller faster
3. Eat more whole grains. By substituting whole grains (whole grain bread, pastas, rice) for refined grains (white bread, cakes, cookies, and pretzels) you will intake more fiber, thus leaving you feeling fuller longer.
4. Brush your teeth at night. You’ll be less likely to eat anything after that.
5. Out of sight, out of mind. Stock your shelves with healthy, whole foods instead of high calorie, processed foods. This way when a craving attacks, you will be more likely to reach for a piece of fruit instead of a bag of chips.
6. Eat Breakfast Every Day. Fire up your metabolism in the morning by eating breakfast. A lot of people think if they skip breakfast they will be effectively cutting out calories, but they usually end up eating more food throughout the day.
7. Smaller Portions. Studies show people tend to eat whatever is given to them, so eat less by serving yourself less.
8. Add More Steps In Your Day. Take the stairs instead of the elevator, park far away from the store so you have to walk farther and so on. Buy a pedometer and record how many steps you take in a day. Shoot for at least 8000, with 10000 being a good goal to reach.
9. Protein at Every Meal. Protein helps keep you feeling full longer so you’re less likely to overeat. Try lean meats, low-fat yogurt, nuts, peanut butter, eggs, beans.
10. Don’t eat after a certain time. The only reason I suggest this is so you won’t give in to mindless snacking while watching TV. I don’t believe in the “no food after 7pm” rule set by some. In fact, there’s nothing wrong with eating a snack before bed, just don’t give into the late-night munchies.
11. Drink Lots Of Water. Your body may confuse your thirst for hunger. Next time you’re hungry try drinking some water first.
12. Eat Water Rich Foods. Water adds density to foods, without the calories. Vegetables, fruits and soups are all water-rich.
13. Careful With The Condiments. Skip the mayo, heavy dressing and other calorie rich condiments.
14. Easy On The Dessert. When craving that choco-monkey ice-cream in the fridge, go ahead and a eat scoop. Just enjoy in moderation.
15. Skip The Magic Diet Pills And Shakes. Just eat real, whole foods. Besides, you wouldn’t be NOT dieting if you took that stuff right?
16. Caution When Drinking. The calories in that beer and wine can add up pretty quickly. If you plan on drinking more than a few, switch to a lighter drink – MGD 64, for example.
17. Don’t Emotionally Eat. When you’re sad or angry find something to keep yourself busy (chew gum) besides eating.
18. Sleep The Weight Off. Get enough sleep, preferably 8 hours a night.
19. Find A Hobby. Garden, take up a sport, walk, hike, play with the kids. You will be burning calories and having fun doing it.
20. Exercise every day. The only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you take in. Exercising burns calories and improves your overall health.
21. Change Lifestyle. Make healthy eating a lifestyle, not a temporary diet.
22. Make The Swap. Swap out soda for water or skim milk.
23. Eat Whole, Natural Foods As Often As Possible. Unlike heavily processed foods such as chips and crackers, whole foods will keep you feeling fuller longer, pass on more nutrients and are typically lower in calories.
24. Eat slow. Savor your food. When you eat fast it’s possible to keep eating before your body even recognizes that it’s full.
25. Use smaller plates, cups, and utensils. And only eat what’s on your plate. This won’t work if you keep going back for seconds, thirds and so on.
26. Limit between meal snacking. The calories from constant between meals snacking can add up. Snack on low-calorie fruits between meals to stave off hunger.
27. Skip the appetizer. Most appetizers are fried or high in fat and calories. Do you really need it anyways?
28. Don’t Eat Until Your Pants Button Pops Off. You don’t have to completely stuff yourself every meal. Limit portion sizes, but eat more meal per day. That way you will never get so hungry that you binge eat.
29. Eat As A Family. There’s a lot to be said for sitting down at the dinner table and eating as a family. Besides the positive effects it can have on your relationship with your family, it also typically causes you to eat slower because of conversation and the meals are generally home-made and healthier than take-out.
30. Flip The Box Over. Rely on the information in the ingredients list, not the advertising on the front. Try and pick foods you like with a short ingredients list (or none at all-fruits, vegetables, etc.)
31. Easy On The Fast Food. But when you do, make healthy choices – substitute fries with apple slices, order the chicken sandwich instead of the quarter pounder, etc.
32. Put Down Your Fork Between Bites. This ties into the “eating slow” tip.
33. Avoid vending machines. Very rarely does anything good for you come out of them. If you have them at work, make sure to pack a healthy lunch instead of visiting the vending machine.
34. Learn to cook. That way you control what goes in your food.
35. Drink Your Coffee In A Smaller Cup. Why? So you don’t use as much cream. Of course this doesn’t work if you just refill your cup more often and keep adding creamer. Your best bet? Switch to tea.
36. Avoid Sugary Juices. Most prepackaged juices are full of sugar and calories. Try squeezing your own.
37. Pack up Your Leftovers First. This way you won’t be tempted to eat more.
38. Medications. Some medications can cause weight gain. If you suspect this might be the case for you, talk to your doctor to see if is in fact the case and if there is another form of medication you could take.
39. Don’t Stand In Long Lines. Recent studies done at the University of Arizona show you are 25% more likely to buy the soda and snacks around the register when you have to wait.
2. Eat More Produce. These water-rich, high fiber foods are excellent for making one feel fuller longer, without the added calories. Eat them at the beginning of the meal to help yourself feel fuller faster
3. Eat more whole grains. By substituting whole grains (whole grain bread, pastas, rice) for refined grains (white bread, cakes, cookies, and pretzels) you will intake more fiber, thus leaving you feeling fuller longer.
4. Brush your teeth at night. You’ll be less likely to eat anything after that.
5. Out of sight, out of mind. Stock your shelves with healthy, whole foods instead of high calorie, processed foods. This way when a craving attacks, you will be more likely to reach for a piece of fruit instead of a bag of chips.
6. Eat Breakfast Every Day. Fire up your metabolism in the morning by eating breakfast. A lot of people think if they skip breakfast they will be effectively cutting out calories, but they usually end up eating more food throughout the day.
7. Smaller Portions. Studies show people tend to eat whatever is given to them, so eat less by serving yourself less.
8. Add More Steps In Your Day. Take the stairs instead of the elevator, park far away from the store so you have to walk farther and so on. Buy a pedometer and record how many steps you take in a day. Shoot for at least 8000, with 10000 being a good goal to reach.
9. Protein at Every Meal. Protein helps keep you feeling full longer so you’re less likely to overeat. Try lean meats, low-fat yogurt, nuts, peanut butter, eggs, beans.
10. Don’t eat after a certain time. The only reason I suggest this is so you won’t give in to mindless snacking while watching TV. I don’t believe in the “no food after 7pm” rule set by some. In fact, there’s nothing wrong with eating a snack before bed, just don’t give into the late-night munchies.
11. Drink Lots Of Water. Your body may confuse your thirst for hunger. Next time you’re hungry try drinking some water first.
12. Eat Water Rich Foods. Water adds density to foods, without the calories. Vegetables, fruits and soups are all water-rich.
13. Careful With The Condiments. Skip the mayo, heavy dressing and other calorie rich condiments.
14. Easy On The Dessert. When craving that choco-monkey ice-cream in the fridge, go ahead and a eat scoop. Just enjoy in moderation.
15. Skip The Magic Diet Pills And Shakes. Just eat real, whole foods. Besides, you wouldn’t be NOT dieting if you took that stuff right?
16. Caution When Drinking. The calories in that beer and wine can add up pretty quickly. If you plan on drinking more than a few, switch to a lighter drink – MGD 64, for example.
17. Don’t Emotionally Eat. When you’re sad or angry find something to keep yourself busy (chew gum) besides eating.
18. Sleep The Weight Off. Get enough sleep, preferably 8 hours a night.
19. Find A Hobby. Garden, take up a sport, walk, hike, play with the kids. You will be burning calories and having fun doing it.
20. Exercise every day. The only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you take in. Exercising burns calories and improves your overall health.
21. Change Lifestyle. Make healthy eating a lifestyle, not a temporary diet.
22. Make The Swap. Swap out soda for water or skim milk.
23. Eat Whole, Natural Foods As Often As Possible. Unlike heavily processed foods such as chips and crackers, whole foods will keep you feeling fuller longer, pass on more nutrients and are typically lower in calories.
24. Eat slow. Savor your food. When you eat fast it’s possible to keep eating before your body even recognizes that it’s full.
25. Use smaller plates, cups, and utensils. And only eat what’s on your plate. This won’t work if you keep going back for seconds, thirds and so on.
26. Limit between meal snacking. The calories from constant between meals snacking can add up. Snack on low-calorie fruits between meals to stave off hunger.
27. Skip the appetizer. Most appetizers are fried or high in fat and calories. Do you really need it anyways?
28. Don’t Eat Until Your Pants Button Pops Off. You don’t have to completely stuff yourself every meal. Limit portion sizes, but eat more meal per day. That way you will never get so hungry that you binge eat.
29. Eat As A Family. There’s a lot to be said for sitting down at the dinner table and eating as a family. Besides the positive effects it can have on your relationship with your family, it also typically causes you to eat slower because of conversation and the meals are generally home-made and healthier than take-out.
30. Flip The Box Over. Rely on the information in the ingredients list, not the advertising on the front. Try and pick foods you like with a short ingredients list (or none at all-fruits, vegetables, etc.)
31. Easy On The Fast Food. But when you do, make healthy choices – substitute fries with apple slices, order the chicken sandwich instead of the quarter pounder, etc.
32. Put Down Your Fork Between Bites. This ties into the “eating slow” tip.
33. Avoid vending machines. Very rarely does anything good for you come out of them. If you have them at work, make sure to pack a healthy lunch instead of visiting the vending machine.
34. Learn to cook. That way you control what goes in your food.
35. Drink Your Coffee In A Smaller Cup. Why? So you don’t use as much cream. Of course this doesn’t work if you just refill your cup more often and keep adding creamer. Your best bet? Switch to tea.
36. Avoid Sugary Juices. Most prepackaged juices are full of sugar and calories. Try squeezing your own.
37. Pack up Your Leftovers First. This way you won’t be tempted to eat more.
38. Medications. Some medications can cause weight gain. If you suspect this might be the case for you, talk to your doctor to see if is in fact the case and if there is another form of medication you could take.
39. Don’t Stand In Long Lines. Recent studies done at the University of Arizona show you are 25% more likely to buy the soda and snacks around the register when you have to wait.