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Healthy Eating Diet Tips
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Healthy Eating Diet Tips
By: J Bowler
Some (not so) Silly Diet Tips and Why They’re Not
At first glance some of these diet tips may seem downright silly. You may find yourself thinking, “That’s couldn’t possibly make
enough of a difference. Plus I’d feel silly doing it.” I have a response to those negative thoughts. First, the longest journey begins with a single step. And second, would you rather feel silly being overweight and unfit or doing something about it?
Diet Tip 1: Fidget
Every little movement burns calories. Twiddle your thumbs. Squeeze one of those little exercise balls while you watch TV to burn calories and tone your arms at the same time. Take that more distant parking spot. Walk wherever possible. Even if you have physical limitations, you can tailor a program to your needs. Move whatever you can, whenever and wherever you can. And just think - laughing is good exercise. It’s like jogging on the inside.
Diet Tip 2: Portions and Proportions
Pay attention to portion sizes according to the eating plan you choose. Use a normal size plate – don’t supersize it! One plan suggests that ¼ of the plate should contain protein and the rest should be fruits and vegetables. You can weigh your food, at least until you become attuned to proper portion sizes or use some of the simple guidelines like “3 oz. of protein is about the size of your palm or a deck of playing cards” or “one serving of rice is the size of a tennis ball”.
Diet Tip 3: Eat More Slowly
This allows your body the several minutes it takes to signal your brain that it is full.
Diet Tip 4: Substitute Low Calorie Density Foods for High
Choose foods with a low calorie density – foods that have fewer calories relative to their weight. “If you decrease the energy density of your diet, caloric intake will decline”, says Barbara Rolls, professor of nutritional sciences at Pennsylvania State University and co-author along with Robert Barnett of The Volumetrics Eating Plan.
Think lower cal fruits, vegetables like salad greens and broths. What these foods have in common is the magic diet ingredient, water! Water has zero calories, so the more volume represented by water, the less room there is for calories. Water also creates a feeling of fullness, helping one to eat less.
Fiber is another low calorie density food. In this category, we again find many fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains, such as whole wheat bread or pasta, whole grain cereals and brown rice. A study at Tufts University in Boston found that increasing daily fiber intake by 14 grams resulted in a 10% decrease in total calorie intake and a weight loss averaging one pound a month. This is a very small diet change to make. Substitute about 28 calories of fiber for some high calorie density food you have been eating.
Diet Tip 5: Be Aware of What You Eat
Keep a food diary (and be brutally honest – no one else needs to see it). Don’t forget the spoon that you licked while putting away the leftovers or the sampling(s) you
had while adjusting the seasoning. The purpose is not only to monitor your food intake but to identify what circumstances tempt you to overeat or eat unhealthily. Keep a food diary long enough and patterns will start to emerge.
Diet Tip 6: Try New Spices and Herbs in Place of Butter and Salt
Try some new spices and herbs and cut back on the butter and salt. You might be surprised to learn the antioxidant strength of some herbs – another reason to add more to your diet. When food tastes different or more flavorful, we tend to savor it more and eat more slowly.
Diet Tip 7: Add Variety
Along the same lines, The American Dietetic Association recommends increasing variety. Occasionally adding a single new food to your routine can end monotony and increase nutrition.
This year's ADA "Get a Taste for Nutrition" campaign suggests adding a new fruit, vegetable or grain to your shopping list each week. Among its suggestions: kumquat, passion fruit and pomegranate for fruits; kohlrabi, bok choy, jicama and parsnip from the vegetable aisle; and quinoa, flaxseed, amaranth and bulgur for new grains.
This article is for informational purposes only. It does not purport to offer medical advice.
About the Author
Jean Bowler is a life long fitness freak. She was a ballet dancer and teacher, a private fitness trainer and more. Visit her site, http://www.ageless-beauty.com for advice on diet and nutrition, skin care and more.
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How to Benefit from the Mind-Body Connection
(excerpt)
You are about to gain insight into the
mind-body connection. The number of
people who truly understand these principles on our
planet are relatively few.
There is an undeniable connection between our minds and
bodies, you can learn
to use this fact to your benefit.
Dr. Bernie Siegel, author of "Love, Medicine and
Miracles" was once a
distraught cancer surgeon until he
began to understand the greater principles
of the mind-
body connection. He felt dragged down by the artificial
barriers
that existed between patient and doctor, and the
helplessness he often felt as
a result of his inability
to effectively serve those patients. Eventually, those
barriers
were disintegrated by Dr. Siegel's recognition
and growing understanding of the
mind-body connection and
how it could serve his patients and himself.
Dr. Siegel, or Bernie as he began to have his patients
refer to him, had some
startling realizations as a cancer surgeon. He found that
there were actually
quite a few people in the world that successfully beat
the statistics on cancer
survival. He began to recognize that a patient's ability
to defeat something as
serious as cancer had to do with the patient's mind and
attitude about their
disease.
If you would like to see the rest of
this article, please go here:
http://www.tobeinformed.com/repository/mind-body.html
copyright 2004 - David Snape
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Copyright 2002-2005 by David Snape
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