Eating Out Without Piling on Pounds

I love to eat at restaurants. But being a nutrition writer, I know that what typically makes restaurant food taste so good is lots of fat (and bloat-inducing salt). Even that healthy-looking grilled fish is likely topped with a good-sized smear of butter. But who wants to cook every night? We all deserve to dine out once in a while. I’m at a healthy weight even though my family eats out a lot — so here are my tips for dining out without gaining weight.

Share. There’s a dessert at Longhorn that’s delicious — but it consists of two full-sized pieces of chocolate cake surrounded by several scoops of vanilla ice cream. (Oh yes, and whipped cream.) While we rarely order dessert, if we do we always split it among three or even four people. Another way to use this tactic: Order one fewer dishes than there are people at the table and share. For example, if there are four of you at a Chinese restaurant, you can order three (healthy!) dishes so you each get to taste everything without going overboard.

Watch out for watch words. No matter what the cuisine, words like crispy, smothered, fried and golden brown signal lots of fat and should make you head the other way.

Order sides. At one restaurant we frequent, I used to order the salmon — which included a salmon fillet and a salad anda baked potato and rice. I would eat until I was stuffed, and there would still be food left over. Then, one day, a friend said to me, “Why don’t you just order side dishes?” So now I typically order a salad and a baked potato and that’s plenty to fill me up. (When I’m feeling especially virtuous, I get the baked potato dry instead of with sour cream.)

Instead of sides, you could also order two appetizers; many restaurants now offer boiled pot-stickers with a dipping sauce, shrimp skewers, or other healthier apps.

By the way, this tip is perfect for vegetarians who go out to eat with non-veg friends. So many restaurants have a sorry selection of meat-free meals, but you can almost always put together a nice meal out of sides and appetizers.

Box it up. I mentioned this tip in my post Sneaking Health Into Your Day : When you order a meal, ask the server to box up half of it before bringing it to you. That way you’re not tempted by the mounds of food on your overflowing plate even after you feel full. Bring home the other half and you’ll have dinner tomorrow too!

Skip the soda. There are 155 calories in one 12-ounce serving of Coke, and something like 12 teaspoons of sugar. If you’re eating out, why not treat yourself to some wine, which has heart-healthy benefits, plus fewer calories and less sugar than soda? One serving of Sauvignon Blanc has 119 calories .

Just ask. I once went out to a restaurant with a fitness model-slash-personal trainer. Even though it wasn’t on the menu, she asked the server for grilled chicken breast with no added fat, plain steamed broccoli, and a dry baked potato. The chef was happy to oblige. You’ll never know if you can get healthy options unless you ask — and if enough people ask, more restaurants will start to offer them. Try asking for meats cooked without added fats, salads served with dressing on the side, crudité plates with fresh veggies, smaller servings (even if you have to pay full price), and veggies that are steamed instead of fried.

Okay, now you have the tools to get a healthy restaurant meal that won’t wreck your weight-loss efforts. Try them the next time you go out!

Stay healthy,

Linda

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Fool the Fat Off

In my 12-year career as a health writer, I’ve discovered many ways to fool yourself into eating more healthfully. These trick-yourself principles, all backed by research, can help you eat less and lose weight. Here’s how to psych yourself slim:

Unplug

Forget about Project Runway, and put down that copy of the latest bestseller. Instead, focus on your food. Chewing slowly and paying attention to the feel and taste of your meal helps you feel full faster and eat less. In a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, women who concentrated on the taste of their food ate much less than those who listened to a detective story while eating.

Choose Tall and Skinny

Research conducted by Brian Wansink, Ph.D., author of Mindless Eating, showed that people tend to drink more from short, wide glasses than from tall, thin ones. Apparently, the short glass looks smaller to us — even when it holds the same amount as the tall, thin glass — so we pour more. Prepare your drink in a tall, frosty glass and you’ll probably down less!

Imagine It

Whether it’s your high school reunion or an upcoming cocktail party, pick an event you want to look your best at and keep it in your mind as you make and eat your meals. You’ll eat more healthfully if you’re hoping to look and feel great at an upcoming event.

Go Dark

In another study by Wansink and his colleagues, researchers gave 30 secretaries clear or opaque containers full of Hershey’s Kisses. The secretaries gobbled an average of five treats per day from the clear containers, but just four from the opaque containers. The upshot? We tend to eat more of what we can see, so stow your goodies in opaque containers (and your veggies in clear containers!).

Put Them Away

All done with your scrumptious chicken piccata? No problem — there’s more in the kitchen! If that’s the way your mind works, fix your plate and then stow any leftovers before sitting down to eat. Along the same lines, put the least nutritious leftovers in the fridge and leave out the veggies in case you crave seconds. This same M.O. works at restaurants as well: Ask the server to pack half your meal in a to-go container so you’re not even tempted.

Scoop Small

In yet another study (boy, is this guy prolific!), Wansink and his colleagues gave people either large or small scoops and let them serve themselves ice cream. The result? The ice cream fiends who used the large scoop ate 15 to 20 percent more than those using small scoops. When you serve yourself food, use small spoons instead of ladles and other large utensils and you’ll likely dole out less.

Toss the Techno

Scientists at Fairfield University in Connecticut piped fast and slow music into the university cafeteria on different days. Researchers then counted the bites taken by the diners in the cafeteria. (Do you think the diners wondered why people were staring at them and scribbling in notepads?) The results: People take an average of 4.4 bites per minute to fast music, and only 3.8 bites per minute to slow music. So ditch the disco and listen to soft tunes when you dine.

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Adding and Subtracting for Health

Getting healthy — and staying motivated to get healthy  – requires the right balance of adding and subtracting things from your life.

For example, my life coach, Kristin Taliaferro, is big on eliminating energy drains from your life. Taliaferro recommends deleting what the coaching world calls “tolerations” — those little annoyances that make you feel resentful and demotivated, such as “The dog keeps jumping on the bed,” “I hate the way my phone rings,” and “My nails look terrible.”

Make a list of 100 of your tolerations (and believe me, it’s easier than it sounds), then pick three to get rid of this week. You’ll find that many of your tolerations have very easy solutions! When you start clearing out your tolerations, you’ll start to feel lighter, more energetic, and more motivated — the perfect state for living healthy. I did this in February and then stupidly let it lapse until just now. I deep-sixed a dozen or so tolerations and felt incredibly energetic. This week, I revamped my list and plan to remove three more tolerations.

You can also subtract activities that suck your time and your energy. If you watched one hour less of TV every night, what else could you be doing — maybe exercising? If you surfed the web one less hour a day, you’d have time to prepare healthy meals. Find out what’s holding you back and bringing you down — and subtract it.

Then there’s adding. One thing I’ve learned in my nutrition writing is that if you want to eat more healthfully without feeling deprived, concentrate on adding good foods to your diet instead of subtracting bad ones. For instance, make a deal with yourself to eat one salad a day for the next week (something I’m doing right now). And make it delicious, with grilled chicken, dried cranberries, nuts, whatever it will take for you to love your salad! Just by adding a daily delicious salad, you’re automatically eating less junk. Salad for lunch means no fast food fries, no cookies-for-lunch, no nachos loaded with sour cream and cheese.

What foods would you like to add to your diet? More water automatically means less Coke, and you can add lemon or a splash of juice to make it tastier. More healthy fats means you dip your bread in olive oil instead of slathering it with butter, that you add nuts to your salad instead of bacon bits, and that you layer avocado on your sandwich in place of mayo. And you don’t feel deprived because you’re adding yummy foods to your diet.

So: What things can you add to or subtract from your life to get healthier?

Stay healthy,

Linda

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Hi! My name is Linda Formichelli, and I’m the newest blogger on the Designer Whey blog.

I’ve gone through a lot of life changes lately: I recently turned 40, and my husband and I adopted a baby boy. As an “older mom” (though I don’t feel old), I’m interested in both boosting my energy and in keeping off the pounds that tend to creep on with age. My challenge — as for many working moms and dads — is time. It’s hard to find time to exercise and cook healthy meals when you work all day and take care of a baby at night. In this blog, I plan to explore ways to fit fitness into even the most hectic days.

Right now, I have even more of a motivation to get fit: I’ll be profiling a martial artist for a major magazine, and as part of the article I’ll be attending a couple of very intense martial arts classes next month. I have five years’ experience in the martial arts, but I quit last year when I hurt my back — and since then, my cardio has consisted of — well, pretty much nothing. As a point of pride I’d like to kick some butt in these classes, so I’ve made it my mission to build up my endurance and add some lean muscle — and to keep going even after my article is done.

Another challenge for me: nutrition. I’ve been writing about health, fitness, and nutrition for newsstand magazines since 1997, so I know what I should and should not be eating. But knowing and doing are two different things! I love eating at restaurants, and I’m sure you know how difficult it is to eat healthfully when you’re confronted with a menu full of creamy sauces, fried foods, and desserts that are bigger than your head.

My final challenge: I have an anxiety disorder, and it’s easy for me to get overwhelmed with stress. Stress has been implicated in causing health woes (like irritable bowel) and in making illnesses worse (like asthma). Stress also makes it difficult for us to lead healthy lives — after all, when we’re feeling stressed and rushed, it seems much easier to pick up a burger and shake at the drive-through than to create a healthy meal — so I’ll incorporate healthy mind-body tips into my blog posts.

I’ve already started making positive changes, which I’ll talk more about in future posts — and I’ve lost seven pounds in the last month!

My blog posts won’t be all about me: As a health writer, I have access to a lot of studies and experts, so I plan to include information you can use in every post. As I get healthier, hopefully you will too!

Stay healthy,

Linda

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Hello Friends,

 I hope you had a great week. I am kind of bummed. I weighed in and haven’t lost one stinkin’ pound in a month! I have been cleaning houses on the side to help make ends meet. I have been cleaning 3-6 hours a day! My weight did not budge. I feel I let my friends, Designer Whey, and myself down. I know it has to be because my eating plan gets all messed up. I can’t seem to get on track or stick to my schedule when I am working. In between houses I have been eating a handful of nuts and that may contribute to not losing weight…too many nuts! I need to pre mix my Designer Whey powders and carry a cooler with some fruit, maybe a sandwich and eat that instead of a handful of nuts all day long.

 I am reading a book called ‘Chris Johnson’s On Target Living Nutrition: The Power of Feeling Your Best’. It puts nutrition in very simple terms. Chris Johnson is a Michigan native and lives in the Lansing area. I just started reading. And as I do, I will share with my friends what I learn. One thing I get from flipping through the book is we don’t have to be perfect. To live an 80/20 mix of our healthy plan; that means 80% of the time stay on target the other 20% give our self some slack. I have never seen a book so simple. It lays it all out for you. They give you a list of “target foods” which consist of a variety of proteins, carbs and healthy fats. The list is starts out as the best foods, better foods, good foods, fair foods, and poor food choices;  basically take small steps to changing your health. The book suggests if you are starting a ground zero to do these 3 simple things. Drink 2-3 bottles of water a day, best if its spring water or mineral water (you can refill), walk for 10 minutes a day and to eat 1-2 proteins, 1-2 carbs and 1-2 healthy fats from the ‘best list’ from the list they give you in the book. Slow and steady wins the race! For me, simple is good. This book has me excited and recharged again.

 Did you watch the Biggest Loser this pass week? Were you shocked at the end result? I thought the black team would for sure lose with their binge episode. Jillian was right…they still do not get it…I don’t either. I have to admit I would have done the same thing if I was let loose on 24 hours of pampering. I know I would have because I’ve been to a buffet with my daughter on a field trip. I did well but the dessert table called me. I really had to restrain myself to one dessert and thankfully I was able; because if it had not been time to get back on the bus I would have had more helpings. I wish I had a mindful spirit to resist eating too much but I struggle and have to “talk” to myself and hold my self back. I do not have a natural desire to just say no.

 I will write again soon. Take care , Friends.

 Camille

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Happy March, Friends…it’s suppose to warm up this weekend here in Michigan…Bring it on! I hope this finds you healthier then the day before. I have been thinking about patterns and realized that everything is based on a pattern. I, like a lot of Americans have lived an unhealthy pattern. If you pay attention to Bob, one of the “Biggest Loser” trainers he said to be healthy the pattern is “Fuel -> Move -> Rest. For me it was always Move -> Rest -> Fuel -> Rest some more. So I had it wrong.

Our church is having a diet and nutrition course for the next few weeks. I am learning a lot and thought I would share with you all what I have learned in just one session.

To stop cravings – eat every 3 hours small meals that include protein.

Exercise: How much and how long – You only need 30 minutes a day of cardio. Cardio is simply raising your heart rate higher then your sitting heart rate. Here is something interesting… you do not need to do 30 minutes in a row. I never seem to fit in 30 minutes a day then felt bad but if you do 3 – 10 minute work outs or even if you start out doing 5 minutes – 6 times a day that works! You can jog in place, jump rope, dance, rebound or anything that will get your heart rate above your sitting rate even… sex… LOL. OK, now run home and tell your husband its exercise time!

You need 1 hour each week strength training – it does not take very many pounds for strength. 2 – 5 pound weights is great! Carry a weight in your car and do bicep curls driving…ummm… one arm at a time! You can use soup cans or water bottles. I say use water bottles that you refill then after you are done doing reps, drink the water!

You need flexibility every day – stretching, bend touch your toes when you get out of bed, stand up from your computer. Practice flexibility anytime. Just get some stretching in wherever you can. That’s it to stay fit.

It’s best to exercise …ANYTIME! Morning does revs up your metabolism and helps keep it going all day.

The figure below is how to figure out how many calories you need to lose 1 pound a week just by your food intake. **Add exercise and you lose more!

1. Add 655 to this calculation 4.35 X Weight in Pounds
2. Add your answer to this calculation 4.7 X Height in inches
3. Subtract your answer to this calculation 4.7 X age
4. Subtract 500 calories

This equals the number of calories you need to take in each day to lose 1 pound a week. Not doing anything but this formula you could lose 52 pounds a year!

My weight is 278, Height 69 inches and I am 41
655 + 1209.3 (4.35 X 278) + 324.3 (4.7 X 69) – 192.7 (4.7 X 41) – 500 = 1495.9 calories a day. (1500 is close enough!)

To figure out how much water you need to drink a day it’s your weight divided by 2. My weigh is 278, I should be drinking 139 oz of water a day… whoa sure will be pee’n a lot! That’s over a gallon a day! That is hard to see doing but I think I will make it a goal to drink a gallon of water a day… Or lose weight so I don’t have to drink that much!

I hope this helps you with your weight loss journey. Start with figuring out your resting heart rate add a little more movement every day and before you know it you will have worked yourself up to 30 minutes of cardio a day. I will close for now…

Until next time… Camille from Michigan

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