The overview of my “diet”
I put quotes around diet because this isn’t a diet to me; it is just how I eat. I roughly count calories as a measure of what I eat in a day. This isn’t all you need to watch out for, but is a good start. There are numerous sites that can give you a general calorie total for foods (like fruit, meat, and other things that don’t come with a label). Also important: eating too few calories is not going to help you. Not only will you not be getting enough nutrients, not eating slows your metabolism way down (this is why eating breakfast helps you for the rest of the day.) Again, there are website that can tell you the amount of calories you should be consuming based on gender and activity. I try at keep around 1600. You shouldn’t drop below 1200 in a day. As much as I am leery of the government, the food pyramid and guidelines are helpful. You can check it out at www.mypyramid.gov
Overall, there are some good tips to follow:
• Everyday you should eat fruit, veggies, whole grains, and milk
• Eat protein!! Fish, Chicken, nuts, beans, and eggs
• Watch out for saturated fats, trans fats, and cholesterol.
One website has a good realization: "If you eat 100 more food calories a day than you burn, you'll gain about 1 pound in a month. That's about 10 pounds in a year. The bottom line is that to lose weight, it's important to reduce calories and increase physical activity.”
I always am a big fan of label reading (see previous post). There is a lot of information on a label. This website gives a good overview of what to look for: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/foodlab.html
You may have heard, there is a huge debate going on about what exactly is in our food. A lot food bought from restaurants and grocery stores is made to stand up to the test of time and that can end up harming you in the end.
Trans fat: The reason I am worried about trans fat is because the impact this has on cholesterol. I can go into more detail about all the parts of cholesterol if you want, but I can save that for later. I have become quite acquainted with it all. All you need to know is that trans fat increases your bad cholesterol number and puts your heart at risk for heart disease. Yeah, you may only be 20 something but people younger than you have died of a heart attack. There is a chemical process behind trans fats, for you chemistry people you can look it up. The end result is greater shelf life and flavor saving in food. Saturated fat is also not good for you, just be aware of that.
I also am against high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Another wonderful product made from corn. Instead of sugar, many products use HFCS. During a time when sugar cane rose dramatically in price, food producers needed to find a substitute and switched to HFCS. I don’t know all the details because I only half listened when my mother (a nurse) explained it all to me, I just know HFCS does not digest the same as regular sugar and is a direct link to obesity. If you want to read more, this website has a lot of info:
http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/79/4/537
My philosophies:
-Look at the label! you would be surprised where trans fats and HFCS are lurking. Many bread products, yogurt, cereal, soda, cookies—go through Jewel and you will be amazed. Things that seem healthy are also culprits—granola bars, crackers, and whole wheat bread. Trans fats are slowly being phased out but I still notice them in grocery store. The biggest use of trans fat is in fried foods at restaurants. Almost everything at McDonalds has trans fat in it. Oh, and beware of Keebler cookies—they are a trans fat haven.
-Look at the label; if you cannot pronounce half the ingredients, you might want to think twice before eating it. A Twinkie has 39 ingredients and some giant chemical process behind it—you would think it could be a simple cake and filling mixture!
-Fruits and veggies are your friend
-This one gets me every time and I always fight people. Whole foods is not some expensive place that people are going to go poor shopping. Yes, there are some expensive items but there are also some really cheap (and healthy) items. You just have to be a wise shopper.
-Check nutrition on websites for fast food places. The calories, fat, and other junk they cook with are gross when you think about it.
One more important thing and then I will get off my soapbox. Find out about your family history. Diabetes and high disease runs in my family and that is why I have to be careful. However, there are many other family problems that should be looked into. Does anyone in your family have high blood pressure? If so, you may want to cut back on salt (just an example). See, sometimes it pays to live in a family full of medical people.
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Monday, April 30, 2007
College and Breakfast
Let’s face it; breakfast is a meal that is easily forgotten in college. Many just don’t make time for this important meal (or they wake in time for lunch). However, eating breakfast can help you get through your day better! Breakfast can be super easy and even eaten out of your dorm room.
Without a refrigerator or microwave: This severely limits the options but not completely. The least you can do is eat fruit. Buy bananas, oranges, apples, etc. Not only are you at least eating some, you are eating something healthy. You can also opt for granola bars. Finally, there are muffins and other baked goods. Muffins and other baked goods may not be the best but better than nothing. I am also a big fan of the grapefruit. Slice one in half and sprinkle a little sugar (or splenda) and enjoy!
If you are lucky and have a refrigerator, I recommend my favorite breakfast—yogurt. I buy fresh fruit, usually strawberries, slice them and have a fruit and yogurt parfait with granola. I am going to give my plug for natural foods because a lot of regular yogurt has high fructose corn syrup in it. Also, yogurt with active cultures is also good!
My breakfast: ½ C of sliced strawberries, 1 C of yogurt and ¼ C of granola. This is about 300 calories depending on the yogurt and granola. I like hemp or soy granola—good nutrients and a good taste.
Other good breakfast food from the refrigerator is of course cereal and milk. Opt for whole-wheat cereal (I like Kashi cereals). Also, add fruit to your cereal—more bang for you calories. If you choose cereal, watch how much you eat. A serving size ranges from ½ C to 1 C—without watching many people pour in over two cups.
If you are lucky and have a toaster—bagels, toast, and English muffins with a little peanut butter can be a good breakfast. Again, eat a piece of fruit (I like to throw fruit in whenever I can!)
If you only have access to a microwave, I recommend oatmeal. Add water and zap in the microwave for a bit. This is not only tasty but oatmeal provides much needed nutrients. I like the Kashi Vanilla Hot Cereal. Try adding some nuts for a little extra protein or again fruit!
If you end up eating in the cafeteria, get some eggs. The commercials do not lie about the incredible, edible egg. Try and avoid the pancakes, waffles, and hash browns—these are usually not the best choice.
Other good tips:
-go for whole wheat
-if you can get eggs to order, get an omelet (or scrambled) with lots of veggies (tomatoes, peppers, onions, mushrooms, etc.) I also like to eat egg whites (good protein, hardly any calories)
- Even though I recommend the bagel, be careful. Bagels and cream cheese can amount to a lot of calories!
-Drink milk! Whether soy or skim milk, there are nutrients that you need!
Without a refrigerator or microwave: This severely limits the options but not completely. The least you can do is eat fruit. Buy bananas, oranges, apples, etc. Not only are you at least eating some, you are eating something healthy. You can also opt for granola bars. Finally, there are muffins and other baked goods. Muffins and other baked goods may not be the best but better than nothing. I am also a big fan of the grapefruit. Slice one in half and sprinkle a little sugar (or splenda) and enjoy!
If you are lucky and have a refrigerator, I recommend my favorite breakfast—yogurt. I buy fresh fruit, usually strawberries, slice them and have a fruit and yogurt parfait with granola. I am going to give my plug for natural foods because a lot of regular yogurt has high fructose corn syrup in it. Also, yogurt with active cultures is also good!
My breakfast: ½ C of sliced strawberries, 1 C of yogurt and ¼ C of granola. This is about 300 calories depending on the yogurt and granola. I like hemp or soy granola—good nutrients and a good taste.
Other good breakfast food from the refrigerator is of course cereal and milk. Opt for whole-wheat cereal (I like Kashi cereals). Also, add fruit to your cereal—more bang for you calories. If you choose cereal, watch how much you eat. A serving size ranges from ½ C to 1 C—without watching many people pour in over two cups.
If you are lucky and have a toaster—bagels, toast, and English muffins with a little peanut butter can be a good breakfast. Again, eat a piece of fruit (I like to throw fruit in whenever I can!)
If you only have access to a microwave, I recommend oatmeal. Add water and zap in the microwave for a bit. This is not only tasty but oatmeal provides much needed nutrients. I like the Kashi Vanilla Hot Cereal. Try adding some nuts for a little extra protein or again fruit!
If you end up eating in the cafeteria, get some eggs. The commercials do not lie about the incredible, edible egg. Try and avoid the pancakes, waffles, and hash browns—these are usually not the best choice.
Other good tips:
-go for whole wheat
-if you can get eggs to order, get an omelet (or scrambled) with lots of veggies (tomatoes, peppers, onions, mushrooms, etc.) I also like to eat egg whites (good protein, hardly any calories)
- Even though I recommend the bagel, be careful. Bagels and cream cheese can amount to a lot of calories!
-Drink milk! Whether soy or skim milk, there are nutrients that you need!
The Starbucks Addiction...
Like a lot of college students, I have a coffee (and baked goods) addiction. Fueling the fire, I live within five miles of at least seven Starbucks and fifteen other various coffee shops. No plug intended, Starbucks is a great place to do homework when the school library just doesn’t work. The problem becomes, ordering a drink and a muffin and soon become you eating (and drinking) half to all of your recommended daily calories. Here is a good way to curb that!
For example: Grande Mocha- 400 calories
Grande white Chocolate mocha- 510
Grande Mocha Frappuccino- 420
How to slim down a drink (and still remain tasty)
I understand that not everyone can enjoy black coffee like I do. So, here is way of slimming down a drink at Starbucks. I use to order a Grande Vanilla Latte (around 320 calories)
Step one: Ask yourself—do you really need a grande or is a tall going to satisfy your craving? If you decide on a tall, subject 80 calories (down to 240)
Step two: Do you normally drink whole milk? I drink skim milk on a regular basis but when I went to Starbucks I didn’t bother to change milk. Ask for non-fat milk instead of whole milk, this will subtract another 70 calories. (down to 170)
Step three: This is up to you, but I find no difference in the taste. Many places you can ask for sugar free syrup in place of regular. The drink is still the tasty vanilla latte without the added calories of the previous sugar. Depending on the number of pumps of flavor put into the drink this can save 20 to 80 calories.
So, the next time you are at Starbucks, I recommend a tall non-fat, sugar free, vanilla latte. Oh- and don’t forget to leave off the whip cream (that adds up to 130 calories.)
Each of these hints can work on almost any drink—any little adjustment helps. This also works at other coffee places, I just chose Starbucks because that happens to be where I go!
The other issue is food. Now that we have slimmed down that drink of yours, the cookie is the next problem. Depending on where you live, different Starbucks carry different food items. When you are on the go or craving something sweet, Starbucks has a good selection. The only problem is what the sweets are hiding. I love scones and always have. The only problem is scones are very, very high in calories and fat. Luckily at Starbucks, trans fat and high fructose corn syrup (I will explain later why I hate these) are non-existent. So, we are left with calories, fat, and sugar.
My favorite coffee companion is the biscotti. These pre-packed treats can range in amount of calories but the ones at my local Starbucks are around 150 calories. These are a good way to satisfy your sweet tooth.
I grew up in a household where the low-fat/no-fat diet craze hit so when I decided to eat healthy, I scoffed at low-fat foods. However, at Starbucks, I find them tasty and often lower in calories than regular items. These include low-fat muffins and reduced fat coffee cakes. I like the low-fat blueberry muffin because the calories are lower, there is no saturated fat, and the muffin has less than 300 calories.
Be careful when the items are scones and cookies, they can hide a lot. I use to each the cinnamon scone like it was my job until I found out that one scone had over 500 calories!
When eating the bakery items, portion control can be your best friend (more on portion control later). If you absolutely want that chocolate chip cookie (470 calories), break the cookie in half and save for later or give to a friend.
For example: Grande Mocha- 400 calories
Grande white Chocolate mocha- 510
Grande Mocha Frappuccino- 420
How to slim down a drink (and still remain tasty)
I understand that not everyone can enjoy black coffee like I do. So, here is way of slimming down a drink at Starbucks. I use to order a Grande Vanilla Latte (around 320 calories)
Step one: Ask yourself—do you really need a grande or is a tall going to satisfy your craving? If you decide on a tall, subject 80 calories (down to 240)
Step two: Do you normally drink whole milk? I drink skim milk on a regular basis but when I went to Starbucks I didn’t bother to change milk. Ask for non-fat milk instead of whole milk, this will subtract another 70 calories. (down to 170)
Step three: This is up to you, but I find no difference in the taste. Many places you can ask for sugar free syrup in place of regular. The drink is still the tasty vanilla latte without the added calories of the previous sugar. Depending on the number of pumps of flavor put into the drink this can save 20 to 80 calories.
So, the next time you are at Starbucks, I recommend a tall non-fat, sugar free, vanilla latte. Oh- and don’t forget to leave off the whip cream (that adds up to 130 calories.)
Each of these hints can work on almost any drink—any little adjustment helps. This also works at other coffee places, I just chose Starbucks because that happens to be where I go!
The other issue is food. Now that we have slimmed down that drink of yours, the cookie is the next problem. Depending on where you live, different Starbucks carry different food items. When you are on the go or craving something sweet, Starbucks has a good selection. The only problem is what the sweets are hiding. I love scones and always have. The only problem is scones are very, very high in calories and fat. Luckily at Starbucks, trans fat and high fructose corn syrup (I will explain later why I hate these) are non-existent. So, we are left with calories, fat, and sugar.
My favorite coffee companion is the biscotti. These pre-packed treats can range in amount of calories but the ones at my local Starbucks are around 150 calories. These are a good way to satisfy your sweet tooth.
I grew up in a household where the low-fat/no-fat diet craze hit so when I decided to eat healthy, I scoffed at low-fat foods. However, at Starbucks, I find them tasty and often lower in calories than regular items. These include low-fat muffins and reduced fat coffee cakes. I like the low-fat blueberry muffin because the calories are lower, there is no saturated fat, and the muffin has less than 300 calories.
Be careful when the items are scones and cookies, they can hide a lot. I use to each the cinnamon scone like it was my job until I found out that one scone had over 500 calories!
When eating the bakery items, portion control can be your best friend (more on portion control later). If you absolutely want that chocolate chip cookie (470 calories), break the cookie in half and save for later or give to a friend.
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