New Idea For Tracking Nutrition

Actually it's not a new idea at all. One time, quite a few years back, I went to an Overeaters Anonymous meeting with my sister. In OA they have you write down your food before you eat it. The standard method these days is to write down everything that you eat after you eat it. That does work for a lot of people but some people need more guidance then that. It does take more planning too.

What you need to do is start a notebook, not for tracking but for planning. Planning what your going to eat tackles the impulse eating that people can easily fall into. It's the same theory as shopping. If you want to stay on a budget you stick to your list. You don't buy anything that is not on your list. The cool part is nobody is telling you not to eat (or buy) whatever it is. It just means you can't eat it today. If you really want it later then write it on your menu for the next day. The likelihood is that you won't want it once you step away from the situation.

This is going to sound funny but make sure you plan to eat enough food. When you write it out it can look like an awful lot of food. I also suggest that you start with pretty strict portion control. I know that sounds tedious but one of things that has proven true is that people underestimate what they eat. Once you develop an eye for portion size you may be able to relax a little bit.

People who know me know that I do not write out diets for my clients. It has been proven that people won't stay on a 'diet'. In order to maintain weight loss you have to make a life-style change. If you hate broccoli and I tell you to eat broccoli not only will you be unhappy but eventually you will most likely give up.

Okay. So go find a nice notebook and start planning. It is best to do it the night before. Look through your fridge and write down what you are going to eat the next day. Write down the time of day as well that way you will be reassured that you won't go hungry for any length of time. In general I eat at 7am, 10am, around 1:30pm, 5pm and 8:30pm. Write down as many 'meals' as you want, only you know when you are most likely to get hungry.

Nutrition For February 25th, 2011

A lot of women ask me how to control bloat. Our weight can fluctuate 5 lbs either way, on a daily basis. It is discouraging to weigh yourself and see that you are up 3 lbs when you have been working out like crazy and eating a healthy diet.

The way to control bloat is to watch your refined carbs. One gram of starchy carbs holds four grams of water, which is one of the reasons I adhere to a lower carb diet. I mainly stay between 50-100 grams of carbs a day and I stay far away from anything starchy (rice, bread of any kind, potatoes, etc. Oh yeah and SUGAR!). I do eat Fiber One every morning but the amount of fiber in that cereal lowers the the amount of carbs that you count toward your daily total. I'm sure you have heard the phrase 'impact carbs'. The amount of impact carbs in any given food is grams of total carbs - grams of fiber. For example a serving on Fiber One is 1/2 cup. It contains 25 grams of carbs and 14 grams of fiber. 25 - 14 = 11 grams of impact carbs.

Here is my nutrition intake for 2/25/11:

On this particular day I took my kids out for lunch so it shows what you can do if you do the same thing.


Breakfast
Muscle Milk Protein Bar
Snack
100 calorie pack of almonds
2 ounces of cheddar cheese

Lunch
Triple stack hamburger
3 pieces of American cheese
1/2 a hamburger bun

Snack
2 chicken thighs (just the meat from a teriyaki place that I had left over from the day before)

Dinner
2 fried chicken wings
1/4 cup rice
1 Bourbon and soda

Total calories: 2,277
Total carbs : 57 grms
Total Protein: 176

I am not suggesting that you eat the way that I do. A couple people commented on the fact that I eat no fruit and almost no vegetables. That's true. I do try to get more leafy greens in my diet on a daily basis. I manage to do that about three times a week in the form of spinach, broccoli and lettuce. Yes, you should eat vegetables but I do suggest that you are careful with how much fruit you eat. Research shows that the body still recognizes fruit as sugar.

Chicken "Bouillabaisse"

Here's a great cold weather meal that's super tasty.

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 medium fennel bulb
2 cans (14-16 ounces) Italian-style stewed tomatoes
3/4 teaspoon crushed saffron threads
2 teaspoons bottled chopped garlic in oil
Salt and pepper

Cut the chicken into 3/4 inch cubes. Trim the fennel, halve lengthwise and cut into thin slices.

In a large nonreactive saucepan, combine the tomatoes with their juices, the fennel and 4 cups of water. Cover the saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil for 2 minutes.

Add the chicken and saffron threads to the soup, reduce the heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, until the chicken is white but still moist in the center, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic in oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.


It freezes really well for an even quicker meal later.

Salmon Fillets With Sauteed Cucumber

I'm not a big fish eater but I do like firm fish so salmon is right up my alley. I never knew how to cook it except the boring salt-pepper-and-broil method. This recipe has a great twist - sauteed cucumbers! Cucumbers become very sweet when sauteed with a little butter and they compliment salmon very nicely.



4 salmon fillets (6-8 ounces each)
2 medium cucumbers
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried
Salt and pepper to taste


Season the salmon fillets with salt and pepper. Place them on a broiler pan. Preheat the broiler.

Peel the cucumbers. Quarter them lengthwise. With the tip of a spoon, scrape out the seeds. Cut crosswise into 3/4 inch dice.

Place salmon under the broiler about 4 inches from the heat. Broil until just opaque in the center, 5-7 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the cucumbers and dill and cook, stirring, until the cucumbers are heated through, 1-2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve the cucumbers with the salmon.