Eating Out & Eating Healthy

Eating out does not automatically translate to unhealthy eating if smart strategies are employed consistently. The solid suggestions below are provided from mypyramid.gov.  These suggestions can steer you in the right direction and help you establish some basic eating guidelines.  See what you are already doing or should be doing...

• As a beverage choice, ask for water or order fat-free or low-fat milk, unsweetened tea, or other drinks without added sugars.
• Ask for whole-wheat bread for sandwiches.
• Start meal with a salad packed with veggies, to help control hunger and feel satisfied sooner.
• Ask for salad dressing to be served on the side. Then use only as much as you want.
• Choose main dishes that include vegetables, such as stir-fries, kebobs, or pasta with marina sauce.
• Order steamed, grilled, or broiled dishes instead of those fried, or sautéed.
• Choose a "small" or "medium" portion. This includes main dishes, side dishes and beverages.
• Order an item from the menu instead of heading for the "all you can eat" buffet.
• If main portions at a restaurant are larger than you want, try one of these strategies to keep from overeating:
• Order an appetizer or side dish instead of entrée.
• Share a main dish with a friend.
• If you can chill the extra food right away, take leftovers home in a doggy bag.
• When your food is delivered, set aside or pack half of it to go immediately.
• Resign from the "clean your plate club" when you’ve eaten enough, leave the rest.
• To keep your meal moderate in calories, fat, and sugars:
• Ask for salad dressing to be served on the side so you can add only as much as you want.
• Order foods that do not have creamy sauces or gravies.
• Add little or no butter to your food.
• Choose fruits for dessert most often.
• On long commutes or shopping trips, pack some fresh fruit, cut-up vegetables, low-fat string cheese sticks, or a handful of unsalted nuts to help you avoid stopping for sweet or fatty snacks.

　Source: www.mypyramid.gov

Eating Awareness and a Healthier You

Most active women require about 2000kcal per day, and men around 2500kcal to manage their weight.  If you are sedentary, or trying to lose weight, then caloric intake should be substantially less.  I will get more into the "numbers" of weight loss in a future blog.  Instead, today, I would like to encourage all trying to embrace a healthier lifestyle to bring more awareness to their eating habits.  Here are some points to consider:

• Do you live your life one meal at a time? Instead, try to think about your whole day in advance.  Will you be eating in, out or both? Will you be having cocktails and a lavish dessert later? We tend to overeat with a one meal at a time approach, but looking ahead offers opportunity to better balance calories consumed at each meal. If you want to enjoy a large dinner, then scale back on other meals. Or, as another example, make caloric trade-offs such as appetizers and no cocktails, or vice versa. The key is to make these choices and plan in advance of actual meal times/events.
• Do not confuse thirst for hunger. If you are at all thirsty, you are already dehydrated. Hydrate first, then eat.
• Try conscious eating at one meal. Slow down and chew your food. Eat a meal and do so without combining another activity like watching TV. What signals do your body give you that you are getting full? Most of us don't know the answer because we are combining eating with other activities.
• Try food journaling. Doing this for just one day can offer revealing info. There is usually a disconnect with what ends up on paper vs. what we "think" we are doing. Chances are also strong that there is a major shift between weekday & weekend eating habits. Visit mypyramid.gov and livestrong.com for additional diet tracking tools.

In summary, raising awareness of eating behaviors is the first step to a healthier lifestyle.  Negative behaviors can be changed once acknowledged to exist. Self-monitoring, self-education and conscious eating provide opportunity for good health to establish priority, and this leads to successful outcomes.