School’s Out!

As a native of Cape Cod (born and raised in Hyannis), I have always loved summer and the things that come with it – time to play outside on a hot day when school ended, the beach and the sound of the ocean. As an adult, I still love the summer season, however, now with children of my own, and the anticipation of “mom, I’m bored, what are we doing today?” – taking a break from our everyday routine can be daunting. Especially when with the summer season in New England comes tempting foods such as creamy clam chowder, soft serve ice cream and fried seafood.

This time of year is meant to be enjoyed and doesn’t have to be stressful if you’re trying to lose or maintain your weight. The key is planning ahead! Taking a road trip this July? Make sure you have packed your cooler and looked into restaurant choices along your route. Heading to the beach or the baseball fields? Keep your cooler handy for cold water, cut up veggies and a nice big salad for lunch or dinner. Planning ahead and trying not to be too stressed out about what will be served at a party will help you stay on track. And, don’t forget to pack your protein bars and powdered shakes in your trusty cooler. Protein and fiber will help you to stay full and ward off those sugar cravings – leave the ice cream man for the kids!

5 Things Nutritionists Want You to Know

With all that we hear from news media and recent findings it’s a challenge to know what we should be eating these days.  Good news, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) has come out with their recent report and the message is clear – the importance of a healthy overall dietary pattern.  Here’s what the experts want you to know:

1.     Dietary patterns are more important than specific foods – Essentially, we want to focus on the whole picture rather than a specific food.  A healthy dietary pattern should consist mostly of vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes, whole grains, low-fat or nonfat dairy, and seafood, and should be lower in red and processed meats, sugar-sweetened foods and drinks, as well as refined carbohydrates.  In addition, total fat is no longer a concern, but the type of fat is, so limit foods high in saturated fat like meat and whole fat dairy.  Instead, try choosing polyunsaturated fats like vegetable oils.

2.    Cholesterol found in foods is not a contributing factor to unhealthy blood cholesterol – It’s important to know that the cholesterol found in foods like eggs and shrimp differs from the LDL cholesterol in your blood that does affect heart disease.  Instead, it’s been found that saturated fat can contribute to heart disease.  With that in mind, replace saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats such as liquid vegetable oils.

3.    Drinking coffee may be good for you – Evidently, drinking upwards of 3 to 5 cups daily (about 400 milligrams of caffeine) was correlated with very little health risk. Studies also found that coffee drinkers had a lower risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.  If you’re a coffee drinker keep drinking, just eliminate the sugar and cream. 

4.    Reduce added sugars – First off there is no benefit from a high level of intake.  Also, there has been mounting evidence pointing to the adverse effects of added sugars in our diets.  It has been suggested to limit added sugars to no more than 10% of daily calories.

5.    Consuming more plants is not only better for us, but also our planet – This is the first time the committee addressed sustainability.  It looks like a diet that is high in plants is environmentally friendly too. There have even been recommendations to start thinking about what is sustainable.

You can read the full report online at www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015-scientific-report.

Reference:  5 Things the Nation’s Nutrition Experts Want You to Know Now, Health & Nutrition Letter, Tufts University, (pp.1&3.).

Self-Directed Change

You’ve heard that practice and good coaching are necessary to make changes.  Did you also know that self-monitoring, self-evaluation, and self-reinforcement are other tools that you can use to help you successfully make behavioral changes? Let’s talk more about what these are:

Self-Monitoring – this is an activity where you notice any behavior that you would like to change.  For example, it can be one that you currently do in excess and want to decrease such as eating junk food when watching TV. It can also be one that you would like to incorporate into your lifestyle like exercising.  In order to self-monitor you’ll need a way to keep track of its frequency and duration.

Self-Evaluation – This involves comparing the results that you recorded when you were self-monitoring to the goals which you had in place.

 

Self-Reinforcement and Action Planning – This focuses on your reaction to your results of self-evaluation.  If you reached your goal (example – exercising 4 times per week) then you receive a reward (example – watching your favorite t.v. show) and the behavior is continued.  However, if you do not reach your goal then it’s time to think about what prevented you from achieving it.

We use these tools at Ideal Weight Loss Center to help you not only achieve your weight loss goal, but also to help you continue to maintain your weight.  To learn more contact us for an appointment.