Sunday, November 9, 2014

8 Tiny Dietary Changes That Can Make A Difference

This week's challenge is coming straight from one of the blog posts of one of my favorite nutrition writers Monica Reinagel. One of the reasons I love Monica’s tips as “Nutrition Diva” is that she is actually a credentialed dietician. In fact my daughter (the dietician) was excited to run into Monica this month at the National Dietetics Meeting in Atlanta.

This particular topic from Monica features easy ways to upgrade the nutritional quality of your diet. She says “I'm not talking about curing your own wild game or grinding your own sprouted flour.”Instead she shares 8 simple tweaks to regular foods and meals that, when practiced consistently, can really make a difference in your overall nutrition.

Let’s look at Monica’s suggestions and see how many of these we can incorporate into our regular routine? Don’t think “weekly challenge” but instead consider “permanent life changes." Personally I actually follow 6 of these all of the time and one often. Guess which one I don’t participate in!

Easy Upgrade #1: Spread Your Bread with Protein
I don't usually eat bread for breakfast but if I do decide to have toast or a bagel, I try to spread it with nut butter instead of butter or cream cheese. That way, at least I'm getting some extra fiber, protein, and healthy fats for the same number of calories.

Easy Upgrade #2: Go Greek
Choose plain Greek yogurt instead of regular yogurt and get twice the protein, which usually translates into more time before you get hungry again.
I know Greek yogurt is more expensive than regular yogurt, but because it saves me from needing a mid-morning snack, I figure it all comes out in the wash. 

Easy Upgrade #3: Grate Your Way to Greatness

I don't make muffins or pancakes as often as I used to on the weekends because I'm trying to regulate the amount of sugar in my diet. But when I do haul out the griddle or muffin pan, I also get out the vegetable grater and grate a raw carrot or zucchini or two into the batter for added moistness and a little extra vegetable nutrition. 

 Easy Upgrade #4: Milk it for All It's Worth
If you're making oatmeal or any other hot cereal, use milk or soymilk (personally I prefer hemp or coconut milk) instead of water. Alternatively, you can also stir a scoop of powdered milk or whey protein (and I prefer Pea, hemp or cranberry protein) powder into water. Not only does it make the cereal extra creamy but you also up the ante in terms of protein and calcium. 
 Easy Upgrade #5: Look for Greener Pastures

When choosing salad greens, zero in on the darker varieties. In addition to being more flavorful, they are more nutritious.
I often buy hearts of romaine lettuce - I'm sure you've seen them in the grocery - because they seem to keep so well in the fridge. But if you look at a few packages, you'll see that the lettuce ranges from almost white to dark green. Go for the darkest ones you can find. Likewise, at the salad bar, skip the pale, flavorless lettuce and go for the spring mix, mesclun, and baby spinach. 

Easy Upgrade #6: Roll in the Green
Ordering from an Asian restaurant? Instead of the deep-fried egg rolls, choose lettuce rolls instead. You can also use large leaves of lettuce instead of torillas to make sandwich roll-ups or to stand in for the top slice of bread on a sandwich.

Easy Upgrade #7: Sideline the Fries
Casual restaurant meals often come with a huge pile of fries on the side, because fries are cheap and filling and most people enjoy them. But most restaurants will, if you ask, substitute the vegetable of the day for the fries. Now, I'm not going to lie to you and say I never eat French fries. I do eat them occasionally. But about 80% of the time, I sub in a vegetable for those deep fried ...and that adds up to a lot fewer French fries in my life. 
Easy Upgrade #8: Eat Chocolate (Yes, That's Right)
If you're going to have some chocolate, choose the darkest chocolate you can enjoy. The darker the chocolate, the less sugar it contains and the more healthy flavanols. If you're someone who enjoys super dark chocolate, such as those with 70% or higher cacao, that's great. If your tastes run more to milk chocolate, you can still upgrade by choosing a slightly darker chocolate than usual. Try one with 40% cacao. Over time, you might even find that you start to enjoy darker chocolates (and your waistline will thank you).

Our challenge for this week is to incorporate at least one of these healthy living tips into your life every day this week. For every day you do so you can earn 5 bonus points.  I had the questions "Does that mean we can eat chocolate even when it's not our sugar day?" I guess for this week the answer is yes. If you can fit it in your daily calorie allowance you can have a small piece of dark chocolate daily. But please don't have that be the only change you make.  Let's step up many of our daily habits for healthier eating!  

And note: I offer 5 additional bonus points for a total of 40 available this week if you determine a healthy living habit you have either adopted or want to adopt and share it in the comments section below! 


31 comments:

  1. So does this mean if we do eat some dark chocolate it doesn't count as a sugar day?

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  2. I am going to adopt #6 and of course #8 -
    #6 - I have removed one or two pieces of bread from my sandwiches from time to time, but subbing in lettuce sounds like a great idea! I also want to try using lettuce as a tortilla.
    #8 - I do prefer dark chocolate, but I think the highest percentage of cacao I have tried is 45% (Hershey's Special Dark). I learned that Hershey's has an Extra Dark Chocolate that is 60%, so I want to try that and then I want to try to find something that is 70% or greater to try per the suggestion above.

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  4. I often throw away just the top of my bun! I don't eat much fast food (and don't eat ANY beef) but when I go to Chickfilet I throw away the top bun. It seems bigger and fluffier and more calorie laden. And it tastes just as good with only the bottom. If I have a tuna sandwich I also eat it open face

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  5. I love to make lasagna using zucchini instead of noodles. I slice the zucchini lengthwise, sprinkle with salt to pull out moisture, wipe with a paper towel, then cook zucchini in a frying pan, then layer with sauce like you would noodles. It's a lot of steps but it helps prevent a soggy lasagna! It is so good!! I got the recipe on skinnyyaste.com -Amy Averett

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  6. I drink a large glass of water before every meal so I am less hungry and eat less. Katie Stowers

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  7. When I make muffins, I substitute unsweetened applesauce for half the oil and then reduce the amount of sugar I add.

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  8. I often add shredded cabbage, freshly cut or from the bag, to soup as I am heating it up. The cabbage pretty much takes on the flavor of the soup/chili and adds very few calories, a nice texture, and lots of volume. And it is an easy way to get one more veggie in for the day. (Yesterday I heated one cup of homemade chili and one cup cabbage together. It was yummy!)

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  9. I always us the "skinny bread" at our house--45 calories a slice--then do open face sandwich or half a sandwich, still plenty! I love the ideas above me--I plan to try putting the cabbage in chili!

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  10. When I eat dinner I serve my food on a kids plate to aid in portion control. Also, when I'm finished I immediately clear my plate and then rejoin the family for conversation. Helps to eliminate the temptation and ease of "seconds". (Amy Bemis)

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  11. I substitute spaghetti squash for pasta when we eat spaghetti. I have learned to prefer it and now grow it in my garden. The squash keeps all winter long in my cold storage. I also use ground turkey instead of ground beef in my spaghetti sauce. We've actually completely converted to ground turkey, using it in all the recipes where I used to use ground beef.

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  12. I usually eat a lot in the morning and by dinner time I try to eat a lighter dinner. Then I stop eating after 5:30. Most of my calories are eaten by 2.
    On my sweet days I also try to find more raw type of deserts. Homemade is so much better for you! Emily Viveros

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  13. A few of my favorite healthy snacks are........ a banana with a scoop of peanut butter! Another one is squeezing a lime and sprinkling some salt on top of sliced cucumbers. I also love slicing up some strawberries and grapes, and adding some lite vanilla yogurt on top!! Enjoy!! - Stephanie Nilson

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  14. I like to add a serving of peanut butter to my oatmeal. It adds some extra protein to my breakfast and makes my oatmeal extra creamy.

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  15. from Suzanne-
    I always ask for sour cream or mayo to be removed from my order. And I don't use them at home. If a recipe calls for sour cream I use Greek yogurt.
    Suzanne

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  16. from Ariane Johnson
    I like to use pico de gallo instead of salad dressing on my salads. It has a great flavor, adds some moisture, and gets more fresh veggies in! A 2 tablespoon serving has only 5 calories, and of course zero fat.

    I also love to use almond milk on my cereal. A one cup serving has only 30 calories, and 45% of daily recommended calcium. (Almond Breeze unsweetened vanilla almond milk.) By contrast, a one cup serving of skim milk has 80 calories, and only 30% of daily calcium. It might be an acquired taste at first, but now I much prefer it to cow's milk.

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  17. A few challenges back Sandee asked to stop the soda. I thought I would die but I stopped for the week and now RARELY drink a soda. I love my water and don't miss the bloated feeling from the soda!

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  18. I started buying the very thin sliced 100% whole wheat bread, cuts calories (2 slices for 76 calories) but you still get whole grains and fiber. I also use hummus as a sandwich spread, it adds protein and a variety of flavor options.

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  19. I use eggplant in stead of noodles for lasagna. The eggplant enhances the Italian flavor. I prepare the eggplant like Amy prepares her zucchini.

    I like toast and peanut butter for breakfast. I make my own whole wheat bread and slice it paper thin. I have found 1 Table spoon of peanut butter goes a long way when you spread it while the toast is really warm. Like wise I have started warming up my Velveeta cheese. .02 or .03 oz will spread over a whole piece of bread when it is soft add some grilled onions or other veggies and you have a great grilled cheese sandwich

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  20. I had the best fajitas -- lots of grilled onions and green peppers with just a little meat wrapped in a lettuce leaf instead of a tortilla

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  21. I just made some delicious cauliflower "faux-tatos". its taken a couple of tries to get them just right to how i like them, but it was worth the experimenting! fresh garlic, a tad bit of fat free cream cheese for creaminess ( it just takes a tiny amount) and some sea salt and a dash of unsweetened almond milk and it was delicious! theres tons of recipes for it on pinterest. its one of my favorite swaps to cut down carbs!

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  22. When eating dinner if I still feel like might be hungry after clearing my plate I head back to the veggies before taking another helping of the main course.

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  23. Karen's computer wouldn't let her post a comment last night, so she ask me to post for her. But I didn't get her text till this morning. Anyway, Karen likes to heat up some edename in the microwave when she wants a snack and doesn't want to eat the vegetable she still needs. It fills both needs.

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  24. I spread my protein with hummus. I used it on toast and I made sandwiches with hummus and baby spinach. I also sidelined my French fries. I also grated carrots into some of my meals this week.

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  25. this tip was shared by Angela Jackman (Thanks Angela)
    The new habit I have adopted this time around is we have started making our sandwiches substituting romaine lettuce in place of bread. We find it has good flavor so no spread is needed. My favorite is the lettuce leaves, turkey, peppers, purple onion, cilantro, and avocado. My husband prefers this over a sandwich made with bread because it is not so dry.

    The second thing I do when cooking is I substitute greek yogurt in place of sour cream. It is more filling and much healthier.

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  26. To get myfruit in and satisfy my ice cream craving I blend frozen banana chunks with almond milk and some peanut butter powder. This also works well with any fruit and cinnamon is also really yummy. Try it!

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  27. From :Marilyn (thanks so much!)
    I like brown rice, but my family does not. I cook a pot full and freeze individual servings for me to use.

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  28. From Christine Gilbert (Thanks Christine!)
    Buy big bags of spinach at Costco. Divide the spinach into 13 bags. Throw in 1 tablespoon flaxseed, some almonds (or PB powder) in each one. Place half of the bags in the freezer and keep half in the fridge. When I'm ready to make a morning smoothie, I pull out a bag, pour almond/coconut milk in the blender, 1/2 banana and 1/2 c greek yogurt and some lemon juice and I'm set. This green smoothie keeps me full all morning. It's quick and I know I'm going to get my veggies, calcium and some protein first thing of the day.

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  29. I like to buy large amounts of fruit and some veggies and juice them. Freeze the fresh juice in ice cube trays and use them for smoothies. 3 juice cubes, spinach, chia seed, greek yogurt, and a little milk to make it drinkable - blend and go! The individual blender cups are the best invention in the world!

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  30. Also like using chia seeds as an egg substitute. http://www.foodrenegade.com/how-make-egg-substitute-chia-seeds/

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