Your Weekly Challenge: Don't Be a Distracted Eater

Do you eat in front of the TV?  Or read the paper during breakfast?  Or do you have lunch with your coworkers during meetings?

 

If so, you might want to rethink your potentially hazardous habit.

I know I'm guilty myself.  I truly believe that I can multi-task well. If I'm home alone, why sit at my table by myself to eat when I can watch the evening news and/or dine in the "company" of  my Facebook or Twitter friends at the same time?   I can listen in on a conference call while eating.  Why take time out to do just one thing?

Here's why.  According to a UK review of 24 past studies, if you eat meals or snacks while watching TV, playing video games or reading (a book or online) you are likely taking in more calories during that meal, especially if this happens later in the day.  This may not be a problem if you are happy with your current weight, but if you want to shed a few pounds, this isn't going to help you reach your goals.

My challenge this week?  Be present.  Be mindful.  And think before you eat.

How do you get started?  Meetings over lunch may be unavoidable, especially those mandated by your manager; however, on your own time, you can choose your surroundings for meals and social events to make the situation work in your favor.  Start with these 3 steps:

1.  Turn off the TV, the smartphones and the tablets.  Whether you have a family at home, roommates, or it's just you, turn it off.  Focus on the smell, the flavors and how full you feel instead.  It might be a little awkward at first, but if you are with friends or family, this might actually force you to talk to each other.  (A+ for those who already do this!)

2.  Don't eat in the car.  I know it's tempting to take your coffee and/or breakfast to go in the car for that hour-long commute in the morning.  If you simply don't have time to eat before hitting the road, take your breakfast to go, sip your coffee in the car, and eat the food you brought once you get to the office.  Not only does this make you a more mindful eater, but you'll be a more alert driver and your car won't need as many trips to the car wash vacuum either.

3.  Take your own snack to the theatre.  Movie theatres are a perfect example of distracted eating.  You buy a bag of popcorn and a drink, the movie begins and before you know it - it's gone.  I made this mistake one day with movie theatre candy.  I hadn't eaten lunch and stupidly thought I'd just sub the calories and splurge on one of my favorites. I managed to eat the entire box. Yes, the movie theatre size box.  And my stomach wasn't the same for the next 24 hours.  If you want a treat, pack a small snack in a ziploc bag in advance and a bottle of water.  And carry a big purse. 

How do you focus on eating healthy?  Share your tips on our Facebook page!

Today's challenge: #MeatlessMonday

My veggie burger and salad in Vancouver, BC last summer.

Boot camp is back! After a week off for Spring Break, I'm sure many of you - including vets - were feeling the effects today. 

This week's challenge is actually a monthly challenge.  For each Monday during the next 4 weeks of boot camp, I challenge each of you to make it a meatless monday. 

I actually started doing this not long ago myself.  Last Monday I had these delicious black bean wraps with avocado salsa.  This week's dinner?  Good Measure Meals fresh, locally-prepared vegetarian meatloaf with parsley potatoes and roasted Brussels sprouts.  Yum.

Why go meatless? 

According to the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins, Americans consume 8 ounces of meat per day on average (including processed meats, beef, pork, poultry, fish and game meats) – 45% more than recommended. Going meatless just one day a week can make a difference - and even reduce your risk of  cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.

 

Not only is going meatless once a week good for your health, but it can also help limit your carbon footprint - saving resources like fresh water and fossil fuels.

Why Monday?

Monday is the first day of the week, making it the perfect time to plan our meals, evaluate our food choices and set our plans for the coming week.  

 

Make each Monday meatless and you have an automatic reminder to start your week off on a nutritious note. Every week becomes another opportunity to focus on health.

But I love my morning chicken sausage and turkey bacon! 

Try a vegetarian sausage and/or vegetarian bacon instead, or substitute eggs for meat.  Make eggs healthier by using 1 egg + 1 egg white instead of 2 eggs.

I eat a sandwich everyday for lunch and I can't imagine one without meat! 
Make a peanut butter sandwich with banana instead of jelly or try almond or cashew butter for a different flavor.  Not a nut fan or have a nut allergy?   Try filling a wrap or whole wheat pita with veggies and hummus. 

My husband won't eat dinner without meat.   I don't see how this can work in my home?
Start out with vegetarian versions of familiar dishes.  Think eggplant parmesan, vegetarian lasagna, bean burritos or tacos, or a veggie plate with a rainbow of colors. 

Looking for ideas?  Try three of my favorite resources for meatless recipes!

Vegetarian Times
Cooking Light
Meatless Monday
 

Weekly Challenge #4 - Tap on an App!

 

As the saying goes, "Abs are made in the kitchen." 
It's week 4.  Perhaps you have reached your goals for this month.  Or perhaps you thought you should have seen better results?

If your boot camp attendance has been 100%, but you don't notice changes in your body OR the scale, it's time to take a look at what you are putting in your mouth.

One of my favorite tools to get started is a food journal.  Studies show that those who write down everything (yes, everything) they eat or drink have more success losing weight AND maintaining the weight loss. 

And if that's not enough incentive, technology has made food journaling a breeze. Just 10 years ago, when I asked clients to do a food journal, they would write it on notebook paper, then I would review it, enter it into a database and look at the results.  Smartphones and apps now make this simple for both me AND the client. 

What if I'm already very conscious of what I eat?  Why use an app?

Most apps have large databases of most foods.  Simply select the food or beverage you consume(d), quantify it, and the app does the magical math for you.  In the click of your mouse or button, you know exactly how much you've eaten.

Most people underestimate the number of calories they take in daily - yours truly included.  I'm always amazed when I use my food tracker just how quickly it all adds up.  Odds are - you are underestimating too. 

My favorite apps give you a calorie "budget" for the day based on the goals you enter along with your height, weight, age and gender.  As you enter your food, it subtracts the calories from your daily budget, so if you enter your food in real time, you always know how much you have left to "spend"...AKA "eat."

Which should you choose? 

I personally like Livestrong.com's My Plate best.  It's user friendly, syncs with your PC, and has a huge database of foods.  Other clients like LoseIt, My Fitness Pal, Spark People and Weight Watchers (members only).  

It truly doesn't matter which you use.  Just do it.

It's Time to Give Up... But Not on Boot Camp

It's week 3.  How are you feeling?  Did you do your boot camp homework over the weekend?  Did you try last week's challenge of trying a new fruit or vegetable?  

For Christians, Lent started last week with Ash Wednesday.  As it's common practice for many to give up or sacrifice something during this six week period, I thought it was fitting for this week's challenge as well - whether you are Christian or not. 

What should you give up and why?

• Think about giving up a food or drink you enjoy and eat too much of at one time.  For me, no doubt that's ice cream.   Ice cream was and still is a favorite among my entire family and I purposely buy a pint or single serving container to limit my portion.  And if it's chocolate?  I'm really in trouble.  For me, giving up ice cream is truly a sacrifice.

• Think about a rich food you consume too often that may be hindering your weight loss success.  The late afternoon candy bar, the fast food lunch every day, the sugar-filled donut each morning or the grande cafe latte with whole milk are all examples of diet sabbotagers.  Habits like these that set you back 300-500 calories in one serving can put a hault on reaching your goals - for your waistline and your finances.

• Think about giving up the impossible.  My friend Neil is currently "going vegan" for one month as a result of a New Year's bet.  He loves his green egg AND every last morsel of meat that he cooks up in it.  Many friends thought this was impossible (I'm sure he had his doubts too) but he's eating vegan and having success along the way.   A challenge like this not only  changes your perspective, but imagine the confidence you will gain in accomplishing something (even for a week) that you never thought you could do.

What will you give up for the next 7 days?  Tell us about your sacrifice on our Facebook page!

Weekly Challenge #2 – Try a New Fruit or Vegetable

Fresh beets

So you’ve survived week one.

How are you feeling?  If you are new to boot camp, is it getting any easier to wake up at 5am?  If you’ve been a boot camper for more than a month, are you still improving, or have you plateaued?  Do you still have goals to reach?

If you are a vet and boot camp is now a habit, congratulations!  But if what you put into your body has gotten the best of you, give this week’s challenge a try.

It's simple.  Try one new food this week.  Just one. 

If the one you try doesn’t agree with you, try another.  And consider making this a new habit – once a week, once a month or if you really aren’t the adventurous type – once a year. 

Not sure where to start?

Aim for the produce section at your favorite grocery store.  Not only are there hundreds of fruits and vegetables to choose from, but they are low in calories (great for weight loss) and packed full of nutrition.

If you are short on time and the type of person who grabs food on the go, be adventurous with fruit.  Check out fruits you’ve never tasted before, choose one, wash it and if you aren’t sure how to eat it – google it.

For the less adventurous, check out kiwi, papaya, mango or a fresh pear.  (Pears.  Seriously. I'm ashamed to say I only tasted fresh pears in the past year.  Thought I hated them because I tasted canned pears in my elementary school cafeteria.  Who knew?)  

If you have tried most fruits, aim for a different variety (i.e. if you always buy Bartlett pears, try an Asian pear, or if you love oranges, try a blood orange).  If you are more adventurous, check out a star fruit, dragon fruit, pomegranate, or passion fruit.  

I know what you're thinking.  Our local neighborhood grocery doesn't carry too many adventurous foods.  And you may be right.  So guess what?  Venture out of your comfort zone and take a trip to the DeKalb Farmer's Market, or Harry's in Marietta.  Your adventure will suddenly involve more than a new food! 

If you have more time on your hands and want to try cooking a new recipe, try a vegetable you haven’t had before.  If you feel you have tried many vegetables, try another variety of something like purple sweet potatoes, or orange cauliflower. 

And if you love most vegetables, try cooking one in a new way.  I hated Brussels sprouts for 30+ years until I had them roasted.  Now they're on my weekly grocery list.  Whatever vegetable you choose, be adventurous, google a recipe and give it a try.   

Share your new food experiment with your fellow boot campers by taking a pic and posting it to the Step It Up Facebook page. 

Weekly Nutrition Challenge #1 - Hydration

If you are new to boot camp, I know what you’re thinking.  What in the world am I doing getting up to workout at 5:30am? 

Two and half years ago I was right where you are.   But I committed to a month, and then one month turned into two, and before I knew it, two years had passed and my fitness level was better than it had been in over 5 years!

Fitness is one side of the coin, and eating well is the other.  Both fitness and good nutrition are important to health and if you are missing one part, you may miss out on reaching your goals.

Starting this month, I’m introducing a weekly nutrition challenge.  Your challenges will break bad habits and introduce you to new foods.  I challenge you to try each change for one week, and if it works for you, consider a month, if you feel better, consider 12 weeks.  And at the end of 12 weeks, you may have a new habit. 

Small changes add up over time and before you know it, you will be well on your way to eating well for life, rather than just following another diet that’s guaranteed to fail.

This week’s challenge:   Hydration (This is actually a 2-part challenge)

Part 1) Take in enough liquids

How much fluid should you drink? 

A good rule of thumb is to take your current weight in pounds and divide by 2.  This is the number of ounces of fluids you should have per day.  For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should take in 75 ounces of fluids per day. 

Which fluids are best? 

Try to make most of your fluids water, or a calorie-free beverage.   Unsweetened tea, coffee and club soda are other options if you aren’t a big fan of plain water.  Personally, I do best with water with a squeeze of fresh lemon, fresh lime or even a splash of OJ.   Find what tastes good to you – you’ll be more likely to stick with it!

Part 2) Avoid alcohol

Why no alcohol?  

·         Alcohol is a diuretic - it affects hormones that impact water reabsorption.

·         Alcohol has calories and few nutrients.  If you are trying to lose weight, this isn’t going to help.

·         Alcohol affects sleep.  A 5 am wakeup is tough enough sober, let alone with a hangover.

·         Alcohol increases your risk of injury.   A sprained ankle isn’t going to help you reach your fitness goals!

Are you up for this challenge?  Start today - calculate your water /fluids needs, then keep a reusable water bottle with you at all times.  Hold off on the alcohol this week, or better yet, try it for a month. 

To learn more, visit Alcohol: Friend or Foe? and/or Boot Camp Hydration 101. 

Eating Healthy on a College-Style Budget

When I was in college living off campus, the famous small packs of noodles sold 10 for $1.00.  I loaded up my cart (50 for $5.00!), along with frozen flavored pasta & veggie mixes, bagels and other varieties of noodles and rice with flavor packets.

I look back sadly on my eating habits during those days, now knowing so much more about good nutrition.  I might as well have been eating dust.  White noodles...with a salty flavor packet...likely infused with some not-so-good artificial ingredients and preservatives.  Yep, they filled me up, but did I get many vitamins, minerals and fiber alongside the calories from those meals?  Not so much...

Budget eating can be a challenge whether you are a student, post-grad trying to pay off school loans, a working professional hit hard by tough economic times, or if you are just plain frugal. 

Is it really possible to eat healthy on a budget?
The simple answer is yes.  There are a few tricks of the trade.  Not all of them may work for you, but even applying two or three will probably lead to some savings in your pocket!

1.  Buy nutrient-dense foods.  What does this mean?  Choose foods where you get the most vitamins, minerals, calories, protein and carbs per serving.  Nuts, eggs, peanut butter, yogurt, milk, fruits and vegetables are all good choices.  Nuts can be pricey, so buy in bulk or when on sale. 

2.  Buy small amounts of foods that spoil quickly.  Peanut butter, nuts and dried beans have a long shelf life, so stock up when you find a sale, or buy a large container at a wholesale club.  Buy fresh fruits and vegetables in small amounts that you know you will eat in the next 3-5 days.  Throwing spoiled produce away is like putting dollar bills down your garbage disposal!

3.  Replace meat with beans.  One pound of Laura's Lean Beef costs about $5.00 and provides four, four ounce servings.  A one pound bag of lentils costs about one dollar and will provide you with many more than four servings!

4.  Drink water.  Only water.  From the tap.  If you don't like your local water, use a filter. Juices, alcohol, sweet tea and sodas are simply extra calories that our bodies don't need that take extra dollars that we do need from our bank accounts.

5.  Make a pot of soup.   Any bean based soup is inexpensive when made with canned beans, but will be even cheaper if you use dried.  Chili, tortilla, lentil, vegetable - the varieties are endless! This only requires the forethought to soak the beans overnight, then you are ready to go.  If you choose lentils, there's no soaking needed.  As an example, I made chili this week. Ingredients included: 

2 (15oz) cans beans (store brand organic) = $1.78
48 oz can V-8 juice (store brand) = $2.19
2 (15oz) cans tomatoes with jalapenos (store brand) = $1.98
1 lb ground beef, 92% lean (Laura's Lean Beef) = $5
1 onion = $0.79
1 red bell pepper = $1.79
1 zucchini = $0.82
Spices (already had on hand, but you could just add salt and pepper)
Jiffy cornbread mix = $0.50 (need to add 1 egg and small amount of milk)
Total Cost: ~ $15.00
Number of Cups:  10

At one cup per serving, you have 10 servings @ $1.50 each including cornbread.    Even if you ate two cups per serving, the cost is roughly $3.00 per person and will still feed five.  With the exception of fast food, I cannot think of one time I've ever eaten at a restaurant for $3.00!

To cut the cost further, choosing dried non-organic beans over canned organic would be cheaper and going with the store brand meat (which I don't necessarily recommmend) would all lower the cost more.  Make it vegetarian by leaving out the meat and you save another $5. And if you can't eat chili for an entire week?  Freeze it and save for later.

But what if I'm trying to lose weight while eating on a budget?  
Cut your usual portion of food by one-third to one-half of what your normally eat or share your meal with a friend, spouse or coworker.  The good news?  Not only will your waistline start to shrink, but your tab at the grocery AND when dining out will magically shrink too!