1. Use smaller plates
2. Cut all sugar/sugary foods
3. Eliminate white flour
4. Go whole grain only
5. Measure all high calorie foods
6. Eat foods with fiber to make you fuller
7. Drink water or herbal tea with every meal
8. Get lean protein three times a day
9. Eat only at certain times throughout the day
10. Brush your teeth or chew gum to signal your body that eating is over
     

My favorite yogurt of all is Greek yogurt – Chobani plain, nonfat. It has 100 calories and 18 grams of protein. I add a little vanilla and stevia. It is extremely creamy and very thick. Yum!

My second favorite way to eat yogurt is to mix a cup of Dannon plain, nonfat yogurt with a cup of fresh fruit (like strawberries, peaches, or blueberries). I also add a little sweetener and vanilla to this. It tastes amazing and has no sugar, syrups or preservatives.

Not only is this kind of yogurt nutritious and helpful with weight loss, the sweetness is satisfying to your sweet tooth. Try it the next time you crave ice cream!

I hear excuses everyday why people can’t exercise:

Work meeting
Too stressed out
Hair appointment
Didn’t sleep well last night
Dog needs to go to the vet
Car problems
Friends visiting
Stuffy nose or cough
Kids afterschool activities
And (the most interesting one I've heard) jock itch

Sure, some excuses are valid. But I’m convinced that oftentimes people find excuses to get out of exercising. Because these same people would suddenly have the time and energy to stop by the mall, go out to dinner, get a manicure, etc.

Don’t make excuses when it comes to exercise. Your body needs you to take care of it.

As a general rule, you need 64 ounces of pure water per day—that’s eight glasses or two 1-liter bottles of water. That’s a bare-bone minimum. Working in the heat, having a cold or flu, or drinking caffeinated beverages can dehydrate your body faster.

A lot of people walk around every day moderately dehydrated and don’t even know it. Are you drinking enough water? Ask yourself these questions: 

1. Is your urine clear/pale or dark yellow? If it is dark yellow and odorous, you’re not drinking enough water.
2. Do you wait to drink until you’re thirsty? The feeling of thirst does not usually kick in until you’re already moderately dehydrated. You can also mistakenly interpret the thirst signal for hunger when what you need is water, not food.
3. Do you drink a lot of caffeinated beverages? Caffeine is a diuretic and contributes to dehydration.
4. Are you frequently constipated? The body uses water to properly digest food and eliminate waste.
5. Do you feel groggy or get a headache halfway through the day? Your brain also needs water to function and your kidneys use water to remove toxins and waste from your body.

The best way to get your daily intake of water is to keep it nearby. Sip water consistently throughout the day.

If you struggle with food cravings, have energy swings, or find it difficult to lose weight, your food may be the culprit. Try switching to low GI foods. Not only are they helpful in these areas, but low GI foods can improve your overall diet. These foods are typically high in fiber and nutrients, low in fat, and are minimally processed.

In simple terms, the glycemic index (GI) is a measurement of how quickly foods digest and raise your blood sugar. Why is this important? Because a quick rise in blood sugar stimulates fat storage, increases hunger and food cravings, and leads to insulin resistance.

On the flip side, foods that breakdown slowly, and gradually release sugar into the bloodstream help ward off hunger, reduce body fat, increase energy levels, and diminish mood swings.

Foods are rated on the glycemic index with numbers up to 100+. High GI foods are more than 70, medium are between 55-70, and low are less than 50. Here are examples:

High-glycemic foods (that quickly raise blood sugar) should be avoided for weight loss. Examples are: Donuts, cakes and pastries, white breads, cornflakes, baked potatoes, and pretzels.

Medium-glycemic foods should be eaten in moderation. Examples are: bananas, brown rice, popcorn, pizza, and shredded wheat.

Low-glycemic foods take longer to digest and cause a more steady release of glucose into the blood after a meal. Most of your foods should be in this category. Examples are: green vegetables, lean meats, yogurt (no sugar), oatmeal, and apples.

How to Eat Low GI Foods for Weight Loss

1. Replace all your high GI foods with lower GI foods. For example, replace baked potatoes with long grain rice. Replace breakfast cereal with cooked oatmeal. Replace pretzels with popcorn.
2. Limit your medium GI foods. Reduce your servings of these foods. Try replacing them with low GI foods or eating smaller portions.
3. Balance your meals. If you’re eating a higher GI food, mix it with low GI foods like protein and green vegetables. This will lower the glycemic “load” of the whole meal.

The only way to get the right calorie balance for weight loss is to track your calories. But it’s easy to “forget” something or not bother because you find writing your calories down too tedious. Here’s a way to track your calories that is really easy and requires no journal (just a little math).

Simply divide the amount of total calories you have for the day by three. This will give you the morning, afternoon and evening totals. Then break each of those three totals into two sections: breakfast/snack, lunch/snack, dinner/snack.

For example, if your daily calories are 1500, divide that by three. Each block of your day gets 500 calories. So you could have 300 calories for breakfast and 200 calories for your morning snack = 500 calories. You’d do the same for afternoon and evening meals/snacks.

So instead of trying to add up the whole day, you only have to know how many calories you should have for each block of your day. All you need to add up is the calories for that one meal and snack. Then forget about it!

See the example below. It suggests how the calories can be broken down for a 1500-calorie day. (You can shift the calories around according to your needs.)

Breakfast: 300
Egg sandwich on whole grain wrap with lite mayo.

Snack: 200
Apple, yogurt

Lunch: 300
Chicken, salad, croutons, lite dressing

Snack: 200
Grapes, cheese stick

Dinner: 300
Fish, rice, broccoli

Snack: 200
Almonds

Despite keeping my weight off for over five years, I still struggle with some of the old mentality. For instance, if I eat off plan, I feel like the day is lost.

It’s hard not to think, “Well, I totally blew it. Might as well eat….” But eating an extra 300 calories is not the same as eating an extra 1000 calories. That’s what happens when we chalk the day off as a failure and throw restraint to the wind.

If we can stop after one slip, the damage isn’t too bad. Even if it’s a nasty fall, we can start fresh in the morning. All is not lost. It’s just a little bump in the road.

A couple of my clients had a rough time last week. They didn’t do well with their exercise or their food. They felt really disappointed and down on themselves.

I said, “It’s okay to be disappointed and feel discouraged. But then you have to move on. You can’t stay discouraged. If you do, it will just drag you down.”

I encouraged them to plan some positive steps to take this week – like scheduling their exercise sessions and getting back to food journaling.

The thing to remember is that there is always momentum moving us forward. This momentum is based on our choices. We will move forward toward in negative momentum or in a positive momentum - depending on our behavior.

The good thing is, putting some healthy choices in place will build positive momentum. If you can shift from a negative direction to a positive direction, the momentum will help carry you along. This shift can be hard at first, but before you know it you’ll be rolling along.

Plan out and make good choices. The more good choices you make, the stronger your positive momentum will become.

I want to share some of my secrets for building boundaries around food. If I didn’t do this, I would not be successful. I do not have Goliath-size will power. I love to eat. I hate to feel hungry. And over the years, I’ve learned tricks to keep myself on track.

1. Clean out your environment. Get rid of anything that is a trigger, pleasure, temptation food. For me, I cannot keep ice cream in my fridge freezer. (I have been able to keep it in the deep freeze in the basement.) Nor can I keep chocolate bars in the house. Instead I keep diet hot cocoa mix for my chocolate cravings.

2. Always preplan your food and know what the calories are. It’s the same as counting the costs before you build. This will help you make smart choices. I subtotal my foods throughout the day, and then plan out and total the evening foods to make sure I’m staying in my calorie range. If not, I make adjustments to my plan before I eat. (This step includes journaling everything!!)

3. Eat often. Six times a day works well – three meals and three snacks. Don’t let yourself get overly hungry. Not only will your blood sugar drop, but you will lose control and overeat. I always make sure to get in my meals and snacks, even if it means packing food to take with me.

4. Avoid eating for socializing. It’s too easy to relax and just eat whatever because you’re with a group of friends. Meet up after dinner or invite people over to your house where you’re in control of the menu. (I avoid going to people’s houses for dinner at all costs.) If you do have to go to a friend’s for dinner, offer to bring a salad.

5. Use lots of substitute behaviors. I chew gum, drink herbal tea, brush my teeth, go to the library, take a shower, check my email, etc., during the “snacky” times. I know what time of day is my hardest to stay out of the kitchen so I get busy with other stuff. (Getting out of the house to run errands works great.)

So, there are my top tricks for building boundaries and being successful with food. Try building boundaries for yourself. See how much easier your day can be.

If you were asked what causes poor health, you’d probably say things like eating “bad” foods, being overweight, not exercising, smoking, etc. You would also know that conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar can cut your life short.

What you may not think of as a malady is being unhappy.

According to research, happiness plays a key role in good health. If someone is unhappy in their job or socioeconomic status, it could cut seven years off their life. If they are happy, they could live longer and have a greater chance of avoiding disease.

Happy people also have stronger resistance to colds and flu, and lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Those with anxiety suffer more chronic physical illness and worse symptoms.

Though good nutrition and regular exercise are the backbone to a healthy body, your mental attitude plays a huge role in your health. I’ve also noticed that people who are positive are better equipped to make lasting, lifestyle changes.

If you’re not happy, examine why. Is there something you can do about your situation? Can your outlook be changed to inspire more gratefulness?

As Martha Washington said, “The greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions, and not on our circumstances. We carry the seeds of the one or the other about with us in our minds wherever we go.”

Protein shakes are quick and easy, taste good, and are a great way to get in a serving of protein. They make a great breakfast-on-the-go or a between-meal snack. You just need a blender and the following ingredients:

1 cup fat free milk or light soy milk
1/2 – 1 cup frozen fruit (berries, peaches, banana)
1 scoop whey protein powder

When shopping for whey protein powder, check the nutrition label. A scoop should have 20+ grams of protein and about 100-110 calories.

Happy slurping!