While at the beach last weekend, I found a delicious dessert swap that’s perfect for the last hot days of the summer.  It’s a Rita’s Gelati made with fat-free vanilla custard and sugar-free water ice, called a Sugar-Free Slenderita Gelati.  For the regular size, it’s 230 calories with no fat, compared to the 400 calories and 12 grams of fat in the typical version.  It was absolutely refreshing and delightful.  I tasted my friend’s gelati made with the full fat custard and sugar-filled water ice and mine tasted just as great — with almost half the calories.  It definitely felt like a treat, but one that’s keeping me on my path to taking off the baby fat.

Tags: baby fat, custard, dessert swap, gelati, Rita's, slenderita, treat, water ice

Gone are the lazy days of summer.  Here we are at the beginning of another school year and the rushing around from activity to activity will soon commence.  With the refreshing start of a routine will also come hectic schedules and new commitments.  It is important to keep up your energy in a healthful way.  Your kids will also need energy to learn as well as enjoy their friends and extra-curricular activities.  Here are some tips to give you and the kids an energy boost for this new school year –

1. Eat breakfast - make sure you and the kids start the day strong with whole grains, fruit and lean protein.  Here are a few easy breakfast ideas

- whole grain cereal with at least 5 grams fiber and low fat milk and a piece of fruit

-low fat yogurt with granola and berries, whole wheat toast with all natural peanut butter and 100% orange juice

2. Pack a healthy lunch - for yourself  and the kids. If your child enjoys eating the school’s food, let them pick school meals twice a week and pack their lunch the rest of the week.  Also, whether you are going into the office, staying at home or running errands, pack yourself a lunch at the same time to make sure you do not skimp on lunch.  Here are some great packed lunch ideas -

- All natural peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat bread, banana and mandarin oranges in jello (for a treat) and low-fat chocolate milk (they can buy the milk at school)

- low fat cheese and whole grain crackers (at least 2 grams fiber), fresh berries, almonds mixed with semisweet chocolate chips (for a treat) and low-fat milk

- whole wheat tortilla wrapped with all natural deli turkey and low fat cheese, baby carrots dipped in peanut butter (or almond butter or sun flower butter), an apple and low-fat milk

- canned tuna or salmon mixed with light mayo and slice of low-fat cheese on whole wheat bread or whole wheat crackers, sliced red and orange bell peppers, low fat yogurt and water

3. Sleep - make sure you and your children get at least 7 hours of sleep

4. Exercise - fit in exercise where you can. For example, wear your running shoes to your child’s practice and walk/jog around the field.

Tags: back to school, energy, health, healthy eating, nutrition, weight loss

Ahh, the last few weeks of precious summertime.  Where did the time go? To savor the days off before school starts, I’m going to the beach with my family and two other families for a four day weekend. We rent a house all together.  We’ve gone with them for the past few years and each family keeps expanding in size. There are two more babies this year than last and the other kids have gotten bigger, meaning more tummies to feed.  We like to make a shopping list and divvy it up so we don’t have to shop once we’re there.  Most importantly, the food has to be easy to prepare and of course, healthy.  We’ll be bringing a picnic to the beach so we don’t have to rely on the junk available at the boardwalk - fries, hotdogs, funnel cake, etc. Since our picnic basket will be in the heat for several hours once we park ourselves on the beach, food safety is important to consider. All the foods should be able to be kept at room temperature. I use frozen water bottles to help keep it somewhat cool and to keep us hydrated. Snack sized Ziploc baggies are perfect for portion control for the trail mixes.  Here’s what I’m packing in my healthy picnic:

• PB&J on whole wheat
• Whole wheat pita with salad, beans and a spritz of dressing
• Tuna pouches (you can eat them right out of the pouch; lemon pepper flavored is particularly tasty)
• Peaches, plums
• Dried apricots
• Trail mix (I mix my own with Kellogg’s Mini Wheats Chocolate Little Bites with peanuts, raisins, sunflower seeds and Kellogg’s Cracklin Oat Bran with cashews, dried cranberries, pretzels)
• Baby carrots
• Kashi TLC granola bars

Use these ideas or add some new ones - I’d love to hear them - to pack your own healthy basket.  Go for a picnic, take a day trip to an amusement park or spend time on the beach.  Enjoy the last lazy days of summer!

Tags: foods, healthy, picnic, summer

Weight maintenance and weight loss comes down to simple math, calories in and calories out. There are certain foods and styles of eating that can help you with your weight loss goals, but when it comes down to it, how many calories you eat and how many you burn will determine your weight.  To make yourself more aware of the calories you are eating, try keeping track of your foods and drinks for a few days in a little notebook (called a food diary) and then enter your foods into an online calorie counter such as caloriecount.com.  To figure out how many calories you need to maintain your weight or lose weight go to mypyramid.gov - you can also see how many servings of each food group you should be getting, then go ahead and compare it to your food diary to make sure you are getting all nutrients you need.

Tags: baby fat diet, caloriecount.com, calories, healthy eating, mypyramid.gov, nutrition, weight loss

Whey protein is a staple in the muscle building world.  Muscle mags have long touted its muscle building ability post work out.  Science seems to support the ability of whey protein to help build muscle in men after weight lifting.  Recently, scientists have turned their attention towards protein (including whey protein) as a weight loss aid.  By helping you feel full, maintain muscle and lose body fat, healthful protein is now center stage for those who want to lose weight.  Protein, in general, has been shown to assist in weight loss, and whey protein is one of your options.  So what is whey protein?  It is one of the two major proteins found in cow’s milk.  During the process of making cheese the whey portion is separated and can be dried into a powder.  You can either get the powder as whey protein concentrate which still contains lactose, vitamins and minerals or the isolate in which these other ingredients are removed.

So what does this mean for you?  Don’t be fooled into thinking you need to go and start buying whey protein powder or buying those expensive and not-so-healthy high protein bars in order to lose weight.  There is a sensible way to use this information about protein to your benefit.  The first way to benefit is to make sure you are eating healthful and lean protein throughout the day, such as non-fat dairy products (for whey protein), egg whites, fish and low-fat turkey and chicken cuts.  Next, you can also add plant-based  protein to your diet by eating whole grains, 1/2 cup bean or lentils a day and 1 oz of raw nuts every day.  Just eating these foods alone can provide all the protein you need.  If you feel you need extra protein - remember not to go overboard, adding a little scoop of powder once a day is okay.  (Most of your protein needs should be met by the foods you eat.)  You can add whey protein powder to some of your favorite baked goods recipes and eat either right before or after your workout.  You can also add powder to your smoothies, bowl of cereal or oatmeal and soups. According to the National Dairy Council add 1/2 to 1 scoop of powder to any milk-based beverage or food and 2 or more scoops to recipes with multiple servings such as mixes for muffins, pancakes, quick breads and soups and casseroles as well as mashed potatoes and scrambled eggs. However, taking protein is not necessary if you are eating a healthy diet.  After a workout you could also eat a yogurt and nuts or 2 slices of whole wheat bread with all natural peanut butter and jelly with a glass of skim milk (470 calories, 57 grams carbs, 6 grams fiber, 20 grams protein and 13.5 grams of healthful fats plus vitamins and minerals) for a good protein boost.

Here’s a look at how much protein you need — most people only need 0.4 grams of protein per pound of body weight to meet their basic needs - so if you weigh 140 lbs, you would need at least 56 grams of protein.  If you are a regular at the gym, you can increase this amount to as much as 0.7 grams per pound or 98 grams of protein per day. You would be surprised at how easy it is to get enough protein from your diet - and bonus, it will taste better than a chalky bar. Here are some easy (and good for you) meal examples (adapted from our Baby Fat Diet book) - 2 cups salad greens with 1 can tuna in Spring Water, veggies, 2 TB sunflower seeds and 2 TB vinaigrette dressing (450 calories, 31 grams carbs, 7 grams fiber, 49 grams protein, and 8 grams healthful fats)

3 slices all natural turkey deli meat, 1 slice reduced-fat cheese, 1/4 sliced avocado, 2 slices tomatoes, baby spinach leaves and mustard on whole wheat roll and 1 cup cherries (460 calories, 50 grams carbs, 9 grams fiber, 30 grams protein and 9 grams healthful fats)

1 cup low-sodium lentil soup, 2 slices garlic bread and 1 cup strawberries dipped in 1/2 cup low fat yogurt (500 calories, 88 grams carbs, 8.5 grams fiber, 20 grams protein and 6 grams healthful fats)

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Oh, I forgot to mention that exercising also gives you the stamina you need to raise kids. Who knew all the laundry, preparing meals, washing dishes, giving baths, changing diapers, playing tag, and opening PlayDough cannisters required so much energy? With three boys, I need all the endurance I can get!

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I just read an interesting article in Time magazine this week talking about new research showing that exercise does not help people lose weight. What?!! The studies indicate that people end up compensating for the calories burned in exercise by rewarding themselves with treats and they move less for the rest of the day.  In other words, stopping for a smoothie on the way home from the gym and vegging on the couch all evening are making all that exercise a wash. So, the overall calories in versus calories burned ends up staying even, meaning no weight loss. Interesting. I just talked to a friend, who also happens to be a dietitian still working on taking off her pregnancy weight, who said that she’s been consistently exercising 5 days a week for the last 6 weeks and hasn’t seen the scale budge. Wonder if this is where the issue lies?

I am a big believer in exercise. I do something active every day - whether it’s running outside, teaching a kickboxing or pilates class, or going on my elliptical or treadmill that I have at home.  My main reasons for exercise are to promote my overall health, - keeping your heart healthy and lowering risk of osteoporosis are proven and definitive benefits of exercise based on many years of research -maintain my weight, and elevate my mood. I truly feel that I’m healthier and happier when I exercise.  I also think that it tones and tightens parts of my body, which is very important to me at the moment since there are some jiggles remaining from my last pregnancy. Pilates is particularly good at “de-jiggling” the post-preg jelly belly. 

In light of this new exercise-won’t-help-you-lose-weight research, I will continue to exercise and I hope you will too. While it appears that watching your diet is the more important factor in taking off the baby weight, exercise can allow you more wiggle (excuse the pun) room in what you eat since it ups the calories you can have each day.  Chocolate is definitely worth a little time on the elliptical. 

For help taking off the baby weight, read our book, The Baby Fat Diet. It’s easy and made just for time-crunched parents - those who exercise on a treadmill and those who exercise by running endlessly in circles chasing after their kids.

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A report from the Food Standards Agency of the UK came out on July 28th indicating that there is no substantial difference in nutritional content between food that is grown organically vs conventional methods.  Since then, many people have been asking me about whether organic food is just a waste of money.  However, the answer isn’t so clear cut. While this one report may show that organic food is not significantly superior from a nutrition standpoint, there are certainly environmental benefits and potential health benefits of reducing pesticide exposure.  Personally I eat some organic foods and some conventionally grown foods, especially when there isn’t too much of a cost difference.  My main goal as a dietitian is to encourage people to eat more whole foods and produce and I know the economy has everyone watching their grocery bills more closely.  So, if cost will limit the amount of produce people are eating than I prefer they buy whatever fits the budget so they meet their 5-9 servings of fruits and veggies a day. One economic way to get organic produce is to visit local farmer’s markets or join a CSA (Comminity Supported Agriculture). CSAs are community farms where local residents can buy a share in the farm and get weekly boxes full of the produce they grow on that farm. For more info visit Local Harvest.

Tags: Community Supported Agriculture, conventional, cost, CSA, farm, nutrition, organic