Keys to Nutritional Success
You've survived the holidays, but with how much extra weight? Five pounds? Ten pounds? More? And going on a strict diet was one of your New Year's Resolutions that you make every year and break every year. Keys to Nutritional Success
A downfall to anyone attempting to start the new year off to a healthy start is the 180 degree change most people vow to make: "I'm going to quit eating chocolate." "I'm not eating desserts." "No more potato chips for me!" "I'm going to quit using margarine or butter on my foods." "I'm going to follow a strict lowfat diet." "I'm going to join a gym and work out every day of the week!" Do I say that?
Do any of these sound familiar? The key to success is not drastic changes but small, gradual changes that allow new behaviors to become habits.
According to The American Dietetic Association's 1995 Nutrition Trends Survey, Americans do understand the importance of physical activity and nutrition to good health. Physical activity and nutrition were rated as important to good health by 79% and 81% respectively. National Survey Results
The following suggestions can help you set realistic, achievable "resolutions" for healthy lifestyle changes so that you will not only be able to understand the importance of physical activity and nutrition to good health, but be able to practice it as well! Realistic Suggestions
To determine your fat gram goal per day, drop the last digit from your estimated daily calorie needs, then divide that number by 3. For example, if your daily calorie needs are 1500 calories, drop the last digit to get 150, then divide that number by 3 to calculate your allowed fat grams per day (50, in this example).
- No "Forbidden" Foods. Any food in moderate amounts can fit into a healthy eating plan.
- Snacking. Be a savvy snacker. Bring along a piece of fruit. Keep plenty of fresh fruit and crunchy vegetables in the refrigerator so they are easy to reach when a snack attack hits. There are several fat-free snack bars that make satisfying "pick me ups."
- Reduced-Fat and Fat-Free. Choose reduced-fat or fat-free dairy products, fat-free salad dressings, and sugar-free beverages to provide taste but not the extra calories. Just remember that fat-free does not mean calorie-free! Also, some sugar-free products may still contain a significant amount of calories. Read the labels for important nutritional information to help you follow a healthy diet.
- Portions. Be careful of portion sizes. Compare what you usually eat with the portion size specified on the label. Portions are often underestimated!
- Labels. New label regulations require all packaged foods to be labeled. You can quickly see by glancing at the label how much fat, cholesterol, sodium, and other important nutrients a food contains to help you decide how it can fit into a healthy diet.
- Fat Intake. Be aware of your fat gram intake. Since fat has twice as many calories as protein or carbohydrate, this is where the excess calories are easily consumed. Thirty percent or fewer of your calories should come from fat. Use food labels to help you track your fat intake.
- Regular Exercise along with a sensible diet is key to weight management. If you have never exercised, or have not exercised in a long time, check with your physician before beginning or resuming. Start out gradually and pick an activity that you enjoy! A reasonable goal would be at least 30 to 40 minutes, three to four times weekly.
- How To Easily Get More Exercise. You can increase your activity in other ways to help you burn calories. When you can, walk or ride your bike instead of driving, use the stairs instead of the elevator, park your car farther away from the stores.
