5 Expert Tips for Easier Dieting

Indulging in sweet splurges, ordering that appetizer, taking a snack break - these are actually dieting do's that can help you shed pounds fast. Read on for 5 easy and surprising expert tips to long-lasting weight loss...

Ask anyone who has dropped pounds on a diet (or anyone who tried but couldn’t!), and she will confirm that long-term weight loss is tricky.

The major hurdle for most wannabe losers: getting over a “last supper” mentality, which starts with a binge and ends with buckling down.

“Many of my patients come in and say, ‘I’m ready to turn myself over to you,’” says Dawn Jackson Blatner, R.D., L.D., a dietitian at Northwestern Memorial Wellness Institute and national media spokesperson in Chicago for the American Dietetic Association.

“They look at weight loss as all-or-nothing, a last binge then hard times and deprivation ahead. That just doesn’t work.”

What will work is moderation and small compromises.
With slight changes to your daily routine, you’re much more likely to get results – without having to resort to drastic diet schemes.

Read on for experts’ top 5 tips for a doable diet that really works.

1. Replace a meal… with a replacement.
Substituting a protein bar, shake or low-fat frozen dinner for one meal each day is a convenient, inexpensive and often delicious way to lose weight.

As long as you use them to replace a meal, not as a between-meal snack (as many women do).

But remember, these replacements are only half the meal, Blatner stresses.

You need fruits and veggies to make it more filling and nutritious.

Aim for a total calorie count (for the replacement plus fruits or vegetables) between 250-400 calories, enough to keep you going for a few hours.

Here are some of Blatner’s favorite meal replacements. (Note: All have at least 10 grams of protein to keep hunger at bay.)
Bars: Kashi GoLean Rolls (200 calories, 1.5 grams sat fat, 12 grams protein, 6 grams fiber) and Balance Bar Trail Mix Energy Bars (210 calories, 3 grams sat fat, 14 grams protein, 3 grams fiber)

Shakes: Slim Fast Optima Shakes (190 calories, 2.5 grams sat fat, 10 g protein, 5g fiber)

Frozen Entrees: Most offerings from Lean Cuisine, Smart Ones or Healthy Choice.

Check out more options here.

2. Schedule meals and snacks.
Hunger always trumps common sense.

If you let yourself get famished, you’re likely to reach for anything within reach, like donuts, chips or corn nuts.

“Having a daily routine for meals and snacks will prevent unhealthy bingeing,” says Jennifer Ramos Galluzzi, Ph.D., assistant professor of nutrition and science at Housatonic Community College in Bridgeport, Conn.

It also stops subconscious worrying about food, because you’ll know when you’re having your next meal.

To avoid that afternoon cookie craving, plan to eat three well-balanced meals, with two 100-200 calorie snacks between them.
Here’s a sensible schedule with healthy snack suggestions:

7:30 a.m.: Breakfast

10:30 a.m.: 100-200 calorie snack: medium apple (72 calories) with a stick of string cheese (80 calories); or a nonfat flavored yogurt (125-150 calories) with half a pink grapefruit (37 calories)

1 p.m.: Lunch

3:30 p.m.: 100-200 calorie snack: 1/2 cup shelled soybeans (120 calories); 4 cups lite microwave popcorn (120 calories); 1 cup 1% cottage cheese (163 calories) with 10 baby carrots (40 calories)

7 p.m.: Dinner

3. Say “yes” to an appetizer.
But only if it’s a healthy soup or salad.

Filling up with one of these as an appetizer will make you consume less in the meal.

Soup is your best bet for controlling calorie intake.

“You almost can’t go wrong as long as it’s not cream-based,” Blatner says.

“Research has shown that you’ll eat at least 100 fewer calories at the main meal," she says.
Opt for chunky minestrone (1 cup: 127 calories), lentil (1 cup: 126 calories) or even split pea (1 cup: 180 calories).

Salad is a good second choice, although it isn’t as effective as a broth- or bean-based soup.

Although it can pare a meal’s calorie toll, a plain salad won’t fill you up as much as soup will.

Plus, “dressing, croutons and dried fruit can really pack on calories,” Blatner says.

4. Eat more to weigh less.
To drop pounds, nutrition experts believe you need to pay more attention to the caloric density of what you’re eating.

“A lower caloric density indicates that it has fewer calories per gram,” Galluzzi says.

“Foods with a high fiber and water content usually have lower caloric density," Galluzzi explains.

In other words, the lower the caloric density of a food, the more of it you can eat and still lose or maintain weight.
To determine caloric density, divide the number of calories in a serving by the number of grams in a serving (both can be found on nutrition labels).

Here’s an example: A small, 280-calorie cheeseburger weighs 100 grams, so its caloric density would be 2.8.

For the same 280 calories, you can enjoy a plateful of rice and roasted vegetables along with a bowl of miso soup.

The weight of the second lunch is a hefty 500 grams, making the caloric density a much lower 0.6.

If that math seems too daunting, here’s an easier way to eat more foods with a lower caloric density: Add more water-based foods to your diet.

“I use what I call the ‘wet-foods challenge’ with my patients,” Blatner says.

“I ask them to eat four small crackers as a snack one day and a large apple the next, both being about 100 calories," she says.
They always come back saying they believe in wet foods," she says.

Still having doubts? Here’s another example of a low versus a high-caloric-density afternoon snack.

Both have approximately the same number of calories. Which do you think would be more filling (not to mention nutritious)?

A Chicken and Vegetables with Vermicelli Lean Cuisine frozen entree with a caloric density of 0.8 (252 calories divided by 297 grams)

OR

A 1.45 oz Hershey’s Special Dark bar with a caloric density of 5.6 (230 calories divided by 41 grams)

5. Satisfy your sweet tooth.
That’s right, we’re giving you permission to quench your cravings for something chocolatey, sugary or simply yummy.

In fact, even the new USDA Dietary Guidelines allow for sweets and other discretionary calories.

The key is portion control and smart choices.

“I call them ‘sensible splurges,’ ” Blatner says.

“But it’s vital to keep them under 150 calories," she warns.
Try any of these low-cal yet soul-satisfying treats:

Skinny Cow Chocolate Fudge Ice Cream Cone: 150 calories

CocoaVia Chocolate-Covered Almonds: 140 calories per pack

Healthy Choice Caramel Swirl Ice Cream Sandwich: 140 calories

Skinny Cow Cookies ‘n’ Cream Ice Cream Bar: 120 calories

Nonfat pudding (chocolate, vanilla, banana): 100-130 calories

CocoaVia Original Chocolate Bar: 100 calories

See’s Candies Gourmet Lollypops (butterscotch, chocolate, vanilla, café latte): 80 calories

Fudgesicle: 65 calories

Big Stick Popsicle: 60 calories
Nancy Gottesman is a health and nutrition writer in Santa Monica, CA.

Adapted from an article originally published in Viv magazine.

For more information, tips and eating ideas, visit our Weight Loss Healthy Eating Guide.

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