Have you tried to lose weight by dieting lately? Have you felt hungry and somewhat less than satisfied? Think about this, you feel full by how much you eat, not what you eat.
A healthy and permanent weight loss is always gotten by decreasing the number of calories you take in, not the amount of food you eat. As weird as it sounds, you can actually eat more and weigh less.
It is easy to cut calories in your favorite foods by lowering the amount of fat in your diet and/or increasing the amount of fiber-rich ingredients you use every day, such as vegetables or fruit.
The CDC offers this macaroni and cheese recipe as an example. The original recipe uses whole milk, butter, and full-fat cheese. This recipe has about 540 calories in one serving (1 cup).
Here’s how to remake this recipe with fewer calories and less fat:
- Use 2 cups non-fat milk instead of 2 cups whole milk.
- Use 8 ounces light cream cheese instead of 21?4 cups full-fat cheddar cheese.
- Use 1 tablespoon butter instead of 2 or use 2 tablespoons of soft trans-fat free margarine.
- Add about 2 cups of fresh spinach and 1 cup diced tomatoes (or any other veggie you like).
Your redesigned mac and cheese now has 315 calories in one serving (1 cup). You can eat the same amount of mac and cheese with 225 fewer calories.
If you want to eat more and weigh less, it may be as simple as making some different food choices or changing the way food is prepared. Consider the following substitutionsfrom the CDC website:
| These foods will fill you up with less calories. Choose them more often… | These foods can pack more calories into each bite. Choose them less often… |
|---|---|
| Fruits and Vegetables (prepared without added fat) | Fried foods |
| Spinach, broccoli, tomato, carrots, watermelon, berries, apples | Eggs fried in butter, fried vegetables, French fries |
| Low-fat and fat-free milk products | Full-fat milk products |
| Low- or fat-free milk, low or fat-free yogurt, low- or fat-free cottage cheese | Full-fat cheese, full-fat ice cream, whole and 2% milk |
| Broth-based soup | Dry snack foods |
| Vegetable-based soups, soups with chicken or beef broth, tomato soups (without cream) | Crackers or pretzels, cookies, chips, dried fruits |
| Whole grains | Higher-fat and higher-sugar foods |
| Brown rice, whole wheat bread, whole wheat pastas, popcorn | Croissants,margarine, shortening and butter, doughnuts, candy bars, cakes and pastries |
| Lean meat, poultry and fish | Fatty cuts of meat |
| Grilled salmon, chicken breast without skin, ground beef (lean or extra lean) | Bacon, brisket, ground beef (regular) |
| Legumes (beans and peas) | |
| Black, red kidney and pinto beans (without added fat), green peas, black-eyed peas |
Losing weight is a self-improvement goal that requires a lifestyle change. But weight loss diets do not have to be painful. Take the time to do some research, find a good diet cookbook and start losing weight and enjoy it at the same time.
