| Quick Tips #5 | |
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Join us in the upcoming weeks as we share more "Quick Tips" to help you along your weight loss journey. Do you have a tip you would like to share? Be sure to e-mail it in and we just might feature it in our next installment!
Does a fridge full of leftovers spell diet d-i-s-a-s-t-e-r for you? When you get the after-work or midnight munchies, you're going to be a lot more likely to overeat if you haven't planned for portion control ahead of time. We know how difficult it is to keep moderation in mind when you sit down in front of an entire bucket of chicken or a seemingly bottomless bowl of macaroni and cheese! Trick yourself into eating a streamlined portion by pre-packing your individual leftover dishes into single-serving size plasticware. You can even get the divided, covered plastic plates and portion-out an entire meal ahead of time. You'll feel far more in control of your eating this way.
Well, the truth is, the reduced-fat variety is really not all that different nutritionally from the regular kind. According to Jif, a two-tablespoon serving of their regular creamy peanut butter is comprised of 16 grams of fat and 190 calories. Let's take a look at the label of the reduced-fat version of creamy Jif: You're getting four less grams of fat for the same size serving -- 12 grams of fat for those two tablespoons -- but guess what? It has the same amount of calories as the regular kind, 190! So, don'tcha go "nuts" and clean out the jar just because the reduced-fat kind has a few less fat grams packed in there!
Did you do a double-take on that one? Don't worry, it wasn't a misprint. In fact, feel free to replace the word cheesecake with your most favorite treat and then... give in. Just a little, that is. By allowing yourself to still eat your favorite foods every now and again -- despite being on a diet -- you avoid feeling deprived. Totally denying yourself the foods you take pleasure in is a sure-fire way to set yourself up for failure. So go ahead and treat yourself once in a while. Just be sure to apply the mindful moderation principle: Cut your normal portion in half and truly savor every bite. Eventually, a much smaller portion of your favorite "guilty pleasures" will satisfy your cravings.
