This week is the home stretch - here are four final habits to help you keep those extra pounds off. ";
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Successful weight loss requires diligent portion control of everything you eat, with the exception of non-starchy vegetables. Here’s a portion reality-check on a few common favorites:
Cooked pasta, rice, potatoes, cereal and ice cream: Stick with half-cup to one-cup portions. A half cup is about the size of a computer mouse and one cup is about the size of a baseball.
Meat, poultry and fish: Stick with three- to six-ounce portions of lean protein. Three ounces is about the size of a deck of cards.
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We all have moments when we crave special foods. For some folks it’s sweet or salty, and for others it’s all about chocolate. No matter what your preference, make sure you’re armed with diet-friendly alternatives like these.
Sweet treats
Chocolate
Salty snacks
That being said, after dinner, try the following \"kitchen closed for the evening\" strategies: floss and brush your teeth, sip an herbal tea, chomp on sugarless gum, or even erase the smell of leftovers in the air by lighting a nonfood-scented candle.
";
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This is the perfect time to remind you to follow three golden weight-loss rules: Eat slower, get enough sleep and plan ahead!";
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In the third week of your get-fit program, focus on these four tips to help you cut calories at home.
Joy Bauer gives details on why you should stock up on healthy condiments, eat more fruits and veggies, try new lean proteins ... and even play mind games with yourself!
";
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If you’re looking to lose weight, load the cabinets and fridge with low-calorie flavor enhancers. Unlike traditional high-fat condiments, the following items jazz up the taste of your meals without adding excessive calories and fat.
Try stocking your kitchen with reduced-fat salad dressings, vinegars, low-fat mayonnaise, reduced-fat sour cream, light cream cheese, reduced-fat soft tub margarine spread, salsa, spicy mustard, low-sodium chicken/vegetable broth, nonstick cooking spray, hot sauce, horseradish, low-sodium soy sauce, low-sodium teriyaki sauce and fresh lemon and lime. And when it comes to marinades, look for brands that provide 30 calories or less per tablespoon.
Also, spice up your food and health by experimenting with an assortment of calorie-free, no-salt herbs; basil, bay leaf, chives, ginger, tarragon, thyme, dill, oregano, rosemary, parsley, sage, cinnamon, garlic, minced onion, ground black pepper, etc. ";
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We all know produce is a must-buy – it is low in calories and naturally packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, water and fiber. Produce fills you up, keeps you healthy and energized and enables you to knock off the pounds. So how come we prioritize produce in our kid’s diets, but often slack off ourselves?
Be sure to keep a tub of precut, nonstarchy vegetables on hand for snacking at all times. Also, sneak veggies into omelets, add extra servings into soups and stews, dunk baby carrots in low-cal salad dressing or salsa as a snack. Add berries on your cereal and into your yogurt, freeze grapes and bananas as a sweet treat in the afternoon or for after dinner. Anything goes!
If you’re not motivated to cut, chop and fuss – go for “easy to eat” produce like apples, pears, bananas, baby carrots, grapes, clementines, berries and prewashed salad/spinach bags. You can also take advantage of frozen and canned produce – just make sure to avoid canned/frozen fruit with added sugar and corn syrup and vegetables with added sauce and salt. ";
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Diets are boring when you eat skinless chicken breast five nights a week! Think outside the box and incorporate an assortment of lean proteins into your weekly menu. In fact, set a schedule to ensure you vary your menus:
Strength training exercise: Lifting weights and/or other strengthening activities like push-ups and crunches on a regular basis (2-3 days a week) will boost your resting metabolism 24/7. That’s because these activities build muscle, and muscle burns more calories than body fat. In fact, if you have more muscle, you burn more calories — even when you are sitting still.";
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Your body and metabolism thrive on food. When you fast, crash diet, or restrict calories below 1,000, your metabolism will slow down in a response to conserve energy. Imagine your metabolism as a blazing fire. Feed the fire consistently with the appropriate amount of high quality wood and it continues to burn at a good rate. Not enough wood, and the fire goes out – and too much wood is overkill. ";
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Because our bodies work hard to digest and absorb the foods we eat, your metabolism revs in response. This is called the thermic effect of food. Take full advantage of this effect and schedule “portion controlled” meals and snacks every 4-5 hours. ";
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As mentioned, eating all types of food creates a thermic effect and will raise metabolism after consumption. But eating protein will boost your metabolism better than carbs and fat.
In addition, eating an appropriate amount of protein will ensure you’re able to maintain and build muscle mass (the more muscle mass you have, the greater your metabolism). Make sure to incorporate lean protein into almost every meal and get an appropriate amount each day.
How much do you need? A simple rule of thumb is to eat 50 percent of your ideal body weight in grams. So if you weigh 140 pounds, aim for 70 grams of protein each day. (Note: Serious athletes require more.)
The best protein sources include lean meat, skinless poultry, fish and seafood, low-fat/nonfat dairy, beans, lentils and soy.";
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Habits are hard to break, but there can be a great payoff for shedding your old ways! Lose the following four fattening habits and you’ll drop up to five pounds by the end of the month. ";
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If you cut out soda, sugary drinks and caloric coffee concoctions, your body will reap big benefits. Check this out: By trimming 250 liquid calories off each day – that’s just one 20-ounce bottle of soda, or 16 ounces (2 cups) fruit juice, or two bottles flavored water, or one 16-oz Starbucks whole milk flavored latte – you’ll save at least 7,000 calories and lose two pounds at the end of four weeks. Plus, if you quit your soda habit, you'll prevent nine cups of straight sugar from entering your body.";
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Choose reduced fat and fat free dairy instead. We love to eat cheese on just about anything: salad, sandwiches, pizza, burgers, tacos, you name it. True, cheese is a terrific, calcium-rich, high protein snack and yummy addition to any meal, but the full fat version is calorific! The same goes for full fat milk, whole milk yogurt and regular ice cream. So swap your full fat favorites for their low fat and fat free counterparts, and you’ll maintain the nutrients but lose a great deal of fat and calories.
Make the following swaps just three times each week, and at the end of four weeks, you’ll save a whopping 50 teaspoons of fat!
You will literally slash the dressing calories by more than half, saving a average of 200 calories per salad. Have a salad every day for four weeks and you’ll save 5,600 calories and drop 1.5 pounds.";
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It's true that many starches like whole grains and baked white/sweet potatoes are nutrient dense, so many of us tend to overeat starch at dinner. We'll have a slice of bread, plus two, three, or even four servings of pasta, rice, potatoes. That said, let’s cut right to the chase and remove ALL starchy carbs with dinner for the next four weeks (or as often as you can). Instead, fill up on lean protein and lots of plain (no fat added) non-starchy vegetables like broccoli, carrots, peppers, spinach, cauliflower, zucchini and lettuce. The low calorie vegetables can really fill you up.
Check out this dinner plate comparison:
We’ve slashed the calories in half, saving 375 calories each day. That enables you to potentially save more than 10,000 calories at the end of four weeks and knock off about three pounds."; TDY_Health_Joy_4wks[i++] = new Array("tdy_vieira_bauer_080602","Video: Four weeks to a better body","June 2: Nutritionist Joy Bauer talks to TODAY’s Meredith Vieira about simple changes that can give you a healthier body in just four weeks.","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Video/080602/tdy_vieira_bauer_080602.htease.jpg","","", "v", "", "b50be6f3-e089-4a64-983a-6e555567586e|", "", "left", "", "", "110", "147", "#000000", "", "", "", ""); // END editorial data