Some General Tips and Ideas

No one likes to feel like they're on a diet. And being on a diet doesn't have to mean you just eat salad, either. It's about finding new healthy recipes and choices which will make you feel better on a daily basis, have more energy and in turn, lose weight.

I feel like I'm a pretty experienced dieter. Growing up, my mom was always on a diet, and I feel like I've been trying to do some sort weight loss/maintenance since high school. I'm pretty close to my goal weight now, but I work at maintaining it. I have succumb to the fact that I need to watch what I eat for life to feel good. And that's OK! There's plenty of healthy choices out there to keep things interesting. And you know me...I'm all about treats and food related celebrations. But for all the other days of the month- the regular routine work days- it's good to try to change your habits.

Some basic tips that have helped me in the past to jump start my weight loss:

*lower your processed carb intake. Don't buy bread, and try not to have it all the time when you're eating out. Don't have pasta as often, when you do, make it whole wheat.
"Good Carb" Alternatives to Bread and Pasta that will fill you up:
beans, carrots, quinoa, brown rice,
sweet potatoes (better than the white ones)
butternut squash, polenta

*Start your day with 2 scrambled eggs instead of a bagel or pancakes or toast. Add some (veggie) sausage if that's not enough. Add spinach or a veggie to make a scramble if you have time. If you don't have time for Bfast, hard boil a couple of egg the night before and keep them in the fridge for morning.

*Beer and wine are hi-calorie. I try to have these only a couple nights a week. hard alcohol like vodka, gin and whiskey are carb free. Don't mix these with juice or soda (too much sugar) but try seltzer water and a slice of orange or lime. you'll get used to it...it's not bad!

*Coffee. Stay away from flavored lattes with syrup (hi sugar) and mochas. Try a plain latte (with no sugar packets) or just a cup of coffee with milk only.

Being on a diet doesn't mean you have to just eat vegetables. Here are some lo-carb or lo-fat recipe ideas:


Spinach Egg Frittata


Scramble 5 eggs in a bowl with a 1/3 cup of milk. Also add a half cube of firm tofu you've mushed up with your hands into the egg mixture. Add a large handful of freshly chopped spinach and a half onion, chopped (and any other veggies you like). Toss in some salt and pepper and any herbs you have. Pour this all into an oiled casserole dish. Bake at 350 for about a half hour or until edges are slightly browned and the egg in the middle is cooked solid.

*this is a great thing to make ahead. You can easily cut a cube of it and take it to work.

Celery Root and Cauliflower "Mashed Potatoes"

Many of you have probably never heard of celery root. Here's what it looks like you can get it in most grocery stores.


Take 2 celery roots. Cut off all the gnarly outer part (you don't have to totally skin it). Cube it up. Throw it in a big pot of boiling salted water with one head of cauliflower chopped in big chunks. You can even use a lot of the stems.

Boil these til they're soft, drain and run under cold water, then transfer them to your food processor. Process them til soft like mashed potatoes. Add a bit of cream or milk to moisten them (1/3 c?), and -here's the key- a half stick of butter. Whatever, it's low carb. Something's gotta give, right?

Out of the food processor, put them in a bowl, warm them more if need be, add salt and pepper to taste and more butter to melt on the top if you're like me. Here's an alternate recipe that includes some potatoes, if you like.


Stir Fry

This is an easy thing to make after a long day. Just toss big chunks of red bell peppers, green bell peppers, carrots, snow peas, broccoli, and onion with a little oilve oil in a wok or big frying pan. Toss in some cubed firm tofu or chicken. Add teriyaki sauce, or sometimes I make a sauce from combining a half can coconut milk, soy sauce, Tbs peanut butter & curry powder. Try not to put it over rice, but if you must...make it brown rice.