Want to Lose Weight? Eat Less, Eat Quality

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What you eat really matters when trying to lose weight. Quality calories should be your goal. Junk food, like chips, donuts and sodas aren't nutritious and have loads of calories. They also have you wanting to eat more in just a short time. Control your eating with a nutrition plan and food journal.

We are kings and queens of "too large" servings of food and that's without even "super-sizing" anything! Keep your daily food journal to track what, how much and why you are eating. This will help you with portion control.

Pack your lunches and snacks instead of eating out at work. If you eat at a restaurant for dinner, check out the menu online so you know what to order. Most restaurants now have a "healthy foods" menu. One way to eat quality calories is to "eat your calories" instead of "drinking your calories." When you eat food, you have more satiety and you are more likely to take in fewer calories.

Another way to control calorie intake is to eat more water based foods (volume eating). The basics of volume eating is to eat as many foods with high water content/low calories as you can. Foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables are examples. These types of foods help you to feel fuller (satiety) while eating fewer calories.

For instance, grapes with the same calorie amount as raisins will provide more satiety and theoretically help you eat less the rest of the day. Also, the energy density of food is a key component when trying to add volume to your diet. Energy density (ED) is defined as the amount of calories of a food divided by its weight in grams.

You should basically focus on foods rich in fiber with high water content (or low ED value). Fresh fruits (apples, etc.) and vegetables (such as tomatoes and broccoli) whole grain pastas, rice, whole grain breads and cereals, soups, salads and skinless white chicken/turkey are some examples.

Other dryer foods could be added to your diet on a limited basis. Dryer foods would be starchy fruits and vegetables, salad dressings, crackers, etc.

The old rule still applies: a caloric surplus (consume more calories than you burn) will cause you to gain weight. Hopefully a diet high in water content will cause you to consume fewer calories while providing all the nutrition you need.

And while you're at it, drink about half an ounce of water for every pound of your body weight every day. So, if you weigh 140 pounds, drink at least 70 ounces of water a day. If you workout, drink even more water (a cup of water for every 15 minutes of exercise).

Make needed changes to your eating habits and reach your fat loss and weight loss goals!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES, CPT is a Certified Personal Trainer and former NCAA Division I athlete. Mark’s Fat Blaster Athletic Training System has been proven to give his clients the fit, sculpted and athletic-type bodies they want. Visit Mark’s sites:

My Fitness Hut http://myfitnesshut.blogspot.com
Her Fitness Hut http://herfitnesshut.com
Sports Fitness Hut http://sportsfitnesshut.blogspot.com

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Susan Schade

Thank you for your helpful tips!

July 12, 2010 - 3:03pm

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We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.