by Carie Moore
It seems like everyone writes the traditional new year resolution post, so let’s follow the trend!
I’m no fitness or nutrition expert but I have learned a few things over the years. When attempting to change our eating habits, flavor is still an issue. You have to get used to some things. But if you start by mixing and blending, eventually that will become your new normal.
1. Salads are great choices for getting fresh veggies and protein into your meals. Ham, chicken, turkey, and eggs are all great options. It’s the dressing that is the problem. If you don’t eat salads, adding dressing is a good way to start implementing a change, but you also need to cut back or mix half with another dressing. Same with a crispy chicken or taco salad. It’s a better choice but the chicken is still deep-fried and the taco adds chips, cheese and sour cream.
2. Carbs are a big thing these days. A small switch in our house is whole wheat or veggie noodles. You can buy them or if you feel ambitious you can make your own. I initially started out mixing regular noodles and half whole wheat until we all adjusted.
3. I buy a lot of items based on price. A few years ago, we switched a lot of our ground meats to turkey and chicken. Yes, some things do taste better with beef, but many dishes made now are done with chicken. It is about half the price per pound. Blending is done with certain dishes that still require the taste of beef, like hamburgers!!
4. Sweet potatoes for regular potatoes is a tricky one. I have seen the sweet potato trend but with it comes marshmallow dipping sauce, so we’re right back to the same issue with we had with ranch and French fries. Some people don’t care for sweet potatoes and never will, but I have gotten my kids to do sweet potato fries with just a dusting of cinnamon and sugar for sweetness.
5. Dips/mayo/sides are all made with fats essentially. There are good fats and bad fats. We have replaced the regular mayonnaise with those made from avocado and olive oil. Many of the dips or sides we make are made with nonfat unflavored yogurt instead of sour cream. If you need ranch for veggies you can buy the flavor packs and mix with the good fat mayo or with the yogurt. It’s a small change but it’s a start.
6. For the flavored drinks, using the sugar free syrups instead of the regular cuts out a lot of sugar alone.
7. Milk choices are different for everyone due to tolerances and availability. I use almond milk in my cereal but I use cow’s milk for my coffee drinks. I don’t think one kind is best. I support dairy farmers and I know there are nutrients I need in milk so I cut carbs in other areas or use milk as my carb post workout.
8. Cereals are such a catch 22. Some people think if they stick to cereal or replace a meal with it that’s a diet in itself. It is one product I believe is the biggest marketing ploy in the entire supermarket. Don’t judge the cereal by the front. Look at the side, instead. All cereal has great vitamins and minerals for you, but you need to look at the amount of sugars. Anything under 10 is what we shoot for. And keep in mind what a serving is. Sometimes a “bowl of cereal” ends up being 3 servings, so you’re looking at the amount of sugar in a candy bar. Hot cereals are a great option as it’s more filling and you can add sugars or topping as needed.
9. Wraps are a great replacement for breads. Any sandwich can be made into a wrap, with lettuce or veggies added as fillers! There are a large variety of wrap sizes and flavors for almost every taste.
10. For baking and cooking I use a lot of substitutions and additions. Bananas can be added to a lot of things as well as applesauce for oils. Some recipes call for cereal and again, watch those. We made haystacks for Christmas and instead of chow Mein noodles we used the Fiber One cereal sticks. They were still cookies, but with a healthy twist. Broths are great to add flavor instead of oils. W
We are all looking for easy ways to do things, and for me I think these are doable, mainly because I’ve been able to stick to these for a couple years now. The biggest thing is just making the change. You don’t have to go all in or you probably won’t succeed. You will miss what you loved and not continue. I believe you have to retrain your taste buds, and meals -- like fitness or anything else -- takes time.
Read the actual labels on products, not the stickers, bubbles, stars, or other attention-grabbing additions on the front. The nutrition label is where the FACTS are. You would not believe the number of products that say low fat or healthy and you compare that with a basic generic product that is almost half the price, and the half-priced option is healthier.
Happy New Year!