According to www.health-and-age.org dinner plates have increased in size over the past few decades. I'm not sure if that's because we need to eat more or are too lazy to go to the counter for second helpings---at least we'd get more exercise that way.
The plates have increased in surface area by almost 50 percent. Do we really need that much more food?
My family ate at a bar-b-que joint a few days ago. I wanted the ribs and chicken combination as I like ribs but know that the fat to protein ration is off the charts on ribs. So when my meal arrived I asked for a box. When the box arrived I cut my meal in half and put half of it away for another meal later that week. Actually, my son and I ate what was left over for a lunch--A full lunch.
What was surprising about the meal were the expressions on the face of our waiter when I 1. ordered my baked potato plain; and 2. ordered the to-go box before the meal. I could have ordered cheese, chili, bacon, sour cream and butter for my potato and they indeed had a loaded potato on the menu. A loaded potato provides 100 percent of fat requirements for a day and 25 percent of calories for the day, if you eat 2,000 calories. A plain baked potato has 300 fewer calories, and if you cut it in half you save 400 calories from one side-dish.....WOW!!!
We found some plates which are at least two inches smaller to control portions and have started cutting down recipies so there are just four portions-just right for our family.
Next up healthy snack ideas from a nine-year-old.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Friday, June 27, 2008
Eating to live or living to eat
I can't tell you how many times growing up I asked my mom right after a meal "what's for dinner tomorrow?" I could not satisfy my craving for food. But food was a comfort for us. If we had a good day we celebrated by eating. Bad day-we ate. Blah day-we ate.
What I am trying to instill in my boys early on in life is to eat when hungry. We are becoming more strict about eating snacks while watching television or driving in the car. Too many times we are like automatons dipping our hands into a snack bag and continuing to eat until whatever it is, is gone.
My wife uses a measuring cup when she pours cereal in the morning. I measured my bag dump and I had three servings!
If you want to take control of your life focus on portion control. Read the box, measure out or count out one serving. Eat that and wait for a while. If you're still hungry....measure out a half serving and eat that.
Next up...What is the size of your dinner plate and what is it doing to your waistline?
What I am trying to instill in my boys early on in life is to eat when hungry. We are becoming more strict about eating snacks while watching television or driving in the car. Too many times we are like automatons dipping our hands into a snack bag and continuing to eat until whatever it is, is gone.
My wife uses a measuring cup when she pours cereal in the morning. I measured my bag dump and I had three servings!
If you want to take control of your life focus on portion control. Read the box, measure out or count out one serving. Eat that and wait for a while. If you're still hungry....measure out a half serving and eat that.
Next up...What is the size of your dinner plate and what is it doing to your waistline?
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Are you eating FAT for dinner
Foulness
Affecting
Taste
That's right. Too much fat in food fouls the way food should taste. Tonight, I'm making pepperoni, Italian sausage, veggie pizza...... With half the fat of regular pizza and it tastes wayyyyy better!!!~!!!
I make it with whole wheat flour, malted barley flour, rye and unbleached white flour. I use olive oil instead of corn oil and no suger in the mix at all.
The sausage I boil to get rid of the fat---look in the pan after you boil something with lots of fat...when the fat cools, put it in a clear glass and swirl it around...see how it coats the sides? That's what it does to your veins and arteries...YEECCHCHHH!
My wife swears if I stroke out because of high cholesterol she won't waste money on long term care. She'll put me out on the porch each day when she goes to work and she'll roll me back in at night.
Well, the pizza's ready. We're eating it with a fresh field greens salad. goodnight.
Affecting
Taste
That's right. Too much fat in food fouls the way food should taste. Tonight, I'm making pepperoni, Italian sausage, veggie pizza...... With half the fat of regular pizza and it tastes wayyyyy better!!!~!!!
I make it with whole wheat flour, malted barley flour, rye and unbleached white flour. I use olive oil instead of corn oil and no suger in the mix at all.
The sausage I boil to get rid of the fat---look in the pan after you boil something with lots of fat...when the fat cools, put it in a clear glass and swirl it around...see how it coats the sides? That's what it does to your veins and arteries...YEECCHCHHH!
My wife swears if I stroke out because of high cholesterol she won't waste money on long term care. She'll put me out on the porch each day when she goes to work and she'll roll me back in at night.
Well, the pizza's ready. We're eating it with a fresh field greens salad. goodnight.
Loaded Couch Potato: Nutrition and Exercise for Kids
My twelve-year-old grabbed a bag of chips and headed downstairs to the television room. Later, I found the empy bag on the table. Did I really believe my child would hold back on the chips after he sat down in front of the TV? I deluded myself into those thoughts, just because I was in the middle of something and I didn't want to stop...I was lazy.
Thankfully, the chip episode is not a recurring theme in our household. We rarely buy chips, focusing on fruit, cheese, yogurt or low-fat whole grain crackers, instead. My two sons (12 and 9) are pysically active and understand healthy eating.
But exercise is the key component to a child's regimen. It it not asceticism(deprivation) that we want to reach. Nor do we want the Greek ideal of perfection. We are looking more at a balanced approach to exercise.
Starting too quickly with too much exercise at one time burdens a child: causing injury, drudgery and resentment. A child has to find his or her way to a healthy lifestyle, but they do need our help. I remember as a child sitting down in the basement with my karate gee on sobbing that I didn't want to go to practice. My father relented....without asking me why. The reason was that I was singled out the practice before and (I thought made fun of) I was very self-conscious and felt that I was slow. And I was...it took until sixth grade for me to grow into my body. A simple explanation of how classes worked would have helped me overcome my shyness....maybe.
In coming notes, I'll give some examples about how to start slowly with your child and incorporate fun and fitness into a new lifestyle. I will give you a hint to get you started.
We don't have video games in our house;our children don't have computers or TV's in their rooms, and the whole family is asleep by 9:30 each week night.
Thankfully, the chip episode is not a recurring theme in our household. We rarely buy chips, focusing on fruit, cheese, yogurt or low-fat whole grain crackers, instead. My two sons (12 and 9) are pysically active and understand healthy eating.
But exercise is the key component to a child's regimen. It it not asceticism(deprivation) that we want to reach. Nor do we want the Greek ideal of perfection. We are looking more at a balanced approach to exercise.
Starting too quickly with too much exercise at one time burdens a child: causing injury, drudgery and resentment. A child has to find his or her way to a healthy lifestyle, but they do need our help. I remember as a child sitting down in the basement with my karate gee on sobbing that I didn't want to go to practice. My father relented....without asking me why. The reason was that I was singled out the practice before and (I thought made fun of) I was very self-conscious and felt that I was slow. And I was...it took until sixth grade for me to grow into my body. A simple explanation of how classes worked would have helped me overcome my shyness....maybe.
In coming notes, I'll give some examples about how to start slowly with your child and incorporate fun and fitness into a new lifestyle. I will give you a hint to get you started.
We don't have video games in our house;our children don't have computers or TV's in their rooms, and the whole family is asleep by 9:30 each week night.
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