TV Interview on Normal Weight Obesity

Today I was interviewed on Channel 8's show Let's Talk Live about normal weight obesity. Here's the link to the webpage if you didn't get a chance to watch. Just click on the segment titled: Nutritionist Mary Perry on 'normal weight obesity,' and why seemingly slim people are at risk.

http://www.letstalklive.tv/

Having a Plan

Setting a goal is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan.
~Tom Landry

Many people don't like to plan their meals or what they're going to eat. Instead they go about their day and grab whatever is available when hunger strikes. A lot of times we justify it in our minds by thinking: "Hey I'm busy, I don't have time to worry about another thing," or "It's not my fault I had to eat unhealthy food. I didn't have any other options. It was out of my control."

If you're trying to make a change in your nutrition, the importance of planning cannot be underestimated. To quote a chapter in Debbie Danowski's book The Emotional Eater's Book of Inspiration, "It is best to decide what to eat when you are full." Why you ask? Because when you're starving and ready to gnaw on your desk, it's much harder to make healthy choices when anything and everything looks delicious.

Now before you start throwing things at your computer screen and saying things like "Planning - she thinks I have time to plan. Does she know all the things I have to worry about?" You may be thinking, "I don't want to plan. I just want to eat whatever I want when I want."

To quote a passage from Debbie's book:

The truth is that you do have every right to eat anything at any time. But the question to ask yourself is how well has that been working for you? Are your eating patterns the way you want them to be? Is your life happy? Do you feel peaceful? Is your body a size you're comfortable with? In short, is this what you want for yourself?

If you're not happy with your life then the only solution is to try doing things differently. It's just that simple. There is no other way to change.

If you really want to make a change, don't allow yourself the excuse that you don't have time to plan. Take a few minutes to plan out at least a few meals and snacks. Give it a try. And if you need more personalized plans and support, I'm always here to help.

Healthy 5 Minute Meal

Many people use the excuse that they don't have time to eat healthy. Yet healthy eating doesn't have to be complicated. Here's a recipe that literally takes about 5 minutes to prepare and is really delicious.

Asian Salmon Salad

1 (7.5 oz) can pink salmon, ideally look for one without bones
1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger or a sprinkle of powdered ginger
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped scallions, green parts only
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon sesame oil

Drain the salmon in a fine-mesh strainer and remove any bones. Place the salmon into a small bowl and use a fork to break it up. Add the ginger, lime juice, scallions, salt, and sesame oil. Mix well and taste. You many want to add a pinch of salt or squeeze of lime. (Source: One Bite At A Time by Rebecca Katz)

Serve the salad over bagged salad greens with some added veggies such as sliced cucumber and carrot. If desired, round out your meal with a small whole grain roll or slice of sprouted bread and a piece of fruit.

The salad makes about 1 cup, which can be divided into 2-4 servings.

Here is the nutrition info (just for the salmon salad) if dividing it into 4 servings.

Calories: 87; Total Fat: 5 grams; Carbohydrates: 0 grams; Protein: 10 grams; Sodium: 302 mg

Need help with more healthy 5 minute meal ideas? Contact me for an appointment today.

What Does 300 Calories Look Like? At Home vs Eating Out

We talk about calories all the time but it's often hard to translate an abstract number into what that looks like in terms of food. Here is a great article from the website Sparkpeople that not only demonstrates what 300 calories looks like on the plate but compares how much food you get when eating at home versus eating out. Not surprisingly you get a much bigger portion of food for the same amount of calories when you make it yourself versus at a restaurant. This is especially important if you're trying to manage your weight. You would typically have to eat a lot more calories at a restaurant to get that same feeling of fullness if you prepared it yourself. I've added some of the images here but check out the article for more great comparison pictures.

Need help deciphering how many calories you should be eating? Contact me to schedule an appointment.

Food Diary of an Olympic Athlete

In my previous post, I talked about how Olympic dieitians work with the athletes to provide optimal nutrition for their individual sport. Every wonder what a typical day of eating looks like for a high level athlete?

Today we get a sneak peek into Speedskater Maria Lamb's food diary. She will contest the 5,000-meter distance in Vancouver (she also raced in Turin in 2006). Her team's nutritionist, Nanna Meyer, shared a typical food diary, and her nutritional analysis, with US News. Here's what this 24-year-old Olympian ate one Tuesday in July while in off-season training:

Breakfast:

Oatmeal: 1 cup rolled oats cooked in water with ¼ cup raisins, cinnamon, sea salt, and 1 teaspoon of honey.
Banana smoothie: 1 medium banana, ½ cup skim milk, ½ cup low-fat plain yogurt, 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal, and ice

Workout nutrition (during 2½-hour roller ski session): 2 Clif Shots (energy gels)

Lunch:

Sandwich: 2 slices whole-grain mountain rye bread and 2 tablespoons hummus.
Soup: 2 cups of carrot cilantro soup.
Smoothie: 1 medium banana, ½ cup nonfat plain yogurt, 1 scoop soy protein powder, 1 teaspoon virgin coconut oil, cinnamon, water, and ice.
Fruit: 1 apricot, handful of cherries

Snack (midway through her noon-to-4 shift at Home Depot): Medium apple
Snack (at end of shift): Clif Nectar bar, cherry pomegranate flavor

Workout nutrition (during 2½-hour strength training session): ½ Clif Bar, banana nut bread flavor

Recovery nutrition (after workout): Other half of Clif Bar, medium banana

Dinner:

Pasta: whole-wheat pasta tossed with sautéed zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes, corn, onion, garlic, oregano, fresh basil, and olive oil. One egg. Glass of milk. Handful of almonds

Snack: ¾ cup homemade granola (includes rolled oats, rye, whole-wheat flour, wheat bran, buckwheat groats, flaxseed meal, soy protein powder, walnuts, cinnamon, salt, honey, vanilla, and applesauce)

Total: 4,067 calories, including about 141 grams of protein, 685 grams of carbohydrates, and 102 grams of fat. (Numbers may be rounded.)

Winter Olympic Nutrition

Have you been watching the Winter Olympics as much as I have since the games have started? Do you watch the athletes with admiration and possibly envy, thinking: "I bet they get to eat whatever they want and not worry about it."

While in theory the quantity part may be true for some of the endurance sports such as the cross country skiers who burn 4,000-5,000 calories, they are still mindful of the quality of food choices they're making to enhance performance. In explosive power sports, such as ski jumping, the athletes have to be conscious of quantity and quality as their calorie needs are much lower since they're not engaged in hours and hours of fat-burning aerobic endurance activity. Being calorie conscious is especially important in a sport where body weight can mean the difference of a few extra feet in the air.

Here's an interesting article from U.S. News that talks about what the athletes eat to prepare for the Olympic games. Besides my love for sports nutrition, this article was exciting for me to read since I got to meet the dietitians mentioned in the article when I attended a sports nutrition seminar at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs back in October. Here's a link to my blog entry where I highlighted what I learned.

Whether you're a weekend warrior or competitive athlete, the important thing to keep in mind is that your nutrition needs to match up with the length, frequency, and intensity of your training. It also needs to take into account your weight and body composition goals. And finally, while carbohydrates have gotten a bit of a bad rap lately, carbohydrates are the main fuel for performance. Carbohydrates should not be eliminated but need to be matched to an athlete's training demands.

Need help matching your nutrition to your training needs? Contact me for an appointment today.

Raw Chocolate Fondue - Yum!

When I think of Valentine's Day, I think of chocolate. While recent research has shown that chocolate has many health benefits, we're not talking about the chocolate typically found in those heart-shaped boxes but rather real cocoa or raw chocolate known as cacao.

Cocoa and raw chocolate pack a powerful nutritional punch thanks to naturally occurring antioxidants called flavanols. These flavanols help protect against the damage caused by harmful molecules in the body called free radicals. Studies show chocolate may help to protect the heart by raising good HDL cholesterol while lowering the bad LDL cholesterol; lowering high blood pressure; and reducing the risk of blood clots that cause heart attacks or strokes.

To get the most antioxidants, look for non-alkalized or lightly alkalized cocoas and dark chocolate made with at least 60-70% cocoa beans or “cacao” since milk chocolate and white chocolate don't have these health benefits. If not choosing cocoa or raw chocolate, just remember to keep portions moderate since chocolate is still high in saturated fat and added sugar.

Here's a recipe for a raw chocolate fondue that you can feel good about. The dessert lifts your energy rather than slowing you down by eliminating heavy cream and sugar. Keeping the chocolate in raw form provides another added bonus of not needing a warmer.

Raw Chocolate Fondue

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: None

Ingredients for Basic Fondue

1 very ripe banana, peeled
1/4 cup almond butter
1/4 cup (preferably unsweetened) almond milk
2 teaspoons agave nectar
3 tablespoons raw cacao (such as by TerrAmazon) or high quality cocoa powder

Optional Add-In Ingredients of Your Choice

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon orange extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon Grand Marnier

Suggested Fruits for Dipping

1 cup fresh strawberries, washed, stemmed, and halved
2 ripe kiwifruits, peeled and cut into chunks or thick half-rounds
1 mango, peeled and cubed
1 cup fresh cherries, pitted or frozen cherries, defrosted

Directions

In a blender, place the banana, almond butter, almond milk, agave nectar, and cocoa and blend well until the mixture forms a smooth cream. Add in any of the optional ingredients that you wish. Transfer the fondue to a serving dish. Arrange the cut fruit on a platter and serve with toothpicks or fondue forks for dipping.

Source: The Healthiest Meals on Earth

Are You Using Speed Bumps as Stop Signs?

"Fall seven times, get up eight." - Japanese Proverb

It's hard to believe but we're already 6 weeks into 2010. Do those New Year's resolutions seem like a distant memory? Has the determination to live a healthier life already been shoved to the back of your mind as soon as you finished putting away the holiday decorations? Has your passion for changing your life been sucked away like water draining out of a bathtub?

February is a tough time for New Year's resolutions as this is when most people's new found resolve really drops off. I especially notice this effect in the gym when the numbers start to drop off and you don't have to challenge someone to a cage match in order to get some time on a treadmill.

Trying to maintain our healthy resolutions in the DC area has been especially difficult since we were slammed by not one but 2 blizzards in less than a week. Being trapped in our houses on and off for days with the only entertainment besides shoveling mainly involving sitting and eating has definitely been a challenge. Even going to restock up on healthy items at the grocery store has been difficult as the produce section was practically bare as delivery trucks couldn't get in to provide new stock. Just the sight of empty shelves is enough to make anyone want to hoard fresh lettuce and dance triumphantly in the aisle when scoring the last of the broccoli. The blizzards have definitely been a major speed bump to many people who are trying to stay on track.

So even if you weren't trapped in your house due to a blizzard, maybe you hit some speed bumps in terms of eating healthy and used them as stop signs to abandon your good intentions. After finishing off a bag of chips, you may think: "Well I ate some chips. I might as well keep going with the cookies and ice cream." The problem with this "all or nothing" way of thinking is that is allows us to continue overeating by giving ourselves permission to keep marching down an unhealthy path.

Speed bumps in healthy eating happen to all of us. It's what you do after hitting a detour that matters the most.

So even if you ate your way through the DC snowpocalyse, you have the power to stop, regroup, and get back on track. If you're feeling overwhelmed, stop and ask yourself: "What can I do today to get back to a healthy lifestyle?"

Maybe it's getting out to exercise or having fruit and yogurt for a snack instead of cookies or having some veggies with your dinner. Taking a small step is often enough to get you headed in the right direction again and make you feel empowered. You have the power to change your life. I know you can do it. And as always I'm here to help if you find that your speed bumps keep transforming into stop signs.

Top 5 Pantry Makeover Tips

Is your kitchen sabotaging your efforts to eat healthy? Here are 5 quick tips on what to stock in your cupboard to help keep you on track.

1. You Had Me at Whole Grain.

We’ve all heard about switching out brown rice for white rice, whole grain bread for white bread, and whole wheat pasta for white pasta, but take it to the next level by experimenting with different whole grains. Think whole grains take hours to cook? Think again. Whole wheat couscous is simple to prepare. All you need to do is bring 1 ¾ cup of water or broth to a boil and stir in 1 cup of couscous. Remove it from the heat, let stand covered for about 5 minutes, and then fluff with a fork. Whole grain goodness in just 5 minutes. Whole wheat couscous can be used in place of rice. Add some wilted fresh spinach, salsa, onion, avocado, and some rinsed, canned black beans for a complete meal. Bust a move out of your whole grain comfort zone by trying bulgur wheat or quinoa. Bulgur wheat is higher in fiber than brown rice while quinoa is a complete protein.

Also, don’t be fooled by whole grain impostors. Just because bread is brown does not make it a whole grain. Often it may have molasses or food coloring added to make it appear like a whole grain. Check the list of ingredients on the package and look for the word “whole” in front of the grain such as “whole wheat” or look for the phrase “100% whole wheat” on the package.

2. No Beans About It.

Adding canned beans to your pantry is a great choice. Beans are high in fiber and protein while low in fat. Besides being a great nutritious choice, they’re also very economical. Substitute ½ cup of beans for your usual serving of meat at meals. An easy way to make a meatless meal is add chic peas to pasta sauce and serve over whole wheat spaghetti, add kidney beans to salads, or mash up soybeans or black beans and make into a high protein dip for raw veggies. You can even add beans to baked good to increase the fiber, such as mashed up black beans to brownies. (Trust me it works - you don't even taste the beans.)

3. Go Nuts.

Say good bye to all the packaged chips and cookies and instead substitute raw, unsalted nuts and seeds for healthy snacks. Nuts are a great source of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat that doesn’t clog your arteries. They’re also high in the antioxidant Vitamin E that combats free radicals to help us fight aging and keep our skin beautiful. Add nuts to dried fruit for a quick trail mix, top cereal with nuts in the morning, or add nuts to salads for a heart-healthy crunch. Besides the usual peanuts, mix it up and include walnuts, almonds, cashews, and pistachios along with sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds. Don’t forget about experimenting with nut butters as well. Many grocery stores offer almond, cashew, and even macadamia nut butter along side peanut butter. Just remember that nuts and nut butters are very calorie dense. About ¼ cup of nuts or seeds is about 160-200 calories while 2 tablespoons of nut butter is about 200 calories.

4. Would You Like Some Cereal with that Sugar?

Many breakfast cereals try to masquerade as healthy morning options, but most are very high in sugar, low in fiber, and lacking in nutrients. Look for whole grain, high fiber cereals. Aim for at least 5 grams of fiber per serving and ideally 5 grams or less of sugar per serving. If the sugar starts creeping up past this number in your favorite brand, use this cereal as a “topping” to your “base” high fiber, low sugar cereal. Oatmeal is always a great choice for breakfast cereal since it’s a whole grain high in soluble fiber – the kind that helps to lower bad cholesterol. However, be cautious of flavored, instant oatmeal in packets. These are often high in sugar. Instead get a large container of old fashioned oats, which can be cooked quickly in the microwave.

5. Latest School of Thought – Eat Fish.

Think fresh fish is the only way to go? Swim against this current of thought and enjoy canned fish. Canned fish is a rich source of anti-inflammatory heart-healthy Omega 3 fatty acids. It’s also high in protein, iron, phosphorus and selenium. To reduce calories and fat, look for tuna packed in water. Also, enjoy canned salmon as an alternative to tuna. Canned tuna and salmon are great in sandwiches and salads.

Super Snacks for a Super Bowl

According to the Calorie Control Council, Americans will eat 30 million pounds of snacks on the big game day and enough fat to equal the weight of 13,000 NFL offensive linemen (at 300 pounds each)! Here's the breakdown of what we're consuming:

• 11.2 million pounds of potato chips
• 8.2 million pounds of tortilla chips
• 4.3 million pounds of pretzels
• 3.8 million pounds of popcorn
• 2.5 million pounds of nuts

The average armchair quarterback will eat about 1200 calories and 50 grams of fat just while watching the game. In terms of calories, that's like eating 6 doughnuts while 50 grams of fat is the same as eating more than half a stick of butter. If you're reading this and saying: "Hey, doughnuts and butter is what I had for breakfast," I suggest my nutrition intervention services for folks who's health role model is Homer Simpson.

The key to having a healthier Super Bowl Sunday is to modify our snacks by cutting back on the fat without sacrificing flavor. Here's a few recipes to help you do that.

Black Bean Dip

This dip only takes about 10 minutes to make. Feel free to get creative and add a little fresh avocado to the mix as well. This can be served with baked tortilla chips or for a twist, try the recipe for baked pita chips below.

Ingredients

1 19-ounce or 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed
1/2 cup prepared salsa, hot or mild
1-2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preparation

Combine black beans, salsa, lime juice, cilantro and cumin in a food processor. Process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

Nutrition
Per tablespoon : 17 Calories; 0 g Fat; 0 g Sat; 0 g Mono; 0 mg Cholesterol; 3 g Carbohydrates; 1 g Protein; 1 g Fiber; 53 mg Sodium; 2 mg Potassium

Baked Pita Chips

Makes 32 chips.

Ingredients

4 whole-wheat pita breads
Olive oil cooking spray, or extra-virgin olive oil

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Cut pitas into 4 triangles each. Separate each triangle into 2 halves at the fold. Arrange, rough side up, on a baking sheet. Spritz lightly with cooking spray or brush lightly with oil. Bake until crisp, 8 to 10 minutes.

Nutrition

Per crisp: 23 calories; 0 g fat (0 g sat, 0 g mono); 0 mg cholesterol; 4 g carbohydrates; 1 g protein; 1 g fiber; 43 mg sodium; 14 mg potassium.

Smart & Delicious: Product Spotlight

Whether you're trying to maintain or lose weight, eating foods high in fiber is a great strategy since they tend to fill you up for fewer calories. Foods rich in fiber are fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. The fiber slows down the digestion of food and helps you feel full by absorbing fluid in the stomach and intestines. Since most of us aren't getting the recommended amount of fiber ( 25-38 grams per day), here's a product that will help increase fiber intake.

La Tortilla Factory makes several wraps under their Smart and Delicious line.

What I like about these tortillas are they are less than half the calories of a typical tortilla (only 80-90 calories), are a nice size, and have a whopping 12 grams of fiber per tortilla. The fiber in the wraps is boosted from soluble oat fiber so this would also be a good product for folks trying to lower their cholesterol levels. The line has several flavors including traditional flour, low carb whole wheat, multigrain, rosemary, rye, and tomato basil. I've been finding them in my local grocery store (Giant if you're in the DC metro area) on a display rack on front of the deli counter. The wraps don't need to be refrigerated until the package is opened so if you don't find them in front of the deli, look for them on the shelf or ask your store to see if they carry them.

One favorite way to use them is spreading some hummus on the wrap and topping it with some chopped raw veggies, such as tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, spinach, and maybe some sprouts. It's an easy and tasty way to get your veggies in at meals - smart & delicious.