by kelsey | Nov 26, 2013 | Cooking Tips, Diet, Food, Holidays, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
Happy Thanksgiving to you! The Thanksgiving holiday is always a fun one enjoyed by all as we stuff ourselves and then resort to the couch to watch football or the start of the holiday tv shows. Here are some tips for you to get through the holiday without putting on all those undesired extra pounds.
- Survey the entire table before you take any food. Decide what foods are worth eating and what can be ignored, and then stick to that decision. Why waste calories on foods that don’t bring you pleasure?
- Eat a snack before you leave home. If you arrive at a party starving, you’ll be more likely to overindulge.
- Eat your calories instead of drinking them. Stick to lower calorie or calorie-free drinks (diet sodas, water, light beer, or wine spritzer) instead of punches, eggnogs, and mixed drinks that can have up to 500 calories per cup.
- Sip a large glass of water between every alcoholic drink or non-alcoholic punch or eggnog. This will help keep you hydrated and you’ll drink fewer calories by the end of the night.
- When you are the host or hostess, include nutritious and lower-calorie foods like fruits, vegetables, and lean meats on the menu. When you are a guest, bring along a lower-calorie dish to share.
- Try not to hang out near the food. Find a comfortable spot across the room and focus on people instead of eating.
- Watch your portion sizes. Don’t cover your plate completely with food. In most cases, especially when it comes to holiday sweets and alcoholic beverages, less is better. Use a smaller plate or bowl and have just a sliver of pie like the picture shows.
- Drop out of the “clean plate club”. Leave a few bites behind every time you eat, especially if you are eating something you don’t really care for.
- Enjoy your favorite holiday treats but take a small portion, eat slowly, and savor the taste and texture of the wonderful foods of the season.
- Skip the pie crust and go for the filling.
- Choose light meat over dark meat.
- Use home-made cranberry sauce over canned cranberries that are jam packed with added sugars.
- In soups, sauces, puddings, and desserts: Replace whole milk or cream with low-fat milk, evaporated fat-free milk, or nonfat dry milk.
Lighten up your recipes:
- To make dips and toppings: Use low-fat or nonfat cottage cheese or sour cream, or non-fat Greek yogurt.
- To make salad dressings: Use nonfat Greek yogurt or low-fat buttermilk.
- In place of 1 whole egg in recipes: Use 2 egg whites or 1/4 cup egg substitute.
- In place of regular cheese: Use fat-free or reduced-fat cheese.
- In place of full sugar: replace half with Splenda or reduce half completely.
- In place of fats: use unsweetened applesauce or oil (1-1 replacement), or prune puree (1 cup of fat=1/2 cup puree).
More importantly is ENJOY your family and friends and all that have to the THANKful for!
-Kelsey
by Dan | Nov 14, 2013 | Exercise, Goals, Motivation, Wellness/Health
Well, after last thursday, I thought my consecutive exercise streak would come to an end. I had already ran that morning with Sarah, and did not get hurt or sick, but came home in the afternoon and was letting Buddy in from the kennel outside. As usual, I open the gate, and we have a race to see who can get to the door first. That competetiveness never ends! Anyway, I took off, with Buddy taking off at full speed shortly thereafter. Usually, he runs beside me to pass. But not that day! He comes directly behind me, 100# Retriever at full speed, and takes me out. The grass was wet, so my legs went flying and twisting in the air, and landed awkwardly on the lawn. I knew something was not right immediately. Pain into my right hip and groin area, and could not move. Buddy eventaully came back to check on me, but only after he got to the door first…he was going to win no matter what that day! Luckily I did not break anything, but tore muscles pretty good. Already that evening I knew there was no way I was going to be running the next day, and I could not even sit, so the bike was out. I could not even make it through the whole day of work the next day. But, what did help, was walking! It helped loosen me up, and so I walked multiple times that day, short segments, then covered the football game that night (all the other docs who usually help were out of town) walking up and down the sideline. I told our trainer that night that if I could be out there, the players had to prove to me there were hurt more than me! Ha! All told, with my garmin on, I still covered over 4 miles! Each day has gotten a little better, but completely purple, black, and blue. Still can’t run or bike, but have been walking everyday, with relief after doing it. I may not be setting any speed records, but I am still out there doing it. First true injury I have had not related to training! Buddy feels bad because it has limited him too.
All if forgiven Bud! I helped train you into that competitive mode! You definitely won that day!
Today was a great afternoon to get outside and walk. Weather nice, calm winds. I had been doing my walking on the treadmill the last few days so I could control my pace, and if I had to quit, I would already be home. Went well today for a 4 mile walk. Consecutive exercise streak remains intact! I can’t believe how many people asked me this past week if my streak came to an end! Someday, it will end, for whatever reason, but not yet. So, I guess when it does, I will just start the next consecutive streak beginning the next day! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 2242
by kelsey | Nov 14, 2013 | Diet, Holidays, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
I don’t know about you, but I’m getting really excited for the holidays to be here! Two weeks from today, we’ll all be celebrating Thanksgiving by eating a lot of really good food, visiting with friends and family, and watching some football or good holiday shows on tv! The holidays can bring out a variety of emotions and when food is at every holiday party or gathering, it can be challenging to practice portion control and make good choices. The first step in overcoming emotional eating is to recognize what emotions cause you to eat more. Keeping a food log that includes your feelings and emotions in relationship to your intake will help you increase your awareness. Once you know what is causing the urge to overeat, the next step is to figure out how to avoid or overcome that situation or feeling. Think about what needs to change in your life to break the pattern of emotional eating, how can you reduce your stress, and channel your energy in another direction that is away from food. If certain foods are more tempting to you, then do not buy them or keep them in your home. If you slip up from time to time, do not get down on yourself! Instead, overcome it and get back on track the next meal or snack and examine each fall back as a way to find out more about what is causing your emotional eating. Exercise is also helpful as it produces natural endorphins that boost mood, so next time you get the urge, get moving!
As you prepare for the holidays, be sure to include a few healthy or safe foods on your list that you can enjoy without guilt, be sure to get your exercise in, and remind your self the real point of the holidays: being thankful for all that we have and enjoying our time with friends and family.
Stay tuned to next week’s posts for some more tips on holiday eating.
-Kelsey
by kelsey | Nov 12, 2013 | Family, Motivation, Wellness/Health
My great-grandma Mary was a great role model for my family as she showed us that no matter what your age was you could always learn new things and keeping active was key to longevity. Many of you who know my family probably remember Grandma Mary. Grandma Mary lived to be a few months short of 95 years old and she lived independently until she was about 94 years old. She was truly one of a kind as she never missed any activities in our family, never missed Sunday church, and would jump on the opportunity to learn new things. At her age, it would have been very easy to throw in the towel and give up, while letting others cater to her needs, but she had a spirit to live that was in-stopable. Her son, my grandpa Marshall (my dad’s dad) had the same personality and it really showed through with his battle with cancer.
You may wonder why I am even sharing these stories with you as they do not relate to food or nutrition, but in reality a spirit to live and the desire to make those small efforts at healthy living is key to success! We don’t expect you to take everything we recommend or talk about and do it all at once, but focus on one thing at a time and remember something is better than nothing!
It’s easy to come up with every excuse in the book to not exercise and not eat healthy, but we need to throw the excuse book out the window and focus on small changes or modifications and remember something is better than nothing! If you know you need to increase your fruit intake, start by adding one serving to your daily intake. If you know you need to get more exercise, start by adding a 10 minute walk to your day’s routine. Push yourself to learn new things and stay as active as you can be as this will not only help improve your health, it will help you live a long and healthy life like my Great Grandma Mary! Start by doing some reflection and prioritize your tasks and goals. The sky is the limit!
-Kelsey
by kelsey | Nov 7, 2013 | Diabetes, Diet, Wellness/Health
There’s a lot of buzz about carbohydrates….are they good? Are they bad? How much should you have? , etc etc etc. Since we are discussing diabetes in celebration of National Diabetes Month, I thought it would be appropriate to discuss carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are the main (and best) source of energy for your brain and central nervous system. Carbohydrates are essential for energy; however they raise your blood sugar levels higher and faster than any other kind of food. Carbohydrates are essential for your body to be able to sustain energy, so just like a car needs the right type of fuel (gas) to run, you need the right kind of fuel (food) to function and be healthy. To sustain energy, your body needs adequate carbohydrates: 50-60% of your total calories should come from carbohydrates. Cutting out all carbs can be very detrimental to our body, especially our brain, central nervous system, liver, kidneys, and heart. Because they are an excellent source of energy, but they do raise blood sugars, it’s important to recognize the types of carbohydrates and how to count them in efforts of controlling your blood sugars while still maintaining good health and adequate energy..
Carbohydrates are found in the following:
Starches: found in grains, some vegetables, and beans.
- Grains: bread, pasta, cereal, tortillas, rice
- Starchy Vegetables: potatoes, peas, corn, yams, squash
- Beans: kidney beans, pinto beans, black beans, garbanzo beans, and lentils
- **The best and recommended sources of starches are whole grains…choose them over the white, refined grains!
Sugars: found naturally in foods or added to foods.
- Natural Sugars: fruits, fruit juices, dairy products, honey, and molasses.
- Added Sugars: desserts, processed foods, candy, regular soda, and fruit drinks.
- **Natural sugars are better than added sugars, but large quantities of them can still raise your blood sugars…we recommend getting at 2-3 fruits and 3 servings of veggies/day. Anytime you can limit or eliminate the added sugars, do so!
To aid in ideal blood sugar control, we recommend a moderate intake of carbohydrates which means about 45-60g/meal and 15-30g/snack with several small meals and snacks throughout the day. I visit with patients daily about finding the right balance in their intake. If you would like help managing your blood sugars, to learn more about diabetes self care, or a personalized nutrition plan, be sure to contact me for further help!
-Kelsey Raml, MS, RD, LN
by kelsey | Oct 31, 2013 | Diet, Holidays, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
Happy Halloween!! Today is always a fun holiday enjoyed by all! Costumes and candy fill our day and consume our thoughts. I was talking to my 4 year old niece about Halloween a few days ago and she was telling me that she gets to have one treat a day because if she eats too much candy, “her teeth will fall out and her belly will hurt.” I had to laugh because I can tell her mom (who’s a dentist) and her dad (who’s a doctor) have been doing some very good coaching and parenting! She then went on to tell me that carrots and apples are a much better choice….oh yes, she made her auntie proud! 😉 It was a pretty comical conversation (as many are with 4 year olds), but I have to tell you, she and her parents are right on track with setting the recommended ground rules before Halloween. It’s important to allow them to splurge and have some fun today, but you will want to set some ground rules before they leave for trick-or-treating. Spreading the candy out over a period of time and following a “Treat-Schedule” will allow them to enjoy it, but not over-do it. Encourage them to make piles of their favorite candy and not-so-favorites and consider donating the not-so-favorites to a local shelter or send to those serving our country overseas. And most of all, encourage your child to focus on the fun of the holiday which includes being with friends and family and dressing up, with less focus on the candy.
We hope your day is filled with more tricks than treats! Enjoy!
-Kelsey
