By Caitlyn Elf

I try to go vegetarian at least once a week both for my wallet and my waistline. However, with these cold temperatures it’s hard to resist the urge to dive head first into a bowl of turkey chili or chicken soup. That’s why for this week’s Recipe Makeover I decided to take one of my favorite meat-based recipes and make it fit for a vegetarian!

Using this Chicken-and-Sausage Gumbo recipe, I made some super simple tweaks to not only make it meatless, but also up the fiber content so it will be sure to leave you just as satisfied as the original. Trust me on this one, you won’t miss the meat one bit!

Follow the substitutions below to spoon your way to a hearty, vegetarian gumbo!

• 1 (3.5-oz.) bag boil-in-bag rice (Here I used 3.5 ounces of brown rice to increase the fiber in the recipe)
• 1 tbsp. vegetable oil (In place of the vegetable oil I used 1 tbsp. canola oil for even greater heart-health benefits)
• 2 cups chopped roasted boneless, skinless chicken breasts; about 2 breasts (To make this meat-heavy dish vegetarian, I replaced the 2 cups of roasted chicken breast with a soy protein-based chicken such as Light Life Smart Cutlets)
• 8 oz. turkey kielbasa, cut into 1-inch pieces (For this I used 8 oz. of meatless sausage (such as Trader Joe’s sausageless sausage)
• 1 (14.5-oz.) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth (In place of the fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth I simply used a fat-free, less-sodium vegetable broth)

With the very first spoonful I brought to my lips, I knew that this was going to be just as good as the classic. The soy protein-based, vegetarian substitutions did a great job of keeping the soup nice and hearty while also making it healthy and meatless! Even the carnivores in your life will have a hard time turning down a piping hot bowl of this stuff!

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By Julie Upton, RD

There’s no doubt about it: We’re in the middle of the eating season. As a dietitian, you probably think I never have to worry about my weight, or that I have iron-clad willpower, or that I know the calorie counts for all 30,000 foods on supermarket shelves.

Think again.

Even though I may fit into skinny jeans without constant attention to my diet and fitness, I feel like just smelling calorie-rich foods leads me to pile on pounds. Without my food rules, I could easily gain 5 to 10 pounds during the holiday season.

I have several holiday parties to attend, and I’m hosting friends and family for some special dinners. As a result, I’m not able to exercise as much as I typically do. The time crunch of the season, coupled with all I have to do, leads to a lot of extra stress—and we all know stress is one of the worst things for making our bodies crave sweets and store body fat.

Although most of us will gain about a pound from Thanksgiving to New Year’s, some people gain as much as 10 pounds during this time. The bigger problem is that few of us shed that holiday weight gain.

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Here’s what I’m doing this year—and have done successfully in the past—to keep the scale steady during this challenging time of year.

• Keep water pouring in. When I drink more water, I eat less. There’s no two ways about it.

• Eat a protein-packed breakfast. I try to eat a filling, protein-rich breakfast of one scrambled egg and two scrambled egg whites.  I’ll eat this with fruit, and I find it keeps my cravings at bay for most of the day.

• Limit alcohol. I will drink no more than three times during the holidays, so I map out those occasions when I’m going to let loose. Research has shown Americans drink 27% more during the holiday season. Alcohol is calorie-rich, and stimulates your appetite and reduces your resolve to stick with a healthy eating plan.

• Exercise every day. I am very active, but I easily could skip my workouts when the weather stinks, when I’m traveling, or when I’m overcommitted. But I don’t. Instead, I find a CrossFit travel WOD (workout of the day). One of my favorite workouts is 10 rounds of 10 push-ups, 10 sit-ups, and 10 air squats. These workouts are quick but work all your major muscle groups.

• Eat at a table with a plate and utensils. I know that distracted dining can lead to eating twice as many calories to feel full, so I just don’t do it. I use a plate or bowl, and I sit down and don’t do anything else while I eat. This way I can be “present” to eating and taste and enjoy the food, so I’ll stop when I’m satisfied.

• Indulge socially. We all will have access to cakes, cookies, fudge, eggnog, and all kinds of other merry treats during the season, so there’s no need to have them at your house where the temptation is constant. Keep your house stocked with fruits, vegetables, and other wholesome foods rather than holiday treats and drinks.

• Prepare extra-healthy meals. Each weekend, I make a few dinners that I put in the refrigerator or freezer to have in a pinch when I’m pressed for time during the week. This helps prevent me from stopping for takeout.

New national data recently released by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) shows that the number of overweight Americans is far too high and is costing us nearly $150 billion a year in health-care costs.

Today, nearly 34% of adults are obese, up from 23% in 1994. Those classified as “extremely” obese increased from 3% in 1994 to nearly 6% in the most recent data. Additionally, 34% are overweight, up from 33% in 1994.

Together, more than two-thirds of the population is overweight or obese.

I know how hard it is to maintain an ideal body weight. I fight the battle on a daily basis as I’m prone to pudginess. However, for the most part, I feel like I’m winning.

I’ve developed a few key strategies that help keep my weight in check. But I’ve also asked my other dietitian colleagues who specialize in weight loss for their advice. Here are our best tips for losing and maintaining a healthy weight:

1. Step on the scale! This is my surefire solution for losing weight. I find that I have to weigh myself once a week to stay on track. If I stop tracking my weight, somehow I think I don’t have to think about what I eat. —Julie Upton, RD

2. Remember to WAIT! before that first bite and question yourself about what you’re eating. Become a more mindful eater by asking yourself, “Am I really hungry?” and “Do I really need this?” If you’re physiologically hungry, then proceed with the meal or snack. If you’re not or you’re not quite sure, probe further and try to choose a different mode of addressing the issue. —Heather Schwartz, MS, RD

3. Write it down! So many of my clients do not realize how much they eat each day. By writing down everything you eat and drink, you quickly become aware of the amount of food you’re eating, and the number of times you’re eating—which you could be doing without even realizing it. —Felicia D. Stoler, DCN, MS, RD, FACSM

4. Eat regularly. Eat breakfast within one hour of waking and then every three to four hours while awake the rest of the day. —Janice Dada, MPH, RD

5. Lift like you mean it! Weights that is. But not the light weights. Go heavier so that you really tire your muscles. This will stimulate muscle growth, leading to more calories burned and, ultimately, to weight loss. —Katrina Seidman, MS, RD, LDN

I’ve always maintained that if I want to lose weight, all I need to do is step on the scale once or twice a week. Even if I say I’m going to weigh myself tomorrow, I’ll eat less today. This is true for most women I know; they all hate the thought of stepping on a scale.

However, several studies have shown that those who weigh themselves regularly are least likely to gain weight. A new study reported this week in the Journal of Medical Internet Research now shows that weekly tracking of body weight using an interactive website designed to promote weight-loss maintenance may help you maintain weight that you may have lost.

The trial by Kaiser Permanente researchers involved several phases. In the first phase, the participants enrolled in a six-month weight-loss trial. In the second phase, participants who had lost at least 9 pounds in the initial trial were divided into three groups: one with no intervention, one that involved monthly meetings with a health coach, and one that was provided with unlimited access to an interactive weight-maintenance website.

This study then tracked the nearly 350 participants in the group with access to the website for their first 28 months of use.

The website prompted individuals to record their weight, minutes of exercise, and the number of days they kept food diaries. If they went longer than seven days without recording a weight, the other features of the website were disabled until they logged on their weight again.

The results found that the successful dieters were those who logged in and recorded their weight once a month for at least 26 of the 28 months the study ran. They kept off an average of 9 of the average 19 pounds they’d lost. Those who logged on less consistently—at least once a month for 14 to 25 months—kept off an average of 5 pounds. Those who logged on least regained the most weight and had kept off an average of only 3 pounds of their original weight loss.

If you need inspiration, try some of my favorite—and free—sites that provide online diet tools, incuding:

• Sparkpeople.com
• Fitday.com
• iPhone App: Lose It!

Just recently, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association revealed how to put the brakes on mid-life weight gain: Exercise. A lot.

For 13 years, the study followed more than 34,000 healthy women with an average age of 54, and tracked their diet, exercise, and body weight. The researchers found that some 13% of women who started at a normal, healthy weight maintained it to plus or minus 5 pounds during the 13-year period.

However, the vast majority of women gained weight steadily with each passing year, gaining an average of 5.7 pounds. When exercise levels were evaluated, those who maintained a healthy weight were found to exercise, on average, 60 minutes a day, five days a week. But for women who may already be overweight, these guidelines are not sufficient to spark significant weight loss, so a strict diet and/or more exercise and diet would be necessary to shed pounds for those who are in their mid-40s or older.

The news reports about the study were overwhelmingly negative, assuming that women would never have the time, nor inclination to get at least an hour a day of exercise, most days a week.

I, however, am a person who is busy, works more than full-time, and manages to exercise more than an hour a day, six days a week. And you know what? It’s not that hard, and it doesn’t consume my life. So, I thought I’d gather some exercise insights from several women who manage to meet the hour-a-day recommendation, and then some.

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Here’s what they suggest:

Look for twofers: This is when you combine meeting a friend with exercise, instead of lunch or dinner. Or, when you have to take the kids to soccer or swimming, take their workout time to run the soccer field or around the school track instead of sitting on the sidelines.

Make a mobile workout closet: If you are shuttling kids around in a car, keep your workout clothes or jogging shoes in the trunk. That way, if you come across a park, you can always take advantage of a quick workout.

Go to bed earlier: Most busy women are a.m. exercisers, and they often work out before their family even wakes up. If it’s already in the bank first thing in the morning, there’s nothing that can make you cancel it. But to get up early, it’s essential to go to bed earlier. Hate mornings? Use these tips to become a morning exerciser.

Make it easy: Have your workout clothes out and at the ready in the evening. The more you make exercise a habit, the more it becomes a routine just like brushing your teeth.

Enter an event: Signing up for a race or charity exercise event will give you that extra push to get in shape. Enter with a friend and you’ll all have each other for motivation.

March is National Nutrition Month, and March 11 is Registered Dietitian Day. For me, March is a better time than New Year’s to make resolutions to improve your diet and lifestyle for optimal health and well-being. In January and February, it can be hard to be more active when it’s essentially black when you wake up and dark again by the time you get home from work. In March, however, we’re actually seeing signs of spring (at least some of us are), so it’s a great time to renew and recharge your commitment to health.

Below are three steps I’m taking this month—and hopefully once and for all. Maybe my goals will inspire you to try something to improve your health. Be sure to leave your get-healthy tips in the comments so that we can pick up ideas and motivation from each other.

1. Eat more plants.
We know fruits, vegetables, and whole grains should be the bulk of our diet, but without really trying to get those in on a daily basis, I’m falling short. Some examples could be to use nut butters in place of butter on my toast and put slices of avocado on my salads and sandwiches and nix the cheese.

I will use soy milk in place of cow’s milk in coffee or tea or with cereal. (I like the new Silk Light Original because it has 70 calories—20 less per serving than skim milk—but is fortified with calcium, vitamin D, and B12.) When you go out to dinner, make it an ethnic excursion; have Indian, Mexican, or Asian food, as there are more vegetarian options at ethnic eateries compared to restaurants with American fare.

2. Eat—don’t drink—my calories.
I’ve gotten a bit addicted to skinny lattes, but I’ve decided that the extra 100 calories or so that I’m getting every day could be better spent on a cup of yogurt that has more protein and is more physiologically (not psychologically) satisfying than the latte. Research continues to show that we may not compensate for calories we consume in liquid form, making it harder to control your daily calories if you drink them, rather than eat them.

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3. Snack on healthier foods.
Like most Americans, I can be a real snackaholic. I snack at least twice a day, but there are days when I’m so busy that I don’t stop for meals and snack all day long. I’m sure I eat more calories snacking all day, compared to when I eat a real breakfast, lunch, and dinner. For healthier snacks, I’m going to keep my kitchen stocked with fruits and vegetables. I like snacking on cut-up veggies with low-fat dip as long as I don’t have to cut up the veggies! So, I’ll spend the extra money to buy them pre-cut to ensure that I eat them. Other options will be nonfat yogurt, trail mix, nuts, and other wholesome foods.

At swimming practice last weekend, my friend Deborah showed me five years’ worth of calendars that she uses to track her health and fitness goals. Cute stickers were awarded to any day she made it to swimming practice, ate well, didn’t drink alcohol, and focused on the positive things she wanted to manifest in her life. There were weeks and weeks full of dots and images.

Research suggests that tracking behaviors is one of the best ways to eat healthy and lose weight, so I asked Deb to share her story (and unique system) with my readers. Below, read how the simple act of tracking daily behaviors—or even just one of them—had a profound effect on Deb’s health.

Formerly “diet” obsessed
In my 53 years, I’ve been on every type of diet and tried all the exercise trends. When I got married seven years ago, I got my weight down to 117 pounds for the wedding. Then came the Caribbean honeymoon, followed by big dinners out with my hubby, and lots of wining and dining. Those 117 pounds were nothing more than a distant memory.

April 26, 2004: Tracking starts
About a year after the wedding, I was really sick of dieting and knew I couldn’t do it alone. I called my sister, Kathy, and she and I outlined eating and exercising goals, agreeing to talk about them once a week. I switched to a gym closer to my home, hired a personal trainer, and bought a Tanita scale that calculates your percentage of body fat. That day, I weighed 127 pounds with 29% body fat.

“Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly.”
—  GK Chesterton
I found a picture of a pure and healthy little blonde girl and made stickers of my health “angel.” I also vowed to start swimming competitively again; I used to love the water and being outside. Unfortunately, it took me almost a year to get to the pool because I kept trying to lose weight before I got there. Finally, Kathy and I just set a date and I had to go. It was the best thing I ever did. Ever!

Once I started swimming again, it forced me to eat better, get more sleep, and hardly drink alcohol, because the workouts were so hard. I started swimming in meets to give myself goals and added incentives to stay fit. And I started tracking everything! Take a look at my angel calendar sheets over the years.

Here’s my sticker system:

• Angel sticker: Swam a U.S. Masters workout (a grueling exercise for competitive swimmers)
• Blue dot: Ate well and did not drink
• Bottom left scribble: Weight
• Bottom right scribble: Body fat %
• Color coding: Weight changes color as it goes down (like 120, 119, 118—so I can see at a glance and get rewarded for going down)
• Goddess sticker: A personal accomplishment, like swimming at the Nationals or giving a speech

When I got married seven years ago, my best friend took bets on how much weight I’d gain. She figured at least 10 pounds within five years. After all this time, I’m proud to say that I still weigh less than when my husband and I said our “I dos”— but it hasn’t been easy. Being a dietitian definitely helps, but being married to someone who eats healthy and exercises also makes it easier for me to keep the scale steady.

For most women, marriage is good for your overall health—just not your waistline. Living with a man (married or not) leads to significant pounds gained, and the longer you’re together, the worse it can get. (Have you seen Mariah Carey lately?) Now, researchers at the University of North Carolina are trying to figure out why women gain so much once they live with, or marry, a man.

The researchers reported their findings in the prestigious journal Obesity this month, after studying nearly 1,300 couples. They found that when single women become part of a couple, their risk of becoming obese doubles or triples. While men also put on pounds, women gain appreciably more than their romantic partners.

The authors outlined several reasons why we gain once we say our I dos. Here’s just the short list: You no longer care as much about attracting a mate so you let yourself go—you settle. Women eat larger portions and eat more frequently to match their man’s appetite. Couples engage in less physical activity than they did when they were single and watch more TV instead. In essence, couples create their own unhealthy “obesigenic” environment in which it is safe for each to eat what he or she wants and be inactive.

Sad, but true—I can certainly relate to a lot of that myself.

But you don’t have to succumb to extra love handles once you find yourself in love—even if your partner isn’t the picture of health himself. Here are some tips to keep both of your waistlines in bachelor and bachelorette shape.

Next page: Pretend you’re single

I’ve been frank in past blogs about the many issues I have with the Biggest Loser franchise, so I’ll spare you my rants in this post. Instead, in the spirit of the wildly popular show, I’ve found a real-life biggest loser…and she’s a friend of mine!

My girlfriend, Kimberly Eberl, asked me for a dietitian referral, so I suggested she see Dawn Jackson Blatner, RD, in Chicago. Dawn is a colleague of mine whom I knew would have the personality and professionalism to inspire Kimberly to make some small changes that could add up to big weight-loss rewards.

 

After

During their initial one-on-one sessions, Dawn provided insights into Kimberly’s current diet, exercise, and overall lifestyle patterns to identify the ways in which Kimberly was sabotaging her diet and health. She also focused on how you can use positive messaging and self-talk—rather than being down on yourself for slipping up—to keep your entire weight-loss journey positive and rewarding, rather than a big bummer.

Armed with meal plans, a daily calorie limit, and healthy shopping lists and tips from Dawn, Kimberly made several changes that have added up to, well, big weight-loss rewards.

She started to follow a balanced, 1,500-calorie-a-day plan filled with healthy fruits, vegetables, and lean protein, and lots and lots of water and other calorie-free fluids. Since she was used to eating about 2,500 calories or more per day and had basically been sustaining her current weight, Dawn calculated that the new plan of 1,000 fewer calories a day should result in a safe, 2-pound-per-week weight loss. And although Kimberly first lost weight in 5- or 6-pound-per-week increments, that slowed to a steady (and healthy) 2 pounds per week after about a month.

At six months, Kimberly is 50 pounds lighter and hasn’t felt this good in years. Here are some of her best tips to lose big.

1. Seek professional help.
A registered dietitian can evaluate your current eating pattern and develop strategies that work as part of your lifestyle, using what you already like to eat.

2. Drink lots of calorie-free beverages.
“I figured out that I was eating when a glass of water was all I needed,” Kimberly tells me. “I find that keeping hydrated helps keep my hunger more manageable.”

3. Stay on schedule.
Stick with eating at regular times during the day, rather than snacking all day or skipping meals.

4. Exercise is not an excuse to pig out!
You still have to watch what you eat, even if you exercise a lot. Kimberly runs marathons and even ultra-distance events, but she realized that she used junk food and treats as rewards for her exercise. Once she started focusing more on her diet than exercise, she found the weight really started to drop off.

5. Do the calorie math.
The real reason why Kimberly had so much success is because she calculated, with the help of a professional, how many calories she needed to consume and burn off every day in order to lose weight at a safe rate. For her, and for many other women carrying around some extra weight, that means downsizing by about 500 calories a day. See what a 1,500-calorie-a-day meal plan looks like, and find other creative ways to consume fewer (or burn extra) calories.

Next page: 5 tips from Kimberly’s dietitian

Q: Is fasting a couple of days a week dangerous?

A: If you plan to eat and drink nothing, then, yes, it’s risky. It could cause dehydration and dangerously low blood sugar levels, which can make you pass out. If you’re otherwise healthy and still drink water, 100 percent fruit juice, and no-calorie beverages, you probably won’t suffer health consequences if you do it only for a day at a time every once in a while (not twice a week). But get your doctor’s OK first, and know that most of the weight lost will be water and muscle, not fat. Our advice: Forget the fast and make small changes you can live with for a lifetime.

Q: I need to lose 30 pounds. If I do will I go down a bra size?

A: Breast tissue is virtually all fat, so it shrinks when you lose weight. But exercises that build up chest muscles can help keep breasts looking full. Every other day, do Push-Ups (2–3 sets of as many as you can). Then do Chest Presses (2–3 sets of 12–15 reps): Lie on your back with a 5- to 8-pound weight in each hand, arms open, and elbows bent. Press weights up toward the ceiling, then lower.

 
Julie Upton, MS, RD, is a media resource for the American Dietetic Association.