The New Generation of Sweeteners

A plant by the name of Stevia has been getting a lot of attention recently. It seems promising as a new generation of no-calorie sweetener: Great news for people watching their waistline as well as people with diabetes who limit their intake of sugar. One company, Cargill, manufactures a product made from Stevia under the brand name, Truvia.  Pepsi-Co is working with The Whole Earth Sweetener Company and they call their version PureVia.  Here’s the scoop: Truvia and PureVia both contain Rebiana.  This is a derivative of the leaves of the stevia plant. The companies that manufacture it (Cargill and Coca-Cola) report it “only consists of the best-tasting components of the stevia leaf”. The sweet leaf of the stevia plant is dried, steeped in water, and further purified to provide a calorie-free sweet taste.

How Much is a Serving?

You might be trying hard to watch your weight, even going as far as counting calories: But when you try to figure out what a serving size is, this is a stumbling block for many people.  Sometimes portions are listed in ounces or cups, and how are we supposed to know what an ounce of almonds translates to in actual nuts, or what a cup of pasta looks like on our plate?

Fat versus Carbs: Which Has More Calories?

The diet media barrages you with conflicting claims: Low fat diets are healthier; low carbohydrate diets promise quicker weight loss.  How can you tell what to believe?  Let’s take a look at each of these calorie-yielding nutrients a bit more closely.

Making Your Baked Goods Lower in Fat and Sugar

We all like a treat once in a while, but if you’re watching your weight you might think baked goods are off limits.  Think again!  We can learn to modify even our favorite recipes to make them lower in fat, sugar, and cholesterol.  You can use one of these changes, or all of them at once.

Design Your Own Diet

Trying to figure out what to eat can be so overwhelming. You can make your own weight loss diet plan with the help of the food guide pyramid website. (www.mypyramid.gov)

First, find a great image of a food guide pyramid you can post somewhere convenient (just google food guide pyramid images). It’s an easy way to remind yourself what to eat and how many servings to have.

Believe it or not, your intake will be as low as 1200 calories if you choose the minimum recommended servings from each group (6 servings of grains, breads, and cereals; 2-3 fruits and 3-4 vegetables; 2-3 dairy servings; and 6 oz of lean meat per day) while limiting fats and sweets. That’s a low enough calorie intake for virtually anyone to lose weight.

There are no “bad” foods

The saying goes, “there are no bad foods; only bad diets”.  In other words, there is not a particular food that is bad for you, but if you tend to accumulate several foods a day that are high in fat and/or sodium, low in nutritional value and fiber–then you have a bad diet.

Lose Twenty Five Pounds Without Dieting

photo credit: VirtualErn

Do you ever think what you eat today doesn’t matter in the long run? Do you believe you’ll just ‘work it off’ tomorrow? Do you hate depriving yourself of a side of fries or a quick candy bar pick-me-up?

Newsflash! All it takes is cutting 250 calories a day to lose half a pound a week. Certainly nothing you’ll notice at the end of the week, but by New Year’s Eve you can lose six pounds, and by this time next year, a whopping 25! You don’t need to go on a diet or start jogging every morning for this to happen. Just start paying attention to those very-high-calorie items and either skip them or replace them with something less fattening.

The Rice and Beans Diet - Inspiried by Dave Ramsey

photo credit: stu_spivack

For the millions of you that are familiar with FPU (Financial Peace University) Dave Ramsey’s rice and beans diet is old news.  With his principles of getting out of debt, this “rice and beans” diet represents exercising self control on several different levels.

Dave Ramsey is a nationally syndicated radio host and author of the best selling book: The Total Money Makeover that has helped millions eliminate debt, and change the financial future for many families.  If you have the book or listened to the radio show, you have heard both callers and Dave talk about living off of beans and rice. Let’s pretend for a moment that Dave literally meant to eat rice and beans at every meal.

Are These Calories Worth It?

Taking a moment to think before you eat can save you lots of calories! Becoming aware is the first step to making changes. Try starting a new habit of asking yourself a few questions before you indulge in a treat. The answers may lead you to some relatively easy weight loss!