10 simple food swaps for a healthy weight
January 5, 2009
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Monique Savin
HEALTHZONE.CA
Anyone who has consistently blown their diet knows that means tighter fitting clothes, poorer health and lower energy. But once you get a few pointers on portion size and adopt a few practical food substitutions, you can help you drop a dress size or tighten a few notches on the belt – and feel great, too.
Dr. Arya Sharma, head of the Canadian Obesity Network says, "Determining how many calories you should be eating daily varies for every person and is based upon several factors, including your body's Basal metabolic rate, activity level and amount of lean muscle mass." (Try the calorie calculator on the healthzone.ca fitness guide.)
Generally, women should aim for a total daily intake between 1,500 to 1,800 calories. Men should aim for a range between 2,000 to 2,200 calories per day*.
"If you're maintaining the same body weight," says Dr. Sharma, "that suggests you are meeting your daily calorie requirement." For those who exceed that budget and seek weight loss, Dr. Sharma says, "If you can cut 500 calories a day, you can lose a pound a week."
Gina Sunderland, registered dietitian based in Winnipeg, offers another strategy if cutting 500 calories sounds ambitious. "Trim 100 calories every day for 365 days," she says, "and most people can lose 10 pounds. On other hand, Sunderland adds, "If we don't watch our intake; having a few cookies or finishing off the mashed potatoes instead of putting the extra in the fridge for later, people can get 10 pounds heavier every year."
For people who struggle with the concept of dieting or lack calorie-counting skills, experts say trade-offs can minimize health risks of favourite fat-laden, high-calorie foods.
EASY FOOD SWAPS
Simple substitutions can add up to big results. "If you replace your daily 140-calorie can of pop with water,” says Lisa Drayer, registered dietitian and author of The Beauty Diet, “you can save 51,000 calories per year and lose 15 pounds."
Make any five swaps every day from this list and instantly cut 500 calories.
Coffee: Swap Starbucks' whole milk grande frappucino, latte or mocha with whipped cream , which adds 80 calories and 8 grams, for a short skinny latte. This espresso in steamed skim milk topped with its own foam and a shot of sugar-free syrup slashes has 200 fewer calories. Sunderland says you’ll still get the calcium without all the fat.
Alcohol: Swap beer for its lighter version and wine for wine spritzers. Depending upon brands, Drayer says, "You can save almost 100 calories." Top picks include Beck's Premier Light or a pinot noir with raspberry spritzer.
Salad: Vegetables are the virtuous part of a salad, but dressings can be sinful. According to Wendy Chant, author of Crack the Fat-Loss Code, dressing can add an extra 500 calories. Using the same principle as cooking sprays to reduce fat intake, spritzers pack tons of flavour with a fraction of the fat; there’s just 10 calories in 10 squirts.
Bagel: At 300 calories, a bagel is less fattening than a 430-calorie bran muffin, but it is also equivalent to four slices of bread. Sunderland says, "Fresh out of the toaster, a bagel sponges up butter, and at Tim Horton's sometimes it's spread on with a spatula." Ask for a single-serving margarine packet, "It has less saturated fat, and eat half the bagel, reserving the rest for later to save 150 calories."
Soup: Swap a bowl for a cup of cream soup and chop 100 calories.
Sandwich: A six-inch, Omega 3-rich tuna Subway sandwich sounds healthy, but not at 30 grams of fat and 530 calories. Sunderland advises her clients to opt for the veggie delight sandwich on whole wheat with 3 grams of fat and 230 calories.
Mexican: Swap Taco Bell's Supreme menu items with 18 grams of fat for anything Fresco; that's Mexican for less fat and calories. Taco Bell replaces the cheese and sour cream with lycopein-rich, heart- and prostate-healthy salsa. All Fresco items have 350 calories or less and are under 10 grams fat.
Italian: Fettucini alfredo meals can serve up to 50 grams of fat, whereas tomato-based, angel hair pasta primavera contains a fraction of the calories and slashes fat to 5 grams. Chant says, "Even an olive oil, lemon and garlic sauce is lighter, and the thinner pasta means less carbs, making it a lower calorie choice." For pizza addicts, Sunderland recommends, "Swap one slice of deep-dish, thick crust meat-lovers pizza for two whole wheat, thin-crust vegetarian slices" — a 500-calorie savings.
Japanese: Swap batter-fried shrimp tempura for tuna sushi. At 320 calories, you could have double the amount of sushi for three pieces of tempura, but save yourself 16 grams of fat. Drayer says, "Anytime something is deep fried, that means high-fat."
Indian: Sunderland says swap beef or lamb korma dishes prepared with full fat cream or clarified butter for channa or daal. Either one of the chick pea or vegetable curry dishes with no cream or butter cuts 150 calories and 29 grams of fat from your meal.
Burger: Swap mayonnaise and cheese for regular or Dijon mustard. “You will save 100 calories and 10 grams of saturated fat," says Chant.
Dessert: Spoon gelato or sorbet instead of cheesecake, and trim 250-calories. Sunderland says, "These desserts are full of flavour and are something sweet to cleanse the palette after dinner." Top picks include Skinny Cow and Breyer's brands. One fat-free, portion-controlled dessert cup has 100 calories. "Dairy Queen offers sugar-less and fat-free Orange Cream stick desserts; six bars per box with only 70 calories per bar."
Find the rest of our New Year's Fitness Guide.