Reaching Your Healthy Weight: Weight Management Made Easier

WheatFoods.org

Weight Management Is Harder Than It Looks

• Majority of Americans are not at their healthiest weight

• Many try unsuccessfully year after year to lose weight only to find that it quickly comes back

• People turn to “fad” diets thinking perhaps this is the diet that will work once and for all

How to Spot a Fad Diet

Why DO Fad Diets Seem to Workfor Awhile?

They result in a lower calorie intake because they:• Exclude one or more food groups• Quickly become boring which, research

shows, results in less food (and calories) consumed

• Use low carb intake to cause an initial dramatic drop in body weight as carbohydrate stores and water leave the body

Fad Diets Come and Go, But Your Weight Remains the Same

• ANY diet will help you lose weight but to protect your overall health, the key is keeping your weight stable over the long term

Ready for a new approach?

Top Reasons to Give Up Dieting FOREVER

• Diets don't work • Diets are expensive • Diets are boring • Diets don't necessarily

improve your health • Diets can make you

afraid of food

Rather than “Diet”….

• Try one of these…..

• They are eating “styles” rather than diets• They focus on eating more fruits, vegetables,

legumes, nuts and whole grains• All are highly associated with better health (more

stable blood sugar, lower blood pressure, lower blood cholesterol, lower cancer risk)

Go Mediterranean

• More servings of plant foods like grains (especially those with fiber), fruits and vegetables, nuts and legumes

• Lean cuts of red meat • More fish and seafood• More olive oil, less of other oils• More simply prepared foods with less sauces

and gravies

Make MyPlate Your Plate

MyPlate Key Tips• Make half your plate

fruits and vegetables• Eat 1% or fat-free dairy

products• Avoid over-sized

portions: use smaller plates, bowls, glasses

• Cut back on foods high in solid fats, added sugars and salts

• Make at least half your grains whole grains

DASH Your Diet

• Is low in saturated fat, cholesterol, and total fat• Focuses on fruits, vegetables, and fat-free

or low-fat dairy products• Is rich in whole grains, fish, poultry, beans, seeds, and nuts• Contains fewer sweets, added sugars and sugary beverages than the typical American diet

Finding YOUR Way to a Stable, Healthy Weight that Works for YOU

• Eat mindfully: when you are eating put all of your attention on the food and no where else

• Eat for hunger: make sure you are eating because you are HUNGRY and not for other reasons

• Eat slowly: you’ll stop eating sooner and register that you’ve had enough to eat• Eat without guilt: consider whether the food you

are eating is an “everyday” food or a “sometimes” food and eat accordingly, enjoying every bite

Simple Ways To Reduce Calories

100 extra calories/day = gain of about 10 pounds/year Small, Simple Changes

Think Your Drink

What you “drink” may impact your weight more than you think.

For Consideration: Are You Really Hungry?

Food cues: our surroundings subconsciously encourage us to eat (or eat more).

Tips to Avoid a “See Food” Diet

• To eat less: put foods away in cupboards and in the back of the refrigerator

• To eat more of some kinds of foods (such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains): keep them visible on the counter

or at the front of the refrigerator

Tips to Avoid a “See Food” Diet

• Serve foods from the kitchen rather than “family style”

• At restaurants, ask for a take home container and immediately package oversized portions when your meal is served

• Try ordering just a healthy appetizer or side dish• Split an entrée with a friend

Surprising Ways to Manage Portions and Calories

• Large plates, bowls, and packages equal large portions — and more calories – Smaller plates (10 inches across) – Tall, narrow glasses rather

than shorter, wide • Eat from a plate, and

drink from a glass, not from a bag or a bottle

Same amount of food on different size plates

Add More Fiber

• Adding more fiber will make you feel fuller, help with elimination, and lower the caloric density of your diet

- Whole grains such as whole wheat, barley, oats, corn, quinoa, and more - Legumes: dried, fresh or frozen beans and peas - Fruits and vegetables

A Few More Tips….

• ALWAYS check serving sizes on packaged foods and drinks

• Use smaller serving dishes and spoons

• Serve yourself: take just enough, you can always go back for more

Final Thoughts…

• Small changes over time add up to big differences– Reduce the amounts (portions) you eat to reduce

calories by adjusting plate size– Increase fiber (whole grains, legumes, fruits,

vegetables) to reduce calories, increase fullness – Increase physical activity level (by walking more,

engaging in a sport you like, go dancing) to increase calories spent

– And remember, it takes time and will power to make changes. But keep at it. Healthy eating does make a difference in your overall health.

Additional Resources

• Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think We Eat by Brian Wansink, PhD• Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD• Thin for Life by Anne Fletcher, MS, RD• Health at Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight by Linda Bacon, PhD• Wheat Foods Council, www.wheatfoods.org• Wheat Foods Council on Facebook and Twitter,

Facebook.com/WheatFoods and Twitter.com/WheatFoods

Mediterranean Diet Resources

• Mediterranean diet: http://oldwayspt.org/resources/heritage-pyramids/mediterranean-diet-pyramid

• Mediterranean type recipes: http://oldwayspt.org/recipes

MyPlate and DASH Resources

• MyPlate:– Choose MyPlate website:

http://www.choosemyplate.gov/ Choose MyPlate Recipes: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/healthy-eating-tips/sample-menus-recipes.html

• Dash: This link provides information, planning sheets and recipes.– http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/hb

p/dash/new_dash.pdf

Thank you to our expert reviewers

Karen Ensle EdD, RDN, FAND, CFCSDept Head/FCHS Educator/Associate ProfessorRutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County, NJ

Alice Henneman, MS, RDUniversity of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension in Lancaster County

Lynn C. Paul, EdD, RDMontana State University Extension Food and Nutrition Specialist

Amy L. Peterson MS, RD, Extension EducatorUniversity of Nebraska – Lincoln Extension