An Incredibly Effective Health-Boosting Strategy: How to Cut Fat, Sugar, Calories Without Dieting

Most of us want better health and would like to lose a few pounds but lack the motivation to diet and exercise–in fact, about the only exercise we get is driving to the fast food outlet (hey, you have to first walk to the car!). Let’s face it, the availability of nutritionally inferior foods topples our good intentions.

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We’ve all heard about the importance of making smart eating choices but temptation lurks around every corner: try making a healthful food choice when your senses are assaulted by the smell of an A&W burger or when the person sitting next to you in the restaurant is chowing down on cheese-smothered Nachos or a pepperoni pizza! It’s enough to make you feel like grabbing the nearest smug, toned health advocate and stabbing him/her with a sharpened carrot!

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As you may have guessed, this article isn’t offering dieting advice, nor am I going to urge you to exercise. Most people approach these challenges with good intentions, which are relegated to the “will do sometime in the future” category and mentally filed under “missing” at the first sign of deprivation or exertion. If you are reading this article, you are probably not a smug, toned health guru, rather, a normal person trying to find a painless solution to “globally-induced fattening.”  I’m also not going to tell you to never eat your favorite foods or to never snack.

What I am going to discuss is one incredibly effective health-boosting strategy that can impact on your health and weight over the long-term, a sensible and workable approach that ensures that you are eating nutritious foods, while cutting down on unhealthy fats, sugars, and calories. I adopted this effective health-boosting strategy and lost 25 lbs without even trying to. I have ideal cholesterol and have been told my arteries are “perfect.”

Changing the Way You Grocery Shop

We can’t control the number of fast food outlets that spring up as fast as jack-in-the-boxes on caffeine; we can’t control what stores stuff their shelves with (fat-laden junk foods); we can’t control those goodies tempting our senses when we try to navigate through strategically planned check-outs that are thinly disguised diet saboteurs.

One area that is easier to control is the way we actually grocery shop. Shoppers can adhere to a master list (see below) of essential, nutritious food items and stock their cupboards with these.

When Your Cupboards Are Filled With Nutritious Foods, it Becomes Easier to Adopt Good Eating Habits

Stocking your cupboards with nutritious foods changes the way you cook and may even impact on your snacking habits because most of us reach for whatever is on hand.

A Master Grocery List of Healthful Foods

(The following list can be printed off and stored in your wallet or purse for future reference)

• Oats
• Brown rice
• Assorted dry beans
• Whole wheat flour
• Assorted whole grain flours
• Whole wheat pasta
• Seeds: flax seeds, sesame seeds, raw sunflower seeds
• Assorted nuts: almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, etc.
• Natural peanut butter
• Firm tofu
• Garlic
• Onions
• Green tea
• Honey
• Olive oil
• Butter
• Fresh vegetables
• Frozen assorted fruit
• Pure fruit juices

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This listing is by no means exhaustive but it gives you the basic building blocks for making and eating nutritious meals. By getting into the habit of cooking with these ingredients, you will support your health over the long-term.

Try to cut down on processed foods as much as possible:

• When shopping, opt for nutritious whole grains instead of packaged cereals (purchase Red River cereal, oatmeal, cracked wheat, etc). These items generally cost less and last far longer.
• Make your own homemade granola: use oats, dates and nuts, drizzle olive oil over and brown in a moderate oven.
• Switch over from white flour to whole wheat flour (or use a half and half mixture) when making pancakes, loaves, cakes, homemade pasta, pizza and bread doughs. Adding whole wheat, rye, soy or brown rice flour to recipes sneaks in fiber and nutrition. Make these items instead of buying them premade. This way, you control the ingredients that go into them.
• Choose heart-friendly cold-pressed oils, olive oil, and butter, over hydrogenated fats. (Never buy hydrogenated margarine and hydrogenated animal or vegetable shortening.)
• Make your own nutritious crackers (instead of buying prepackaged crackers) using whole wheat and sesame seeds.

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Use Nutritious Ingredients:

• To add more fruit into your diet, use convenient frozen fruits for smoothies or for use in pancakes or muffins.
• Go nuts over nuts: add heart-friendly nuts and seeds to salads, cereals, batters and stir-fry’s.
• Eat tofu instead of so much meat (marinated tofu cut into strips and added to stir-fry’s is very much like chicken); grated tofu can be used in spaghetti sauce or sprinkled on pizza to cut down on the amount of cheese used.
• Make your own delicious fruit and nut-filled muffins, using whole wheat or Kamut flour.

Fresh is Best

If at all possible, try to eat as many fresh organic fruits and vegetables as is possible. Some people have started container gardening as a convenient route to obtaining organic vegetables at reduced costs.

Making salad is a good way to get a variety of raw vegetables into your diet.

Healthful Snacking

• Do you love nuts? Treat yourself to a handful of nuts, instead of packaged goodies laden with harmful fats and sugar
• Do you enjoy Popsicles? Freeze fruit juice for tasty, health-boosting Popsicles
• Do you enjoy muffins or sweet loaves? Use whole wheat flour and honey and add fruit and nuts to increase the nutritional value of homemade baked items
• Instead of a bowl of ice cream, try a bowl of assorted fruit with a dollop of whipped cream on top
• Treat yourself to Halva, a delicious sesame seed snack
• Make smoothies using soy milk and frozen fruit
• Use fruit juice instead of sugar in recipes for cookies, cakes, pancakes and muffins

The Money you Save . . . 

(can be used to purchase items you normally would not buy)

• Use the money you would have spent on meat to stock up on nuts and seeds
• Use the money you would have spent on prepackaged cake, cookies or donuts to buy bags of assorted frozen fruit
• Use the money you’d normally spend on processed cereals to purchase whole grains
• Use the money you’d spend on pop to purchase green tea and fruit juices

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It doesn’t cost more to make these substitutions. You can still grocery shop within a budget, while selecting nutritious, health-boosting foods.

Allow Yourself to Eat Fast Food Occasionally

Plan on treating yourself once or twice a month, if you feel you have to have a fast food meal. The frenetic pace of modern living makes cutting out fast foods unrealistic. The best approach is simply to change the way you shop, which will naturally change the way you prepare meals and eat overall.

Junk Food

If you are eating nutritious food most of the time, the odd snack of junk food probably won’t make too much of an impact.

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Recap

1. Opt for healthful food most of the time, choosing beneficial fats and nutrient-dense, fiber-filled foods.
2. Allow yourself the odd indulgence of fast or junk food.

By changing how you shop and what foods you have on hand and prepare, you will improve your health, may drop some excess pounds, and might even notice a drop in cholesterol and blood pressure levels. We ARE what we eat, plain and simple.

This incredibly effective health boosting strategy works. It’s easy to adopt, easy to put into practice, and will make a big difference to weight and health over time. You may even find that fat-laden foods start to lose their appeal.