ADVICE TO KEEP YOU FOCUSED

The meaning of the following words. Eat to fuel not to fill. (meaning) Feed your body with foods that are nutritious but also those that you enjoy. Do not stuff yourself with all sorts of fattening, unhealthy foods just to be eating.

Sometimes we read about Miracle Foods that have special qualities or enzymes that melt fat away. The most recent article on the subject mentioned Pineapple and Grapefruit. FALSE

WORDS PEOPLE SOMETIMES ASSOCIATE WITH DIETING

hungry... boring food...deprived...difficult

THINK POSITIVE THE DIET MASTERS' WAY

hopeful...wonderfull...less indigestion...great food LOOKING GOOD

DIETING HINTS AND POSITIVE THOUGHTS

If you love thousand island dressing but do not care for the low calorie versions, try my hint. I purchase the regular and mix one fourth of a cup of that with three fourths of a cup of Hellmann's 15 calories a tablespoon low fat mayonnaise.


If you have recently lost weight and are tempted to overeat, do not rationalize with the following thoughts. "I am paying for the food in this ship or restaurant, why not eat it"? Instead, tell yourself, "Yes, it might taste good, but the flavor is only going to last a few seconds or a minute or two. IT IS NOT WORTH THE DAMAGE TO MY DIET."

A COOK BOOK AUTHOR'S THIN HINT

Several years ago I was watching a TV show where they were interviewing an author by the name of Gloria Pitzer who had written 8 cook books.

She would purchase many different foods in super markets and restaurants such as Oreo cookies and Kentucky Fried Chicken and duplicate them.

The hostess tried these rich foods and complimented Gloria and asked her how she stayed so trim. Her answer was, "I just take a small taste of what I prepare".

MY EXPERIENCE WITH CATERING FATTENING FOOD
At the same time I was teaching my Diet Masters classes and Low Calorie Gourmet Cooking, I spent 15 years preparing very fattening foods....a dieters' nightmare.
All of my parties started with rich fried hors d'oeuvres. Almost everything was deep fat fried, and I would purchase 6 gallons of oil at a time. I worked with 2 electric woks at once. Some specialties were fried wontons; marinated chicken breasts, cubed and dipped into a mixture of flour and almonds and fried; tender steak prepared in a similar manner with sesame seeds; egg foo yung fritters, and about 8 other choices (not all deep fat fried). I also hired fantastic bakers.

I DID EXACTLY WHAT GLORIA HAD BEEN DOING. I just took a "very tiny taste" and was never tempted to overeat.

NOT LOSING AS WELL AS YOU WOULD LIKE?

Try the following ideas..Write everything down that you eat..That means at breakfast, lunch and dinner and between meals. Do not put food into your mouth every time you have a craving. Eat lots of the low calorie vegetables that you enjoy. Intensify your efforts..think before you eat and make the right choices.

Some people do well with a monotonous plan. They eat the same foods three meals a day for as long as a week or so. It should be based on a healthy well balanced menu.

LOSE 30 POUNDS IN 30 DAYS...REALLY???

Is this a false promise in an ad to lose weight? They may have had someone morbidly obese lose this amount in 30 days once or twice but thank goodness that is not the norm. It just is not healthy to lose weight that quickly. In many cases, if you lose weight at that rate of speed you will end up with hanging flesh and require costly plastic surgery.

This same ad promises you that it will cost a small amount of money..If you look closely, you will notice an asterisk (*). Many people end up spending thousands of dollars during the time that they stay on the plan on supplements that they are required to purchase.

SLIMNESS IS NOT A GIFT

For every 100 people, only 20 are satisfied with their weight. The other 80 wish that they could lose between 10 to 85 pounds.

Seventeen of the 20 have to watch what they eat. The other 3 do not have to be careful. Most of them do not dwell about food. They never had a large appetite or a romance with food.

Word of Wisdom......Everything that puts weight on us enters through our mouth..SO.....THE ONLY WAY NOT TO GAIN WEIGHT IS TO KEEP OUR BIG MOUTHS SHUT!

EAT LIKE AN "AVERAGE" PERSON

The average person eats one half gallon of ice cream a month. Before I originated Diet Masters I would average two half gallons in one week. This totaled 8 half gallons in one month. Now I am not interested in containers of ice cream that are in the house. Unless the grand children visit, the ice cream gets stale after a month. I enjoy about 3 Healthy Choice mocha swirl bars that are 90 calories each most weeks.

The average person eats 11 pounds of cookies a year. I used to eat as much as 2 pounds in one week. I now eat about 1 pound in one year.

Where would I be health wise at my age if I had not changed my compulsive eating habits over 40 years ago?

MAINTENANCE

This post and the following one are filled with ideas of how to keep the excess weight off after you reach your goal. Keep food out of the house that you cannot control.

Do not eat large amounts all day long. One or two small snacks a day are sensible,but constant nibbling will put the weight back on.

You can indulge in large amounts of low calorie vegetables. They are nutritious and hold your key to thinness. Prepare them simply; not with butter or oil, or breading.

Own a reliable calorie counter.

GREAT MAINTENANCE IDEAS

If you begin to regain weight, look closely at your dieting history and take inventory of the habits you had that put the weight on in the first place. If you've started developing these same habits again, you will realize what you are doing wrong. Are you eating too many sweets or having large portions of fried foods or snacks? Talk to yourself and keep the foods you cannot control out of the house.

Make the right decisions. Instead of the Pina Colada that can be 350 calories, opt for the vodka and orange juice or a wine spritzer for about 150 calories or just plain club soda for 0 calories if you aren't in the mood for an alcoholic drink.

Major desserts such as pies or cakes should not be eaten more than once a month. If you want a 100-calorie frozen dessert or two small cookies once a day, you may include one of these choices on maintenance.

More maintenance ideas in my next blog..It is lunch time for me...Pita bread with a little peanut butter, a small orange cut into 16 slices and 5 strawberries.

THE BEAUTY FROM WINTER HAVEN

When my husband and I moved to Lake Worth, FL. in 1959 we became very close friends with our neighbors across the street. The wife, Joanne, was not only beautiful; she was awesomely beautiful. It was a yearly ritual to go over their house and watch Miss America. On our way home we agreed that she was more beautiful than the winner.

I was almost always overweight and had little self esteem in those days. After 10 years they moved to north Florida and we visited often.

She called on our 50th anniversary and I complimented her on how fantastic she still looks and how youthful her figure is.

She said, "Lets talk about you Louise; YOU TRANSFORMED YOURSELF."
I must agree with her. Until I reached 40, I dressed matronly and felt dowdy. When I lost the weight for good, my attitude changed completely. You can do it, too!

THIS WOMAN DOCTOR DID NOT EAT THE CAKE

It was her birthday at a lovely country club and she made a wish and blew out the candles on the cake. I noticed that she took one bite and put the fork down and left the rest. A good sized slice of cake can easily be 500 to 750 calories. Why the wide difference? If it were a corner piece, it would have twice the amount of frosting. Every tablespoon is about 75 calories.

If it were cheese cake it could be as much a 1500 calories per good sized slice.

ROTTEN TOMATOES

I have always suggested to my classes that Sweet Tomatoes is a perfect place for my members to find great food that can fit into a weight loss diet. They still have many good choices at their buffet. The problem is that they sent a flyer with the following message.

IT'S JUST HOW WE PLAY FAVORITES!

All month long we're playing favorites by serving a menu chosen exclusively by our guests!

February 21-27
Classic Greek Salad (the picture looked like it was dripping in oil)
Tomato, Basil & Mozzarella deli salad
Loaded Baked Potato soup
Creamy Cilantro Lime Pesto hot pasta
Chocolate Chip muffins
Cream of Broccoli soup
Chocolate Lava Cake

If you are ever faced with all these foods that may be tempting you, visualize that Louise is watching you..Another idea is to put a little of one of the two salads I mentioned over a large plate low calorie vegetables that are at the huge buffet. If you think that you must have little of the cake do just that, but make sure it is just a few crumbs..You can even treat yourself to about a half cup of the soft ice cream as a reward .

We will never let the "Old Devil Food" dictate to us..We are strong, and we will not give up until it is all off over here, over there and over here..The more you exercise your will power the stronger it becomes...March with me....

SIX LESSONS FROM MADAM MAZONGA

Sort of a strange title for a blog about dieting?  Maybe not.  Going back into history in the "I Love Lucy" days, there was a popular song and dance where people would get into a long line and hold onto each other waists and dance...It went, one, two, three kick. The song in those days started "Six Lessons From Madam Mazonga, you'll do the Conga, and not anything wronga".

I think that this blog is going to help you have positive thoughts and new energy to stay on your diet or sensible eating pattern and never give up.  If you trip on your road to slimness  I want to give you the strength and desire and knowledge to pick yourself up and continue again, and again and again.  I helped thousands of people to successfully lose weight in the 40 years I was in business and I want to continue doing this with my blog.

If you are not comfortable posting material on my blog send me an email at hllawhon@aol.com and I will either answer you or post the question and answer on my blog without mentioning your name.

I have been known as The Diet Lady, The Diet Master and maybe now the Pied Piper of Dieting...Just come with me to the land of thin, the door is open, I'll help you in. Tell your friends and relatives about the blog .

Louise versus the Computer

The scale is my friend, but I am convinced that the computer is not.
Often when I write a post here, this contrary gadget tries to erase whole paragraphs or decides that "spell check" isn't necessary and can disappear from sight. Nevertheless, I am determined to share what I have learned about dieting and maintaining a happy weight with my past students and new readers. Fattening food couldn't defeat me, and neither will electronics!

SOME OF MY HINTS AND IDEAS AT MEETINGS

Make your meals look attractive by using large cloth dinner napkins and stemmed glasses and maybe some fresh flowers at the table from time to time. It might be a better idea to use a good quality paper napkin in a nice holder. That way, we do not have to go back to washing and ironing.

                                               THINKING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION

"I have a headache:  I had better eat something". (my answer) "Maybe you need an aspirin".
                                                                  OR
"I am so tired:  what should I eat"? (my answer) "Take a nap".

WOW   Every day you wake up with a clean slate...A new chance, a new beginning.  You are a contender in the battle of the  bulge...Listen to Louise and your heart and you will become a thinner winner...NEVER GIVE UP!  

WILL STARCHES KEEP ME FROM LOSING WEIGHT?

Some people complain that starches slow down their weight losses.  It all depends how they handle them.  If you eat large portions of starches such as potatoes, rice, pasta and bread and you add butter or real mayonnaise or oil in abundance to them they will cause you to gain weight.  If you eat them with thought and care like a Diet Master, they will keep you content.

A few of the following examples may be of help to you.

Breakfast
1 small orange (75 calories)

1/2 whole wheat pita bread (100 calories) 
 1/4 cup low fat cottage cheese (45 calories)

total calories 220

Lunch
1/2 cup  cooked wild and brown rice (100 calories)
 2 ounces ham, sauteed (60 calories)
 1 egg, beaten (80 calories)
  1/4 cup chopped onion or scallions (15 calories)
  1cup low calorie chopped vegetables (40 calories)

directions:  Par cook vegetables in microwave.  Drain. Heat large fry
pan and spray coat with Pam. Mix all ingredients until egg is firm.

total calories 295

Dinner
frozen dinner which includes pasta(300 calories)
a large salad with lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, red peppers,
jarred artichokes, a few olives and sliced radishes and
shredded carrots. (100 calories)
diet dressing under 40 calories..

total calories 440 calories

The total calories for the three meals are 955.  You can allow yourself a total of 1200 if your are a woman and 1500 for a man.  You can spend the remaining calories for extra fruit or a 100 ice cream bar or a homemade milk and fruit smoothie drink or whatever you wish.

ADVICE THAT WILL HELP

Ways to stay focused: Make a list of short and long term dieting goals and think positive.
Sometimes you have bags of clothes in your closet sorted out into various sizes. Let's say that you are now a size 16. Hang up one of your 14 outfits and try it on every 3 weeks as you lose weight. This hint has worked for many of my Diet Masters members.

This following hint may also help. Purchase a fairly inexpensive food scale. (mine is about 30 years old and cost me $15). People often think that a serving of meat should fit into the palm of their hands. Some of us have pretty big hands and having a thick piece of the meat could double the calories.

You do not have to count every calorie that you consume but be aware of calories in your food.

Speaking of scales...should you weigh yourself every day? My answer is once you are on maintenance you should weigh yourself every day but while dieting, it should be only once a week.

NO MORE TURKEY FOR MY HUSBAND

I am not taking the turkey away from my husband because he is going out with other women. I thought this would be an eye catching title.

I had eaten at Boston Market recently and ordered their turkey with dressing.  It was especially good.  Not long after,I went grocery shopping close to dinner time.  I saw a package of Boston Market Turkey Breast Medallions with stuffing in the freezer isle and picked it up. When I spotted some mashed potatoes in a nearby section of the store,  I bought a container of them, too. 

I noticed that the turkey entree was only 380 calories and a half cup serving of the Simply Potatoes traditional mashed potatoes was 130 calories.  My husband is watching his weight but also should not overdo his sodium.  I am usually careful. We have NoSalt on his side of the table and I purchase low sodium crackers and do not add salt to his cooked or roasted vegetables.

The serving size of the turkey was large and I ate about one fourth of the turkey, gravy and dressing.  I knew that a half cup of mashed potatoes would seem scant to my husband so I doubled the portion.

The calories for his three fourths of the turkey dish was 285.
The sodium for his portion of the turkey dish was 1315 mg.

The calories for a full cup serving of the potatoes would only be 260.
The sodium for the cup of potatoes was 840 mg.

The sodium for the meal I served him was a total of  a whopping 2,155mg, even though the
broccoli I cooked  had no sodium to speak of.
I am usually very careful with the food that I serve him, and vow to start being more watchful.

                                                              

BEST WAY TO RESIST TEMPTATION

When you are served a mound of rice or a huge baked potato or fried sweet potatoes with your dinner that is not fate, but it could cause you to gain fat.  Nothing is written on these items that reads "you must finish all of it". 

If you do not have the resistance to leave most of any of the above foods or any fattening items, I have the answer.  Put some sugar in your palm and discreetly sprinkle it on the food you cannot control. 
Use the same concept with fattening desserts, but sprinkle salt on them. 

In my before- Diet Masters' days, and even a year or two after I began teaching my program, this technique helped me tremendously to resist temptation.

JUST WHAT IS "NORMAL EATING"?

A person in my class asked, "Can you ever go back to normal eating, once you reach your goal?" My answer was: "If normal eating for you means deli potato salad which is 260
calories a half cup, and you eat over a cup at a time, the answer is "NO." 

The following examples are also answered with the same "NO." 

Rolls and butter before every restaurant meal.

Ben and Jerry's pints of ice cream on sale, 2 for the price of one....for a calorie count of 2,800... that many dieters could devour in the course of one day

                                                 MY MAINTENANCE ADVICE


Once you reach your goal, get on the scale every morning before breakfast.
Write everything down that you eat for the first month.
 Try to continue to eat the same way that you did while dieting.
 If you do not gain weight or start to lose too much, add 200 calories a day

JANE OFFERED ME A BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

Soon after I began my Diet Masters class in 1971, I read a story about a woman who taught huge dieting classes in the Fort Lauderdale area. My classes consisted of 20 members on a good night.  I called her and explained who I was and she very graciously invited me to an evening meeting.

I was amazed to see that she had  over 100 members! When we met after the meeting, she told me that she had been a lecturer with a national company and that the people in her class had followed her.  Subsequently, she and I had several phone conversations. She visited my class once and started to 'romance' me to begin her method of teaching in the Palm Beach County area.  My theory was that you can lose weight with no forbidden food, and the one she taught was full of the words "no, no" and "forbidden food.".

The road I chose was to teach people what I believed in, and I never looked back at what might have been.

A WONDERFUL LUNCH WITH A FRIEND

One of my best lunches out is driving five minutes away to my friend Sally's house.  We decide a day ahead on what we are going to eat.  I bring this and she has that and we end up with a great meal.  We chat and gossip and play a few games of RummyQ .

Today I am going to bring some Costco cooked shrimp and my health nut bread.  She fixed a fantastic salad that she knows I love and I always have a little room for one of her 100 calorie ice cream sandwiches.

It is fun knowing that many of my Diet Masters' members are following the blog along with relatives and friends.  If you do not like to post a comment here, just email me at hllawhon@aol.com.

BREAKFAST SOON BEING SERVED AT WENDY'S

Our local Wendy's is opening for breakfast very soon.  The manager mentioned that everything will be cooked to order and they have the facilities to prepare the food quickly.  Many of the fast food places have precooked their eggs.  I would rather have a slice of toast  than settle for that.

There will be panini sandwiches and a sausage patty on a biscuit along with a myriad of other choices. 

A lovely young lady named Maria who is one of the assistant managers is diet conscious and I told her that they should offer at least one item that is calorie counted.  They may never wish to follow through, but my idea was to saute a thin slice of ham and put it in half of a whole wheat pita bread with a scrambled egg and a slice of my favorite Bordens' fat free cheese and place it on their grill with a weight to brown it lightly and melt the cheese.  That would be a total of about 235 calories.

It would probably bring women and their families to Wendy's when they are on a reducing diet.

I AM NOT PROUD OF THIS CONFESSION

The reason that I related to the Jared story is that I had eaten as compulsively as he had. 

                                              CONFESSION TIME

I would eat an 8 ounce Hershey with nuts at once (one time I ate it all as I walked through
K Mart and paid for the empty package.).."for shame". That was 1200 calories.

A 10 ounce bag if potato chips would disappear while I watched television. That would be
1500 calories. 

I used to pick up my son at noon from nursery school and usually stopped at the neighborhood bakery and start eating these 'fat makers' in the car as I drove.

JARED THE SUBWAY BOY

About 10 years ago, there was a college student who lost 245 pounds in 11 months by eating a diet of only subway sandwiches.  He had failed on every diet that he tried.  He kept the weight off and became what must have been the best advertisement that Subways ever had.  People followed the slim Jared and also had much success.  As far as I know, he has kept the weight off.

Although I was never heavier than 149  pounds, I related to what he wrote about in his battle of the bulge.  I constantly  was on a diet every month and regained  it quicker than I lost it.  It was my way of life.  I did this for 23 years, from the ages 18 to 40.  I say that I must have lost about 500 pounds during that period but I never kept track. It  could have been double that number.

SOME MATERIAL FROM ONE MEETING

I have saved some of my Diet Masters' written meetings and and they are full of good advice and will open your eyes.  If you wake up one morning and cannot understand how you gained two pounds read the following question that was asked in class.

" I can't understand how I could have gained that weight, I had a very low calorie dinner and before dinner I had a little wine and peanuts".
After speaking with her after class, she confided that she had 4 small glasses of wine which would have been about 400 calories and about  a cup of peanuts which would have tallied another 800 calories.

                                           SOMETHING ELSE WE DISCUSSED

I asked the class if they had ever heard about a diet from the 80's that was called "THE STARCH BLOCKERS' DIET".  This diet did not just block starch calories as they promised, it also contained a poisonous agent which blocked  the obsorbtion of many foods including protein.

When they were taken off the market at drug and health food stores some people would buy them under the counter at flea markets even though they knew that they were dangerous to their health.

THIS BLOG WILL HELP YOU STAY FOCUSED

Many times in our lives we have sad times in our families such as death,illness, losing jobs, etc. but food is no sedative for disappointments.  It makes you feel worse when you add gaining weight to the list.  Your problems do not go away from excess food.

Q.  What is so bad about re-gaining 10 pounds?  I still look pretty good.
A.  Half of your clothes do not fit.

Don't you keep cleaning products which are poisonous out of  lower cabinets when toddlers are in the house?  On that same note, keep fattening foods that you can't control out of your house or at least in the back of the freezer when you are trying to lose weight.

FOODS THAT DO NOT GO TOGETHER

                                      WORDS THAT DO NOT GO TOGETHER

MOVIE.......candy...buttered popcorn...large coke
BREAKFAST...fried eggs with home fries,sausage,buttered toast and a few mini muffins
SALAD....with ladles of dressing and two garlic sticks
HAMBURG...quarter pounder with a large fries and a large frosty
DINNER......large order of ribs with potatoes and 2 rolls and butter and pie ala mode

BURT WOLF THE FOOD WRITER

He is a food writer who travels the globe.  Several years ago his doctor told him that his cholesterol and blood pressure were very high and he wanted him to take medication the rest of his life.  Instead of following the doctor's advice, Burt changed his way of living and eating.

He lost about 30 pounds, exercised, ate healthier and meditated along with following a very healthy way of eating.  He traveled with Shredded Wheat and All Bran and containers of juice.  If he ordered room service he would have fruit, coffee with skim milk, whole wheat or rye toast, and although he would have two hard cooked eggs, he would throw the yolks away. If he had a hearty lunch he would have a salad as his dinner and omit the dressing and have fruit for dessert.

This was in 1996 and I recently saw him on television and he looked healthy and very trim.

PRINT A WARNING NOTE ON YOUR REFRIGERATOR

It might read: " EAT IT TODAY..WEAR IT TOMORROW...here and here and there.."


                                             JUST A FEW FACTS

About 70% if the grocery shoppers purchase lite or low fat versions of products at least twice a week.Many of them are not dieting, but just working at staying trim.

Some people find macaroni and cheese a comfort food.  Purchase a frozen meal that is about 300 calories  and serve with sliced tomatoes and maybe broccoli and/or sliced cooked carrots.

We have been taught that corn on the cob is a starchy vegetables.  Although that statement is correct, a small corn on the cob is about 100 calories and a large one under 175 calories. If you add butter or margarine add the calories to it.

HOW A MEMBER TAUGHT ME A LESSON

One member mentioned some new product about 20 years ago called the George Foreman Grill and could not stop raving.  It seemed very complex to me at the time and she came to my house and gave me lessons. She made several items and taught me how to clean it.  In those days the instructions that came with it said to just wipe the grill after use but not to wet it.
Can you picture even cooking an egg in a fry pan and not using a soft brush and liquid soap to clean it?  Since that first time, I wash the grill but do not immerse it and it works great.  I just rinse it well.  I prefer using two small grills rather than a medium or a large one for most recipes.

SOME WILD ADVICE

EAT FOOD NAKED......No, this is not obscene advice. In other words; ask for the dressing on the side with your salad, order your bagel with butter on the side, if you leave the top crust and the bottom crust from a piece of pie you can save about 300 calories. The filling would be
about 150 calories.

One Sunday morning I ordered my bagel with butter on the side and the waitress heavily smeared the butter on the bagel and put some on the side. No, I did not eat it that way. Be pleasant, but be assertive in cases like that.
.

LOUISE, ARE YOU STAYING SLIM SINCE YOU RETIRED?

The answer is a YES in bold letters and I will explain how.  I still get on the scale every day and am careful that it does not go ' under 122 in the morning'.  I do not have to diet at this point and I can allow myself some treats from time to time.  My appetite is moderately small and since I have not binged in the 40 years that I was teaching my Diet Masters program, staying trim is easy.

I still order dressing on the side with salads and enjoy steamed and roasted vegetables.  I almost always have a starch three times a day.  If I go to Panera's Bread I might split the 420 calorie braided almond danish or even occasionally order the cinnamon crunch bagel without butter or cream cheese which is 510 calories and eat the whole thing.
At Snapper's restaurant in Boynton I always order the fried fish for lunch and "do it my way."
The menu reads fried fish and shrimp.  The shrimp are tiny and I order it without the shrimp.  They give me an extra piece of fish. I get the salad with dressing on the side, have a little ketchup instead of tartar sauce, eat part of the yellow rice, and do not eat the rolls unless I am in mood for one.
I bring a small zippered take-out  container with two small ice packs and a plastic bag. My sweet husband has the fish and rice for his dinner so this is a "win,win" day for me.

MY CHILDHOOD MEMORIES OF BEING FAT

I was a very chubby child until I was almost 10 years of age.  Although I was about the last one to be chosen to be on someone's  team at school almost no one was cruel to me.  This is when the plot thickens.

There was a boy who lived nearby, and I had to pass his house on my way home from school. He always made fun of my weight and I was usually close to tears. His name was George Plotzik

Between ages nine and ten I must have grown five inches and became very thin.  Meanwhile our "friend" George became chubby and the other children: myself not included continually called him "Fat Plotzik."  Justice did triumph in this case.

VALENTINE'S DAY

If you have a grown son or daughter who sends you candy on Valentine's day every year and you are trying to lose weight or not gain any, give the candy to some children or a thin friend. Before the holiday arrives next year explain how much more you would appreciate a small gift certificate for your favorite book store or department store. Explain how hard you are working to keep your weight down. 

Another scenario is plan to just eat one chocolate.  If you are like I am and have little interest in the soft centers,  just press the center of the candy  or take a very little nibble and throw the candy away.  It would be a good idea to do this when no one is watching.

BEST TIME I EVER HAD AT COSTCO

I did not have a great time because the woman in front of me while I was checking out told me that I looked twenty years younger than my age.  I should be that lucky.

The reason for my being so elated is that I had called a woman who had been in Diet Masters to tell her about my blog.  We began to talk about the various diets she had been on in the past year after I retired that just did not work for her. I told her that I do have one or two people come to my home occasionally for dieting lessons. We agreed to meet at a nearby Costo in the food court.

She brought one program from Diet Masters that she had saved and I gave her some material that I thought would help.  This meeting was not about two woman making small talk.  I gave her ideas of how to resist temptation.  I listened to her as she mentioned how she could be satisfied after eating dinner and yet she continued to overeat and nibble after her evening meal. We found some ideas that could rid her of this habit.  I plan to call her after 7 days and she and I will have a little 15 minute phone meeting.  We will have our next Costco meeting a week from then.
 

WORDS TO REMEMBER

I was watching a television commercial a while back and these important words stay in my mind. "I used to eat when I was sad and angry.  Now I cry when I am sad and argue when I am angry".
Don't try to make troubles or sorrows go away with food. It just does not work that way.

RECIPE FOR ROASTED VEGETABLES

It has been a while since I wrote a recipe on this blog.  This one is from a book I wrote called
"Light Fantastic Cooking" .  It is easy and everyone loves it.

                                                      ROASTED VEGETABLES


Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  If you are preparing a main dish for the same meal that requires a lower temperature, the vegetables will cook nicely even in a 350 degree oven...they will just take longer. Place foil shiny side down on as many cookie sheets as you need and coat with cooking spray.  Place the vegetables side by side and spray the vegetables.  Sprinkle any seasonings that you desire from the list below.  Cook vegetables until they begin to brown; about 10 minutes. Turn and cook another 10 minutes or until vegetables are soft and nicely browned.  Pick up foil and vegetables from cookie sheet and place on large serving dishes. 

Vegetable Ideas:

potatoes, thinly sliced
peppers, green, red or yellow sliced
carrots, par-cooked
eggplant, thickly sliced
tomatoes,ripe thickly sliced
sweet potatoes, sliced
onions, thickly sliced
zucchini or yellow squash,thickly sliced
 mushrooms caps

Seasonings: 
Choice of: paprika, salt, garlic salt, pepper, any salt free seasoning, Mexican seasonings or any seasoning you wish...seasoned bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, even a little brown sugar on the sweet potatoes.

The calorie count is not listed as it depends on your choice of vegetables and the amount you eat.  In most cases it would be 100 calories per serving.
Note*  The roasted potatoes alone are excellent.

CALORIES IN A CUP OF VARIOUS FOODS

 It's amazing how one cup of food can vary.
Calories do count!

Calories in one cup of the following foods:

raw mushrooms, chopped or diced........20
onions, sliced.....65
scallions,bulb and top....36
cooked white meat chicken without skin.....250
crab meat,steamed......144
chocolate covered almonds.......960
turkey,dark meat roasted without the skin ......284
turkey, light meat without the skin......245
sugar,granulated......800
sugar powdered, confectioner's 462


We will do another little lesson on various other foods.  The count on the white and dark meat turkey is so close that you should choose the one you prefer...

MOST DOCTOR'S ADVICE IS GOOD BUT NOT ALL ARE

Several years ago this particular doctor wrote a book that instructed readers to fast for seven days before beginning their diet.  This same book included the following hint:  Smoke a cigarette instead of eating dessert...

Another crazy diet had a hospital's name on it and these were their instructions:
day 1.....fruit only (I guess they meant as much as you wanted)
day 2.....vegetables only
day 3.....meat only
day 4.....mix them all


Sometimes these crazy diets were never the hospital's idea and the author just used its name.

THIS BLOG IS KEEPING ME UP NIGHTS IN A GOOD WAY

Here it is 3:30 in the morning and I woke up with 'blog thoughts'. I had an interesting few days just calling some of my Diet Masters people to see if they would like to view my blog...Many, like myself, were not familiar with what this blog thing was all about.  Some of them who signed up sent me some nice emails after they read it...I guess it was like listening to Louise in class. Pass this link to friends who might enjoy it..

One of my favorite places to read is at Costco...In their book department???  Never.  I sometimes go up one isle and down the other checking calories on their products. Once I noticed that their Hillshire Farm coleslaw was 280 calories for a half cup and the calories from fat came to 180..I am certain no one rinses coleslaw except people in my class.  Many times people order coleslaw in a restaurant instead of a baked potato that they would prefer having. A half of a medium baked potato is about 100 calories.  If you order it with no butter and have sour cream on the side it would be half the calories as some coleslaws.

While we are on the subject of Costco, please be kind to yourself and do not 'eat yourself through the store.'  Some days, they have 7 people giving out samples and those calories can add up.

Time for me to go back to bed.

HINTS ON HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT

The definition of overeating is not pretty.  'An illness caused by a disorder of eating habits.' This does not pertain to everyone who is overweight.  Many people gain weight from certain medications.  Others from not losing weight after the birth of a child. But I was a person who gained and lost over 500 pounds in the course of 23 years and was never more than about 20 pounds overweight. I had a huge appetite and was a very compulsive eater.

Hints:  If you love to make homemade bread it would be best to give up that hobby. The aroma alone will make it difficult to stop after one or two slices.

Be true to yourself.  If you have a notebook where you write everything down that you eat on every given day..WRITE IT ALL DOWN.

If you have a romance with certain foods and know that when you begin to eat them you usually eat 'the whole thing' keep them out of the house.  Examples: boxes of Triscuits ...packages of cookies...pints of ice cream....10 ounce bags of potato chips. Some people do well with purchasing many of these items in individual packages and they are able to control their consumption but many cannot.  Someone I know keeps it in the trunk of their car. Another solution might be to go to a convenience store or drug store and purchase an individual portion for under 200 calories and eat it slowly.

LOTS OF WAYS TO EAT LESS

Serve your food hot so that you will tend too eat slower.  Keep reminding yourself to slow down if you begin to eat fast.  It can soon become second nature to you.  

SOME REASONS WE GIVE OURSELVES TO OVEREAT,  AND JOHNNY'S STORY

My family was visiting....We are always invited to parties .......I went to the club and the food was fantastic....I was depressed....Everyone was eating pie..So........
                       
Think about this story that appeared in the local newspaper about a little 8 year old boy whose name was Johnny
It was a special occasion at his school and they had set a 12 foot table up with chairs on either side.  There was a banana split the length of the table and the children were enjoying themselves except Johnny.  He had turned his chair away from the table and his arms were folded.  When the teacher asked him why he was not eating with the other children he said,  "I AM ON A DIET TO LOSE WEIGHT, AND I WILL NOT LOSE WEIGHT IF I EAT THIS BANANA  SPLIT". Ah, from the mouths of babes....                                             

THE TEA PARTY AND WOW

Before the Republicans started to use the words tea party there was something in early American history called The Boston Tea Party.  In January, 2005 I mentioned to the people at my meetings to have a Diet Masters Tea Party and clean their kitchens of all the foods they could not control.

               WOW..MEANS WORDS OF WISDOM

I always ended my meetings with different words of wisdom.  The following is an example:
When is the right time to start a diet?  After a vacation?  After your birthday?  Because a relatives'  wedding is in two months and you want to look your trim best?  Because your doctor frightens you?  When the snowbirds leave? NO, now is the right time.  At Diet Masters you learn to lose weight and keep it off with foods that you enjoy for the rest of your life..Just listen to Louise!!!!

ADD A FEW INTERESTING ITEMS TO YOUR SALAD

The average salad that I usually prepare has romaine lettuce, shredded carrots, sliced cucumbers and diced tomatoes.  I was going to have a few friends over for lunch and served the following vegetables on the side. They were sliced black olives, roasted red peppers, drained marinated artichokes and chopped scallions.  It was so tasty that we did not opt for the dressings that I had placed on the table.

BAD DIETS VS. GOOD DIETS

A bad diet is usually difficult to stay with and you usually end up frustrated and blaming yourself for not being able to follow it. This type of a diet rules that you must eat this and cannot ever eat that. A good diet should be flexible for those of you who desire starches and an occasional sweet.  It also teaches you calorie awareness, although you do not have to count calories unless you want to.

My theories are that there are no forbidden foods unless they are something that you cannot control.

PRUNES HELP

I thought that this would be a more upbeat title than 'constipation'.  This subject should be addressed because many people who are dieting have very little fat in their diet or not enough of fiber and others do not drink enough water.

One of the easiest ways to help yourself with this condition is to eat 5 pitted prunes slowly instead of one piece of fruit. If you prefer cooked prunes, prepare your own as the jarred prunes are loaded with sugar and excess calories.

Try to get into the habit of drinking 6 to 8 cups of water a day.

SOME IDEAS TO CHEW ON

Many people go to restaurants determined to eat carefully diet wise and then they erase their good deeds.  They ordered their salad with dressing on the side and barely touched the dressing. They ordered the petite fillet and took half of it home and ordered steamed vegetables instead of potatoes. That is what they remember.  What they forgot, is that they had eaten 4 large pieces of garlic bread dripping in oil before their food arrived and that they ate a pint of rich ice cream out of the container while they watched television.

The last two items total about 1700 calories.

WOW  A good reducing diet should not make you feel like you are being deprived or hungry all the time.

THE PRISONERS' STORY

This is a true story based on a proven test. They tested 40 normal weight prisoners who were on about 2,000 calories a day.  They were gradually given more calories to their daily diet. They finally were eating up to 6,000 calories a day and yet they were always hungry.  This goes back to one of my theories: the more you eat, the more you want.

CRASH DIETS-------THE BITTER TRUTH

Most crash diets are unbalanced and unhealthy.  They do not include the right amount of vitamins and minerals.  The Atkins was known for being low in carbs.  It limited the "victims" who went on the diet very few fruits and vegetables. You were allowed huge greasy hamburgers but no buns. Other crash diets advertise that you can lose 30 pounds in 30 days on their plan if you buy their products or if you detox.

Remember these words ' IF IT IS TOO FAST, IT WON'T LAST'.

RUEBEN GRILL THE DIET MASTERS WAY..(SAVE 500 CALORIES)

                                                   RUEBEN GRILL


2 ounces lean corned beef or pastrami
1/4 cup drained sauerkraut
1 wedge of Laughing Cow cheese
1 1/2 teap. low-calorie Thousand Island dressing
2 slices diet rye bread, lightly toasted

Spread one wedge of cheese on one slice of toast and the dressing on the other.  Put the
meat on top of the cheese and top with sauerkraut. Put the sandwich on a spray coated skillet and spray the top slice of bread also.  Place weight such as a heavy mug on a saucer on the sandwich or do it my way with the small George Forman grill. Cook until bread is golden on both sides.

Serves 1, about 235 calories per serving
note* If you prefer to have another ounce of meat or a thin slice of Swiss cheese  instead of the Laughing Cow add 50 calories to the recipe.

The average Rueben Grill in a restaurant usually totals about 800 calories.

A FISHY STORY and a FRIGHTENING DELI STORY

I fell in love with Charley and told my husband right away. His name is Charley the Tuna...

Seriously, I feel that Starkist Albacore white tuna is the best . It delivers everything that they claim: fresher tasting, in water, no draining. The large size is 6.4 ounces and is 210 calories.
The foil package mentions that it serves 3 at 70 calories per serving. With such a low calorie count, why not just have half of the package. Try to purchase a mayo that is about 15 calories a tablespoon. Embellish it with chopped celery and onions if you wish, and serve it as a sandwich or a salad. If you made a sandwich with 40 calorie bread and lettuce and tomato slices the total calories would be under 250 calories.


CALORIES IN THE AVERAGE TUNA SALAD SANDWICH IN A DELI


The average tuna salad sandwich in a deli would be 830 calories with 56 grams of fat and
1,360 mg. of sodium. These numbers do not include any french fries or potato chips that may be on your plate.

YO YO DIETERS AND OTHER THOUGHTS...AND A FUNNY STORY

Q What is yo yo dieting?  It is when people lose weight  and then regain it over and over again.  I was a prime example of that for 23 years.  

I was never shocked or angry when a Diet Masters' member would return from a two week vacation with an 8 pound gain.  I would often gain 15 pounds in two weeks in the past.  A good idea would be that they keep a record of everything that they eat and stay attached to a diet support group.

                                                  FUNNY STORY

I had been teaching my Diet Masters classes for several years when this happened.  My husband and I were enjoying the last day of our vacation  at a lovely restaurant in Texas and I had not been near a scale in two weeks. I was used to eating moderately by then and when I saw a tall scale near the door as we were leaving I eagerly jumped on..It registered 136 pounds.  I was shocked...This number meant that I had gained 7 pounds.  I got off the scale thinking something must be wrong and got on it again..still 137.  There were a few waitresses smiling at me and all of a sudden I looked back and there was that husband of mine with his foot on the scale.

HOW TO STRETCH SOUP AND WAYS TO STAY ON DIET

I do not even like winter squash yet I truly enjoy Campbell's squash soup that is in a carton which reads 2 servings.  If the soup is going to be served as an appetizer, use a small cup similar to those used in Oriental restaurants.  That size serving will be one-third of the container and only
70 calories.

If you tend to snack while preparing food and putting groceries away, I have two great ideas.
Chew sugarless gum or buy a pacifier and put it in your mouth.  I mentioned that in class once because one of the members mentioned her snacking problem.  You may not believe this, but she actually bought the pacifier and used it. 

Your chances of losing weight is much easier than winning the lottery and you can make it happen with EFFORT, NOT LUCK.

THREE WISHES: A POEM AND A FAIRY TALE COMBINATION

A genie, once he said to me,
"I will give you wishes three."
So then I wished, as well I should,
I'd never had a chance so good.
A handsome prince, both rich and fine.
Who'd forever be my Valentine.
A palace grand, both large and rare,
And chocolates! Lots!   Beyond compare.
The third wish is the one I rue,
Sad the tale I now tell you --
I grew so large around the rear --
My handsome prince did disappear!

DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU READ

Ben and Jerry once had pints of Cherry Garcia Ice Cream and the words 'low fat' were marked in large print.  In smaller print in the back of the container they mentioned that it was 260 calories per half cup. The calorie count for the pint was 1060.  The average over eater who has a romance with ice cream could easily eat the whole thing. 

A Los Angeles firm was cited for advertising that their low fat brownies which were rather small had a calorie count of 650 calories, not the 190 listed on the package.

WOW...You are on the road to slimness.  If you swerve here and there with some of your maple walnut ice cream or if an Oriental Buffet gets in your path...Gently swerve back to eating right...YOU ARE NOT GOING  TO CRASH.