Meal Planning that Will Help You Loose Weight

Portion control is as important as food choices.  You can make educated guesses to portion sizes by using a simple gauge.  A cup of food is about the size of your closed fist.  An ounce of nuts is a hand full and the size of protein should be about the size of your open palm.  Use nothing larger than a 9" plate and leave a border around the food.  Your meal should be divided as the plate shown here.  One half needs be made up of non-starchy vegetables, one quarter should be lean protein and one quarter should be starchy foods and grains.

EATING CHOICES TO AVOID:

Fried foods...instead choose baked, roasted, grilled or broiled
No added breading
Avoid fast foods
Avoid lunch-meats
Do not add salt unless absolutely necessary...use salt substitute like Mrs. Dash instead
No added sugar...be careful to check labels of foods that say they are sugar-free.  Some may have no or less sugar but are full of unwanted carbs
Keep portion sizes under control
Eat balanced meals
Coke or soda pop is loaded with sugar...sugar free is loaded with really bad additives that can actually make you gain weight
NEVER, EVER, consume Aspartame


The recommended daily requirement for each meal with one carb serving equaling 15 grams of carbohydrates.  For each meal there should be between 45 and 60 grams of carbohydrates for women and between 60 and 75 for men.  Counting carbs is more important and easier than counting calories.  Keep the carbs down and the calories will follow naturally.  Snacks for men should be under 200 and for women no more than 120 calories.  

Read your labels.  Make sure that you are eating portions according to the suggested serving size on the label.  Labels are based on a 2000 calorie a day intake.  A product may contain 20 servings but each serving may only be 1/4 cup.  If you eat 1/2 cup you have doubled your carbs and calories.  If one serving equals 60 grams in a 1/4 cup then eating 1/2 cup puts you way over your requirement for the meal. Watch the labels on the 100 calorie packages for dieters.  The sugar may be low but the fat content, cholesterol, may make the carbs too high.

Keep your carbs spread out over the day.  Eating no carbs at one meal and the next meal heavy in carbs is too hard on your body and can have a very negative effect.  This will make your blood sugar spike, your heart work harder.  Not a good idea.  Also, some carbs are slow carbs and some are fast carbs so it depends what types of foods you eat to make your sugar levels even.  Even sugar levels means a better acting metabolize.  

Foods that are high in carbohydrates are considered fast acting carbs.  The sugar is dumped on the body to digest very quickly making your body work hard to keep things level.  High carbohydrate foods are starchy vegetables, grains, fruit, dairy and sweets.  Stay away from anything white like white bread, white rice and so on.

Eating high fiber foods is always a good idea for appetite control, sugar levels and digestion.  It is best to eat 25 to 30 grams of high fiber foods each day.

Drinking alcohol will lower your sugar levels.  It is best to limit alcohol consumption and you should never drink alcohol on an empty stomach.  Your blood sugar can drop without warning and very suddenly.  This can cause serious health problems.

Healthy substitutions for better choices in eating can be instead of eating a candy bar have a piece of fruit to satisfy your sweet tooth or a snack bar (be sure to check the label first).  Instead of french fries you can eat a backed potato with a tablespoon of low-fat sour cream or margarine substitute.  Instead of fried rice you can eat 1/2 cup brown rice with 1/4 cup black beans.  Instead of fish sticks you can eat 3 oz of grilled salmon.  Instead of fried chicken you can eat 3 oz of baked chicken.  Instead of your sugary cereal you can have a cup of whole grain cereal with fruit added or plain oatmeal with a little raw honey added.

If you do follow these simple guidelines you will find you loose weight naturally plus making your body stronger and healthier.  Check out my food lists to better understand your food choices.



This book makes eating healthy easy...not just for diabetics but for anyone who wants a healthier lifestyle or seriously wants to prevent the onset of diabetes...

Diabetic Living Diabetes Meals by the Plate A visual guide to meal planning using the Plate Method, a simple graphic that divides the plate into three portions to show how to enjoy a full plate of food that is carb- and calorie-balanced. With 90 meals, each fully photographed showing the portion sizes for vegetables, protein, and starches (plus extras), eating healthy is easy: just fill your plate!