Five Great Ways To Flavor Your Food
As you set out on our weight loss diet plan, you’re definitely going to want to look at all the things that you can do to keep the calorie level down while maintaining a high amount of nutrition. Since you will be consuming less food when aiming for fat loss, it’s important that you make the most of all those calories you are taking in by choosing the foods that offer the most nutritional punch.
One place that some people struggle with when on a lower calorie diet is the flavor of the foods they’re eating. If you’re like most people, you may have this notion that a low calorie diet has to taste like cardboard, and this can really keep you from starting up a diet plan altogether.
Fortunately though, if you’re willing to get just a little creative in the kitchen, you can find a way to add plenty of flavor to your foods without having to add all the fat and calories that you may have normally taken in.
Often by simply cutting back on high calorie sauces and condiments this can make a dramatic difference to the total number of calories that you consume, so something that’s not to be overlooked by anyone.
The following are some quick strategies that you can use to get yourself started.
Balsamic Vinegar
Many people are quick to turn to soy sauce for use as a condiment or sauce and while that is a lower calorie option, it is remarkably high in sodium.
Instead, consider some balsamic vinegar. This offers a very nice flavor to many different dishes and keeps the meals very low in calories.
Whether you choose to use this on its’ own for flavor or combine it with other ingredients is up to you but do try and include it in your meal plan this week.
Specialty Mustards
Second, another way that you can boost the flavor of the foods you’re eating is to turn to one of the specialty mustards that are available.
Whether you like Dijon mustard, honey mustard, or another option, mustard in general is a low calorie condiment that really packs a strong flavor quickly.
Just watch when ordering the sweeter varieties of mustard that there isn’t too much additional sugar added or that can take away from the benefits that it provides.
Cinnamon
Cinnamon is a spice that very often gets overlooked but should be added back into your diet regularly. Those who consume cinnamon at a meal often report that they have more stable blood sugar levels, so for anyone who suffers from high fluctuations or who deals with diabetes, this is the perfect spice to be adding.
Cinnamon is more traditionally placed in baked goods or breakfast foods, but don’t restrict yourself to just these options. It can also work well with many main dishes too, so look for a couple recipes to try it out in this manner.
Low-Sodium Chicken Broth
If you have a recipe that calls for oil or even butter in some cases, consider swapping that out for some chicken broth instead. Chicken broth is virtually calorie free and you can purchase lower sodium varieties if that is a dietary concern you have.
What’s best is that it forms a great base for many of the sauces that you might be preparing or can be used as a substitute for butter when making mashed potatoes.
Fresh Parsley
Finally, the last option that you might want to consider to add more flavor to your foods and make your diet more palatable is parsley. Parsley, especially when consumed fresh, works perfect in pasta’s, on your main protein source such as chicken or fish, or even served on top of a salad.
Parsley also offers numerous health benefits including being a rich source of vitamin K, vitamin C, vitamin A, folate, and iron.
If you can get it fresh, all the better but if not, dried will also work well.
So be sure that you consider all of these quick and simple methods for boosting the flavor of some of your dishes without adding all the fat and calories that you otherwise would have.
When you can make small changes like this on a daily basis, that’s when you’ll really notice a dramatic improvement in the overall results you see as you work towards your weight loss goals.
Author Bio: Nick Clipton is the owner of BuildingBodyMuscles.com. He writes about gaining muscle mass and maintaining a healthy weight. You can subscribe to his RSS or email to read more.
Should You Be Working Out at Home or in the Gym?
A regular exercise routine is a critical part of maintaining your weight and of staying healthy overall. Many people start out strong, but have difficulty sticking to an exercise plan.
If you’re one of those people, take the time to ask yourself some serious questions before you begin, once again, to try and tackle an exercise program. If your exercise program is not suited to your personality, your lifestyle and your preferences, it’s doomed to fail.
One of the big questions you’ll need to ask yourself is where you should be working out. Some people have far better success in a gym, while others do much better at home. Here are some things to consider.
You’re Better off Working Out at Home if:
- You’re self conscious about your weight and how you look in front of others
- From a budget perspective, paying gym fees will be stressful
- You sometimes just have 10 or 15 minutes at a time for working out, so you like to break your workout up into short segments
- You spend most of your day at home anyway
- You have other issues, such as child care, that make it tough to get to the gym
- You enjoy working out alone
Of course, some of the answers to these questions can be a little misleading. For example, just because you already spend most of your day at home, doesn’t mean you should be working out there. Some people who work at home, for example, really love heading out to the gym because it breaks up the day, gives them a chance to get out of the house, and helps them focus on their workout without being distracted by the things going on at home.
You’re Better off Going to the Gym if:
- You can never seem to get a good workout in at home because you get distracted by other things before you’re finished
- You enjoy being around other people when you work out, or you enjoy group fitness classes
- You really like changing up the equipment you use, so you could never afford to equip your home gym with everything you like
- You’re out and about anyway and enjoy the stop on the way to or from work
- Knowing that you can work out any time at home only makes you put the workout off indefinitely
Fitness centers are still big business, and many people say that they would be lost if they couldn’t get in their trip to the gym. However, today’s trend is definitely toward working out at home. This trend is likely due, in part, to the declining economy leaving fewer people with the disposable income for gym fees. It really is much cheaper in the long run to buy some equipment for your home than to pay monthly gym fees indefinitely.
Another popular trend is a hybrid of these two workout scenarios. Many people are choosing to have some fitness equipment at home and perform most of their workouts there, but to also sign up for some classes away from home. In particular, Zumba classes and boot camp style fitness classes are soaring in popularity. Zumba is an aerobic dance class that focuses on Latin style moves. Boot camp classes are intense fitness classes done in a military style that whip you into shape quickly with whole body workouts.
Classes like these are the perfect compromise for many people. From a time and money commitment, they are short term, and less expensive than joining a gym. At the same time, however, they give participants a chance to socialize with others and give them a nice break from working out at home every day.
Taking the time to determine the right location for your workouts is an important step toward creating a routine you can stick with. Working out isn’t supposed to be a chore, so find the right place that makes it fun and comfortable for your personality and your lifestyle.
Edward is the website owner of BuildMuscle.org, a website offering free tips on how to build muscle.
Increasing Bone Strength. Exercise and Diet Tips for all Ages
When we’re in our twenties and thirties often the last thing we think about is the health of our bones, yet one in two women over forty are worried about developing weak or brittle bones. It’s a sharp increase and that’s because osteoporosis affects over 2 million Australians every year. So maybe we should be paying more attention to our skeletons! Here Kerri-Anne and I discuss some of the crucial factors affecting bone strength (attention all those dieters who think milk is the enemy!). I explain my top diet tips for calcium intake, as well as my favourite exercises to help slow down bone loss as we age.
How to Measure Your Waist and What it Means?
Editors Note: This post is written by our elite performance specialist Andrew Verdon. Andrew has completed a Diploma in Exercise Science, Certificate IV in Fitness, Level 1 Strength Coaching Qualifications with ASCA. He is currently completing a Post Grad Diploma in Applied Science (Elite Sports Training) and will go on to do a Masters in Recovery.
Want a really simple way to check your body fat levels and the level of health risk this could put you at? Here is a reliable and easy test you can do at home with a tape measure (and a note pad).
With a tape measure held horizontal take it around your waist at the level of your belly button. Keep your tummy muscles relaxed and take the measure. The most accurate way to get the measure is to get someone to hold the tape and sight the measure on the right hand side- not the front. If you doing it by yourself then place your finger on the number on the right of your body and let the tape go and record where your finger was- simple!
What should it be?
| Healthy range | At risk level | High risk level | |
| Male | Under 90cm | 94cm-101cm | 102 cm + |
| Female | Under 80cm | 82-88cm | 89cm + |
This now gives you your starting point and you can see how effective your dietary modifications and exercise sessions are. If they are working you should see some reduction in the number after around 2-3 weeks. I often see a large drop initially then a plateau after 2-3 months but keep on going till it reaches the healthy range. I put much more emphasis on this number than body weight as this a direct measure of the body fat levels and your impact on them.
If you are in the healthy range then check it every 8 weeks to keep and eye on it- if you see it creeping up then get moving! If it is in the higher ranges then I think you should check it every week- record the score and track your progress. I do this with my clients at every session and it is a very powerful tool to monitor and give them motivation to keep up the good work.
This post is written by our elite performance specialist Andrew Verdon. Andrew has completed a Diploma in Exercise Science, Certificate IV in Fitness, Level 1 Strength Coaching Qualifications with ASCA.
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