Top Ten: What Not to Eat and Not to Drink!
Losing weight is always difficult for us mere mortals. However there are a few ways to speed up that weight loss. One way in particular is cutting some foods from our diet. I believe our diet is for life and eating healthy should be for life. Treats are fun and should never be banned altogether. But sometimes, fattening food has to be banned for a little while. By banning foods for a short period you can really kick start your diet.
Mayonnaise: A tiny 10 gram portion has a whopping 61 calories. Adding an ounce (28 grams) of mayo to your sandwich, salad or fries will cost you a 180 calories a pop.
Butter: A meager ounce hits the scales at 210 calories. Every time you butter toast or bread, add a knob to your mash and vegetables you add calories to your waistline.
Oil: 10 grams of oil will set you back a magnificent 90 calories. Imagine every time you fry a piece of meet in an ounce of oil you bump up the calories by 270. Your lean 5 oz chicken breast jumps from 150 calories to 420 calories. A cheeseburger has less cals.
Cheese: A 2 ounce slice of cheese averages 200 calories. No cheese sandwiches please.
Chocolate: Milk chocolate contains 500 calories for every 100 grams. The average bar of chocolate has more than 250 calories. One bar a day adds up to over 1750 calories in a week.
Crisps: A family bag (170 grams) of crisps tops the calories at just under 1000. The thing about family bags is we never share'em with the family. We eat them all ourselves. Well, they'll go stale won't they!
Sugar: 1 teaspoon of sugar in your tea or coffee adds up to 17 calories. 5 cups a day over the week calculates at 595 calories. Over the year that works out at 30,948 calories. Cutting out that sugar in your tea or coffee is worth 8 pounds in weight loss. And that's if you only have one spoon!
Thick sliced white bread: 96 calories on average per slice. Your sarnie is already nearly 200 calories before you add any filling.
Soda: Ditch the soda. An average can of pop (330 ml) has 150 calories. Plus the fizz bloats the stomach.
Beer: Generally alcohol has a lot of empty calories. Beer is one of the worst. A pint of beer will cost you an average 200 calories. Lets face it, you won't have one will you?
The average man needs 2500 calories per day. The average woman needs 2000 calories per day. Reducing your calorie allowance by 500 calories a day and introducing some form of exercise 4 times a week should be sufficient to loose 1 to 2 Ibs per week.
Fried Foods: It's a Big Fat No!
Substitute tomato based relishes and mustard's for mayo or butter in sandwiches.
Choose low calorie salad dressings or make your own; olive oil and white wine vinegar make a lovely salad dressing especially with salad leaf and tomatoes; adding herbs like snipped chives or basil leaf adds to the flavour.
Add spices and herbs to your dishes instead of butter. Peas love mint, potatoes and rosemary really marry and carrots will be happy with sprinkle of cinnamon.
Top your toast with a poached or scrambled egg, hummus or even cottage cheese.
Swap your toast for fruit, yogurt or a bran cereal.
Stir fry foods in a none stick pan. A good none stick pan is worth the investment.
Grill, bake or steam foods. Use a slow cooker if you have one.
Eat cottage cheese 28 calories in 28 grams.
Buy mini size chocolates for a treat.
Try eating frozen grapes as a treat during the week.
Opt for Twiglets, a 30 gram bag will only cost 120 calories off your daily allowance.
Reduce the amount of sugar in your tea and coffee gradually: introduce herbal teas; green tea; camomile; citrus etc.
Opt for brown or wholemeal medium sliced bread. Irish soda bread is also a healthy option.
Replace sodas with fresh juices and lots of water.
Stick to a gin and tonic (90 cals) or a glass of wine (80 cals) at the weekends.
Is There Such a Thing as Fat Free Cake? Absolutely Not!
Which of the foods listed are you most likely to succumb to when dieting?
Most fast foods are laden with fat and calories. There is little or no nutritional value in fast food; hence the reason why you always feel hungry soon after a fast food fix. Trying to lose weight and eating burgers and chips doesn't work. The average fast food meal has about 1000 calories. Almost half your daily calorie allowance. I'm afraid fast food has to be put on the once in a while list. That's like once a month or less.
Processed foods contain a lot of sugar and salt. It's best to avoid these foods as much as possible. Opt for fresh fruit, fruit juices and fresh vegetables to help lose those stubborn pounds.
Deep fried foods are on the once in a while menu too. A small portion of chips averages 300 calories. One medium deep fried onion ring averages 50 calories. A deep fried chicken wing averages a whopping 100 calories and that's without the dip. Fried foods in general are on the occasional treat list.
Any food over 400 calories per portion is off the menu. Read labels and get familiar with what you eat and what you drink. Know your calories. Any food with more than 4 grams of fat per serving is also off the menu during the week. Low fat does not mean less than 4 grams, read the labels.
How Much Do You Know About Calories?
Losing weight slowly and safely is very important. Huge weight loss over a short period of time will leave you with unsightly saggy skin all over your body, especially on your upper arms, inner thighs lower buttocks and stomach. Slow weight loss is a permanent and healthy weight loss. Always remember, your diet is for life and not a silly fad. Eat healthy, exercise regularly and enjoy your treats as a treat. And you know what, if you falter ever now again don't stress over it: go for an extra long walk; be extra good for a few days; go disco dancing and stick to gin and slim line tonic. Whatever you do; just keep making healthy choices most of the time.
I love cheese and it would be hard to completely give that up. Life is all about choices. You have given some good tips here regarding healthy ways to lose weight.
Hi Beth. Crisps are my downfall: I can't buy those family packs 'cause I'd eat the lot.
Great article! I have a hard time staying away from salty snacks like chips and pretzels. Don't have much of a sweet tooth but I can eat a whole bag of popcorn! Enjoyed the read!
This is a great reading hub, very informative and engaging. I just joined Weight Watchers and reading this hub is motivating me even more to stick with the plan and stick with healthier food options, like cutting out mayo and cheese from my Subway sandwiches. I did this and didn't even notice they were gone because the sub was still really good. Thanks for sharing this useful and awesome hub. Voted up.
Quiz is a good way to engage people. Nice job.
Hi Happyboomernurse, tanx for reading and commenting.
Hi Activia UK, tanx for popping in.
Glad you picked up something new. It's true we are all different and certain foods will affect us differently however we all need to avoid or at least cut back on high fat and high calorie foods if we want to lose weight. There is no way around that I'm afraid.
Perhaps you're referring to intolerance to certain foods rather than avoiding certain foods to aid weight loss; there is a hugh difference between the two!
hi everyone - I love reading articles like this as you always pick up new tips. For me it's all about the foods which I know bloat me - bread, pasta, jacket potatoes etc - I try to avoid all white starchy foods and substitute them for roasted veg or salads. My other downfall is snacking - I love it! So I have to learn how to snack healthily - there are some super tips here http://bit.ly/q7XEF9 . Also I have to drink lots of water to keep my metabolism going... I think it's important to remember that we are all different and the foods we need to avoid vary from person to person.
Hi Tori. I am only an inch taller than you and I weigh 2 Ibs more then you. It sounds like you are about right for your size. Maybe you just need to tone up a little. Walking or running are great exercises for toning as is swimming.
It's not a good idea not to eat as this slows down your metabolism and encourages your body to store fat. Eating a healthy diet encourages your body to burn fat, calories and gives you energy.
Throwing up will damage your teeth and throat. The acid in your stomach is very very strong and will eat away at your skin and muscle.
The pressure it takes to throw up can also result in burst blood vessels in your eyes and face as well as your stomach and else where around your body.
You will completely damage your digestive system too.
If you would like to contact me via my email for a more personal chat please do so through hubpages. I would be very happy to hear from you.
I'm 13 years old and 5'2. I weigh 110 and I think I am so fat I try to not eat and sometimes i throw up but I'm not losing weight. Do u think i'm over weight? Is so what kind of diet and exercises do you think will help?
Tanx for reading and for commenting.
Great hub ... but all these pictures of food have me hungry!
Nice quiz! I scored only 50 % :-| :-| :-| However, it was fun! Very informative hub. Thank you for that.