Raising A Healthy Family
For Moms on A Diet
Lisa DeFazio, MS, RD
One of the biggest challenges when trying to stay on a diet is that no one else in the house is eating healthy! Your family wants burgers, fries and pizza, while you should be eating chicken and vegetables! Do you make 2 or 3 different meals? Do you sit there and watch them eat a cheesy pizza while you eat your veggies? Going through this every day can get exhausting, and sometimes get you off track…until now!
Use the following rules to staying on track, and still please your loved ones:
Rule 1: What they don’t know won’t hurt them. In other words, make changes they will not notice. For example, use ground turkey instead of
high fat beef in meat sauces, tacos, and lasagna. Use low fat cheese instead of regular cheese, and bake fries instead of fry them. No need to announce that you lowered the fat and calories in their meal!
Rule 2: Stock a healthy pantry and refrigerator. Stock your pantry and refrigerator with low-fat staples and healthy snacks such as chicken broth, light sour cream, low-fat mayonnaise, light margarine, fruits, vegetables, whole grain crackers, yogurt, etc. so they are there when you need them. Buy ready to eat washed and cut fruit, vegetables and salad. You will be more likely to eat it. Nibble on the cut up veggies while cooking and preparing dinner to avoid excessive tasting!
Rule 3: If it is not in the house you will not eat it. Only buy low-fat snacks, such as light microwave popcorn, raisins, dried fruit, graham crackers, healthy cookies, and real-fruit juice bars. If your family is begging for some junk food, buy things you do not like. Whatever you do, do not buy your favorite chips or cookies because that is all you will be thinking about!
Rule 4: Make and entrée and side dish that you can eat. At each family meal, make a lean protein (such as fish, chicken or turkey breast), a big salad, and steamed vegetables for everyone, including yourself. If your kids or partner want to put cheese sauce on the veggies or cream sauce on the chicken, let them. But at least you will only prepare one meal and you have something healthy to eat. Make a starch that you do not like, or make brown rice or sweet potatoes. Occasionally you can make pasta or mashed potatoes, but make just enough for the other family members-no leftovers.
Rule 5: Order Freshology’s Whole Family Meals. The easiest and most painless way to stay on track is to order Whole Family Meals from Freshology. You stay on track and the family is satisfied, without the hassle of shopping and cooking!
Rule 6: Write down the top 3 reasons why you want to lose weight. Do you want to lower your cholesterol? Do you have a reunion coming up? Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired? Keep the list in the kitchen posted on the refrigerator or on the pantry where you can see it. Use this as a constant reminder of your goals to keep you motivated.
Staying on a diet takes discipline and sacrifice. If it were easy, everyone would be fit, healthy and in shape! But when you start getting compliments from people about how amazing you look, and your doctor tells you that your blood work has improved, it will all be worth it in the end.
Lisa DeFazio, MS, RD is a Hollywood television Registered Dietitian and Host. She is Freshology’s Nutrition Expert and a Diet Correspondent for the Celebrity fitness site fitperez.com. See www.lisadefazio.com to learn more.
