Men's Health Magazine's ratings of best and worst fast food restaurants:
A+ Chick-Fil-A
Not a single entrée breaks the 500-calorie barrier, a feat unmatched in the fast-food world.
Average calories per meal: 390
A Subway
An impressive selection of 6-inch sandwiches with less than 400 calories each earns Jared's joint a second-place finish.
Average calories per meal: 425
A- Boston Market
Its expansive menu of healthy sides and nutritionally reasonable three-piece chicken meals gives diners plenty of choices.
Average calories per meal: 479
B+ Taco Bell
It's okay to "make a run for the border," as long as you limit yourself to just two tacos or a single burrito.
Average calories per meal: 427
B Wendy's
Although calorically comparable to McDonald's, Wendy's edges out the Arches with less trans fat and a range of healthy sides.
Average calories per meal: 462
B- McDonald's
Burgers are reasonable, but other items, like 1,000-calorie pancake platters, send McDonald's numbers soaring.
Average calories per meal: 464
C+ KFC
It's hard to have "fried" in your name and still make a decent grade. To halve calories, order your chicken without skin. (or try the new baked option)
Average calories per meal: 511
C Arby's
The array of sandwiches suffers from an abundance of creamy dressings, spreads, and melted cheese sauce.
Average calories per meal: 530
C- Burger King
Thousand-calorie-plus burgers like the Quad Stacker give this chain a below-average score.
Average calories per meal: 531
C- Domino's
Two slices of any Feast pizza contain from 460 (thin-crust vegetable) to 880 calories (MeatZZa, deep dish).
Average calories per meal: 556
D Panera Bread
Healthy sides, whole grains, and free Wi-Fi can't offset oversized, calorie-loaded salads and sandwiches.
Average calories per meal: 574
D- Pizza Hut
Massive pasta portions are nearly 1,000 calories, while personal pan pizzas average 660 calories. Average calories per meal: 650
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
What I Eat (post1)
A lot of clients often ask me what I eat. I don't think they are looking to replicate my routine but more likely want ideas. This is a week chosen at random, it was more or less a normal week and I wrote everything down (except water), here's how I think I did:
(+) Positives: Fiber grams always met, a lot of vegetables and low and good fats, treats but nothing excessive.
(-) Negatives: Not enough whole fruits
What you may notice and may give you some ideas:
* I drink a lot of 1% milk, if milk is not noted with a meal I usually have water with lemon, seltzer or seltzer with a drop of grape juice, I never drink soda or coffee
* I eat a lot of whole grains and vegetables. When I show soup it is the whole can or two bowls of homemade soup that is always vegetarian.
* I eat very little meat and almost never eat any meat except chicken or turkey, it is unusual for me to eat processed meats in sandwiches or beef and I don't eat pork
* I don't often reach for fruit but I do eat prunes a lot which are very high in fiber and antioxidants
* I love eggs. Eggs have a bad reputation. Eggs are a high-fat protein source but are very filling, are full of vitamins and minerals and great as part of a healthy diet.
* I always eat whole grains. I never eat white bread, white rice or white pasta. I do eat white potato but always with the skin on.
* I always use light butter or olive oil and never use sour cream, mayonnaise or cream cheese.
* I am always looking for ways to improve my diet but gradually. I never ate oatmeal but now I do, I grew up on wonder bread, white pasta and white rice but never eat these now. The best tip I can give you is always look for ways to educate yourself about what you are eating and improve your diet over time. Find healthier ways to prepare the foods you love, keep healthy foods around and treat yourself from time to time.
MON 2 packs of regular oatmeal 1tbsp fruit spread
handful of roasted soy nuts, 6-7 prunes, few pretzels
bowl of whole wheat pasta, tom sauce
whole wheat nonfat refried bean burrito, avocado, string beans
1 plain apple cider donut, milk
TUE Fage 2% strawberry yogurt
whole wheat fake bacon slice of cheese 1 egg sandwich
strawberries, 1 tootsie roll, prunes
low-fat broccoli-cheddar Quiche, milk
WED Fage 2% strawberry yogurt
low-fat broccoli-cheddar Quiche, milk
pretzels, blackberry kashi cereal bar, milk
low-fat broccoli-cheddar Quiche, milk
veggie burger, oven baked Ffries, romaine salad
THR Kashi Honey Sunshine cereal, milk
whole wheat, fake bacon lettuce tomato sandwich
olive oil and whole wheat bread dipping
tilapia & chicken, tortellini, vegetables, potatos
2 drinks, small piece of dessert
FRI whole wheat, 1 egg, fake bacon sandwich
health valley vegetable soup, oil wwheat bread, milk
pasta fajoli, prunes
edy's slow churn chocolate ice cream
SAT whole wheat, 1 egg, fake bacon sandwich
health valley vegetable soup, wwheat bread, light butter, milk
tilapia baked potato salad & a roll
2 drinks
SUN EAS Advantage protein shake
2 packs of regular oatmeal 1tbsp fruit spread
piece of pizza
roast chicken whl wheat elbow macaroni, vegetables
edy's slow churn chocolate ice cream
(+) Positives: Fiber grams always met, a lot of vegetables and low and good fats, treats but nothing excessive.
(-) Negatives: Not enough whole fruits
What you may notice and may give you some ideas:
* I drink a lot of 1% milk, if milk is not noted with a meal I usually have water with lemon, seltzer or seltzer with a drop of grape juice, I never drink soda or coffee
* I eat a lot of whole grains and vegetables. When I show soup it is the whole can or two bowls of homemade soup that is always vegetarian.
* I eat very little meat and almost never eat any meat except chicken or turkey, it is unusual for me to eat processed meats in sandwiches or beef and I don't eat pork
* I don't often reach for fruit but I do eat prunes a lot which are very high in fiber and antioxidants
* I love eggs. Eggs have a bad reputation. Eggs are a high-fat protein source but are very filling, are full of vitamins and minerals and great as part of a healthy diet.
* I always eat whole grains. I never eat white bread, white rice or white pasta. I do eat white potato but always with the skin on.
* I always use light butter or olive oil and never use sour cream, mayonnaise or cream cheese.
* I am always looking for ways to improve my diet but gradually. I never ate oatmeal but now I do, I grew up on wonder bread, white pasta and white rice but never eat these now. The best tip I can give you is always look for ways to educate yourself about what you are eating and improve your diet over time. Find healthier ways to prepare the foods you love, keep healthy foods around and treat yourself from time to time.
MON 2 packs of regular oatmeal 1tbsp fruit spread
handful of roasted soy nuts, 6-7 prunes, few pretzels
bowl of whole wheat pasta, tom sauce
whole wheat nonfat refried bean burrito, avocado, string beans
1 plain apple cider donut, milk
TUE Fage 2% strawberry yogurt
whole wheat fake bacon slice of cheese 1 egg sandwich
strawberries, 1 tootsie roll, prunes
low-fat broccoli-cheddar Quiche, milk
WED Fage 2% strawberry yogurt
low-fat broccoli-cheddar Quiche, milk
pretzels, blackberry kashi cereal bar, milk
low-fat broccoli-cheddar Quiche, milk
veggie burger, oven baked Ffries, romaine salad
THR Kashi Honey Sunshine cereal, milk
whole wheat, fake bacon lettuce tomato sandwich
olive oil and whole wheat bread dipping
tilapia & chicken, tortellini, vegetables, potatos
2 drinks, small piece of dessert
FRI whole wheat, 1 egg, fake bacon sandwich
health valley vegetable soup, oil wwheat bread, milk
pasta fajoli, prunes
edy's slow churn chocolate ice cream
SAT whole wheat, 1 egg, fake bacon sandwich
health valley vegetable soup, wwheat bread, light butter, milk
tilapia baked potato salad & a roll
2 drinks
SUN EAS Advantage protein shake
2 packs of regular oatmeal 1tbsp fruit spread
piece of pizza
roast chicken whl wheat elbow macaroni, vegetables
edy's slow churn chocolate ice cream
TOP FIVE Diet killers! #5
Inconsistent Exercise
I don't believe in "dieting". You have to eat the foods you enjoy and include the unhealthy foods you enjoy in moderation. You need to shop and eat consciously. Don't buy what you don't want to eat. Don't have drinks, appetizer and dessert if you go out often, pick one. When I say "diet" killers I really mean things that are impacting your healthy eating pattern or affecting your ability to reach a weight loss or weight maintenance goal, not avoiding carbs.
There is a reason why the first 4 diet killers involved eating. Because the goal of maintaining or losing weight is won and lost with the food you eat. That's because its easy to blow your healthy eating pattern in a moment with a rich dessert or a high-calorie entree. A couple of nights out, high-calorie beverages, a few desserts, some emotional eating and the scale is up.
Exercise burns calories but if you eat high-calorie foods a lot it would take a lot more exercise to offset those calories. Exercise is part of a healthy living routine which improves your feeling of well-being, energizes you, strengthens bones, builds lean muscle, reduces the likelihood of developing heart disease and some cancers and burns calories too. If you do it sporadically it won't help you reach your goals of weight loss, weight maintenance or provide all of the other benefits to exercise like longevity.
Clients often tell me if they stop eating right they stop exercising and vice versa so the two work together to help you with your goal. If you stop exercising you often stop watching what you eat so try to keep some exercise routine each week, even if you exercise a little less than usual some weeks. Starting a habit back up again is much harder than keeping a habit going, even to a lesser degree. Be consistent with your exercise and you will find you are more conscious about what you eat.
I don't believe in "dieting". You have to eat the foods you enjoy and include the unhealthy foods you enjoy in moderation. You need to shop and eat consciously. Don't buy what you don't want to eat. Don't have drinks, appetizer and dessert if you go out often, pick one. When I say "diet" killers I really mean things that are impacting your healthy eating pattern or affecting your ability to reach a weight loss or weight maintenance goal, not avoiding carbs.
There is a reason why the first 4 diet killers involved eating. Because the goal of maintaining or losing weight is won and lost with the food you eat. That's because its easy to blow your healthy eating pattern in a moment with a rich dessert or a high-calorie entree. A couple of nights out, high-calorie beverages, a few desserts, some emotional eating and the scale is up.
Exercise burns calories but if you eat high-calorie foods a lot it would take a lot more exercise to offset those calories. Exercise is part of a healthy living routine which improves your feeling of well-being, energizes you, strengthens bones, builds lean muscle, reduces the likelihood of developing heart disease and some cancers and burns calories too. If you do it sporadically it won't help you reach your goals of weight loss, weight maintenance or provide all of the other benefits to exercise like longevity.
Clients often tell me if they stop eating right they stop exercising and vice versa so the two work together to help you with your goal. If you stop exercising you often stop watching what you eat so try to keep some exercise routine each week, even if you exercise a little less than usual some weeks. Starting a habit back up again is much harder than keeping a habit going, even to a lesser degree. Be consistent with your exercise and you will find you are more conscious about what you eat.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Local Park Reviews
These parks were judged based on fitness for biking and walking as well as scenary and safety.
> Manasquan Reservoir (*****): mostly flat and clear bike path, shaded, active but not crowded, 5.1 miles around, beautiful
> Mercer County Park: (*****): this matches Manasquan Reservoir in beauty, the 5 mile path is paved and flat
> Holmdel Park: (**** ): Wide open beautiful paved path for biking, a slightly steep hill & short path, about 1/4 mile, nice area for walking
> Monmouth Battleground State park (*** ): paved bike path, not crowded and in open space but only about 1/2 mile around
> Thompson Park: (*** ): A nice park, a little less scenic than others, good flat paved path but not a complete circle.
> Manalapan Recreation Center (*** ): this a relatively smooth unpaved path which is about 1 and ¾ miles around so I suggest a least a couple of times through, not crowded, can be a little isolated so go with someone else
> Shark River (* ): not a path suited to bikes, don't venture here alone or after heavy rain, better for walking 1.2-3 miles
> Manasquan Reservoir (*****): mostly flat and clear bike path, shaded, active but not crowded, 5.1 miles around, beautiful
> Mercer County Park: (*****): this matches Manasquan Reservoir in beauty, the 5 mile path is paved and flat
> Holmdel Park: (**** ): Wide open beautiful paved path for biking, a slightly steep hill & short path, about 1/4 mile, nice area for walking
> Monmouth Battleground State park (*** ): paved bike path, not crowded and in open space but only about 1/2 mile around
> Thompson Park: (*** ): A nice park, a little less scenic than others, good flat paved path but not a complete circle.
> Manalapan Recreation Center (*** ): this a relatively smooth unpaved path which is about 1 and ¾ miles around so I suggest a least a couple of times through, not crowded, can be a little isolated so go with someone else
> Shark River (* ): not a path suited to bikes, don't venture here alone or after heavy rain, better for walking 1.2-3 miles
TOP FIVE diet killers! 4 of 5
UNDERESTIMATING CALORIES
Brian Wansink is a professor at Cornell who studies both calories consumed and how effective people are at estimating calories: In his book, MINDLESS EATING, he finds that people ALWAYS underestimate calories especially under two circumstances: when eating out and when they believe they are eating something healthy.
Professor Wansink conducts a variety of studies at his Food and Brand Lab, which explores the psychology behind what people eat and how often they eat it. One study tested the theory that overweight people consistently underestimate how much they eat much more than normal-weight people do. This study concluded that people of all weights underestimate calories for big meals. Ironically, the bigger the meal, the more people underestimated calories, estimating up to 50% less calories than they actually consumed.What to do to avoid this problem?
There aren’t many new tricks to healthy eating and weight loss, if there were we’d all know them! You have to get back to basics:
1)Learn what the calories are for the foods you eat. We eat the same foods over and over so it gets much easier. www.calorieking.com and many other sites offer this information.
2)Know how to read a nutrition label, type in nutrition label in the search line above!
3)Keep a food diary, otherwise you won’t know what your total calories are
4)If you can’t eat out less or don’t want to, be smart. Eight ounces of fried chicken on a salad with full fat dressing is not a healthy meal. Ask for grilled, order light dressings or dressings on the side, ask for sauces on the side and no butter and oil preparations. If you’re not out much just enjoy but don’t count on the scale showing a loss.
5)Know that a lot of people who are trying to lose weight lie about their eating habits because they are just not motivated to change. Be honest with yourself by keeping track of what you are doing.
Brian Wansink is a professor at Cornell who studies both calories consumed and how effective people are at estimating calories: In his book, MINDLESS EATING, he finds that people ALWAYS underestimate calories especially under two circumstances: when eating out and when they believe they are eating something healthy.
Professor Wansink conducts a variety of studies at his Food and Brand Lab, which explores the psychology behind what people eat and how often they eat it. One study tested the theory that overweight people consistently underestimate how much they eat much more than normal-weight people do. This study concluded that people of all weights underestimate calories for big meals. Ironically, the bigger the meal, the more people underestimated calories, estimating up to 50% less calories than they actually consumed.What to do to avoid this problem?
There aren’t many new tricks to healthy eating and weight loss, if there were we’d all know them! You have to get back to basics:
1)Learn what the calories are for the foods you eat. We eat the same foods over and over so it gets much easier. www.calorieking.com and many other sites offer this information.
2)Know how to read a nutrition label, type in nutrition label in the search line above!
3)Keep a food diary, otherwise you won’t know what your total calories are
4)If you can’t eat out less or don’t want to, be smart. Eight ounces of fried chicken on a salad with full fat dressing is not a healthy meal. Ask for grilled, order light dressings or dressings on the side, ask for sauces on the side and no butter and oil preparations. If you’re not out much just enjoy but don’t count on the scale showing a loss.
5)Know that a lot of people who are trying to lose weight lie about their eating habits because they are just not motivated to change. Be honest with yourself by keeping track of what you are doing.
Friday, September 4, 2009
TOP FIVE Diet Killers! 3 of 5
Emotional Eating.
Like many of us, overweight and obese individuals are facing a variety of stressful situations in their lives. Difficult relationships, family problems, aging parents and stressful jobs to name a few. But not all of us use food to feel better in stressful situations which range from minor daily issues and boredom to major health and wellness issues.
In order to overcome emotional eating issues you need to become more conscious about what you are eating, when you eat and why. If emotional eating is part of your weight gain problem you need to take steps to overcome your emotional eating before you can achieve all of your weight loss goals.
First, keep a simple food diary to understand your eating habits, everyone underestimates their calories and forgets things that they eat during the day
Second, note on the daily diary how you are feeling and what if anything is bothering you
Third, if you are consistent about your diary you will start to see what you eat, what time of the day you overeat or make bad choices and how you felt each day.
Identifying what you are eating is a huge benefit by itself but paired with a note about how you are feeling will force you to link your eating to your feelings.
Simple tips will help you overcome your emotional eating:
* Keep a food and mood diary consistently
* You can't eat what you don't buy, avoid keeping poor nutritional foods around you
* Outline steps to overcome larger issues or at least reduce the burden on you. Situations that even seem insurmountable can become more manageable if you at least identify them and then work to improve your circumstances in some way. Over time you can leave a stressful job, get help with an aging parent or get relationship counseling but nothing is going to change unless you take steps to identify and change it.
Like many of us, overweight and obese individuals are facing a variety of stressful situations in their lives. Difficult relationships, family problems, aging parents and stressful jobs to name a few. But not all of us use food to feel better in stressful situations which range from minor daily issues and boredom to major health and wellness issues.
In order to overcome emotional eating issues you need to become more conscious about what you are eating, when you eat and why. If emotional eating is part of your weight gain problem you need to take steps to overcome your emotional eating before you can achieve all of your weight loss goals.
First, keep a simple food diary to understand your eating habits, everyone underestimates their calories and forgets things that they eat during the day
Second, note on the daily diary how you are feeling and what if anything is bothering you
Third, if you are consistent about your diary you will start to see what you eat, what time of the day you overeat or make bad choices and how you felt each day.
Identifying what you are eating is a huge benefit by itself but paired with a note about how you are feeling will force you to link your eating to your feelings.
Simple tips will help you overcome your emotional eating:
* Keep a food and mood diary consistently
* You can't eat what you don't buy, avoid keeping poor nutritional foods around you
* Outline steps to overcome larger issues or at least reduce the burden on you. Situations that even seem insurmountable can become more manageable if you at least identify them and then work to improve your circumstances in some way. Over time you can leave a stressful job, get help with an aging parent or get relationship counseling but nothing is going to change unless you take steps to identify and change it.
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