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Cowboy Up Chick
Join Date: Aug 1999
Location: Tucson, Arizona
Posts: 3,796
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this is where having at leasts the Week 1-3 Materials is very helpful. I know you say that you can't afford it but these items really make it (and those who do online have these available there) a way to be successful.
Week One booklet is the Getting Started (which has a general food companion and dining out information -- not as much as the Complete Food Companion and Dining Out Companion), Week Two booklet is the Portion Smart (which gives you ways to guage portion sizes without actually measuring it) and Week Three is the Exercise information.
The Week Two booklet provides things like the following:
* Three ounces of cooked meat, poultry or fish, the recommended amount at a meal, is about the size of a deck of cards or the palm of a small woman's hand.
* One cup of cooked rice, pasta or vegetables is about the size of a small fist; a large fist can be as much as two cups. Measure a cup of cooked rice at home, then compare it with your fist -- a "handy" reference.
* One ounce of cheese is about the size of four stacked dice.
* One teaspoon of mayonnaise, peanut butter or salad dressing is about the size of the tip of your thumb, from the end of the thumbnail to the first joint. Guidelines suggest limiting added fats such as margarine or mayonnaise to one teaspoon per meal (each teaspoon contains approximately 30 calories).
* One ounce of nuts or raisins is the amount you can hold in your cupped hand, if you have a small hand.
If you have a meeting close by see if you can walk in and purchase (some let anyone, some only meeting members and some anyone if they can prove they have W/W Online or at at home materials) the Complete Food Companion and Dining Out Guide (or better yet the Starter Kit). Both manuals run about $5-7 each and the Starter Kit runs about $25 (but you get an organizer, the 2 manuals and a few other things).
Here is an article that Richard Simmons put out years ago on surviving buffet type meals. It helps me a lot in that aspect:
Buffet Survival Guide
RICHARD’S BUFFET SURVIVAL GUIDE (Or, how to get the best of temptation)
You walk into the room and there it is: the buffet table in all its magnificence. It’s sagging under the weight of steaming chafing dishes…crowded with baskets of bread and rolls and muffins…groaning with platters of yummy favorite foods…and each one has a serving utensil stuck in it with the handle pointed right at you! All I can is, arrgggh! If there was ever a way to picture the word “temptation,” a buffet table is it, don’tcha think? And I don’t just mean the kind of buffet tables they have at fancy parties and restaurants. Any all-you-can-eat situation is a kind of buffet, including:
1) a salad bar
2) the pancake breakfast at the firehouse where they flip ‘em as long as you can eat ‘em
3) the church pot-luck luncheon
4) the spaghetti dinner at your kid’s school, and…
There’s food, food, food everywhere, and so much of it too! But whoa! It’s time to take a break and take a breath before you sli-i-i-i-ide on over there with your plate again and again. See, the problem with buffets that that you really do get a lot for your money. Yep, it’s all about the budget, that’s what I think You figure that you got in, you paid, now you might as well load up! It’s practically free food, for gosh sakes! And do I see a halo glowing over your head? Are you telling me, “Richard, I promise to eat less at dinner later!” Or, “Richard, I’ll make up for it tomorrow at breakfast, honest!” well, I know that’s how you feel right now, but guess what! The “eat now, pay later” strategy almost never works, cuz by the time dinner or breakfast rolls around, you’re almost always gonna eat again, whether you’re hungry or not. Then your plans go right out the window.
The time to put your buffet survival plan into action is the minute you lay your eyes on that tempting spread! And I’m gonna help you. Next time you’re staring down a glorious buffet table, here are three thoughts to keep in mind: Buffet vs. Budgets. I know, I know, I just said a buffet is a bargain. That’s why there are buffets all over the place! People love ‘em cuz you get a lot of stuff for a little price! But just cuz something is cheap doesn’t mean it’s good for you, right? Buffets may help the grocery budget, but they can wreck your calorie, fat and sodium budgets, can’t they? Those are the budgets to think about when the buffet beckons.
As you approach the buffet, pretend that you’re looking at a menu. Mmmmmmmmm! By selecting carefully, you can create a beautifully balanced plate. A little protein here…a little carbo there…something leafy and green in this corner….
You hate the too-full feeling, remember? Another thing to think about with buffets is how you’ll fell later on. I don’t know why, but when we’re hungry and there’s lots of food right in front of our face, we tend to conveniently forget how much it hurts to eat too much. Before you over do it, thing about that discomfort we all know so well!
Think quality, not quantity. Choose the right goodies from the buffet and it’s just like getting a free multivitamin! How about helping yourself to a plateful of power-packed vitamin C, bone-building calcium and healthful fiber? Lemme tell you, you should be able to find lots of good stuff like this at a buffet since everyone else will be scraping the bottom of the chocolate pudding tub. You, on the other hand, are thinking of yourself as someone who deserves only the highest-quality nutrition. Have you ever heard anyone say that the body is a temple? A buffet is a way to show your body the respect it deserves.
So, y’see, a buffer is a bargain table after all.
QUALITY, NOT QUANTITY
Okay, you headed back to the buffet table anyway and you can’t ‘zactly explain why. Well, it’s not too late to get the best of temptation and get your real money’s worth with some quality eats!
TAKE IT
crunchy fresh vegetables
a plain breadstick or two
bean salad
sunflower seeds
cottage cheese
pineapple chunks
LEAVE IT
salad with creamy dressing
bread and butter
cheesy potatoes
fried onion ring topping
chocolate pudding
jello
From Richard Simmons & Friends, Vol. 6, No.7, April 2000
How to Eat Smart at the Salad Bar
by Jyl Steinback
Eating out? You think the salad bar might be a healthy choice? Unless you know how to 'beat the salad bar trap', you could end up with an extra 1500 calories, 90-100 grams of fat, 100 mg of cholesterol, and 1500 mg of sodium!
Here are some tips to keep you on track successfully. The attraction to the bountiful salad bar is the freedom you feel surveying those bowls of colorful, creamy, and calorie-laden dishes. Watch out for pasta salads, pre-tossed salads (Chinese Chicken Salad, Caesar Salad, tuna salad, egg salad, etc), or just about anything that is creamy and 'white.' 'White' foods are usually blended with cream cheese, sour cream, or mayonnaise.
Start by piling your plate with 'green' food. Watercress, arugula, romaine lettuce, spinach, green beans, snow pea pods, and broccoli are excellent sources of calcium, iron, vitamin C and vitamin A. REMEMBER: The darker
the lettuce, the higher the nutrient value! And, this time, skip the avocados and pesto sauce! Move onto the vegetables - avoid vegetables 'sopping' in oil or creamy sauces. Pile on the colorful vegetables: tomatoes, cucumbers, jicama, peas,
cabbage, bell peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, red beets, artichoke hearts (not oil-packed), hearts of palm, carrots and more. Add color, flavor, and texture with minimal calories.
Steer clear of crunchy, munchy extras at the end of the line! Bacon bits, croutons, chow mein noodles, crispy wonton strips, banana chips, sunflower seeds and coated raisins; 2-4 tablespoons of just one 'crunchy' food can add 40-100 calories and 4-5 grams of fat. A sprinkle of cheese, a handful of croutons, a spoonful of raisins and sunflower seeds seems virtually harmless but that innocent salad is now a diet disaster at over 1300 calories and 83 grams of fat.
Love the crunch of flavorful croutons in your salad - BEWARE! 1/2 cup croutons packs in 93 calories and 4 grams of fat (36% calories from fat), but 1/2 cup FAT-FREE croutons contains 36 calories and 0 grams of fat. For some, you can make your own croutons with fat-free French or Italian bread; arrange bread
cubes on baking sheet. Lightly spray with nonfat cooking spray and sprinkle with seasonings (garlic powder, onion powder, Cajun spices, pepper, etc.).
Bring your own! Pack a baggie full of fat-free croutons, fat-free cheese, and a small container of your favorite fat-free salad dressing to work. Then for lunch or dinner you can use the grocery or resturant salad bar for convenience.
When you think cheese, you think protein...must be somewhat healthy, right? WRONG! 1 ounce shredded cheddar cheese contains 114 calories and 9 grams of fat. Instead, pick a power protein - cooked egg whites, shrimp, crab, fat-free turkey, chicken, or un-dressed tuna.
Ok, so you've now skipped the Caesar, cheese, macaroni salad, and croutons. Surely you can afford to indulge in just a few drizzles of that creamy Ranch salad dressing. Two tablespoons (which will barely cover 1/2 of your plate so you drizzle and drizzle and drizzle) of your favorite Ranch, Blue Cheese, Italian, French, or Honey Mustard Dressing can add over 150
calories and 16 grams of fat to your salad. 91% of the calories from these dressings are from fat. Try a little visualization as a total turnoff - those two tablespoons of dressing are like pouring two tablespoons of melted margarine over the lettuce. Yuck!
There are so many choices on the market today for flavorful fat-free salad dressings; it's hardly worth the calories and fat for the 'real' thing. Try a variety of vinegar flavors without the oil. Raspberry, balsamic, rice, champagne, fruit, sherry, or white wine vinegar can add a splash of flavor to
any vegetable, fruit, chicken, tuna, or pasta salad.
Most salad bars have enriched their menus with the addition of soups, pasta, potatoes, pizza, baked goods, and desserts. Your safest bet is the baked potato, but what's a potato without butter, sour cream, and a sprinkling of bacon bits - about 423 calories and 32 grams of fat! Top it off with salsa, fresh vegetables, or fat-free sour cream (pack your own - it's worth the savings!).
And...what's a salad without bread to sop up the extra dressing? One little corn bread square with a pat of honey butter will add 218 calories, 8 grams of fat, and 37
milligrams of cholesterol to your 'healthy' meal. Your safest bet would be the sourdough or French bread; dip it in your fat-free salad dressing and skip the butter!
Walk away from the 'extra' bars with creamy soups, baked rolls, pasta, and pizza. You don't have to be boring or plain, just creative! One of the greatest advantages to
the salad bar is the time it takes to 'crunch' and 'munch' all those crispy vegetables. The more the crunch, the longer the chew, so pile on fresh carrots, jicama, broccoli, cauliflower, celery, onions and more - all high in fiber and 'crunch' quality, but naturally low in calories and fat!
Go ahead...eat out; in fact, eat all you can eat at the salad bar - just make good choices and walk away satiated and fiber-filled without the fat!
And just because you don't partake in the food at such events doesn't mean you can't go and socialize. Grab a Diet Soda or water, get a plate and just carry it around then toss it if you just can't guestimate and figure the points.
Also when you have potluck type things bring something substantial you know you can enjoy and eat it. Most people don't know when you fix something that is healthy as long as it tastes good.
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