In case you missed it there was an article in yesterday’s USA Today on the Baby Fat Diet, along with other recommended, expert-written diet books for the new year.  Also, Shara will be appearing tomorrow, 1/7/09, on the 10! Show in Philadelphia to talk about the book (11 AM EST on NBC Channel 10).

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Happy New Year!  I was compelled to blog today given the bitter-sweet feelings that I always experience on New Year’s Day.  I actually start the day kind of depressed, thinking about all of the decorations that we need to put back in the attic — between the physical work of putting everything back and the emotional let-down of another holiday gone by, the day starts out to be a downer for me.  However, by mid-day I usually start to think of the day as a new beginning and begin to plan what I what to accomplish for the year and what I want to improve and polish about myself and my life.  Having had a new baby right before Christmas, many of my thoughts are about getting back into my pre-pregnancy clothes and recycling my maternity garb.  Although, I am not released to begin exercising, I am fantasizing about my workouts and how good I will feel once I am able to begin them again.   For now, I am focused on eating right for breastfeeding as well as prepping myself for getting back into shape.  So, with all of my thinking today, I wanted to share with you what I am committing to do to start the new year in a healthy way -

1. slow down! I am going to slow down and make time for sitting and not multi-tasking while I eat.  This means to continue to make the effort to eat breakfast at the table with the kids (we will have to see how this works with my breastfeeding schedule and getting the kids to school in time).

2. 7 a day - I will eat at least 7 fruits and veggies a day.  This means preparing snacks the night before and making sure that I eat them throughout the work day.

3. stretch and breath - I will not only work out, but will make sure to take the time to stretch or do yoga for 30 minutes, 3 days/week.  I will add this to the tail-end of my workouts.

4. play - I will make sure to spend at least 30 minutes every day playing with my kids.  To do this, my hubby, the kids and I (yes, I make sure all are involved with preparing our meals) will have to do a better job planning our dinners and doing all prep work on Sunday nights.

Okay - your turn.  Write down a reasonable number of goals for yourself and how you will accomplish them.  You may need to put them in a visible spot, like your fridge, to help you stick with it.

Tags: baby fat diet, goals, health, healthy eating, new year resolution, weight loss

Chances are that you are now surrounded by holiday goodies and treats.  A nibble here and a nibble there and next thing you know, your calories are blown for the day and it’s not even lunch time yet.  As you may have read in the last blog, I just had a baby a week ago.  With hormones raging, those treats are even harder to resist.  Here is a tip that I teach in my practice and that I am currently adhering to.  Keep yourself to one treat a day the week of the Holidays.  Pick which treat you would really enjoy and serve yourself one serving - see my chart below.  You can either sit and enjoy the whole serving at once or nibble on it throughout the day.  The trick is to keep to one serving a day.  Once the plate, baggie or paper cup is empty you are done with eating goodies or teats for the day.  Keep fresh fruit visible so that when you are tempted to go beyond your one serving, you can fill your mouth and stomach with fruit instead.  Eating a treat a day, will have to stop after the holidays at which time, you should go back to picking a treat day or night with your family.

Goody/treat serving sizes:

Cake - 1 slice (3 fingers wide, 2 if extra tall)

Cookie - 1 large (each palm and up to first knuckle), 2 medium (each size of palm), 3-4 small (each size of center of palm)

Candies - 1 large handful (best if includes nuts - gives added nutrition)

Brownie - 1 medium piece (size of palm)

Tags: baby fat diet, eating during holidays, healthy eating, holiday eating, holiday weight loss, serving sizes, weight loss

For nearly two years, Monica and I have written nutrition tips, study reviews, and other recommendations based on our expertise as dietitians and moms in this blog as well as in our book, The Baby Fat Diet.  For the next several months, she and I are entering an interesting and exciting time, where we’ll be heading in two different directions weight-wise. Monica just had a baby girl this week -  her third child - and will be working on taking off the baby weight over the next few months.  I am expecting my third child in April 2009 so I’m heading in the other direction, putting on the pounds.  We both plan to use our experience and good intentions to manage our weights healthfully.  Beginning in January we will be keeping a diary of our weight changes and how we’ve gone about getting there including lots of good nutrition and fitness tips you can use, too. Stay tuned!

Tags: baby fat diet, baby weight, diary, nutrition tips, weight gain, weight loss

If you’re trying to eat a healthier breakfast but a bowl of high fiber, low sugar cereal feels like choking down cardboard - or your kids just won’t eat it - try filling a bowl 3/4 of the way with the healthy stuff and top it off with a sprinkling of the sweet cereal your kids (or you) do enjoy.  I give this mix to my kids each morning and they get what they want and I feel good that they are eating a fiber filled breakfast.  I personally like a little bit of sweet tasting cereal - Honey Nut Cheerios are a fave - but prefer to cut all the sweetness with a high fiber cereal like Kashi Good Friends or All Bran. So, I use this trick myself.

Tags: breakfast, cereal, high fiber, nutrition tip, sugar

If you’re gearing up to get on a low carb or no carb diet come resolution time, forget it.  While it may help with your waistline and let you eat all the bacon you want, you’ll need to write down your own name so you don’t forget it.  A new study of women ages 22 to 55 found that cutting carbs is bad for the brain and memory.  When researchers compared two groups of dieters, one following a low carb diet the other following a low calorie, more well-balanced diet, they found that the low carb dieters performed more poorly on memory-based tasks. Long and short term memory were affected as well as attention.  The reason is that the brain relies on glucose, a breakdown of carbohydrate, for fuel. When carbs are cut, so is the energy to the brain.   

If you’re gearing up for taking off some pounds in the new year, pick up our new book, The Baby Fat Diet, where you’ll learn how to follow a healthy diet that all moms can live with - and keep your memory in tact.

Tags: baby fat diet, balanced diet, brain, low carb, memory, New Year's resolution, weight loss

Last weekend, as the temperature hovered just above the freezing mark, I made a big pot of soup using the leftover turkey bones from my Thanksgiving bird.  I threw in whatever veggies I had in the fridge - in this case, onions, celery and carrots. I added a bag of dried split peas and a cup of barley.  I froze a bunch of the soup in small containers and have been enjoying eating it all week for lunch.  In fact I just polished off a bowl with half a tuna sandwich.   

Soup is one of my favorite foods because it fills me up for few calories, is chock full of nutrients from the veggies, and frankly just makes me all warm inside.  Studies show that eating soup can help you lose weight too. When they feed people foods with high volume, such as soup, they tend to eat less calories overall.  Just stick to broth based soups - not cream based - and add veggies and lean meats, if desired.  Making your own soup from scratch is so easy, inexpensive, and keeps the sodium level down.  So, if you haven’t made your own or it’s been a while, get out your big pot and get cooking.    

A few weeks ago I made a delicious soup you might want to try. My kids actually loved it and getting them to eat veggies can be a challenge. It tastes rich and creamy but it’s made with fat free half and half so in actuality there’s very little fat and calories. (Recipe modified from Parade, Oct 12, 2008)        

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

Ingredients:

Leeks, 2

Olive oil, 2 Tbs

Celery, 1 stalk, chopped

Garlic, 2 cloves, minced

Ginger, 2 tsp, ground

Reduced sodium chicken broth, 6 cups

Lemon juice, 1 tsp

Cauliflower, 1 head, broken into florets

Fat free half and half, 1 cup

Directions: Cut leeks in half lengthwise. Wash, dry and slice thinly crosswise. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over low heat. Add leeks and celery cooking 10 minutes; add garlic in last 5 minutes. Stir in ginger, cooking another minute. Add the broth, lemon juice and cauliflower florets. Raise the heat, bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer while partially covered for 15 minutes. Cool slightly. Puree in food processor until smooth adding the fat free half and half through the feed tube.  Enjoy! 

So, savor a piping hot bowl of soup and know that you’re helping keep your weight down this holiday season.

Tags: cauliflower, nutrients, soup, turkey

I just came across a new study linking exercise during pregnancy with increased blood pressure risk.  The study looked at 85,000 pregnant women and found that jogging for more than 1 hr and 15 minutes/week doubled the risk of pre-eclampsia ( high blood pressure during pregnancy with swelling, weight gain, headaches and changes in vision). Those with the highest levels of physical activity (more than 7 hours/week) were 78% more likely to develop severe pre-eclampsia than those who did not.   Now, do not let this study keep you from being physically active — most of the research supports moderate intensity exercise for 30 minutes a day.  If you do not have a history of pre-eclampsia or blood pressure problems and are otherwise considered healthy by your doctor, exercise should be okay as long as you do not “overdo” it.  So, what do I mean by “do not overdo it?”  Once you are cleared by your doctor, exercise should be fine for you as long as -

- You take it slow if you do not typically exercise. Join a pre-natal exercise group at your local gym or YMCA.  You may even want to try water aerobics, which is typically low intensity.  Make sure and let the instructor know that you are pregnant and are new to exercising.

- You listen to your body and do not over-exert yourself.  Instead of jogging for 30 minutes, you may want to now walk with weights.  You can even break this up into walking twice a day for 15-20 minutes at a time.

- You find pregnancy friendly exercises, such as swimming, pre-natal yoga and pre-natal pilates with a trained professional.

- And, you eat healthy and stay hydrated to support your physical activity.  Make sure and have a snack before and after exercising such as fruit and vegetables, nuts/seeds and whole grains as well as plenty of water before, during and after.  These snacks also have potassium and magnesium which studies show may help maintain healthy blood pressure.

Tags: baby fat diet, blood pressure, exercise, healthy eating, pre-eclampsia, weight loss

If you’re looking for a super quick, delicious recipe for a cranberry sidedish to accompany your turkey - rather than using canned, sugar-filled cranberry sauce - give this salsa a try. It’s amazingly good, easy and packed with vitamin C and fiber.

Cranberry Salsa

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

Fresh cranberries, 12 oz bag, cut berries in half or quarter

Oranges, 2, peel and slice into 1 inch pieces

Pears, 2, peel, core and dice into 1/2 inch pieces

Honey, 1/3 cup

Sugar, 1/4 cup

Orange zest, 1 tsp

Orange juice, 1/4 cup

Salt, pinch (to taste)

Directions: Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours; serve.

Happy Turkey Day!

Tags: cranberries, fiber, recipe, Thanksgiving, vitamin C

I get this question all the time from just about everyone who learns I’m a dietitian.  My first response always is that if you’re replacing saturated fats from butter with a liquid vegetable oil or trans-free tub margarine, you’re already ahead of the game.  But, of course, you can take it a step further and ask which oils amongst the vegetable oils are best? Olive, canola, walnut, flax, peanut, corn, soybean, sunflower, safflower….  A new study is helping us get to the correct answer, especially when it comes to pregnant women. The study found that pregnant and lactating mice fed a diet rich in corn oil gave birth to female babies at a higher risk of developing breast tumors than those who ate a diet high in canola oil.  The difference may be due to a higher proportion of omega-3 fats in the canola oil vs corn oil. Keep in mind this is one animal study, says nothing about the other types of oils and there are lots of other studies that show benefits of many of the other oils.  So, how do I answer the question I am so frequently asked? I say ”I personally use canola oil in baking and other recipes where no flavor is desired and extra virgin olive oil in sauteeing, when I want the flavor to come through.  And if you choose to use flaxseed, walnut or any other oil in cooking to impart a particular flavor, those are good too.  Most importantly, remember that it is recommended that you stick to only 5-8 teaspoons of oil per day (this includes any added fats, in cooking, spread on, dipped in, etc). So, keeping portion size under control is the most important factor of all.”

Tags: breast tumors, butter, canola, corn, flaxseed, oil, olive, walnut