Category: Food for Thought

The issue of what to eat for breakfast comes up a lot in my conversations with clients. Initially at least, I see people who plan their menus to have the exact same breakfast every single morning. And sometimes, it’s not even a good one, a hearty one. Coffee is not breakfast.  [Read more...]

In Arabic, hummus is short for hummus bi tahini — meaning hummus (chickpeas) in or with tahini sauce (sesame paste). Hummus, while sometimes used as a condiment, is a standalone side dish. At most Middle Eastern restaurants, hummus is present throughout the meal, from appetizers through the main courses. Chickpeas, olive oil, tahini,  [Read more...]

Weight loss (and maintenance) is NOT possible without portion control. And in my experience with clients, the biggest mistake people make is in the Fats/Dressings/Seasonings/Condiments categories – either in their own homes or especially when out. Folks too often replace measuring cups and spoons with a “pinch,” a “lick,” a “smidgen,” a “dash,”  [Read more...]

If, as I did, you ever wondered about the difference between marinara sauce and pasta sauce: ✅ A big difference between the two is that marinara is a much simpler sauce, requiring fewer ingredients and less cooking time than spaghetti sauce. Pasta sauce is more robust and complex, with a longer ingredient list  [Read more...]

Summer is here. Sun.  Surf.  Sand. Barbecues and beer. Beautiful beach sunsets and bottles of wine. Happy hours and hang-overs. Alcohol is deeply entrenched in our culture as a way to have fun, let loose, and be social . . . and we all especially want to have as  [Read more...]

Some people believe some foods can help us lose weight – for instance, grapefruit, celery, or kelp can burn fat or speed up metabolism. But this is not true. No individual food can significantly affect your metabolic rate or assist with weight loss. There is no scientifically based or regulated definition for  [Read more...]

Clients often ask me if they can juice their fruits and/or vegetables. I’m not in the business of giving permission to folks, of telling them what they can or cannot do; that’s not what I do. I educate, and will give an opinion, and then folks must take the knowledge and opinions/suggestions I  [Read more...]

Folks, be wary of the “weight loss coffee” MLM (multi-level marketing) schemes — selling the idea that caffeine can burn fat and lead to weight loss; who market and sell caffeine pills and other types of caffeine supplements as ways to lose weight. Coffee can help weight loss the same way that  [Read more...]

The American Heart Association recommends eating seafood at least two times per week as part of a healthy diet because fish and shellfish contain high-quality protein, healthy unsaturated fats (particularly omega-3s) and few, if any, saturated fats. Fish is also rich in calcium and phosphorus and a great source of minerals, such as iron,  [Read more...]

Shabbat is famous for the vast amount of calorie dense foods packed into one sitting. Believe it or not, 3,000 calories is not the aberration but, in fact, the average consumption. And that includes everyone’s beloved cholent. Cholent is a Jewish stew created to comply with the Jewish law that prohibits cooking  [Read more...]

Long-grain rice (such as basmati, jasmine) is slim and lengthy, with a length that’s three to five times its width and is relatively low in starch content. It is typically a bit drier than short-grain rice and less likely to stick to each other or the pan. Short-grain rice is chubby, round, and  [Read more...]

First, when I say “canned,” I refer to store-bought ready-made fruit in either a can or a jar. Let me start by saying that when storing fresh fruit pieces for many days, the vitamin C content tends to diminish (the vitamin is easily destroyed by exposure to air). Canned fruit, however, will still  [Read more...]

My clients ask me about the Impossible burgers all the time. Most ask not because they’re vegan, but only because they think they’re lower-calorie and lower-fat. Also, there are restaurants that serve Impossible Burgers so sometimes a client will ask if that’s a good choice for the occasional eat-in or take-out. When it  [Read more...]

Recently, a client brought to my attention an all-natural frozen fruit product that she saw in the local Target in Ocean Township, NJ: “𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐅𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐭” by Wyman’s — a Maine-based family founded-and-owned company that has been in business, believe it or not, since 1874! (They must be doing something right!) There are 4  [Read more...]

“Are chicken wings healthy?” “Can I have chicken wings?” “How do I weigh chicken wings?” “How many chicken wings is one protein serving?” “Are chicken wings a good option in a restaurant?” Let me start by reminding you of the following: 1️⃣ A serving is a standard industry amount used to determine  [Read more...]

Lately, I’ve been asked several times about this new “fake food” — “How do I count this?” — so let me give you some real, not fake, facts. The first two (of the four) ingredients are KONJAC and OAT POWDER. Konjac, also known as glucomannan, is an herb that grows in parts  [Read more...]

As clients know, when it comes to certain snacks (and all frozen desserts), I prefer things that are pre-measured. This is definitely the case when it comes to popcorn because pre-measured takes away the “scooping issue.” On the rare occasions when I do buy popcorn, which is only when I know my daughter  [Read more...]

You know what’s a big YAY in summer? Crab legs! So, here’s some information to help you with portion control and menu planning. First, you should know that crabs are at different points of growth when fishers catch them, so there isn’t a standard size. The main categories you can find are giant,  [Read more...]

I’ve been at this weight loss gig for a long, long time, and I can say, without question, that almost all clients, even if diligent with portion control in all other food groups, are very often very lax when it comes to control of their herbs, spices and other seasonings and especially in their  [Read more...]

Who doesn’t love soup, right? Hot soup warms our bellies in the winter.  Cold soups are a refreshing touch in the summer. But, soups are a little tricky to fit into one’s portion-controlled weight loss and maintenance lifestyle. While you might find a canned soup low in calories, or even relatively low in  [Read more...]

Fiber is an important nutrient that’s often overlooked. As a matter of fact, the average fiber intake of adults in the United States is less than half the recommended levels and is lower still among those who follow low-carbohydrate diets. Those folks are so busy avoiding carbs, they forget that these foods provide important  [Read more...]

Potassium is an essential mineral—sometimes referred to as an electrolyte because it carries a small electrical charge that activates various cell and nerve functions that is needed by all tissues in the body—that we use to maintain our body’s fluid and electrolyte balance. It is needed for the optimal function of muscles and nerves;  [Read more...]

Eating out can be fun and social. When trying lose or control your weight, however, going out to eat can be stressful without preparation. It is important to be familiar with a restaurant menu 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 you get there. Choosing your food 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 you arrive makes it easier to avoid snap decisions you might  [Read more...]

Do you have a salt tooth? Healthy levels of salt in the body helps keep our blood pressure under control and ensures that our muscles and nerves function properly. However, our kidneys have trouble processing excess sodium, causing our bodies to retain water. That puts more pressure on blood vessels and  [Read more...]

Vitamin D is an important nutrient that helps the body absorb calcium (and regulates it in the blood), which is essential for maintaining strong bones and teeth. And when it comes to your bones, Vitamin D and calcium aren’t only essential to prevent fractures but also to help fracture healing. Additionally, low levels  [Read more...]

Personally, I have a very strong aversion to many traditional marketing methods; I find much of it to be psychologically manipulative and, oftentimes, downright untrue. This is especially the case when it comes to the weight loss industry, where so many fly-by-night charlatans and snake oil salesmen sell people things by playing to their deepest  [Read more...]

Even if you’re not a fan of Greek yogurt’s distinctive flavor (it has a pronounced “tang”) for snacking or breakfast purposes, you can still tap its health benefits: It contains twice the protein of regular yogurt and less lactose as well, making it suitable for some people who suffer from lactose intolerance.   [Read more...]

Much like street drugs, sugar triggers the release of chemicals that set off the brain’s pleasure center, in this case opioids and dopamine. Some studies have suggested sugar is as addictive as cocaine.  And, as they do with street drugs, people develop a tolerance for sugar — meaning, they need more sugar for  [Read more...]

An apple a day may not keep the doctor away, but it’s a healthy choice anyway. For one thing, you can’t beat the convenience of an apple. They are an easy go-to and grab-and-go snack as they come in their own packaging—meaning you can eat the skin. They also play nicely  [Read more...]

If you’ve been scarfing down scrambled egg whites because you’re afraid to eat the yolks, you’re missing out on one of Mother Nature’s most potent fat-fighting nutrients: choline. Found abundantly in egg yolks, choline squelches the body’s output of leptin, a hunger–stoking hormone that fuels between-meal cravings. (Yolks also deliver vitamins D  [Read more...]

When we consume alcohol, our blood alcohol level can rise very quickly. When that happens, a metabolic regulatory mechanism kicks in and our pituitary gland stops releasing one of the hormones that it stores up – a hormone called “anti-duretic hormone” or ADH. When ADH is blocked, our kidneys know to  [Read more...]

One of the biggest dieting mistakes, both for those who want to lose weight and those who want to control their weight, is not eating enough fruits and vegetables.   To lose weight, you must eat fewer calories than your body uses.   This doesn’t mean you have to eat less food. You can  [Read more...]

  Iron is a mineral that’s vital to our health, our metabolism and survival. All our cells contain some iron, but most of the iron in our bodies is in our red blood cells which transport oxygen from our lungs to the organs and tissues throughout our bodies. However, inflammation associated with excess body weight  [Read more...]

When I start talking to new clients about the necessity of lowering their sodium, and to especially stop adding table-salt to their dinner plates, the look of panic and horror often follows. So many people are addicted; so many, just by rote response, will reach for the salt shaker before they even taste their  [Read more...]

Almost everyone loves sushi. After all, what’s not to love? It comes in all varieties and all colors, and those bite-size pieces are so cute, right? And who doesn’t think a sushi hand roll in the shape of a cone is healthier than an ice-cream cone, right? Well . . . uh .  [Read more...]

This is a question I get asked quite a lot and to answer it, I’ll start with another question:   What exactly is panko? — the Japanese word for “small pieces of bread.”   First, some history. Did you know that panko crumbs are not made with heat? They’re electrocuted!!  While the Japanese  [Read more...]

Both red and green cabbages are rich in nutrients, but there are differences in the nutrients they offer. Some red cabbages contain almost twice the vitamin C as some green cabbages. Red cabbages are always richer in flavonoid phytonutrients (say THAT three times fast!) that not only act as antioxidants but  [Read more...]

One of the major components of weight loss (and weight maintenance) is, of course, portion control. Yet, I often get asked, “Why can I can’t have as much celery as I want? Vegetables were unlimited on the last program I did.”   No, vegetables are not unlimited . . .  and how did that  [Read more...]