Forget about the fatty BBQ ribs, the mayonnaise potato salad, the ice cream, the chips, the dips, the cookies, the cakes. There is absolutely NO REASON for you to “take a break” and cheat this holiday weekend.
You see, these foods are for other people. People of normal weight, people that are skinny, and people that are fat and unhealthy and aren’t ready to do anythng about it yet. But you say, “Ms. Fatty, having just ONE of something will fit into my calorie plan.” Ok. I can jive with that. But the question isn’t “just one won’t hurt?” The question is, can you eat just ONE and stop there? Can you eat just one rib, one tablespoon of mayo potato salad or one half of a cookie and STOP? If you aren’t at the point in your life where you can do this (and a deep, honest and very personal inventory of yourself is necessary) I wouldn’t take the risk of blowing your calorie limit for the day. It’s not worth it! No holiday is worth it! Once I stopped that “oh I’ll just enjoy myself today” crapola, was the day I finally started losing weight. Let me put it this way: It’s soooooo much easier to stick to your calorie plan 24/7 than it is to try and get back on the wagon once you fall off.
So how are YOU, the fat person trying to lose weight, going to celebrate this holiday? I’ve got some great ideas for a slender 4th of July that are fast, easy and yummy. This is how I’m going to be doing my 4th!
Here is my list of tasty options that won’t make you fall off the wagon:
Grilled Fish
Fish is something you can fill up on and boy is it yummy right off the grill! My favorite grilled fishes are mahi mahi, salmon and trout. Another great low-cal griller are wild caught scallop on kebobs with vegetables marinated in an no-fat or low-fat Asian sauce.
Grilled Tofu
You’d be surprised how many tofu haters I have converted using grilled tofu. I am convinced that this is the way tofu tastes the best, hands down. It can pair up with any sauce you want, American BBQ, Asian, Mexican, Tandoori. I don’t suggest tofu with Italian spices, although I realize this may be just a matter of taste, in my opinion, the two don’t pair very well. Marinate the tofu in sauces overnight and then brush your grill lightly with oil to prevent sticking. Grill like you would any meat.
Angel Food Cake
The food of the gods. Angel food cake is my personal diet savior. A big 3 inch slice is going to cost you about 160 calories, and no fake sugar or weird “diet flavors” just good old-fashioned cake flavor! Pair it up with fresh fruit, lots of fresh fruit. My favorite is what I like to call my Liberty Cake - fresh blueberries, raspberries, strawberries paired up with angel food cake make a beautiful and patriotic cake for the 4th that everyone, including you, is going to enjoy.
Grilled Corn
This is another favorite and I dress them up with spices to match whatever main dish is being served. Spray a light coating of olive oil on the ears and then roll them in a mixture of spices of your choice and grill! You won’t believe how well corn can be paired with any cuisine.
Sun Tea
This is a summer party must have. This is so easy to make and a lot cheaper than soda. It’s also a lot better for you. It couldn’t be easier to make. Get a glass jar and select whatever tea you like the best and steep it in the jar with water. Park it out in direct sunlight for a few hours and then refrigerate. That’s it! To sweeten, don’t add sugar, add sprigs of fresh spearmint or mellissa.
Lemonade / Cherry Limeade
I have a product I’ve reviewed here before in mind for some refreshing, sweet and low-cal Lemonade and Cherry Limeades. See my post about True Lemon. They make two products that are outstanding for these drink recipes. Now, both of these drinks call for sparkling water, flavored or unflavored. Actually, flavored is best, lemon flavored for the lemonade recipe and lime flavored for the cherry limeade recipe. For the lemonade: Use the True Lemon “Naturally Sweet” Lemonade mix and mix into proportion to lemon sparkling water. Float some fresh lemons in the drink. For the cherry limeade: 2 packets of True Lime for every 12 oz of lime flavored sparkling water, 2 tablespoons of cherry juice (or use a tablespoon of marischino cherry juice) and top with some fresh cherries or a couple of marischino cherries. Marischino are a kind of candied cherry for drinks; and the juice can be measured out of the jar to suit your taste. I find that a tablespoon works well in this recipe, giving it just enough sweetness when paired with a marischino, while remaining low-cal (about 30-40 calories).
Liquor.
You gotta have it, right? Well you’ve got plenty of low-cal choices, just be sure to count all of those calories and adjust your food intake. Vodka, Gin, and many beers make a good choice.
Fruit Snack Bowls
Instead of a bowl of chips on your 4th of July table, try a bowl of cherries! They are in season right now and the ones we’ve been getting around here are as sweet as candy. If you can’t get away with a fruit bowl, try some baked crisps instead of fried.
4th of July is Here, and That Means: NO CHEATING ON YOUR DIET.
Forget about the fatty BBQ ribs, the mayonnaise potato salad, the ice cream, the chips, the dips, the cookies, the cakes. There is absolutely NO REASON for you to “take a break” and cheat this holiday weekend.
You see, these foods are for other people. People of normal weight, people that are skinny, and people that are fat and unhealthy and aren’t ready to do anythng about it yet. But you say, “Ms. Fatty, having just ONE of something will fit into my calorie plan.” Ok. I can jive with that. But the question isn’t “just one won’t hurt?” The question is, can you eat just ONE and stop there? Can you eat just one rib, one tablespoon of mayo potato salad or one half of a cookie and STOP? If you aren’t at the point in your life where you can do this (and a deep, honest and very personal inventory of yourself is necessary) I wouldn’t take the risk of blowing your calorie limit for the day. It’s not worth it! No holiday is worth it! Once I stopped that “oh I’ll just enjoy myself today” crapola, was the day I finally started losing weight. Let me put it this way: It’s soooooo much easier to stick to your calorie plan 24/7 than it is to try and get back on the wagon once you fall off.
So how are YOU, the fat person trying to lose weight, going to celebrate this holiday? I’ve got some great ideas for a slender 4th of July that are fast, easy and yummy. This is how I’m going to be doing my 4th!
Here is my list of tasty options that won’t make you fall off the wagon:
Grilled Fish
Fish is something you can fill up on and boy is it yummy right off the grill! My favorite grilled fishes are mahi mahi, salmon and trout. Another great low-cal griller are wild caught scallop on kebobs with vegetables marinated in an no-fat or low-fat Asian sauce.
Grilled Tofu
You’d be surprised how many tofu haters I have converted using grilled tofu. I am convinced that this is the way tofu tastes the best, hands down. It can pair up with any sauce you want, American BBQ, Asian, Mexican, Tandoori. I don’t suggest tofu with Italian spices, although I realize this may be just a matter of taste, in my opinion, the two don’t pair very well. Marinate the tofu in sauces overnight and then brush your grill lightly with oil to prevent sticking. Grill like you would any meat.
Angel Food Cake
The food of the gods. Angel food cake is my personal diet savior. A big 3 inch slice is going to cost you about 160 calories, and no fake sugar or weird “diet flavors” just good old-fashioned cake flavor! Pair it up with fresh fruit, lots of fresh fruit. My favorite is what I like to call my Liberty Cake - fresh blueberries, raspberries, strawberries paired up with angel food cake make a beautiful and patriotic cake for the 4th that everyone, including you, is going to enjoy.
Grilled Corn
This is another favorite and I dress them up with spices to match whatever main dish is being served. Spray a light coating of olive oil on the ears and then roll them in a mixture of spices of your choice and grill! You won’t believe how well corn can be paired with any cuisine.
Sun Tea
This is a summer party must have. This is so easy to make and a lot cheaper than soda. It’s also a lot better for you. It couldn’t be easier to make. Get a glass jar and select whatever tea you like the best and steep it in the jar with water. Park it out in direct sunlight for a few hours and then refrigerate. That’s it! To sweeten, don’t add sugar, add sprigs of fresh spearmint or mellissa.
Lemonade / Cherry Limeade
I have a product I’ve reviewed here before in mind for some refreshing, sweet and low-cal Lemonade and Cherry Limeades. See my post about True Lemon. They make two products that are outstanding for these drink recipes. Now, both of these drinks call for sparkling water, flavored or unflavored. Actually, flavored is best, lemon flavored for the lemonade recipe and lime flavored for the cherry limeade recipe. For the lemonade: Use the True Lemon “Naturally Sweet” Lemonade mix and mix into proportion to lemon sparkling water. Float some fresh lemons in the drink. For the cherry limeade: 2 packets of True Lime for every 12 oz of lime flavored sparkling water, 2 tablespoons of cherry juice (or use a tablespoon of marischino cherry juice) and top with some fresh cherries or a couple of marischino cherries. Marischino are a kind of candied cherry for drinks; and the juice can be measured out of the jar to suit your taste. I find that a tablespoon works well in this recipe, giving it just enough sweetness when paired with a marischino, while remaining low-cal (about 30-40 calories).
Liquor.
You gotta have it, right? Well you’ve got plenty of low-cal choices, just be sure to count all of those calories and adjust your food intake. Vodka, Gin, and many beers make a good choice.
Fruit Snack Bowls
Instead of a bowl of chips on your 4th of July table, try a bowl of cherries! They are in season right now and the ones we’ve been getting around here are as sweet as candy. If you can’t get away with a fruit bowl, try some baked crisps instead of fried.