Eating Healthy - Can Really Taste Great!

The Surprise Enjoyment and Value of Mushrooms
Laura Fields, Quincy, Ill.

Have you ever noticed as summertime apporaches and it is time to put away the sweaters and heavy pants and bring out the lighter weight and more revealing clothes of summer.  Or if you live in the deep south and winter time approaches, to put away the light and skimpy things and dig out the clothes with a little more substance and it's time to pull them out.. maybe the sweater us northerers put away for the warm weather that something like this scene plays at your house: My husband and I decided to take our summer clothes out of storage and to bag up the winter clothes. We both found that we had put on weight over the winter. (And I don't think we were alone.. but then again.. we weren't sure! All we knew that the clothes  we put away last fall got smaller.) No, we knew we'd not been getting the exercise we normally get when we can be outside and be more active.  We have started walking as the weather is improving, but we have been eating many of our meals in restaurants lately. We decided we needed to start eating healthy or we would be buying all new clothes for the summer months. While I like new clothes, the idea of spending money when I don't need to isn't one of my favorite hobbies. I want new clothes because of fashion, or feeling good.. not because I have to upsize!

My husband and I both enjoy all types of foods so eating healthy is not an issue, we had just gotten out of the habit of making good choices. It seems during the winter months we spend more time doing activities that involve eating. One advantage of eating healthy as summer approaches is the wide variety of choices of fresh fruits and vegetables. We also tend to grill more in the warmer weather.

Grilled meats, poultry and fish are much more flavorful and lower in fat. We found that we were both able to start losing weight by eating healthy salad greens with low fat vinaigrette dressing and a serving portion of grilled protein. For us the key to eating healthy is to have a variety of foods. It is so easy to get stuck in a pattern of preparing the same menus over and over again. I have been purchasing different fruits and vegetables than we ordinarily eat. This is a way of discovering new foods while adding variety to your meals. Most produce departments have serving suggestions and recipes for the exotic fruits and vegetables.

One protein choice that we enjoy is mushrooms. The use of mushrooms adds so many flavors to a meal that you do not miss the higher calorie meat protein. On days when we do eat in restaurants we have found that eating healthy is still possible. Most restaurants offer healthy choices on their menus. Many restaurants are now placing the nutritional content of the food on the menus. This is good because some choices may seem like you are eating healthy, but the way the food is prepared or sauces that are added may add a great deal of fat and calories. I will ask that sauces and dressings be served on the side so I can control how many calories I am adding to my meal.

Eating healthy is not only a choice; it is a way of life. By making healthier choices in what we eat it seems like a healthy activity level just follows along. The combination of eating healthy and exercising is a sure way of losing weight.

Hope you find losing as enjoyable... and not having to buy extra clothes.. as I do!

Laura

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