Swappsies

There is no reason to deprive yourself of yumminess.  You can make yourself fabulous meals and snacks without busting the calorie bank.  My favorite comfort foods included creamy-buttery mashed potatoes, Doritos, lasagna, fudgy brownies, cheeseburgers, fries, Lays potato chips, Fritos and Tostitos Queso dip...and a whole lot more.  My downfall was that I was chasing the taste of fat instead of tasting the actual food itself.  This statement is worth thinking about for a moment.

 When you try something that is low-fat..often times the reaction is...well, not so good.  This is true for any change in routine whether it is waking up at a different time, adjusting to a new job or finding your way around a new grocery store.  New isn't bad, it's just new.  If you allow your body the chance to actually taste all of the different things that make up the meal it will always taste different because it is no longer being masked by all of that fat.

Fat, You Oxymoron
The truth is, you need to have a certain amount of fat in your diet for a few reasons:
- lets face it...it just makes things taste better
- vitamins use fat as a taxi to get from our blood to the tissues that need them most
- fat = energy (fat is not our only energy source...)
However, did you know that fat should only make up 10% of the calories you take in?
Keep in mind that animal fats (butter, cream, milk (other than skim), nicely marbled steak, pork etc) vs. plant fats (olive oil) are super high in saturated fats and should be avoided for weight loss and overall health in general. 

Don't stop making the things you love, instead:
-Change the way you make them.  Break down the ingredients and start cutting corners.  Look at the ingredients that contain the carbs, sugars and fat.  Replace those ingredients with low sugar, whole wheat/whole grain and low fat options.  It takes time in the beginning, but like anything else..it becomes second nature after a bit and it will become habitual.
-Add fiber where ever you can, whenever you have the opportunity 
-Bulk up on veggies.  Whatever you are making...find a way to incorporate a whole lot of veg.  Veggies have naturally occuring carbohydrates- the ones that the body actually wants and needs.  You would thrive quite healthily for the rest of your life you never took another bite of bread or pasta.  (My personal choice is to avoid carbs alltogether, but that is my personal choice.  Whole grains are listed in MyPyramid.  Always consult your PCP and/or nutritionist when developing a diet plan)  Having said that, everyone loves bread & pasta, so have it but only whole grain and small portions (check the recommended portions on the labels!) then bring on the extra veggies.  Another good thing about veggies is that they all contain their own important vitamins.  If you eat too much of one and not enough of the other, you won't get the balance you need.  In short- eat lots of veggies & mix it up!  Starving for more details?  http://health.ninemsn.com.au/family/womenshealth/694377/vitamin-balance

I just recently came upon a TV show that I absolutely fell in love with:  HUNGRY GIRL. The woman on this show is an absolute PRO at swaps!  She is my new idol.  I had been running out of ideas and feeling like I was getting into a food prep rut and then I stumbled upon her show.  She is amazing.  She breaks it all down for you AND she lets you know how many points everything is for all of you WeightWatcher's followers!  

Long live the palate!

Did you know that....

....you have 10,000 taste buds and they are not only on your tongue, they are also on your soft palate, your pharynx & larynx?  Which means that you are not only tasting food as you chew it but also as you swallow it.  
   

...the chemicals (both natural and engineered - which we want to stay away from) in food need to disolve in your saliva before they can bind to your taste receptors...allowing you to TASTE what you are eating? Which means the old wives tale of chewing thirty times before you swallow, actually holds water.  Another reason it is good to go slow is that some taste receptors detect substances in 3-5 seconds while others detect substance anwhere from 1-5 minutes.  Eating slowly really does have it's benefits.

...if you can tell what kind of food is in your mouth by its texture, that means you haven't chewed it enough?  

...digestion begins in the mouth?  Not only does saliva break down food while you are chewing but chewing also signals messages to the the gastrointestinal tract that triggers the digestion process.  Want more info: 
http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=36

                   vs      

...lack of sleep affects your body' s abilility to feel full/satisfied with food?  Leptin (sends messages of fullness) and grelin (sends messages of hunger) are hormones that compliment each other to tell your body that you are hungry or satisfied.  Lack of sleep drives leptin levels down and elevates your grelin levels...causing you continue feeling hungry..never satisfied with the following day's meals/snacks.  Want more details?  http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/guide/lose-weight-while-sleeping    Get some sleep and you'll feel full when you are full!

...the Japanese discovered another taste sensation in addition to sweet, salty, sour & bitter?  It is called umami and it is the taste of meat.