While playing with our dog, Webster, the other day, my husband noticed that he had two lumps above his hips. It just so happened that my four-legged friend had an appointment with the vet, so during that visit, I expressed our concern about his health. The vet immediately knew the diagnosis: “love handles,” she said. Love handles? Was she telling me that my 28 pound, little stuffed-animal-looking companion was chubby? She suggested that I cut back on his food a bit (since exercise would probably stay stable) and to create a safer weight.

After 30 plus years of counseling humans about how to slim down, I was ready to face the puppy pound challenge. Instead of feeding him ¾ of a cup of dry food twice a day, his portion was cut to about 2/3 cup twice a day. The results: he didn’t complain about the subtle change, he lost two pounds, he became more lively, and we had to shop for a new collar! (Just kidding about the last part.).

Why am I sharing this story with you? It’s because my philosophy has always been that the best way to lose weight is to cut back on what you’re already eating. Fad diets that encourage you to eliminate whole food groups like carbs or fat generally end in failure. Studies have shown that those who try to follow a diet that’s closely related to the foods they are accustomed to eating are more likely to succeed at trimming down. Just cut back…you don’t have to cut out: that way you can still enjoy your favorite foods without deprivation.  Although there’s nothing magical about trying to lose weight, here are some simple strategies to get you moving in the right direction today:

Ÿ  Eat with smaller plates.

Ÿ  Separate snacks and cold cereal into zipper-locking sandwich bags instead of eating out of the original box or bag.

Ÿ  Ask for an extra (empty) plate when dining in restaurants and when your meal is delivered, put a piece of whatever you ordered on that extra plate and ask the waiter to wrap it up for you to take home.

Ÿ  Don’t serve family style. Take what you’d like and then put the rest of the meal away (in the fridge, freezer, etc.) before you sit down to eat.

Ÿ  Have a fruit and/or vegetable with every meal.

Ÿ  Don’t skip meals.

Ÿ  Weigh yourself every Monday and Friday and chart it on graph paper.

And most importantly, during this process remember that success is not just about how many pounds you lose. You are improving your eating habits for many different reasons…especially to feel more lively!

“Sante,” “L’Chayim,” “Salud,” …no matter what language you speak, toasts are often blessings for good health. But when the beverage is the color blue and contains more sugar than a candy bar, that drink is nothing to cheer about. The fact is that most of us don’t realize how important it is to drink properly or how much of an impact poor hydration has on your state of health.

Just think about your last physical exam: if you were lucky, your doctor asked you about your diet and if you were tipping the scales, you may have been told to lose some weight. But when was the last time your healthcare provider asked you about the types of fluid you were drinking?

Since water is the largest constituent of the human body, comprising about 60% of your body weight, it’s time to raise your glass (or bottle) a little more often.  Here are a few guidelines that are easy to swallow:

• Everything counts: water, sparkling water, tea, coffee, etc. Check your food labels – choose beverages that have no added sugar whenever possible.
• If you don’t like plain water, try adding a splash of your favorite juice to provide a little color and flavor. Use those that are marked 100 % fruit juice.
• Make a big, steamy mug of herbal tea and add a few slices of apple or pear. When you finish your beverage you’ll have a warm, delicious fruit treat waiting for you at the bottle of your cup.
• Eat more watery foods, like soups, fruits and vegetables. These foods will make you feel more satiated and may help promote weight loss as well as better hydration.
• Drink water at room temperature – this may help you to consume more than you would if it was too hot or too cold.
• Don’t wait until you’re thirsty to drink – thirst comes too late and gets satisfied too quickly. Thirst is not a good indicator of how much liquid your body needs.
• Drink extra fluids when you exercise and in warm climates to replace fluids losses from perspiration.
• Your need for fluids increase when you have diarrhea, constipation, or if you’re vomiting. Proper hydration is also essential in helping to fight upper respiratory infections and warm liquids can soothe the common cold and flu.

Just as important as drinking enough of the right beverage is making sure you’re not overdoing the wrong ones. Americans consume nearly 800 calories per day from sugared beverages, a major contributor to our obesity crisis. To educate consumers on the importance of hydration, Nestlé ® Pure Life ® has launched its Nestlé ® Pure Life ® Hydration Movement. I’m thrilled to be working with Nestlé Pure Life to get the word out and to help educate families make a smart switch to save billions of calories. Here’s the scoop: simply swap one sugared beverage a day for water for a year and eliminate up to 50,000 calories for your diet. That’s it.

Are you up for the challenge? To get more information on the importance of healthy hydration and to be a part of the Hydration Movement just log on to http://www.facebook.com/nestlepurelife.   Participants will receive one $1-off coupon toward the purchase of Nestlé Pure Life Purified Water and also have the opportunity to enter a sweepstakes to win free Nestlé Pure Life bottled water for a year.

Make the swap today — it’s a small step that will bring big rewards.

As a mom, setting a good example about making smart food choices was always my goal, but that never guaranteed that my lead would be followed. Since my kids were big enough to be propped up in a shopping cart, they came to the supermarket with me. Food shopping was combined with food games, facts, and fun. If they requested unhealthy picks, it may have required a healthy negotiation. For example, if a cartoon character on a box of sugary cereal was beckoning, that box may have made it to our pantry, but its contents got combined along with a different type that only contained a gram or two of sugar. This combo tamed the temptation for the taste for sweets and it also displayed a lesson in compromise.

My kitchen has always been the heart of my home and food is the fabric we all wear each day. Cooking with my kids was a way for them to get hands-on experience and feel pride and enjoyment from the dishes they created.

Now that my boys are grown, I see how those childhood games lead to adult choices. Providing food for your family is not just about fueling healthy bodies — it’s also about creating healthy relationships. Studies have shown that families who eat together share more than a favorite dish. You don’t have to be a chef to bring your family to the table; even a snack together could come with a side dish of conversation and memories that could last a lifetime.

I can’t wait till this Mother’s Day and I wish you a wonderful experience with those you love.

This is the time of year when saying, “bottoms up” may effect the way your bottom looks!  I notice that my patients often overlook their ‘liquid calories,’ particularly those that come from alcoholic beverages. It may seem obvious that a frozen Margarita served in a glass the size of a small swimming pool could be excessive, but did you know that a nice, clean, colorless gin and tonic packs over 300 calories?  (And that could be even higher, depending on who is pouring and how much is being poured!)

When it comes to wine, it is true that the resveratrol (an antioxidant that has been linked to heart health) may be good for you, but your heart is close to your waistline, and adding inches to your mid-section is not going to make your heart happy. If you drink wine, do so in moderation, and if you don’t drink, don’t start drinking to protect your heart. A balanced diet and exercise will boost heart health more effectively.

But if your summer bar-b-que doesn’t seem the same with a frosty glass in your hand, here are some tips to help you not tip the scale and not get too tipsy:

v  Drink slowly. Try not to chug down your drink quickly because the faster you drink, the more you’ll probably consume. Taking it down a notch will help you pace yourself and prevent getting sick from overconsumption.

v  Quench your thirst with non-alcoholic beverages. Have sparkling water, seltzer, or water before drinking alcohol.

v  Don’t drink on an empty stomach. Alcohol without food can cause an initial decrease in blood sugar and make you feel dizzy and lightheaded.

v  Be a defensive drinker.  Although you may have good intentions of only having one drink and not eating too much, alcohol can decrease your defenses and cause you to consume a lot more food than you originally planned. If you’re in a restaurant, try to order your food early on and be careful about not sitting too close to the bread basket. If you’re going to a party, perhaps have a small snack before you get there.

v  Choose less caloric drinks. Non-alcohol or light beer or wine spritzers will help you cut calories and still be the life of the party. Wine will generally be lower in calories than a mixed drink which includes spirits like vodka, gin, or scotch. If you are going to have a mixed drink, try to use non-caloric mixers like club soda or diet soda.

v  Make every other drink a beverage without alcohol. Since alcohol has a dehydrating effect, it’s important to replenish fluids with water or non-caloric beverages as mentioned.

v  Make yourself the designated driver and bypass the booze for the night. Your friends and your body will thank you!

When I was a kid, there were slim-pickings on Passover. The supermarket shelves weren’t filled with copy-cat granola bars and cereals as we see today. Now we find full shelves carrying products that wear the ‘Kosher for Passover’ label making Passover a little more interesting and even better…a little healthier. Let’s walk down the aisle together and do some comparison-shopping:

Momma’s got a brand new matzo: Whole Wheat, High fiber, Spelt, Thin, and Schmura are just a few of the names you’ll face on matzo boxes this holiday. Be careful not to be fooled by some labels that may be deceiving. For example, “thin matzo” doesn’t automatically result in thin bod when you take a closer look at the label showing 100 calories per piece, 2 grams of protein and only 1 gram of fiber. In comparison, another box called, “light whole wheat bran”, weighed in at 85 calories, 3.6 grams of protein and 5.4 grams of fiber. Be on the look-out for the best of the bunch, called “light high fiber” which contained only 78 calories, 3.2 grams of protein and a whopping 6.9 grams of fiber per board. That’s sure to create a moving experience this holiday…and if you needed some additional help, be sure to add Passover prunes to your cart.

What’s the take-away message here? The word “thin” will not necessarily make you thin, and “light” is not necessarily the lowest in calories. All of the above choices, however, are better than matzo made with just white flour, because fiber is hard to come by on this holiday. And when it comes to calories, generally speaking 1 piece of bread is around 80 calories, so a board of matzo, depending on the brand, is equivalent to about 1 to 1-1/2 breads per board. If you eat round schmura matzo, which may or may not come with a label, just try to picture the size of a commercial board of matzo as a frame of reference for measuring.

Make the most of your ‘meal’. When you’re able to swap whole grain matzo meal for the regular type, try to do so. One-quarter cup provides 4 grams of fiber vs. 1 gram in the regular version.

Teach a man to gefilte fish. This fish basks in popularity around Passover, but for some reason, not many people take advantage of this low calorie, low fat, and high protein food throughout the year. On average, gefilte fish is only around 45-50 calories per piece, each with the same amount of protein as one ounce of chicken and it makes a great lunch or light dinner option. When served as an appetizer to a multi-course seder including mountains of sliced brisket and turkey, it might be best to swap a salad starter instead of adding even more protein via this fish dish.

Gefilte fish also comes in jars marked “low sodium” containing about 60 milligrams less sodium than regular types (270 vs. 330 mgs.) The horseradish that usually accompanies gefilte fish barely has any calories and really packs a punch. I eat horseradish all year long with chicken or a turkey sandwich. It’s has less calories than mayo and is a lot more memorable.

How low can you go? Interestingly, this year I noticed “unsalted” matzo meal. Well guess what – of the 4 brands I looked at, there was 0 grams of sodium in each of them, whether regular, whole grain or unsalted…so don’t pay more for the “unsalted” type.

An eggs-act swap. Two egg whites are equal in volume to one whole egg. If you’re watching your cholesterol, in many cases, without compromising taste, egg whites can be swapped for whole eggs. This works well in kugels but matzo balls will be pale in comparison if you’re using whites.

Candies, Jelly rings, and Chocolates, oh my.  Many commercial Passover desserts look better than they taste. My best advice is to proceed with caution and go for quality vs. quantity. Unless homemade, many Passover desserts taste more like cardboard than the real deal. If there is a sweet treat you enjoy, have it at a time when you can appreciate every bite and be sure the calories are worth it. Marshmallow twists, for example, weigh in at 200 calories for 3 pieces of which 108 calories is sugar (equivalent to almost 7 packets.) Whatever you do, don’t buy multiple boxes of these high calorie/low flavor desserts so that they last you until next Passover.

And last but not least, for some reason, many of us seem to ignore this fact: Even broken pieces of matzo have calories.

I wish you and yours a happy, healthy celebration and may you not be plagued with extra post-holiday pounds.

Last week I had the pleasure of being invited to spend a day to learn about the talent behind the Starbucks logo. Although I thought that a tall latte with skim milk and one pump of mocha, a cozy chair and a solid Wi-Fi connection was all I needed, my full-day immersion into what goes on behind the counter was more informative than I could have imagined. For a taste of what the company literally may have in-store for the future including their new baby, the Evolution Fresh store, just follow my series of blogs.

So let’s start your journey the way I did…with a coffee tasting. Just like the way a sommelier evaluates and appreciates a fine wine, the coffee tasters, or cuppers at Starbucks pay close attention to every aspect of that bean, from the hands that pick it to the people that savor it. Aside from being impressed by the unique design of each bag, I marveled at the thought that hundreds of cups of coffee are tasted daily, with each sip carefully judged for quality and consistency. (And in case you’re wondering, these employees, or “partners” as they are referred to, are not effected by jolts of java — spittoons are kept nearby so that the tested tastes can be savored, then spit, not swallowed.)

Many of us rely on Starbucks as a neighborhood haven, but this global company has 16,858 stores around the world. International too, is the coffee they sell, with beans derived from countries like China, Ethiopia, and of course, America, each carrying unique aromas and tastes. Here are some Starbucks’ tips to help you describe and assess your own coffee tasting experience:

- “Aroma of coffee is often described as earthy, sweet, clean, floral, fruity, winey or pungent.

- Acidity, not to be confused with bitterness, is experienced on the tongue. Coffees with high acidity tend to be described as smooth.

- Body is the tactile impression of the coffee in the mouth described as light, medium, or full.

- Flavor is the most important tasting term and refers to the total impression of taste from the characteristic lent by aroma, acidity, and body.”

So, instead of rushing through your next cup of Joe, close your eyes and take a taste of what’s really in that mug. It might be best though, to save the slurping and spitting for home…not the office!

This is the time of year when many of us realize that the pecan pie at Thanksgiving, pastries at Christmas and Chanukah, and Valentine’s Day chocolates are still appearing somewhere on our bodies. If even the thought of a pair of shorts or a bathing suit puts you in a cold sweat… this story is for you.

I am here to guide you to a diet that will help you shed pounds without feeling deprived. You won’t need to buy fancy products, your food won’t resemble cardboard, and you won’t feel like you need to lock yourself away until the calendar turns to June. This unique plan is called, “The CS Diet” and here are the rules:

• Be generous and donate 1-2 tablespoons of everything that would normally eat to an imaginary basket. In other words, take your normal portion and ditch 1-2 tablespoons of it.
• Make sure you eat a fruit and vegetable at every meal.
• Drink water or sparkling water at and between every meal. Shoot for no less than 8-10 cups a day, and even more if you are working out vigorously.
• Weigh yourself every Friday and Monday and chart your weight on graph paper. Be sure your present weight is at the top of the chart (on the vertical line) so that from today on, you’ll be charting numbers that go down.
• Have 2 snacks a day, if needed, between lunch and dinner and between dinner and bed. Choose your snack way before it’s time to eat it so that you’re not impulsively grabbing something when you are feeling starved.
• Do something to move your body every day. Choose an activity you’ll be able to do consistently and without dread. Walk your dog, dance in your kitchen, plant some flowers, or take a stroll at lunch with a co-worker. Just do something.
• Speak positively to yourself. Be your biggest fan. Remind yourself at every meal that you are in charge of every piece of food you put in your mouth. You choose food – it doesn’t choose you, so choose wisely.
• Don’t hang onto clothing that you wore in high school (unless you are in high school) if those sizes are unrealistic. If you have an article of clothing that’s a size smaller than you’re wearing now, hang it outside of your closet and try it on the last day of every month. Reward yourself with a new item (not a hot fudge sundae) when your clothing fits.
• Remember that your ‘goal’ weight is a better weight than you are today. Most importantly, make your goal to eat better and focus on what goes on your plate because that will predict what fits in your pants.

And last but not least, what does the “CS” in The CS Diet stand for? If you haven’t guess by now, it’s common sense: the only approach that will last.

I have been a registered dietitian for over three decades and if there’s ever a profession that owns the expression, “You’ve come a long way, baby,” it belongs to the dietitians.

I applaud the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics (formerly the American Dietetic Association) for developing a spokesperson program to represent the voice and face of their organization. Whether wearing the hat of the interviewer or interviewee, as a past Academy spokesperson myself, it is still thrilling to know that I can pick up just about any popular magazine and be assured that I will see many of my colleagues quoted throughout the stories within. When you’re listening to a news story or reading an article, be sure to look for the letters “RD” after the name of the expert reporting, to be sure you’re getting credible info based upon a blend of science and common sense.

It’s no a coincidence that every March, during National Nutrition Month, that the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics celebrates registered dietitians across the nation. This year’s campaign to “Get Your Plate in Shape” is a great time to take a closer look at what’s on your plate and think about how just a few changes in choices could help you to look and feel your best. You too can celebrate RD Day, March 14, 2012 by eating up some good advice and putting your best food forward!

And if you’d like to find an RD near you, please visit The Academy’s website at eatright.org or go to
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpfRZXpLk5Y to view the names and faces of over 1600 RD’s from across the country and across the globe.

·         Do you love to cook and want to share your experiences with your children?

·         Uncle Ben’s®, the number-one selling brand of rice in the United States, has recently launched the Ben’s Beginners™ Cooking Contest to do just that, designed to empower and encourage parents to connect with their kids, one meal at a time.

·         Launched in New York City with actress and busy mother of three Angie Harmon, Ben’s Beginners™ provides tools and tips to encourage families to cook and eat together.

·         Parents with children ages 5-12 are invited to submit home videos that show the family together in the kitchen introducing a rice-based dish they prepared and discussing their experience cooking together.

·         Consumers will have the opportunity to vote for their favorites and one grand prize winner will receive $20,000 cash, an appearance on “The Rachael Ray Show” and a $50,000 cafeteria makeover for the child’s school.

·         Videos can be submitted to www.BensBeginnersContest.com until Feb. 26, 2012, where official contest rules, kid-friendly recipes and helpful hints can also be found.