Mindful Metropolis December 2009 : Page 23
» Play “hide the fl ax.” I’m always tossing ground fl ax seed into foods. One of my favorite tips is to use it as a thickener for tomato sauce or soup. » Serve a lot of side dishes. Th at’s a great way to load up on vegetables or grain-based foods. Along with a main course of poultry or fi sh, I prepare a lot of side dishes with beans, lentils and multiple grains. For fl avor and color, toss in some cranberries. Be care- ful about adding nuts, as some people have severe allergies to them. » Cut the fat by going Greek. Greek yogurt is a wonderful substitute for sour cream. Try it in your favorite onion dip. Or, I like to mix it with a low-sodium packaged taco mix then add my own salt to taste. For a creative salm- on garnish, cut lemons in half and scoop out the pulp. Fill the lemon cups with a blend of strained Greek yogurt, lemon juice and dill. » Secretly serve breakfast for dessert. Ground high fi ber cereal makes a delicious and nu- tritious pie crust for cheesecake. after the party is over None of us are perfect, and there will be times when you over-indulge. Th e tendency is to feel badly and restrict your calorie intake the next day. Don’t do it! If you go from a high-calorie day to a low- calorie day, your body will think it is starving and your metabolism will slow down. Even worse, the next time you have a high-calorie day, your body will try to store those extra cal- ories as fat. Th e best thing to do after you’ve eaten too much the day before is to cleanse your body by eating lots of fruits and vegetables, and by drinking plenty of fl uids. one last piece of advice Th e next time you see a great deal on holiday candy, look straight ahead and keep walking! Let someone else take advantage of the sale. If you buy it for the offi ce, you’ll only be sabotag- ing everyone’s eff orts to eat better. Do yourself and your colleagues a favor—bring in nuts or dried fruit instead. Dr. Felicia D. Stoler is a registered dietitian, exer- cise physiologist and expert consultant in nutri- tion and healthful living. She was the host for the reality show, Honey We’re Killing the Kids on TLC. She specializes in integrating behavior modifi ca- tion to infl uence positive health outcomes. mindfulmetropolis.com 23
