“One Small Change”

By Liz Plosser

Here’s some serious slimspiration for you: Doing only one thing differently can be all it takes to lose weight and improve your life in surprising, healthy ways. We found six women who each flipped a simple dietary switch that set off a chain reaction of positive effects, from getting glowing skin to losing 130 pounds. See which idea will ignite your personal success story.

1. Mapping out meals (I’ve been meaning to do this, I have a fondness (also known as OCD) for making lists so keeping a journal would be in that same ballpark.)

2. Eliminating white carbs (This one will be a toughy. I love me some good ole spaghetti, but the texture and taste of whole grain pasta just doesn’t stimulate my taste buds. I would be ok to compromise and alternate between the two though.)

3. Giving high-fructose corn syrup the slip; To avoid an afternoon energy crisis, swap packaged foods with sucrose or HFCS for those high in healthful fats and fiber, such as crudités with hummus, tuna salad on whole-wheat crackers or raisins mixed with sunflower seeds. Also replace reduced-fat foods you nosh on with small portions of the real thing. You’ll feel satisfied by less and skip the artificial stuff, too!

4. Eating greens for dinner instead of greasy takeout; Avoid green fatigue by experimenting. “Repeating meals can put you in a rut, which could lead you to abandon your plan, so mix things up,” says Keri Gans, R.D., a spokeswoman in New York City for the American Dietetic Association. For a filling, flavorful salad, include healthy fat such as pine nuts and a serving of protein such as lean sirloin or salmon, Gans says. And ditch fat-free dressing in favor of a tablespoon of olive oil or full-fat dressing; a little fat helps your body absorb more cancer-fighting antioxidants from the veggies.

5. Eating less, more often (I tried this and it worked for me. Ordering from the kid’s menu when we go out helped to save on cost and calories.)

6. Nixing packaged foods; “Women who got most of their calcium from their diet have a higher bone-mass density than those who got calcium mostly from supplements,” says lead researcher Reina Armamento-Villareal, M.D.

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I will be trying to fulfill some of those healthy options above for sure and hopefully get a few friends and family to do the same. Here are a few things I have improved on recently:

- I am doing TaeBo Live at least 3 times a week. I love the Basic video routine but if you’re trying it for the first time make sure to watch the instructional video to help you do the techniques correctly so you don’t hurt yourself, k. K. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. =) I love doing this exercise video and would recommend it to others; the reviews were on the positive side for other users as well!

- I’m snacking more, mostly fruits. Normally I don’t snack at all which leaves me doing midnight runs to the fridge. =/

- Which leads me to my late night snacking habit…it has subsided for the most part! I’m trying to eat more during dinner (around 7pm) and have a little snack (yogurt or fruit) an hour later and it’s helped curb my midnight hunger pains.

Read the article and get motivated, let’s get healthy together! =)

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