Food, glorious food
It’s the holidays, but, with careful preparation, you don’t have to add extra pounds.
Here’s a quick word association game: what’s the first thing you think of when you hear the word “holiday”? Is it shopping,
the in-laws, or…is it food?
Food is a central part of most celebrations, and it’s even moreso
during the holidays. Parties, goody days at work, family gatherings
and other food events continue for weeks.
The result is that all this extra food, combined with less time to
exercise, can produce the typical holiday weight gain. For most
people, the extra pounds are not lost after the holidays, and one
or two pounds gained at a time add up over the years.
Want to have your cake and eat it too? Here are a few easy
recipe alterations:
| ORIGINAL INGREDIENT | HEALTHIER SUBSTITUTION |
|---|---|
| Cream soup | Lowfat cream soup |
| Regular cheese | Nonfat (not in cooked foods) or lowfat cheese |
| Sour cream | Nonfat (if it’s in a cold recipe) or lowfat sour cream |
| Cream cheese | Lowfat (Neufchatel) cream cheese |
| Chopped nuts | Toasted chopped nuts (half the amount) |
| Sausage | Light turkey sausage or turkey bacon (half the amount if possible) |
Calories always count, so arm yourself with the facts and don’t forget about liquid calories.
| ORIGINAL INGREDIENT | LOWER-CALORIE ALTERNATIVE |
|---|---|
| 8 oz. eggnog (342 calories) |
8 oz. hot apple cider (120 cal) or skim cappuccino (40 cal) |
| 1 slice pecan pie (450 cal) |
1 slice pumpkin pie (230 cal) or ½ slice pecan pie (225 cal) |
| 1 stuffed mushroom (70 cal) |
1 large steamed shrimp with 1 tsp. cocktail sauce (13 cal) |
| 8 oz. prime rib (930 cal) |
1 cornish hen, no skin (300 cal) or 4 oz. prime rib (465 cal) |
| ½ cup homemade candied sweet potatoes (225 cal) |
½ cup homemade mashed sweet potatoes (180 cal) or ½ cup homemade mashed white potatoes (110 cal) |