Sweet Maple Popcorn
Drizzle 5 teaspoons pure maple syrup over 1 3/4 cups hot air-popped popcorn. Sprinkle with salt, if desired.
Bonus: This sweet snack contains fiber, a waist whittler that’s also good for your ticker.
Chocolate Yogurt Pops
In a blender, puree 1 1/2 cups lowfat vanilla yogurt, 1/3 cup cold water, 2 packets sweetened cocoa powder mix and 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder. Pour into four 4-ounce ice-pop molds. Freeze overnight.
Bonus: These pops pack protein, key for building muscles, as well as calcium, which helps maintain strong bones.
Archive for April 16, 2008
Healthy TV Snacks
Drop the DIET SODA
Recent research has shown that artificial sweeteners in soda may interfere with your body’s ability to estimate how many calories you’ve ingested, so you eat more than you need.
In a new rat study, animals that ate fake sugar consumed more calories overall and gained weight, compared to those that didn’t eat artificially sweetened treats.
This is just one study, but it’s enough to make me want to kick the can habit. Need more convincing? For every diet soda you sip daily, your risk of becoming overweight can rise by 37 percent, according to researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.
We also know that regular soda is a total sugar bomb — most people I know gave it up long ago. At roughly 225 calories a pop, a 20-ounce bottle of regular soda packs nearly as many calories as a chocolate bar (but is much less satisfying).
Typically, soda also contains zero nutrients — so who needs it? Still have some soda around? Fine, stow it for guests who haven’t decided to quit. Next time you want a fizz hit, try seltzer with lime (or for a caffeine fix, green tea).
4 Ways to Avoid Cravings
Eat what you love. Outlawing a food makes you more likely to want it. Don’t declare all foods off-limits—just keep portions reasonable. Eat just one cookie (or if they’re tiny—two, max.) Or one scoop is fine—but not three! Just tell yourself, “it’s OK” and not “I’ve blown it, might as well keep eating.” One scoop is easy to walk off—three is a major sweat session!
Redirect your appetite. Replacing one mental image with another will help curb the munchies, says Lisa Dorfman, R.D., of Miami. One fast way to distract your brain is with scent. Catching a whiff of peppermint or eucalyptus stimulates thoughts of being light and healthy, so pop a sugar-free mint, smooth on a scented lotion or light a fragrant candle.
Engage your brain. Read a great book, write in a journal or even play a game such as solitaire or Minesweeper on your cell phone or computer to increase activity in the same areas of your brain that light up when you think about eating, so you can take your mind off food.
Make a deal with yourself. I try to keep my treats portion controlled and have them just once a day. If I have a cookie after lunch, I skip dessert after dinner. It makes it easier to give up my evening bowl of ice cream when I know I can have it tomorrow!
