Nutrition for Your Best Weight
There are so many weight-management tools and diet fads out there! It can be hard to know which techniques work best overall, let alone which may fit your needs and health goals. Some recommendations focus just on what we eat, while others include movement as part of the wellness plan. This month we explore what it means to be at a healthy weight and tools you can use to get there!
Important Education Takeaways
Set realistic weight expectations for yourself. Consider your age, body shape and size, physical ability, and available food options.
The goal is not a certain number on the scale or a specific pant size, the goal is to achieve and maintain a weight that keeps you feeling like your best, healthiest self!
Learn more about maintaining a healthy post-menopausal weight.
Helpful information about gaining weight through healthy foods can be found in our Ask the RD blog.
Find a healthy eating plan that you can stick with and that you enjoy! That’s right, we don’t have to deprive ourselves of the foods we love to manage our weight.
Instead, aim for a diet that is rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats.
Focus on fresh/whole foods and meals that have been prepared at home.
Limit highly processed food items that are high in calories, salt, and sugar but low in nutrients.
Try Basecamp’s Dark Chocolate Date Bark and Nut Clusters as an alternative to store-bought sweets.
Eat the right foods, in the right amounts needed to fuel your body. Avoid overeating by practicing appropriate portion control, not skipping meals, and eating mindfully.
Learn more about healthy serving sizes from our Ask the RD blog.
Make-ahead meals like overnight oats or easy to prepare bowls like berries and yogurt parfaits can help on busy mornings where we might otherwise skip breakfast.
Remember that small improvements can add up to big benefits. Start by making one specific change at a time before moving onto the next. Over time, you will create a solid foundation of life-long healthy habits.
Eating better, moving more, managing your stress, and getting good sleep can all lead to improved health outcomes.
In our Ask the RD blog, we discuss the impact of sleep on our weight.
Recipes
Recipe of the month: Chicken Pozole
As always, this recipe is the showcase of our live taught, virtual cooking class. Our chef and registered dietitian bring the recipe to life as they walk you through food prep, swaps to meet dietary or taste preferences, plus tips and tools to support you being your own healthy chef at home.
Bonus recipe: Balsamic Roasted Beets with Goat Cheese
From Jamie’s kitchen to yours, our monthly bonus recipes are published on our website and social media the 4th Wednesday of each month. We invite you to browse our recipe collection and come back often to find more flavorful and heart-healthy recipes.
We invite you to join us for the live taught, virtual nutrition classes each month to gather more information on our nutrition topics. This is also an opportunity to ask topic-related questions of our experts as well as connect socially with attendees for idea sharing. As a registered participant for our In the Kitchen program, you receive a few reminders ahead of each scheduled monthly classes, but here’s an easy to remember schedule: Nutrition Education (30-minutes, 2nd Wednesday, 12pm), Cooking Class (up to 60-minutes, 3rd Monday, 12pm).
Contributing authors: Kayla Guillory, MS, RD, CDCES, diabetes educator, Providence Community Teaching Kitchen; Jamie Libera, RD, LD, CCTD, registered dietitian, Providence.