The Doctor Is In: Weight Control

Image 1 of 3

Content sponsored and provided by Beaumont Health System

It's the number one resolution people make year after year, to lose weight.  Dr. Wendy Miller, the Medical Director, Weight Control Center and Beaumont Healthy Kids Program leads a team of weight loss specialists who treat overweight and obese patients. 

Dr. Miller will join us Wednesday morning for the Doctor Is In. She'll be talking about all things concerning weight loss and Dr. Edward Mavashev will talk about who would make a good candidate for bariatric surgery. They'll be joined by Ruth Ranks, a dietitian at Beaumont Hospital, who will share some healthy snacks to satisfy our hunger.

Join the chat room below!

Healthy lifestyle tips that also help weight

A common mistake of weight loss is the focus is going on a diet for a time period to lose weight, rather than focusing on long-term healthy lifestyle changes.  Shifting the focus to long-term lifestyle changes will not only help you shed pounds, but will also help you maintain your weight loss and improve your overall health.

Ten tips for healthy lifestyle change and weight loss

1. Drink plenty of water
2. Eat several mini-meals throughout the day - 4 - 5 times/day
3. Limit eating in the evening
4. Eat protein with each meal and most or all snacks
5. Increase vegetable and fruit intake
6. Create a health-promoting environment - at home and at work
7. Incorporate physical activity into your daily routine, most days of the week
8. Get enough sleep
9. Self-monitor - weight, food intake, physical activity
10. Limit alcohol, sweets and refined carbohydrates

If unsuccessful with healthy lifestyle changes and weight loss, consider consulting with specialists, such as a dietitian or a multidisciplinary weight management team.

1. Drink plenty of water
a. Thirst can be mistaken for hunger
b. Staying well hydrated helps metabolism
c. Studies show people drinking more water during weight loss had better weight loss results
d. How much?  ½-1 oz per pound you weigh per day; so if you weigh 150 pounds, then 75 - 150 oz/day.
e. Don't like plain water?  Try water infused with fruit, or try sparking water

2. Eat several mini-meals throughout the day - 4 - 5 times/day
a. Eating every ~3 hours helps prevent hunger and enables better portion control.
b. Having a healthy snack between breakfast and lunch, and a snack between lunch and dinner, can help you not overeat at meal time and may even help you make healthier food choices because you are not “starving” by meal time.
c. Examples of healthy snacks:  Fruit and a small handful of nuts, cut up veggies and hummus, celery with natural peanut or almond butter, ½ cup cottage cheese with berries

3. Limit eating in the evening
a. Many people get a good portion of their calories from mindless snacking in the evening, often in front of the TV
b. Eating before bedtime can lead to gastrointestinal problems, such as gastroesophageal reflux or GERD
c. Set a time each evening when the kitchen is closed, or allow one small snack in the evening, such as 100 calorie snack bag of popcorn, light Greek yogurt with berries, or small square of dark chocolate

4. Eat protein with each meal and snack
a. Protein helps prevent hunger better than other nutrients
b. Protein helps preserve muscle mass during weight loss
c. Lean protein sources such include fish, chicken, turkey, egg whites, low-fat or non-fat dairy, nuts, seeds, and legumes, such as pinto beans, black beans or garbanzo beans.

5. Increase your vegetables and fruit
a. Vegetables and fruit are naturally low in calories and high in nutrition.
b. They provide fiber, water, vitamins and phytochemicals that can help your immune system and lower your risk of cancer.
c. Make half your plate at lunch and dinner vegetables and/or fruit.  For example, if having pasta, cut the amount of pasta you are eating in half and mix with sautéed vegetables instead.
d. Use vegetables or fruit with at least one of your daily snacks.

6. Create a health-promoting environment - at home and at work
a. Have healthy food ready and easily accessible, such as cut up veggies and bags of salad greens in the refrigerator, bowls of fruit on the counter, frozen broth-based soups or chili in the freezer, frozen vegetables, frozen cooked chicken breast.
b. Have healthy snacks available at work also, such as taking an insulated lunch bag with healthy snacks to work, keeping nuts or seeds at work, and taking a refillable bottled water to work.
c. Rid your pantry of unhealthy and fattening foods, such as crunchy salty snack foods, chips, and sweets. 

7. Incorporate physical activity into your daily routine, most days of the week
a. Tracking daily steps with a pedometer and accumulating 10,000 steps or more per day can help with weight loss.
b. For maintaining significant weight loss, studies show accumulating 60 minutes or more on 5 or more days per week increase your odds of maintain your weight.

8. Get enough sleep
a. Getting less than 7 hours per night of sleep can be associated with increased hunger and calorie intake. 
b. The National Sleep Foundation recommends 7-9 hours of sleep per night for adults.

9. Self-monitor - weight, food intake and physical activity
a. A recent study suggests that weighing daily may be beneficial for weight loss
b. If weighing daily causes some anxiety, then consider weighing weekly
c. Tracking food intake and physical activity have been shown to help with both weight loss and weight maintenance.

10. Limit alcohol, sweets and refined carbohydrates
a. Limit alcohol to couple days per week or less
b. Limit sweets to a small treat once daily or less, such as 100 calories
c. Replace refined carbohydrates with whole grains, and limit grains to ~1/4 of your plate or less


Quinoa Veggie Bites
Yield = 12 mini muffins (about 150 calories per 3 muffin serving)

Ingredients:
1 c. cooked quinoa
½ c. finely chopped vegetables (carrots and zucchini work well, but you can use what you have on hand)
¼ c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 eggs, slightly beaten
½ t. dried minced onion
About ¼ t. hot sauce (optional, adjust to suit your taste)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray mini muffin pan with cooking spray.  In a medium bowl, mix all ingredients well.  Spoon mixture to the top of each cup.  Bake 15-20 minutes until set and edges are slightly browned.  Cool at least 5 minutes in pan. 

To freeze:  Allow bites to cool fully, and then store in a freezer bag.  To reheat:  microwave 20-40 seconds.

Master Trail Mix

In a large zip top bag, combine:
½ c. nuts (almonds, walnuts, peanuts, cashews, shelled pistachios)
½ c. seeds (sunflower, pumpkin seeds (pepitas), soy nuts, wasabi peas)
½ c. cereal (Cheerios, Chex, Mini Wheats, granola (cut back to ¼ c)
½ c. dried fruit
2 T. mini chocolate chips (optional)
¼ - ½ t. seasoning (optional, some ideas:  cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, curry powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic powder)

This recipe is very flexible, use what you have on hand to make new combinations.
Use ¼ c. measuring cup to divide into individual portions.
Store in airtight container or baggie.
Makes 8 servings, each ¼ c. (about 125 calories per serving, varies with ingredients).