Ten Tips On How To Make Your Favorite Foods Healthier

years ago I embarked on a journey that changed my life.  I started Weight Watchers to lose the excess weight I had gained over the early years of my marriage.  Weight Watchers is an incredible program because nothing is really off limits.  The program teaches you how to eat so that you lose weight without feeling deprived, and they give you the tools that allow you to succeed at it and keep it off.

Learning how to eat healthier is a lifestyle and no one wants to give up their favorite foods to do that, so here are ten tips on how to make your favorite foods healthier:

1. When purchasing cheese in slices or bricks (like the kind you melt for dips) choose the 2% milk fat version instead of the original.  You won’t notice a difference in the creaminess when melted and it’s better for you than the full fat version.

2. Use ground turkey to replace ground beef in recipes – however, watch your labels, some ground turkey is just as high in fat as beef.

3. Choose “lite” ice cream instead of regular, you probably won’t notice a difference.  Or you can choose frozen yogurt instead.  Better yet, grab a couple of the Weight Watchers Smart Ones Desserts, they are yummy and you’d never guess most of them are only 1-3 points.

4. Replace oil in recipes with apple sauce.  It also keeps your baked goods moist.

5. Mix some ground flax seed in with your yogurt.  You’ll be getting double the heath benefits when eating.

6. Choose low sodium soups when shopping for canned ones.  Regular soup can be loaded with sodium.

7. Use margarine spreads instead of butter when you can.  There are those that are specifically manufactured to be beneficial for your heart.

8. Use olive oil for frying instead of vegetable or canola oil.  Or don’t fry at all instead….

9. Steam your food.  Vegetables, potatoes, chicken and fish can all be steamed.  You don’t need to add anything to them, and you can taste the pureness of the food better.  Spice it up with no sodium spices.

10. Choose whole grain options.  Most all of our processed refined favorites now come in whole grain (except donuts…at least I haven’t found them yet!).  Look for the symbol on the food you buy, it will tell you the percentage of whole grain in the package contents.

I’m proof that these things work to help lose and keep off extra weight.  The thirty pounds I lost has been kept off all 8 years, and that’s even through 4 cruises (can you say NON-STOP food!).

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and WeightWatchers SmartOnes blogging program, making me eligible to get a $50 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”