Step 2: Eat Like a Thin Person: Good Food Without Compromise

The most important thing about eating like a thin person is to eat good stuff, and to never, ever compromise or make excuses about your food choices.

What is "good stuff," and why "no compromise"? First let's talk about what good food is, how to choose it, when to consume it, then we'll talk about why you must never compromise or make excuses about what you eat.

It would be so depressing to live without eating things you really like, or if you eat them, feeling that you need to beat yourself up over the choice. It doesn't have to be that way, you know. You can learn to eat delicious food, including treats, without guilt or excuses, and you can do so while maintaining a healthy, desireable weight. And no, I'm not kidding. The catch is that you have to eat reasonable portions at reasonably regular intervals, and you have to drink a decent amount of water. Let's talk about what this looks like.

Eat Good Food

I define good food as food that tastes good and is good for you. By the time you reach adulthood, you may have developed a taste for food that is not good for you, so just as you are sent to driver's school to learn better habits when you commit a traffic violation, you'll need to go to "Eater's School" to retrain your palate to prefer the healthy and wholesome options that are available to you. We'll convene the first session of Eater's School here today, and you can begin applying what you learn at your very next meal.

Good food includes all the basics-- fruit and vegetables, whole grains, meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy products. In most cases, the closer food is to its natural state, the better it will be for weight loss, and as a bonus, the faster and easier it will be to prepare. I don't mean that you need to eat everything raw, but rather that instead of baking your egg into a cake, eat it on its own. Rather than making your fresh tomatoes and mozerella into a huge lasagne, try them together with basil, salt, and pepper as a cool, delicious salad. I also don't mean to imply that there's no place for lasagne, but we'll talk about dishes like that later.

Heavily processed items (I call them non-food items) need to disappear from your grocery list. Amazingly enough, no one actually needs to eat flavored gelatin, fake butter (margarine), fake cheese (processed "American" or cheese spreads full of chemicals), any food that comes individually plastic wrapped, carbonated drinks (especially diet ones, which are nothing but chemicals you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy), or any food in which half or more of the ingredients are chemicals.

Of course I recognize that if you've been consuming this goop, it may be hard to change. When I made healthy changes in my diet, I gave myself one day a week to eat whatever I wanted. I found out that even though I'd given myself permission to have a free day, I didn't want to binge and spoil my new healthier habits, so I settled on having a single serving size of whatever goodies I wanted-- 1/2 cup of chips, 1/4 cup of Ben and Jerry's ice cream, and that sort of thing. One day a week can't hurt anything as long as you don't want to be piggy, and whenever I eat these things, I still do so in these portion sizes.

I recommend avoiding artificial in any form, including sweetners. There was a study done that showed that people who drank diet soft drinks actually gained more weight than those who drank regular soft drinks, and I'm not surprised. Some things were not meant to be consumed! I also avoid anything that has been artificially made low-fat or non-fat (products that are naturally without fat or sugar are just fine). If you eat reasonable portions of real, wholesome food, you shouldn't have to fill your body with unsatisfying substitutes.

Eat Reasonable Portions

Have you been to a restaurant lately and noticed portion size? There is virtually nothing on the menu that would qualify as a reasonable portion. Most meals can be divided into two or three good portions, and that is what you need to do when you dine out. I love to eat out and take my leftovers home for lunch or dinner the next day. It spreads out the pleasure of a special meal, and I feel much better than I would if I stuffed it all down at once. If I happen to have fast food (rare), I'll opt for a chili and side Caesar at Wendy's (cheap and good), a kid's chicken nugget meal, or a really big burger that I can cut in half and share. Kid's meals are just about the right portion size, though, so you can use that as a benchmark.

If you're not familiar with the nutritional labels that come on most foods, start looking at them. Measure out one serving portion (as defined by the label) and look at it. Start doing this for everything in order to educate yourself on how much one serving really is. If you're struggling with a weight problem, portion size is likely at the root of it, because most people eat two to three servings of each item at a single meal and don't even realize it.

The best part of controlling portion size is that you get to eat any kind of wonderful food (see the "Good Food" section above) that you like, unless there are dietary considerations other than weight. If you prefer beef or pork to poultry as I do, you can have it. If you enjoy a cheese omelet, go ahead and have one. Just make it with one egg, and add some extra goodies like mushrooms, spinich, aspargus, or peppers. I've had this kind of omelet, accompanied by cinnamon toast (one slice Prairie Whole Grain Walnut Raisen Spice bread, buttered and cinnamon-sugared before toasting) every Wednesday evening for several years, and I still look forward to it. My husband and sons love it too, and I make theirs with more eggs. It's an ample and delicious meal.

Here are the portion guidelines I use:

• Protein (meat, poultry, eggs, fish, dairy): 6 ounces or so during the day, usually 4 oz. at dinner, and 1 oz. each at breakfast and lunch
• Carbs (starchy stuff such as bread, cereal, pasta, potatoes); One slice bread (whole grain) or 1/2 cup of anything else
• Fruit and vegetables: 1 small-medium piece or 1/2 cup of fruit for breakfast and lunch; moderate size salad and/or 1/2 cup cooked veggies for supper; extra fruit and veggies if you feel you must have a snack, but never more than a cup or so at a time.

These portion sizes work for a 5'8" middle-aged woman. For men, growing teens, athletes, and people who do physical work, quantities can increase, but proportions remain roughly the same.

You'll notice that I recommend having each category of food at each meal. For example, my breakfast usually consists of 1/2 cup of granola or 20 squares of Frosted Mini-Wheats (good fiber in these choices), plus 1 small container of homemade plain whole-milk yogurt (Brown Cow Cream Top is the best alternative to homemade, and makes a great starter), and a handful of grapes or a nectarine or other small fruit, plus coffee to drink. I've eaten this breakfast for years, and with variations, I've enjoyed it each day. You can have each item separately, or have a yummy parfait of yogurt, granola, and fruit.

The reasonable portions principle applies to combination dishes such as lasagne, enchiladas, and other dishes that combine proteins and carbs. If you take a 3" cube of one of these dishes, that is likely to be about the right size serving. You don't need seconds. Just enjoy another serving for lunch the next day. At big holiday feasts, take one plate with a bit of everything you like best. There will doubtless be leftovers the next day, and you'll feel much better for not pigging it all up at once. We are blessed to live in a country where food is everywhere. It's up to us to choose to consume only what we need, and the rewards are great for doing so.

Maintain a Healthy Eating and Sleeping Schedule

I tend to be curious about things like fact versus perception, so when I was creating healthier eating habits I made a habit of weighing myself each morning to see if the reality of how much I weighed matched how I felt, and whether or not it was affected by the things I'd done the day before. I found out that weight fluctuates with many factors, and some of them were very significant. I found that regular eating times were important, and there were three other factors that also made a big differerence:

• Quantity of salt consumed (too much salt could mean a temporary weight gain of two pounds or more, with obvious puffiness from water retention)
• Amount of water consumed (see section below for more on this)
• Amount of sleep

It not only matters what time of day I eat, but it also matters whether my meals are at regular intervals. I've created the habit of eating breakfast when I get up; lunch shortly after noon, and dinner at around 6 p.m. If I don't get to eat at the normal time, I'll often have a headache or feel slightly ill, so I know that being prepared to eat when necessary is important. If you eat good food in healthy portion sizes, you don't really need to snack. I find that snacking is one thing that can get away from me, and it's a habit I've chosen not to create. (By the way, you have the power to choose whether or not to create or keep a habit. It's a good idea to evaluate everything, and if it's not a healthy habit for you, then just quit. Cold turkey is often easier than gradual, but that's a decision you'll have to make.)

If I have anything after about 8 p.m., I don't sleep as soundly as usual, and I tend to wake up less rested. I also discovered that my weight stays steadiest when I get plenty of rest. This is part of the challenge that new moms face, and one of the reasons it's wise to keep a low-key schedule whenever possible so that you can rest and be healthy for your family. If you are a new mom, just know that once you start getting enough sleep again, your body will be better able to work more efficiently. Meanwhile, just focus on eating good, healthy food and staying hydrated.

Drink Water

I grew up in Southern California, a place that is very water-conscious, and I remember learning about the importance of drinking water at a very young age. Starting in high school, I made a point of drinking the daily eight 8 oz. glasses of water that were being recommended at the time, and I have found it a very healthy habit to maintain. I recommend no less than one glass with each meal and one glass between each meal (six glasses) at the very minimum.

When I was weighing daily, I found that I always weighed more on Saturday and Monday. I eventually figured out that this was because I did grocery shopping and errands on Friday, and church functions on Sunday, and didn't get my normal amount of water. Once I started making sure to drink more water when I was out, those weight spikes disappeared. I also discovered that drinking extra water during pregnancy can keep swelling to a minimum, and drinking plenty after the baby was born helped nursing go smoothly.

There are many good reasons other than weight to drink a generous amount of water. For one thing, the symptoms of dehydration are common and unpleasant, and often mistaken for other things. They include headaches, weakness, fatigue, skin problems, poor digestion, problems with stomach acid, constipation, dizziness, and more. When one possible cure for these symptoms is as simple and cheap as a glass of water, why not try it?

Here are a few more good reasons to drink more water:

• Heart health: A six-year study reported in 2002 showed that people who drank more than five glasses of water a day were less likely to die from a heart attack during the study period than people who drank less than two glasses.
• Cancer risk: Healthy amounts of water have been reported to reduce chances of bladder and colon cancer by over 40%.
• Budget: You can save a lot of money by ordering water to drink at restaurants, and drinking water at home.
• Halitosis: Water won't give you bad breath like a sugary drink will.
• Weight: Water has no calories, and it helps to suppress appetite (people often think they are hungry, when their body is actually craving water). If you're trying to break a snack habit, enjoy a glass of water with a slice of lemon or lime, or a cup of herbal tea.

Unless you live in a third-world country, water is easy to get and it's the cheapest and healthiest drink you'll find. There's really no excuse for not drinking it. If you don't care for it straight, just add a touch of lemon or lime, but frankly, you'll get used to it, and in a few months, you'll probably even like it plain. The benefits are great enough to make indulgence of a prejudice or preference a very unwise thing (and really, would you let your children get away with it? I hope not!).

No Compromise

I can't tell you how often I hear people say, "I really shouldn't..." or worse, "I just hate myself..." as they reach for a delicious-looking chocolate truffle on a buffet tray. Or sometimes I hear "I'd love to have the steak, but I'll just get a chicken breast. It has fewer calories." Or "I buy light margarine instead of butter because it has no fat." How sad! How much healthier it would be to train your palate to enjoy healthy, high-quality food, and to enjoy it in proper proportions. When you compromise and substitute chicken for steak, or margarine for butter, or a carrot stick for a chocolate truffle, you've answered the wrong question.

By choosing to substitute an inferior or less preferred choice for something good, you are trying to solve a problem by addressing the wrong question. You're choosing your food based on "Which item has the least fat/calories?" when you should be asking the things that a thin person asks when a food choice is presented:

1. Is this an appropriate time to eat?
2. What do I really want to eat?
3. What does my body need for good health?
4. How does this fit into the big picture of my day?
5. Is this food item the best choice for this time?

If there are no good food choices available, a thin person will decide whether and how to compromise. I keep a bag of raw almonds and dried cranberries in the car in case I hit a mealtime and don't have a healthy option available. A few bites keeps me comfortable until I can find something that is not only good but good for me.

As you practice the eating habits of a thin person, you'll find yourself gradually becoming more healthy, gaining more energy, and eating better. You'll discover that overly sugary or salty foods no longer appeal to you, you don't want to feel overstuffed like a Thanksgiving turkey, and you look forward to succulent fresh berries, a juicy little steak, or a wonderful omelet-- all without a trace of guilt or recrimination. Instead of being unhappy at each meal, you'll find yourself able to approach it with a joyful and thankful heart, and that's truly healthy.

Links to all the weight-loss articles:

1. Think Like a Thin Person: Tell the Truth About Food and Eating
2. Eat Like a Thin Person: Good Food Without Compromise
3. Dress Like a Thin Person: Look Good, Feel Good

Disclaimer: I'm not a health professional, nutritionist, dietician, or weight loss specialist. I'm an ordinary person who is freely sharing my personal experiences, study, and observations about food, weight loss, diet, and weight maintenance. If you have health issues, you may wish to consult your personal specialist for advice that applies specifically to your situation. I share these things in the spirit of Titus 2-- to teach good things. Grace and peace to you, as you progress on this journey.