On Dec. 31, 2008, my boyfriend and I made a New Year's Resolution to stop eating fast food. By January 3, we found ourselves waking suddenly in the middle of night, staring blankly at each other while visions of Whoppers danced in our subconscious.
"Is it going to be this hard? Should we give up?" We asked.
In the 11th month of our plan, I am a thinner, less-sluggish version of my former self. How? Well, I found a way to satisfy my appetite by making homemade, healthy meals. California Department of Education Nutrition Consultant Heather Reed’s advice and the following tips may help avoid fast food by substituting homemade meals.
Put down your car keys and march into your kitchen.
If your idea of dinner routinely involves counting exact change at the drive-thru window, you owe your kitchen and your body an apology.
“People have gone away from preparing their own food.” Reed says, “It might seem overwhelming, but it’s really not that hard.”
You don’t have to get out of your car to buy Burger King’s Triple Whopper. But if you know that burger has 1,230 calories and 738 of those are from fat, you might rejoice in the opportunity to burn calories by walking to the register and back to your parking spot.
A better alternative could be to create a juicy cheeseburger at home using 93 percent lean ground turkey, which will end up at 300 calories, cooked. Most grocers sell inexpensive pre-formed turkey burger patties that, when grilled in garlic powder and dried basil, topped with onion, fresh spinach and your favorite low-fat cheese, has all the flavor and none of the junk found in fast food burgers.
Don’t let your stomach hijack your mind.
If you think that nothing satisfies your hunger like greasy fast food, be aware that hunger is a fickle, twisted, sometimes evil monster. The hungrier I am, the more I become convinced that nothing will satisfy my hunger like a gooey bacon cheeseburger or nothing will taste as good as crispy, ketchup-drenched French fries. In reality, your stomach feels full whether you eat the same amount of lean grilled chicken in a lettuce wrap or a mayonnaise-drenched chicken sandwich on a spongy bun.
To make mouth-watering lettuce wraps as an alternative to a fried chicken sandwich, start with your favorite fresh vegetables. Chopped cucumber, carrot, broccoli and onion provide strong flavors when filled inside a chilled lettuce cup. Drizzle reduced fat Asian sesame or peanut dressing plus a hot sauce, like Tabasco, on top of lean, grilled chicken to complete a spicy, fresh flavor combination.
If you want a side, like French fries, with your faux fast food meal, try thinly slicing a large potato and baking the pieces in a fine layer of olive oil and parmesan cheese. Reed asserts that baked food is always healthier than anything fried, but she says that taking control of your body’s wellness requires a strong commitment.
“The best tool is to monitor what you’re eating. Preparing food yourself is even better,” Reed says.
The numbers don’t lie but they do add up-quickly.
Be realistic about your daily caloric intake. That 1,230-calorie Triple Whopper mentioned above is just a part of the fast food combination meal equation. Throw in French fries and you can easily add another 360 calories to your belt. Round out your meal, and your belly, with a large Coca-Cola soft drink and you are adding another 390 calories. The total for this meal at Burger King is 1,980 calories, only twenty calories short of the average daily recommended caloric intake for an adult person. That’s a daily intake of 2,000 calories.
Will I indulge in fast food in 2010? I plan to avoid it as long as I can craft simple, delicious meals at home. However, in the late nights of the new year, if my mind is too weak to ward off those Whopper-shaped temptations, rules could be broken.
"Is it going to be this hard? Should we give up?" We asked.
In the 11th month of our plan, I am a thinner, less-sluggish version of my former self. How? Well, I found a way to satisfy my appetite by making homemade, healthy meals. California Department of Education Nutrition Consultant Heather Reed’s advice and the following tips may help avoid fast food by substituting homemade meals.
Put down your car keys and march into your kitchen.
If your idea of dinner routinely involves counting exact change at the drive-thru window, you owe your kitchen and your body an apology.
“People have gone away from preparing their own food.” Reed says, “It might seem overwhelming, but it’s really not that hard.”
You don’t have to get out of your car to buy Burger King’s Triple Whopper. But if you know that burger has 1,230 calories and 738 of those are from fat, you might rejoice in the opportunity to burn calories by walking to the register and back to your parking spot.
A better alternative could be to create a juicy cheeseburger at home using 93 percent lean ground turkey, which will end up at 300 calories, cooked. Most grocers sell inexpensive pre-formed turkey burger patties that, when grilled in garlic powder and dried basil, topped with onion, fresh spinach and your favorite low-fat cheese, has all the flavor and none of the junk found in fast food burgers.
Don’t let your stomach hijack your mind.
If you think that nothing satisfies your hunger like greasy fast food, be aware that hunger is a fickle, twisted, sometimes evil monster. The hungrier I am, the more I become convinced that nothing will satisfy my hunger like a gooey bacon cheeseburger or nothing will taste as good as crispy, ketchup-drenched French fries. In reality, your stomach feels full whether you eat the same amount of lean grilled chicken in a lettuce wrap or a mayonnaise-drenched chicken sandwich on a spongy bun.
To make mouth-watering lettuce wraps as an alternative to a fried chicken sandwich, start with your favorite fresh vegetables. Chopped cucumber, carrot, broccoli and onion provide strong flavors when filled inside a chilled lettuce cup. Drizzle reduced fat Asian sesame or peanut dressing plus a hot sauce, like Tabasco, on top of lean, grilled chicken to complete a spicy, fresh flavor combination.
If you want a side, like French fries, with your faux fast food meal, try thinly slicing a large potato and baking the pieces in a fine layer of olive oil and parmesan cheese. Reed asserts that baked food is always healthier than anything fried, but she says that taking control of your body’s wellness requires a strong commitment.
“The best tool is to monitor what you’re eating. Preparing food yourself is even better,” Reed says.
The numbers don’t lie but they do add up-quickly.
Be realistic about your daily caloric intake. That 1,230-calorie Triple Whopper mentioned above is just a part of the fast food combination meal equation. Throw in French fries and you can easily add another 360 calories to your belt. Round out your meal, and your belly, with a large Coca-Cola soft drink and you are adding another 390 calories. The total for this meal at Burger King is 1,980 calories, only twenty calories short of the average daily recommended caloric intake for an adult person. That’s a daily intake of 2,000 calories.
Will I indulge in fast food in 2010? I plan to avoid it as long as I can craft simple, delicious meals at home. However, in the late nights of the new year, if my mind is too weak to ward off those Whopper-shaped temptations, rules could be broken.
