Thank you so much for writing me back! That is very nice of you.
I really could use a healthy lifestyles counselor, but first of all, I am poor, albeit not starving, college student and I can’t afford one (when I looked for one, they cost $300-500). Two, I would not know how to go about finding one I could trust and that would actually do me any good. Two years ago I went to a registered nutritionist who saw me once (for $300) and then gave me a protein powder diet and made weekly appointments for me to come and see her assistant (the girl who worked at the frozen yogurt counter in her storefront.) I lost weight (as I always do), but as soon as the diet was over I had not learned how to eat right so I went back to my old habits and gained all the weight back plus some.
Regarding my sugar question, thank you for clearing that up. So if I am sticking to 1200 calories, my sugar intake should not be any more than 30 grams of sugars. Well, I guess it’s not really “Healthy” Choice, because 1 yogurt has 30 grams of sugar in it!!!! Good Lord!
Regarding veggie burgers, I cook them in the microwave, so I don’t use any oils to cook them. The box says it has 100 calories, 2.5 grams of fat (0.5 saturated, 1.5polyunsaturated, and 0.5 monounsaturated) They have already been precooked, is that good? Then I toast a whole-wheat bun and I have about 1 tablespoon catsup and 1 tablespoon. mustard. Is it all right to eat this every day for dinner? Or is it unhealthy or fattening? That’s the problem, I think I’m eating healthy, but I guess I may not be. I’m sorry to be taking up so much of your time, but would really appreciate any help you could give me. Thank you so much for writing me back!
Don’t know what a registered nutritionist is as there is no national registering of “nutritionists”. At this date, 44 states license who can provide nutritional services or call themselves “nutritionist” or “dietitian”. Find out if your state does. Sounds like the person you saw, was out to sell liquid diets and may not have had the education and experience to provide nutritional counseling. And follow-up by a person selling frozen yogurt???
As for a healthy lifestyle counselor, start with a Registered Dietitian. Since you are a college student, go to your student health services and ask to see one. They should have a dietitian working or who consults at the clinic. Otherwise, if you have health insurance, you may be covered to see one at your doctor’s office but only if you have diabetes, kidney disease, or are overweight. Ask your doctor if he/she has Registered Dietitian and ask for a referral if your health insurance requires it. If you don’t have insurance, college or university health insurance is inexpensive. Check it out!
Next, you need guidance in an effective exercise program. Check with your physical education department to see if anyone in the department works with the students on their personal exercise program. Or if your school has a gym for students to work out, ask if an exercise physiologist or trainer there can assist you.
Weight loss diets that require special foods or drinks can produce quick weight loss, but this weight is quickly regained once the special foods or drinks are stopped. As you learned, a person doesn’t learn new healthy eating habits by eating special foods or drinks. You need to adopt a healthy eating meal plan that you can eat for the rest of your life, a plan that combines enough calories and lower fat with exercise to maintain your healthy weight. You really need assistance in working out a meal plan for weight loss and then maintenance once you have achieved your healthy weight. Take a look at HELP Healthy Eating For Life Plan® which I developed. HELP will create a personalized healthy eating plan with your preference for milk or not, meat or not, beans or not, and snacks or not. You can use my Healthy Body Calculator® to determine a Calorie Goal to lose weight and then re-do the calculator to determine a Calorie Goal to maintain your weight. The Healthy Body Calculator® will transfer your physical data to HELP so you don’t have to retype your information.
Surprised at the sugar content in low-fat foods? Don’t forget that the “sugars” on the label of frozen yogurt probably also include the lactose natural sugar in the milk. So not all is from table sugar, which is sucrose.
Those veggie burgers have half the fat compared to lean ground beef if you compare equal amounts of each. They are probably pre-cooked so that they hold together in the box and during your re-heating. Though your veggie burger is a lower calorie/fat food choice, I would not suggest you eat it every dinner. Would not suggest you eat the same foods for any meal, day after day. Variety in foods offers a variety of vitamins and minerals which is healthier long term.
Research has found that people who lose weight and keep it off for over 2 years, follow a healthy eating plan, exercise and nutritionally analyze everything they eat. If you want to keep track of your food intake, I would suggest you try nutrition analysis software that has weight control, diet analysis, exercise and cooking features. My developers and I developed My Food Record which will nutrient analyze the food you eat. It also has 3 really cool exercise tools so that you have a good picture of what you eat and the effect of exercise on your body weight.