There are no “small” calories

I recently worked with noted dietitian, Leslie Schilling, on a diet article for Muscle & Performance Magazine.

Leslie gave me a meal plan for an individual whose goal was to lose fat. But when the meal plan came in a bit calorie-heavy (her tabulations represented different products than mine), Leslie made some quick changes. I received her revised plan the next morning. 

The changes Leslie made were small:

• substituting a lower-calorie bread for regular bread
• cutting a granola topping down from 4 tbsp to 2 tbsp
• omitting the cheese in an omelet
• using a lower-calorie, but still “regular,” salad dressing

I was shocked by the results of these “little” changes. The revised meal plan was lighter by 500 calories! (This was a man’s plan, so the calories were higher than what women would expect.) But at any rate…

That is a major calorie savings! 

And, bless her, Leslie still kept the fun dessert–mixed berries with whipped topping and a half-ounce dark chocolate!

It was a lesson

Some days I just can’t figure out why I’m not shedding pounds.

It doesn’t seem like I’m overdoing it.

But a bit “extra” here and there–a slightly larger portion size, an embellishment of cheese, an extra teaspoon of butter–adds up fast!

It tells me to pay closer attention to each and every meal.

Not that you want to fill your plate with a calculator nearby…

Just to go a little lighter here and there.

Doing so can save you thousands of calories a day and be the difference between losing fat, maintaining your weight, or posting a slow but steady gain!

Delicious looking Flickr photo, Al_HikesAZ