So, it’s been about a week since I have been using Calorie King to change my eating habits and lose weight. As you guys read on the last post, I had a HUGE revelation on what I was actually putting into my body. Although the amount of calories I was taking in was low, the amount of fat I was eating was WAY TOO HIGH, and the amount of protein I was eating was WAY TOO LOW. No wonder my weight loss journey has been a bust!! So here are some of the changes I have made…

I love coffee and was very excited to see there are very little calories and fat in coffee itself. However, the creamer and other additives (can we say mocha?) can kill your weight loss program. I also love lots of creamer. Some people ask me if I’d like some coffee with my creamer! LOL SO, I changed to Coffee Mate Non-fat creamer. Very little calories and NO FAT!

I also love milk and have always preferred 2% milk. Yet, the amount of calories and fat in 2% milk simply isn’t conducive to my weight loss program. So I have switched to skim milk. It does take some time to get use to, however after a week, I’m finding it’s not so bad after all. Again I was able to trim off calories and fat by making this switch.

By counting calories and fat intake, I also found that although I was eating nice health salads, the cheese and salad dressing I was putting on my salads was increasing my fat intake. You would be surprised how much fat is in both cheese and ranch salad dressing! So I’ve switched to Fat Free shredded cheddar cheese (I also love cheese!). At the suggestion of my good friend, Rex Harris, instead of using typical salad dressing I am using mustard! Ok, I know it sounds weird… but if you buy French’s Honey Dijon mustard it will make your salad extremely flavorful and only has 10 calories per teaspoon and NO FAT!! By making these two simple changes in my salads, I cut out over 300 calories and 35 grams of fat!!

To increase my protein count, I have been adding chickpeas and kidney beans to my salads along with plain skinless chicken breasts. Beans are a great source of protein and fiber with very little calories and fat. Now, I didn’t buy canned because of all the sodium. Instead, I bought the dried beans and simple soaked, cooked and drained them. I then placed them in a container in the fridge. Another nice thing about beans is that all the fiber in them really fills you up!! I actually feel stuffed after having one of my salads! They also make a great snack… sometimes I combine some chickpeas, kidney beans, fat free cheese and mustard in a bowl and just have that as a snack.

Finally, I’m a chocolate lover. Just another thing that led to the demise of my weight loss program. I found these Hostess 100 calorie pack cupcakes that are WONDERFUL!! They are low fat and with the amount of calories and fat that I’ve eliminated from dressings and cheeses, I have found I can have two of these packs if I choose! YAY for me!!

So, there you have it. Some of my food changes I have made in my weight loss program. These changes have cut the amount of calories, sodium and fats that I take in daily and have increased the amount of protein. Hopefully, some of the tips I’ve given here will help you in your weight loss. If you haven’t already, start marking down what you are taking in everyday, either use a program like Calorie King or count it out by hand using a spreadsheet. It will make all the difference!

Blessings,
Tula Rainwater