Easy, fun foods can help you watch your weight

This is how Stacy Beeson, corporate wellness dietitian with St. Luke's Health Solutions, recommends eating to stay healthy and avoid weight gain. Her options are easy to find and fix.

Breakfast

One to two servings of high-value (high in nutrients) carbohydrates. Examples of servings: one cup of cereal, half a cup of dry oatmeal, one slice of whole-wheat bread, one whole-grain waffle, one English muffin, one mini whole-wheat bagel.

One serving of protein. Examples: one cup of low-fat yogurt; one cup of skim milk; one tablespoon of peanut/almond butter; one or two slices of low-fat cheese; two soy sausages; one egg and two egg whites.

One serving of fruit (optional). Examples are half a cup of calcium-fortified orange juice, one apple, one banana, one cup of berries.

Try this: English Muffin Melt — a whole- wheat English muffin toasted with two Light Laughing Cow cheese wedges topped with four tomato slices. Cup of berries on the side.

Lunch

One to two servings' high-value carbohydrates
3 ounces lean protein
Unlimited vegetables
One serving of fruit (optional)

Try this: Sandwich with butternut squash soup: two slices of whole-wheat bread, two to three turkey slices, one slice of light Swiss, lettuce, with one cup of Imagine or Pacific boxed squash soup.

Afternoon snack

Try to keep it to 150 to 200 calories. Here are a few examples:

Fruit and string cheese
Slice of deli meat and apple slices and two slices of low-fat cheese
3 tablespoons of hummus and eight whole-wheat crackers and cherry tomatoes
Yogurt and a cup of berries
100-calorie Luna Bar and fruit

Dinner

One serving high-value carbohydrate
3 ounces lean protein
Two servings of vegetables

Try this: Vegetarian Chili Burger: MorningStar Farms/Gardenburger or Boca Burger on whole-grain bun with grilled tomatoes and onions and a tablespoon of barbecue sauce. Add a cup of low-fat vegetarian chili (Health Valley) on the side over leafy greens.

Dessert

Keep to maximum of 150 calories. Skinny Cow ice cream sandwich; low-fat pudding; or two small cookies

Eat more, weigh less?

Stacy Beeson lives by the theory of Volumetrics, promoted by nutritionist and health expert Barbara Rolls. The idea is that people like to eat until they are full. If they feel deprived and hungry, they'll go back to their old habits, so the key to weight control is to eat lots of low-calorie foods.

As Beeson, a registered dietitian, puts it, "We tend to eat the same volume of food per day. If you base the meal on volume, which is food that is high in water and fiber like vegetables, fruits and whole grains, you will feel full on fewer calories. For instance, would you rather have a light, airy doughnut with little volume and lots of calories or a high-fiber bowl of cereal with milk? The cereal and milk have more volume and less calories and therefore fill up your stomach."

Mom was right: Eat well to feel well

Remember the four food groups you learned about as a kid? They're still basically with us. Stacy Beeson, a dietitian with St. Luke's Health Solutions, recommends paying attention to them if you want to lose weight.

A tip from Beeson: Try to eat from three of the four groups at each meal and don't leave out protein. It satisfies your body, she says.

High-value carbohydrates: breads, pastas and starchy vegetables such as potatoes. One slice of whole-wheat bread or one cup of cereal have about 100 calories.

Protein: meat, chicken, eggs, yogurt, cheese, nuts. Three ounces of lean chicken, fish or turkey have 75 to 100 calories each. (Three ounces is about the size of your palm.) One or two slices of low-fat cheese have up to 150 calories.

Vegetables: One-half cup raw or cooked veggies or one cup of leafy greens have about 25 calories.

Fruit: A medium-size piece of fruit or one cup of berries have 50 to 75 calories.

75-80 percent of Treasure Valley residents don't eat 5 servings of fruit and vegetables per day

Men are even less likely than women to eat fruits and vegetables.

People of all income levels eat about the same amount, but college graduates were slightly more likely to swallow five servings.

Adults who don't eat enough fruits and vegetables are more likely to be obese than those who eat the government-recommended amount.

People who shun fruits and vegetables are no more likely to have high cholesterol or high blood pressure than those who eat them.

Source: Idaho Behavioral Risk Factors, Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, October 2006

Learn more about the food groups at My Pyramid