calories count – Page 145 – Every Step Fitness

‘I’m being good and having a weight watchers dessert….’

Most people would assume that the weight watchers (or other weight loss brand foods) are automatically a more virtuous choice of dessert. Whilst the Gu chocolate dessert would be considered ‘bad’.

In reality they’re almost the same in terms of overall calories and the weight watchers one is much higher in sugar, and lower in fat (making it less likely to fill you up). So in reality you could have either as your dessert and it makes little difference to your overall calories.

So don’t automatically assume these weight loss branded foods are always the better option. Sometimes they’re the same or worse than other brands. And they’re often pricier! If you enjoy them then definitely have them, but if you’re only having them because you think they’re ‘good’ then think again.

Read the labels and look at the calories and then make sure choice. If you’re trying to lose weight then go for the lowest calorie option, that you actually want to eat!

🤗xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Downsize your weekend treats!

July 31, 2019 Dr Nancy P

Many of us do this – we’re spot on with our calories all week, with a sustainable calorie deficit and then come the weekend we over eat and blow the whole week’s deficit in one go. Many people don’t even realise the extent to which they’re doing this – they feel like they’ve been really ‘good’ all week and yeah they had a few treats at the weekend but they don’t understand why they’re not seeing results.

I understand – it’s the weekend, a chance to relax with family and friends. You buy yourself a bottle of wine, some crisps and chocolate to munch on while watching a movie etc. But very quickly you can rack up thousands of extra calories without even noticing.

I’m not suggesting that you cut out the weekend treats but maybe just consider going for smaller packs of those treats. If you buy the larger sized packs the chances are you’ll eat them all (I know I do!) because you’ve been ‘good all week so you feel you deserve them, because they taste good and because you’re in ‘relax mode’ so you’re less likely to go and weigh out an individual portion.

So maybe consider buying the smaller options. By simply swapping for smaller pack sizes you can save over 2,500 calories! If you buy these in advance, when your will power is stronger, you’ll be set up for an on track, but still enjoyable weekend! And those results will start to show!

🤗 xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Alcoholic drinks under 200 cals

July 24, 2019July 24, 2019 Dr Nancy P

Alcoholic drinks under 200 cals! 🍸

If you are trying to lose weight/fat then alcohol is often one of the ‘easier’ things to cut down on to save calories. When I say easier I mean it’s an easily identifiable part of your diet which you can choose to either consume or avoid, not that it’s necessary an easy habit to change.

There’s no reason you have to give up alcohol to lose weight as it ultimately comes down to whether you’re in a calorie deficit. However it’s very easy to rack up several hundred calories in alcoholic drinks with little or no nutritional benefit. Meaning you will usually have the booze on top of whatever food you’re eating. In addition alcohol consumption can lead to poorer choices when it comes to food and you’re far more likely to end up eating more calories if you’re drinking or hung over.

So if you do want to still enjoy a drink but stay within your calories then here are a selection of lower calorie options. This list is by no means exhaustive – there are loads of other options out there but it’s a good overview of a range of different types of drink.

So you can still go out and enjoy yourself and have that drink without worrying it’s going to derail your progress!

Cheers! 🥂

(Nb the gin and tonic is a standard double bar serving – a single is around 60-90 cals)

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Lower Calorie Ice Cream Option

July 17, 2019 Dr Nancy P

Saturday night – movie, sofa and some ice cream – perfect right? We all feel the need to work our way through an entire tub of ice cream now and then – it’s natural, it’s human and it’s also damn tasty! But how about making a simple swap. Rather than working your way through 1,200 calories of Ben and Jerry’s (or other standard ice cream equivalent) , you could instead have 320 calories of Halo top (or one of the any other equivalent low cal ice cream brands available). But isn’t low calorie stuff loaded with sugar? No – it’s not actually! And it tastes amazing! 🍦

We don’t need to deny ourselves treats and nice tasting stuff just because we’re watching our calories – try making some swaps instead. If you’re an ice cream fan check out the Halo Top range of tubs and sticks (there are also supermarket own brand versions and other companies doing the same – in fact even Ben and Jerry’s do their own low cal flavours now!).

So you really can have your cake (*ice cream) and eat it! 🤗 xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

‘About a teaspoon…..’ 🥄

July 17, 2019 Dr Nancy P

‘About a teaspoon…..’ 🥄

If you’re trying to lose fat and tracking your calories it’s really important to be as accurate as you can and this is why. You could easily record the peanut butter that you have on your toast as a teaspoon’s worth… but how much is a teaspoon? Is it a level teaspoon? Is it a slightly heaped one? Is it a very heaped one (I can get A LOT of peanut butter on a teaspoon I assure you! 😋), is it the small spoon you have for stirring your coffee? Is it a baking measure?….etc etc

The problem with volumetric measures is they’re not very accurate. Now if you’re having something low calorie it probably won’t matter too much but something calorie dense like peanut butter really does matter, especially if you’re trying to maintain a moderate calorie deficit. Two teaspoons of peanut butter could be 158 cals or as much as 474 cals! That’s nearly 296 cals difference… you only need a 200-300 calorie daily deficit to see fat loss so you could wipe it out in one small spoonful! 😬

This is why I encourage my clients to weigh, in grams, rather than using measures like teaspoon or tablespoons. So if you’re trying to lose fat and tracking your calories have a go at weighing some of the foods you’ve been logging by tsp/tbsp and see how accurate you’ve actually been with those calories? You may be surprised! 😬