How I Lost 13 Pounds In A Year-- Day 5

Today's Change: Get Serious

Once I had made all my previous changes, going from my late-night pizza to cooking at home regularly, I noticed that all my clothes were already fitting better. But I wanted to keep going. I still had pounds to lose! So the next step was to start tweaking my recipes by swapping out some ingredients for healthier alternatives.

I started using whole-grain pasta instead of regular. I started including items like broccoli and mushrooms into my recipes to fill them out for no nutritional cost and stretch my dish further. I started buying fresh fruit in larger quantities to include with my breakfasts and lunches, and low-fat yogurt to replace my salty afternoon snacks. I quit buying chips except for tortilla chips to go with mexican-food dinners and snacks like pico de gallo, and when I absolutely had to have something crunchy with my lunches, I'd have a serving size of reduced fat Ritz crackers.

I started adding things “invisibly” to my meals as well, ingredients I'd never really had a history of liking on their own. I began sneaking in chopped onions here and there. I mashed up squash and tucked it into my homemade macaroni and cheese. Once I started including a few little things here and there, the transition was seamless. Now I eagerly throw in extra vegetables to almost everything I make!

You try it: how can you improve your recipes? Switching to whole grains? Are there any ways you can hide otherwise unwanted vegetables? By finding ways to fill yourself with fruits and vegetables, you not only satisfy your hunger for fewer calories but you rid your body of extra salts and fats, which makes it easier to resist salts and fats at the next meal. Start small: add extras of the fruits and vegetables you like, then start branching out. Once you start, you won't even view your vegetables as an accomplishment, you'll just view them as a regular part of your diet. And THAT is a lifestyle change!