January 2024 Special Needs Living Magazine

“NEW YEAR, NEW YOU?” DON’T DIET!

BY DANIEL ANSCHUTZ

Every year, after the traditional holiday binge of sweets and excessive eating many of us do, what comes next? A New Year’s resolution to diet starting January 1st. So you go through the cupboards, fridge, freezer, your special hiding places for your binge-worthy treats (even that one you know nobody else will ever find) and you purge all temptation from your home for good! But after about three weeks of restricting yourself from eating anything with flavor, eating dry salads, drooling over your friend’s slice of pizza, and being completely miserable you cave and binge on whatever is easily accessible and that you’ve been craving. That Drive-Thru large fry on the way home from work, the entire box of thin mints you were saving in the freezer to celebrate, the pint of double chocolate fudge ice cream you miraculously found in the bottom of the freezer (*gasp* I swear I threw this out! You know you didn’t.). All because you caved once you just give up completely and go back to your old habits.

Does this sound familiar to you?

Of course, it does; diets are meant to jumpstart your system and get you ready for a lifestyle change. If you want to really change and for good, I’ve never had success by completely cutting myself off from everything I really enjoy eating. The most success I’ve ever had was doing two weeks of a pretty restrictive diet and then re-introducing foods and allowing myself to enjoy certain things I crave regularly but in moderation. Portion control and moderation have always been the greatest success in my personal journey and don’t be too hard on yourself if you have a bad day. You can always start again tomorrow. If you want lasting change it won’t be easy, but I’ve got some helpful tips that have helped me.

My first system jumpstart is a vegan, whole food (minimally processed), no-added fat diet. Vegan is all fruits, vegetables, grains, and no animal or animal byproducts (milk, eggs, honey, etc.). My favorite is called the Engine 2 Diet. Developed by a firefighter (His son is a doctor at the Cleveland Clinic) and a great jumpstart to your system. You will need to plan a bit more when making meal choices, but this will help your system reset itself and is only a two-week commitment. I told myself if I can’t commit myself for two weeks, what can I commit to?

Second, I focus on a Nutrientdense lifestyle. My favorite book with recipes for this is Eat to Live. Nutrient density means that you focus on the best vitamins, minerals, omega, and amino acids per calorie you eat. Soda or frosted pastries are examples of foods that have a high calorie count but are very low in nutritional density. The opposite would be cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and zucchini; and low-fat protein like chicken and fish. Eating more nutrient-dense foods, but the same caloric intake helps you feel fuller faster than eating non-nutrient-dense foods.

In addition, limiting myself to a serving of my favorite snack twice a week or a square of chocolate every night. Whatever was my craving at the time, so I didn’t jump off the deep end into an entire bag of fun-sized candy bars. Knowing I had a 2oz square of dark chocolate waiting for me at the end of the day made it much easier for me to make the right choices during the day.

Every person is different, and everyone will react differently to changes in what you regularly consume. If you want to make big changes in your lifestyle, please consult with your physician/ dietician to make sure you are making changes that your body will happily accept. Even if you want to make changes for yourself, long-lasting changes are the first step in the right direction of a new, healthier you!

KALE WITH FLAVOR

• 12oz Kale, Ribs removed and cut into 3in squares

• 3 Cloves Minced Garlic

• 1tsp Crushed Red Pepper

• Juice of ½ Lemon

• 1tsp salt

• 2Tbsp Olive Oil

1. Heat a Saute Pan to a moderate/ moderate high heat.

2. Add the olive oil and kale and Crushed Red Pepper to the pan.

3. Cook until the Kale is half wilted, add the garlic, and turn down to a moderate/low.

4. Add the lemon juice and salt, tossing to incorporate.

5. Eat hot, or cold the next day.