Perhaps you’ve heard of zero calorie foods. Is that a misnomer – is something that has zero calories even a food? Well, I suppose that depends on your definition of “food.” Obviously, foods that contain no calories don’t supply any of your caloric needs, although these foods might very well contain vitamins or minerals that are beneficial to your overall health. Also, in some cases, the foods that contain no calories might include another important health benefits in the way of dietary fiber, which most of us don’t get enough of every day.
Generally speaking, most zero calorie products use a combination of water, herbs, spices, vegetable concentrates, and/or artificial sweeteners to provide taste. They might also include thickeners to improve texture. This is usually the case with the tasty Walden Farms products. In some cases, like with Miracle Noodles, the products are made from plant fibers that the body can’t absorb. In other words, your body isn’t able to break down the soluble fiber from which the noodles are made, so you don’t get any of the calories or any of the carbs. Once you swallow the noodles, they expand in your stomach, and they take a while for your digestive tract to process. What does this mean for your dieting efforts? It means that you’ll feel for a longer period of time, so you won’t be as tempted to splurge on high calorie snacks.
Filed under Dieting by on Mar 6th, 2012. 
I don't know about you, but I find it terribly difficult to plan out my meals for myself and my family when I am on a diet. That happens too often in my life, but I struggle with my meals almost every day.
An added point is that with a very low carbohydrate diet, you have to be really watchful of how long your fruits and vegetables will last even when they are refrigerated. Some vegetables, like asparagus, only last a few days. And raspberries, are truly only good for one to two days. So I find that it helps me to plan out my meals and grocery shopping much better if I have a weekly planner that will sit in my kitchen, and travel with me to the grocery store.
The way it works is this, I list all of the items I need for my recipes on a shopping list. Then once I buy everything, I make a notation in the calendar when the perishables need to be used up. This way, I won't wait too long until the vegetables have to be thrown out. And I will not be wasting money nor the vitamins that I would have gotten from the vegetable that spoiled. This does limit spontaneity somewhat, but it also means that I am eating a healthy diet. I guess that is the best trade off. Spontaneity tends to get me into too much trouble when I am eating anyway, otherwise I would not need to watch my food intake as much.
The best planners that work for this are the 2012 planners that have space for both monthly and weekly entries. I need enough room to write things down, and make notes for myself. I stay organized, eat better, and save money all at the same time.
Filed under Dieting by on Dec 21st, 2011.
