Losing Weight Through 5 Easy Rules
Thursday September 5, 2019 | Filed under:
Over the past year, I’ve lost 30 pounds – the equivalent of 5 cans of Crisco – and the most frequent question I’m asked is, “What’s your secret?”
There isn’t one. I didn’t follow any fad diets, eat only “miracle” foods or spend more hours at the gym. Instead, I came up with a short list of five rules that were relatively easy to adopt. At a recent business dinner, my guest tapped them out and emailed them to himself. I caught a quick picture.
He said I should share them with the world, so here are my five rules:
1: Bread can be an ingredient, not a main course. (No loaf of bread before a plate of spaghetti.)
2: Pasta or rice once a week. That’s an “or,” not an “and.” (Yes, fried rice with Chinese counts. Yes, rice with sushi counts.)
3: Dessert once a week. (Yes, ice cream counts. Yes, gelato counts.)
4: Eat 80% of what’s served in a restaurant. (I think this one is the magic.)
5: Wine at dinner is still OK.
Since getting to my target 168, I’ve added:
6: No fries or chips. But if they appear on a plate, eat just 6.
Doctors agree that the best way to lose weight is to eat right, exercise and come up with a food plan that works for you. Me, I like ice cream and wine at dinner, and I’m not going to eliminate them altogether. But moderation is key.
Here at ASI, as part of a broad effort to help employees get and stay healthy, we offer nutrition classes along with healthy food options in our cafeteria, from fresh fruit and oatmeal at breakfast to a salad bar and veggie soup at lunch, along with special treats like Korean BBQ, sushi and, yes, sloppy Joes and French fries. There’s also a gym in our complex and a marked walking trail with exercise stations around the building, all of which employees in routine satisfaction and benefit surveys tell us they love – and use.
Health-wise, what’s worked for you, at home and at your company?