The DIY Diet

I’m always on the lookout for beneficial diet ideas that would help make the process of reducing to a healthy weight more appealing and less of a struggle.

Since being introduced to the concept of energy healing and energy medicine in April (see blog about topic) I’ve done a lot of reading about it, participated in some teleseminars, and have attended some workshops through Spring Forest Qigong (SFQ).  I’ve learned some things that may prove helpful.  I’m trying some of those techniques now and want to share them with you.

I know all of you have seen the advertisements for Wu-Yi tea and Wu-Long tea, supposedly a miracle diet aide.  In my research I learned that both of those teas are brand names for types of oolong tea.  Oolong teas (halfway between green and black teas), indeed, contain large amounts of polyphenols, that according to the Health24.com website help to control obesity by activating the enzyme responsible for dissolving fatty deposits (triglycerides) and enhancing the function of fat metabolism.  So oolong tea can help with dieting.  You can buy oolong teas from many tea merchants but it isn’t a miracle diet aide.

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One day when I was ordering vitamins and supplements from my favorite mail order supplier, Swanson Health Products, I asked the order taker about Slendesta, the new product that I’d seen advertised in one of their catalogs. The order taker said she was using Slendesta for appetite control and she said, that for her, it was working as advertised.

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It seems that every magazine I open these days is talking about the virtues of apples. Like many of you, I was told as I grew up that "an apple a day keeps a doctor away". I have no doubt that the old adage is true. Apples it is said, may protect against heart disease, various kinds of cancer (breast, colon, digestive), age-related memory loss, stroke, Type 2 diabetes, and arteries from plaque build-up. They may improve lung function, learning ability, and reduce the risk of asthma. Prevention Magazine’s website calls apples "nature’s toothbrush" saying apples cleanse and whiten teeth.

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Steaming is my favorite way to prepare certain vegetables. That’s the way I like to prepare cauliflower, broccoli, asparagus, green beans, peas pods, and carrots. I often fix cabbage and corn that way, too. When I steam my vegetables, I use a bamboo steamer. I own a metal steamer basket but I’ve never used it. In fact, I have no idea where it is - probably stored in my garage. I love the very slight bamboo fragrance it seems to impart to the air as the vegetables cook. It reminds me of living in the Orient. I find that one of the big advantages to cooking with a bamboo steamer is that I can quickly stop cooking when the vegetables are al dente or still a bit firm when you bite into them (used typically to describe pasta).

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For the last many years I have managed perfectly well with my two regular scales. But I had been looking at digital scales and decided I simply had to have one. I dropped hints before Christmas. And guess what, I received an Escali Primo Digital Scale as a gift.

I love the Escali Digital Scale especially the tare weight feature where I can get the exact weight of an item in a container by subtracting the weight of the container. The scale will do it automatically when you place the empty container on the scale and press the "on/tare/ off" key then add the product. I can weigh products in grams, pounds and ounces, or ounces. It’s a versatile tool. Not only do I measure food products, I weigh my outgoing mail to make sure I place sufficient postage on it. I suppose most digital food scales have pretty much the same features so it’s your choice as to which one you chose.

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You’ve probably already noticed that the recipes on The DIY Diet don’t use artificial sugar or specially manufactured low-fat, low-carb products.

Part of the reason is that many years ago, I drank too much diet cola on a daily basis - about 1-1/2 liters daily. One morning I woke and simply couldn’t stomach the artificial sugar and its aftertaste anymore.

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As you’re probably well aware, dining out can be a challenge when you’re on a diet.

Most casual dining restaurants don’t have nutrition data readily available on-site, but most have it published on their websites, so I recommend checking the calorie count of menu items before you leave the house.

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When I open a new block of cheese, I check the Nutrition Label to see what size of cube constitutes one ounce of the cheese and cut the cheese up accordingly. For instance, the Nutrition Label on some Cheddar Cheese I bought recently said that a cube 1-1/8 inches square constitutes one ounce. I measure to a 1-1/8 inch width along the length of the block of cheese and cut off that width of cheese. I then mark of 1-1/8 inch sections along the length of that piece of cheese. I wrap the cheese in plastic wrap and continue to cut the rest of the block of cheese in a similar fashion.

When I want one ounce of cheese, I know exactly how much to cut off. I know that I’m getting the approximate number of calories that the Nutrition Label states are in one ounce of this cheese.

I can also cut slices off the one-ounce section to be eaten with crackers. I know if I cut the 100-calorie cube into three or four slices, that I’m getting about 34 calories with three slices or 25 calories with the four slices. Yes, I’m that persnickety when I’m figuring out the calories I’m eating in cheese. Cheese is a wonderful food, and I love it, but it is a high-calorie food. I’m not that picky when I’m eating low calorie foods.

When I shred cheese for omelet recipes I use the microplane grater and shred the cheese onto a paper towel. I used to grate it onto plastic wrap or into a bowl, but the cheese tended to stick to both the plastic wrap and glass bowl, so I’d end up losing some some of my precious cheese. I find paper towel works the best. I suppose it would work better if I used a larger grater. The advantage of the microplane grater is that the cheese is more finely shredded, and you think you are getting much more cheese. I usually grate only 1/2 ounce of cheddar cheese (55 calories) for a two-egg omelet. If it’s Sunday and I need a special breakfast treat, I grate one ounce of cheddar (110 calories) for my omelet. When I’m ready to dump the cheese onto my omelet in the frying pan, most all of the cheese easily drops into the pan.

One of the other things I do when need a Sunday morning treat is to coarse shred a carrot, chop some green pepper, chop some green onion, and cube two pieces of Jones Canadian bacon. I sauté the vegetables until they are limp then add the bacon long enough to warm it up. I put this mixture aside while I prepare the omelet. At just the right moment, I add 1/2 ounce of the shredded cheddar cheese and then the sautéed vegetables. I also remove the skin from half a garden-ripe tomato and dice it to use on top of my omelet. Yum. And can you believe this delicious combination is only 313 calories? Sometimes I prepare my omelet in 1 Tablespoon of real butter so I add 100 calories to the total then. This is really a hearty, filling breakfast especially with a nice cup of hot green tea.

I keep a pair of Fiskars office scissors on a folded terrycloth bath towel next to my kitchen sink together with the other utensils and tools I use on a daily basis. 

I use the Fiskars for cutting green onions rather than using a French knife.  I just peel the outer skin off the green onion stalk, cut off the root, then snip fine pieces of green onion directly over my salad or quesadilla or other foods in which I like the added flavor of green onion.

I use the same technique on green and red bell pepper.  I cut off a section of the pepper, remove the seeds and white membrane, make a few vertical cuts into the piece with the scissors, then snip across the vertical slices with the scissors, again, directly over my salad or into the bowl of goodies I’m planning to add to my omelet.

The reason I like the Fiskars office scissors so well is that they are smaller and less cumbersome than the ordinary heavy duty kitchen scissors I use for other kitchen tasks.  I can pass them directly under a running faucet to wash them off and I don’t have to worry about them rusting.

I don’t remember where I learned this trick, but it works. When I buy a new bunch of celery, I cut off the root end and the tips of the stalks, then wrap the entire bunch of celery in aluminum foil, tightly sealing it. I prefer to use Reynolds Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil for this purpose because it stands up to the opening and closing of the package as I remove the individual stalks. What the foil seems to do is to prevent the refrigerator from dehydrating the celery and making it limp. The foil wrap will keep celery fresh for about two weeks.

When I’m making a salad for myself, I take out one stalk of celery, wash it, and cut it into diagonal slices. It adds a nice crunch to the salad and a whole stalk is only 6 calories.

Since the technique worked so well for celery, I theorized that the same technique would work for other vegetables, and it does! I wrap green onions in the aluminum foil and cucumbers in aluminum foil. It works. I usually re-hydrate soft grocery store cucumbers by letting them soak in cold water for a time, then dry them off and wrap each securely in aluminum foil. Then I decided to try the technique with carrots. It works with them, too. So I tried it on green bell peppers and jalapeno peppers. Yep, it helps to prolong their freshness just like with the other vegetables.

I have a little box on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator where I put all these aluminum foil wrapped vegetables so that they are easy to grab when I’m making a salad.

Try it.