Finding Healthy Snacks

I haven't owned a scales in awhile. My daughter took the last one when she moved out three years ago. Not sure why. She only weighs 98 lbs.

I weighed in at 191, which is 2 lbs less than I weighed two months ago when I had my physical. I'd been dieting two days, so I'm on par to lose 5-7 lbs the first week. It always gets harder after that.

I am trying an appetite suppressant called EasySlimRX. I have not felt hungry so far on this diet, which is one of the things the diet product is supposed to do for you. The real test will be whether the product actually curbs the desire to eat. That is what needs to kick in in order for me to sustain a diet. Once the desire to eat is gone, then it is natural to cut portions in half and substitute healthy snacks (carrots, apples, nuts) for the unhealty types (chips, cookies, candy).

I believe that the food desire turnoff button is found somewhere in the mix of ingredients in the appetite suppressant, EasySlimRX. Until it kicks in in full force, I must think twice to fix myself the right kinds of snacks. Today my snack was so-so on the list of snack foods. I had 3 wheat crackers with small pieces of Muenster cheese. That provided a little protein with the munchies. Yesterday's snack was better-- about half dozen baby carrots.

I also keep large quantities of unsweetened ice tea on hand. I know health experts have argued that plain water is what the body should have in large quantities (8 glasses a day of water is usually what is recommended). However, I've never been able to push that much plain water into my body. If I substitute weak tea instead I can usually manage 5 or 6 glasses at least. That seems to keep my body hydrated and my stomach full most of the day during a diet.

Yesterday I managed to eat dinner without my usual glass of wine, but I did reward myself with an Eskimo pie for dessert. I don't believe that denying foods that I like is the way to sustain a diet, although to conserve on calories I can usually limit myself to making a choice between a glass of wine or dessert, not both. What works best is to cut down the portions and to make sure that meals are balanced. It also helps to cut back substantially on carbohydrates, especially white bread, rice, corn and potatoes. If I do that, then I don't need to worry much as much about having a small bowl of ice cream or some pudding for dessert.

Liz Nichols