Dietary Dish

Happy New Year

It is a time-honored tradition to make resolutions at this time of year.  If your resolution is to lose weight and keep it off, here are six simple tips that will have you losing weight in a balanced and healthy way. I’m determined to put these in to practice this year!

1. Lose weight with water!  Water is essential for everybody.  It is also the key to losing weight.  If you don’t drink enough water your body develops a pattern of storing water!  This retention equals more weight.  By drinking more water, you not only flush out toxins, you also teach your body that it no longer needs to store it.  It is recommended to drink 60 ounces of water daily (approximately eight glasses).
2. Soup up your weight loss program.  Eating a bowl of soup at least once a day helps shed pounds.  Homemade soup is the best as canned soups contain a lot of sodium.  A couple favorites at our facility are beef noodle and stuffed pepper soup.
3. Eat early to keep weight off.  Studies have shown when you include protein and fat for breakfast you tend to lose weight.  We start the day off right with a hearty breakfast here at GRCC and it often is the best consumed meal of our residents.
4. Eat smaller meals more frequently.  Eating steadily throughout the day keeps you from overeating at the next meal.  We provide both an afternoon snack and bedtime snack here, and a snack tray is easily accessed by our nurses’ station.
5. Adopt a balanced approach to your diet.  It should consist of lean proteins, complex carbohydrates, whole grains, legumes, nuts, fruits, and vegetables.
6. Walk!  The number one cause of weight gain is inactivity.  Our Activity Director starts everyone moving after breakfast with a daily exercise routine which gets everyone moving and stretching for the day.

I hope these tips help you to have a healthy, strong 2019.

~Sandy Weller, Food Service Supervisor