The shared suffering that is a Chicago winter–even one that spares the 40-below wind chills and 10-foot snow drifts–comes with at least one distinct advantage. The layers of bulky overcoats, baggy sweaters and long underwear necessary for survival also mask the 5 (or more) pounds Chicagoans routinely pack on during their annual hibernation.
But for the thousands of local Average Joes and Joannes who aspire to look more like a beautiful Bachelorette or a hunky Joe Millionaire this summer, the prospect of beach weather forces an awful moment of truth. Short of applying for an Extreme Makeover, how do they deal with the reveal as they peel off the parkas and slip into the Speedos?
Nutritionists say that while tackling more serious weight control issues requires dramatic changes in diet and exercise regimen, individuals can successfully shed a few extra pounds merely by avoiding one or two sources of “mindless” calories.
`Invisible’ munchies
Whether it’s the chips and salsa that get gobbled up while waiting for the meal at a favorite Mexican restaurant or the half-dozen Oreos dunked in milk and inhaled in front of the TV, those 200 to 400 calories consumed almost reflexively can make the difference between flat and flabby.
The first step in reducing or eliminating the calories that come from unconscious eating is to identify when and how such eating occurs, according to the experts.
“The key to confronting `mindless’ calories is getting rid of the `less’ part,” said Randi Konikoff Beranbaum, a dietitian at Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy in Boston.
That means being mindful of everything we eat. To that end, she recommended putting food on a plate and sitting down to eat it, whether it’s a steak dinner or a candy bar.
“It is so easy to stand at the cupboard and eat a half bag of potato chips without thinking, but it’s much harder when you put them in a bowl and sit at the kitchen table,” she said.
Restaurants are particularly conducive to mindless munching, and the experts suggest some specific strategies to counter those sources of temptation.
For instance, the bread products in the baskets many restaurants automatically place on the table represent 80 to 100 additional calories per ounce. “And the genetic mutation dinner rolls some restaurants whip up can weigh eight ounces apiece,” said David Grotto, a dietitian and spokesman for the Chicago-based American Dietetic Association.
His advice: Pick through the basket for less-caloric flat or crispy breads, and lay off the butter. Or better yet, ask the server to remove the temptation altogether.
The same goes for the ubiquitous and seemingly bottomless chips and salsa offerings at almost any Mexican restaurant.
“Foods like that just become part of the social interaction of dining out,” said Grotto, who directs the nutrition education department at Evanston’s Block Center for Integrated Cancer Care. “The chips morph into your body, and you don’t even pay attention to the fact that you are eating at all, much less what or how much you are eating.”
Sizing up your meals
Whether it’s the gargantuan dinner rolls, the single entree servings that seem built for two, or the bladder-busting beverages like Big Gulps or vente coffees, portion size is a major contributor to mindless eating. So cutting back to the small size at the coffee shop or opting not to supersize your meal can make a significant difference at the end of the day.
And at restaurants that insist on serving huge portions, the experts suggest making your own demand in return: Before the meal is brought to the table, ask the server to put half of it in a doggie bag. The odds of absent-mindedly overeating in a social situation drop dramatically when doing so requires unwrapping half the meal.
The nutritionists at Northfield-based Kraft Foods, purveyors of such mainstays of mindless eating as Oreos, Chips Ahoy and Planter’s Peanuts, put the emphasis on healthful choices and sensible portions rather than eliminating foods altogether.
“Once you tell a person `you can’t have this’ or `you need to make that dramatic change,’ you set them up for failure,” said Sandra Morreale, associate director of Kraft Kitchens. It is by making healthier food choices, limiting portions and being more physically active that individuals can make the most lasting lifestyle changes, she said.
Alcohol represents another major source of cavalier calorie consumption, especially in social situations where it is accompanied by cocktail mixes, nuts or hors d’oeuvres.
“An individual waiting in a lounge for a table at a restaurant can easily rack up 1,500 calories before he or she is even seated,” Grotto estimated. (With a half cup of mixed nuts at 407 calories, and cocktails from 200 to more than 400 each, it adds up to trouble quickly.)
Again, substitutions and portion control are the best policy. Alternating alcoholic beverages with sparkling water cuts the calorie count, as does switching from regular to light beer.
Regardless of where the mindless eating occurs, the prescription for combating mindless calories remains the same, according to Beranbaum: Be prepared and have a plan. That can mean having healthy snacks in the fridge or trading off bread for dessert at a restaurant.
“It can even mean deciding in advance that you are going to indulge at a party and cut back on something else tomorrow,” she said.
With the proper foresight, even the ultimate temple to thoughtless consumption–the all-you-can-eat buffet–can be tackled and tamed, Grotto said.
“If you load up first on veggies and other healthful offerings and treat the rich sauces and heavy entrees like delicacies, you can get out alive.”
But some people, he added, are better off not tempting fate.
“I’ve seen people consume several days worth of calories at one sitting,” he said.
For them, moderation is no antidote for mindless eating, and avoidance is really the only option.
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Minding the mindless calories
Some typical eating habits that can unconsciously add to the daily calorie count, and what to do about them:
SOURCE OF CALORIES: Basket of bread before a meal, with butter
CALORIES: 500-1,000
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Ask the server not to bring it, or pick out flatbreads or crackers and skip the butter
SOURCE OF CALORIES: Tortilla chips and salsa
CALORIES: 500-750
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Salsa, si, but nada single chip–they’re addictive
SOURCE OF CALORIES: Extra large soft drinks (24-32 ounces)
CALORIES: 300-400
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Substitute with water or diet drinks, or at least switch to a serving size you can hold in one hand
SOURCE OF CALORIES: A large buttered popcorn and oversized candy at the movies
CALORIES: 1,600-2,400
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Hold the butter and skip the candy–the crinkling wrapper is annoying anyway
SOURCE OF CALORIES: Three beers at the ballgame
CALORIES: 450-700
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Cut down to two or switch to light beer
SOURCE OF CALORIES: Cocktails and mixed nuts at a bar
CALORIES: 800-1,500
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Alternate with sparkling water and ban the nuts
SOURCE OF CALORIES: Starbucks’ vente white chocolate mocha
CALORIES: 630
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Cut 500 calories with a switch to a tall skim latte.
SOURCE OF CALORIES: Putting “the works” (including cheese and mayonnaise) on a burger
CALORIES: 250 extra calories
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Pile on pickles, tomato and extra mustard instead
SOURCE OF CALORIES: Treating a one-pint ice cream container as a single serving
CALORIES: 800-1,400
ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES: Dish out a single (half-cup) serving–of sorbet or frozen yogurt
Sources: Product packages and Web sites; USDA; Center for Science in the Public Interest.
