Small Steps to Weight Loss Tips: Day 27

It’s Dinnertime on Day 27! Dinner/evening time can be particularly challenging when you want to lose weight. Many times after a stress-filled day, you think of dinner time as the time to relax and treat yourself to a big, hearty meal.

And yet, according to research, our metabolism can decrease up to 20-30% in the twilight hours before bed! So you don’t want to eat a large number of calories late in the day because those calories are more apt to be stored versus those that are eaten earlier in the day.

One great way to feel satisfied with your dinner but without a large number of calories is to make it veggie-rich. I recommend that you have a serving of protein and 3 servings of vegetables for dinner. Now, that may sound like a lot of vegetables but a serving of cooked vegetables is only 1/2 cup. So 3 servings is just 1 1/2 cups.

A sneaky way to get in more vegetables is to think chunky at dinner. Try having chunky vegetable soup before your meal. You can fill up on less calories, plus the large vegetable pieces will make you feel fuller longer than if you had a pureed soup.

Another trick is to chop up your vegetables (like carrots, onions, peppers, zucchini, etc) into coarse pieces rather than slicing or shredding them. Since it takes more effort to chew the bigger pieces, you’ll ultimately eat less during the meal.

Here are some other tricks I practice regularly:

• Bulk up my sandwiches by added plenty of lettuce, tomato, and onion. This helps me to fill up with fewer calories.
• Add ½ cup cooked vegetables to tomato soup or broth-based soup
• Add extra vegetables like tomatoes, onions, and peppers to spaghetti sauce and chili
• Buy the chunky versions of spaghetti sauce (I love the chunky mushroom style)

Now, I am going to add your evening routine, which is almost a mirror of your midday routine except notice that your dinner is veggie-rich.

Morning Routine

• Drink 1 glass (16 oz) of water
• Take your multivitamin and Omega 3 supplement
• Do 10 minutes of stretching before shower
• Eat breakfast with protein
• Practice portion patrol
• Practice mindful eating

Mid-Morning Routine

• Drink 1 cup of green tea with lemon
• Eat a high fiber fruit or protein snack
• Practice portion patrol
• Practice mindful eating
• Do 10 minutes of desk, commuter, or other strength-building exercise

Midday Routine

• Drink 1 glass (16 oz) of water
• Eat a balanced lunch (1 serving of protein, starch, and vegetables each)
• Practice portion patrol
• Practice mindful eating
• Do 10 minutes of HIIT exercise

Afternoon Routine

• Drink 1 cup of green tea with lemon
• Eat a high fiber fruit or protein snack
• Practice portion patrol
• Practice mindful eating

Evening Routine

• Drink 1 glass (16 oz) of water
• Eat a veggie-rich dinner (1 serving of protein, 3 servings of vegetables)
• Practice portion patrol
• Practice mindful eating
• Do 10 minutes of HIIT exercise

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