“After the holidays” has arrived, combined with the end of the war, which means - A perfect time to start a weight loss process, supposedly without excuses and without obstacles.
If you gained weight in the past month, it is important to know that not all of it is fat. Part of it (perhaps even a large part) is fluids, which theoretically may go down on their own in the coming days. And for anyone who wants to start a process tomorrow - It is worth paying attention to a few small things that can prevent the desired result.
Many times we are sure we are doing “everything right”: Choosing a salad, ordering a health sandwich or drinking a green smoothie - And are surprised that the weight does not move. Here are 7 mistakes that sound completely innocent, but can add hundreds of hidden calories to your menu.
“Health sandwich” at a café
It is very important to pay attention that a store-bought sandwich is not at all similar in its nutritional value to a sandwich we prepare at home. A purchased sandwich can reach 500 calories or more, even if it is explicitly written that it is made from “light” bread. Just for comparison - This is like 5 sandwiches made from real light bread prepared at home.
Where do the calories in such a sandwich come from? The bread - “Light” bread in cafés is not really light. One slice sometimes weighs double a homemade slice, with 100–120 calories per slice, compared to 40 in regular light bread. The spreads - Sometimes high in fat and calories.
Half a purchased sandwich is calorically equivalent to a full lunch. Meaning it should be on the menu instead of a meal and not instead of a snack.
Café latte at a café
A drink that may sound innocent, but contains at least 140 calories, which is like a sandwich from light pita with cheese, or instead of a snack (for example a chocolate chip cookie).
Where do the calories come from? In most cafés, the latte contains a full cup of 3% milk (100 grams of milk contain 60 calories).
If you are already treating yourself to a latte at a café, you can ask for a latte based on water, with a little 1% frothed milk, and then such a coffee is not instead of the cookie, but in addition.
Smoothie in the morning
A smoothie sounds like a healthy start to the day, and that is true, but sometimes it is loaded with calories just like a full lunch.
A “health” smoothie that includes fruit, a date, green vegetables, a tablespoon of raw tahini, yogurt and a teaspoon of silan - Easily reaches 500 calories, which is like 5 sandwiches from 10 slices of light bread.
There is a way to prepare a smoothie that is both tasty and suitable for a diet - With the right balance between ingredients and the type of smoothie, for example - Half a banana, one date, a little soy/almond milk and the rest water, a teaspoon of raw tahini, vanilla extract.
Muesli
Yogurt with fruit and granola is perhaps a classic healthy breakfast, but when the muesli includes 3 tablespoons of granola, a fruit salad and a tablespoon of honey, it is already a full meal: It is equivalent to three sandwiches from light bread (6 slices!).
A measured diet version: 0% fat yogurt + one tablespoon of granola + only half a fruit, for garnish half a teaspoon of coconut flakes. This combination is tasty, filling - And also suitable for maintaining weight.
Rice cakes - The most common mistake
True, one unit of a rice cake has few calories - Usually 20–30 calories. But it is mostly made of air and therefore is not really filling. In 100 grams of rice cakes there are about 380 calories, compared to 200–250 calories in 100 grams of regular bread. Meaning, rice cakes contain twice the calories of bread at the same weight! And that is before adding spreads.
It is better to eat a small sandwich from light bread with a protein spread, than to snack on rice cakes with a spread. The bread will be more filling, and will help maintain control later in the day.
Salad at a restaurant - Healthy? Yes. Diet-friendly? Not necessarily
It sounds perfect: A fresh vegetable salad with bulgur, black lentils, sweet potato, cranberries, grated feta, roasted almonds, silan dressing and olive oil. Tasty, healthy, nutritious - But over 800 calories, and that is before the small bread on the side and the generous spoon of tahini added on top. In practice, this is calorically equivalent to a plate of ravioli in cream sauce.
Where do the calories come from? For example in the salad described above (taken from a well-known café chain):
Sweet potato (half a cup baked) - 100 calories
Addition of lentils/bulgur - 150–200 calories
Cranberries - 1 tablespoon = 60 calories
Grated feta - 80–100 calories for two tablespoons
“Extras” like nuts/almonds - 100–150 calories for two tablespoons
Dressing (silan and olive oil) - 2 tablespoons = 150–200 calories
And that is before counting the vegetables themselves or the bread on the side.
At a restaurant it is better to choose a Greek salad (vegetables with Bulgarian cheese). The difference between 5% and 16% Bulgarian cheese is not high.
Shakshuka at a café
A shakshuka dish in a restaurant or café sounds like a nutritious meal - Vegetables, eggs and tomato paste, but in practice? We are talking about 700–800 calories, not including the bread on the side which adds at least another 200 calories. Total? Around 1,000 calories for breakfast. Which is more than a full falafel portion including the pita and fries. And if you also add tahini, cheese or a hot drink - You can easily exceed 1,200
The solution: Shakshuka at home - From two eggs, crushed tomatoes, spices and one teaspoon of oil - Less than 250 calories.
Pasta in tomato sauce
When ordering pasta at a restaurant, many people choose tomato sauce because it sounds more diet-friendly than cream sauce.
But in practice, tomato sauces in restaurants usually include a lot of olive oil - At least 4 teaspoons per dish, meaning 200 calories just from the oil (a teaspoon = 50 calories).
Cooking cream contains 125 calories per 100 grams, but in an average dish only about 50 grams are used - Meaning less than 70 calories. In the end - From a calorie perspective there is no real difference, and even the opposite.
If you are already at a restaurant and feel like indulging - Choose the sauce you really love - And enjoy the meal. There is no big difference from a dietary perspective.
In conclusion, it is possible to incorporate all the foods on the list even during a diet - But with small changes and the right calculation.
You do not have to give up on taste - Only understand what is really on the plate or in the glass.