It’s a beautiful, sunny day here on Long Island, and after I’m done writing this to you, I’ll be taking the dog out for a walk before heading out for my last couple of sessions of the day. I would take him out now, but the mailman is delivering post to the complex I live in, and let’s just say that my dog is not the mailman’s biggest fan :-/
Now then, how to replace pasta in your diet! One of the most common food groups my clients come to me eating in troves right when we begin working together are grains. Bread, cereal, pasta, rice — You name it! And with the faulty dietary advice we’ve been given here in the States for the past 60 or so years, it’s no wonder so many folks (myself included!) have struggled with their weight in this neck of the woods!!
Modern grains are inflammatory, and lack nutritional value. FYI: If a food product has to be fortified with vitamins and minerals, you should seriously wonder just what REAL nutritional value it truly has ;-)
When my clients start up with me, we nip cravings and poor food choices in the bud with three things:
1) My Food Guide, which reviews the three different phases of nutrition my clients will follow as their program progresses,
2) My Healthy Recipe Book, which provides them with 72 different recipes spanning breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, appetizers and desserts, and finally,
3) Daily accountability via the MyFitnessPal app.
You can have your cake and eat it, too, provided you either find a healthy alternative to a bad food choice, or you make your own cake with healthy ingredients, instead. And while my Recipe Book has a couple of delicious noodle-based dishes, I’ll give you some free advice right here ;-)
When I desperately want pasta but don’t want to crack, I’ll go to the grocery store and buy one of two vegetables: A squash, or a zucchini. There are a bunch of different kinds of squash, and obviously, if you get a spaghetti squash, the preparation process is a little bit different than what I’m about to lay out for more ‘traditional’ squashes.
All you have to do to prepare squash or zucchini noodles is to either buy some pre-packaged, already spiraled squash or zucchini (many stores have this available in the Produce section these days), or you can buy a spiralizer on Amazon, attach the squash or zucchini, and crank the handle. Your vegetable of choice will then be dispensed into a bowl or a plate below in perfect, pasta-like noodles. Next, you have one of two options: 1) You can boil the spiraled squash or zucchini (much you like you would with regular wheat-based pasta), or 2) You can sautée it.
I personally go the sautéed route, as I feel that vegetables are already water-based, and that boiling them can make them pretty mushy. I’ll use either some organic butter, or some avocado oil when sautéing, as these can both be utilized under high heat. Remember, cooking with certain Omega-6 rich oils changes the oil’s chemical composition, which turns it into a trans fat. Trans fat is a man-made, carcinogenic compound that can lead to various forms of cancer, heart disease, and obesity.
Anyway, after boiling or sautéing your noodles, they’re ready to eat in just minutes! Just add whatever meat, sauce, etc. that you intended to, and enjoy!
Hope you found this helpful :-) ’Til tomorrow!
Sincerely,
Pete Weintraub
pete@weightlossbypete.com
P.S. If you feel you need more help on the nutritional side, then you’re definitely going to want to invest in my Food Guide and Healthy Recipe Book!
The Food Guide lays out the three phases of nutrition I use with my Permanent Weight Loss clients. Phase 1 gets you in the habit of making healthier choices, while Phase 2 really cleans up the frequency with which you eat healthier. Phase 3 is a strict macronutrient breakdown that will help expedite the process of weight loss, all while improving your health and making your body a well-oiled machine!
My Healthy Recipe Book includes 72 recipes spanning breakfast,lunch, dinner, snacks, appetizers and desserts. I’m constantly adding to it, but these recipes are easy to make, simple and enable you to have your cake and eat it, too!
Normally, I sell each of these books for $10 a piece, but because I’m feeling generous today, you can get BOTH for just $13.99! :-)
To get your copies, please go to www.weightlossbypete.com/foodguiderecipes.