This guest blog comes from Rebecca Scritchfield, MA, RD, ACSM HFS, a Washington, D.C. based dietitian and weight management expert. Together with Bernie Salazar, at-home winner of The Biggest Loser, she co-created “The Nurture Principles” – Five mantras to help people change their lives and find wellness within.

What sounds better, restrictive dieting or nourishing yourself for lasting health? Think about it. There are so many diets out there based on restriction. People diet to get healthier. It’s no wonder “healthy” has a negative connotation. But dieting and health are not synonymous. Healthy eating is all about taste, pleasure, and satisfaction! If this approach is more your speed, learn how you can nurture yourself and manage your weight at the same time. 

First and foremost, you need to be ready for change. It’s important to understand that “nothing changes until you do.” If you want something different, you have to actually do something different. Write down some changes you think you need to make to eat healthier. Then think of one easy (and I mean easy) thing you can do about it.

Here’s an example. Many people order take out because it keeps them from having to cook and grocery shop, which saves them time. Suppose you order a pizza and usually eat 3-4 slices. Here are some simple changes that can make a huge difference:

• Start with a salad and light dressing and after you finish it put one to two slices of pizza on your plate – enjoy every bite!

• Order veggies on your pizza instead of high fat meats.

• Replace the mozzarella on half with feta cheese (if available).

• Make your meal last at least 30 minutes.

If you think you can achieve one or more of these changes, you’ll cut the calories and fat in half!  You’ll also meet your veggie quota for the day.

This is nurturing because you aren’t asking yourself to dramatically change everything at once. Notice, pizza is still on the menu and you’re still saving time. You’re also making a dramatic change with seemingly little effort. Your dinner still tastes good and satisfies you. You simply balanced it out with a salad, healthy substitutions, and portion control. There’s always time to tackle additional changes, which you’ll be more likely to do if you can succeed at easy ones first. Make your list. Choose a change. Do it. It’s that easy – and it’s nurturing!

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Nutrition that Nurtures: Healthy Eating from the Inside Out

I’ve recently taken to making homemade pizza. Sure, it saves a little money as opposed to ordering takeout, but I also have fun kneading the dough and spreading the toppings myself. I’ve yet to graduate to throwing the dough in the air, which could be pretty scary stuff.

I’m not hear to tell you that what I make is the ultimate health food. I try my best to mimic a secret family recipe that has a sweet flakey pie-like crust (it remains under lock and key, no matter how hard we try to pry). But, I’m not so sure it’s altogether unhealthy either. I make it with a super thin crust, and I load it up with tons of mushrooms and chopped green peppers. And I go fairly easy on the cheese. There’s little to complain about.

The problem I face is that since it’s not your usual greasy pizza, and it has such a tasty sweet crust, I have to fight the urge like crazy to overindulge. My advice to you would be to experiment and research low-calorie options. Pizza doesn’t have to be a death knell to your diet.

Here are a few interesting stats on pizza culture in America:

• Americans eat approximately 100 acres of pizza each day, or about 350 slices per second.
• Pizzerias represent 17 percent of all restaurants.
• Pizza is a $30 billion per year industry.
• Pizza accounts for more than 10 percent of all food sales.
• Sixty-seven percent of Americans order pizza for a casual evening with friends.
• Each man, woman and child in America eats an average of 46 slices, or 23 pounds, of pizza a year.

The stats come via the Mayo Clinic website. The article also gives some advice to diabetics who have problems indulging in pizza.

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Pizza Not a Diet Death Sentence

So when it’s time to celebrate your child’s birthday, Chuck E Cheese fares pretty well when it comes to promoting activity. Their games and attractions get kids moving, running around and best of all having fun. But when it comes to their pizza, you can make some wise options or some not-so-wise options.

While pizza has been coined a healthy kind of “junk food,” it can also be a huge nutritional disaster if you order extra cheese, opt for deep dish and double up on high-fat meats.

You can’t go wrong with a slice or two of Chuck E Cheese’s small pie with plain cheese or even pepperoni. One slice of cheese from a small pizza has 155 calories and a slice of pepperoni from a medium-sized pie creeps the calories up a bit further to 263. But the larger your pizza gets, the more calories and fat you’re adding. One slice of a large pizza with pepperoni has almost 300 calories and 10 grams of fat. Add a glass of fruit punch and a slice of birthday cake and that packs on an additional 400 calories. While a 700 calorie meal might be reasonable for a grown adult, for a child, it’s a bit weighty.

Your best bet is to limit pizza toppings to veggies and order a few small or medium pizzas rather than the large ones. Slices are obviously less generous in size with the smaller pies which equates to less calories. Swapping out juices or sodas for water is also an easy save on sugar.

Like most restaurants, Chuck E Cheese has posted their nutritional information on their website. Scope it out before you head out the door and plan ahead what kinds of pizza you want to order and which ones to stay away from.

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Chuck E Cheese is Great for Kids Fitness, Not Nutrition

“Honey, will you turn on the TV and order us a pizza?”

I bet those are words you would have never thought to put together. But now that a deal has been struck between TiVo and Domino’s Pizza, you may hear them soon. This comes from the press release that accompanied the announcement that you will be able to order pizza through your TiVo box:

“We are confident that teaming with TiVo on this novel, easy, and convenient way to order pizza right from the TV will be very well received by our customers,” says Rob Weisberg, vice president of precision and print marketing at Domino’s Pizza.

“This is the first step in the future of customer interactions with the brands they seek to engage with and buy from. This is the first time in history that the ‘on-demand’ generation will be able to fully experience couch commerce by ordering pizza directly through their television set.“

Strike one up for convenience. I’m not going to pretend this is altogether bad. But what’s next? A remote control fork programmed to feed you?

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TiVo and Domino’s Introduce a New TV Dinner