Diet Pro is software that I have purchased and use on my computer. I’ve been using it or its downscaled version, Living Cookbook, for some time now. It was a great tool when I was doing Weight Watchers since it could calculate the points of just about any recipe. I have quite a collection of recipes in it that I have gathered over the years. It’s more secure than a web site since you never know when a web site might decide not to be there anymore. Plus, there’s no monthly fee to pay like on some web sites. You can find out more about DietPro here: http://www.dietpro.net/
October 2007Monthly Archives
A meal at a time
We often think of doing things a day at a time; but when it comes to weight loss, sometimes it helps to think more of a MEAL at a time. So you blew a meal? It doesn’t have to be the whole day or the whole week or the whole diet. Just get right back on track at the very next next meal. We can do this!
The Weight Watchers Points formula
Someone asked about the Weight Watchers Points formula. The following can be found here.
The actual Weight Watchers Points formula used in the Weight Watchers Points calculator is currently under strict US Patent laws. The formula is shown below:
Where:
p = Points
c = Calories
f = Fat Grams
r = Dietary fiber Grams
(Note: min{r, 4} equals the number of grams of dietary fiber or 4, whichever is smaller. In other words, only the first 4 grams of fiber “count.”)
[Edit: The above is the old formula. Weight Watchers has since developed a new formula.]
A little obsessive calculating
I was wondering why the stats for my menus varied so much from day to day, so I decided to get the stats for the NutriSystem foods and rank them by effective carbohydrates. The stats came from the item listings in the shopping section of the NutriSystem site. NutriSystem foods are NOT created equal! From the looks of it, what you choose for the day could make the difference of a half pound or more a week. Knowing what to choose might be what you need to get past a plateau. Well, let me put it this way: the difference between the highest and lowest item (minus the ones requiring roll or crackers) on each list is about 100. This means that the difference between choosing lowest calorie items and highest calorie items is 400 calories in a day. Multiply that by 7 days and you’ve got a difference of 2,800 calories. That’s 0.8 (4/5) of a pound.
If you have Microsoft Excel, you can check out the spreadsheet version and sort the information how you want. Otherwise, you can look at the PDF version and see the stats sorted by effective carbohydrates.
[Edit: Linked files contain updated information.]
Nutrition bomb lurking at your mall
I do trailer checks in the movie theater at the mall on Fridays. Right next to the theater is a Cinnabon, and I’ve had a thing for their Pecanbon rolls. Have you ever checked out the stats on Cinnabon’s Pecanbon roll? Yowser! Fortunately, I didn’t enjoy it so much the last time, so the desire has been greatly lessened.
CINNABON, Pecanbon roll
Nutrition (per roll): 1100.0 calories; 46% calories from fat; 56.0g total fat; 63.0mg cholesterol; 600.0mg sodium; 141.0g carbohydrates; 8.0g fiber; 47.0g sugar; 133.0g net carbs; 6.0g protein; 25.9 points.
A day of NutriSystem
This is what my plan for the day looks like. I was rather surprised that it came out as high as 1365 calories.
Breakfast
NUTRISYSTEM Scrambled Eggs with Cheddar Cheese (1 x 1 container)
Strawberries (1 1/4 cups)
Nonfat plain yogurt (1 cup)
Lunch
NUTRISYSTEM Italian Minestrone Soup with Beef (1 x 1 container)
Nonfat milk (1 cup)
Mixed greens (1 cup)
365 ORGANIC, Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing, Fat Free (2 Tbs)
Afternoon Snack
Apples (1 ea)
Mozzarella (1 stick)
Dinner
NUTRISYSTEM Mashed Potatoes with Meatloaf and Tomato Sauce (1 x 1 container)
Broccoli (1 x 1/2 cup, chopped)
Green snap beans (1/2 cup)
Valencia oranges (1 ea)
Sunflower seed kernels (1 Tbs)
Evening Snack
NUTRISYSTEM Chocolate Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Biscotti (1 piece)
Calories 1365.64
Calories From Fat (23%) 319.72
Calories From Protein (28%) 379.73
Calories From Carbs (49%) 666.19
Total Fat 36.81g 57%
Carbohydrates 176.22g 59%
Dietary Fiber 29.73g 119%
Sugar 45.64g
Protein 97.86g 196%
Why I’m trying NutriSystem
I got into NutriSystem because I wanted something simple. If I wanted to worry about the details, I would have done it on my own. I have found that I don’t do well on my own. The package programs work best for me. It doesn’t really matter which package program so long as I follow it. I’ve had the best history of following NutriSystem, so here I am again.
I actually started my current weight loss push a year ago on Medifast. It worked well while I was on it, but it got boring. Previous to that, I’ve done Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, and NutriSystem back when they operated in store fronts. The only one on which I actually got all the way down to goal was NutriSystem, so I thought I’d give it a try again. So, I’m going in knowing that IT WORKS!