Hi everybody! I'm just back from vacation, and wrote this guide for healthy eating in the New Year. What have you got to add?

https://www.facebook.com/notes/alices-restaurant/top-10-healthy-eating-tips-for-women-in-2013/448113401921314

TOP 10 HEALTHY EATING TIPS FOR WOMEN IN 2013

No two of us are exactly the same, of course, but if you’re a middle-aged woman of normal stature, decent health, and are relatively sedentary (i.e., you work at working out, but really, not so much), there are a few weight loss and maintenance truisms that can help you get there, stay there, and stop worrying about worrying about it. (Disclaimer: I am an accidental self-ordained expert, having lost 55 pounds and studied like a maniac to figure out how and why. I'm just passing on the learnings that proved most important to me as a 54-year old otherwise healthy woman. If your doctor or nutritionist tells you something else, they absolutely trump my authority.)

Here are my Top 10 nuggets of eating wisdom:

1. Eat an average of 1600-1800 calories per day. The older you get, the less you need. (Here’s a simple calculator: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/calorie-calculator/NU00598) If you are trying to lose weight, eat at a 10-20% cut off that number (but no fewer than 1200 calories per day on average) until you reach your goal. Then go back to your maintenance amount. Note, I said “average.” That means you can eat a couple hundred more one day and a couple hundred less another, so long as at the end of the week, it all balances out to your magic number. This is called “calorie cycling” or “zig-zagging,” and it keeps life interesting.

2. If you exercise a whole-whole lot – like you run 5 miles 3 times a week or swim 100 laps a day or regularly play an energetic sport – eat back 50-75% of the calories you burn (allowing for errors since everything is an educated guess). Here’s a good estimator: http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/cbc. If you exercise “some, but I wouldn’t call it a lot, I mean, I was planning to go do yoga five times last week, then it was raining and there was a train and I had to work late, so I thought about it, but no I didn’t go, but I’m going to week after next after I get back from vacation…” …if that’s you, consider the calories you actually do finally burn through exercise a wash against calories you’ve neglected to count. For instance, if I do manage to get to pilates 2 or 3 times a week and walk the dogs 2 miles on Sunday, I don’t count the calories. I think of them as lagniappe. Really, there are hidden calories everywhere!

3. Divide your calories like this: 40% carbs, 30% fat, 30% protein (those are called “macronutrients” or “macros” and http://myfitnesspal.com’s customized goal settings will help you calculate and track them). Also, and just as importantly, target these micronutrient goals:

Saturated fat: 15g
Cholesterol: 174mg
Sodium: 1500mg
Potassium: 1600mg
Fiber: 30g
Sugars: 31g

Those are ALL the numbers you need to know, and you don't have to memorize them if you use MyFitnessPal -- which, again, is an awesome tracker.

REMINDER: These numbers are for healthy women approaching or beyond 50. If you’re much younger than that, here’s more information: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/healthy-diet/NU00200.

4. Eat “clean” -- no more than 10% processed, white, refined, or fried. Whole, fresh, organic foods are always best, when you have the choice.

5. Eat and cook with full-fat butter, olive oil, coconut oil, cream, mayo, salad dressing, cheese, Greek yogurt, nuts, avocados. You NEED the good fats. Just don’t overdo it. Read your labels. The minute you start down the “low fat” path, you are killing yourself with sodium, sugar, and nutritionally meaningless manufactured ingredients. And always rinse your canned vegetables, especially beans, to get rid of the excess sodium.

6. Get your sugar from whole fruits (not juices unless you juice them yourself). Don’t worry if you go over your sugar allotment if it’s all coming from natural sources. And, no, Tropicana is not a natural source.

7. Get your carbs from vegetables, whole grain breads, oatmeal, brown rice & grains. Limit white potatoes (they’re white, remember?). That also means limiting pasta. Try shirataki noodles instead. I’ve got recipes & tips for those, if you’re interested.

8. Eat as much seafood as you can get your hands on. Poultry & eggs are a good second. Pork is third. Beans & legumes are always good. Eat as little red meat as you can manage. Protein keeps you satisfied longer, and you probably don’t get as much as you need.

9. Don’t eat anything you don’t love. That way you get to eat all that wonderful nutrient-dense stuff listed above.

10. Finally, read my lips: There is absolutely nothing in a fast-food drive-thru that you should be eating unless it’s a yogurt and fresh fruit parfait, and even that is only a stop-gap. Fast-food places use massive quantities of sugar, sodium, lard, and bad-bad-bad oils, not to mention questionable protein sources. YOU WILL NOT STARVE if you have to wait an hour or two to eat. Even if you think you have no food in the house, keep driving, go home, and scramble an egg in a pat of butter or mix up a can of low-sodium (!) tuna with a tablespoon of mayo. And if you don’t want to be tempted by something, don’t buy it or bring it into your home. It’s not rocket science. ;c)

BON APPETIT!