Healthy eating and living can be challenging for everyone, luckily there are tools and resources out there that can help you make these choices easy. Here I am listing some of the tools I use and those that I regularly recommend to my clients to help them stay on track.
Feel free to comment with you own favorite tool that has helped you in eating & living healthy, your suggestions are always welcome!
Weight Monitoring Tools
Weighing Scale
The best way to get started with managing your weight is to track it. I personally use this weighing scale at my office because it measures useful indicators such as: weight, BMI, body fat percentage, skeletal muscle, and visceral fat. All you need to do is add your height, age and gender to generate the results. These values are estimates, use these as a starting point to know your baseline, and monitor progress weekly. Another option is Tanita BF-680W
Body Fat Composition Monitor
Another great tool to have is this hand-held body composition monitor, if you just need to track your body fat percentage without all the other parameters. You will need to input your height, weight, age and gender while holding on to the monitor upright. Make sure to measure and write down your results on day 1 and re-evaluate every few weeks.
Tools for Portion Control
Portioned Plates
These are my favorite things to recommend to any client. This is a divided plate by Corelle, which means you can actually eat off of it, and is microwave safe and dishwasher safe. You can get this plate in 10-1/4 inch size or 8.5 inch size. I’d recommend going for the 8.5 inch ones, because it helps in portion distortion – a way to trick your mind that you have eaten a lot in a tiny plate. I love this and I’m sure you will love it too! Try to make half the plate with veggies, and each quarter for starches and proteins.
Measuring Cup Scoops
The best way to portion control is to start measuring everything with accurate and actual measurements. Get real measured spoons and cups to measure out your foods and ingredients. Go a step further by actually using these scooped measuring cups as serving spoons when serving dishes to your family. Ideal size for most grain and meat portions is 1/2 cup.
Tools for Getting Active
Exercise Ball
I actually use a fitness ball to sit on, regularly. Yes, you can definitely use it for working out, but I find sitting on a fitness ball while watching TV or working at my desk is a passive way to burn some extra calories. You will notice even after a few hours that your back and ab muscles ache. I wouldn’t recommend getting it with the stability case, unless you want to. Maintain your balance and feel the burn.
Fitness Wristband
One of the most handy tools to help you get & stay active is a pedometer / accelerometer. Having a tool that shows you exactly how many steps you took, the distance you walked, the calories you burned, the floors you climbed and the number of minutes you were active – is the best motivator. This wristband also has a continuous, automatic heart rate tracking which tells you the intensity of your workouts, based on heart rate zones (fat burn, cardio and peak). Syncs wirelessly to an app on your mobile device, where you can see your daily, weekly report.
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