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Tuesday, May 13, 2003; 1 p.m. ET

Welcome to The Lean Plate Club, hosted by Washington Post health and nutrition writer Sally Squires. On Tuesdays at 1 p.m. ET, Sally leads a discussion for people who want to eat healthier, move around more and otherwise get better but not bigger. We're not about fad diets or crash weight-loss plans; we're about eating wisely and living healthy for the long haul.

We want to hear from you -- your tips, strategies, meal plans, successes, warnings, setbacks and more. Of course Sally will be happy to answer questions, and turn others over to the Club. None of this, of course, is a substitute for medical advice.

Health section editor Craig Stoltz will join Sally sometimes. Stoltz has none of Sally's impressive credentials but labors under a decade-long medical directive to control his weight and eat wisely, takes a statin to lower his blood cholesterol and keeps track of everything he eats on a Palm handheld computer, a fact most of his acquaintances no longer find interesting.

Sign up for the free Lean Plate Club e-mail newsletter.

A transcript follows.

Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.

Sally Squires: Welcome everybody to the Lean Plate Club! We've already got a number of questions so I want to get right to the web chat, but first there are just a couple of brief housekeeping messages.

In today's newsletter, there are two links that may not work due to some computer quirks, no need to bore you with the details. But in case you have a problem, here are the full links again to find farmer's markets: http://www.ams.usda.gov/farmersmarkets/

and for coupons to use at those farmer's markets (for seniors and low income families):

http://www.ams.usda.gov/farmersmarkets/facts.htm

By the way, please let me know if you don't receive your Lean Plate Club newsletter--they generally are sent out on mid-day Tuesdays. You can e-mail me at leanplateclub@washpost.com (and please put "trouble subscribing" in the subject line.) And if you'd like to subscribe to the free electronic newsletter, sign-up at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/email/front.htm

This week, the give-aways are:

Ten Minute Workouts by Chrissie Gallagher-Mundy (Cassell Ilustrated; $14.95)

Sound Mind, Sound Body: Ultimate Six Week Fitness Transformation for Men and Women by David Kirsch (Rodale; $27.95)

Ten Minute Anti-Ageing (They're British, so yes that is the correct spelling) by Erica Brealey (Cassell Illustrated; $14.95)

Beginner's Guide to Power Walking by Janice Meakin (Barron's; $12.95)


As always, our offering does not endorse any book or exercise or weight loss program. This is merely a way to show you the wide range of information available as you seek to instill healthy eating and execise habits.

For those of you new to the Lean Plate Club, here's the deal: tell us about a new healthy food find. Share a great tasting healthy recipe. Tell us how you've managed to incorporate more physical activity into your life. Or, spill the beans on how you managed to recover from a slip and get back on track with healthy habits, and yes, one of these volumes could be yours. Winners are announced at the end of each chat.

By the way, there's a new report out today from the Centers for Disease Control about how Americans are still falling short on---drum roll please--getting enough physical activity.

Now onto the chat!

Baltimore, Md.: Hi Sally, enjoyed your column about METs this morning.
Something I've noticed (because I used to have these feelings myself) is that many folks don't want to exercise because they are so out of shape that they are unable to sustain high intensity for more than 5 minutes. There's a sense of failure and often embarrassment in not being able to take a mile jog or stay on a machine at the gym for half an hour.
People new to working out should remember that they need to gradually build up their stamina and endurance, and that they shouldn't expect to run a marathon their first day out on the track.
I've found that www.coolrunning.com is a great resource for folks who think they'd like to run but are very out of shape or have never run before. The site has tons of training tips for new runners, including this great plan called "The couch potato to 5k" program. I highly recommend it; I used the CP to 5k plan and will be running in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure next month.

washingtonpost.com: Lean Plate Club: Upping Exercise Intensity (Post, May 13)

Sally Squires: Very good point, Baltimore. Hey,good luck with the upcoming race. That coolrunning.com site sounds great. Here's another one from the American Running Association. They've got a 12-week walk, run program. I'll post the link in a minute. Also you can reach them at 1-800-776-2732 or via snail smail at 4405 East West Highway, Suite 405, Bethesda, Md. 20814 . We'll post the link.

California: Hi Sally,
I am really making an effort to eat at least 5 servings fruit/veggies per day. But I am confused about the serving sizes for fruits and veggies listed on the 5 a day website. It lists a serving as 1 medium sized fruit or 1/2 cup of fresh fruit or veggies. But if I were to cut up a medium sized apple or banana, I would definitely have more than 1/2 cup of fruit -- can you please explain how each of these would be one serving?
Thanks!
Keep up the good work!

Sally Squires: Hey California. Yes, it can indeed be confusing. I have a call into the Five A Day folks to help explain this, but let me take a crack at in case they don't respond soon.

The guidelines say that for fruit, a serving is either: 1 medium apple, banana, orange or pear OR 1/2 cup of chopped, cooked OR canned fruit or 6 ounces of fruit juice. One quarter cup of dried fruit also counts as a serving.

For vegetables, it's 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables, such as lettuce or spinach or 1/2 cup of cooked or raw vegetables (broccoli, peas, etc.) or 6 ounces of vegetable juice (such as tomato juice or V-8.)

Since fruit is growing in size just like our the rest of our portions, you may indeed find plenty of fruit out there that is either medium, large or extra large. I've seen some bananas that probably come close to being three servings.

But there's a silver lining to all this: if you're going to underestimate servings sizes, fruit and vegetables are certainly the types of food to do that with compared to a lot of other things that we eat.

Silver Spring, Md.: Omega-3 fats are in fish...so should I be eating tuna in oil instead of tuna in water?

washingtonpost.com: Lean Plate Club: Know Thy Fishmonger (Post, April 29)

Sally Squires: Hi Silver Spring: It all depends on what kind of oil. Some oils have higher omega 3 levels than others. A lot of oil-packed tuna is in olive oil which has low to moderate levels of omega 3's. What is great, however, is the taste of the oil packed tuna. If you drain it and pat it dry, you don't get that much oil and it's often so flavorful that you don't need to add mayo. Bottom line is that both types of tuna have good amounts of omega 3's.

washingtonpost.com: American Running Association's Run/Walk Program

Yarmouth, Maine: I find that several vegetables (rutabagas, wax beans, beets) that I eat are not listed in the three "fruit and vegetable rainbow" lists that I have seen (including the LPC one). Are there any other sources of this information that I might check out?

Sally Squires: Hi Yarmouth: Yes, indeed, there's plenty of info on some of these very vegetables at the U.S.D.A. website. Here's the nutritional breakdown on one up of raw beets. (You can find more on cooked beets there.) They have 58 calories per cup. (The full data is included below.) Rutabagas have 66 calories per cup (cubed) about 90 calories per cup mashed. I couldn't find wax beans, but I'm guessing that they'd be pretty close to green beans.




Beets, raw
Scientific Name: Beta vulgaris
NDB No: 11080 Nutrient Units 1 cup
-------
136 g
Proximates
Water g 119.109
Energy kcal 58.480
Energy kj 244.800
Protein g 2.190
Total lipid (fat) g 0.231
Ash g 1.469
Carbohydrate, by difference g 13.002
Fiber, total dietary g 3.808
Minerals
Calcium, Ca mg 21.760
Iron, Fe mg 1.088
Magnesium, Mg mg 31.280
Phosphorus, P mg 54.400
Potassium, K mg 442.000
Sodium, Na mg 106.080
Zinc, Zn mg 0.476
Copper, Cu mg 0.102
Manganese, Mn mg 0.447
Selenium, Se mcg 0.952
Vitamins
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid mg 6.664
Thiamin mg 0.042
Riboflavin mg 0.054
Niacin mg 0.454
Pantothenic acid mg 0.211
Vitamin B-6 mg 0.091
Folate, total mcg 148.240
Folic acid mcg 0.000
Folate, food mcg 148.240
Folate, DFE mcg_DFE 148.240
Vitamin B-12 mcg 0.000
Vitamin A, IU IU 51.680
Retinol mcg 0.000
Vitamin A, RAE mcg_RAE 2.720
Vitamin E mg_ATE 0.408
Lipids
Fatty acids, total saturated g 0.037
4:0 g 0.000
6:0 g 0.000
8:0 g 0.000
10:0 g 0.000
12:0 g 0.000
14:0 g 0.000
16:0 g 0.035
18:0 g 0.001
Fatty acids, total monounsaturated g 0.045
16:1 undifferentiated g 0.000
18:1 undifferentiated g 0.045
20:1 g 0.000
22:1 undifferentiated g 0.000
Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated g 0.083
18:2 undifferentiated g 0.076
18:3 undifferentiated g 0.007
18:4 g 0.000
20:4 undifferentiated g 0.000
20:5 n-3 g 0.000
22:5 n-3 g 0.000
22:6 n-3 g 0.000
Cholesterol mg 0.000
Phytosterols mg 34.000
Amino acids
Tryptophan g 0.026
Threonine g 0.064
Isoleucine g 0.065
Leucine g 0.092
Lysine g 0.079
Methionine g 0.024
Cystine g 0.026
Phenylalanine g 0.063
Tyrosine g 0.052
Valine g 0.076
Arginine g 0.057
Histidine g 0.029
Alanine g 0.082
Aspartic acid g 0.158
Glutamic acid g 0.582
Glycine g 0.042
Proline g 0.057
Serine g 0.080

USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 15 (August 2002)

Rockville, Md.: I have a great tip for chocolate cravings:

slice and microwave 3-4 Hershey kisses for about 35 sec.

Slice an apple or pear or other favorite fruit. Dip the fruit into the melted chocolate and enjoy!

You won't be making a huge calorie and fat debt. The fruit will leave you satisfied and feeling full. Dipping the fruit will slow down your eating and allow your brain to register the food.

Sally Squires: Oh yum, Rockville. And by the way, I discovered some wonderful mint chocolate UFO's at Trader Joe's. I'll bet you could use those too. This is a creative way to have a chocolate fix and get some good fruit in the process. Thanks!

Rockville, Md: Any ideas how to stop the up and down syndrome? I lost 30 pounds before my wedding 2 years ago, and since then have regained and lost the same 10 pounds 4 times. I've decided I'd just like to lose 5, I obviously can't maintain at the weight I was when I got married. Any ideas how to stop this cycle?

Sally Squires: Hey Rockville: I do indeed. Start with a good look at your daily habits. In other words, what are you doing differently that enables you to regain those 10 pounds? Also, every time you lose weight, you are also losing some muscle mass in addition to fat. Unless you take steps to maintain your muscle mass with weight training, you are regaining more fat which is less metabolically active than muscle. So that means you burn fewer calories. This sets up a vicious cycle that can continue to undermine your efforts--another reason to get some healthy habits you can live with for a long time so that you don't do this up and down syndrome. So look carefully at what you're eating and what activity you're getting every day. Let us know how you do.

Gaithersburg, Md.: Sally,
Now that the farm markets are open, I get in a two-fer.

We normally have a staff meeting that starts at 9:30 on Thursday. The farm market across the street (the church at Fernwood and Democracy in Bethesda) opens at 10.

SO, after staff meeting, a few of us WALK over to the church, get to the produce before it's too picked over, and walk back.
If you include the brain refresh after the meeting, that makes a three-fer!

Sally Squires: It sure is a three-fer, Gaithersburg. Great going! And for those of you looking for farmers markets, check out the links provided above. By buying local produce, you can often save money--another way to stretch food dollars and get good nutrition.

Washington, D.C.: Thanks for all the advice via the Lean Plate Club. I've started using the stairs at work and walking up and down the escalators at Metro (although I'm not at the point yet of being able to walk all the way up some of the really long ones!). And I finally restarted a cardio and weight program 2 weeks ago and am following a balanced low-fat diet of about 1600 cals/day. I've lost 3-4 pounds in two weeks (with about 60 more pounds to go - sigh).

Anyway, I've been trying to cook fish for the first time. I recommend the frozen fish at Trader Joe's - it's cheaper then Fresh Fields and is in convenient portions. I've discovered two simple tasty recipes:

For salmon, mix an equal portion of honey and mustard. Lightly oil a grill pan over medium heat and cook the salmon a few minutes per side (how long depends on the size of the fish). Baste with the sauce near the end of the cooking time - you can add the sauce earlier but it will burn on the pan. If it starts burning badly, I remove the fish from the pan and finish off in the microwave.

For fish like cod, lightly oil a nonstick pan over medium high heat. Add the cod, sprinkle with pepper and lemon and a few minutes per side (how long depends on the size of the fish). When the fish is turned over sprinkle with more pepper and lemon.

I love quick recipes that don't require a lot of measuring and they are both tasty!

Sally Squires: Hi DC: I'm with you on those stairs. I take the elevator when I arrive at work, but try to take the stairs for the rest of the day. Some days I can really log in a lot of steps on the old pedometer. And you can boost intensity by going a little faster on a couple of flights--or taking two at a time sometimes.

The recipes sound great. I've tried the shrimp at Trader Joe's and have some salmon ready to cook in my frozen, although I must admit, I was a little skeptical about eating frozen fish. You're going to inspire me to try it sooner rather than later. Thanks!

Chevy Chase, Md.: Something I've recently come across that is both healthy and delicious - Kale Chips. Simply cut kale across and lay pieces on a very lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake at 375 or so for about 12-15 minutes depending on how crisp you like it. Salt to taste. It is fantastic!

gmbernstein-comcast.net

Sally Squires: Hey Chevy Chase: Wow. This is a new one. Sounds really interesting. Guess I've got one more thing to get at the store today. And I'm assuming that you eat them in place of things like potato or Terra chips?

East Lansing, Mich.: I recently lost about 25 pounds over the course of 10 weeks by reducing my calories, fat, and increasing my intake of fiber (using the Weight Watcher's point system to count) and by increasing my excercise from almost nothing to 5-7 days/week. Lately, I've been feeling incredibly hungry at night, several hours after eating dinner. Do you have any tips on how to avoid the hunger pangs. I'd hate to undo all I went through to lose weight (I'm still watching what I eat and excercising daily.)

Thanks.

Sally Squires: Way to go East Lansing. Congratulations on the hard work and impressive results. Yes, I've got a couple of thoughts on those nightly hunger pangs...

1. What are you eating for dinner? Are you eating enough? Could you add some soup to your nightly meal to help boost volume?

2. Consider a planned healthy snack between bedtime and dinner. A piece of fruit and a half cup of plain yogurt with a few sliced almonds on top is one thought. Aim for around a 100 to 200 calories.

3. How about a walk or a bike ride after dinner? The weather is getting better; the days are getting longer. A stroll might be just the thing to help your hunger pangs.

4. And be sure that you're drinking enough fluids. You might consider adding a glass or two of water with your nightly meal or snack.

Finally, if you're getting a fair amount of exercise--and your weight is stable--you may need a few more calories daily. Just watch the scale carefully to be sure that you don't creep upward.

And let us know what happens!

Baltimore, Md.: Sally,

Quick cooking question - last night my girlfriend and I grilled zucchini and squash by spreading butter, salt, pepper and a little seasoning on them before putting them over the flame. Is there a better (healthier) way to prepare vegetables for grilling other than using butter or oil?

Sally Squires: Hey Baltimore: Don't you love it that we can grill outside again! So many cooking possibilities. A healthy oil--olive, canola, flaxseed--is a little bette choice because it won't give you saturated fat that the butter does. But I suspect that you probably don't slather on a lot anyway, so it's probably not a huge deal either way.

You could also use a vegetable oil spray. Or consider wrapping your vegetables in foil so they won't stick and they place them on the grill.

New York, N.Y.: Hi Sally!
I'd love to be considered for one of the books...

After I took a pay cut at work I had to quit my gym membership and hadn't been doing much exercise-wise in the last month or two. But recently I've been doing a 20-minute aerobics tape immediately when I get home from work and first thing when I wake up. That way I get my 40 minutes in of cardio but never have to get up too early or monopolize my evenings!

I've also found that sleeping in my sports bra and cue-ing up the video before I go to bed make it that much easier to get up and do the workout in the morning... every little bit helps!

Sally Squires: Hey Big Apple: Sounds like a great plan and a wonderful way to make lemonade out of lemons. Way to go!

Springfield, Va.: After having read everything I can find on successful weight loss, I've concluded that the most important thing is keeping motivated when you need to lose weight. In addition to all the tips learned in my weight loss classes and through the Lean Plate Club, I've found that writing motivationals, short messages to myself from my every day life helps. I try to find an inspiring message to keep me going when times get tough. Members of the Lean Plate Club are encourage to read my motivationals at my web site: weightmotivationals.com.

Try writing some yourself. It helps keep you on track. I've lost 75 pounds, but it has been slow. Last year I suffered through a year-long plateau. Writing these motivationals helped me break through the plateau.

Sally Squires: Hi Springfield: And who says that people can't make great changes in their lives? You illustrate exactly what can be done if you're willing to make the commitment and stay the course. Congratulations! Well done.

San Francisco, Calif.: Hi Sally,
I'm writing to ask if you or any other LPCers have tried shape.com's iShape tool. It claims to be, "the online weight-loss program that uses your activities, interests, starting point -- even which foods you like -- to build a personalized fitness and nutrition plan just for you. It's like having a personal trainer and nutritionist, only a lot more affordable." Does anyone have information about it?

Sally Squires: Hey San Francisco: Here goes. Let's see what the members say.

Washington, D.C.: Sally, I love your columns and these chats. I want to submit a tip to your readers - the thing that I have found most essential to losing weight and maintaining my weight loss is having a partner, someone with whom I can talk about the challenges we face and offer each other support. In having someone like that in my life, I am held accountable in a way that wouldn't happen if I was solo in this journey to more healthy and fit. In many ways, you offer people this support - although in a more advisory and less personal way. This person for me is actually my mother. We went to Weight Watchers together and are successfully maintaining but I really think we couldn't have done it without each other and our frenquent phone calls (she is across the country) sharing everything from our failures and successes to new recipes!

Sally Squires: Dear DC: Sounds like you have a wonderful mother. What a great tribute for week that we began by celebrating mother's day. In fact, finding a supportive partner can be very important for success, although some people would rather eat cut glass than announce that they need some help. So it's not for everyone, but it sure does aid a lot of people in taking steps for healthy habits. Congratulations. And it sounds like your mother reared a great daughter!

Washington, D.C.: I'm sure this has been mentioned before, but it is so important to bring healthy snacks with you to work. I try to bring a couple pieces of fruit and a yogurt. Right now at work, my workspace is surrounded by a tub of snack mix and three or four different kinds of cookies - if I didn't have the fruit when the mid-afternoon munchies strike, it could be a very bad thing!

Sally Squires: Hey DC: Yes, it's been mentioned before, but you're absolutely right, it can't be said enough. And it goes not just for snacks but for meals too. If you have enough healthy stuff to reach for when you get busy, stressed, tired or whatever, you can make healthy meals and continue to eat smart. Well done!

Washington, D.C.: Hi there, I wrote a while back about new-found love of smoked salmon. I'd been wasting upwards of $8 for a delicious smoked salmon salad at my favorite french restaurant and decided it would probably be a lot cheaper (and maybe even healthier) if I just made it myself. So here's a suggestion:

Take some of the European mix of prebagged lettuce (which you can find just about anywhere) and mix it with presliced mushrooms. Cut up a small red onion and add that as well. Take about two tablespoons of capers (be careful not to overdo it since capers are extremely potent!), and toss.

Then add about 3 or 4 oz. of smoked salmon (which usually works best in this salad after being sliced in thin strips). Add a homemade vinaigrette made of red wine vinegar and olive oil and you have your basic French smoked salmon salad. The ingredients will set you back at first, but the savings add up if you enjoy salmon as much as I do!

By the way, assuming you're frugal with the olive oil, this salad (which is also quite filling) may only set you back 200-300 calories by my count. Good stuff!

Sally Squires: DC: Sounds like a great plan. Your point about cost is very welltaken. I ate a wonderful lunch yesterday at a K Street restaurant, but it was pretty pricey. Restaurants are great inspirations, however, for those looking for new combinations of food to try at home.

Thanks for the recipe. Sounds really good.

Washington, D.C.: My boyfriend recently found out he has high cholesterol, so as a team, we are trying to eat healthier and stay away from foods with lots of cholesterol (and by eating foods with good cholesterol).

Problem is, he LOVES bacon and sausage. We tried both soy bacon and soy sausage this weekend, and really didn't like either at all. are there any other options? Or, if he really wants to eat bacon or sausage, is it ok to have it once in a while do you think? If so, how often?

thanks!

Sally Squires: Hey DC: Watching high cholesterol food is important, but so is watching intake of saturated fat. You might try other meat substitutes--different brands can taste quite different. There are frozen as well as fresh in grocery stores and Trader Joe's and Whole Foods.

Once in a while may certainly be okay as long as you define ahead of time what the once is a while really is. Also consider, chopping bacon or sausage into very small pieces. that way you can get the flavor with less of the fat.

Cabin John, Md.: I have found an excellent to exercise at work - free! My office building takes up a city block; the hallways form a continuous corridor around a central atrium, along all four sides of the building. I walk briskly around the entire building, twice in a row, at least 3 times a day. I'm indoors, no one notices and I choose a different floor if I get bored.

Sally Squires: Way to go Cabin John! Have you clocked how far it is?

Bethesda, Md.: I'd like to reiterate what Baltimore is saying. I don't want others to see me excercising while I start in on what will be a long road. I am using some Leslie Sansone walking tapes. You really do work up quite a sweat, right in your own living room. I can feel the difference after just a few weeks of using them. But any tape will do. I feel really lucky to have found these.

Sally Squires: Hey Bethesda: I've heard that she has some good tapes. There are so many different tapes available that you can do virtually any exercise at home now. And no need to pay a lot of money either. Libraries and video stores often have them too. I've bought a number of them used on the web via e-bay and half.com

Best thing about using tapes at home is that you can do them at any time and you never have to worry about getting the best spot in class.

Boise, Idaho: When I work out I tend to get really thirsty and drink too much until I feel sick. Anybody know how to help this? Thank You.

Sally Squires: Hey Boise: Consider drinking more fluids in the couple of hours BEFORE you exercise so you begin well-hydrated. Can you drink a little water during your workouts too? And then try going slowly after your workouts as you rehydrate. You might also try eating something slightly salty a couple of hours before your workout to help retain fluids. Hope that helps. Let us know if you see a difference.

Dupont Circle Washington, D.C.: I have metabolism questions: I've had doctors run tests and I know I don't have any medical problems, but it feels like I still have to eat less and exercise more than the average person to maintain a healthy weight. I'm only 24; what happens as I get older and my metabolism slows down further? I have images of having to run marathons at age 60 on 500 calories to not become overweight!

Sally Squires: That's a scary thought, Dupont, although I have interviewed some amazing seniors who are also marathog runners. But they run because they really enjoy it.

Consider weight training which can help build some muscle and also boosts metabolism for about 24 hours after you do it, (even if you don't build a huge amount of muscle.) And you might also carefully measure and track what you're eating for about a week plus your activity level. Don't make any changes, just log what you're doing and see if your impression is correct.

Reading, Mass.: Hi Sally -
I'm wondering if you or any readers have any experience with this...I started seeing a nutritionist last spring, have been doing The Firm workouts since last July and joined Weight Watchers in November, 23 weeks ago. Since November I've only lost 8 pounds, although I've lost a lot of inches. I'm not sure how much I lost pre-WW, because I was afraid to step on the scale and the nutritionist wanted me to focus on eating correctly not the numbers. I'm wondering if anyone has experience with regular workouts using weights (4x/week) and experiencing very slow weight loss. Any suggestions on speeding things up? Many thanks to the reader who recommended the motivations while on a plateau!

Sally Squires: Hey Reading: This very topic came up in an interview that I did recently with Dr. Tracey Sbrocco, a researcher at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda. This is apparently not uncommon especially among overweight women who may have had a number of diet attempts. Have you measured your percent body fat? That would be another way to show improvement that may not be quite so evidenct on the bathroom scale. And it sounds like you have achieved some important changes in body composition.

Hang in there. Keep doing what you're doing. Body composition and fitness are important too. It's not just the number on the scale that counts although I know it's nice to see it move downward.

Washington, D.C.: After this cold and dreary winter, I realized I'd been eating too much during the day and exercising too little. So I decided to implement a reward system: I walk briskly on Monday through Thursday for 30 minutes in the morning (I've been skipping the bus and walking straight to the Metro station) and again for 60 minutes on my lunch hour. I also bring a healthy breakfast, lunch and a couple snacks with me to eat during the workday, so that I'm not tempted by fast-food lunches and the cookies and pastries people are always bringing into the office. Then, on Friday, I dress up and take myself out to a really nice lunch at an upscale restaurant. I don't restrict what I eat at the lunch, but I do savor every bite as a real treat instead of the empty calorie foods I used to eat all day long.

As a result, I have plenty of energy to get through my workday and do things around the house in the evening - before I started this program, I wanted to sleep through most of my afternoons, and collapsed on the couch as soon as I got home from work. And as an added benefit, I'm actually spending less money - one great lunch a week costs less than five mediocre ones! Although exercise on the weekend wasn't a part of my original plan, I'm also finding that I want to take a walk on the weekend days. If the weather doesn't permit walking outside, I do an exercise video for an equivalent amount of time.

To those having trouble motivating themselves to exercise - I highly recommend a similar sort of reward system!

Sally Squires: Hey DC: I'm so glad that you mentioned rewards. It's something that often gets overlooked and it is indeed very important. The trick here, of course, is to set achievable goals and good rewards that you don't give yourself if you don't make those goals. Sounds like you're on to a winning combination. Thanks!

Annapolis, Md.: Thanks for taking my question.

My diet is not that bad. I eat fruit from breakfast, canned corn for lunch, then some kind of grain - usually white rice and beans for dinner. A bowl of Special K w/ skim milk for snack. Boring but I kind of like it.

I'm 48, 210 lbs.

My cholesterol is 228/60. Any ideas why my bad cholesterol is so high.

Thanks.

Sally Squires: Hey Annapolis: It could be due to a number of things, including genetics. You don't mention your height, so it's hard to know whether you're at a healthy body weight. While you're certainly taking some good steps, it sounds like there may be room for more improvement. You also don't mention your exercise routine. You could find out more about your risk at www.nhlbi.nih.gov.

And do keep in contact with your physician about that cholesterol level.

Derwood, Md.: I love to snack on black or refried beans with a tiny bit of cheddar in a flour or corn tortilla? Should I be worried about the fat and carbs? Would corn be a better choice over flour?

Sally Squires: Derwood: Beans are a great idea for a snack. Check the refried beans however to be sure that they don't contain a lot of lard or other fat. As for that cheddar, try it grated and you can make it go farther with fewer calories and fat. As for flour, corn or even whole wheat--it all depends on what else you're eating. Corn and whole wheat will give you more flour. Check the nutrition labels, however, to be sure that they're not loaded with lard or other fat. Flour is okay too. I tried a great tortilla last night with jalapeno and cilantro from Trader Joe's.

Chicago, Ill.: Getting movin! One way that I get moving is by climbing every work day 2-3Xs a day to the seventh floor of our office building. That way I sneak in 5 minutes here or there without feeling like I haven't moved all day. Plus the added bonuses is my thighs look better!

Sally Squires: There you go, Chicago. A great idea from the windy city! Thanks!

Washington, D.C.: Sorry I can't join you live, but I hope you can help. My husband has finally decided to shed a little excess weight, but he knows nothing about nutrition, and I'm not always with him. Can you recommend some good introductory materials?
Thanks for your help.

Sally Squires: Hey DC: The American Dietetics Association publishes the Complete Food and Nutrition Guide. Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition has a lot of useful information (plus it may help him get moving too.) The USDA Dietary Guidelines are quite helpful and are free and on-line at www.usda.gov and check the Lean Plate Club archives for a lot of other useful links. Let us know how he does.

Sally Squires: We're out of time folks. Thanks for a great chat and some wonderful recipes and inspirational tips. The winners this week are DC for the rewards, New York for the exercise strategies, Springfield and DC for the salmon recipes. Thanks to all. If you're a winner, please e-mail me your snail mail address and please put winner in the subject line.

Watch for some new guidelines coming out this week related to blood pressure. And remember: don't diet, eat smart and move more.

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