This is not a club you have to join but a cyber place to come where you can dish with others about weight issues that are on your mind. Where is it? You’ll see the link at the WDBO.com Nutrition & Health Center or just go directly to the Cyber Weight Loss Club page.

Speaking of someone who has heard the magical words, “have you lost weight?” joining me in the studio on this week’s podcast is WDBO’s Program Director Steve Holbrook. If you’re a regular listener you know that Steve was my guest on three podcasts last year as we followed his weight loss journey beginning about March 2009. To recap, Steve heard me discuss the research on protein and weight loss during my radio segment and he took it on as his personal weight challenge. Steve is the perfect example of a super busy guy who made a personal decision to change his eating habits, weight and health regardless of his crazy schedule…. which he knew wasn’t going to change.

By the way, you can see Steve’s before and after pictures which he has posted at the Cyber Weight Loss Club and if you want to ask him a question about his weight loss success, you can also do that at the Cyber Weight Loss Club. Remember, the Cyber Weight Loss Club is a forum for you….to help you stay on track, get accurate information and encouragement and succeed with your weight loss goals.

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Leading the way is Darden Restaurants headquartered in Orlando. You may not know that name but I bet you know your favorite restaurant under their umbrella including Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze, The Capital Grille and LongHorn Steakhouse. Just recently Darden opened their new 469,000 square-foot corporate restaurant support center. Designed to achieve Gold certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (known as LEED) from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC), it will be the largest LEED Gold new construction building in Florida. I had the opportunity to chat with Rich Jeffers, Director, Media Relations & External Communications. He shared with me that Darden’s commitment to sustainability is seen in the many sustainable design and construction elements found in its new home.

• More than 90 percent of the waste generated from construction was recycled.
• The facility has an automatic lighting system that dims or brightens according to the amount of sunlight entering the building which helps reduce energy consumption.
• There is increased use of natural light which we have a lot of here in Orlando made possible by a 114,000 square-foot glass curtainwall exterior.

Besides being an ecofriendly facility, from an employee health perspective, the Darden café offers 1300 employees daily healthful selections along with break rooms throughout the facility stocked with fresh fruit and nutritious snacks. With a ½ mile walking trail, business meetings can truly be taken outside. Plus, and this is one of my favorite design features, nine extra wide staircases encourage movement which ultimately may help improve productivity.

I asked Rich if these same green and healthier living parameters carry over into their restaurants. All of Darden restaurants have ‘green teams’ whose mission is to find energy conservation opportunities within each facility.

I also wanted to know answers to the questions you ask me. If you want healthier options, are they available in each restaurant? How are the healthier options designated on the menu? Can you look at the menu online before you head to your favorite restaurant?

Although sustainability may be new on the menu, meeting the diverse palate and dietary needs of customers is not. Menu options abound. Let’ talk about restaurant options plus some smart tips for dining out during the holidays and anytime.

1. I’m starting with dessert first since you know I’m a chocolate lover. Share a dessert…you share the calories and still enjoy the treat without feeling deprived.
2. Seafood is very popular and healthy. Order your selection poached, steamed, broiled or grilled (without butter) or blackened. You won’t miss the butter for the spice profile negates the need for it. Heading to Red Lobster? They offer a fresh selection of fish that can be wood-grilled and prepared to your liking. Also check out the LightHouse menu at RedLobster.com with selections less than 500 calories and 750mg of sodium.
3. Want shellfish? Try cocktail sauce instead of melted butter for dipping. Big calorie saver with lots of flavor.
4. If you have a choice, opt for the smaller portion size. You save many calories and still have the item you want. When you order a regular portion size, also ask for a to-go container right then. When your order arrives, put half of it in the to-go container. Why? Because typically the portion size is way more than you need and if you don’t cut it in half then, guess what, you’ll eat it…right? This is my favorite trick.
5. Don’t forget to ask for all of your sauces on the side so you control the amount used. This includes salad dressing, mayo and butter. If you have a hard time controlling the amount of salad dressing you pour on the salad, try dipping the tines of your fork into the salad dressing and then into your greens. It lowers the amount used significantly. Going to Olive Garden?  Take a look at the Garden Fare menu which has a range of dishes from low fat to gluten free or no sugar added.
6. Breading, frying and cream sauces add calories to your backside so less is more when it comes to healthy selections. Meeting at Seasons 52? All of the menu items contain 475 calories or less.

You can tell that I’m a big fan of reviewing menus online. Why? Because many of you have told me that you love to eat out but have high blood pressure, high cholesterol or need gluten-free choices. Checking the menu before you go puts you in control of your health and what you eat. You make decisions based on what’s right for you.

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Depending on your age, sex and what may be going on in your life health wise, your diet and health needs may vary.  Let’s take kids from ages two to five. When it comes to eating good foods such as fruits and vegetables….this is a tough crowd.  Wouldn’t it be great if cheesy puffs were a major food group? Here’s a way you can personalize the diet for your preschooler. Log on to MyPyramid.gov and you will see a link to MyPyramid Plan for Preschoolers. You can plug in your child’s name, gender, age and daily amount of physical activity and receive a personalized recommended diet. Terri, my publicist, used the tool to make a personalized plan for her five year old daughter. The plan is colorful, your child’s name is on it and the plan tells you the amount of each food group to consume daily. Kids require smaller portion sizes yet often eat the same amount as adults. Plus, you can click on each food group, say grains for example, and find out serving sizes and foods within that group which are smart choices. Then print out the plan for your child and post it where he or she can see it. It’s a great teaching tool and kids love that their name is on it.

If you’re having trouble getting your kids to eat a certain vegetable or fruit, try another one. Take them with you to the grocery store and let them play an active part picking the food. Introduce one fruit or veggie a week. When it comes to fruits and veggies, there are so many colors, textures and shapes. Terri told me that in her daughter’s preschool, the class would pick a fruit or veggie every week. They would talk about the color, shape and texture of the fruit and whether it was salty, sour or sweet. Then there was the taste test. It usually corresponded with whatever letter they were learning about that week such as A for Apple. You can do this at home. The MyPyramid.gov site has creative resources to help you build strong eating habits from a very young age.

Okay, I think we covered the toughest crowd. Another group with specific nutrition needs is moms-to-be.  If you are in this group, there is also a MyPyramid for you. Plug in your age, weight, height, due date and daily exercise and you will receive a recommended diet for each trimester along with guidance on how to choose the healthiest foods. Your doctor may also prescribe a pre-natal vitamin or mineral supplement in addition to eating a healthy diet.

Moms-to-be, you have several nutrients personalized for your diet including iron and folic acid. Remember that the nutrient folic acid helps prevent birth defects of the brain and spinal cord.  You can find folate (the form of folic acid in food) in vegetables such as spinach, turnip greens and fresh beans or peas, fortified breakfast cereals and orange juice. Iron helps in the formation of hemoglobin and carries oxygen to the tissues and organs of the growing baby. The most absorbable form of iron, called heme iron, is found in red meat. Other food sources of iron include beans, spinach, and fortified cereals (fortified means added to the product). Here’s a tip for you. Be sure and include a food source of vitamin C such as fruit with your food containing iron. Vitamin C partners with iron to increase its absorption in the body.

OK seniors, listen up. As we all age, our bodies have different needs. Researchers at Tufts University came out with a Modified Pyramid for older Adults in 2007. This pyramid continues to emphasize nutrient-dense food choices and the importance of getting plenty of water. It also adds foods that are especially important for older adults. These foods are rich in often deficient nutrients including calcium, vitamin D and vitamin B12.  Did you know that it’s more difficult to absorb vitamin B12 as you age?  Vitamin B12 is found in animal foods only and as absorption decreases, supplements are often needed.

Current research has shown that people of all ages have low blood levels of vitamin D. Many doctors are now checking B12 and vitamin D blood levels during routine lab tests. Dairy sources, fortified soy milk, and calcium fortified foods such as orange juice and cereal are easy ways to add calcium to the diet. Vitamin D is found in few food sources among them salmon, tuna, cheese and egg yolks and fortified foods (vitamin D is added to the food). Additionally supplements are often recommended. Be sure and discuss your need for B12, calcium and vitamin D at your next visit with your health care professional.

Be sure and check out mypyramid.gov and personalize your diet. Another site with nutrition information, tips, recipes, resources, videos and more is the University of Nebraska-Lincoln extension services for Lancaster County. Both of these websites contain extensive information written in user-friendly language to help you get started with links to other resources as well.

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