Learning about ‘My Plate’

Well, Monday, we had 14 TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) and one KOPS (Keep Off Pounds Sensibly) in attendance. We had a net loss of 5.8 pounds this week. I called our group the Incredible Shrinking Ladies this week!! Donna had the best weight loss 3.5 pounds gone this week. Great job, Donna! The Two Bit Bowl will go for another week! Our Lucky Lotto contest is down to 14 more blocks to fill and our Ladder contest has two ladies tied on the fifth rung. Nine for stickers and the Surprise Box will be opened. Next week all three contests could be won by some lucky members. Our Chapter Challenge this coming week is to “Find a new fruit or vegetable that hasn’t been tried and try it out”.

Our program this week was from our TOPS web page. ‘My Plate’ was the title of our program. Do you know what a serving of fruit looks like or how many cups of vegetable you’re supposed to eat in a day? Let’s be honest, all of the dietary recommendations and guidelines can get very confusing. Fortunately, My Plate aims to keep things simple. Created by the United States Department of Agriculture, My Plate replaced the 20 year old food pyramid of 2011 after the USDA concluded it was too confusing for consumers. The My Plate icon gives us a visual reminder to fill half of our plate with fruits and vegetables, something TOPS has advocated for years. It’s as simple as that. The remainder of the plate should include lean protein and grains—preferably whole grains such as brown rice or wholewheat pasta. Pair your plate with a side of low-fat dairy such as skim milk, and you have a balanced, nutritious meal…and you didn’t even have to do math! One difference you may notice with My Plate is that it doesn’t specifically mention fats the way the old food pyramid did. However, the USDA does address oils and fats on the www.myplate.gov website. Your body actually needs small amounts of ‘essential fatty acids’ to function properly. Most of the fats you eat should be monounsaturated or polyunsaturated. Examples of foods containing healthy fats are nuts, avocados, olives, vegetable oils, and fish. Try to steer clear of trans fats and limit your consumption of all fats and oils since they contain double the calories of other foods.

Next Monday will be our Chapter fun day. We will be learning how to make a variety of Smoothies. We had several ladies volunteer to bring their blenders and ingredients for their favorite smoothies. We meet at First Christian Church, 706 N Wheeler, Sallisaw, Monday at 10 am-12pm. We begin weighing at 10:00am and the meeting starts at 11 am and ends at 12. Membership has increased to $70 a year for first time member, $60 a year for first time renewal member and $48 for second or more renewal members. For more info, please call Billie at 918-413-1383. We look forward to meeting you.