March is National Nutrition month
Rhonda Gordon
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
How’s that New Year’s resolution going? It’s been about 60 days since the first of the year.
Many of us made the resolution to lose weight. Many of us have probably already given up and gone back to old habits. Well now is the time to reevaluate.
March is National Nutrition Month. National Nutrition Month is an annual nutrition education and information campaign created by the American Dietetic Association. The campaign focuses attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits.
Registered Dietitian Day, also celebrated in March, increases awareness of registered dietitians as the indispensable providers of food and nutrition services and recognizes Registered Dietitians for their commitment to helping people enjoy healthy lives.
So this gives us time to get back on track with our weight-loss and fitness programs. March gives us time to join the eight-week fitness challenge called Walk Kansas.
Walk Kansas kick-off party is March 10 at the Lyon County Fairgrounds. If you haven’t gotten your team of six together, now is the time to get that done. We are still taking team registration but time is running out — this is the last week.
Along with Walk Kansas, we can focus on eating our fruits and vegetables and whole grains. If we cut 100 calories a day we will lose 10 pounds in a year. It doesn’t sound like a lot but many of us would love to lose that last or first 10 pounds.
We can get back to the basics like serving sizes. Do you know what the proper serving size of meat is? How about your favorite fruit or vegetable? Are you getting the three servings of dairy products adults need?
According to Mypyramid guidelines produced by the United States Department of Agriculture, we need the following servings per day:
F From the grains groups we need 6 ounces a day. Half of our grains should be whole grains. Whole grains include popcorn, 100 percent whole wheat bread, and brown rice, just to name a few.
F Vegetables we should get 2 1/2 cups a day. We should strive to eat vegetables of many different colors. Don’t get stuck in a rut with your favorites.
F Fruits we should have 2 cups a day. Just like the vegetables we should have fruits of many different colors. You will never find a new favorite food if you don’t try something new.
F We all need a little fat/oil in our diet.
F Dairy we should have three servings a day. This would include lowfat milk, cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese. Do you know the serving sizes of each of these? You might be surprised. One cup (8 ounces) of lowfat milk, 1 cup of yogurt, 1 1/2 ounces of cheese, 2 cups of lowfat cottage cheese. That is a wide range in serving size.
F Meat and beans we need 5 1/2 ounces a day. A serving size is 3 ounces, which is the size of your palm or a deck of cards.
We all need 150 minutes of exercise a week. You don’t have to spend all 150 minutes consecutively in the gym. You can break up the time and spend 20 minutes walking on your lunch hour. Twenty minutes a day during our lunch hour would equal 100 minutes for the week. You are well on your way to getting the 150 minutes recommended.
A 30-minute walk after dinner is another place to look. Take the children and dog for a short walk after dinner that would help the whole family be more active and reach the goal of 150 minutes of activity a week. It will help us all sleep better at night.
Have you noticed on Mypyramid both the kids and adults have steps on the side of the pyramid. That is to remind us that being active is just as important as good nutrition.
So now is the time to get back on track with those New Year’s resolutions, or to make a new commitment to being healthy. Join Walk Kansas and use March as National Nutrition Month to focus on eating healthier. Make a pledge to have at least one meal a day follow Mypyramid. As always, if you have questions please call me or stop in at the extension office. I hope we all have the chance to get out and enjoy the warmer weather that is just around the corner.
F Rhonda Gordon is the Family and Consumer Sciences agent for K-State Research and Extension in Lyon County. For more information on this column, nutrition, food safety, parenting, financial management, health and safety e-mail Rhonda at rgordon@ksu.edu call the Lyon County Extension Office at 341-3220.