It’s tailgating time people

WELLNESS WEDNESDAY~ SEPTEMBER 26, 2012

…the perfect parking lot party. Nothing says fall like football!  And where there’s football, there is sure to be food. Not just any food, but the kind that you serve from the back bumper on plastic plates. Where the main course includes some sort of meat cooked over an open flame… YUM.   

Our family enjoyed tailgating at the Ball State Game Saturday.  My wonderful husband Steve cooked lean hamburgers while I held down the table goodies in the wind!!  While it may sound like an easy touchdown, there are a few simple tailgating tips that will make your bumper banquet a total success! Here are a few healthier tips from Women’s Health:

Potato Chips

Skip It: Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream
Serving Size: about 11 chips
160 calories (90 from fat)
10 g fat (1.5 g saturated)

Snack It: Slimmer Pick: Baked! Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream
Serving Size: about 11 chips
120 calories (30 from fat)
3.5 g fat (0 g saturated)

A chip here, a chip there, and pretty soon the bag's empty—and your belly’s full of empty calories. For example, the worst bag to devour, Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream, will give you much more than cheesy fingers: One handful packs about 10 grams of fat. Cut calories the easy way by looking for the "Baked!" logo on your favorite snacks. Baked! Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream has about one-third the fat of its greasy friend, none of which is saturated. Remember: That’s not an excuse to eat three times as many chips.

Beer

Skip It: Miller Genuine Draft
Serving Size: 12 fl oz
143 calories
13.1 carbohydrates
4.7% alcohol

Sip It: Slimmer Pick: Miller64
Serving Size: 12 fl oz
64 calories
2.4 g carbohydrates
2.8% alcohol

A not-so-light hit to your waistline, Miller Genuine Draft packs 143 calories per bottle. Plus, with 13.1 carbohydrates, you knock back a few too many brewskis (isn't that what tailgates are for?), you might as well have asked for an extra bun with your hotdog. But Miller64, besides containing only 64 calories (duh), has 2.4 grams of carbohydrates, about a fifth as many as Miller Genuine draft—and about a third as most other light beers. Please drink responsibly!

Ground Beef

Skip It: Ground Beef Patties
Serving Size: 1 patty (150 g)
380 calories
30 g fat (12 g saturated)
105 mg cholesterol

Savor It: Slimmer Pick: Organic Prairie Organic Grass-Fed Ground Beef
Serving Size: 1 patty (113 g)
240 calories
17 g fat (7 g saturated)
60 mg cholesterol

All beef are not created equal. One Ground Beef Patty (no bun, no cheese, no nothing!) will set you back 30 grams of fat—as much as a Big Mac. But rather than going on a fast-food run, try grilling up a leaner patty. With 240 calories and 17 grams of fat per serving, Organic Prairie Organic Grass-Fed Ground Beef is diet and taste-bud friendly. Downtown Farm Stand is a great place to buy this!

Skip It: Chex Mix Sweet 'n Salty Trail Mix
Serving Size: 1/2 cup
150 calories
5 g fat (1.5 g saturated)
24 g carbohydrates

Snack It: Slimmer Pick: Chex Mix Traditional
Serving Size: 1/2 cup
130 calories
4 g fat (1 g saturated)
20 g carbohydrates

Don't let the words "trail mix" fool you. Chex Mix Sweet 'n Salty Trail Mix won’t score you much of anything good. And with only one gram more protein than the lower cal, lower fat, and lower carb Chex Mix Traditional mix, there’s no reason to break tradition. 

HAPPY FALL