Module 8: Eating To Support Your Health Goals Participant Guide

Session Focus

Adopting a positive and healthy approach to eating can help you prevent or delay type 2 diabetes.

In this session we will talk about:

  • Taking a positive approach to eating

  • Eating foods in portions that support your goals

  • Enjoying a variety of foods in healthy ways

You will also make a new action plan!

Tips:

  • Eat the right amount

  • Be aware of physical cues to begin and stop eating

  • Change your favorite dishes to make them healthier

Take a Positive Approach to Eating

Antonia’s Story—Part 1

When Antonia went back to work after having her baby, she started working through her lunch breaks to try to catch up from her time off during maternity leave. On the days she skipped lunch, she felt very hungry, tired, and shaky after work. So, she would usually stop at a store and buy a bag of potato chips to eat on her drive to pick up her baby after work. Even though Antonia wasn’t that hungry when she got home, she would eat dinner anyway.

These new eating habits meant Antonia kept the same weight she’d had at the end of her pregnancy, even though her baby was now 4 months old. When Antonia went to visit her doctor, she was told that she was at risk for type 2 diabetes. At first, Antonia didn’t want to change the way she ate. She depended on that snack after work when she missed lunch. She couldn’t do without it. Antonia also thought about how much time and effort it would take for her to make healthy snacks to bring with her to work.

However, Antonia knew that being at risk for type 2 diabetes was serious and that she had to make changes for herself and for her family. Antonia began making small changes to curb some of her recent eating habits. She now listens to her body and makes an effort to focus on only eating when she’s hungry. For those busy days when she can’t break for lunch, she brings unsalted/low-salt nuts and cut-up veggies to work so she can snack when she gets hungry. That way, she never gets very hungry after work and still has a healthy appetite for dinner.

Antonia has also taken a positive approach toward her changes. She now focuses on the positive outcomes for her future -- staying healthy for herself and her family, feeling better, and having more energy every day.

Positive Approaches to Eating

One eating habit that I would like to improve or change is:

Eating the Right Amount

Eating the right amount is part of a healthy approach to eating.

Try these tips:

  • Eat only when you feel hungry. Pay attention to your hunger cues. Try not to eat for other reasons, such as feeling bored or sad. Find other ways to acknowledge and manage those feelings.

  • Don’t wait until you’re very hungry. If you do, you’re likely to eat lower-quality foods or eat too much.

  • Don’t eat out of a large bag or bowl. Instead, portion out your food. This will help you control how much you eat.

  • Use small plates and single-serving packs. They help you manage your portion size.

  • Focus on your food—the way it tastes, smells, looks, and sounds. Try not to read, drive, or watch TV while you eat. You’ll enjoy your food more.

  • Eat slowly. This gives your brain a chance to get the message that you are full.

Mindful Eating

Mindful eating means eating with awareness. It involves consciously choosing and experiencing your foods and being aware of physical cues to begin and stop eating. Practice mindful eating as a lasting approach to healthy eating.

Try these tips:

  • Eat when your body tells you to eat (for example, when your stomach is growling, or your energy is low).

  • Listen to your body. Aim to eat to the point of being satisfied versus feeling full or stuffed.

  • Have meals with others and at set times and places.

  • Consider the quality of the food you’re eating.

  • Eat foods that are nutritious.

  • When eating, focus on the act of eating and chew your food slowly.

One positive approach I can try implementing today is_____________________________.

Enjoy Foods in Healthy Ways

Antonia’s Story—Part 2

Ever since Antonia’s doctor told her that she’s at risk for type 2 diabetes, she has begun making healthier choices. Antonia is now:

  • Choosing foods that include fiber, vitamins, and minerals, which are found in vegetables, whole grains, and fruit.

  • Making small changes to reduce the amount of processed foods that she eats.

  • Working towards incorporating more nutrients and fewer calories in the foods she eats.

Antonia chooses items that are high in fiber and water to fill her up without adding calories. Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that passes through your body without being digested. Foods that are high in fiber take longer to digest. So, you feel full longer.

Healthy Choices to Prevent Type 2

Making healthy choices is part of a healthy approach to eating. Choose items that are:

  • High in fiber, vitamins, and minerals, which are found in vegetables, whole grains, and fruit

  • Less processed

  • High in nutrients

  • Low in calories

Ideas for Healthy Choices to Prevent Type 2

Directions: Work with a partner to write ideas for healthy food choices. In the left column of the chart below, write the name of a food you want to replace. In the right column, write a healthy swap for this food.

Recipe Makeover

Here are some ways to make healthy choices enjoyable.

  • Change your favorite dishes to make them healthier.

  • Choose cheeses that are strong-tasting and fairly low in fat, such as Parmesan and feta.

  • Choose good-quality items.

  • Choose items with a variety of flavors, textures, scents, and colors.

  • Cook veggies like green beans and broccoli lightly, so they stay crisp and colorful.

  • Dress up food with herbs, spices, low-fat salad dressings, lemon juice, vinegar, hot sauce, plain nonfat yogurt, and salsa.

  • Grill or roast veggies and meat to bring out the flavor.

  • Learn new cooking techniques and recipes from books, articles, and videos. Or take a healthy cooking class.

  • Share ideas and cooking with friends, family, and your PreventT2 group.

  • Try new healthy cuisines and ingredients.

Antonia’s Recipe Makeover

Antonia loves to cook! One of Antonia’s favorite dishes is her grandma’s lasagna. Her recipe has ricotta and mozzarella cheese, ground beef, tomato sauce, and, of course, lasagna noodles. She was able to find some ways to make her grandmother’s lasagna recipe healthier—and still tasty!

Recipe Makeover Activity

Directions: Work with your group to make over a recipe. Use any of the recipe makeover ideas on the previous page, or use your own ideas to create a healthier version of this dish. Write your ideas in column 2.