You must be the same age as me if you get the Hawaii 5-0 reference to Wo Fat, a villain from the old television show.
A medical school classmate of mine got stuck with that for a nickname, and it fit him perfectly.
I've always hated low fat and no fat foods.
They usually end up in the "disgusting" category in my book, and the garbage disposal in my home.
I will say there are a few low or no fat foods that actually make the grade.
You find them by sticking to foods that are as close to their natural state as possible.
Take Jersey tomatoes for instance, with a couple drops of olive oil, some balsamic vinegar, and a hint of salt and pepper.
There's watermelon as well.
Fresh peaches? Or cherries? Salad can be excellent if it's pulled fresh from the ground.
I know these aren't the most convenient options, but if you leave yourself open you'd be surprised how easy it is to get some healthy natural foods worked into your daily routine.
And the extra effort is definitely worth it compared to microwaved mac and cheese or Pop Tarts.
The other thing is, most low fat and no fat items are really not food, but a sort of chemical construct.
See if you recognize any of the ingredients.
And most of them contain artificial sweeteners, which are just plain bad for you.
I like to take a page from Julia Child, who once said, "If you want to lose some weight, eat a little less.
You don't need to eat a 16 ounce steak, or a one pound potato.
Butter isn't your enemy, gluttony is!" My kind of woman - sort of.
And really, it doesn't take Larry The Cable Guy to explain to you that Hot Pockets really aren't good for you.
Although his explanation of what they did to his system is hilarious.
One of the big keys to long-term weight loss is eating real food in as close to its natural state as possible.
Fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, lean meats.
If you've ever had the opportunity to eat with a group of chefs, you would be very surprised at what they really like.
Almost everything they like is very simple, and there isn't much fuss.
But the ingredients are pristine.
It used to be a pain to get good ingredients for cooking.
But now we can, so with a minimum of effort you can find really good fresh food.
So gradually introduce this into your diet.
Start with one day a week, or one meal a week.
I just finished reading a study showing that people who make simple changes in their diets and take pharmaceutical grade fish oil, lose weight and keep it off.
Which is great to see.
Ultra pure pharmaceutical grade fish oil and simple changes in diet are a dynamite combination.
So get started now and you won't have to spend any time reading old magazines in an overcrowded waiting room, if you know what I mean.