Blueprints Frequently Asked Questions
Q1 What advantages does the Weight Loss Blueprint offer me as someone who is trying to lose weight?
The Nutrition 4 Health Weight Loss Blueprints have been professionally designed by an accredited practicing dietitian nutritionist; they are evidence-based weight loss action plans. Each plan advocates healthy eating for a healthy weight loss.
The benefits described by people who have followed the Blueprints are greater energy levels, enjoyment of the meals and snacks outlined in the eating plans, and the satisfaction with the more relaxed approach to weight loss that includes treats, and moderate levels of alcohol for those who drink.
Q2 What is an Exchange in the Weight Loss Blueprint?
An exchange is an amount of food that corresponds to a particular energy value. The use of exchanges in the Blueprint makes it easy for you to know what portions to serve and how to get the right balance of foods throughout the day, and over a week so that you can reach your weight and wellbeing targets.
Q 3 Am I able to choose different types of Exchanges in a meal or do I need to follow the Weight Loss Blueprint outline exactly as it is?
The Blueprint offers you flexibility to choose your own meals. While the Blueprint gives you examples of meals, for example, Seafood Pasta, you don’t ever have to eat Seafood Pasta if you don’t like it. You are able to exchange Seafood for Fish or for that matter for any protein rich food in the Blueprint (poultry, lean meats, legumes, and tofu).
When you choose to exchange a listed option for your own alternative from the choices available in the plan be sure to exchange in the equivalent number of exchanges, for example one exchange of fish for one exchange of seafood etc.
Similarly, you are able to choose the type of carbohydrate you may have, for example, exchange pasta for rice in the above example or choose any other carbohydrates listed in the Blueprint, again keep in mind the recommended number of carbohydrate exchanges for that meal and serve only the amount of carbohydrate that correspond to your listed exchange number/s in the Blueprint table for that meal.
The Weight Loss Blueprints include a variety of carbohydrates, but emphasise enjoyment of low to medium GI carbohydrate choices for steadier energy levels and greater nutrient value.
Please note that for Lunch and Dinner the exchanges are listed in the following order: protein exchange, followed by carbohydrate exchanges at all times.
Q4 Do I need to eat Breakfast and What if I don’t like cereal?
Yes, you must give it your very best effort to start eating breakfast. The benefits are many.
The Blueprint has a good selection of meals including Breakfast suggestions for you to choose from. Cereal is a convenient option for most people and the cereal types listed have nutritional benefits. One typical downside of ready-made cereal is an excessive amount of added sugar.
The Blueprint will guide you to avoid choosing cereals overloaded with sugar. However, you may choose not to eat ready-made cereal and still get wholesome nutrition from the other choices listed for Breakfast.
Q5 What is a Free Vegetable?
Free Vegetables are those vegetables that you are able to enjoy without having to measure or weigh them. These are great sources of fibre, antioxidants and many vitamins and minerals; in short they are good for you without adding a significant amount of calories/kilojoules to your daily tally. Enjoy these and note the minimum recommended amounts listed in your Blueprint.
Helpful Hint You are able to choose freely from the free vegetable list for your meals, however, it is a good idea to colour co-ordinate them, i.e. choose a green with a yellow with a red etc. rather than just all yellow e.g. yellow squash and pumpkin and yellow capsicum. I use this example to illustrate my recommendation to enjoy a wide variety of free vegetables. They will also help you to keep you full.
Please note that the Free Vegetables don’t include starchy (carbohydrate rich) choices like potato.
Q 6 How does the Dressing, Sauces & Oil exchange allocation work in practice?
The number of exchanges listed for this group guides you as to the amounts of these additions you may use when preparing your food. What you must know is that these small additions often contain significant amounts of fats like oils or sugars, for example, added sugars in some sauces; and may contribute significant number of kilojoules/calories unless used in balanced amounts.
The allocation of exchanges to this group allows you to enjoy these foods without over consuming fats or sugar and therefore unnecessary kilojoules/calories.
In practice, you are able to use an allocated amount of oil, for example in a dressing or in a stir-fry, or else in its place the allocated amount of tomato based sauce on your pasta or else enjoy a dressing on your salad or fresh seafood. It really is your choice, however, please note that the allocation refers to the group as a whole and not individually. Therefore if you decide to use an oil based dressing then aim to prepare your food without the addition of extra oil or other dressing or sauces that contain fats on that day.
Fat free condiments are included in the Blueprints to make this easier.
Q7 Am I able to enjoy a meal out or a treat while following the Weight Loss Blueprint or should I avoid all special occasions?
You are able to enjoy special occasion foods , these, as well as your favourite treats are allocated to a “Fun Budget” Your Blueprint will tell you how many calories or kilojoules you are able to spend on the foods you like to have in addition to the foods you are recommended to have.
This is a weekly allocation of calories/kilojoules and you are able to budget your treats into your week, for example enjoy a small treat daily or else “save” your “Fun Budget” for a special occasion.
You will be able to choose your treats, however, you will also be asked to tally your Fun choices so that you know that you are on track and within the recommended amounts weekly. The easiest way to do this is to refer to the Nutritional Panel on packaged foods and write the amount you enjoyed in the Fun Budget section of the Blueprint.
Most fast food outlets display the nutritional information in brochures available near counters or else on their website hence please take a note of the calories you consume when eating out on fast food – these choices need to be contained within the Fun Budget if you choose to include them in your diet.
While eating out in a restaurant you are unlikely to have access to the calorie content of a meal, hence you are best to assign a weekly limit for meals out that include larger portions, fried foods, or dessert. Depending on your Fun Budget you are able to enjoy more or less of these types of meals. A safe point to work from is to enjoy a meal out on average once a week (depending on your Fun Budget allocation you may need to exclude other take out choices during that week)
Q8 Am I able to enjoy my own recipes or do I need to follow the recipes provided in the Blueprint?
You are absolutely encouraged to prepare your own foods and to include the meals that you enjoy. The Blueprint will, however, guide you on how to prepare them and more specifically how to balance protein foods with carbohydrate foods with the right amount of healthy fats as well as vegetables.
The recipes provided are there to help you get started if you are more comfortable with following a recipe rather than creating your own. Most recipes are designed to be prepared quickly with minimum fuss and difficulty. They are designed to help you to enjoy a variety of flavours, textures and fresh foods, while helping you to maintain the healthy eating balance and the right number of kilojoules.
Don’t be afraid to prepare your own recipes, even if it means that you will need to tweak the amounts of some ingredients listed to get the recipe balanced, for example, to lower the amount of oil, and to increase the amount of protein rich foods. You will only need to adjust your recipes to fit within the healthy balance once and you may then enjoy them for days to come.
Helpful Hint Often we fear to cut back on fat in recipes so as not to reduce their flavor. Please note that your entire set of taste-buds renews itself roughly every six weeks. This means that giving up on rich fatty choices is at most a short term “discern”. You will soon be able to enjoy the more subtle and interesting flavours from the fresh ingredients in your recipes as well as from added herbs and spices. Enjoy!
Finally, you are able to use your Fun Budget calories/kilojoules for recipes if you like.
Here is an example:
Enclosing a lean meat pie filling in Puff Pastry (all pastries are allocated into the Fun Budget), requires that you take note of the kilojoules in the pastry per serve you will use, and budget for it out of your Fun food allocation for that week.
Refer to the Nutrition Panel on the puff pastry packaging for the kilojoules per serve information.
This is an example of how you can still enjoy a favourite recipes while following the Weight Loss Blueprints.
Q9 What is an occasional snack?
These snacks are listed in the Blueprint to offer you variety in addition to the classic healthy snacks, for example, fresh fruit, some types of yoghurt and nuts.
The Blueprint recommends fresh foods over and above other choices, however, it also includes a selection of foods that are pre-prepared and offers you a selection of packaged snacks that can satisfy a sweet as well as a savoury tooth but are nutritionally more sound that a chocolate bar, or a packet of crisps.
Helpful Hint Cheese unless consumed elsewhere e.g. in a sandwich, can be a snack in the amount listed in your Blueprint
Q10 How do I work the Cold & Hot Beverage Exchanges into my Blueprint?
The drink choices included in the Cold & Hot Beverage Exchange Table may be substituted for a snack. They are selected to substitute either for a fruit exchange or a yoghurt exchange.
Please use a simple approach i.e. if a beverage is based on whole fruit then it would substitute for a fruit exchange while if it based on milk or soy-milk, for example: a hot chocolate or a real fruit smoothie than substitute it for yoghurt. This allows you to enjoy beverages of choice without compromising on the overall nutrient balance over the day.
Q11 What is meant by Additions in the Blueprint and how often can I have these?
Additions are extras that we consume on regular basis and that are rather tricky to account for. In these category you will find dressing, sauces and oils, coffees, teas, cheese, alcohol (only if you drink alcohol), and treats.
The Blueprint does a great job in helping you to focus on these extras and will guide you on how much of these you are able to enjoy. All recommendations listed refer to daily amounts, with the exception of alcohol (for those of you who elect to enjoy alcohol while on the plan). The recommendation for alcohol is a weekly one, in line with a healthy, moderate enjoyment of alcohol over the week.
Q12 The Lunch time meals are listed as types of meals e.g. a stir-fry, a wrap etc. while the Dinner meals are labeled according to the type of protein food they contain e.g. Poultry, Beef etc. Why is this the case?
The Blueprint summary table in which this information is listed aims to give you ideas of meals as well as the optimal nutritional balance for a given meal. Hence the Lunchtime listing as well as showing you how to put your meal together, offers you the style of meals you may choose from e.g. a stir-fry, a salad etc; while the dinner listings in addition to showing the optimal balance for this meal shows you clearly the balance between poultry, fish, seafood, lean red meats and legumes that is recommended over the space of a week.
This is a pre-designed balance, nutritionally superior to a weekly meal outline that is monotonous and consists of little variety.
Helpful Hint Legumes are dried beans, peas and lentils and are highly nutritious as well as low in fat. They make a great occasional substitute for other protein sources. If you are new to legumes start with small steps e.g. include them in salads or other mixed dishes. Enjoy
Q13 I don’t think that I need to lose weight. Can I use the Weight Loss Blueprints to simply maintain my weight?
Yes. The Blueprints are designed to manage your weight and that means they can also help you to maintain a desired healthy target weight. It is the energy (calorie/kilojoule) level that will make a difference to your weight. Hence, if you wish to maintain weight simply choose a Blueprint with an energy level that is appropriate for you to hold your weight. You would choose that option in the Blueprint Calculator on our website at www.nutrition4health.com.au/BlueprintCalculator .html
Choose ‘Maintain my Current Weight’ and you will find out what energy Blueprint you need to hold your weight.
Q14 Can I add sugar or honey into drinks e.g. smoothies or when preparing meals e.g. home-made pasta tomato sauce?
Sugar and honey are sweeteners, and carry energy in the form of carbohydrate. One small (not heaped) teaspoon of sugar (4g) has approximately 66kJ or 15 calories, and negligible amounts of other nutrients. One teaspoon (6g) of honey has approximately 75kJ or 18 calories.
You are free to enjoy some sugar and/or honey to sweeten your foods/drinks. When you do, simply add their energy (kJ/cal) content to your Fun Budget tally. Budget your choices including sugar/honey over the week so that you continue to stay with your individual Fun Budget target.
This will ensure that you are not having too much sugar in your diet, and continue to enjoy an optimally balanced nutritious eating plan with the right energy level for your weight loss goals.
Q15 How difficult is it to follow the Blueprints?
Your greatest investment of time and effort is required at the start, when you first commence on the Blueprint. This is the time when you need to re-program your daily choices, you will learn how much, when and what type of foods and drinks to enjoy so that your new eating habits can bring about weight loss.
For some of you this will require a “spring clean” of your usual eating habits and for others tweaking will be all that’s required.
Please note that the Blueprint holds the information in a style that allows the nutrition “know-how” to be adapted to create meals and choose snacks that fit your unique lifestyle and food preferences. We encourage you to take the time to read and transform the Blueprint into your own unique individual healthy menus. (the recipe collection included will help to get you started)
With focus and practice the new healthy eating habits will soon become second nature, and in response your weight concerns will wane.
Anna Niec
Accredited Practicing Dietitian and Nutritionist
Founder Nutrition 4 Health