Nutrition Therapist

Recipe Rehab: Herb-Baked Fish

Filed under: Recipe Rehab with Tanya Zuckerbrot, Nutrition & Supplements

When I was growing up, baked fish seemed to be synonymous with butter. My mother had an amazing recipe for butter herb-baked fish and this was the only way that she could disguise the fish enough to convince us to eat it. Now, it seems contradictory to have the good omega-3 fatty acids in fish tarnished by the saturated fat content of the butter -- and my mother definitely coated the fish in quite a bit of butter. The original recipe also called for a crust of low-fiber saltine crackers mixed with Parmesan cheese and seasonings, which was really my favorite part of the meal.

I will make a few swaps in this recipe in order to reduce the saturated fat content and pump up the fiber, but I won't mess with the Parmesan, herb seasoning mix, which adds so much flavor to the dish. Instead of coating the baking dish with butter, I will use a minimal amount of non-stick cooking spray and I will use a whole wheat cracker such as Wasa crispbreads instead of the saltine crackers. In order to encourage the cracker crust to stick to the fish, I will dip the fish in non-fat milk rather than coating them in butter. With the Parmesan seasoning mix intact this dish retains the flavors I love, but omits the high calorie butter and reduces the saturated fat by 85 percent.

Ingredients:

1 pound frozen sole or perch fillets, thawed and drained
1/2 cup non-fat milk
2/3 cup crushed whole wheat crackers
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon oregano leaves
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 2-quart casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray.

2. Combine crushed crackers, Parmesan cheese, and spices in a shallow dish. Stir to mix.

3. Pour milk into another shallow dish.

4. Dip the fish fillets first in the milk and then coat with the cracker crumb mixture. Arrange in baking dish and repeat for any additional fillets.

5. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Serves: 4

Nutritional Content (per serving): 240 calories, 6 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 13 g carbohydrates, 2 g fiber, 32 g protein, 329 mg sodium

For another home-style fish recipe, try my Fish Chowder!

Readers, I would love to hear from you! Please send me your most favorite fattening recipes that need a RECIPE REHAB! Everything from your mom's meatloaf to your kid's favorite dessert -- let me lighten it up.

Celebrity dietitian and motivational life coach Tanya Zuckerbrot, author of www.ffactordiet.com and founder of www.skinnyandthecity.com, has helped thousands of people lose weight and keep it off with her program. Her philosophy? Tanya belives you should never sacrifice taste, even when you're eating healthy foods. Have a recipe in need of rehab? Send us your recipe!

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Nicole Eggert Weighs In On “Celebrity Fit Club”

Filed under: Celebs & Entertainment, Interviews

Red bathing suits have a way of keeping actress Nicole Eggert in the spotlight. After tabloids starting attacking her weight gain, she headed to the beach -- in a red bikini that made her "Baywatch" one-piece look modest. "I was like, my being overweight is not my worst quality so how do we laugh at this?" said Eggert, who released a video on FunnyOrDie.com about her added pounds.

The video is humorous, but relays her message: "I'm a real women and real women gain weight." She's equally open on VH1's Celebrity Fit Club, where she appears with other familiar faces like Kevin Federline, his ex Shar Jackson, as well as musicians Sebastian Bach and Bobby Brown. Here's what she told That's Fit about the experience.

That's Fit: Why did you decide to do Celebrity Fit Club?
Nicole Eggert: I was featured in some of the tabloid magazines as having gained weight and it was sort of an eye opening, horrid experience for me. When the offer came through I felt like: A -- It put a lot of pressure on me and, B -- It would get me out of the house and get me working. A lot of my weight gain was being depressed and being home.

TF: At 130 pounds and at 5 feet, 2 inches tall, you weren't "overweight." Why go on a weight-loss show?
NE: When you experience something like depression, you fall apart in a lot of ways. I threw myself in a therapist's chair and we worked on all the mental issues i had going on and really got my spirit back. I felt like the outside needed to match the inside. I didn't look in the mirror and feel great.

TF: So what would you say to a young girl who saw your video, or you on the show, and said, she looks good to me?
NE: I would say that they were right, and to maintain this Hollywood figure is really, really unrealistic. Is your heart healthy? Is your mind healthy? Do you feel good? That's it. Period. This skinny-minnie-waify look that has taken over is unrealistic.

TF: What do you tell your daughter about weight?
NE: Being a good or a bad person is something that takes a lot of work. But gaining or losing weight is something that is exterior. Hopefully I've been a good influence on her. She's watched me go from really, really thin to gaining weight and to now finding a happy medium.

TF: What was the actual program like?
NE: It really tested your heart more than anything. I expected to go and put on some boxing gloves and throw a bunch of punches and do 10 million jumping jacks and it was really about teamwork and doing actual Navy Seals training, which is nothing anyone in my age group needs to be doing!

TF: What are you doing now in terms of maintenance?
NE: I've actually hooked up with the Kardashian girls who are friends of mine, who introduced me to a thing called Quick Trim [to help lose the last five to seven pounds]. We're doing a boot-camp workout. I'm really trying to stay away from any carbs and any bread, and trying to do the protein, vegetable, and small, small portions. [My body] is still a work in progress. Right now I think I look like a healthy average slim women. I want get back ... to looking incredibly hot again and feeling incredibly hot again. I'm going to continue to use a trainer because I think it's great motivation and a great distraction in the middle of a hard workout. I believe in [therapy] forever and always have, always will. The day you don't think you need to work on yourself is the day you should work on yourself harder.

TF: Who did you click with on the show? Anyone that got on your nerves?
NE: I immediately clicked with Shar. We have a lot in common. I felt bad for her situation [getting surprised by Kevin Federline appearing on the show]. She was put in a very awkward position. Being single moms and doing it all on our own and being little petite girls we related very well to each other. I found Tanisha [Thomas] completely draining, although she is funny. And then you have people like Jay McCarroll who are in it to be manipulative and to play a game and their heart isn't there, their agenda is there. I guess that's their introduction to TV, is being on reality. [Editor's note: Thomas was on Oxygen's Bad Girls Club and Jay McCarroll starred on Bravo's Project Runway.] They know that game and they play that game very, very well.

TF: How do you think weight is blown out of proportion?
NE: It's so sad that I've worked so hard to be a good person and yet that's all that is being recognized now. I lost my dad. We had this really long battle with cancer and then I was being tested for cancer. It was a horrible thing our family went through for over a year. At the end of the day, if all I did was gain a little weight out of it, I came out of it pretty shiny.

Eggert and the Kardashians are touting Quick Trim, but is it a healthy way to lose weight?

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Antioxidant-Rich Meals: This Week on AOL Health

Filed under: Nutrition & Supplements

At AOL Health and That's Fit we talk a lot about antioxidant-rich superfoods and how beneficial they are for the body. From reducing the risk of heart disease and cancer to giving you shiny hair and clear skin, the list of positive effects superfoods have on the body goes on and on.

So why aren't more people able to incorporate them into their diet? Simple. It's not so easy to get your daily five to nine servings, no matter how delicious or nutritious they may be. That's why AOL Health enlisted Constance Brown-Riggs, author of "The African American Guide to Living Well With Diabetes," to create simple breakfast, lunch and dinner recipes that include a healthful yet hefty dose of antioxidants to help you reach your daily count.

From simple mango smoothies, chock full of beta carotene and vitamins C and E, to dinner-friendly cornmeal crusted catfish that's rich in selenium and vitamins A, E and C, you'll be able to find a meal that works for you.

For more of these delicious, antioxidant-rich meals, check out AOL Health.

Spring's right around the corner, which means strawberry season will be in full-swing before you know it. That's Fit has some great suggestions on how to incorporate this sweet superfood into your daily diet.

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Howard Stern Attacks “Precious” Star’s Weight

Filed under: Celebs & Entertainment

That's Fit writer Pooja Mottl weighs in on Howard Sterns recent comments regarding actress Gabourey Sibide's weight.

Howard Stern was blazingly cruel in his recent tirade against "Precious" star and Oscar nominee Gabourey Sidibe. "There's the most enormous, fat black chick I've ever seen," said Stern. "She is enormous. Everyone's pretending she's a part of show business and she's never going to be in another movie."

Sidibe is, without a doubt, a wildly gifted talent. And to anyone who saw her working it on the red carpet Sunday night, clearly comfortable in her own skin. But in calling Gabourey out on her size -- however scathing -- Stern may have actually done something positive.

The young actress is clearly carrying an unhealthy amount of weight, and by making her the target of his tirade, Stern opened up the floodgates to a subject that desperately needs to be addressed more openly in America. We can no longer afford to be politically correct or afraid of hurt feelings when it comes to talking about obesity. Our country is in the midst of a grave obesity epidemic that is compromising our lives. Americans are fatter than ever, with approximately 127 million overweight and 69 million obese adults in the country. Being obese raises the risk of cancer (with over 75 percent of cases reported to be directly attributed to obesity), c ardiovascular disease, heart disorders, stroke, infertility and hypertension.

The fat crisis isn't only hurting us physically, it's hurting us financially. Obesity related health care is costing us $117 billion each year.

Stern made a point during his critique of Sibide when he said, "You just want to say to her, listen, honey, now that you've got a little money in the bank go get yourself thin, because you're going to die in three years." Stern is implying that money buys good health, since people who have the means to purchase more nutritious and fresh food, educate themselves on fitness, nutrition and health, and have safe places to exercise, will undoubtedly find it easier to combat overweight and obesity. But these options are not available to every American. Where Stern is wrong, however, is that she shouldn't feel the need to buy herself a thin frame. Sibide, along with millions of men and women, needs to get back years of her life that are being robbed by obesity.

Researchers have been studying overweight and obesity as it relates to factors such as education, income level, location and ethnicity, and have found all of these factors weigh on an individuals risk for obesity.

And while economic and genetic factors do play a role, at the end of the day it's individual lifestyle choices that have the biggest impact on the scale. Making a concerted effort to eat healthier, whole foods, prioritizing exercise and incorporating cooking in your daily life are imperative. After all, only you have control over what and how much goes in your mouth and how often you want your body to be active each day. Often obese individuals have other factors at play, including hormone imbalances and sometimes depression, but by understanding the underlying factors and addressing them, most people can gain their health back even with limited means.

Even though Howard Stern was by no means thoughtful or kind when he spoke of Sidibe, she is indeed dangerously overweight. Stern's radio show might not have been the polite venue to bring up such a sensitive topic, but we can only hope that those close to her are also concerned about her health and have spoken out in a more private setting.

Now that Stern's cruel comments have hit the airwaves, we will have to wait and see if she will embrace her stardom as a chance to get her weight in check. I'm also hoping that with her new found fame, she can also address some of these complex issues surrounding why so many people and minorities in particular are battling overweight and obesity and perhaps become a role model for much needed change in America today.

As rude and insensitive as it is to point out someone's weight in public, many That's Fit Success Stories say that comments about their weight was the turning point to get healthy.

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Fit Links: Counter-Office Moves, Wedding Dress Workout and More

Filed under: Diet & Weight Loss

There are hundreds of wonderful sites on healthy living to be seen all over the blogosphere. Here at Fit Links, we'll introduce you to some that have caught our eye.

Want to undo some of the damage of sitting at a desk all day? That's Fit Canada offers some exercise tips to counteract your sedentary job.

Lost weight? FitSugar offers some tried and tested advice on how to maintain your ideal figure.

Getting hitched? Shape offers a wedding dress workout perfectly tailored for brides-to-be.

If you're trying to shed a few extra pounds, here are some easy, no-diet-required weight loss tips courtesy of US News.

What's the rush? Health.com explains how eating slowly can make a big impact on your waistline.

Read any good Tweets? Give us a shout on Twitter and let us know all about it!

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