My mother was 5’ 3” and 118 pounds. Always. What was her secret? “The trick to staying slim is never gain weight in the first place.” She was right about that, among other things. Her regime was unvarying: a double espresso with hot milk in the morning and then absolutely nothing (except cigarettes) until dinner, when she’d linger over a small glass of Zubrovka (vodka flavored with Buffalo grass, trendy once again) and cook our standard evening meal: steak and frozen vegetables. Occasionally we’d have ice cream for dessert, but nary a potato.

This made me and my sisters carb-crazy and we managed to stuff ourselves with devil dogs and french fries (from The Tasty Shop in Harvard Square!) outside of the house. My sister, having eaten enough meat for a lifetime, has been a vegetarian since high school. I simply can’t subsist on three food groups (coffee being one of them), so when I diet it’s generally Weight Watchers. Eat whatever you want, but when you’re done with your points for the day, you’re done. My latest obsession however is MyFitnessPal.com.

I’m a firm believer in calorie counting and writing EVERYTHING down (the bite here, snack there, is my derailer). This is the best and simplest tracker yet and it’s free! Set up your goal. Track your food and exercise from their enormous data base. Even SCAN a barcoded food with your smartphone to instantly capture the calories. Ta da! When you hit your calorie limit for the day, stop eating. And you can follow your friends for added support. Join me at myfitnesspal.com or download the free app, Calorie Counter & Diet Tracker by MyFitnessPal.

Happy New Year,

erica

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