Missing your favorite foods can make losing weight a struggle. You might think that you have to give up chocolate cake while you’re on a diet, but the truth is that not all cake is created equal, and that with a little forethought you can have your cake and eat it too. Remember, losing weight is a long-term process and it involves changing your lifestyle to develop healthier eating habits and behaviors. No one food will make you fat or thin, it is about creating a sustainable balance.
Calories
The key to whether or not you can eat cake when trying to lose weight is how many calories it contains. You need to pick and choose your cake carefully. Weight Watchers Chocolate Snack Cake, for example, has just 90 calories per serving, making it an acceptable treat. Starbucks Chocolate Decadence Cake contains 405 calories, half of which are from fat, which means it could only be a rare indulgence. The Cheesecake Factory’s Fudge Cake, however, has a staggering 1,300 calories per serving, which makes it totally off limits if you are trying to lose weight.
Portion Size
If you find big chunks of chocolate cake irresistible, one way to cut calories without giving up the taste you crave is to strictly manage your portion control. Most restaurants or shops will serve you a large portion. One tip from the Centers for Disease Control is splitting your orders at restaurants, which instantly cuts your calories in half without depriving you of your treat. If you have a chocolate cake at home, cut it into small slices and freeze. Then when you are craving a slice of cake you can take out a single portion and eat it, reducing the temptation to go on an all-out binge.
Ingredients
One way to keep track of the fat and calories in chocolate cake is to make it yourself – and modify the ingredients to make it more diet-friendly. Steamy Kitchen has a recipe for Negative Calorie Chocolate Cake which is fast, easy and relies on a simple substitution to cut fat and calories. The recipe uses ordinary Betty Crocker chocolate cake mix, but substitutes a very ripe mashed banana for the half-cup of oil the recipe calls for. You can also substitute applesauce, pear butter or smashed berries for fat in your recipes.
Exercise
Instead of depriving yourself of chocolate cake make the decision to balance your eating with plenty of exercise. The Weight-Loss Information Network recommends doing at least 60 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity on most days of the week, if you are trying to lose weight. When you eat more calories, you can simply increase your workout sessions to help you burn off the excess. Not only will exercise help you burn fat, it can also reduce your appetite and boost your metabolism, which makes it easier for you to lose weight and keep it off.
References
- Calorie Lab: Starbucks Chocolate Decadence Cake Nutrition; 2011
- Calorie Lab: Cheesecake Factory Calorie Counter; 2007
- Peer Trainer: Weight Watchers Chocolate Snack Cake; 2011
- Centers for Disease Control: “How to Avoid Portion Size Pitfalls to Help Manage Your Weight”; Jan 4, 2011
- “Steamy Kitchen”; Negative Calorie Chocolate Cake; Aug 2007
- Weight-Loss Information Network: Physical Activity and Weight Control
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