The Adobe Flash Player is required to view this multimedia interactive. Get it here.

Secrets for keeping lost weight off

Diet and exercise essential for staying trim and healthy.

Four salads Sue Mortzolf whipped up in her Beavercreek kitchen are (clockwise from front) chicken salad, orange mandarin salad, brocculi/cauliflower salad and a peach/blueberry jello salad.

Jan Underwood/Staff Photographer Four salads Sue Mortzolf whipped up in her Beavercreek kitchen are (clockwise from front) chicken salad, orange mandarin salad, brocculi/cauliflower salad and a peach/blueberry jello salad.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Jan Underwood/Staff Photographer Chocolate/peanut butter crepes from Sue Mortzolf's Beavercreek kitchen.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Jan Underwood/Staff Photographer Sue Mortzolf cooks a pot of "Salsa Soup" in her Beavercreek kitchen.

ENLARGE PHOTO

How to stay safe outdoors this Memorial weekend
5/23/12
Students make most of school’s Lenten service project
5/23/12
How to make a customized dry-erase board
5/23/12
Woman helps tornado victims with lost photos
5/23/12
A father, 11 mothers and 30 children? Oy vey!
5/22/12
> More lifestyle headlines

By Robin McMacken, Staff Writer Updated 2:44 PM Friday, August 26, 2011

Editor’s note: Today, we continue  our weekly series intended to arm you with the tools and information you need to start on the path toward  better health and fitness in 2011. Find special health and fitness coverage every week in Life.

It’s a noble quest to lose weight, but many find the real challenge arrives when it comes to keeping the weight off.

According to a recent report published by the American College of Sports Medicine, the National Weight Control Registry has identified methods that thousands of individuals have successfully used to maintain weight loss. Of the more than 6,000 people who have joined the NWCR, 89 percent have combined diet and exercise to stay trim and healthy.

This has been true for Sue Mortsolf, 68, of Beavercreek, who is determined to not let the scale tip again at 265 pounds. She has reframed her attitudes toward food.

“I love food,” she said. “I have a passion for food, but now I have a love for healthy food.”

In her kitchen, she is always re-inventing traditional calorie-laden recipes: opting for oven-baked fries instead of fried French fries; using sugar-free instant pudding to fill crepes; or creating a salsa soup recipe that is flavorful yet virtually fat-free.

Weight-loss journey

Mortsolf lost 115 pounds through Greene Memorial Hospital Weight Management Services, located at Beaver View Health Care Center in Beavercreek.

She attended her first orientation session in 2003 and lost 115 pounds in less than a year. At 5-foot-11, she admits the weight gain creeped up slowly, and having once owned a popcorn and candy shop in Beavercreek and authored three cookbooks, also had to contend with a seemingly insatiable sweet tooth.

“I am an emotional eater,” Mortsolf said. “I could down a box of Esther Price candy in two days.”

After having three children with her husband, Larry, Mortsolf said she would lose weight and then regain it, setting a disappointing course for yo-yo dieting.

She also developed high blood pressure, which tended to spike in the morning and led to more than one trip to the emergency room.

It was easy to be in denial about her weight gain, she said, until she went clothing shopping and found herself in the plus-size department.

With conviction, Mortsolf followed the GMH diet and, in less than a year, Mortsolf lost the weight and was able to stop taking blood-pressure medication.

Dallas E. Myers, 63, of Hamilton, also has lost weight through the GMH program and has kept the 105 pounds off for more than three years.

He has also overhauled his eating habits.

“My diet consists of all I want to eat of fruits and vegetables with some fish or chicken two to three times a week,” he said.

Myers now weights 195 pounds, and has lowered his blood pressure and cholesterol.

“I gained weight over a period of eight years slowly, but as my life became more stressful I gained a lot of weight rapidly,” said the 6-foot-2 pilot. “I was trying to fill my life with external solutions to make me happy. Food was one of the things I used almost like a drug. The more I ate, the more I needed.”

Both Mortsolf and Myers exercise regularly, which the NWCR reports as one of the most important predictors of continued weight maintenance.

“Exercise is the key to maintaining weight loss,” said Heidi R. Meyer, a behaviorial educator at GMH. “People who are more regimented are more successful.”

“My daily life consists of starting at the YMCA at 5:30 a.m., and I walk for 65 minutes on the treadmill,” Myers said. “I do some weight work about three days a week. I go to work and work about eight hours. I never overwork like I used to. I take time to relax and reflect on my day.”

Mortsolf said she makes it a point to walk at least 10 minutes every hour, even if it’s just throughout her home or at the grocery store.

“I wear a pedometer and try to get in 20,000 steps a day,” she said.

She also does water aerobics and walks on the treadmill at the Beavercreek Senior Center.

Long-term success

With plans to join the NWCR and write a low-calorie, low-fat cookbook, Mortsolf is eager to share her advice to fellow dieters to help them keep off the pounds.

“The first thing I would say is to keep committed to and focused on weight loss and maintenance,” she said, adding she attends weekly weight-maintenance support groups at GMH. “Basically, you’re changing a habit. Make staying healthy a priority. Keep moving and keep a positive attitude.”

Myers is a strong advocate for education.

“The most important advice I can offer for people who have lost weight is to get the training you need to change your lifestyle permanently,” he said. “I was able to get this through the Emotional Brain Training program Greene Memorial is offering. EBT is designed to re-wire our brains from stress to joy. This has been a life-saver for me.”

Contact this reporter at rmcmacken@ DaytonDailyNews.com or (937) 225-0671.

If you’re looking to maintain weight loss, follow these seven tips from the National Weight Loss Registry:

Keep active. More than half (54 percent) of NWCR members expend more than 2,000 calories each week. This represents about 200 minutes per week of moderate-intensity exercise.

Turn off the television. About 63 percent of NWCR members watch television for fewer than 10 hours per week.

Enjoy a low-calorie, low-fat diet. The average NWCR member consumes 1,380 calories per day, with less than 30 percent of those calories coming from fat.

Maintain consistency in your diet. NWCR members eat the same foods on a regular basis, resisting the urge to “splurge” on holidays or weekends.

Eat breakfast, which helps curb hunger and overeating later in the day. Most NWCR members (78 percent) eat breakfast every day.

Exercise restraint. NWCR members exert great control over their eating habits, and they rarely overeat.

Keep track of your progress. Weighing in at least once a day and keeping track of food intake is essential.

National Weight Control Registry

The National Weight Control Registry is a research study seeking to gather information from people who have successfully lost weight and kept it off. The registry is open to anyone 18 years of age or older who has:

• Lost at least 30 pounds, and

• Maintained a weight loss of at least 30 pounds for one year or more

For more information, visit the website at www.nwcr.ws or call (800) 606-NWCR (6927)

Healthy recipies:

Chicken salad

2 10-ounce cans chicken breast in water, drained

1 cup fresh pineapple, cubed

1 red pepper, diced

¼ cup green onion, chopped

1 cup celery, sliced

Curry Dressing:

1 cup fat-free mayonnaise

½ teaspoon curry powder

6 tablespoons sugar substitute

½ teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon lime juice

¼ cup Earl Grey chutney

2 tablespoons sugar-free apricot preserves

Combine all dressing ingredients in large mixing bowl. Add salad ingredients and mix well. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Serves eight at 140 calories per serving.

Salsa Soup

1 medium onion, chopped

1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed

2 16-ounce cans fat-free chicken broth

1 16-ounce jar salsa

1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes

1 10-ounce package frozen corn, thawed

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon onion powder

2 teaspoons turmeric

4 4-ounce jars pureed carrot baby food

Spray a large pot with vegetable cooking spray and sauté onion until clear. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Makes nine cups at 130 calories per serving.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Crepes

4 Frieda’s French-style crepes

1 1-ounce box sugar-free chocolate instant pudding

1½ cups skim milk

Peanut Butter Sauce:

2 teaspoons Splenda Granular

½ teaspoon vanilla

4 tablespoons skim milk

4 tablespoons PB2 peanut butter powder*

Combine pudding and milk in large bowl and beat with electric mixer for 2 minutes. Chill until ready to serve. Prepare peanut butter sauce. Put all ingredients in bowl and whisk together. Set aside. Place each crepe on a plate. Spoon one-fourth pudding mixture onto each crepe. Roll up crepe and top with 1 tablespoon of peanut butter sauce and 1 tablespoon of sugar-free chocolate syrup. Top with fat-free Redi Whip. Serve immediately.

Serves four at 155 calories per serving.

*Available at Greene Memorial Hospital Weight Management Services, 3095 Dayton-Xenia Road in Beavercreek.

Share this article