Pack A Picnic

You’ve heard it time and time again: eat five to six meals a day and you’ll boost your metabolism and lose weight. But if you’re eating at least three meals of 700 to 900 calories a plate, you won’t reveal your hidden abs, you’ll gain body fat. So what exactly does a healthy portion look like? Well, pretty much whatever you can stuff into half a pita bread pocket.

Toss your bread & wraps

When you order a sandwich from the local deli, the bread is inches thick and the filling pours out the sides. “With bread you put two pieces minimally-with the pocket, you just use one pocket and you don’t put as much inside of it,” says Taggart, who worked with pita-makers in creating The Pocket Diet (2004), which includes 45 pita recipes. “The pocket lends itself to a more reasonable portion.” She suggests opting for whole wheat pita bread to get additional fiber.

Filling warning

“Of course you can put a lot of high-fat foods in a pita,” says Taggart. She warns that you can go overboard on condiments: “Use light mayonnaise or fat-free sour cream.” Taggart suggests using a quarter cup of tuna and a tablespoon of light mayonnaise for a tuna salad pita. “Make sure your ingredients are healthy and low-fat.