• Eat less kilojoules by changing your diet;
• Burn more kilojoules by being more active; or
• A mixture of eating less kilojoules and being more active

In reality, a mix of dietary change and becoming more active has the greatest chance of long-term weight loss success.

Surprisingly, we appear to be conditioned to eat the same amount of solid food each day. Think about it –- you probably eat the same breakfast most mornings of the week and your dinner plate is probably filled to the same level each night. So, rather than trying to eat fewer kilojoules it is smarter to choose more foods that have less kilojoules per serve. These are called lower energy dense foods.

Energy Density of Example Foods

Low energy dense foods are very likely to be low in fat and high in water, as is found in mushrooms, fruits and vegetables.

Energy density is a term you will hear much more in the future. Although the term 'energy' implies vitality, in food terms, it refers to the kilojoules in food. As can be seen from the chart, mushrooms are one of the lowest energy dense, and best tasting, foods on the market.

In 2007, Dr Cheskin from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, revealed that substituting meat with button mushrooms increased the satiety of the meal. Although the mushroom meal was about 100 calories (420 kJs) less than the meat meal, consumers actually ate 379 fewer calories (1590 kJs) a day over four days. This suggests that mushrooms have a powerful ability to make a meal more filling. The mushroom is ideally suited for weight control because it is low in fat, low in kilojoules and low in energy density. That makes mushrooms suitable for everyone, including those who have heart disease or diabetes. A single serve of mushrooms (110g or three button mushrooms) has only 103 kJs (25 Cals).

The mushroom is ideally suited for weight control because it is low in fat, low in kilojoules and low in energy density. That makes mushrooms suitable for everyone, including those who have heart disease or diabetes.

Mushroom & fish skewers
Serves 4

350g button mushrooms, halved
500g firm white fish fillets, cut into 2cm cubes
2 tbs olive oil
2 lemons juiced
2cm piece ginger, peeled, finely grated
2 garlic cloves, crushed       
2 tsp brown sugar
salt & ground black pepper

1. Place the mushrooms and fish in a shallow dish. Combine the olive oil, lemon juice, ginger, garlic, brown sugar and salt and pepper in a screw-top jar. Shake until well combined. Pour the marinade over the mushrooms and fish and toss well to coat. Cover and place in the fridge for 20 minutes.
2. Thread the mushrooms and fish alternately onto pre-soaked bamboo skewers.
3. Preheat a greased barbecue or char-grill on medium-high. Cook the skewers for 5 minutes, turning frequently, or until fish is cooked through. Serve with tossed salad.