As I lecture and train new clients, I discourage folks from using butter, oil and fat-laden creamy sauces. For people trying to lose weight, slathering or cooking their food in pure fat just seems silly to me. And yes......that counts for olive oil too. Most people get plenty of fat via meat, dairy, and treats, that I don't see great purpose in purposefully adding fat to a meal.

The question always comes, "then how do I add flavor to my food, Fitz?" I'll tell ya. First of all, you can use any seasoning in the world. Then we get to the sauces. Lots of people tell me they 'hate fat free sauces'. So we'll start there. Catsup and mustard are naturally fat-free. So are barbecue sauce, Teriyaki, soy, Worcestershire, A-1, all types of vinegar, jerk sauce, some wing sauces, many marinaras, jelly, jam, and preserves. That's just scratching the surface. Worried about your food sticking to the pan or grill? Try Teflon and use a cooking spray like Pam.

Hating fat free stuff is a weird thing that came about because ten years ago the market was full of new fat-free products which didn't match up to the taste or texture of each foods' original fatty version. What we fail to recognize is that most of the stuff we already love and own are naturally fat free. Who thinks of catsup as a fat-free food though?

These naturally fat free sauces also pack a flavorful punch, without too many calories. I recommend using the sugar-free versions of jelly, jam and preserves though. That'll cut your calories from 100 to 10 per teaspoon. Big difference. Consuming some amount of fat is necessary, it's true. But there are very few people who eat so amazingly clean that they need to add it while cooking. Most of us get it in other places.

If you want to cut fat, cut calories and lose weight.....removing butter, oil and creamy sauces from your diet is a great place to start. Good luck and eat smart!