Anita Curpier, Special to the Courier-Journal 7:03 a.m. ET Feb. 23, 2017

Salad with salmon(Photo: Adl Bkefi, Getty Images/Moment RF)

Why is it so hard to make meaningful changes in your diet? Lots of reasons. A big one is, at a very early age we decide what we like to eat and what we dont. This started a lifelong habit that most of us adhere to with remarkable consistency. In fact, although you may believe you have considerable variety in your diet, its more likely that your eating habits fall within a narrow range and you rarely venture far from it. If you are 60 years of age, you have a longtime habit to contend with when you try to change. Thats quite a challenge, and most give up despite good intentions.

Is restricting your food choices to a narrow range a problem? Yes, indeed, if your food choices are similar to those of most Americans, meaning high in processed foods loaded with fat and sugar. Its no secret that such a diet destroys health in many ways. Even so, we persist on the same course.

As a registered dietitian, I have counseled countless people over the years to help them improve their diet. When I worked in the hospital, many were heart attack victims and those having coronary artery bypass surgery, people who very much needed to make changes to reduce the odds of future heart problems. Unfortunately, I found most people reluctant to change, and not only because they were so used to eating in a certain way. My suggestions often were viewed as punitive, because I was telling them they needed to quit eating so many of the foods they enjoyed. And because there was a lack of understanding of basic dietary issues and the many ways diet can influence health, my suggestions often came across as too complicated and cumbersome, particularly for someone not highly motivated to change.

Today, I default to a more simplified approach to healthy eating, one that involves tiny steps that are easy to implement. For example, in a recent column, I emphasized the benefits of a higher protein diet as we get older to help counteract sarcopenia (loss of muscle mass). In that column, I provided an easy way to get more protein with a shake that works well as a nutritious lunch.

Heres another easy suggestion that pays big dividends. Eat more fish.

Fish is lean and high in protein, the perfect combination. Red meat also provides protein, but it comes with a lot of baggage like saturated fat. Unfortunately, we are a nation of meat eaters and fewer than 20 percent of us consume fish at least twice a week, and half of us eat fish only occasionally or not at all. The American Heart Association strongly promotes regular fish consumption because results from many research studies have shown that eating fish substantially reduces the risk of dying from heart disease.

One reason people avoid fish is the fear of pollutants and toxins, like mercury or pesticide residue. The Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration and other authoritative bodies have concluded from their studies that there is insufficient evidence to limit fish consumption in adults. However, if pollutants are a concern, an easy way to reduce risk is to eat a variety of fish and other seafood.

An additional benefit from fish besides being lean and high in protein is the rich source of omega-3 fatty acids, which help combat inflammation, a key contributing factor in atherosclerosis (clogging of the arteries).

Walnuts also are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, and they offer other healthful advantages as well. A recent research study from the Prevention Research Center at Yale University asked participants to add 366 calories of walnuts to their diet every day for six months, then to avoid walnuts for the next six months. Researchers found that eating walnuts lowered total serum cholesterol and the bad LDL cholesterol significantly, thus reducing the risk of heart disease.

Another interesting finding was that despite adding 366 calories from walnuts, the weight of participants remained stable and they didnt gain any body fat. How is that possible? When comparing the diet participants followed with and without the walnuts, their diet was healthier with walnuts.

So, two simple tiny step changes that can add up to considerable health benefits include substituting fish for red meat at least twice a week, and making walnuts your new snack.

Anita Miles Curpier is a registered dietitian and has considerable experience in hospital and clinically based nutrition therapy. Contact her at boomingcj@gmail.com.

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Professional athletes dont get to the top by accident. It takes superhuman levels of time, dedication, and focusand that includes paying attention to what they put in their bellies. In this series, GQ takes a look at what athletes in different sports eat on a daily basis to perform at their best. Heres a look at the daily diet of L.A. Galaxy star Robbie Rogers.

Robbie Rogers is a year shy of 30, which is easy to forget once he starts talking about his career. Hes a unique case study: the professional athlete who is a veteran of his sport, yet still a relatively young member of, well, the human race. But a decade plus of traveling the world, kicking around a soccer ball, has given Rogers a certain informed gravitas. When he speaks, your natural reaction is to not only listen, but to lean in. That probably explains why 90 percent of my meals consisted of lentils and quinoa in the week after he broke down his vegetarian-esque diet for me.

GQ: Youve played professionally in the States, the UK, and in the Netherlands. Did you notice any differences with your diet when playing based on location?

Robbie Rogers: Yeah, a little bit. When I was in England, I became pretty much a vegetarian. I didnt really enjoy the meat over there, to be honest.

Yeah, its not the best.

No, its not. I mean, there are some good spots, but just in general I wasnt much of a fan. When I was in Holland, my diet was really different, but I was also really young. I would say that was more just with my age. I wasnt as aware of how important diet was, so I would still eat regular pasta and think that it was great for me. When I was younger, I would just be like, Oh, have some pasta and youll be good!

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A lot of people who grew up playing sports probably thought that. In high school, my basketball team would have pasta dinners the night before every game.

Yeah, the team going to Olive Garden and loading up on carbs! I would have bread and all this stuff that I thought was good for me. Then you realize its not. And I definitely feel a difference when Im really strict and on my diet for a few weeks versus if I cheat a little bit. I feel it in games and during training. It does make a huge difference and as you get older. You know, Im not as athletic as I was when I was younger, so I have to really focus on this stuff so I can keep that edge.

For you, was there a specific moment in your career where you really started to pay attention to your diet?

Probably right around when I was 24 or 25 years old. Before that I could just eat whatever and Id be fine. But then I realized that I like to play at a certain weight and I feel better when Im not eating too much sugar or when I eat at a certain time every day. Im 29 now, been a professional for 11 years. Ive done my own research but Ive also listened to the nutritionists around me and spoken to my teammates about what theyre doing and what works for them.

What have you realized works best for you in that time?

Just a much healthier diet with more vegetables and carbs that are actually going to work for me. Before, I never had quinoa or lentils, which are different things I try to focus on now. I do eat meat now, but not much. Maybe once every two weeks. I really try to eat more vegetables. Again, lentils and quinoa. Beans. Even brown rice. And obviously I try to stay extremely hydrated.

About two years ago, you made the switch from playing in the midfield to the backline. Were there any changes to your diet when you made that positional move?

No, not too much. Its still a lot of running, so just making sure I have those right kinds of carbs is important. Before and after games, actually, because you need those to recover. So I just try to read my body and see how Im feeling. See where my weights at. You know, there are times when well have three games in a week and I lose too much weight, too much muscle. So I have to make myself eat more, which sounds like a great problem, but sometimes its annoying.

Well, I feel like the sport has evolved so much over the last decade. Before everyone was focusing predominantly on cardio, but now strength training is a bigger and bigger sticking point.

Definitely. Its different for everyone, though. Some guys in different positions need to work more on their cardio and losing some of that big muscle because theyre just too heavy. But for me, especially as a runner, you can get little muscle injuries if youre not recovering well and if your muscles are too fatigued. For me, it was definitely finding the right diet to keep on weight and keep on lean muscle. Staying limber and lean, that way I can continue to run as much as I do.

So what types of eating patterns help you to best achieve that? Are you a strict breakfast, lunch, and dinner kind of guy?

I kind of am, yeah. With a snack after lunch sometimes, too.

Give me the full run-down. What does the typical day look like starting with breakfast?

I usually take Shakeology in the morning for breakfast. Just this massive shake with all this stuff in it. Ill add fruits and almond milk and cinnamon and flax seeds and omega fatty acids. Then Ill have some coffee and some water. I take a swig of apple cider vinegar each morning. And I also take one of those Bio-K probiotics every morning. That actually really helps me and my stomach. Then I head to the stadium, which is about a 45 minute drive for me. Ill have another coffee and banana there before we do all my prehab, all my rehab stuff and strengthening and everything. Then Ill go out to train, and in that time Im drinking a lot of water. Thats so important for us. After training, right around noon, Ill have another shake handed to me right as I get off the field, and then I go right into lifting.

At which point youre probably starving.

I eat lunch right after that. The team sets up a lunch for us, so Ill have a huge salad with some sort of vegetables, some fruit, some proteineither tempeh or tofu. Later on Ill have some more fruit, and then Ill have dinner. I actually try to have an earlier dinner, especially when Im cooking at the house. I live in L.A., so obviously there is always the temptation to go and eat out, but I try to limit that to once or twice a week. Dinner can be a bunch of different things. Last night I made vegetarian lasagna, which was really great. Every now and then Ill barbecue a steak, but thats maybe once a month. Some nights well make a vegetarian stew. My son will eat that now too.

Your son is almost a year old now. Has being a father had any effect on your diet at all?

Not really my diet, but I know I affect his diet. He also takes a Bio-K probiotic, which really helps his stomach, as well. But he loves vegetables and quinoa and lentils. Hell have potatoes here and there. So hes on a pretty great diet. Were introducing him to everything. We try to stay away from all those processed foods, but he has grandmas, so thats not always possible. But we just let him experiment and try different things.

My cousins all have young kids and I know they make some different products specifically for kids that they have actually gotten hooked on, like those fruit pouches.

I try everything he has, but I havent really gotten hooked on that stuff. There are some brands that do similar stuff. Like, theres Nomva, which Ill take. They have probiotics in them and its like a fruit of vegetable pouch. They sell them right at Whole Foods, and sometimes they have them at our stadium. Theyre really great.

Soccer players dont really get much of an off-season, but do you let yourself have some cheat meals during that time?

Oh, yeah, I always do. Im not crazy about everything. You know, I really love sushi and going to Izaka-Ya. On birthdays and holidays Ill have desserts. Im obsessed with popcorn, so whenever I go to the movies I have to get a popcorn. Ill be fighting with Greg [Berlanti, Rogerss fiance] over who gets to hold the popcorn.

No, I actually dont like that. Just the standard, salted, movie theatre popcorn. But in general, I try to stay on top of things because I do feel the difference during the season.

There has to be a balance.

Exactly. Youve got to enjoy life and enjoy peoples company and be able to do stuff with themeat out and enjoy different things. But when were in season, more days than not, youve got to be on top of things. Its your profession.

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The Real-Life Diet of Soccer Star Robbie Rogers, Who Is "Pretty Much" Vegetarian - GQ Magazine

Socialism: Want to lose weight fast? Don't worry about the latest fad diet. Just move to Venezuela. There, the new Socialist Diet has caused the population to lose millions of pounds in 12 months. Unwillingly, of course.

A new study of Venezuela's stunning decline under Hugo Chavez's socialist model, still followed faithfully by his lap dog successor, Nicolas Maduro, reports that the average Venezuelan lost 19 pounds in the last year. Today, the 2016 Living Conditions Survey finds, 32.5% of Venezuelans eat only once or twice a day, up from 11.3% just one year ago. And 93.3% of all people don't earn enough to buy sufficient food.

American Thinker blogger Ronald C. Tinnell called it "The Venezuelan Miracle Weight Loss Program."

We call it a shocking indictment of socialism, and should be a siren call to people around the world: Bring socialism to your country, and you bring misery. It's the one thing that socialism produces an abundance of.

It's a sad fact that Venezuela was once one of the wealthiest countries in South America, and even now has the second-largest oil reserves in the world. It should be a rich nation, filled with prosperous people worried about gaining too much weight, not losing it to hunger.

But as formerly middle-class Venezuelans scavenge for food some even stooping to dumpster diving and eating formerly beloved pets just to stay alive socialists allied with Maduro have changed nothing. Maduro followed Chavez's lead, spending all the money that the state-oil company earned on "social" programs, all the while attacking small businesses and companies and effectively nationalizing the supermarkets.

Meanwhile, inflation at close to 500% a year is the highest of any country on earth. Looking at the problems with declining food stocks and roaring inflation, Maduro decided to put the military in charge of the country's food distribution network. The result was predictable: Massive food shortages and rampant corruption, as armed military line their pockets by selling food on the black market.

"Mismanagement of the economy has created a humanitarian disaster beyond comprehension," wrote Ed Feulner and Ana Quintana in a piece that appeared on the RealClearPolitics website.

The country's infrastructure is collapsing from a lack of investment, while rule of law has been rejected for the rule of one tyrant. Children aren't spared; they're dying by the hundreds from curable diseases, a lack of medicine, electricity outages and no incubators for newborns. The resurgence of once vanquished contagious diseases is killing off the weak and the infirm. "Cases of diphtheria and malaria are re-emerging, and the number of Zika infections is estimated to be 'nearly 700,000', according to a Venezuelan health organization," wrote Feulner and Quintana.

Even worse is the chaos on the streets. Caracas' murder rate of 120 per each 100,000 inhabitants is the highest in the world. That's higher than in Damascus, Kabul or Tripoli.

It doesn't have to be this way. As recently as 21 years ago the Heritage Foundation gave Venezuela a 59.8 ranking on its Index of Freedom. Today it's at 27.0, just behind Cuba but barely ahead of last place North Korea. As with all nations that destroy freedom, socialist Venezuela has also destroyed whatever semblance of wealth it had.

If Venezuela seems remote and of little concern, consider this headline: "Democratic Socialists Make Headway In U.S. After Trump's Win." Yes, we know. The Democratic Socialists of America style themselves as kinder, gentler socialists. Think Sweden, they say, not Venezuela.

But the truth is, whoever practices it or whatever those who follow it call themselves, socialism is an economic system based on mass greed and class envy that has failed time and time again. There are no successful socialist nations, anywhere. Those that find this model appealing despite its obvious failures are the desperate, the poorly educated, the uninformed and those lacking entirely in basic common sense.

It is an economic philosophy of entitlement and grievance, one that always ends in poverty, wanton destruction, the breakdown of civilization and even death as the Venezuelans, who willingly handed control of their country over to the socialists, are now finding out.

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