6 Tips to Slim Down the German Way (2024)

When I was asked to write an article about healthy German eating, I knew I had my work cut out for me. "Fry a package of bacon until crisp. Reserve drippings for later use." And this was from a recipe for potato salad! If this was a representative recipe of German food, I would think the average life expectancy would be about 45. But on average, Germans live a year longer than Americans. So they must be doing something right.

I thought back to when I was an exchange student in Germany in high school. As a teenager, I never paid much attention to what I ate, but I do remember that I dropped about 20 pounds when I was there, without even trying. There certainly were some meals that were outside the bacon food group. In fact, when I look back at the German diet and lifestyle, there are a number of lessons we could learn from them.

1. Go withthe grain. Like most Americans, I found my first encounterwith German bread a bit alarming. At first glance, it appeared to be some kindof particleboard. Is this what all that IKEA furniture's made of? (Oh, wait,that's Sweden.) With kernels of grain you could actually see with the nakedeye, there was no need to read the label to see if it was in fact whole grain -looked like a vulcanized brick of wheat. But the bread is actually quite tasty,and a few bites in, you remember why the Germans are famed the world over fortheir pumpernickels and ryes. And unlike the pillowy, chemical-laden whitebreads of the American bread aisle, a slice of the more substantial German loaftakes longer to chew and fills you up more quickly - two things that help youeat less. Not to mention that it's full of fiber and naturally occurringvitamins, things we inexplicably bleach out of our bread in the U.S.
2. Have an open face. Another way theGermans beat the U.S. health-wise is in sandwich preparation. The first thingthey do is serve the sandwich open-faced. Half the bread means half the carbs.The other thing they do which saves calories is that they let the bread be thestar of the sandwich. A typical Butterbrot-style sandwich consists ofa piece of bread, a thin layer of butter, and a slice of Schinken,which is smoked ham, similar to prosciutto. Butter and ham aren't the height ofhealthy eating, but the key is that the Germans use only enough to provideflavor - something a country that created a sandwich called the Baconator couldtake a lesson from. Plus the side dish is usually fresh fruit or pickledvegetables instead of potato chips or fries. And speaking of veggies . . .
3. Get pickled. We're not talking abouta late night at the Bräuhaus. Rather, we're talking about all thetasty, low-calorie pickled veggies the Germans excel at making. With theirbrutal winters, vegetable preservation was a high priority in old German times.The classic pickled cucumber has been around since ancient Mesopotamia, but theGermans have taken pickling to new delicious heights. Polish-style cukes,popular in Germany, are usually pickled in brine, with no vinegar. The Germansalso produce a variety of styles incorporating vinegar, garlic, dill, and otherherbs and spices. In fact, the word "gherkin" comes from Gurke, theGerman word for cucumber and pickle. There are other delicious pickledvegetables like beets, tomatoes, and, the German classic, sauerkraut. All withhardly any calories or fat. However, some contain excessive amounts of sodium,which is something to keep an eye on. But as Germans become more and morehealth conscious, low-sodium versions are popping up all the time.
4. Cleanyour colon. As my German grandfather was fond of saying,"There's clean and then there's German clean." And this Teutonic zeal forcleanliness extends to the digestive system. Their fiber-rich diet is probablythe biggest key to German health. This stands to reason since after packingtheir colons full of sausage and potatoes at lunch, a little roto-rootingaction courtesy of whole grains is probably necessary to keep the mail moving.For breakfast, instead of sugary, rainbow-colored puffs, they typically eatwhole-grain cereals like oatmeal or muesli. They also eat a lot of yogurt,which contains the flora necessary to keep all the pipesclean.
5. Do lunch big. Another healthy habit Germanshave is eating their big meal of the day in the middle of the day. The Germanword for the noontime meal is Mittagsessen, which literally means"eating in the middle of the day." This is usually when the hot entre and sidedishes are consumed, the ones Americans traditionally eat at the end of theday. Their last meal is called Abendbrot, which translates as "eveningbread," and usually consists of a piece of bread with cold cuts or somethingsimilarly light. Since food is fuel, the earlier you eat it, the more time youhave to burn it off. By frontloading their diet, the Germans burn off thelion's share of the calories they consume while performing their everydayactivities. And by only having a light dinner, they go to bed on analmost-empty stomach, so the calories eaten are less likely to be stored asfat.
6. Take ahike. Where the rubber literally meets the road in Germanhealth is their penchant for walking and hiking. One of the rude awakenings ofmy exchange year was the realization that my host parents were not going todrive me anywhere. Where my American high school had a parking lot big enoughto accommodate several hundred cars, my German high school had zero parkingspaces for students and the longest bike racks I'd ever seen (which were wellused by faculty members, as well as students.) Even on the days it rained(which were most of them), I was walking or biking where I needed to go. Thefamily car only came out for road trips or major grocery expeditions. Mostadults have a collection of Spazierstöcke, or walking sticks, asrecreational walking or mountain hiking is a big part of most Germans'lifestyles. And walking at a brisk pace can burn over 300 calories per hour -that's a bratwurst! Of course if you really hit the Oktoberfestivities hard,you might do someTurbo Jam® Maximum Results routines - they burn off up to 1,000 calories anhour. That's two beers and two bratwursts you can have!
   

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