Super Bowl Recipe Makeovers

Many of you have or go to Super Bowl parties this weekend whether you like football or not. Even if there is no party, you may sit at home & watch it for the commercials. Often, these parties & hanging in front of the TV lead to overeating & overeating most of the time on those foods packed with lots of calories, fat and sugars. There were quite a few articles on this & I would like to share them with you so you have options. You can still provide some of the normal Super Bowl foods but why not have healthy options to keep you on track & maybe it will rub off on others! If you are going to a party, offer to bring a couple of your own dishes so you have food you want to eat.

Diet Detective had a great article that actually talks about using real food!!! Yes, the article offers up frozen options too but do check out the great things you can eat instead of the normal "junk". The article also provides recipes for things like guacamole, hummus dip, buffalo wings and jalapeno swappers. Hey, don't forget that salsa is a much better choice than fat laden dip too. Have some healthy salsa on hand to dip veggies & chips into. Read more here:

http://www.dietdetective.com/content/view/3039/3/

Hungry Girl also offers up some recipe makeovers for that big day. Her recipes make over pigs-in-blankets, 8 layer dip, another recipe for jalapeno swappers, chili and more. Click on the link below & scroll down to the second question. Read it here:

http://www.hungry-girl.com/askhg/askhgdetails.php?isid=1654

By the way, I know the commercials are a big thing for the Super Bowl but it still gives you the option to do some abs, squats or other at home exercises. If you like the commercials, why not do some exercises during the game or the half time show! It will help you work off any extra calories you may be consuming on that day.

Emotions & Eating

I have posted many times about the link between emotions & overeating. If you watch The Biggest Loser, you see this in action as the trainers work through emotional issues with the contestants & how that often leads to overeating. Just the other day, I posted about the overweight teens on the Oprah show & the very real link between emotions and eating.

If you can be truthful with yourself, you may find this is one of your major blocks to losing weight. You will have to face those emotional issues in order to move forward. Many don't want to do this because it is too painful but isn't your long term physical AND emotional health more important. Yes, some people overeat just because they eat too much & love food and can't stop. BUT, a big percentage of people that are overweight have emotional issues at the root of the weight gain.

Now, saying that, how do we cope with emotions and bad moods without heading to that ice cream container? I have posted a lot about this like first getting professional help, replacing bad habits with better habits, calling a friend to talk, taking a walk, walk away for a few minutes to think about it (which often may lead to NOT overeating), drinking water (sometimes we are really thirsty, not hungry) and more. Check my past posts.

Diet Blog had an interview with Shauna Reid, author of Dietgirl book. This is what she said she does:

Question from Diet Blog: "You're very honest in the Dietgirl book and on your blog about the link between emotions and unhealthy habits. What are your tips for coping with bad moods without resorting to chocolate?"

Answer from Shauna: I try to create a diversion - phoning a friend to have a moan, or churning out an angst-ridden blog entry. Kickboxing is my best weapon - it calms me down and brings perspective to my problems. It also reminds me why I choose to eat chocolate less often than I may like, because being fitter and healthier feels so good. But sometimes, no amount of trickery works and I just have the darn chocolate, and try to sit down as I eat to really appreciate its lovely goodness, instead of just mindlessly shoving it in. I have my good and bad days like everyone."

Her last statement is important. If you are just going to eat it, then sit down & enjoy it fully. Don't mindless eat.... then move on. Don't fret about it & don't give up just because you ate a bar of chocolate or a bowl of ice cream!!! MOVE ON!

Breakfast Makeovers!

Did any of you watch the Oprah show on Monday & Tuesday. They were all about the growing obesity of children! These shows discussed 16 obese teens & what they are going thru, the family habits, the emotional issues and more.

One of the statistics that came out on this show was that children that do not eat breakfast have a 450% increase in becoming obese adults! I have continually posted about the importance of breakfast. So, for those of you that say you can't do it, here from Hungry Girl are a number of breakfast recipe makeovers along with options for those that may not have the time to cook something up every day. Some of the prepacked goods are higher in sodium & sugars so do pay attention to that. In addition, for the recipes you prepare yourself, you can always reduce the sodium by substituting other lower sodium ingredients or increase the protein if necessary by adding in protein powder or other protein packed foods (like turkey, chicken or lower fat ham to omelets as an example).

Here are the links:

1. Cheese Bacon-Apple-Bella Frittata and The Big Apple French Toast Casserole. By the way, on the french toast, there are great whole grain breads out there with only an additional 40 calories that have more fiber & protein so keep that in mind.

http://www.hungry-girl.com/girls/biteoutdetails.php?isid=1652

2. Lots of Oatmeal recipes & more "to go" options:

http://www.hungry-girl.com/girls/biteoutdetails.php?isid=1643

Please try to eat breakfast. It really makes a difference in fueling your day so that you don't get to work or wherever & then start eating anything available. You are sabotaging yourself by skipping breakfast. I know from experience!

New Website Coming!

I want to let you all know that I am working on transferring my blog over to a website that is called http://www.truth2beingfit.com/. Right now most of my information is there but I still have to add back in my tip of the day, quote of the day, favorite websites and a few more things. Eventually I want to have more information on there but for now it will be just like my old blog. Please bear with me as I am making these changes (with MAJOR help from my husband, the computer king!!). If the site is down, please come back because we are probably working on it at that time.

For today, though, check out these cool portion control bowls from the American Diabetes Association. It is a common fact that many of us struggle with portion control and others are just are clueless. These bowls can help! Check this description out:

A set of 6 bowls ranging in size from 1/2 cup to 2 cups that measure exact portion size right in the dish you bring to the table. The bowls utilize a colorful graphic system and a fill line to depict actual portion sizes. Mesu is microwave, dishwasher, oven and freezer safe.

Very cool! The set is $49.99. Here is the link:

http://store.diabetes.org/products/product_details.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441763890&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302024198&bmUID=1232854472640

Butt Lifter + Cardio Too

Yes, we are all about tighter buns & keeping them lifted & NOT falling as we get older OR even when we are young. My Shape "e" letter had an article form fitsugar on another butt exercise. If the ball is too big for you, try one of the smaller exercise balls. She also has links to other exercises from previous articles (some have shared with you). Check out this butt lifter along with all the other ones here: http://www.fitsugar.com/2688027?utm_source=shape&utm_medium=email&utm_term=fit_shape_newsletter&utm_content=email_link&utm_campaign=shape_email_fit_shape_newsletter_20090120

Also on the Shape letter, there was a speed up the calorie burn cardio workout for the Elliptical machine. Many times you see routines for the treadmill or bike but not one for those of you that get on the elliptical machines. Th article states: "Get the benefits of running while keeping both feet firmly planted. Runners often do speed workouts, alternating sprints with jogging. You’ll try the same thing, but on the elliptical. This strategy not only trains your body to move faster, it amps up the calorie burn and improves your endurance too." In addition, using the incline on an elliptical machine will also work that butt!!!! Check out this routine here. You can also modify the workout for other cardio machines.

http://www.shape.com/workouts/articles/Speed_Up_Your_Calorie_Burn.html

Mindful Eating & More

I have posted before about mindful eating, meaning don't just phase out & eat like you do popcorn at the movie theater & before you know it, you have eaten the whole large tub of popcorn adding tons of calories & fat to your bod!

This article from the Care2 website, a great environmental and healthy living website, came from my sis, Bethe. It is of course about mindful eating and more. Like I have said before, sit down & enjoy that food. It takes the stomach 20 minutes to register being full so take a bite, chew it up completely, taste the goodness, enjoy it AND put your fork down in between bites so that you do that! The article also discusses the uniqueness of us all & how we should work our food program to what is right for us. Now, where have you heard that .. right here! For example, some people like salty/crunchy snacks & others like sweet/chocolate snacks, others like puddings & so on. You have to make a food program that you can live with for life! Read the article here:

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/mindful-eating-and-tuning-into-your-uniqueness.html

A second article from my sis from the same site is on dependency & denial. Here is a piece of that article which will hit home for many: "Having defined specifically the exact emotion you are experiencing, whether it is fear, anger, guilt, or depression, express the origins of this feeling to yourself through writing or journaling. Be careful not to use the language of victimization. Once you have completed this task, share these feelings with someone you can trust. Next you may release them through a ritual of your own devising–such as dancing, or burning the papers on which you have written down your experiences. Finally, celebrate the release of this blocked energy. Instead of denying your suffering, which only prolongs it, now you have defined, expressed, shared, released, and celebrated it–and moved on." Read the full article here:

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/dependency-and-denial.html

Thx Bethe! For all of you, check out the rest of the Care2 site. It has great stuff on there!

Weight Loss Help

I usually don't post on Saturday but since I have a backlog of things I want to share with you, I thought I would post a couple links today to some very interesting things off my Diet Detective "e" newsletter.

The first link is to a quiz that will give insight into how well you will do at permanent weight loss. After answering the questions, there is an explanation of what experts studies show about long term weight loss. Learn from that but remember that it is not a given. Take the quiz here: http://www.dietdetective.com/weightloss/quizzes/uweightloss/

The second article is how you can cut your workout time. I have and do use all of the suggestions, especially the one about minimal rest between each set. For this one, if you are trying to add size, usually you would rest in between sets so that you can lift heavier weights. This is a nice break from that & it will still work you hard if you are not used to not having that 1-2 minute rest. Read that article here: http://www.dietdetective.com/content/view/142/157/

Happy Saturday!

Abs, Intervals & Hula Hoops!

I have a back up of articles & things I want to post to my blog so today I am going to provide 3 links to articles on exercise options. Adding 1 or all of these things to your weekly routine will help your body "keep guessing". As I have said many times, you have to change your routine regularly to keep the body guessing. Your body is a smart machine & it will get used to the "same ole thing" day in and day out so you MUST change up your routine.

First, I have an article from the site, I Look Like Fit (see my Fav Sites list) on 2 great exercises for the abs. I have done the first one with a barbell, an exercise ball & an ab roller & it is a good one. The second exercise was one I have never heard of but I tried it & it is a good one and hard! See the article here: http://ilooklikefit.com/2009/01/absolutely_fabulous.html

Second, an article from Diet Detective discusses Tabata Intervals. They are different from the intervals I have discussed here before. In fact, I had not heard of them. If you are new to exercise, don't try these yet. They are very intense. There is also a link to Fartlek training in this article so check that out too! Read this article here: http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2009/01/20/turn_up_your_cardio_with_tabata_intervals.php

The third article is on hula hooping. This can be a great exercise for you & obviously if you have kids, you can "play" with them while you are doing your exercise routine. Hula hooping really works the mid section too! I have an older post from July 30, 2008 that you can read & also check out his article from Diet Blog: http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2009/01/20/pick_up_your_hula_hoop_-_its_for_adults_too.php

Exercise, Health & MONEY!

I wanted to post today about a very important aspect of eating healthier & exercising..... TAKING LESS MEDICATION! If any of you watch the Biggest Loser, you will see the stories of how many medications these people are on due to their weight & unhealthy eating habits. Yes, The Biggest Loser has an extensive medical team behind the scene & every contestant is put through a battery of tests prior to being on the show. They even show their "physical" age compared to their chronological age. Many are 15-20 years physically older than their actual age!

This week's show highlighted two contestants that had been on 10-15 different medications! One of these contestants was in his late 20's and they estimated that if he stayed on his current medication for the course of his life, it would cost him close to $730,000.00!!! The other man was already closing in on that amount of money because he was older!

So, don't you think you can find a better use for this money! These medications were directly related to their poor health & they both are off almost all the medications in just 3-4 weeks of exercising & eating healthier!

If nothing else, this should at least make you think in a different way about reasons to get healthier and start exercising. Just think of all the fun things you could do with that medication money or how much you could do for your family! To help you on your way, check out this article from Shape on 6 habits of successful dieters:

http://www.fitsugar.com/slideshow/2697293?utm_source=shape&utm_medium=email&utm_term=fit_shape_newsletter&utm_content=email_link&utm_campaign=shape_email_fit_shape_newsletter_20090120

Joining a Gym-Questions to Ask

So, you are thinking about joining a gym to help with your weight loss, fitness and health goals. Well, Diet Detective had a great and very comprehensive article on all the questions to ask and the many things to think about BEFORE joining a gym. One paragraph states:

The most important thing is that the gym fit your needs. Take a look at the equipment, facility, classes and staff. “If you’re looking for good equipment, see if they have the kinds of machines and weights you like, and make sure the machines are not too crowded at the time of day you’ll be going. If you’re looking for group exercise classes, see what variety they have and if the times are convenient for you. If you’re going to be changing there, see if the locker rooms are clean. If amenities are important, look for child care, day spa services, a pool, etc. In addition, look for a facility that is within 12 minutes of your home or work. Research shows you are more likely to use it if it’s close,” says Kathie Davis, executive director of IDEA Health & Fitness Association.

The article also writes about contracts, initiation fees, amenities, equipment, classes, music, trainers and more. This is a MUST READ if you are going to join a gym! Read the article here and make an informed choice.

http://www.dietdetective.com/content/view/3595/3/

Resolution Help/Recipe Makeovers

As we celebrate a new President today along with hope for an improving & better future for all, I thought why not again help you all with your own new beginnings for a healthier & fitter you! I am going to have a few links here for you today.

I offer up a resolution help guide from the Hungry Girl (HG) site (suggestions that are new & old) along with her version of a printable grocery list. HG's site tries to offer up healthy food & recipes but also incorporates more packaged/canned/boxed goods to work with along with fresh foods. I don't eat a lot of the boxed & packaged goods as I prefer to use as many fresh foods as possible but she does offer help for busy people on the go or people that are are working to incorporate better choices into their lifestyle. I also will provide two recipe makeovers from her site.

From Oxygen Women's Fitness, I will provide a link for their online site. Scroll down to What's Fresh & the printable grocery shopping list there. This is a list for the recipes available for that particular site. There are also other recipes like a bean dip, vegetable lasagna and Poached Salmon with Herbed Cucumber Sauce. Do read the whole site as there is a lot of great information there. Oxygen prefers to go by the Clean Eating rule & uses many more fresh ingredients & food at it's most natural state as possible along with lots of spices. Oxygen tries to reduce packaged good as much as possible.

• HG Resolution Guide and link to printable grocery list:

http://www.hungry-girl.com/girls/biteoutdetails.php?isid=1636

• HG Zucchini Muffin makeover:

http://www.hungry-girl.com/chew/chewdetails.php?isid=1639

• HG Chicken Wrap makeover:

http://www.hungry-girl.com/chew/chewdetails.php?isid=1647

• Clean Eating link for Grocery List & recipes:

http://www.cleaneatingmag.com/newsletter/january2009/

Tighten the Triceps

We all like our arms to look great whether we are covering them or not. I always hear women complaining about that "stuff" hanging on the back of the arms which are called our triceps. Women and men alike want to see tight and toned arms when we look in the mirror. There are so many exercises you can do for this body part & if you search my older posts, you will find some. Right now, I want to share an article I got on my Oxygen Women's Fitness Magazine "e" newsletter. If you do not belong to a gym, use some exercise bands you have at home or any water bottles, canned goods, bags of sugar or whatever you can find that provides the appropriate weight resistance. If you only have one thing, do the exercises one arm at a time or if the item is too heavy use both hands to do the exercise. When using the bands, do attach them to a sturdy object that will not move or break. Check out the other articles while you are on the page viewing the article below.

Check out the full article here: http://www.oxygenmag.com/sexyarms

Meatless Eating

For those of you that may be vegetarians or are just trying to limit the amount of meat you eat, Diet Detective had a good article to help you out. The thing to be careful about is that just because people say they are a vegetarian, does not mean that they are eating healthy. Also, they may not be eating the right things to be sure to get all the necessary protein, vitamins and minerals. Check out this article to give you more facts on what to eat & what to limit. Once again, don't forget that eating too much of anything, meaning if you are taking in more calories than you are burning off, that you will gain weight.

Read the full article here: http://www.dietdetective.com/content/view/218/83/

Deceiving Foods

Diet Blog had a short article on "deceiving foods" today. I wanted to discuss this because it leads to a larger problem among people trying to lose weight. People tend to take "diet experts" words as god. They believe lots of what they hear or read at face value. If a package says low fat then they don't read further. What we all need to do is research things if it sounds to good to be true or even if it does not.

I really want to discuss today about how important it is to become a label reader!!! As you read the Diet Detective article, you will realize how easy it is to "assume" that something is healthy for you or that it is low in calories or fat just by the name on the package or commercials that that may tout it as healthy. The only way you are going to be sure that your weight loss goals will work is to take things into your own hands & start reading labels so that you are making informed choices!!! Then, if you decide to eat it anyway, you only have yourself to be accountable to & it is an informed choice for you. Maybe it is your treat for the day or week.

Either way, take things in to your own hands. If you don't read labels & don't take accountability for what you are putting in your mouth than you only have yourself to look to when pounds or size are not dropping. No fooling yourself anymore! Just do it & read labels!

Read the article here: http://www.dietdetective.com/content/view/444/156/

Recipe Makeovers

I was watching The Today Show the other day & they offered up a few recipes from The Biggest Loser, the popular weight loss show on NBC. This season is amazing because they have the largest contestants ever & they are literally saving peoples lives by helping them lose weight, get healthy & with time, many will get off medication they have been on for years. Check out the article below to see recipes for simple grilled chicken, grilled chicken smothered nachos and enchilada chicken. Each recipe also has the nutritional breakdown so you can plan for your food program. Of course, there are directions on how to cook it! As always, feel free to change up spices to meet your taste buds.

See the recipes here: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/28625077/

Weight Loss Tips

I have collected a few weight loss help tips over the past few months and wanted to share them with you. These points are ones that you are going to relate to so please read them thoroughly. I know they will hit home & help you along the way. I have posted about all of them over time but as we embark on either a new weight loss goal, a first time weight loss program or we are just aiming to change things up, these tips will help you along the way. Why not print them out & post them on the fridge or bathroom mirror so you see them every day!!! Here they are:

1. Embrace who you are as an eater. In the book I talk about figuring out if you’re a Clean Plate Clubber or a Controlled Eater. You can’t change who you are as an eater. I’m a Clean Plate Clubber. I can’t be trusted with peanut butter. I’ll eat a whole jar. So if we have any in the house my husband knows to hide it from me. It’s important to learn the strategies that apply to your life. For most people the single most important can do to help lose weight is to plan ahead. What’s your day going to be like? Where/when are you going to have lunch and dinner? When are you going to have breakfast? What about snacks? It’s amazing how important snacks can be. Some people tell me they’re just too hungry to eat well at meals: they stuff themselves. That’s because they’re not snacking properly. Breakfast is critical. If you’re not hungry for breakfast it’s probably because you’re eating too much the night before. You don’t have to eat breakfast the minute get up: some people find it works best for them to delay their breakfast. That’s fine. But you can’t skip it.

Heather Bauer, RD, CDN

2. The most important elements in a fitness program are from Gilad:

• Sustainability - Each person should find his favorite fitness activities and then apply them into his weekly schedule at a time of day that will be easy to commit to.
  
• Setting realistic goals - A step by step approach is very important to the beginners as well as for the advanced. Don’t set contracts in your mind that your body is not ready to meet.
  
• Consistency – it is better to do a little bit everyday rather then to push hard for a short time and end up giving up.

3. From Diet Detective

It's accountability. You have to pay attention to your missteps -- that all-meat pizza ... plus bread sticks and a soda or two! -- then face them down, and get back on track. Everybody gets off track from time to time, and nobody but YOU will shove you back on there.

The keys to fitness and health are in your hands, and no one else's. The decisions to make the time and give the effort to get and stay where you need to be are yours to make.

It's easy to make excuses about being too busy, having too many temptations (or holiday parties), or one of the hundreds of other excuses you can come up with. It is so easy because it is true that we are busier than ever and it seems that something has to give. But why is it always our health that suffers?

So acknowledge that you get off track now and then -- we're human -- we all do that. But recognize it and hold yourself accountable when those things happen. Be a check on yourself, correct mistakes when you can, and forgive yourself when you get off track. Then Kick your Butt back Into gear and get back on. Then you will be ready to tackle the New Year armed with the tools and plan to have a New Year that includes a Healthier and Happier you.

Check out this article on how to get organized to succeed at healthy eating:

http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2009/01/14/get_organized_to_succeed_at_healthy_eating.php

4. From Oxygen Women's Fitness Magazine:

How to do it:

Be SMART about your goal setting. This means making your goals Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely. For example, putting the SMART principle into action would be committing to losing 15 pounds by spring. Now that’s a goal!

5. From Fit at 51:

I have so many things to say but PLEASE READ THE DIET DETECTIVE ARTICLE ABOVE. Plan ahead!!!! Try to cook multiple chicken breasts or make a lean turkey or beef meatloaf that will last a few days that allows you to have dinners ready to go or leftovers for lunches. Cut up veggies in advance for snacks or to be ready to cook/microwave for dinner, preportion your snacks in mini zip lock bags for the week, use a crock pot & cook while you are gone, schedule your exercise time on your work & home calender so you don't miss it. Pick a day good for you & do it all at once if necessary.

Good luck & I know you can do it!

Count Calories or Not

There is a lot of talk out there by the "diet experts" about whether you should count calories if you are trying to lose weight.

Some of the "diet experts" say that counting calories does not work & people get turned off by this & don't want to bother doing all that. They say people should just start eating better, make better choices & exercise. This way, losing weight becomes less stressful and it makes it an easier fix for people that just don't or won't log their food.

OK, I disagree with this! Yes, eating better, exercising and making better food choices is better than not doing that and I am all for that .... BUT, if you are not burning off more calories than you are taking in then, plain and simply, you are going to gain weight! If you eat more healthy calories in a day than you burn off, you are still going to gain weight! It is well known that people really don't know how much they are eating, they don't understand portion sizes and they are plain eating way too much. That is clear by the obesity rate in this country not only in adults but in children too!

My personal opinion is that you need TO SEE ON PAPER OR COMPUTER or in pictures how many calories you are eating each day. You need to see how much you are eating & what exactly you are eating in order to change. Most people "lie to themselves" or make excuses to themselves rather than face reality. You know I am right about this.

Without a starting point based on knowledge & facts, it is hard to move forward with a plan for absolute success. Eventually you will understand what you are eating, what is a portion size etc. and then you will no longer need to log & check all these things. Isn't it worth it to yourself to face the truth first! I no longer need to log & count calories and all that stuff many of you don't want to do.

Please get real with yourself & log and/or take pictures or cell phone pics of what you are eating so that you really know how to move forward!

More on Night Eating

I got a couple questions on my post from yesterday regarding eating at night so I thought I would elaborate a bit more on this.

I want to clarify that I don't advocate eating a big dinner at night close to bed time so that the food just sits there & per some experts may contribute to more of those calories being stored as fat. Plus, I personally, feel pretty "gross" going to bed with a lot of food sitting in my stomach whether it fits in with my daily food program or not.

I am specifically talking about eating those after dinner snacks. Again, if you have not eaten enough during the day, the risk is coming home & eating everything in front of you for dinner & following that up with a snack later that may be too high in calories & fat leading to you basically eating too many calories each day. If you are a person that gets home very late, try making your breakfast the biggest meal of the day, then lunch & a smaller dinner if you must eat your dinner closer to bedtime. If you are a mini meal person, try to eat your starchy carbs earlier in the day & make your late night meal higher in protein along with maybe a salad or vegggie.

The key is to plan ahead! Plan your meals & snacks or if you are eating 5-6 small meals, plan those too! Without doing this, you are setting yourself up for consuming more than calories than you are burning off.

I keep my after dinner snack at 150 -200 calories & something that is not heavy or bloating. There are many nights that I may eat it only 1-1.5 hours before bed but it is nothing that is heavy or calorie dense.

If you are a morning work out person, you may want to make your after dinner snack or last mini meal of the day something that will carry over to help you with that morning workout. Check the article from yesterday's post regarding this point.

Try this for at least 30 days. I think you will see the difference by watching your late night eating & making sure you plan ahead & don't overdo on nighttime calories.

Eating Before Bed

There are numerous articles & discussions on whether it is good or bad to eat after dinner snacks or a snack later at night before you head to bed. I am sure many of you have heard Oprah & Bob Greene, her trainer, say not to eat 2 hours before bed. That is a must for his program & Oprah tells her audience it is of prime importance. Now, I like Oprah and she has done a lot of good & her experts have great advice.... but, I disagree with this notion that you have to stop eating 2-3 hours before bed.

Now, saying that, if you are a person that does not fuel your body all day long with the right foods, then yes, you are going to come home starving & you will eat everything in sight. Most likely you will eat things that are not great for you and food that may be high in calories, high in bad fats, not the healthiest choices and just plain too much of them! In that case, eating later at night is going to be a problem. You are just ingesting too many calories & they are calories that are just going to sit there. Even healthy food can make you gain weight if you eat too much of it!!!

Also, if you know that you can't handle the night snacks, than just stop eating 2 hours before bed. Brush your teeth if you have to & that will keep you from eating more. There are many people that have lost weight just by not eating 2-3 hours before bed.

For me, I have an after dinner snack & it may be only 1-1.5 hours before I go to bed. BUT, it is a snack that I know exactly what the calorie count is for it. I don't over do with 500++ calories as an after dinner snack. My snack is in the 150 calorie range & I make sure it fits in with my food plan for that day.

So, there you are.... if you think you can handle limiting your after dinner snacks to healthy choices & you watch the calorie count so that you are not eating way too many calories at night than I say not to worry. As always, do what is right for you, what works for your schedule & what you know you can handle for the long term.

Read an article on this here: http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2008/12/31/the_eating_late_at_night_myth_were_not_gremlins.php

More Weight Loss Help

In my continuing "series" of weight loss help posts, today I want to talk about an interview with Joy Bauer, the health expert from The Today Show. Today she was discussing "simple strategies for taking it off in 2009". Two really caught my ear although all were great help suggestions. The two I thought would really hit home with you are:

1. Trigger Foods - When you first start a weight loss program, it might be best to keep all trigger foods out of your home & reach. Trigger foods are those foods that you just can't stop eating once you start into them. This is not to say that you never can eat them again. All we are saying is that keep them away from you at first until you get to a point where you can handle having only 1 piece of pizza or one square of chocolate. You will get to the point when you can handle it


2. Eliminate Extras - So, I am not saying eliminate your mini snacks. What Joy Bauer is saying is that "picking" that goes on thru the day. You know what I am talking about .. a taste of the dinner you are cooking, a pick at the kid's snack, a pick at the candy bowl at work. This is what Joy suggested to her client who said she was following Joy's program to a "T". Take a large zip lock bag & every time you reach for a "pick or bite of something", put it in the zip lock bag rather than eat it. Her client had eaten 1000 calories of picking! I think this is a great idea!!! I think this may be an eye opener for many!

Read all of Joy's 6 suggestions here: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/28559531/

Also, Joy has another article on how to eat better in 2009 & 5 of her favorite foods. They are Greek yogurt, quinoa, nut butter, flax seeds and dried fruit. The article discusses the nutritional content of the foods, why to eat them & how to use them. I, personally, eat Greek yogurt, nut butters or natural peanut butter and flax seeds. When I added these things to my food program, I did notice a big difference. I have a post on quinoa so check my past posts and I eat fresh vs. dried fruit but read Joy's advice on that. Dried fruit is calorie dense so be sure to make note of portion control. This article can be read here:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/28545031/?pg=6#Health_COT_5foods2009

Age & Calories

I have mentioned numerous times about how I have had to change my food & exercise program through the years due to hormones, aging, work schedule etc. Recently I have discussed my "battle" with perimenopause. I think I have been going through that for about 2 years. It has really intensified in the past 6-8 months though. Diet Blog has a good article on how your body needs fewer calories as you age. Before I get there, let me share some of my experiences.

I have talked a lot recently about how I have had to make many food changes recently due to the hormones & perimenopause. For those that don't know, many women go through tremendous changes & a large percentage have issues with weight gain due to the hormone changes & aging. This can start as early as in the 30's but many go through perimenopause in the 40's & menopause in the 50's.

For me, the need to really take a major look at my calories & food program started about 6-8 months ago. I know many of you have heard Oprah talk about this but I took action & knew that changes had to be made to keep my weight where I wanted it to be for my goals. I had to cut out one of my mini meals ( about 150-200 calories). I reduced my after workout toast to 1 piece of toast with peanut butter & a protein bar rather than 2 pieces of toast (which used to be fine!). I changed up my protein/carbohydrate ratio as well. In addition, I liked to eat oatmeal with protein powder & ground flax seeds at dinner time. Just me .. I liked that. I had to limit the days I ate that later in the day & even cut out a couple days of it. Hey, I love that meal so I ate it a lot. I get plenty of fiber elsewhere so I knew I was fine in that regard.

The point is that you have to live with these changes & take the steps to deal with them. Don't expect to do nothing & all will be fine. Keep assessing & reassessing your food & exercise program if things are not working. It took me about a couple months but I established what worked for me. I am sure I will have to change things again with the hormones in constant flux!!!

OK, check out the article here:

http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2009/01/08/your_body_needs_fewer_calories_as_you_age.php

Also, check out this other article from Diet Blog on a website that will let you see what you look like after a certain amount of weight loss. Interesting. It may help to motivate many of you!

http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2009/01/08/what_would_you_look_like_after_losing_weight.php

Cardio vs. Food vs. Weights

I wanted to discuss the ongoing questions & articles about what helps you lose weight the best: cardio workouts, weight workouts or a better food program. Well, if you ask me, you have to do all 3 to make it work right & to maintain your weight loss for life.

Now, saying that, I want to let you know about my personal experiences with this. When I was younger, I did nothing but cardio. Yes, cardio workouts, walking etc. are going to help you lose weight but you will just be a smaller version of your heavier self. If that is your goal, go for it although I feel weight resistance is important for long term health.

BUT, in order to reshape your body, you must do some form of weight resistance. Not only does it help reshape your body but it prevents osteoporosis (bone thinning), prevents injury if you have more muscle mass and the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn at rest (raising your BMR)! I know this from personal experience! Been there, done that. Weights changed my life, my body & my ability to eat more. No more 1200 calorie days for me!

Now, your food program. Many experts will tell you that what you eat is 80% of the equation to losing weight & keeping it off. From my own experience, I will say the food is a huge factor. What types of foods you eat, how much & the quality of it has proven to me that it really matters A LOT!!!!! Yes, we can eat 500 calories of healthy protein, fat, complex carbs or 500 calories of sweets & cakes and cookies but it is still 500 calories.

Some would say that calories in, calories out so it should not matter the types of food. I disagree! I have seen first hand how much better my body looks eating the healthier versions of protein, fat & complex carbs. And the added bonus is my body works better with good food, fiber, good fats in it. I am not saying that I eat healthy all the time but I try to at good at least 80% of the time. From my own experiences & personal opinion, 500 calories of good food vs. 500 calories of junk does make a difference in how your body looks.

Decide what your goals are and go from there. I challenge you to change your food choices for at least 30-60 days & see if you are in agreement with me that it does matter. Let me know your results!

I just want to add in this link from I Look Like Fit about fish & types that are better for you. I know many people eat fish for health reasons so check the article out at:

http://ilooklikefit.com/2009/01/somethings_fishy.html

PS: Picture from Diet Blog

Weightloss & "Habits"

For those that are just starting out, part of a successful weight loss program must include breaking old habits & replacing them with new/good habits.

For example, learn from your past. If you are a late night snacker, either decide you don't want to eat after a certain time & go brush your teeth at that time OR make sure you have healthy & portion controlled snacks on hand. DO NOT bring the whole bag or box to the couch! For me, I like a crunch. I found a good organic animal cookie at Costco that allows 13 cookies for 3 grams of fat & about 115 calories. I can't remember the exact calories but I do count out my cookies to match the amount I want that night. I never bring out the whole container & just start eating from it. PORTION CONTROL & planning are key!

Some other points in the article are making the new habit part of your routine and focusing on what you will gain from the new habit. For example, with exercise, make a "lunch date" 3 times per week to walk with a buddy or maybe you can meet a buddy at the gym 3 times per week either before, at lunch or after work. Put it on your daily schedule! Don't focus on the loss of that burger rather focus on the fact that your feel better, are healthier & your clothes will and are fitting better.

Check out the article & hopefully it will help you get on track, get back on track or just help you to move forward!

http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2009/01/06/how_to_break_bad_habits_and_build_good_habits.php

Losing Weight-More on This!

I want to follow up on yesterday's post about losing weight. I got a really good email from my sister that made me think about what I wrote. She mentioned that it may turn people off to tell them they have to do 1 hour of exercise each day as the article I posted states that most successful weight loss maintainers do that . She is right.

I have posted before about how it is OK to break up your workout time into smaller increments over the day. Maybe you can do three 10-20 minute sessions 2 to 3 times per day like some resistance work before work, a walk at lunch & maybe some more resistance work or abs or jump roping, high knee ups or some other form of cardio while you are watching the news or your fav program at night. Even do things in the commercial breaks. Maybe you pick just two of these times & do 15-20 minutes at each one.

What I will say is that you really have to establish what your goals are FOR YOU not the person next to you or on TV or in the next cubicle over. Do you just want to lose some pounds & feel healthy & better? Do you want to lose a lot of weight & go down 4 clothes sizes? Do you want to lose weight & look muscular? Establish what your goal is & work towards that.

When you first start losing weight, it comes off easier. But as we get fitter & "lighter", our body does start to adjust and you will have to work out longer (depending on how long you are working out now) or smarter ( higher intensity, upping the cardio speed, intervals etc.). You may have to play around with your food program a bit to help push past some plateaus.

If you want to be lean with some muscles, plain & simply, this is hard work.. not that just losing weight is not hard work, it is, BUT, you will have to put in at least an hour a day depending on your goals for how lean or muscular you want to be.

For a regular person, if you are just starting out, do what you can & that is an accomplishment right there!!!! Over time, try to fit in 3-5 exercise sessions a week that include cardio & weight resistance. Try to work up to 30 minutes if you are new & as you improve your health, you may want to add in more time depending on your goals. I think rest days are important & maybe you are just "playing" on those rest days. Sledding with the kids, frisbee at the beach or park, roller skating & running after the kids etc. Or maybe you are just resting like me!

Remember, pick things you like to do and can stick with for the duration ... is it classes at the gym, walking, jump roping, videos at home, roller blading, bike riding, hiking, kick boxing, yoga .. so many choices. Also remember that just moving & playing with the kids is exercise too. You can do lots of hings at the play ground. Check my older posts. Housework adds up as well.

Hope this helps & thx to my sister Bethe again!

How To Lose Weight

Yes, I am going to tell you how to lose weight & many people won't like it because it involves working at it & there is no miracle cure or pill that will make you thin & lean. I have worked at this from the age of 16 years until now at 51 years old. I did it wrong a lot of years & I now do it right. My plan matches up with the article from Diet Blog that I will quote now:

"Here's what almost all successful weight loss maintainers are doing to keep their weight down: They self-monitor their weight regularly, they eat breakfast and -- here's the bad news -- they all get in at least an hour or more of physical activity per day. That's it, no book to buy or prescription to follow. That's what works."

The article discusses many things that are proven to work like: make a plan, set specific and measurable goals, think before you eat, look to the past for what did not work, find something you will do for life. Hmmmmmmmmmm, where have you heard this before? Right here, that is where... you read it here on my blog!

I will say on the food end that the article says that successful losers "eat breakfast and follow a relatively low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet (sorry Atkins and South Beach fans)". One thing I can say to this is that I have had to change & play around with my protein, carb and fat ratio content all my years. As I aged or as my hormones changed or even my work or exercise schedule changed, I did have to adjust my food & ratios. Right now I eat 20-25% calories from fat, approximately 30-35% from protein (especially on weight lifting days) and the rest from complex carbohydrates. I do know around how many calories I eat & that is based on my workout schedule as well. I probably eat more calories than many of you because I work out very hard. I always eat breakfast!!!!

OK, here is the article. Read it & take note:

http://www.dietdetective.com/content/view/95/156/

Cardio Options

As we all head into new year, many of you may just be starting a fitness program while others are looking to change theirs, increase the intensity or just looking for new things to do. My Shape "e" letter had a good article on cardio options & a plan on what to do, how long, what intensity etc.

For those of you that are newbies, don't try to overdo & then make yourself never want to come back to it again. Do what you can & take the intensity/speed down if necessary. For more advanced work out people, do the exact opposite. You can up the intensity, do longer sessions or whatever helps you reach your goals.

Here is what the article is about: "How it works In this Double-Cross Plan, you do four cardio workouts a week for eight weeks. There are three main variables for change: activity (running or cycling), type of workout (interval or endurance) and location (indoor or outdoor). Over the next eight weeks, you'll also be rotating the days of the week that you do these workouts. End result: No two training sessions are the same." Also, like I always say, you need to do things you like & will stick with and so does the article stating that "while our program includes indoor and outdoor running and cycling workouts, you can make modifications according to your personal preferences and environment."

The complete article is at this link:

http://www.shape.com/workouts/articles/Cardio_Special_Break_the_fat_barrier.html?page=1

More Resolution Help

Happy New Year to all and hoping 2009 brings health & happiness to all!

Keeping on my topic of help with weight loss resolutions, Diet Blog again had a good article about how to take your motivation to start a weight loss/exercise program & make it stick .. make it a habit. Many of the suggestions have been posted here before or I have written about them myself but you can never say some of them too much!

Once you start that weight loss program, you need to make it consistent and part of your every day schedule. For those that work, start putting it on your calender like any other meeting or appointment & stick to it! For those that don't work, do the same. Find a time and something you like to do that works & don't let other things get in the way.

Most people that do morning workouts are shown to stick best to their routines because they do it before anything else gets in the way. Saying that, if you are not a morning person, this may not work for you. REALLY, find a time & activity that is right for you & that you can stick with and works within your schedule.

Check out the article here:

http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2009/01/01/making_exercise_a_habit.php

While you are there, check out another article about the 10 biggest health and diet stories on 2008 here:

http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2008/12/31/the_10_biggest_diet_and_health_stories_of_2008.php