Archive for the ‘Weight Loss’ Category

Is it time to cut out the calorie counting?

There seems to be many false ideas today regarding the practice of counting calories.  Everyone seems to think that consuming less is how to lose fat.

In fact, many solely judge the health value of food based on how many calories it contains.

What is this theory based on?

Basically it’s that you need to take in less energy than you put out. Although this part is true, the problem lies in the methods most people use to do it.

In many instances, severely restricting your calorie intake does work at first. But it’s very difficult to maintain over the long haul. Typically these eating plans involve starving the body with an unsustainable restrictive diet leaving it nutritionally deficient.

It’s easy to see where such a diet could go wrong…

These highly restrictive diets will result in frequent binging due to both hunger issues and lack of variety. But that’s not the only reason “low calorie” diets don’t work.

When you eliminate the calories, your body basically goes into “famine mode.” This causes it to reduce its metabolism speed and store the calories as body fat, anticipating a shortage of food.

This happens because your body is used to consuming more calories. When you instantly eliminate half of them, your body will essentially begin storing up fat to make sure you have enough to survive on.

Not only will this INCREASE your body fat, but your energy will go down as well. Your body needs calories to thrive, after all.  It’s also time consuming. Who wants to measure out every meal? For another thing, it’s very difficult to do when eating out.

But that’s not even the WORST part of low calorie diets. The biggest hindrance is that they totally ignore the nutritional value of food outside of calories. Just because the foods you eat are low in calories doesn’t mean you’re getting a nutritionally, well-balanced intake of foods.

So another question to consider, “Should you eat as many calories as you want?”

Of course not. If you overdo it, you are still going to gain weight. But in general, eating a well-balanced diet with enough healthy fats, carbs and proteins along with plenty of fruits and vegetables is probably your best option.

When you are full, stop eating. Simple but effective.

So how do you reduce calories while still feeling full?

One method of doing this is to focus on eating more filling foods to reduce your overall consumption. This way you reduce your caloric intake while still making sure you have enough energy.

The bottom line is, reducing your caloric intake shouldn’t be your main focus. In fact, overdoing it can have the opposite effect — it can actually make you gain fat. Eat a variety of high nutrient foods along with filling foods to keep you satisfied.  If you’re hungry all the time, then this is a clue that you need to eat more filling foods with your meals.

Some examples of filling foods:

• Brown rice, beans & whole wheat pasta has higher fiber, making you feel full faster and longer.
• Broth-based (not cream-based) vegetable soups
• Oatmeal is very filling and satisfying
• Apples and oranges are packed with fiber
• Popcorn -  Nice when you’re in the mood for munching.  No need for tons of butter to be satisfying, get creative with spices…such as lemon pepper seasoning.
• Walnuts and almonds
• Meat proteins:  turkey and chicken breast and fish.

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Battle the Tummy Bulge with Blueberries

If you’ve got a sweet tooth, consider that some studies are showing that sugar is making more people fat, than fat is!  So choose wisely on your sweet indulgences.

A can of cola can have around 155-170 calories.  As for brownies, chocolate fudge and pie…well, we won’t even go there!  You know they can pack some hefty calories.  I love these sweet treats, but they shouldn’t be on my menu every day.  They would be more suitable for special occasions or perhaps on one special day of the week where you allow yourself an extra treat.

When you’re cutting back on sugar, try to replace that “sweet craving” with something more natural and nutritious. Considering the fact that one cup of blueberries have only about 82 calories make them a perfect treat for a snack.

Here’s some other health benefits of blueberries:

- Blueberries also contain less water making them more nutrient-dense when comparing equal volumes.

- Blueberries are rich in phytochemicals (phenolic acid, anthocyanins and ellagic acid, a natural compound that may inhibit tumor growth)  *Fresh and frozen are recommended.  Dried forms contain very little anthocyanins.

- Blueberries have the possibility to improve balance, coordination and memory.

- Blueberries have the possibility to inhibit cancer, prevent bacteria that’s responsible for urinary tract infections and also help protect against cardiovascular disease.

*Researchers at the University of Prince Edward Island in Atlantic Canada found that rats which were fed diets containing wild blueberries for six weeks experienced a decrease in stroke-induced brain damage.

Weekly Motivational Pep Talk:

Are you getting enough sleep?   Women seem to struggle in this area.  Schedule your bed time to allow sufficient rest. For the average person, that means around eight hours.  I realize most of us have literally hundreds of things to get done, but our health is a little more important than having the house in perfect order.

Not only are we more alert mentally when we get sufficient rest,  but we also have more energy.  You’re going to be more active which means burning more calories.  You’re going to have more positive thoughts with increased mental alertness (and less melt downs), which means you won’t drown your sorrows with chocolate fudge all day.

Try purposing yourself to get more rest.  I realize there are always going to be those rough nights when your hubby or kids keep you awake, but by making rest a higher priority, you should hopefully keep a fairly well-balanced, rested body.

(Go ahead and comment below to update us on your goals and accomplishments!  I would love to hear from you!)

Healthy Recipe of the Week:

Almost every single morning I start my day with blueberries…and I’m pretty alert and ready to roll by the time I get to school.  This breakfast cuts out additives and added sugars and a lot of junk that I simply don’t need.  I usually manage pretty well with this breakfast and two hours later I have a snack that tides me over until lunchtime.

Blueberry Breakfast

1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Sprinkle generously with ground flaxseed

Let it set for about 15 min. while the blueberries thaw a little.  Then, pour a little milk on top just like cereal.  I’ve been using rice milk to avoid more dairy products.

Information: Some information and studies have been gathered from the book, 101 Foods That Could Save Your Life

Disclaimer: I would like to clarify the fact that I’m not a certified dietician.  I rely on health-focused research and learned experiences.  Any major diet changes should be consulted with your own doctor.   Some people are diabetic and others have food allergies.  This is something to always consider when making any changes in your own diet.

Long Term Weight Loss with Protein

Hope you’re having a terrific week. (I know it just got started, so it can’t be THAT bad yet, right?) The reason I decided to do health and weight loss topics on Mondays, was so that I could motivate all of us to get back on track after the weekend.  I, for one, need motivation on Mondays to get me thinking straight…and back to eating right. lol

Referring back to my list of Superfoods, turkey, chicken breast, salmon and other fish were on the list.  This is mainly due to the protein content in these foods.  Most of us want long-term weight loss and studies have shown that protein can help us achieve that because the extra protein intake can decrease appetite.

Through a study of mice, there was an indication that protein can influence your metabolism.  Those mice who were fed double amounts of leucine (an amino acid present in protein) had a significant reduction in obesity and also an improved insulin response.  In yet another study, leucine seemed to reduce the storage of fat cells.  Fatty acids were used by the muscle cells, meaning fat was being used for fuel.  We all want those fat cells put to some good use and then disappearing, right!?!

Meats can be high in protein, but we need to consider that they can be high in saturated fats.  Turkey without the skin is low in saturated fat.  Turkey is also rich in niacin, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, iron, selenium, and zinc.  So for meat lovers, I recommend that you choose your meats wisely, and observe your proportions well.  *As a precaution, please be aware that too much protein can have adverse effects, such as kidney disease.

I suggest that you stay away from protein bars.  They’re not as healthy for you as the manufacturers claim and you have no control over all the added (not-so-good-for-you) ingredients.  “Bravo” for those who prefer to focus more on vegetables and nuts for their protein.  Americans tend to eat way to much meat.  On a further note, vegetable proteins lack certain essential amino acids, but combining  them with rice, grains, whole wheat breads, etc. you can have a complete meal.  (Click here to view examples of plant protein combinations.)

I’ve gathered just a brief list of vegetables and nuts that are fairly high in protein.  There are also some dairy products that could be included, but I chose not to list them.  Many people have side-affects from dairy products and do not even realize that dairy has been the root cause of their problems.

Vegetables high in protein: beans (9 grams of protein per serving),  peas (7 grams of protein per serving), asparagus (3 grams of protein per serving), broccoli (3 grams of protein per serving), watercress (3 grams of protein per serving), brussel sprouts (3 grams of protein per serving)

Nuts & seeds high in protein: peanut butter (2 TB – 8 grams protein), almonds (¼ cup – 8 grams), peanuts (¼ cup – 9 grams), cashews (¼ cup – 5 grams), pecans (¼ cup – 2.5 grams), sunflower seeds (¼ cup – 6 grams), pumpkin seeds (¼ cup – 8 grams), flax seeds (¼ cup – 8 grams)

Weekly Motivational Pep Talk:

Start a weight loss journal.  Keeping track of what you’re eating, can help you choose your foods more responsibly. It’s easy to sneak in a lot of extra calories without even realizing that you’re doing it.

If you’re still finding it tough to say “no” to all the extras, get an accountability partner and turn your journal over to your partner to view once a week.  Ouch!  It might seem embarrassing, but it could definitely motivate one to be a little more careful.

(Go ahead and comment below to update us on your goals and accomplishments!  I would love to hear from you!)

Healthy Recipe of the Week:

Turkey and Avocado Salad with Toasted Pine Nuts

2 cups of cooked and sliced turkey (you can use Rotisserie deli turkey)
1 large avocado sliced
2 red apples, cored and sliced
Bunch of mixed salad leaves 

Dressing:

3 tablespoons apple juice
3 tablespoons low-fat natural yogurt
1 teaspoon clear honey
1 teaspoon mustard
2 oz of toasted pine nuts for garnish

Place all the salad items in a large bowl and gently toss together.
In a separate bowl mix all the dressing ingredients together except the pine nuts.
Pour dressing over the salad and top with toasted pine nuts.
To toast the pine nuts place a little olive oil or non stick spray in a non stick frying
pan and toast the pine nuts for approximately 2 minutes.

=======================================================

For further individual study:

Research statistics & nutritional excerpts on the superfoods that promote
weight loss have been taken from:
The Superfoods Rx Diet: Lose Weight with the Power of SuperNutrients
=======================================================

Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

*A foreword note: From time to time, I’ll be sharing articles from other resources.  This week I’m sharing an article with you that is written by another author.  I was a bit under the weather last week, and so I’m spending the day trying to catch up with getting my house in order.  I chose the following article because I think it serves as a good reminder why we need to keep eating breakfast…

Eat Breakfast and Lose Weight

When you wake up, your metabolism is a bit slow. The best thing you can do to rev up your metabolism is to eat breakfast within 1 hour of waking.

For those of you that are afraid to eat because you are trying to lose weight,you need to consider a couple of things.

POINT #1 – If you don’t have breakfast soon after waking, your metabolism slows even further and goes into what is commonly referred to as “starvation mode.” When this alarm signal has been triggered, your body decides that it may not be fed well today and shifts from a calorie-burning mode to a calorie-storing mode. Put simply, skipping breakfast is the perfect way to set your body up to “store” calories all day long as opposed to burning them. This is hardly the goal if you are interested in losing weight.

POINT #2 – After a night’s slumber, your blood-sugar is low. In order to have the energy and focus to tackle the day, you need to raise your blood-sugar levels or you risk getting hypoglycemic. When your blood-glucose levels drop too low, your body will seek out simple sugars to get it back up quickly (the human body is a terrific survivor.) Unfortunately, your body knows that the best way to raise those levels is to grab the nearest snickers bar or can of soda. I have personally experienced this, and it is very hard to stop eating when you get to this point. Skipping breakfast not only causes you to make bad food choices, but almost guarantees that you will overeat at some point.

POINT #3 – Your muscles are vitally important in keeping your metabolism high. After 6, 7, or 8 hours of rest, you need to feed your muscles or your body will feed on them. Really? Yes. Without giving your body energy from food, it will seek to get it from somewhere else. It will literally break down your muscle tissue (catabolism), and use the amino acids for energy. This is wonderful for survival purposes, but terrible for your metabolism and your appearance. Maintaining muscle is not only super important to your metabolism, it gives your body the shape and firmness we desire.

POINT #4 – Research confirms that breakfast eaters are more likely to not only lose weight, but keep it off forever! Recent research also clearly concludes that people who eat breakfast, actually eat fewer calories during the day.

One final point for those that are truly not hungry in the morning. First of all, this is a sign that your metabolism is slow from years of unhealthy habits. I hate to use the word “force”, but I urge you to have something soon after you get up. It could be as simple as a yogurt, or a banana with some all-natural peanut butter. Get your body to believe that it won’t be starved and it will be more willing to give up or “burn” energy all day long. Also, have your cup of “joe” with your breakfast or after, but not before. Caffeine is an appetite suppressant, and will temporarily take away your desire to eat.

Article Source: http://www.wahm-articles.com

For more helpful weight loss information, please visit www.HealthyHabitsNY.com or call (917) 648-8312

Weight Loss with Beans & Weekly Motivational Pep Talk  (plus, Healthy Recipe of the Week)

Finally, I’m through with the introduction of my weight loss series. (You’re probably relieved as well as I am because I hate talking about myself.)  Now I’m going to focus on explaining some positive benefits of various superfoods and hopefully encouraging you to keep on track each week.

*To view previous weight loss topics click here.

Recent research statistics have shown that those who ate beans weighed an average of  6.6 pounds less than those who didn’t eat beans EVEN though the bean consumers ate around 200 extra calories daily than the non bean-eaters.  That’s a pretty good reason to eat beans right?

The reason for the positive results above are mainly due to the fact that beans are high in fiber, and fiber increase is associated with weight loss.  Since beans are low cost and quite affordable, there’s really no excuse not to hunt down some tasty recipes that will allow you to include more beans in your diet.

Here’s some more positive points to ponder about beans:

*plant-based source of important vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients

*protects cell walls from oxidation which protects your overall health & keeps metabolism in balance.

*excellent mix of complex “good” carbs & protein warding off hunger; makes you feel full and satisfied.

*takes long to digest providing an excellent source of long-lasting energy.

*low in fat and calories

Weekly Motivational Pep Talk:

Find some extra activities that you enjoy doing that require physical moving around.  Doing a little of “something” is better than doing absolutely nothing!  Our modern conveniences have given us a much cushioned environment that allows our metabolism to become sluggish.  We must make extra efforts to exercise our bodies.  If you absolutely hate exercise, make a goal that you’ll get up and move around to do something that requires activity at least 3 times each day.  For example, in the morning, run up and down your steps 5-10 times…ANYTHING that will get your heart pumping a little.  Go…go…go!!!!

(Go ahead and comment below to update us on your goals and accomplishments!  I would love to hear from you!)

Healthy Recipe of the Week:

Basic Lentil Soup (my favorite lentil recipe; I usually double it)

Combine in kettle:

1/2 lb. lentils
6 cups water
Cook 30 minutes or until tender.

Add:

2 carrots, chopped or sliced
1/2 c. sliced green onions
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 & 1/2 cup of tomato juice
1/2 c. minced parsley
1 T butter
1 & 1/2 tsp. salt
dash pepper
1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer until carrots are tender.

Options:
Add some cubed turkey ham
Double the recipe and freeze half.

Recipe Source:

More-With-Less Cookbook : Suggestions By Mennonites on How to Eat Better and Consume Less of the World’s Limited Food Resources

*Another recipe to consider ~ Red Lentil Soup with Garlic
=======================================================

For further individual study:

Research statistics & nutritional excerpts on the superfoods that promote
weight loss have been taken from:
The Superfoods Rx Diet: Lose Weight with the Power of SuperNutrients
=======================================================

Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Tackling the Weight Battle

I remember as a child loving food.  While growing up, I had no brothers or sisters to compete with; therefore, I tried to compete with my dad to be the first to get second helpings.  I remember being sort of  “chunky” most of the time, but as a young child, this didn’t really concern me so much.  The only one that seemed concerned was the nurse at my school during my 6th grade year.  I had reached the awesome weight of 100 pounds!  Thankfully, as I hit my teenage years, I took a big U-turn.  Admiring a “skinny” friend in junior high, I soon lost interest in those second helpings!

I do recall reading from a weight loss book one summer break during my college days.  This was actually the first time that I had done any reading on this subject. I remember the author stating that all her family had been heavy, but she had learned that she could overcome that tendency by eating right.  I remember being shocked.  It seemed that society had always blamed weight issues on hereditary traits.  My grandmother was very heavy when I was young and my mother had faced the weight battle as she got older.  I guess I thought I would have no choice but to face heavy weight in years to come.   This was my first realization that I needed to take matters  into my own hands and become accountable for the things that I ate.

My weight has been up and down over the years.  The three times that I actually lost a lot of weight, I did not even realize that I was losing it.  All three times someone else had pointed the fact out to me that I had lost weight before I had even noticed it myself.  Considering this now, I realize that we often become way too preoccupied with food. I know that I was much more active during these times, but I also know that I was too busy to worry about “watching my fat calories”.

After having my third child, I had reached my highest weight ever.  I still remember the shock the first time I reached back to scratch my shoulder and felt the fat beneath.  And like many people, after seeing a photo of myself, I knew I had to do something!  I started doing some 10 minute exercises in the morning and then began to include some stair stepping exercises during the evening.  My weight gradually fell off.

Shortly after, I began to notice that I was exhausted all the time and had an extremely hard time facing the cold and my hair began falling out.  After being tested, it was found that I had problems with my thyroid.  And as many of you probably already know, the thyroid affects your metabolism.  So of course, keeping the weight off began to be quite a struggle.

Since then, I have read numerous articles over boosting metabolism.  The best advice by far which has helped me tremendously has been weight lifting.  Now don’t misunderstand me.  I do not lift huge weights that you see men lift.  I started with 2 pound weights and have now worked up to 5 lbs weights.  As you get older, your muscles tend to decrease and your metabolism begins to slow down as a result.  Muscle burns more calories, and so building muscle has always given me 100% positive results.  I actually find it more pleasant doing muscle building exercises than any other exercising that I’ve done.  You get faster results in shorter periods of time.

Eating healthy foods has been the key to long-term weight maintenance.  Yes, I still gain some weight at Christmas and Thanksgiving time, but it’s not nearly as difficult now to gear myself back into shape because I’m building healthy eating and exercising habits.  When you have established a habit, it will seem odd when you are not performing your ordinary routine.  You will become more anxious to get back into your normal routine when the holidays are over.

It’s surprising to realize that when America began to introduce sugar substitutes and fat substitutes and more processed foods…America’s average weight went up.  Our bodies began to starve nutritionally for real foods…and soon we found ourselves eating even more and struggling with cravings that couldn’t seem to be satisfied.  I beg you to do your own research on the downside of sugar and sugar substitutes and learning what benefits healthy fats can do for you!

To be continued next Monday…

Here’s some additional superfoods and superspices to include in your daily diet. *Sidekicks following

(Click here to check out last week’s list.)

Apples: pears

Avocado: artichokes, asparagaus, extra virgin olive oil

Dark Chocolate (Check for real cocoa butter)

Dried Superfruits: apricots, blueberries, cherries, cranberries, currants, dates, figs, prunes, raisins

Extra virgin olive oil: canola oil, coconut oil

Honey

Kiwi: guava, pineapple

Onions: chives, garlic, leeks, scallions, shallots

Pomegranates: plums

Superspices: Cinnamon, Cumin, Garlic, Oregano, Thyme, Tumeric

P.S. Boost your metabolism with exercise; if you haven’t committed to exercising at least 10 min. in the mornings…join me by visiting my post on health & fitness (click here).  Just leave me a comment!

Disclaimer: I would like to clarify the fact that I’m not a certified dietician.  I rely on health-focused research and learned experiences.  Any major diet changes should be consulted with your own doctor.   Some people are diabetic and others have food allergies.  This is something to always consider when making any changes in your own diet.