Archive for the ‘Weight Loss’ Category
Grocery shelves have more low fat, sugar free, low calorie foods than ever before and still the weight of Americans is on the rise. We spend over $50 billion on weight loss products every year. There isn’t that one magic pill to help ease our woes of weight loss. Researchers are now looking into the psychological environment that causes people to overeat. When we label certain foods as “good” or “bad” it has a self esteem impact on us.
For instance, let’s say fruits and vegetables are labeled a “good” food. If I have a salad for lunch, “I’m a good person because I had a salad.” However, if I have a Mickey D’s quarter pounder with cheese and fries, “I’m a bad person, because I had fast fried food.” By thinking in these terms, we have taken out the pleasure of eating. Some where along the line we have tied our self esteem into the types of food we eat.
How many times have we been told to clean our plates or thought, “It’s 12:00, I have to eat
lunch”? We’ve been conditioned by the external cues in our world. We have lost the intrinsic ability of eating when we are truly hungry and the ability to recognize when we’ve had enough to eat.
The new eating behavior requires us to get in tune with our bodies, by recognizing when we are actually hungry and concede that it’s ok to be hungry. By recognizing these issues we will have a healthier thought process about food. Knowing when we are hungry, recognize when we are full and eat the foods we want to eat puts us on the right track for healthy eating behaviors. With this knowledge, we have the freedom to choose all kinds of foods for all the right reasons. Will this result in weight loss? Probably, because we will learn more about our selves and the triggers that cause us to eat. Plus we will gain piece of mind.
Another big hurdle to over come to is to accept yourself as you are. Do not compare your self with others, and find your own strengths. Some where along our path we lost the concept of being healthy to looking good.
Do you guys have any idea how horrendously bad Trans Fats are for you and your body???? I’m not just talking about how bad they are for your weight loss efforts. I’m talking for your health! Seriously, it is a health hazard.
Let’s take a look at the need for fat. It helps regulate our body temperature. Fat is needed for the protection of our organs. We use it for energy production in our aerobic activity. So when you seek weight loss do not eliminate all fats, just the saturated fat and trans fats. Trans Fat, however, is good for nothing.
Our intake of monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats should be about 10% of your daily caloric intake. Examples of these fats are olive oil, canola, peanut, and corn oils to name a few.
Scientists created trans fats to sustain the shelf life of products in the store and is used in cooking. It was also created to be a solid at room temperature and help make things more spreadable. Trans fats are the hydrogenated oils you see listed in the ingredients list. They have no nutritional value. In fact, trans fats and hydrogenated oils lowers your good cholesterol levels (HDL) and raises your bad cholesterol levels (LDL). These fats are found in most junk foods and fried foods.
So when you are looking for weight loss in a healthy way, avoid any and all trans fats!!
These past few days we have been talking about weight loss. How using a food diary helps with successful weight loss. Planning ahead, and eliminating high fat and calorie dense foods in your pantry. Choosing healthier and more nutritious snacks sets the path for weight loss. Setting achievable goals and rewarding yourself with non food items when they are reached. Using exercise with your weight loss goals.
Today we’ll put it all together for successful weight management. Slow down when you are eating your meal. Enjoy and savor the flavors. Put your utensils down in between bites. When you eat more slowly it gives your stomach time to tell your brain that you are no longer hungry.
Substitute foods that contain less fat and calories. Reducing your fat helps control your weight management and also your cholesterol. Use variety in your diet and don’t get stuck on the same low cal foods. Planning ahead can assist you.
One of the biggest weight loss tactics is portion size and portion control. Take smaller portions and avoid seconds can really help with your calorie intake.
You have successfully completed your weight loss journey and now you have to make the commitment to yourself! Committing to a long term weight management and life style changes will set the stage for a healthier and stronger you!
Continuing on our weight loss theme, here are a few more weight loss tips. Yesterday, I mentioned that it is important to have a friend or a support system in place to be successful with your weight loss. Studies do show that when you have a positive support system in place you are more likely to lose weight.
Setting a realistic goal for weight loss. Set smaller achievable goals at a time. I know Weight Watcher’s encourages you to start off losing 10% of your weight. That’s a smaller achievable goal instead of looking at the whole big picture if there is a large amount of weight to lose.
Reward yourself when you reach these goals. Buy yourself a new book or treat yourself to a movie, but do not reward yourself with food.
If you should have a lapse in overeating it does not mean the end to your weight loss. Pick yourself up, use your support system, and put the over eating incident behind you and keep looking forward.
Once you are well on your way with weight loss, it’s time to start moving or exercising. Studies show that people who engage in exercising and a weight loss program will lose more weight and are more likely to keep the weight off than those with just weight loss alone.
Tomorrow, we will continue with our “Weight Loss” series with exercises both aerobic and resistance training to help you lose weight.
When it comes to weight loss, we all know we have to eat less and exercise more. What I have found to be truly pivotal in weight loss is keeping a food diary. You might try to keep a mental account of what you eat all day, but it’s important to see the types and quantities you eat. When you see it all written down you begin to get a different perspective on actual consumption of food.
One objective with a daily food diary is you actually see what and how much you consume every day. You can also document your feelings at the time you ate. You may be able to see a pattern develop. As the pattern develops, you can see the factors, beside hunger, that lead to eating, like social gatherings, boredom, stress etc. Once you identify your triggers, you can make a strategy for overcoming certain temptations.
Finally, writing down your food intake, forces you to see your eating habits. It allows you to see how you automatically choose food with out a conscious awareness. Weight loss can be made simpler if we have a strategy and plan in place.
Tomorrow, I’ll expand more on weight loss strategies that can help you have a healthier lifestyle!