What are we craving?

I have so many topics I want to share with you this week, so my first one will begin with cravings and avoiding temptations. This is one of my major obstacles in my lifestyle. The amount of time I spend at home gives way to many opportunities to snack or just plain eat all day long. I grocery shop a lot because of couponing, and that lends to a lot of samples in the stores and taste testing new items I bring home. I avoid most of the time very well, and am very honest with myself when I do not avoid those cravings. But, what am I really craving? Why do I feel the need to eat all the time? Where do those urges come from? Have you asked yourself these questions before?

I sat down recently and began to read some passages in my bible about such topics, and at the same time I gave myself time to really analyze my hunger cues and needs before I put food into my mouth. Even though foods can be eaten and we need food to sustain our life, many of those foods we eat and crave are no good for us. Even when we have them in moderation in can trigger us to crave more of these foods, and then get set back into those old habits. I’ve found this to happen to me very easily still. I have a hard time moderating myself with junk-like foods and end up eating more then I should have. This doesn’t mean I won’t ever be able to indulge in something some day, but I can’t seem to manage it just yet. I have my slips still, and the progress I have made is allowing me to make the mistake and move past it. It’s a hard see mistakes, but it’s also much easier lately to allow them to happen and not beat myself up about it.

Sometimes my cues are real hunger, but a lot of the times I am in the middle of the day and just want something more to eat. I’m sometimes bored, lonely, or anxious about something. My anxiety works in different ways, like sometimes I just want to get to the gym and not do anything else, but I have a list of things to get done before I can. Or, I am unable to do something on that list, so eating seems like a viable alternative. These are all difficult attitudes to change in myself, and I realized that the dedication of avoiding those triggers and temptations can make me stronger and once I conquer them I can be free of the negative actions I put myself through. But, I also believe that God is the only one who will completely free me of those attitudes, and left to myself I will not conquer them.

So, what are you really craving when you reach for the chocolate, the ice cream, the chips, or go through the drive-threw? Are you really treating yourself right with those choices? Are you being a responsible person for yourself and those who care about you? Think it over before reaching for it, and at the same time don’t beat yourself up over the poor choices!

Meal Planning for the week

I’m back from the death of the cold virus. Man, it’s amazing how just one virus can put you down for so long even when you try to will yourself into not submitting to the sickness. But, alas I still managed to lose weight through it all, and gather strength in my weakness. I’m going to begin another phase to change my eating habits with an all protein and vegetable diet for the next two weeks, and wanted to share the meal plan I have put together.

My motivation behind this phase of my diet comes from a diet program called the PINK method. Without going into much detail about it (look it up if you are interested) the key components to for the next two weeks is to eat lots of plant foods, including slow carbs and slow fruits and eat light/lean proteins. Since I’m trying to burn a lot of fat in a quick amount of time and get lean and toned, taking in plenty of protein is essential to helping me reach my goals.

So, my choices can be pretty endless, but I’ve made a list of foods I prefer and are easy on my budget.

Low-Cal Veggie snacks:
- pint of grape tomatoes
- steamed/raw carrots
- celery
- small salad
- sliced bell peppers
- broccoli/cauliflower
- Cucumbers

Low-call Veggie Sides:
- Large salad
- Spinach raw/steamed
- Steamed green beans
- Steamed broccoli/cauliflower
- Roasted peppers & onions
- Asparagus
- Spaghetti Sauce (use on roasted veggie)
- Steamed carrots
- Sautéed Mushrooms
- Zucchini

Light Proteins:
- Eggs/egg whites
- chicken breast
- turkey breast/ground
- pork chops, lean
- Tilapia
- Tuna, chunk-light (low sodium)
- Shrimp
- Salmon
- Halibut
- Greek yogurt/non-fat plain yogurt
- Low-fat cottage cheese
- Black beans/kidney beans
- Brown rice
- Nuts


So, here’s my meal plan I’ve designed for myself for the next week. I’m including a whey protein shake in the morning as my breakfast, but I have yet to find one to purchase. So, as for Monday, it will probably be egg whites.

Monday:
Breakfast Smoothie: 1 cup Fat Free Milk; 1 scoop Whey Protein Powder; 1 cup frozen/fresh strawberries (any berry)
Lunch: Tuna Salad: 2oz tuna on lettuce & 1 tomato chopped, 2 tbsp onion chopped, 1/2 red bell pepper sliced, 2 tbsp LF dressing
Dinner: Chicken Breast; Steamed Broccoli & Cauliflower (Family Meal: Chicken/rice/veggie casserole)
2 Snacks: 1 serving size of a vegetable

Tuesday:
Breakfast Smoothie: 1 cup Fat Free Milk; 1 scoop Whey Protein Powder; 1 cup frozen/fresh strawberries (any berry)
Lunch: 2 oz turkey roll-ups, grape tomatoes & steamed carrots
Dinner: Large Chicken Salad (Family: Chicken Salad & rolls)
2 Snacks: 1 serving size of a vegetable

Wednesday:
Breakfast Smoothie: 1 cup Fat Free Milk; 1 scoop Whey Protein Powder; 1 cup frozen/fresh strawberries (any berry)
Lunch: Hard Boiled Egg sliced onto lettuce leafs, cucumber slices & baby carrots
Dinner: Tilapia, baked; steamed carrots
2 Snacks: 1 serving size of a vegetable

Thursday:
Breakfast Smoothie: 1 cup Fat Free Milk; 1 scoop Whey Protein Powder; 1 cup frozen/fresh strawberries (any berry)
Lunch: Left Over Chicken Salad
Dinner: 4oz ground turkey pattie; broccoli (Family Meal: turkey burgers & veggies)
2 Snacks: 1 serving size of a vegetable

Friday:
Breakfast Smoothie: 1 cup Fat Free Milk; 1 scoop Whey Protein Powder; 1 cup frozen/fresh strawberries (any berry)
Lunch: Tuna Salad: 2oz tuna on lettuce & 1 tomato chopped, 2 tbsp onion chopped, 1/2 red bell pepper sliced, 2 tbsp LF dressing
Dinner: Chicken breast; sauteed spinach & roasted vegetables
2 Snacks: 1 serving size of a vegetable

Saturday:
Breakfast Smoothie: 1 cup Fat Free Milk; 1 scoop Whey Protein Powder; 1 cup frozen/fresh strawberries (any berry)
Lunch: 2 oz turkey roll-ups, grape tomatoes & steamed carrots
Dinner: Tilapia; Caesar Salad: 1 cup chopped romaine, 6 tbsp shredded carrots, 1/2 cup chopped cucumber, 1 tbsp light Caesar dressing
2 Snacks: 1 serving size of a vegetable


Well, there it is - I hope you can take a few ideas and change your diet for the week to make it more fat burning for you! I'll try to post some calorie counts each (or every other) day to give you an idea of how much each day is. Happy Weight Lose this week!

Quick tips to sucess

Here's some of my off the cuff quick tips that I'm using for succeed in the Biggest Loser Contest!

1. Count Calories - I'm using my fitness pal on IPhone to keep track, best AP I've found for this!

2. Stay Accountable - I'm using a few methods for accountability. My instructors all know my plan and will keep me going, this blog will be my daily/weekly check in on my progress, and all my friends who will be cheering me on.

3. Get enough sleep - read about that here

4. Limit the stress - my stress generally includes daily life, so my plan this week has been to get life in order! Have my house clean, laundry all put away, and then use my "motivated mom" AP on my IPhone to keep me on task with daily chores. Blogging will also help with stress, as well as a weekly yoga class.

5. Limit caffeine & Sugar - other diets I've read and liked have had a huge decrease in sugar and I will be reading and working more on that area as I am generally drinking many cups of coffee a day with a lot of sugar! This can easily pack on the pounds over a long period of time!

6. Keep a schedule & Have a plan - I'll be posting my workout and daily schedule soon, and have it all planned out on my IPhone to help me stay on task and not miss my classes/exercise times.

7. Keep a food budget - it's easy to throw out the budget when you're on a diet and eat all organic and name brand foods, but this isn't a reality for me. I will be feeding my family other foods outside of my diet and have to keep to our budget on food & eating out in order to be successful!

8. Have fun - with all this exercise and planning it can be hard to remember the fun stuff. Going work in date nights, play dates with Julia, and special times with my friends!

9. Chew sugar free gum/mints - don't drink water all day, it can cause water retention, so just stick to the 8 cups a day and when you are feeling thirsty/hungry then it's time to chew some gum and produce some saliva in your mouth (it will trick your mind into thinking you are eating).

10. Every day is a new day - if you didn't get everything in that you had planned, then tomorrow is a new day, so don't stress!

Weekly Burned Calories

An interesting topic arose the other day before Zumba started, which had been sparked the previous day at the end of body combat with my instructor. To loose 1 pound a week, you will have to burn 3,500 calories a week, or 500 a day. She had also read that to burn that many calories you’d have to run 30 miles in a week to loose just 1 pound. Now of course all of this isn’t new to me, but it sparked my mind more on how I will win and conquer my goals!

My hope for each day during this challenge is to eat 1,200 calories a day. To loose 1 pound a week I’d need to burn 3,500 calories for the week, but I want to loose 5.5 pounds a week. My BMR, Basal Metabolic Rate is the number of calories you'd burn if you stayed in bed all day is 1,873.5. So, I’m cutting 673.5 calories out a day, allowing for that 3,500 to happen just in my diet, and then I’ll be burning most of those calories off each day. I’m in no way an expert in this area, and am going off of many resources to give me all the information I am learned. But, with those around me guiding me though this and with the strength of God with me I know I can accomplish this.

So, with 4 hours of exercise a day and a low calorie diet, it appears mathematically I can do it. I feel many mixed emotions already about going through this process as intensely as I am, but my slow and steady process has just taken to long already and I’m ready to defeat my weight forever!

To Calculate your BMR go here

Sleep & Weight Loss

One of my lofty goals in this next 3 months is to develop a habit of going to bed at an early enough time to get 7 hours of sleep each night. Most days my husband is up at 5 in the morning, and then wakes me up around 5:45am! That comes really fast and early in the morning, so I need to be getting more sleep. I notice that the amount of effort I put into my workouts is so much more when I am well rested. So, why seven hours you might ask?

Well, research has recently shown that those who are attempting to lose weight have a greater success when they are sleeping more then 6 hours and less then 8 hours a night. This makes sense, since when I sleep more then 8 hours in a night I feel just as bad as I do if I slept 4! I also have found that my husband is a much happier guy when he gets this much sleep too, and he frequently calls me a night owl with a little bit of disdain in his voice.

So, how can we all make our night’s sleep better and helpful in our weight loss? Well, at sparkpeople.com they have given some helpful tips to share with all of you.

1. Set the right environment: use your bedroom for what it’s intended for – the use of a bed! We don’t have a TV in our room, mostly because the room is too small, but I’ve come to love not having the distraction in our space either. Turn off electronics and use the room the way it was meant to be used!
2. Get yourself into a routine: Got to bed at a set time every night, and get up at a set time every day. This helps to develop a sleep cycle for your body and allows it to know when it will rest and recoop!
3. Limit beverage intake before bed: I have a hard time with this since I workout in the evenings, so I’ll attempt to cut off water drinking about 30 minutes before bed.
4. De-stress: Going to bed mad, stressed out and emotional can really wreak havoc on your sleeping. So, if its bed time and you still have huge emotions going on or you’ve just had a hard day, write it down, pray about it, and talk with your partner or best friend. Don’t allow it to take over your dreams that night and move into the next day. Allow those emotions to be lifted away as your body regenerates.

I hope these little tips can help you to begin a healthy step to your weight loss. And, if you didn’t get enough sleep, just take some extra vitamins and get in the gym anyways! ;)

Arm Exercises

So I finally caught up with the trainer from the gym and asked about what I need to do to tone up my arms! He really didn't give me information I didn't know, but just reiterated that I need a lot of repetition and a lower weight. Then he showed me some of the machines I could use outside of just using dumbbells. So, for the next few posts I will posts videos and demonstrations from Sparkpeople.com and My Trainer Bob on youtube to give you an idea of what I will be doing in the gym!

He also said to work on my waist and thigh areas that the work I was already doing was the best! So, I need to keep on doing my zumba and body combat on a regular basis and I will continue to see inches lost!

Changing the Whole Person!

As I look back at my weight loss journey I notice such an amazing change in myself, and it made me think that many people who are just beginning their journey or maybe are in the middle of it but haven’t changed need to begin to recognize the triggers and emotions that have caused us to be obese and out of shape. This is one of the many reasons why I watch the Biggest Loser on TV, because they don’t just focus on the outside – exercise and diet, but on the emotions and the situations that put us in the position in the first place. It’s so important to begin to look inward at yourself and begin to reexamine your personality and lifestyle when embarking on major weight loss.

I have a difficult time recognizing what has changed in me and what needs to be changed, though I can easily look at others and see what they need to work on. Isn’t that so true for so many of us? But, this blog is not about me telling you what needs to change, it’s about telling you what I have changed. One thing that comes to my mind is that I’ve chosen not take the easy way out. I work hard every day and stay focused on weight loss 24/7. I have my slip ups and many temptations around me, and for that I pay in slowing my journey down. There are no short cuts in weight loss. I believe whole heartily that gimmicks do not pay off in the end. What I’ve experienced through myself, others, and through experts is that counting calories and having a steady exercise plan is what will give you the ultimate success for the long haul.

So what was the easy way out for me? I can make a huge list of tricks I have learned through my yo-yo diet career. Some of them may work for some people for a quick fix and maybe even for a lifestyle change, but they sure did not help me. My easy way out in life before this journey began was the drive-thru, take-out, and choosing not to prepare my own food. Ultimately not seeing what went into preparing my food gave me a free pass not to care about what I was ingesting. You can eat at Subway, Chipotle, or any other healthy food franchise, but take charge of what you are eating. Watch what they put on your food; know the portion of sauces and ingredients that go into your meal. Just by adding cheese and mayo to your 6 inch sub could equal the calorie count of a whole other sub! When I began my journey I did not choose to stop eating out because of my diet, it was purely because of finances. I love to eat out and it took me a long time to realize that home cooking is so much more rewarding and fulfilling then anything I can get at a restaurant. The easy way out for me also structured around asking others to do things for me that I could do for myself, and I still struggle with this selfish behavior. Ultimately, I believe that I will conquer these problems. I left cooking up to my husband (who already had a strenuous day at work) and most of the time didn’t care for our home. A lot of these issues arose for me during my stretch of depression, and coming out of the behaviors really was the starting point for coming out of the depression.

So many people lose weight and gain weight over and over again in their life, but never choose to examine their personality and the causes and triggers of their weight gain. Many of us have to completely makeover out personalities and our bodies before the transformation can be complete and maintained for the long haul. I had to come out of my depression and selfishness to find a place where I could succeed, and have to work on changing those deeply ingrained traits on a daily basis. Some people have to focus on guilty emotions or an arrogant disposition, and others may have to gain strength and courage in them to conquer their long journey of weight loss. You will not succeed at something as important and difficult as weight loss if you do not completely change yourself inside and out.

Nutritionist ??

Last night after Zumba I went up for the Nutrition Class offered for the Biggest Loser contestants. I was expecting some great meal planning tools, ideas for substituting foods, and ways to burn more fat with your diet. I mean when you're a sport nutritionist I'm gonna have some high expectations. But, it was a total flop! This gal odvisouly knew what she was talking about, but really had no clue how to instruct a group of fat people on how to do it. She had portion sizes of certain foods laid out on her table and handed out a paper about what foods are good, and how many carbs, fats, or calories they might have. I really felt like I could have taught this class better then this women did. I felt bad for these women who seemed to be just starting out and didn't have a real clue. I asked a lot of questions, just like the trainers told me too, and it almost felt like people didn't want me to ask them. I also felt like I was being talked down to about diet and nutrition. I mean when you look at someone in a Biggest Loser contest, I get maybe you're going to pre-judge them and think maybe they don't know much, but I do and that's what frustrated me. It was a total waist of 30 minutes!

So, since I did not pay for the extra training portion of this contest I may be at a slight disadvantage, but at the same time I'm planning to lose a great deal of weight and that motivation could really push me forward!

I plan to follow a strict diet of calories between 1,300 - 1,800 a day. Also, no more then 250 grams of carbohydrates, and a fat intake of 39-54 grams a day. This will take a lot of time and dedications, and I am prepared for that. I will meal plan each day, and follow that, and when life gets in the way I will work around it. Starting next week I will be following a diet plan laid out for me on SparkPeople.com - one that is filled with a small variety of foods, so I may make my own adjustments to it. I will post more on it when that begins.

So, if you feel like you don't know enough to eat right or that you need more direction, I feel I certainly can help you in that area. I'm not a certified nutritionist, I'm in no way trained with all the answers, but I've been at this long enough to know what needs to be done.

Biggest Loser Contest Weigh in & Tips

Here’s the slip of my weigh in today at my Biggest Loser weigh in.


And here is my weigh in on Wednesday.



There is a -6.8 loss in three day! Not exactly a great time to loss that much weight, but I can’t complain.
My one question for the trainer was how to you lower your body fat at the same time as losing weight? His advice was about turning your body fat into your energy by lowering your simple sugar intake through high protein diet and a lower carbohydrate diet. Now, I kind of flinched at the low carb diet phrase, but he explained to me that the carbs you ingest need to be complex carbs – those with WHOLE WHEAT! Do not mistake multi-grain for whole grain please, they still posses simple sugars and bleached grains. So basically, a simple carbohydrate is a surge of sugar that will spike your insulin levels that can result in lowering your metabolism and weight gain or stored fat. Complex carbohydrates are more complex for your body and take longer to be digested – giving you a lasting fullness and energy. Research has shown that a complex carb enters the blood stream slower and only rises your insulin levels gradually, which can evens out your urges to eat and less stored fat. Now, some white bread and white rice can still be seen as a complex carb, so we have to be safe in choosing the right carbohydrates over the wrong ones. So, the basic step to choosing the right foods in not to just label simple or complex, it’s about finding the foods that are less processed and ones that are more whole or unrefined. Fiber and nutrient-rich vegetables, fruits and beans, which also contain carbohydrates, make a great source for health and weight loss. So, limiting your intake of processed foods that are sweetened and sugary and choosing foods that are wholesome and natural (not canned, bleached, or processed) will help with your weight loss goals and help you to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

So, instead of just being vague with this, I want to give you some ideas of good food choices and bad ones. I also want to help you find them in a way that doesn’t cost a ton of money either.

Good Choices:
- Fresh fruits (apricots, oranges, plums, pears, grapefruits and prunes)
- Oats
- Bran
- Barley
- Wheatgerm
- Brown Rice
- Root vegetables & greens (Broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, turnip greens, eggplant, potatoes, yams, corn, carrots, onions, all types of lettuce, celery, cucumbers, cabbage, artichokes and asparagus)
- Pita bread
- Whole grain cereals & breads
- Beans (lentils, kidney beans, black beans, peas, garbanzo beans, soy beans and pinto beans)
- Carbs with the good fat: nuts; seeds (flax seed, sunflower, pumpkin seeds); avocado

Poor Choices:
- Limit intake of high sugar fruits (apples, banana, and berries) but do eat them for their sources of vitamins and minerals, but in moderation.
- Syrup
- White bread & white rice
- Bagels
- White Potatoes (these can have some benefits to them, so in moderation only)

Tomorrow I will be taking a sports nutrition class for my Biggest Loser Contest. So, look forward to some helpful information coming from that soon too.

Best of #7

So it's a new year and some of you are wondering how to drop those holiday pounds. Well, let's focus on the energy our body needs and how the amount of calories we take it will affect us in our weight loss. Read my article from back in July to enlighten your calorie knowledge.
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July 05, 2010
Calories In VS Calories Out
First things first, I hope everyone had a wonderful Fourth of July and that they enjoyed all the wonderful food that goes along with it. I absolutely went overboard with food, all due to emotional eating. I have to admit I did not have a handle on it yesterday, and it was pretty difficult to have control when I was so upset with things.

I did however have some thoughts on how we should eat and how to eat when there are days we do not exercise. Do we limit our calories when we aren’t going to “burn” any? Or do we keep the same amount of calories we consume on a daily basis? Consuming calories provides your body with the energy it needs, while physical activity burns off calories. So the key to successful weight loss is finding the right ways to balance the calories you take in with the calories you put out. When we take in to many calories during a meal the end result is Fat storage, and not in the usage of energy the calorie is intended to be used for.

So, how many calories should we be consuming? Your energy needs take precedence over all other body functions. For an adult, there are three factors that determine your total energy requirements. The first is your Basal Energy Requirement. This is the minimum amount of energy needed by the body at rest in the fasting state. It includes basic body functions such as respiration, cellular metabolism, circulation, gland activity, and body temperature control. It is affected by such things as age, gender, pregnancy, body composition, nutritional status, sleep, climate, and fever. The second energy requirement is your Physical Activity. The amount of calories needed for physical activity depends on the type of activity or work, the intensity and the duration. The last requirement is Specific Dynamic Action of Food. This is the amount of calories needed to manage food intake and includes digestion, absorption, and metabolism of food. Now, we’ve talked about that if we burn 500 calories a day for 7 days we should in theory lose 1 lb if we have not taken in more then our allotted daily calories.

But, some of you still think that to lose weight, the lower the calories, the better. Ironically, the key may be eating more calories. You can actually hurt your body's ability to lose weight by going too low. Here's why. The body has a protective mechanism. When calories drop too low (it’s recommend a minimum of 1,200 for women and 1,500 for men) the body reacts as if it is starving and tries to conserve energy. It will lower your metabolism, conserve calories and fat, and you will NOT burn calories as quickly. This results in a slower weight loss or even no weight loss. This is what’s known as "Starvation Mode." When calorie intake falls below 1,200 to 1,500 calories a day, it is also extremely difficult to follow a balanced diet and obtain all the nutrients that are needed by the body to stay strong and energetic and prevent disease. These very low calorie intakes can also lead to other health problems such as eating disorders, gout, gallstones, and heart complications.

Hitting a plateau during a weight loss program is normal (though it can still be frustrating). Your body requires fewer calories to function as your weight decreases. It needs time to adjust to all the healthy changes that are occurring due to the weight loss. So continuing to follow the same eating and exercise patterns won’t work forever. Your body will adjust differently then those around you, and that can seem unfair and frustrating. To jump-start your metabolism and break out of the plateau, you may need to select a different form of exercise to stimulate other muscle groups to become more active. Do not become discouraged; this may take several weeks or months. Stay focused on all the positive things you have accomplished. Your goal during plateaus is to try not to gain any pounds back. Keep your calories around the same range EVERYDAY in order to keep you metabolism working at its fullest and allowing your muscles to grow for you burn more fat.

So, even if you are not at the gym today keep your eating habits the same as you have been. Your resting metabolism is still working hard at burning that fat and making your body adjust to al your changes. Keep up the hard work.

Best of #1

So, today I want to share with you one of my post from a year ago. Though the title is named Best of - I find that a lot of my postings are great and helpful, and that just reading them again encourages me. So, today I wanted to focus on Emotional Eating. I know a lot of you are struggling again with the holiday weight gain or just overall wanting to get rid of the extra weight, and sometimes it's those emotional times that give us the hardest time. Read my post from last year - I've found I do much less emotional eating these days and a lot more stress relief in place of the food.
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Posted on January 15, 2010
On a different note, I wanted to bring up the topic of emotional eating. I caught myself this evening wanting to eat because I was overly emotional. (My daughter was crying herself to sleep again.) I stood in front of the refrigerator with both doors open and realizing all I was doing was trying to stuff my feelings away. I closed the doors and thought through my feelings, and even shed some tears. I read somewhere that 75% of overeating is due to our emotions, and I want all of us to really focus on identifying our triggers towards our emotional eating.

Some triggers I have are obviously the stress of my daughter’s emotions. This comes from several areas of emotions. Another area I have that causes me to eat is boredom. I have had this trigger all my life. I can remember as a young girl I would come home before my mom and raid the fridge and watch cartoons. I would do the same thing when I was sick, sad, and as I got older even when I was happy. Before I began this journey 3 weeks ago I would catch myself eating my meal with my daughter, and then if she didn’t finish I would eat hers as well. (Now, I just give it to the dog.)

Emotional eating triggers are important aspect of our weight loss and to ensure you keep the weight off for the long haul. Once we identify those triggers we can take eating and weight problems out of the equation of our emotional problems. To help you identify your trigger’s I have found the break down of five categories of trigger’s from WebMD.

* Social: Eating when around other people. For example, excessive eating can result from being encouraged by others to eat; eating to fit in; arguing; or feelings of inadequacy around other people.
* Emotional: Eating in response to boredom, stress, fatigue, tension, depression, anger, anxiety, or loneliness as a way to "fill the void."
* Situational: Eating because the opportunity is there. For example, at a restaurant, seeing an advertisement for a particular food, passing by a bakery. Eating may also be associated with certain activities such as watching TV, going to the movies or a sporting event, etc.
* Thoughts: Eating as a result of negative self-worth or making excuses for eating. For example, scolding oneself for looks or a lack of will power.
* Physiological: Eating in response to physical cues. For example, increased hunger due to skipping meals or eating to cure headaches or other pain.

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Best of posts will appear once a day for 12 days.

Counting Calories

Here is a wonderful post by the main person who inspired me to continue my blog and make major changes in my life. Tyler at 344pounds.com lost over 100 pounds and is now formed a community of weight lose for all of us. Check out the article and his website! I know I'm inspired to start counting my calories again!

Trim down your waistline even on Thanksgiving

We eat a lot on Thanksgiving, and if you are trying to maintain a level of a healthy lifestyle, then that eating can really take you off course. I don’t except anyone to attempt to count the calories they digest tomorrow, but maybe we can keep a good perspective on what we are eating and trim down the extra with these quick tips I have for you.

1. Have a healthy breakfast: continue to eat oatmeal with fruit, or egg whites on whole wheat toast, whatever it is you are eating for your usual breakfast keep that up. Don’t have homemade cinnamon rolls and certainly don’t go buy a dozen doughnuts, because you want to save all those calories for the wonderful meal you will eat later on.
2. Eat a balanced meal: Have smaller portions of the carb loaded side dishes, include the vegetables, the salad, and a healthy portion of turkey.
3. Choose your favorites over store bought: If you can’t wait to eat some of those homemade rolls, or pumpkin pie, don’t sit down and eat store bought brands at the first meal you have. Homemade is usually easier on your digestion, and most likely made with healthier ingredients (not always), so stick to the family recipe this year!
4. Ignore the peer pressure: Your bottomless pit brother-in-law is eating everything, has had seconds, and now is eyeing your plate. Don’t feel pressured to try each item at the table, if you miss out on the yams, gravy, or any other dish its ok and don’t make up for it by having more of another dish. There’s always something that you’d prefer not to try I’m sure.
5. Skip the seconds: I have a hard time with this one myself, so the trick is to allow your body to tell your brain you are full. Once you finished eating, wait 10-15 minutes before eyeing another plate of food. You might find that you are already stuffed and need to hold off. This way, you can make room for dessert.
6. Taste all your favorites: Taking a bite of your favorite desserts instead of a full slice can help you really feel satisfied and not pack on the weight. Same goes with appetizers and side dishes – 1 taste or just a bite.
7. Dessert as a snack: So, instead of adding on that turkey sandwich while watching the game skip on over to dessert and have a whole slice of pie.
8. Don’t graze: I’m the worst at this, especially if I’m doing the cooking, so watch what’s popping in your mouth as your sitting around watching the parades and football games. Just because it’s in front of you does not mean in needs to be in your mouth!

Have a safe holiday everyone, and if you are doing Black Friday Shopping – remember get a skinny Latte instead of a mocha and save about 300 calories! All that walking/shopping’s going to burn a lot of calories too!

10 fall foods to add to your diet

I took this list from an article I read and agree with it whole heatedly. I myself do not eat all these items, due to expense and preference, but they are all great additions to your meals in many ways. Try steaming some kale instead of spinach with your meal, or bake a pumpkin and then use the "meat" in place of mashed potatoes. Or cut up the pumpkin and puree it into a soup. So many great ways to cook with all of these items. Look them up at AllRecipes.com and try one this week!

1. Apples
2. Figs
3. Dates
4. Carrots
5. Pomegranate
6. Artichoke
7. Onions
8. Pears
9. Kale
10. Pumpkin

Health & Budget

Eating well on a budget is the hardest part of all of this to me. I have the hardest time keep my budget in tacked when I would rather eat fish and lean meats instead of red meat and frozen meals. How do I manage to feed my family for $100 a week and still keep the calories down? Here are a few tips I try to follow before going to the store, and then afterwards.

Before you go:

• Meal Plan: I can’t emphasize this more. This one step alone will give you the ground work for all the work you want to get done in weight loss and healthy lifestyles. Start off with just planning your dinners for 2 weeks. Try to group your meals around the same basic foods (chicken meals, beef meals, or salads). Then, once you feel confident you have that down (it can take a few months) begin to plan snacks and lunches. Breakfasts are usually pretty easy, so no need to really plan those for each day. Just have the basics on hand.

• Write a grocery list: Once you have the meals written out, check out the ingredients and write out what you are going to need. Since you made meals around similar ingredients then this should be easier then if each meal had a new ingredient. Don’t forget breakfast essentials (eggs, milk, cereal, bread, butter, and maybe some toaster waffles).

• Eat before you go & have no distractions: When you are well fed before going to the grocery store you are less likely to be tempted to buy extra snack foods that are NOT on your list. Also, if the kids are with you they are also going to trigger the need to buy what is NOT on the list. If at all possible, leave the kids at home. Ask them if there is anything they want to add to the list – make them part of the process still.

Afterwards:

• White Boards: If you have kids, or even a hungry husband, then the white board is for you. Posting what’s for dinner for the week helps your family stay involved in the budget and healthy living. Not only do you stay organized and focused, but you are able to have those able help you get dinner started if they know what’s cooking – so, if you’re running later call them up and say defrost the meat and chop the vegys please!

• Stock the Pantry: This step is part of your meal planning and grocery list, but it is an essential to making your budget stay low in the long haul. Having foods that are basics in your menus stocked up means you will buy less and spend less at the grocery store on weeks you want to splurge on pizza or have a night out.

• Make Leftovers/Eat them: One of the cheapest ways to have a packed lunch for yourself the next day is to have leftovers from dinner the night before. You $10 meal just fed your twice! If you have leftovers for more then just 1 meal left over then schedule in a leftover dinner night. This is when you have a ton of meatloaf, casserole, and spaghetti leftover in the fridge and it needs to get eaten. Everyone takes a small serving of each and fills their plate. Then it’s just warmed up in the microwave!

• Bake: So, we want to have a healthy lifestyle, but we don’t want to give up on dessert. So, the best way to ensure you can have dessert is if you know what’s in your sweets. Baking with fresh ingredients is always the better way to have your indulgence, and you can even use low fat recipes or substitute splenda for sugar in some cases.

Some of these tasks need a little more elaboration, and in time I will give you the tips to all of them. For now, use these to help you start your lifestyle right and keep your bank account safe!

Healthy Kid foods...

As promised I would like to share some ideas on healthy kid friendly meals. Like I said yesterday I’m pretty tired of my daughter wanting a hotdog over something else, and last night all she wanted was tomato and pretzels and even ate some green beans for me. So, I’ve got it lucky with this one. I hope to instill this behavior in all my kids, so it’s a good thing I’m starting off with the first one.

• Chicken Nuggets: no, not the frozen and deep fried kind – Home Made! To make this tasty treats just cut skinless chicken breasts into chunks; dip them in flour, egg whites and breadcrumbs (I like to use Panko Bread Crumbs for this). Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Flavor your breadcrumbs to suit your mood. Add oregano, thyme, paprika, cumin or rosemary, for example. Or just use Italian Breadcrumbs with herds in them. Introducing herbs to children helps them expand their palates early on.

• French Fries: Again, not deep fried. Although we frequently make our own fried French fries in our deep fryer I recommend using the baked method over frying. To make this dish just cut your potatoes into slices after peeling, place on baking sheet, drizzle olive or canola oil with spices (salt, pepper, garlic, oregano), and bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes or until fries are tender.

• Hamburgers: Don’t buy the premade patties, just buy some lean ground meat (beef, turkey, or chicken) and make your own patties adding in any extra ingredients you’d like. My favorite is the turkey burger with some diced red peppers, salt/pepper/garlic, diced red onion, shredded cheese, and some bread crumbs to hold it all together.

• Smoothies: The best way to get your fruit in and enjoy it too. A handful of fruit, a frozen banana, and a cup of your favorite flavor of yogurt; blend until smooth. This is a great way for the older kids to get their snacks themselves too when they get home from school.

• Personal Veggie Pizza: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spread tomato sauce onto a piece of whole wheat pita bread or English muffin. Top with your favorite veggies, such as frozen peas, spinage, mushrooms, bell peppers, corn, onions, olives, broccoli or sliced tomatoes. Sprinkle cheese over vegetables and bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.

• Tips for all children:
- Always attempt the whole grains
- Have fresh fruits and vegys on hand
- Teach older kids how to cook and learn about spices and healthy fats
- Add calcium (cheese, milk, yogurt, and even Orange Juice!
- Allow for special treats occasionally – sometimes ice cream, pie, or candy is deserved and we shouldn’t avoid those items with our children. They deserve to indulge just like we do.

• Other tips for small kids:
- Whole grains instead of white
- Shop at the local farmer’s market in the summer to get them involved in picking their own foods.
- Hand sized vegys and bite sized are great ways to get kids into eating those vegys. Such as baby carrots, sugar snap peas, green beans, berries, nectarines (without the pit), and melon slices, half a cob of corn, small banana, and the list goes on.

Healthy mom = Healthy Kid

I’ve been feeling guilty lately about what I’m feeding my daughter. She really loves hot-dogs, French fries, ice cream, pizza, and cookies. No, I don’t give her these all the time; she also really likes all fruits, green beans, cheese, yogurt, broccoli, and any form of ground meat. I just notice that the first set of foods are guaranteed winner, and I will frequently fall back on these items when I know I’m making a meal she won’t eat. She’s not a picky eater, but I don’t expect her to eat a salad with the rest of us, so I have to find some options that we can all eat along side the salad that will make her happy and not add to my waist line. Here are some of my ideas for today.

Healthy Snacks:

• Frozen fruit pops
• Homemade granola bars/bran muffins
• Smoothies
• Lunch meat roll-up – roll deli meat with cream cheese and some vegys
• Any kind of fresh fruit
• Sliced cucumbers
• Low-fat cheese sticks

Cheap & Healthy Groceries Tips:

• Plan your meals! – this has helped me so much with dinner time preparations, I’m hoping to start getting more on the ball about planning lunches and snacks too.
• Shop alone – my daughter’s only 2, so her presence is usually a distraction rather then having her asking for things. But, for those moms with older kids – DON’T BRING THEM, they only add to your list.
• Bring a calculator & Stick to a budget – We started this with our financial peace make-over, and I almost always stay under budget, but there are times I go over.
• Substitute Foods – Instead of sugar cereals – buy large lox of oatmeal and add cinnamon; generic forms instead of name brands; black beans instead of refried beans; make your own sauces from scratch; etc.
• Stock your pantry with Bulk – Buying a case of tomato sauce to make your homemade spaghetti sauce with keep the cost way down; or a large bag of flour will store for a year or more; tuna is inexpensive and canned; soups are great for rainy days and end of the month penny pinchers; and freezing breads works wonders if you can remember to pull the bread out ahead of time.
• Go Meatless – Have a vegy option once a week to cut costs. Beans, eggs, and tofu are all great options. I’m not a big tofu fan, so we frequent the bean section.

Eat Healthy outside the Home:

• Fruit Parfaits – McDonalds & Starbucks both have them
• Wendy’s Ultimate Chicken Grill – no mayo, just honey mustard sauce
• Taco Bell Fresco Style – you can ask fro fresco style for almost anything there and make it healthier and less fat.
• Subway!
• Skip the fries – get chicken nuggets for the kids with honey mustard sauce

One more thing that really is key to making your family a healthy one. Eat together! Most of us are always so busy and eat in shifts, but if you make a pledge to eat together for 1 meal a day, you will create a lasting bond, help with digestion, and improve eating habits. I know you can do it!

Are you depressed?

I’ve been depressed off and on most of my adult life and some of my younger years. I’ve been on anti-depressants before, and never felt they did the work I needed from them. Anytime I’ve come out of the haze of depression I’ve looked back and realized how horrible I was. I also remember the last haze fairly well, and can see how much I fostered the depression with all that I did not do. I sat around the house watching TV, eating too much, and barely getting up to let the dog out some days. I was in it, in a bad way! Depression can over take us if we let it. I’ve told others this before, but this time around I’m not letting it take me again. I felt a presence in me so close to my heart back in December, just after Christmas, that told me I can lose weight and be happy with my life if I just let go of the depression. I knew it was God’s push that led me to be happy again, and it was the movements and the activities and the healthy living that had sustained that happiness in me.

Exercise and a healthy diet are my saving grace. I would not be able to focus myself into the person I am now, with the structure I have given myself, be able to smile when I’m hurting, or just plain be a forgiving person if I didn’t have this going for me. With my degree in psychology and my research outside of the classroom I know a lot about the depression that hits me and others, and I even know plenty about the medication that goes into treating depression. First off, I think anti-depressants work and are suitable for most people. I am not one of them. I hate taking pills, mostly because I can’t remember to take them, and really want to give myself the power to overcome my own problems. In most people, they aren’t capable of doing this, due to the chemicals that create depression in our body. I still had plenty of the chemical problems with depression but research shows that exercise positively affects the same neurotransmitters that antidepressants target. Exercise also produces feel-good brain chemicals called “endorphins,” which promote the sense of well-being and satisfaction and can releases tension in muscles that contributes to depression-related soreness and insomnia. Exercise also reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol, relieving feelings of anxiety and agitation as well as raises your body temperature, which appears to have calming effects. All of this is what helps me to keep the depression at bay, but so many people need to take the medication on top of the exercise in order to get all the positive effects the antidepressant has to offer.

Exercising has so many more positive results besides weight loss and muscle building. It can increase your attention, give you more confidence, and increase your self-esteem. All of these have happened for me. But, even with exercise you have to make the choice to change the side you’re on. Are you going to be on your own side or the side of the depression – make the spiritual switch (as my pastor would say), are you going to give God your faith that he will help you through your troubles and fulfill all he has promised or are you going to give into the Evil and allow those dark thoughts of self loath take over? I know how difficult it can be to make that choice. When you are in that dark place you begin to focus on everything bad around you, how hopeless everything seems, and that you are an undeserving and pathetic person because you aren’t able to do what you need to do. When the Evil as strong as this comes to take you over, you need to know the weaknesses and the information about exercise can give you an effective strategy to fight against it. Most of us during our dark times forget that how we think and feel is directly related to what the chemicals in our brain and body are doing.

So, how do we make the first move out of the dark hole? You’ve already made a choice to get out, so now you just have to move. I know that getting out of bed, taking a shower, and doing your daily routine seems like to much work, but when it’s all done you will feel accomplished and determined to do more the next day. Here are some tips –

• Always talk to your doctor first!
• Do something you enjoy (or that you did enjoy when you weren’t depressed): For me it was going for walks with my family at first. Then it moved into cooking again. I finally went back to scrapbooking and found my real passion (besides exercise). Maybe for you it’s playing a sport with friends, fishing and camping, or long drives outside of town to a place you haven’t been in awhile.
• Set Goals: Just get moving! Taking a shower for the first day and getting the dirt and tears off of you are a great first step. But, research has shown that at least 30 minutes per day results in maximum depression-fighting benefits, but you don’t have to start there if that seems overwhelming at first. Start with any duration and intensity level that you're pretty sure you can easily manage on most days, and go from there.
• Know your weaknesses & plan for set backs: Yeah, we all have them and yes they will make us feel bad again. If you know that ahead then you are a step ahead of the depression before it even hits you. My first major set back right away was when I bought a scale finally. I had been using my Wii Fit to weigh myself, and the week I brought that scale into the house it revealed to me that I was 5lbs heavier then what the Wii had been telling me. I felt like a failure, that all my work was a waist of time. I cried probably for 30 minutes, said I was quitting, and sat on the floor of the bathroom feeling like a failure. But, once I was done I picked myself back up and after awhile I was back on track. It will happen; you will gain weight or just stop losing. You have to fight through this and give yourself credit for all the hard work you have already accomplished.

Daily Exercise Myth

Myth: Crunches are one of the best moves to target your abs.

You probably know crunches are old-school, but you may not know why they're not very effective. What's their weakness? Most women initiate crunches with their hip flexors without engaging much of their core. This may get the surface muscles in your abs, but it ignores the ones underneath, which are also essential to a flat stomach.

Plus, crunches mimic the sitting posture we use for much of the day. We don't want to aggravate this 'hips flexed/shoulders hunched' position. The point of training is to fix the gaps and do something different. Crunches repeat a similar movement pattern.

A better way to get those flat abs? Focus on moves like the plank and side plank that work often-neglected areas of your core. And don't forget your butt, too. Weak glutes push your stomach out and give you a belly even if you don't have one. (Not fair, I know!)

I tend to stray away from crunches lately because of back pain, so I use the ab machine at the gym, use a ball for core workouts, and really focus myself on strengthening my lower back and butt muscles to increase my core strength.

Calories In VS Calories Out

First things first, I hope everyone had a wonderful Fourth of July and that they enjoyed all the wonderful food that goes along with it. I absolutely went overboard with food, all due to emotional eating. I have to admit I did not have a handle on it yesterday, and it was pretty difficult to have control when I was so upset with things.

I did however have some thoughts on how we should eat and how to eat when there are days we do not exercise. Do we limit our calories when we aren’t going to “burn” any? Or do we keep the same amount of calories we consume on a daily basis? Consuming calories provides your body with the energy it needs, while physical activity burns off calories. So the key to successful weight loss is finding the right ways to balance the calories you take in with the calories you put out. When we take in to many calories during a meal the end result is Fat storage, and no in the usage of energy the calorie in intended to be used for.

So, how many calories should we be consuming? Your energy needs take precedence over all other body functions. For an adult, there are three factors that determine your total energy requirements. The first is your Basal Energy Requirement. This is the minimum amount of energy needed by the body at rest in the fasting state. It includes basic body functions such as respiration, cellular metabolism, circulation, gland activity, and body temperature control. It is affected by such things as age, gender, pregnancy, body composition, nutritional status, sleep, climate, and fever. The second energy requirement is your Physical Activity. The amount of calories needed for physical activity depends on the type of activity or work, the intensity and the duration. The last requirement is Specific Dynamic Action of Food. This is the amount of calories needed to manage food intake and includes digestion, absorption, and metabolism of food. Now, we’ve talked about that if we burn 500 calories a day for 7 days we should in theory lose 1 lb if we have not taken in more then our allotted daily calories.

But, some of you still think that to lose weight, the lower the calories, the better. Ironically, the key may be eating more calories. You can actually hurt your body's ability to lose weight by going too low. Here's why. The body has a protective mechanism. When calories drop too low (it’s recommend a minimum of 1,200 for women and 1,500 for men) the body reacts as if it is starving and tries to conserve energy. It will lower your metabolism, conserve calories and fat, and you will NOT burn calories as quickly. This results in a slower weight loss or even no weight loss. This is what’s known as "Starvation Mode." When calorie intake falls below 1,200 to 1,500 calories a day, it is also extremely difficult to follow a balanced diet and obtain all the nutrients that are needed by the body to stay strong and energetic and prevent disease. These very low calorie intakes can also lead to other health problems such as eating disorders, gout, gallstones, and heart complications.

Hitting a plateau during a weight loss program is normal (though it can still be frustrating). Your body requires fewer calories to function as your weight decreases. It needs time to adjust to all the healthy changes that are occurring due to the weight loss. So continuing to follow the same eating and exercise patterns won’t work forever. Your body will adjust differently then those around you, and that can seem unfair and frustrating. To jump-start your metabolism and break out of the plateau, you may need to select a different form of exercise to stimulate other muscle groups to become more active. Do not become discouraged; this may take several weeks or months. Stay focused on all the positive things you have accomplished. Your goal during plateaus is to try not to gain any pounds back. Keep your calories around the same range EVERYDAY in order to keep you metabolism working at its fullest and allowing your muscles to grow for you burn more fat.

So, even if you are not at the gym today keep your eating habits the same as you have been. Your resting metabolism is still working hard at burning that fat and making your body adjust to al your changes. Keep up the hard work.