Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Thought for the Day
Handle every stressful situation like a dog. If you can't eat it or play with it, just pee on it and walk away.
(Of course, we would never resort to eating under stress, now would we? Stress eating is NEVER the answer! Go take a walk, punch a pillow or buy a punching bag but NEVER resort to trying to eat your problems away. It only creates new ones!)
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
PERSONAL BEST!
I hit 4,022 steps on the Wii Free Step this morning. The Wii goal for 30 minutes is 2,400 steps which I hit with 12 minutes left on the clock. I am pumped up this morning!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Tip for Today #3
SIZE MATTERS
I read an article a while back where a man purchased a home built in the 1930s or 40s and there had been no updates since. He had a fit when he couldn't get his plates in the kitchen cabinets. He couldn't believe that someone would build a house with cabinets too small. Then it hit him. The standard dinner plate during that time was 9 inches. Now it is 12. The house wasn't too small; the plates were too big. And we do everything we can to fill them up. We super size because it "saves money" and "All You Can Eat" just seems like a challenge we can't back down from.
I use a salad plate for my meals. It serves a couple of purposes. First, instant portion control. The smaller plate won't hold as much. Second, it is visual. You can put standard servings on this size plate - 4 oz of meat, two 1/2 cup servings of vegetables - and it will look full. So you mind thinks you're getting plenty to eat. If you put that same food on a standard dinner plate, your brain is convinced you're starving yourself. And it will "make" you fill the plate up and then eat it all out of guilt. All those starving kids in Africa you know.
Serving sizes take some getting used to. First, you have to read the labels on the food. I have about 6 different cereals in the cabinet and all of them have a different serving size. Then, and this is key, take the time for a while to actually measure the portions out. Get the scales or measuring cups out and get started. Yes, it is a pain at first but then you get to where you can visually recognize the right size. Eyeball it.
We don't actually need as much as we eat. Now, try convincing your stomach of that after a couple of days of cutting back. It WILL need time to adjust. But it will. And pretty soon that small plate will be all you can eat.
I read an article a while back where a man purchased a home built in the 1930s or 40s and there had been no updates since. He had a fit when he couldn't get his plates in the kitchen cabinets. He couldn't believe that someone would build a house with cabinets too small. Then it hit him. The standard dinner plate during that time was 9 inches. Now it is 12. The house wasn't too small; the plates were too big. And we do everything we can to fill them up. We super size because it "saves money" and "All You Can Eat" just seems like a challenge we can't back down from.
I use a salad plate for my meals. It serves a couple of purposes. First, instant portion control. The smaller plate won't hold as much. Second, it is visual. You can put standard servings on this size plate - 4 oz of meat, two 1/2 cup servings of vegetables - and it will look full. So you mind thinks you're getting plenty to eat. If you put that same food on a standard dinner plate, your brain is convinced you're starving yourself. And it will "make" you fill the plate up and then eat it all out of guilt. All those starving kids in Africa you know.
Serving sizes take some getting used to. First, you have to read the labels on the food. I have about 6 different cereals in the cabinet and all of them have a different serving size. Then, and this is key, take the time for a while to actually measure the portions out. Get the scales or measuring cups out and get started. Yes, it is a pain at first but then you get to where you can visually recognize the right size. Eyeball it.
We don't actually need as much as we eat. Now, try convincing your stomach of that after a couple of days of cutting back. It WILL need time to adjust. But it will. And pretty soon that small plate will be all you can eat.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Tip for Today #2
BABY STEPS
The greatest of all journeys begins with but the smallest of steps.
I'm not sure who said it, or if I quoted it correctly. I'm sure someone said something similar. But it is a very profound statement. The first step is the smallest and the most important. In the case of taking charge of your health, that first step is a commitment. A commitment to change. You don't get to just wake up on January 1 and say "I'm going to lose 50 pounds this year". Sorry. Doesn't work that way.
You have to start with a plan. It has to be reasonable and workable. Decide where you need to focus your initial energies and set goals. Changes are much easier to make when you pick one to start with and then add others.
If you already get a lot of exercise then maybe food choices needs to be your starting point. If you haven't gotten off the couch for anything other than a trip to the kitchen then adding exercise might be your baby step. The object is to develop new habits and habits take time to form and it is much easier if you just concentrate on one thing at a time.
Once the plan is formulated then the goal setting starts. Goals should be both short and long term. Usually the long term goal is to keep off the weight you lose or maintain the healthy lifestyle or keep your blood pressure/cholesterol under control, whatever you need it to be. The short term goals will be many. They really need to be realizable in order to be effective. I will walk 30 minutes four days this week. I will package my snacks in small containers rather than eating mindlessly from the bag. I will record my calorie intake for the next three weeks on a daily basis. I will ___________. You fill in the blank.
Success comes from a sense of accomplishment. When you sit back at the end of the week and see that you did what you said you were going to it makes it easier to add the next goal. You don't want to set yourself up to fail by putting more on yourself than can be done. You are only human, you know.
Changes take time to become habits. Have patience.
The greatest of all journeys begins with but the smallest of steps.
I'm not sure who said it, or if I quoted it correctly. I'm sure someone said something similar. But it is a very profound statement. The first step is the smallest and the most important. In the case of taking charge of your health, that first step is a commitment. A commitment to change. You don't get to just wake up on January 1 and say "I'm going to lose 50 pounds this year". Sorry. Doesn't work that way.
You have to start with a plan. It has to be reasonable and workable. Decide where you need to focus your initial energies and set goals. Changes are much easier to make when you pick one to start with and then add others.
If you already get a lot of exercise then maybe food choices needs to be your starting point. If you haven't gotten off the couch for anything other than a trip to the kitchen then adding exercise might be your baby step. The object is to develop new habits and habits take time to form and it is much easier if you just concentrate on one thing at a time.
Once the plan is formulated then the goal setting starts. Goals should be both short and long term. Usually the long term goal is to keep off the weight you lose or maintain the healthy lifestyle or keep your blood pressure/cholesterol under control, whatever you need it to be. The short term goals will be many. They really need to be realizable in order to be effective. I will walk 30 minutes four days this week. I will package my snacks in small containers rather than eating mindlessly from the bag. I will record my calorie intake for the next three weeks on a daily basis. I will ___________. You fill in the blank.
Success comes from a sense of accomplishment. When you sit back at the end of the week and see that you did what you said you were going to it makes it easier to add the next goal. You don't want to set yourself up to fail by putting more on yourself than can be done. You are only human, you know.
Changes take time to become habits. Have patience.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Hi Guys!! This is great - I like knowing others are on this journey with me. I've exercised and dieted since my early 30's - to stay the size I wanted to be. As I moved closer to my 50's - it became about health - what a motivator!! When I'm "into it" - I do really good. My problem is loosing motivation. Hoping ya'll can help - because I HAVE TO exercise and eat right for the rest of my life!! It's no longer an option or about the mirror!!
Tip for Today #1
GET MOVING
Exercise is probably the single most important change you can make. As my sister says "If you exercise you can eat what you want." She's about a size 2 and exercises more than most, but she's right.
The hard part is doing it when you don't feel like it. I slept very poorly last night and stayed in bed way past when I should have so when I got downstairs to excercise I only had about 10 mintues of my designated time left. Being a CPA I'm very structured and have routines so I really couldn't mess with that whole timeframe thing. And I was so tired from tossing and turning. But I did the 10 minutes anyway on my Wii. Free stepped 1,300 steps in 10 minutes.
Now I'm one-third of the way to today's 30 minutes. That should always be your goal - 30 minutes a day. And no, you can't stockpile them. Playing tennis once a week for an hour and half doesn't earn you two free days. You might not want to do something as strenuous the next day and you do earn a "break" if you want but aim for doing something every day.
What is "something". Anything that gets you moving. Parking at the end of the parking lot (I know it sounds trite, but it counts). Ride bikes with your kids. Take a walk after dinner with the family (teaching good habits to the kids is a bonus in this). Set aside your 30 minutes and schedule it if that works better and find your activity. If your house has 2 stories don't accumulate a lot of stuff and carry it all up at once but instead take everything up separately. Stairs are wonderful exercise! Walk your errands or walk to work if you can.
The point is there are lots of ways to get moving in this world. Find the ones that fit best into your day and then work to incorporate them. Once you get them incorporated don't give yourself a pass to skip them. You may have to break your 30 minutes down into pieces like I have today, but push yourself to meet that 30 minute daily goal. Exercise makes you feel better, think more clearly, and gets the rest of your body working.
Now have a great day!
Exercise is probably the single most important change you can make. As my sister says "If you exercise you can eat what you want." She's about a size 2 and exercises more than most, but she's right.
The hard part is doing it when you don't feel like it. I slept very poorly last night and stayed in bed way past when I should have so when I got downstairs to excercise I only had about 10 mintues of my designated time left. Being a CPA I'm very structured and have routines so I really couldn't mess with that whole timeframe thing. And I was so tired from tossing and turning. But I did the 10 minutes anyway on my Wii. Free stepped 1,300 steps in 10 minutes.
Now I'm one-third of the way to today's 30 minutes. That should always be your goal - 30 minutes a day. And no, you can't stockpile them. Playing tennis once a week for an hour and half doesn't earn you two free days. You might not want to do something as strenuous the next day and you do earn a "break" if you want but aim for doing something every day.
What is "something". Anything that gets you moving. Parking at the end of the parking lot (I know it sounds trite, but it counts). Ride bikes with your kids. Take a walk after dinner with the family (teaching good habits to the kids is a bonus in this). Set aside your 30 minutes and schedule it if that works better and find your activity. If your house has 2 stories don't accumulate a lot of stuff and carry it all up at once but instead take everything up separately. Stairs are wonderful exercise! Walk your errands or walk to work if you can.
The point is there are lots of ways to get moving in this world. Find the ones that fit best into your day and then work to incorporate them. Once you get them incorporated don't give yourself a pass to skip them. You may have to break your 30 minutes down into pieces like I have today, but push yourself to meet that 30 minute daily goal. Exercise makes you feel better, think more clearly, and gets the rest of your body working.
Now have a great day!
My Story
I have another blog, Random Thoughts, and in one post I related my story of how I took charge of my life and my health and now, two years later, I'm about 50 pounds lighter. Others have seen that as an inspiration and, thus, this blog was started.
I am not a health professional in any sense, just an average CPA. I don't profess to be an expert. I made the right kind of lifestyle changes - you know, the ones the doctors are always telling you about - and the they will work for everyone. Its just a matter of taking charge.
Its also a process, and a slow one. I won't repeat that you didn't gain the weight overnight so you can't lose it overnight. Oops, too late. This has been a two year journey for me and I'm still not finished yet. And even when that number on the scale hits what you want, the journey is ongoing to keep it there. That's why these are lifestyle changes. It should, hopefully, make that phase of the journey easier.
You won't find any stories of magic pills. I don't endorse any program over another. That's not to say they don't have value and are successful, but not for me. I'm sharing how I did it, and others will participate as well, and that is the purpose of this blog.
Now. Having disclaimed any responsibility for anyone else choices, let's get started.
I am not a health professional in any sense, just an average CPA. I don't profess to be an expert. I made the right kind of lifestyle changes - you know, the ones the doctors are always telling you about - and the they will work for everyone. Its just a matter of taking charge.
Its also a process, and a slow one. I won't repeat that you didn't gain the weight overnight so you can't lose it overnight. Oops, too late. This has been a two year journey for me and I'm still not finished yet. And even when that number on the scale hits what you want, the journey is ongoing to keep it there. That's why these are lifestyle changes. It should, hopefully, make that phase of the journey easier.
You won't find any stories of magic pills. I don't endorse any program over another. That's not to say they don't have value and are successful, but not for me. I'm sharing how I did it, and others will participate as well, and that is the purpose of this blog.
Now. Having disclaimed any responsibility for anyone else choices, let's get started.
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