THE BENEFITS OF SLOWING DOWN HOW FAST YOU EAT!!

All of my life I have always been one to eat my food really fast for no good reason at all.  I suppose that it was because I just wanted to eat fast enough so my brain wouldn't realize that I was full.  Since I have started my weight loss journey it has really helped me out a lot to eat slowly and enjoy the food that I'm eating instead of devouring it.  In May of 2006 when I began my lifestyle change I began to eat slowly and actually enjoy the food that I have been eating.  After I take a bite now I put down my eating utensil until the food is swallowed and then I pick up the utensil and have another bite.  This has several benefits which has really helped me out in my lifestyle change and weight loss journey.  The first benefit that I now have is that I enjoy each bite of food of my meal or snack and actually taste the food instead of just eating really fast without fully enjoying my food.  The other benefit that I now have is that I get full after eating much less food because I'm eating slower and my brain has time to let me know that I'm getting full.  I also now feel satisfied after eating my meal or snack instead of feeling stuffed like i did before.  This is something that took some time to get used to doing but now I do this each time I eat.  So a tip I would suggest doing is to eat slower, enjoy your food, and you will feel satisfied after eating much less food.

GET YOURSELF PREPARED FOR THE UPCOMING 4TH OF JULY WEEKEND

The 4th of July is now less than a week away and for most of this it means that we will be going to barbecues with family and friends to celebrate on this upcoming three day weekend!!  What I have learned over the past four years is not to attend these barbecues and parties very hungry because when I have done this in the past I would eat pretty much everything in sight without thinking about how healthy or unhealthy the food is.  What I have been doing over the past four years which really helps me out a lot from over eating is to have a small meal or snack just before I go so that I'm not too hungry when I show up.  When I'm at these gatherings where food is almost always available I then make much smarter food choices that are healthy without feeling deprived.  It is also very important not to deprive ourselves of food that we like so If we do have some food that is not the healthiest then we can have small portions that keep us satisfied.  I also bring along a large bottle of water or low calorie beverage to drink and some healthy snacks in case their are not any available at the barbecue or party!!

TRY THESE SIMPLE TIPS THAT HAVE HELPED ME ON MY WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY!!

Hello everyone I hope you have all had a great week and will have a healthy weekend.  Today I thought I would give you all some tips that I have used over the past few years which saves a lot of calories and only takes a few seconds to do. 

Since I always bring my breakfast, lunch, and snacks with me to work I eat quite a few canned foods.  I put these foods in small plastic containers the night before so I'm prepared for the upcoming day.  What I do is drain the liquid from the cans which cuts out a lot of the sodium, sugar, and oil which makes the food much healthier and cuts out a lot of unnecessary calories. 

When I have a salad instead of loading it up with salad dressing I have been using salsa which actually tastes real good and cuts out all of the calories from the dressing. 

While cooking in a skillet on the stove Instead of using regular oil which has a huge amount of calories I use  PAM cooking spray which  pretty much has no calories at all. 

When I have turkey burgers, turkey sausage patties, and other meats after they are cooked and ready to eat I pat them down with a paper towel which gets rid of a lot of grease which you can tell by looking at the paper towel after your finished. 

Making tuna or deli sliced turkey, ham, or roast beef sandwiches I use just mustard on the bread and tuna instead of mayonnaise.  By doing this it cuts out a tremendous amount of calories most of which are fat.

I have also cut out virtually all butter which has a ton of calories and enjoy the food I'm eating instead of tasting the butter with the food.  A good example of this would be corn on the cob which tastes great without anything on it.

These are a few examples of what I have been doing over the past several years to cut out a lot of calories while still eating the foods that I like so much.  I hope that these tips will help you out while you continue on your weight loss journey!!

ADOPT A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE FOR YOURSELF AND NO ONE ELSE!!!

Many of us during our lifetime will try to lose weight to make others happy for one reason or another.  I have been guilty of this as well and it's why all of my past attempts have failed.  I have tried to lose weight in the past to make my parents happy, hoping that a girl would like me, have more friends, fit into a certain crowd etc.  The reason that all of these attempts have failed at least for me is because they were all for the wrong reasons.  It's like telling an alcoholic to stop drinking, a smoker to stop smoking, and a drug addict to stop using drugs.  Just like drinkers, smokers, and drug addicts we have to want to change our habits for ourselves and no one else.  In May of 2006 when I weighed 442 pounds I decided that I wanted to lose weight and adopt a permanent lifestyle change for the right reason which was for myself and no one else.  When I began my journey I wore an 6XL shirt and had a 64 inch waist.  That was when I began my incredible weight loss journey that many thought was impossible but has been a huge success that I'm very proud of!  As I sit here behind the computer in June of 2010 I have maintained my 230 pound weight loss for over a year, wear an XL shirt, and have a 36 inch waist because I did it for my self and not to make anyone else happy!!!

HOW I BEGAN EXERCISING ON A DAILY BASIS

When I first began my weight loss journey in May of 2006 at 442 pounds I knew that starting to exercise on a daily basis was going to be a huge challenge for me.  I was in no condition to go on long walks or to hit the gym hard everyday for long periods of time so I knew that I had to start off slowly.  What I did was walk for only about 5 minutes each day which may sound like baby steps but that is exactly what it took.  For the first few weeks I walked for 5 minutes until I had the stamina to increase the time that I could walk.  This helped me out a lot because it got me into the routine of exercising everyday.  I didn't dread exercising at all because it was only a short walk that I could handle without any problem.  I slowly increased the time of my walks  every week or two depending on how comfortable I felt with increasing the time.  Today as I write this blog I can walk for well over 2 hours at a time without a problem which took me over 3 years to work up to.  In the past I would start out by exercising for long periods of time like 30 minutes a day or more which I would dread doing everyday because it was very difficult.  I would eventually quit exercising altogether and go back to my old habits because I wanted to see results immediately.   So the best advise that I can give you is to start out by walking for just a few minutes each day, adding time at your own pace.

THEIR ARE NO EXCUSES NOT TO EXERCISE ON A DAILY BASIS!!!

We all can come up with some great excuses why we don't or can't do some kind of exercise on a daily basis.  When I weighed 442 pounds I had a great list of excuses why I could not exercise and I'm sure that you do as well.  For example it's too cold outside, too hot outside, looks like it may rain, my back hurts, my legs are knees are sore, etc.  I'm pretty sure that I could write a book on excuses not to exercise daily.  Now I'm the opposite and have many creative reasons why I can exercise without it always feeling like I'm exercising at all.  A few examples are as follows.  Parking my car far away where ever I'm at, on hot and cold days walking inside the mall, store, or working out at the gym, at work taking the stairs because the elevator is always breaking down, walking at the beach because it's a nice day out, going on evening walks to unwind for the day, and walking to the nearby store because I'm tired of spending 3$ a gallon for gas etc.  Daily exercise is extremely important in losing and maintaining permanent weight loss so what I'm trying to say is that THEIR ARE NO EXCUSES NOT TO EXERCISE DAILY!!!!  I hope you all have a great and very healthy Father's Day weekend  :)

LOVING MY EVENING WALKS

Lately I have been going on evening walks after dinner when the sun goes down which has been very beneficial.  I have been walking for about 30 minutes to unwind after a long day and It's the perfect time of the day since summer is upon us.  At this time of the day the weather is really nice since It's not too hot or cold out.  They have been nice relaxing walks where I can enjoy being outside and not think about the stresses of life. I have noticed that after I'm back from my walk I feel relaxed, happy, and ready to get a good nights sleep for the upcoming day.  Before I would have dinner, watch some t.v., and then have dessert before heading off to bed.  I have been sleeping much better since I started my evening walks and feel well rested when I wake up in the morning. The exercise that I have been getting is very beneficial as well since it also speeds up my metabolism which helps me burn calories while sleeping. So the advise I would give is to go on an evening walk to unwind for the day.

PICKING OURSELVES UP AFTER WE FALL OFF THE WAGON!!

No one is perfect and every now and then including myself we will fall off the wagon.  We just need to get back to living our healthy lifestyle and not get down on ourselves for having an unhealthy day or two.  Were only human and this will happen many times during our weight loss journey and maintaining our weight loss.  It was once described to me that when were driving somewhere in our vehicle and we miss our off ramp or street we do not just keep on driving because we messed up.  If we did that then we would end up in who knows where when we finally ran out of gas!!  We find our way back to where we are going with a little detour and eventually find our destination.  The same goes for when we fall off track of eating healthy and exercising daily.  When we  have a rough day or two or three we just need to find our way back to our healthy lifestyle and get back on the wagon.  Over the past 4 years this has happened to myself many many times and I have managed to stay on track with my 230 pound weight loss.

HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF HOW I TRACK IN MY DAILY FOOD JOURNAL

I am posting an example of tracking in my daily food journal.  I will put spaces in between my meals and snacks so that everything is not all bunched up together which will make it mush easier for everyone to understand.  I eat 5 or 6 times a day so that I'm satisfied throughout the day and do not get too hungry or full throughout the day.  This will give you an idea of what I do on a daily basis which should help you out greatly on your weight loss journey which has helped me out greatly.  This does take a little bit of time to get used to  but it's worth it and over time you will do it out of habit.  If you that have access to a computer throughout the day then you could track on the computer which may be easier and more convenient.  




BREAKFAST

Sandwich Thin
Turkey Sausage Patty

MID MORNING SNACK

Apple
Fat Free Yogurt

LUNCH

Sandwich Thin
Deli Sliced Ham
Lettuce
Tomato
Individual Bag Of Baby Carrots
Poweraid Zero (32 oz)
Fat Free Yogurt
Fat Free Pudding Cup
Sugar Free Applesauce Cup

AFTERNOON SNACK

100 Calorie Snack
Fiber One Bar

LATE AFTERNOON

VU-TEK PRO 5 Protein Shake (After My Full Body Workout At The Gym)

DINNER

Taco Salad -Ingredients Below
Lettuce
Tomatoes
2 Boca Burgers Cut Into Small Pieces
Fat Free Refried Beans

DESSERT

Weight Watchers Ice Cream Cup

THE IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING A DAILY FOOD JOURNAL

What has helped me the most in dropping well over 200 pounds and keeping it off for over 1 year now is tracking what I eat.  I have been writing down everything that I eat throughout the day for over 4 years now. This makes me accountable for everything I eat and is also great to look back on when I'm struggling to see what foods I ate when I was losing weight.  I still do this and will continue to do so to maintain my current weight.  I use one page per day in a daily food journal which you can buy at any store of your choice.  In my next blog I will give an example of food that I eat and how I track it in my daily food journal.  It's always best to have a wide variety of food that you eat each day so that your not always eating the same food day after day.

ADD SOME BRIGHT COLORS TO YOUR PLATE FOR HEALTHIER MEALS

A little tip I thought I'd throw out there for everyone this morning is to have a nice colorful plate of food at your meals.  The more colors that you have on your plate the healthier the food is most of the time.  Also when their isn't much color on your plate then the food most of the time isn't very healthy.  I have noticed while eating that most people around me have plates that are white and brown and mine is much more colorful.  A few examples would be red, green, purple, and orange just to name a few.  For red you could have tomatoes, apples, watermelon, cherries, strawberries, bell peppers etc.  Green could be granny smith apples,  honeydew melon, grapes, lettuce, spinach, green beans, avocados, bell peppers, etc.  For purple try having plums, eggplant, beets, grapes, red cabbage etc.  Orange could be squash, bell peppers, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, yams, oranges, cantaloupe, etc.  These are just a few examples of colorful foods that are quite obviously much healthier than plain colored foods.  So I would suggest for everyone to add some color to your meals which are in most cases much healthier and in my opinion a lot better tasting!!!

THROW THE RULES OUT THE WINDOW

When I first started to exercise I naturally thought that I could only exercise one time a day.  A short time later when I was seeing a therapist for my weight problem I was told something that never crossed my mind.  At the time I was unemployed so I had quite a bit of extra time on my hands and she told me that their is no rule or law that states it's illegal to exercise more than once a day if you have the time and are up to it!!  I'm sure that many of you along with myself are very busy and it may be tough to find some extra time to get in extra exercise.  Tonight after returning from work (where I am very physically active) and having dinner instead of watching T.V. I felt like getting outside to clear my mind after a crazy day at work and went on a 45 minute walk which felt great.  So if you have some extra time every now and then instead of sitting in front of the T.V. go for a nice walk which will benefit you much more!

HAVING PROBLEMS STARTING TO ADOPT A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE?

I can fully understand how difficult it is when you begin to change so many things about your life at once.  At first eating healthy, tracking my food intake, and exercising was a lot to deal with especially since I had never did this in my life successfully before.  I began to walk several minutes a day at first which was not too bad since it was very short distances and I did not track or eat all that healthy.  This does take time and will not automatically happen overnight so patience definitely plays a huge roll in adopting a healthy lifestyle.  So as I mentioned earlier I began to walk daily for a few minutes which was a great start since I was not doing anything before.  I would then eat like I always did which was not too healthy at all.  Eventually what happened was that I felt like the exercising was not doing much good since I was not eating healthy.  I finally started to get tired of exercising daily without losing a single pound.  As time went by I slowly began to eat healthier foods and that was when I noticed that I was starting to lose weight which was a great feeling.  So if eating healthy, tracking your food intake, and exercising on a daily basis is just too much to change all at once then I would highly suggest that you start out by walking for a few minutes each day!!  

THE FIRST STEP IN ADOPTING A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE

A great way to begin the process of adopting a healthy lifestyle is to write down everything that you eat during the day.  This may take some time to get used to doing but it's a great way to track exactly what you are eating every day.  The reason that I do this is so at the end of the day I can look back to see what I ate and if it was really necessary.  You can also look back on what I call my food journal to see what you ate on successful days when you are struggling which can help to get you back on track.  A lot of times we will eat when were not really hungry at all and writing down what we eat will stop us for a moment and let us think to ourselves if were eating because were hungry or for other reasons.  4 years later since I began my weight loss journey I still write down everything that I eat every day which has helped to keep me on track.

DROP THE WORD "DIET" FROM YOUR VOCABULARY!!!!

For most of my life I have been overweight and have tried just about every diet that there is unsuccessfully.  Yes I have lost hundreds of pounds over the years on different diets but have gained the weight back that I lost plus more.  This has been very discouraging for me and I've realized that diets do not work because they deprive me of eating foods that I enjoy which made me want to eat those foods even more.  Also in the past I have been an exercising fanatic and was doing an incredible amount of exercise that was impossible to maintain on a daily basis for the rest of my life.  4 years ago I learned to drop the word DIET from my vocabulary and understood that I needed to adopt a permanent healthy lifestyle change.  This involves both eating healthy and exercising on a daily basis without depriving myself of eating foods that I enjoy!!    

A FEW TIPS ON EATING HEALTHY AT BUFFETS

Eating at buffets had always been very difficult for me in the past because I felt like I could not choose what I could eat.  I would just grab a plate and go down the line of food and whatever looked good I would slap on my plate not thinking if the food was healthy or not.  Over the past four years I have learned how to eat healthy even at buffets which I thought was next to impossible in the past.  What I now do before grabbing a plate is to walk through the buffet and scan over everything to see what healthy foods they have available.  I then grab a plate and usually start at the salad section and make a nice healthy salad with lots of vegetables and low calorie dressing.  After I eat my salad which usually fills me up quite a bit I go back with a clean plate and get some healthy foods like fish, chicken, steamed vegetables, and lean cuts of meat.  If I'm still a bit hungry I then go up for my dessert and get some fruit like honeydew melon, cantaloupe, strawberries, grapes, watermelon, etc.  After eating the fruit I am very satisfied and know that even though I went to a buffet I made smart choices and had a very healthy meal.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BOTH EATING HEALTHY AND EXERCISING TO DROP WEIGHT PERMANENTLY!!

As I began my weight loss journey over 4 years ago I tried to just eat healthy and thought that's all it would take for me to drop weight.  I would lose a pound then gain a pound and became very discouraged until I began exercising on a daily basis.  As I have mentioned in past blogs I started by walking for 5 minutes a day and then gradually increased the time I would walk everyday.  I increased the amount of time I would walk about once every week or two depending on how comfortable I was with increasing the time.  Once I began doing this I noticed a big difference in how much I would lose on a weekly basis.  I also realized that every week as I weighed in I was either losing weight or maintaining my weight loss which let me know the importance of both eating healthy and exercising on a daily basis.

ACTIVITIES THAT I NOW ENJOY DUE TO MY WEIGHT LOSS

Since my weight loss I have been able to engage in physical activities that I have not been able to do since I was much younger.  When I was younger I used to golf 18 holes, lift weights, play basketball, baseball, football, soccer, snow ski, and stand for long periods of time at concerts just to name a few.  About 8 years ago when I began to gain weight I was unable to enjoy these activities that I have done since I was very young.  As the weight started to come off I slowly started to enjoy these activities once again.  About one year ago when I reached my goal weight of 210 pounds after dropping 230 pounds I have been able to enjoy all of the activities that I did when I was much younger which is a great feeling that I'm very proud of.

THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF LOSING WEIGHT I NOW HAVE

Before I began on my weight loss journey I was having medical problems and wanted to lose the weight so that I would become healthy and put many many extra years back on my life.  I was having bad back pain, knee problems, achy feet, shortness of breath, and sore legs when walking or standing for short periods of time. I also was a borderline diabetic, had high cholesterol, high blood pressure, a fatty liver (due to being obese), and had elevated triglycerides from eating unhealthy and being inactive.  About 3 years later after I had lost 230 pounds I no longer had body aches and pains and all of my blood tests came back to the normal range which made me incredibly happy.  I have now kept the weight off for over a year and still do not have any body pains or aches and all of my blood tests are still coming back in the normal range.