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The ABC’s of Weight Loss

on August 30th, 2010 by Rob

My second son… George- Jorge as my friend Rocky calls him…. is learning his ABC’s—– this is a rudimentary exercise that all kids do- it is a building block to reading and further advancement. (I know… I sound like a teacher)- Anywho…. George is learning to talk and Beth and I have started going through his alphabet.

So, with this in mind… an idea came to me. Why not come up with an ABC’s of weight loss? I did the 31 Habits (make sure to scroll down)  not long ago and this will be more of the same…. except, you will have to tune in each day to see what is next. I will just go in and mysteriously edit the post. Funny enough… it is also the network that my show was on.

So- join me for this- Here we go!!

A- A is for APPLE (did you really think I would come up with anything else here?) Apples are good for you…. you know there is a reason that we have sayings like this one…. it is because they are at least partly true. In this case, it is all the way true…. have one each day and it keeps the doctor away. The thing is, really any fruit will do the trick. They are much better for you than Twinkies and are almost as good. Check out this information on apples.

B- B is for BEER.  If you are ANYTHING like me… the thought of not drinking beer is just simply …. NOT an option. So I had to come up with something. If I am out mowing the yard or doing something where I just want a little beer kinda sorta taste, then I go with the new Budweiser Select 55 beer- BUT- If I want a real good micro brew- I go with Sam Adams Light. It has a few more calories (o.k.- about twice as many) than the Bud, but it is well worth it. Closest thing that I have found to a “regular” beer.

I guess you could also say that A is for alcohol- So… there were two for A—- “O.K., You got the bonus plan!”- don’t get used to it!

C- C is for COFFEE or CAFFEINE- This seems to be the thing that gets me up in the morning these days. When I wake up, it is the first thing that I think of.

Well- as it turns out coffee can supercharge your workout. Check out this Article from Yahoo Health…. I have heard this before. Apparently, caffeine gives you more stamina— in other words you can run further which equals more calories burned.

D- D is for DIET. But not the diet you think. As a matter of fact, I would go so far as to say that I am not and have not been on a diet since I was in the People Magazine Weight Loss Challenge. The thing is…. I don’t really want to stop eating the things that I like. I just have to find some things that I can live with. What are they?

Well, for starters…. I don’t order 20 wings… I order 6. I don’t have 5 regular beers… I have 3 Light beers. I don’t have a WHOLE sandwich at the deli… I have a half- and BAKED chips. OH—- and a DIET COKE. I just had to find some alternatives and have LESS!

E- E is for EXERCISE…. of course. You need at least 5 hours a week of exercise. That is my rule… you know what- I am going to stop quoting the experts and doctors on this. According to me— you need 5 hours a week. And remember, the faster you do it, the faster you will get it over with. LOL!!

F- F is for FRUCTOSE- get it from fruit! I have said on more than one occasion… avoid the High Fructose Corn Syrup. A study by Hepatology stated that when given fructose water, rats had a tendency to become obese. AND THAT WAS JUST WATER… we eat this stuff in our bread…. it is everywhere!! Read your labels and AVOID it!

G- G is for Grapefruit. Kick off your meal with a grapefruit and you are likely to lose more weight… faster. Subjects of a study done by the Journal of Medicinal Food that ate half of a grapefruit before each meal, lost more weight at the end of 12 weeks than those that did not. On the other hand…. I HATE GRAPEFRUIT. And by the way…. I have seen commercials for some crappy diet pill based on grapefruits. They say that grapefruits are super-foods and that they take more calories to burn than they contain. THIS IS CRAP! NOT TRUE! Don’t buy into this!!!!! G- G is for GOOD!!! Like GOOD food—- NOT GRAPEFRUIT! Or G- G is for God. He helps you lose weight!!!

H- H is for High Fructose Corn Syrup- Just don’t eat it. I can not tell you how many times I have been asked over the last couple of years about my diet… what did I follow? How did I make food decisions. If you can lay off of the HFCS…. you are WAY ahead of the game! Not only is this stuff NOT exactly like sugar, but your body does not metabolize it the same way. IT WILL MAKE YOU FAT! AVOID IT!!

I- I is for INSULIN. Of course diabetes is where I am coming from here. If you increase your exercise and watch your diet, you will have a decreased chance of getting this disease. I know… this is all very insightful, but it is something that HAS to be said.

J- J is for JELLY! OMG!!!! Have you had the smuckers with Splenda?? Fabulous!!! (Said that just like Jack from Will and Grace!)—- O.K. here is the deal. I LOVE PB&J. My wife gets on to me all the time for eating it. I practically grew up on it. My Dad used to say I was going to turn into a peanut butter and jelly sandwich– or a Pop-Tart.  I still eat ‘em. But here is the thing….. I have CHANGED it. I eat whole wheat bread, Smuckers with the Splenda and reduced fat PB. OH—- and I only eat one now… instead of two. I think that this is a great example of a small change that you can make and come out ahead!!! Just change your favorite thing— to something slightly better (oh, and don’t eat as much!!)

K- K is for KETOSIS. This is actually a real medical-type term (don’t you just love how smart I sound) that I had never heard before. Ketosis is actually the point at which your body runs low on carbs and starts burning fat for fuel. Ketosis is what your body goes into if you go on the Adkins diet (you know, low carbs). Studies show that people that resist carbs loose more weight initially than those that avoid fats…. however, after about a year, their results are comparable. As I have said before, the problem is that you can’t resist bread and pasta and sugar your whole life.

L- L is for LEPTIN- This is a hormone. It is responsible for telling your brain when you are full. Reseachers have found that if you don’t eat enough…. or if you starve yourself, then this will lower leptin levels- thus prompting you to eat more.

A study published recently suggests that the consumption of high amounts of fructose causes leptin resistance and elevated triglycerides in rats. The high-fructose diet rats subsequently ate more and gained more weight than controls when fed a high fat, high calorie diet.

So- for the love of God…. eat your snacks and lay off the High Fructose Corn Syrup!!!

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The 31 Habits!!!

on October 1st, 2009 by Rob

Special favors come in 31 flavors… I’m out of mints, pass the LifeSavers!! Recognize that line?? If you went to high school in the 80’s you do!

Well, lets see, these are not as much fun as the 31 flavors, but I promise you will be better off.

By the way, did you know where the 31 flavors idea came from?? It comes from the days of the month… you know, a new flavor for every day. I had never heard that until very recently and it makes PERFECT sense. I mean, I would have no problem giving that a try.

O.K. – let’s stay on subject here. Keep our head in the game so to speak. I have developed a list… a list of habits that I think are good for weight loss and just over all good health. Because, remember, we are not on a diet, we are CHANGING our lives. I don’t WANT to stop eating ice cream. I love ice cream and it is just going to make me miserable if I can’t eat it and I don’t want to go on living!!!

O.K. – here they are- the habits:

1. Drink low-fat or better yet skim milk- try it for a week, you’ll get used to it. Move on.
2. Use a small glass for your o.j. in the morning and really for anything that has a lot of calories. You will drink less. Use a small plate for your food… it will look like you are eating more and you can trick yourself.
3. DRINK DIET SODA!!!! Once again… get used to it.
4. When you are looking at a food label, look at the serving size. If a serving size of something is 4 and there are 79 in the bag… this is most likely NOT a good thing.
5. Eat light or no sugar or no fat ice cream. I like the light the best. As a matter of fact, with Blue Belle- I can’t tell the difference between light and regular. And don’t have a cone… I know, the cones are good, but they are not the best part… if you will eat it without the cone, then you’ll save calories.
6. Light yogurt with Splenda is a good ice cream substitute.
7. While I’m on the subject, use Splenda or Equal in your tea and coffee. Also, use fat-free something in your coffee. You will save so many calories and you will get used to it. For God’s sake don’t use half and half like my Mother does (however, she does weigh like a buck ten sopping wet)
8. Fill up your omelets with vegetables instead of meat and cheese. Stack vegetables on your pizza instead of meat.
9. Switch to whole wheat bread. Watch out for anything that has enriched wheat flour or corn syrup in it… IT’S BAD!!
10. Use turkey instead of beef in spaghetti and other dishes calling   for beef. You have to watch it though… sometimes ground turkey can have a lot of fat and you will defeat the purpose.
11. Use light or low fat mayo on things. And use mustard instead of mayo to really cut down on calories. I almost always order sandwiches from restaurants without mayo because they often don’t have light options.
12. Every time you eat… leave one bite on your plate and remove it as soon as you are done. (The plate I mean).
13. Skip the croutons on salads. Either ask for them to be left off or push them to the side. They are like little dressing bombs… little calorie bombs that I can do without.
14. I know that this is a tough one, especially if you live anywhere near me in The South (notice the capitalization)- but just don’t eat fried food. Grill it, poach it, boil it, bake it… anything it but DON’T fry it. I let myself have fried food occasionally… and it is usually about 4 times a year… when I go to New Orleans…I like to get a fried shrimp and oyster po’ boy. I can live with that.
15. Drink Light Beer. I know, this can be a problem for some. But I have found that I have gotten used to it. I especially like Sam Adams Light.
16. Girls- drink wine instead of fruit drinks.
17. If you are going to have a Snickers bar- have a fun size. This is about one third the calories of the big one… and for the love of God don’t have the KING sized bar. Also, the almond version has fewer calories… not sure if you can get these in fun size.
18. Try baked chips instead of regular. I can not tell the difference between regular and baked Cheetos. Chester Cheetah should be proud of his product.
19. Use lemon on your fish instead of tartar sauce.
20. Share deserts at restaurants with somebody else. I mean someone at your table.
21. Cut down on the amount of butter and cheese in recipes. I can’t tell you how many times Beth has told me that she put about half as much butter in something than it calls for… and once again, I really can’t tell much difference.
22. Speaking of butter, trade it out for margarine or whipped butter that is lower in fat and calories.  In many cases olive oil will add flavor and is a more healthy choice.
23. Spice it up!! Sometimes when you remove fat and calories, you also remove taste. Use spices to replace some of that… think blackened red fish instead of grilled red fish.
24. Take off the skin. Even more important if it is fried chicken. Better yet, buy skinless chicken.
25. I know that this goes without saying, but skip the supersize stuff. Go rent the movie “Supersize Me”- you will have a whole new outlook on life.
26. If you are going to have soups… make it a broth-based soup, not a cream soup.
27. Eat breakfast!! You need to get your metabolism going in the morning and this is the best way. Let’s face it, sometimes having something to eat is the only reason to get up.
28. DON’T eat from the bag.
29. Have a sweet potato instead of a regular potato
30. Snack- make sure to eat something healthy between meals so that you don’t go nuts when you finally do get something to eat.
31. Exercise!!!! Last but not least. You have to do something… even if it is just walking. Get some friends and make it happen.

Well, there is the list. Use it well.

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