Are you for REAL?!?

We always make time for what’s important…so you mean to tell me that those kids or that spouse or that job is more important than working out?! I thought not!!

So now that you’ve really gotten your priorities straight, let’s figure out how we can fit a little more movement into your daily life…

Just remember, exercise doesn’t have to produce that nauseous, clammy, over-exerted feeling like you get with your trainer in order for it to count! Exercise can actually be FUN! Try riding bikes with your kids or taking a walk with your spouse (though I will warn you…you may have to carry on a conversation). Go bowling or take a hike! The possibilities are truly endless…just take advantage of your together time and make it another chance to be healthy! Your kids will learn from your example and your spouse probably needs it just as much as you do!

So…here’s your goal for the week…plan AND implement an exercise session that doesn’t really seem like exercise…do it for the fun of it and by all means…try to like it!!

The Skinny on Artificial Sweetners

I’m a diet coke junky so this fit tip is going to be a real reality check for me. I was raised on Coca-cola...as I got older and more health conscious, I decided to switch to diet coke in order to save on calories...little did I know...that it actually can make me GAIN WEIGHT!!

A recent study on lab rats found that rats fed yogurt containing artificial sweeteners went on to consume more calories, gain more weight, and increase their body fat percentage. The study speculates that this phenomenon occurred because the artificial sweeteners actually made the rats crave MORE sweets and intake MORE calories.

The brain naturally links sweet tastes with the ingestion of high calorie foods...so when we “trick” the brain by ingesting these artificial sweeteners, the brain reacts by actually SLOWING the metabolism!! And this isn’t a one time occurrence either...once the brain becomes conditioned to artificial sweeteners, it starts to respond in the same way every time we eat...with a sluggish metabolism in order to make the “reduced” calories last longer! Obviously...this is not what we’re looking for!

So here it is...a challenge for all you diet coke junkies out there...starting next Monday, let’s take ALL artificial sweeteners out of our diets for seven days and just see how we feel. Yes...this means you will have to read some labels but it will be interesting to see if we can actually tell a difference. Hey! If I can do it...you can! Email me and let me know how it goes! Have a great week!

Holy Frijole! You ate how many calories?!?

Holy Frijoles!!

I absolutely love Mexican food! I will usually pick Mexican every time I eat a cheat meal and sometimes I even manage to convince myself that I’m not really cheating...

Not Anymore!!

After we’ve tried so hard all week to eat healthfully and exercise...that burrito just may not be worth those 1179 calories!

I think the one that shocked me the most was the P.F. Chang’s Pork Lo Mein which weighed in at 1820 calories and 127 grams of fat. WOW! If that information was on their menu, I bet that no one would order it!

Another one that I found was misleading is the ‘Bella Turkey Burger at Ruby Tuesday....sounds like a moderately healthy choice right?? WRONG...it weighs in at 1145 calories and 71 grams of fat! So the moral of this story is educate yourself...go to restaurant’s web sites and check the nutrition information before you get there or at the very least ask questions that might give you clues as to how something is prepared. ALWAYS order sauces and spreads on the side...and if it seems too good to be true, then it probably is! Have a great weekend and remember...think before you eat!

And by the way...I didn’t eat the whole burrito...I had to have some room for the chips!

Just like Valerie Bertinelli... you can take it ...

One Day at a Time!!

One of the best pieces of nutrition coaching advice I ever received was at a Nancy Clark seminar. She said that you have to take your nutrition goals ...one day at a time.

Let’s face it, every day isn’t going to be a good day nutritionally...in fact some are going to be really bad...I mean REALLY BAD...like pepperoni pizza, six beers, and hot fudge sundae BAD. You know who you are!

So every morning when you get up, you have a decision to make. Is today going to be a weight loss day, a weight gain day, or a maintenance day?? Be realistic...if you are going out to dinner that evening then probably at best it will be a maintenance day. But if you make your decision and stick to it, then the gain days really can be offset by the days that you REALLY put some effort forth to practice good nutritional habits...the TRUTH is that we ALL really know what we’re supposed to do...we just gotta do it! At least once in a while!

Remember...there really are no bad foods
...we just get out of balance with them!

So what kind of a day will you have tomorrow???

You Ate HOW Much?? Part Two

I like to eat chips out of the bag, peanut butter out of the jar, and ice cream out of the carton. I usually tell myself one of two things:

1. I’m only going to have a little or...
2. I really don’t want to dirty a dish

But, of course, the truth is I really want to eat these foods with wild abandon and have no clear notion of how many servings I just consumed! Do you know any one that does this?? It may be time for you to intervene...as I know that this is my own personal cry for help!!

A few years ago, Ruby Tuesday started including nutrition information on its menu for all of its menu items. The interesting thing is that their business dropped off by almost 40%!! So they quickly changed their menus...knowing that ignorance is bliss...at least when it comes to calories and fat content.

The moral of this story is that we really don’t want to know! We don’t want to know how many tablespoons of peanut butter we just ate or how many calories the Rib Platter at Ruby Tuesdays has or how many grams of fat we consumed in that “almost” half pint of Ben & Jerry’s we just scarfed down!

So there’s nothing wrong with having a treat...now and then! In fact, I think we all need to treat ourselves! But just be sure you know how much you are going to eat and stick with it. That’s why I advocate buying individual portion sizes of the really good stuff...because I know that I have no self control! So put that ice cream in a bowl...no, not a mixing bowl next time! Or place your serving of chips on the plate with your sandwich...don’t just take the bag with you to the den! It will make a huge difference before you know it! Have a great rest of the week!

Is the Value of Your Stock Going UP or down??

Taking Stock...
Ever heard the expression...there’s a little good in the worst of us and a little bit of bad in the best of us? (No this email is not about Elliot Spitzer!)

It’s time for all of us to take a little inventory of our daily lives and take a look at our personal balance sheet...

Think about your fitness program and your overall daily life. List on a sheet of paper the three best things that you do for yourself everyday and then list the three things that most need improvement. Make these very specific!

Now think about your top three...congratulate yourself and make a commitment to maintaining them. These behavior changes take time and have really made a difference in your life! It is ALWAYS important to recognize all that is good about who you are.

Now look at your bottom three...which one is the most glaring? Why is it so bad? Finally...are you willing to change this behavior? On your sheet of paper, list three strategies that you are willing to implement in order to make this change occur. Tell your trainer or your spouse or anyone about your intentions because this helps make the goal real and helps you to commit to what you say...now every time you think about falling off that proverbial wagon...remind yourself exactly why this behavior glared at you so harshly when you wrote down on paper...change always helps us to grow!! Good luck!!

You ate HOW much???

It is believed that close to 80% of us underestimate the number of calories that we actually consume. No wonder we can’t lose any weight! Restaurants these days serve mammoth portions of just about everything and we have conditioned ourselves to eat it...ALL!

Remember back in school when we got those little tiny cups of ice cream?? Would you believe that is actually a serving! Not anything like my bowl of ice cream in the evening! Or the little box of popcorn we used to get at the school ball game? Once again...the perfect portion. Nothing like the MEGA-TUB that we see these days. And you know what...it’s making us just that...MEGA-TUBS!!
This is not to say that you have to limit yourself to one portion...we all just need to be aware how much we are really eating. So grab out those measuring cups and spoons and spend a few days measuring to see how much cereal you are really eating or how much wine you are really drinking. One glass= 5 ounces...that’s a little more than a half cup. Once we know how much we are putting in...then we can adjust from there. Maybe you don’t want to drink less wine but would be willing to eat one less serving of pasta. It’s all a game of trade-offs. No food is bad as long as moderation is the word of the day!! And don’t forget to keep moving...maybe you can earn a few of those portions back! Have a great week!