Think Your Way Thin

Can you really lose weight just by thinking about it? Well studies have shown that athletes can improve their game through the technique of visualizing the correct sequence of muscle movements. During the process of visualization it seems that even though the muscles don’t move, the brain sends electrical impulses that mimic the impulses sent when the action is physically carried through. Practicing by thinking about it.

People who want to lose weight are often their own worst enemy. Looking in the mirror they chide themselves for their flabby thighs or stomach over hanging the belt. They don’t see that they’ve lost weight, they just see how much more weight they should lose. This mind set just re-enforces their poor self image. Then when a cookie beckons, they figure why not, they’re fat and flabby anyway.

Want to know a better thought process? Think of your body the way you want it to be. If you have a picture of your former thinner self, use it as a guideline. That’s the real you. Whenever you’re tempted by a double chocolate brownie think of the thin you.

You can use your mind to control your eating habits. If you’re tempted to eat, just delay gratification for 15 minutes. In most cases when the time has passed, so has the craving.

Visualization can be used as a substitute for eating. Think of a place where you feel safe and happy. Perhaps it’s the beach with the waves rhythmically pounding the shore, the sand underfoot, and the sun glistening off the water. Smell the salt air and feel the cool breeze ruffling your hair. When you feel an eating binge coming on, close your eyes and picture your safe place. You are turning your attention away from the momentary satisfaction of eating to the longer term satisfaction of losing weight by focusing on a pleasant memory.

Remind yourself you are in control of your food, not the other way around. Give yourself permission to have whatever you want. Deprivation as a diet doesn’t work. It’s like when someone says DON’T think of a pink elephant, the first thing you think of is – the pink elephant. If you tell yourself: I can’t have pizza, I can’t have pizza, I can’t have pizza, the more you’ll want the pizza. Give yourself permission to have the pizza, but just a small taste. Thank about what you like best about the pizza. Savor the crispy crust, the tang of the tomato sauce and the flavor of the cheese, then stop eating. You’ve had the taste of pizza, you don’t have to eat the entire portion.

4 Easy Changes to Make to Lose Weight.

If you want something to snack on, drink a glass of water. Sometimes the urge to put something in our mouths isn’t hunger but boredom. Another alternative is to

Exchange your potato chips, corn chips and other fried snacks for pretzels. The fat content in pretzels is far lower than the other snacks. And you still get the crunch. If you have to have your corn chips, bake a batch yourself. Cut corn tortillas in strips or wedges, season with fresh lime juice, cayenne pepper and a bit of salt. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray and spread the tortillas out. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes until crispy.

Don’t drink fruit juice, eat the whole fruit instead. Fruit juice is easily digestible and the fructose (fruit sugar) is almost immediately absorbed and sent straight to the blood stream spiking your blood sugar. If you eat the whole fruit, the fiber causes the digestive system to slow down and the blood sugar spike isn’t as severe.

Exchange one fatty item in your diet for a nonfat item. For example instead of whole milk use skim milk. Instead of regular mayonnaise use nonfat, instead of full fat cream cheese use nonfat. This one change can knock 200 calories off your diet each day. That could mean a weight loss of 21 pounds over a year’s time.

Only Eat Half

When you eat out, eat half of what’s on your plate: half of the appetizer, half of the salad, half of the entrée, half of desert. Odds are you’ll be just as satisfied and you’ll have cut the calories, fat and sodium in half. If you eat out once a day like most people do, you can drop a couple of pounds a week with just this one change.

Have the bread and butter removed from the table immediately so you won’t be tempted.

When in a restaurant order broiled, grilled, baked or roasted instead of fried or sautéed. Have chicken, seafood or fish, instead of beef or pork. Order something you really like but that’s too time consuming, complicated or expensive to make at home.

Have sauces and salad dressings served on the side rather than on the food. Dip your fork tines in the sauce or dressing and then spear your food. The taste of the sauce will still be there but you won’t consume as many calories.

In fine dining establishments the entrée and even sometimes the vegetables are given a slathering of butter sauce to enhance the flavor (who doesn’t like butter) and the appearance of the food. This can add up to 200 calories and a lot of extra fat. Ask the waiter to tell the chef not to add butter.

4 Tips to Lose More Weight

Make lunch your big meal and dinner a light supper. You need energy to get you through the busiest part of the day. Food eaten in the evening just sits in your tummy and makes you feel heavy. Make it a rule not to eat after 8 PM every evening.

Exercise before you eat. Exercise boosts your metabolism and decreases your appetite. You don’t have to go to the gym. A brisk 20 minute walk will do it. You can exercise inside as well. Try going up and down the stairs, running in place, doing 15 minutes of Pilates or your favorite exercise regime. Take your break at work and use it to stretch.

Eat every four hours. That means three meals and two snacks for most of us. Keep the snacks low calorie. The idea is to keep your blood sugar on an even level. You won’t be starving and give in to the candy machine.

Decrease the level of stress in your life. Stress causes an increase in the hormone cortisol, which is linked to fat storage. When you feel stressed take a time out to meditate, practice deep breathing or just think about a happy memory.

Dee Power

Exercise in the Morning Not at Night

There is evidence that exercise raises your metabolism about 10% for 4 to 6 hours afterwards. You don’t have to exercise for hours, just a 20 or 30 minute session of brisk exercise will do it. If you exercise at night, a portion of the time your metabolism increases is when you’re sleeping. That’s when you burn the least amount of energy. Change your exercise to the morning and that 10% increase will burn off more calories.

You would be surprised how you can fit in extra exercise during even the busiest days. Pack your lunch and walk to the park while you munch on your sandwich. Then take a nice stroll around the park. Use the stairs instead of an elevator or escalator. Park at the edges of the parking lot the farthest away from your building. If you take public transportation get off a stop early and walk the rest of the way. Or the reverse: walk to the next stop down the route rather than the one closest to you.

Take an exercise break mid morning and mid afternoon. You don’t have to break a sweat. Get up and walk the length of your office. Do a few knee bends. Keep a pair of light weight dumb bells (no not one of your co-workers) under your desk and do a few curls. Grasp a weight in each hand. Let your arms lay straight down your sides then bend your arms at the elbows and bring the weights up to your forearms up to your waist and perpendicular to your body. Lower and repeat.

Is the Atkins Diet For You?

The Atkins Diet is the grand daddy of the quick weight loss diets.  It’s based on severely limiting carbohydrates.   Carbs are processed by the body to become sugar or glucose.  Glucose is used by the body for energy.  If the carbs consumed for the day aren’t enough, the body transforms the fat it has stored back into glucose for energy.  Carbs also cause the blood sugar to spike which signals the body to produce insulin to remove the sugar from the bloodstream.  This causes the blood sugar to drop which results in a craving for more carbs to raise it back up. That’s the basis of the Atkin’s Diet.  Severely limit carbohydrates in the daily diet and the body has to fall back on its fat storage for energy.

The initial two week kick start program only allows 20 grams of carbs per day. The carbs from fiber are netted – subtracted from the total carb count.  So for example, while ¼ cup of blueberries has a total carb count of 5.1 grams, only 4.1 grams are counted because 1 gram is from fiber. 

 

Protein such as fish, chicken, beef, and pork contains 0 grams.  The diet allows cheese and eggs.  Seafood is tricky, some, like shrimp, have 0 grams  and others like oysters, pack a walloping 12.5 grams per 6 oz.  You can have limited amounts of green vegetables such as spinach, kale, broccoli, asparagus, and cabbage.  Fruit is not allowed.  To give you examples of carb counts, an apple has a net 16 grams of carbs, a slice of wheat bread has 12 carbs.   Alcohol in any form is not allowed during the kickoff stage.  An exercise period of 30 minutes per day is mandatory. 

 

After the initial two weeks, carbs are gradually and slowly added back to the diet, fruits and vegetables first.  Some vegetables like sweet potatoes (19) and corn (14 per 1/3 cup) contain too many carbs to ever become a regular part of the diet.  The maximum level of carbs at this stage should be between 30 to 35. The objective is to continue losing weight but at a lesser rate than the initial two week period.  If the weight loss stops the number of carbs being consumed has to decrease again.

 

The maintenance diet is at a level of carbs where you’ve stopped losing weight and don’t gain weight.  It maxes out at about 40 grams of carbs per day.  A turkey sandwich with mayo and sliced tomatoes is about 30 grams of carbs.  A medium pear has 21 and one cup of 2% milk has 11.

 

Sugar, processed foods, flour and starches, such as potatoes and rice are pretty much off limits forever on the Atkins Diet. Most fruits have to be eaten in moderation if at all and certain vegetables as well.

Walk Off the Weight

Lose weight fast. Exercise combined with a few changes in your diet can melt off the pounds in no time.  But if you think exercise means hours sweating in the gym, think again.  As with any new exercise program check with your doctor before proceeding.

 

Studies have shown that walking at a brisk pace has the same benefits to your heart as jogging, with less stress to your joints.   Walkers are less prone to injuries than joggers.  A brisk pace means that you can talk while you’re walking without gasping for air.  If you can sing a tune you’re going too slow.  You should be able to keep up the pace for 30 to 60 minutes without a lot of stress.  

 

If your goal is to lose a pound a week you have to either increase your exercise to burn up 3500 calories or decrease your food intake by 3500 calories. On a daily basis that means a change of 500 calories.  Walking a mile takes the average person 15 minutes and burns up 100 calories.  So you’d have to walk about five miles a day, or spend an hour and fifteen minutes walking to lose a pound a week. 

 

You don’t need a lot of expensive equipment to start walking.   A good pair of walking shoes is essential, but other than you don’t need much of anything else.  Wear loose clothing of natural fibers so if you sweat, the moisture will be wicked away from your body and evaporate.  Wear sun block and a hat. 

 

You can walk at any time of day (or night for that matter).  Some people prefer the morning because it gives them a boost of energy for the day.  Others prefer at the end of the day so they can unwind. 

 

Start your walking program with a 15 minute walk for a few days in a row.  Then gradually increase the time by five minutes. By the end of two weeks you should be up to 30 to 45 minutes a day.  You’re burning 200 to 350 calories without any changes in your diet.  After six months you’ll have lost from 12 – 20 pounds.  If you want to accelerate the weight loss, walk faster, cover more ground in the same amount of time.

 

If you decrease the amount of food you eat by 200 calories a day you double the weight loss. 200 calories isn’t really that much of a sacrifice.  For example regular salad dressing has about 100 calories per tablespoon; a serving size is two tablespoons, so substituting nonfat salad dressing would save 200 calories.  A 3.5 inch bagel with two tablespoons of cream cheese is about 400 calories.  Eat half of the bagel instead of the whole one, and you’ve saved your 200 calories.  A glass of whole milk is 150 calories, skim milk is 90, if you drink 3 glasses of milk a day you save 180 calories by switching to skim.

 

There you have it:  an easy way to lose weight, increase your fitness level and strengthen your cardiovascular system and all you did was take a walk.