Thank You For Visiting Our Blog, FEEL BETTER AND LIVE LONGER!

The purpose of our blog is to share what we have learned about nutrition, weight loss, fitness, and health, in order to help you find ways to feel better and live longer. It is amazing how much our diet and lifestyle affect our health and well-being.

Did you know that you can reduce your risk and even prevent many diseases and health conditions simply by making some changes to your diet? Check back often for valuable tips and information.

HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT & KEEP IT OFF:

For the first time in my life I have found weight loss success. During my adult life I have tried dozens and dozens of so-called "diets" and none of them worked over the long-haul. Oh, I was able to lose weight with some of them, but once I went off of the "diet" I quickly gained back all of my weight (plus some).

I have finally learned that losing weight has to be a lifestyle change, not a temporary fix. Crash diets and all the other crazy diets will not only cause you to fail, they are harmful to your health. To lose weight and keep it off you must NOT go on a "diet." What? Why? Because we all consider a "diet" a temporary thing. For example, how many times have you said, "Oh, I will go on this low-fat diet until I lose 20 pounds." Okay, what happens after you lose the 20 pounds? Or you simply give up? You go back to your old habits and gain that 20 pounds back.

The only way you will ever be successful at losing weight, with the added benefit of improving your health, is to make healthy changes that you can live with for the rest of your life. Period. Not for a week, a month or 3 months, but for life. For me, my initial goal was to lower my cholesterol level. I had to have a blood test for my insurance coverage and my cholesterol level had to be lower than the previous year's levels or I would have to pay a much higher premium. Well, that was a pretty good incentive for me make some positive changes.

I sat down and figured out what I needed to do. I knew I had to change the way I ate and I knew I had to exercise in some form or other every day. So, I made a list and I stuck to it. It was difficult at first. To make matters worse, I am a compulsive eater. However, as the days went by, it became much easier because my body stopped craving sweets and processed foods. For the first time in my life, I was never tempted to binge because I never felt deprived.

Use the list below and make whatever changes you need to make in order for it to work for you. FYI, my cholesterol level dropped 65 points after 7 weeks, and my triglycerides dropped 70 points! Another benefit that I hadn't planned on was that after being an insomniac since my teen-age years, I now sleep like a baby every night!

MY LIST FOR WEIGHT LOSS SUCESS:

1. Avoid "white" Foods & Processed Foods. These foods have no nutritional value and are "empty" calories. Sweets, anything made with white flour,and anything that comes in a package with a long list of ingredients. Always read the food labels. Stay away from those long lists of ingredients. The longer the list, the more chemicals and additives are present. These are extremely toxic to your body.

2. Drink Lots of Water. Water keeps your body's organs hydrated and flushes out unhealthy toxins. It helps to fill you up and reduces your urge to over-eat.

3. Eat a Healthy Breakfast. Instead of coffee and donuts, try fruit, yogurt, grains like oatmeal or whole grain toast, and lean protein. NEVER skip breakfast. By eating a large, healthy meal when you get up in the morning, your metabolism will "rev up" and you will not be hungry by mid-morning. If you skip breakfast, your body will go into starvation mode and store calories in your body as FAT, yes FAT! So do yourself a big favor and eat breakfast.

4. Reduce Your Stress Level. So many of us live with too much stress. Stress lowers your immune system, making it easier to get sick. It also makes us lethargic, tired, and depressed. There are a lot of simple things you can do and a lot of ways to feel better about yourself and your life. Take a long, hot bath, read a book, listen to music, get a massage. Do something nice for yourself. Giving yourself something to look forward to is a tremendous mental incentive.

5. Move! Oh my gosh! There are so many ways to incorporate movement into your day, even at work. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Get up every hour and walk around your floor, your hallway or your desk. Park your car in the farthest space from where you need to be. Walk or bike to work. Skate, dance, golf, jump rope, clean house, play tag. The best exercise you can do is to walk. Try to take a walk every day! The more you move, the more your metabolism will be your friend. (I walk 3 miles every day whether it is raining, snowing or freezing.)

How to Survive the Winter Blues

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For many of us, winter brings some less than wonderful feelings, moods, and behavior. We experience depression, sadness, and feelings of exhaustion due to the cold weather and lack of sunlight. As the days become shorter we suffer from the winter blues. What exactly is the winter blues?

It’s a combination of feeling confined by the cold weather, the loneliness of the holidays, and a general sense of being sad and depressed. These feelings can last a few days, weeks or last through the winter season. In a few cases, people need medical help with an extreme form of winter depression called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).

MOVE YOUR BODY

A good way to banish those wintertime blues is to make sure you participate in some type of exercise every day, especially aerobic movements like walking, swimming, skating, or skiing. Aerobic exercise increases the serotonin levels in the body, improving mood, reducing stress, burning calories and restoring the body’s balance. The more you exercise, the less likely you will suffer from the blues.

EATING HABITS

Cold weather makes most of us crave heavy, fattening foods, especially high-sugar foods and carbohydrates like pasta and potatoes. These types of foods only make us feel more sluggish. They also put extra pounds on our bodies, making us even more depressed. What should we be eating?

Winter is a great time to eat one-pot meals that are full of protein, healthy carbohydrates and vitamins. Try vegetables soups with loads of brightly colored veggies, chili that is rich in a variety of beans, and stews made with lean meats and vegetables. Don’t forget the garlic, one of the world’s healthiest foods!

Eat lots of whole grains to fill up and get your fiber quota. Choose breads, cereals, and pastas that are made from grains, not white flour or white sugar. Make sure you drink lots of water to help push that fiber through your body, decreasing your risk for constipation and many other diseases and conditions.

SUPPLEMENTS

Take a vitamin D supplement every day. Vitamin D increases the body’s serotonin levels just like exercise does and will improve your disposition, your energy level, and your immune system. This is very important as depression and lack of energy due to the winter blues can lower your immune system.

Remember, your eating plan should always be a healthy balance of fruits, vegetables, grains, lean protein and healthy fats. A B complex supplement is a very good idea, as well. This will also increase your energy levels.

LIGHT BOX

The shortage of light in the winter is what affects our hormonal balance causing the wintertime blues. That is why it is important to expose ourselves to an adequate amount of bright light. The use of light boxes is one way to receive an effect similar to the sun's natural light. The light box is placed on a table in front of the user and sits there anywhere between 15 minutes and two hours. Eventually the person's mood will improve as they continue to use the light box.

If you know that you suffer from the winter blues, take proactive steps to lower your risk. Start a healthy eating and exercise plan now. Prepare your body for the winter weather by being as healthy as you can possibly be both physically and mentally. Use some of the tips listed below to help lift your spirits:


FUN THINGS TO DO

*Take a walk. Being outside and getting some simple exercise (even in the winter) can make a huge difference in your outlook. Exercise releases "feel good" endorphins that raise your mood and give you something to smile about.

*Do something fun, something that makes you laugh with delight or something you did and loved as a child. Go to the roller skating rink, build a snowman with your kids (or grandkids), go see a movie, or whatever else you can imagine.

*Read a good book, something you can really sink your teeth into, something that completely wraps you up in its spell. Removing yourself for awhile relieves your depression and sadness quite well.

*Surround yourself with beauty. Fill your living space with bright colors, scents and personal items that make you feel happy. Paint your bedroom in your favorite colors. Do you like colorful, scented candles? Put them where you can enjoy their smell frequently.

*Listen to your favorite music. Relax in your chair, put the headphones on, close your eyes, and take yourself away to another place. Even if you can only spare 15 minutes, it's 15 minutes of joy for you.

Remember, winter is only temporary!

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