A blog about my life battling weight lose and how you can lose weight and keep it off. It might be easier than you think.
Sunday, February 28, 2021
How Healthy Are You?
Do You Want To Be Thin?
The weather is changing and winter is on the way. It's not a good time to go on a diet. But you don't have to quit before you start. Follow a little advice and you can lose weight in any season.
Some people believe "if I just lose a little weight, I can be thin too". Well, I never found it that easy. I guess I learned the hard way. I was always a little heavy. Even back in High School, I was what my family called chubby. After I finished school I worked as a truck driver unloading the truck by hand at every stop I made, usually about 40 stops a day. After about 5 years I changed to a construction worker. I did heavy construction, steel, and concrete for bridges and tunnels, the money was better and I had a family to think about.
Both the jobs were hard work and I lost about 10 pounds without trying. I was just burning several thousand calories a day. I was 6 feet tall and weighed about 172. After I left construction and bought a small business, I started to gain weight. I was 32 years old and the next 5 years following I gained about 20 pounds, and before I was 40, I weighed about 220 pounds.
Everyone I knew had noticed and I started to feel self-conscious. I knew I had to lose weight. I had settled into a lifestyle of self-indulgence. Finally, I joined a Health Club. It was a complete gym with machines, running track, aerobics classes, a separate room for weight lifters, a pool, jacuzzi, steam room, and expansive locker room with towels provided.
I did get a lot of exercise but I didn't lose much weight and after a few years, I stopped going. Like most people, I was pretty discouraged throughout my 40's and then after I sold my business I finally got serious about losing weight.
So the reason I'm writing about myself is that I want you to know that my battle with my weight went on for more than 20 years. But yes I did win the battle because I never quit. I weigh 165 today after more than 30 years of trying to lose weight. I reached my goal now and just work on maintaining my weight. And even maintaining is a battle, an everyday battle of watching my calories and exercising. I have no regrets, the exercise has made me a healthier person, and staying thin in my senior years lets me be active. I ride a bike, swim, walk a lot, I do yoga and weight train twice a week.
Being thin can be challenging, for some people it comes easy. They're born with the right genes and they can process food without absorbing the fat. Others like me have to work at it. But if I would have taken some advice when I was younger it might have been easier.
I always thought I could do it the easy way. "I'll diet for a few weeks and I'll be thin and ready for the summer." That was a pipe dream, it never happened. Sure, it's easy to drop 5 or 10 pounds, but in a couple weeks it comes right back. I wasn't serious about my weight, oh sure I wanted to lose weight, but doing what was necessary never happened.
I didn't get serious until I started to feel sluggish, I was tired in the afternoon, my joints started to ache, and walking became a chore. My whole adult life I was in denial about my weight and maybe that was because it didn't bother me to be overweight. Then you get older and you start to feel the effects of carrying around the extra pounds, but you're still in denial and think the aches and pains are because you're getting older but it's not, it's from carrying around the extra weight and because you aren't active enough it's getting harder to carry the extra weight and your heart is starting to strain under the extra work it has to do.
I think I wrote about this before, but being a little over-weight isn't going to keep you from living a healthy life. You can be just as healthy as a thin person if you do regular exercise. If you're not exercising your heart will wear down from the extra strain. Extra weight causes extra strain on your heart and in the later years of middle age, your heart can start to give you trouble. So actually, if your an overweight person, exercise is more important.
Carrying extra fat especially in the waistline is the hardest fat to lose, and it's the most dangerous to your heart. I don't really understand why, but most of us start to put on the extra pounds in our thirties and forties. Like me though, we don't work at losing it until it starts to cause problems. By that time you can lose the ambition to lose fat and that's probably why you see so many seniors overweight.
If you truly want to be thin, you want to do something about it when your young enough to have the motivation to make the hard choices and get into the exercise routine before it becomes too hard on your body. It's only recently that studies have shown us that extra inches around your waist will shorten your life. The bigger your waist, the shorter your life. Do something about your weight now, while you still have the motivation.
My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.
Thursday, February 25, 2021
Retirement Can Be A Positive Thing For Your Health
Although aging may mean more physical problems, retirement can help people lead healthier lives, a new study from Australia suggests.
- Walk a dog.
- Walk at the mall when the weather is too hot or too cold.
- Walk, jog in place or use the treadmill at a gym while you watch your favorite 30-minute show.
- Park the car far from your destination and walk.
- Take the stairs.
- Dance.
- Trade after-dinner dessert for an after-dinner walk.
Wednesday, February 17, 2021
The DASH Diet Explained
The DASH diet took the top spot overall for the sixth straight year in the U.S. News & World Report annual diet rankings, released Tuesday.
At the Bottom
Independent Perspectives
It's also a reminder that there's no one perfect diet, says Jennifer Arussi, RD, a dietitian in Los Angeles who also reviewed the report. She is not surprised that the DASH diet got the top spot. "This research-based diet clearly demonstrates its ability to significantly reduce blood pressure with the added benefit of reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke."
Have the right meal plan is the best way to succeed in your weight loss journey. But you can't get discouraged because your plan isn't working. Not all plans work for all people, so pick a new plan.
My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.
Until February 23rd Smashwords has a sale on my ebook for $.99, don’t miss out. This book is a one-stop-shop for all your weight loss questions. Use the coupon code CL77K.
Sunday, February 14, 2021
How Should I Track My Weight Loss?
Take Your Measurements
- Bust: Measure around the chest right at the nipple line, but don't pull the tape too tight.
- Chest: Measure just under your bust.
- Waist: Measure a half-inch above your belly button or at the smallest part of your waist.
- Hips: Place the tape measure around the biggest part of your hips.
- Thighs: Measure around the biggest part of each thigh.
- Calves: Measure around the largest part of each calf.
- Upper arm: Measure around the largest part of each arm above the elbow.
- Forearm: Measure around the largest part of the arm below the elbow.
Use Your Clothes
If you really want to lose your body fat then look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books.
There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.
My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.
Until February 23rd Smashwords has a sale on my ebook for $.99, don’t miss out. This book is a one-stop-shop for all your weight loss questions. Use the coupon code CL77K.
Thursday, February 11, 2021
Want To Lose Weight? Your Diet Is The Secret
You’ve heard that the French have a diet that would put weight on any American, but they're thin. Most men and women of all ages in France are thin. When we first looked at their diet we thought that the red wine they drank was the answer. These people eat out as much as we do, they don’t even know what low cal means.
So how do they do it? Well, first they walk more. City people don’t use cars that much, They walk everywhere. Also, bike riding is more popular, you see gasoline has always been expensive in Europe and the people have learned to conserve. Conserving food is something that France has done since World War II when food was scarce. So today their meal portions are smaller than ours and combine this with the increased amount of walking the French do and it’s much easier for them to control their weight.
Now how does that help you? Well, there are studies going on today that are discovering that our meal portions may be double what we need. So how much food do you need? First of all, I think we all know that Americans eat too much and that we are a nation of overweight people. Studies have also been done in the far east. Thailand, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan to see why those people have much less Cancer than North Americans. They found that the people there are very healthy. They don’t have the weight problems we do and there more physically fit.
So are we the only country that is habitually overindulging? Well no, Canadians and the English are just starting to change with this new generation of young people. A lot of the Central European and Eastern European countries had the same problems. Some of the problems in this country and in Europe after World War II were the same. Too many poor people who couldn't afford quality food. Cheap food has too many carbs and a high-fat content and those people eating low-cost food will put on more weight.
So what’s the answer? Besides the quantity of food consumed also the quality of the food makes a difference. In France for instance, yes they eat smaller meals but they also eat better than we do. In fact, most of Western Europe eats better than we do. And I don’t mean more. I mean a better quality of food. Food is made with fresh ingredients and made from scratch every day because refrigeration is still a new concept in most parts of rural Europe. By new I mean in the last twenty years.
After World War II, Europe was pretty much in ruins and yes the big cities did rebuild pretty quick. By the early 50′s tourism was once again a major industry. But the rural parts of the different countries took much longer to recover. So farming communities didn’t have electricity for many years. Europe is really only two generations away from the depression of the '40s. It’s this new generation today that doesn’t remember the War or the recovery.
So what does this have to do with you? In Europe, people have learned the proper way to eat, and watching their diet is the way to control your health. We lost that way of thinking in this country. When I get away from my regular way of eating, maybe on a vacation or business trip, I think back to the way my grandparents ate, the way we ate in the '50s. No snacks, no soft drinks, just real food. Three meals a day at the family table.
If you really want to lose your body fat then look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books.
There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.
My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.
Until February 23rd Smashwords has a sale on my ebook for $.99, don’t miss out. This book is a one-stop-shop for all your weight loss questions. Use the coupon code CL77K.
Wednesday, February 10, 2021
Why It's Hard To Lose Weight
Exercise
Complex Problems, Simple Solutions
1. Your Attitude.
2. Your Workouts.
3. Your Eating.
- Keeping a food journal
- Spending more time in the grocery store reading food labels
- Spending more time preparing meals
- Understanding proper portion sizes
- Making conscious choices about what you put in your mouth.
4. Your Lifestyle.
- Daily Routines. You may need to get up earlier to prepare your lunch or squeeze in a workout, use your lunch hour for exercise or go for a walk after work instead of watching TV. Exercising on a daily basis changes your entire day, so sitting down with your schedule to see where those changes need to happen is your first step in establishing an exercise habit.
- Limits. You might need to set new rules for yourself limiting how much TV you watch or how long you sit at the computer. You'll need to pay attention to how you spend your time and where you're out of balance so you can add more movement.
- Your Pantry. I'm the kind of person who will eat an entire bag of Doritos if they're in the house. That means I don't keep them in the house and if someone (ahem...husband) brings them home, he must immediately relocate them elsewhere. If you want to be healthy, you may need to get rid of those foods you just can't resist.
- Your Schedule. If you're not willing to sit down and change the way you live each day to include exercise, time to prepare meals, and time to nurture yourself with sleep, it's hard to lose weight. People use busy schedules as an excuse not to be healthy...are you one of them? If you're not ready to take responsibility for the schedule you've created, it will be hard to lose weight.
5. Your Surroundings.
6. Your Support System.
7. Your Willingness to Fail.
Sunday, February 7, 2021
The Tom Brady Diet
Being Superbowl Sunday I thought it fitting to write about Tom Brady, the man who is always on a diet. I believe we should always be on a diet. But just like Brady, I'm not afraid to cheat if I have an occasional craving. I'm talking about once a week, not every day. Brady might be the only Pro-athlete that doesn't conform to the team's strict dietary regiment.
At 43 years old, Tom Brady's career is still going strong.
And what's interesting about his continued dominance in the NFL is that, unlike other elite athletes, Brady is transparent about how he maintains his level of high performance.
It’s almost as if by divulging his secrets to health, fitness, and diet, he’s daring his opponents to try to match his level.
The former New England Patriots, now Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback has previously detailed his diet in his 2017 book, The TB12 Method. His approach to eating is what some (okay, most) people would call strict. Here’s how he explained his diet, in a broad summary, within that book.
“The regimen I follow is a mix of Eastern and Western philosophies,” Brady wrote. “Some of these principles have been around for thousands of years. My nutritional regimen may seem restrictive to some people, but to me, it feels unnatural to eat any other way.”
Click here for complete and total access to all Men’s Health fitness, nutrition, and health coverage.
MEN'S HEALTH
“Many people have conditioned their bodies to a nutritional regiment made up of lots of white or pale-looking foods—french fries, potato chips, white bread, chicken nuggets—that don’t exist in nature.”
Except that Brady, in an exclusive interview with Men's Health, explained that his diet isn't as strict as it seems. “Unfamiliar” to some maybe, but definitely not restrictive to the point where he can’t have anything.
So, what the heck does Tom Brady’s diet actually consist of?
A lot of fruit, a lot of recovery fluids, and just the right amount of pizza.
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Tom Brady consumes an astounding amount of liquid.
After he hops out of bed at 6 a.m., the first thing Brady reaches for is a 20-ounce glass of water infused with electrolytes. Then he sips a smoothie, which typically contains blueberries, bananas, nuts, and seeds. Pretty normal.
During his 8 a.m. workout, he drinks more electrolyte-infused water, followed by a post-workout protein shake.
Brady stresses the importance of hydration and drinks anywhere between 12 to 25 glasses of water a day—which is probably enough to fill the fish tank you always wanted as a kid.
However, Brady trains a lot harder than the average human being, so the 25 glasses of water make sense.
Tom Brady used to be really strict about the foods he eats.
In his 2017 book, Brady explained that he was focused on eating “alkalizing” foods, or foods meant to decrease inflammation in your body. For lunch, Brady would eat fish and vegetables, and his personal chef revealed that 80 percent of what the Brady household eats is vegetables.
The TB12 Method: How to Achieve a Lifetime of Sustained Peak Performance
SIMON & SCHUSTER
AMAZON.COM
$29.99 $20.98 (30% OFF)
However, Brady says that he now gives himself some breathing room when it comes to his diet. "I have a friend who freaks out if it’s not the most organic this or that, and I’m like, 'That stress is going to harm you way more than eating that chip is,'" he explained.
That said, Brady does favor routine: berry-and-banana smoothies pre-workout; avocado and eggs for breakfast; salads with nuts and fish for lunch; hummus, guacamole, or mixed nuts for snacks; and roasted vegetables and chicken for dinner.
And in his gym and fridge tour, Brady revealed a fridge full of fruits like grapes, blueberries, apples, pears, bananas, and veggies like cucumbers, kale, and spinach. He likes to add TB12 electrolytes to his water, and he's a fan of recovery fluids.
On game days, his meals are simple: a smoothie and almond butter and jelly sandwich.
Tom Brady isn't afraid of cheat meals.
Brady doesn't mind treating himself, but if he does, it has to be worth it.
PAUL TAYLOR
"If I’m craving bacon, I have a piece. Same with pizza. You should never restrict what you really want. We’re humans, here for one life," the quarterback told Men's Health. "What’s changed as I’ve gotten older is now if I want pizza, I want the best pizza. I don’t eat a slice that tastes like shit and then wonder, 'Why am I eating shit pizza?'"
Want to know Brady's specific cheat food? Chocolate, of course.
Wednesday, February 3, 2021
Change Your Food, Change Your Life, Lose Weight
If you really want to lose your body fat then look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books.
There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.
My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.
Until February 23rd Smashwords has a sale on my ebook for $.99, don’t miss out. This book is a one-stop-shop for all your weight loss questions. Use the coupon code CL77K.