Can Beer Cause You To Gain Weight?

When a heavy person in a restaurant or bar is sitting near you drinking beer you might immediately think that they must drink a lot of beer to have a beer belly like that. Not so. Calories are calories and many people overindulge which will cause a beer belly but it’s not always from drinking beer. I use to work with a guy who would drink 6 or 8 cokes every day. I never saw him drink water, he always drank coke. 

You might not know it but the average American will drink half their daily calories. They might eat 1800 calories a day and think they're cutting calories but they consume another 1800 or so calories in drinks every day. Cokes, sweet tea, alcoholic drinks, coffee with cream and sugar, and all those designer drinks at the coffee shop all add up.

Any trainer or weight consultant will always encourage a client to stop drinking calories and drink more water. That is some of the best advice I can give anyone trying to lose weight.

I saw someone today running through the park for a workout, but he was seriously overweight. I thought to myself if I could stop the car and talk to him I’d tell him not to run. First, you can’t run off fat, when you are too heavy to run, just walk. Yes, you can be too heavy to run. Being overweight puts stress on your hips and knees and running will only increase the pressure on those joints and can cause damage.

Walking is a better choice. One hour of extra walking every day will help you lose weight and make you a healthier person. Walking more will lower blood pressure, lower your resting heart rate, and help strengthen your joints. But if you really want to get in shape you have to change your diet. Start counting calories and counting carbs. Depending on your size, 1500 to 1800 calories a day is all you need and only half those calories should be from carbs and those carbs should be from fruits and vegetables, and grains. The other half of your daily calories should be from protein and fats from plants. No calories from drinks and no processed foods. 

Look for my podcasts on anchor.fm, or the podcast app on your cell phone. 

Search “howbaddoyouwanttoloseweight”.

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, B&N.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.

Reasons That You Need To Eat Healthier

I reblogged this article from VeryWell.com.

By Shereen Lehman, MS A Healthy Balanced Diet

A Healthy Balanced Diet

Eating right is good for your health. This is so critical that you can just about blame all your health problems including a weight problem all on your diet.  Yes, if you’re more active it’s better for your heart and your joints, and even your brain because your circulation will improve the active you are.

Eating a healthy balanced diet isn’t all that complicated. Just choose a variety of foods from all the major food groups including fruits and vegetables, meats or protein sources, dairy or calcium, grains and cereals, and healthy oils and fats. It also helps if you also want to consume the right amount of calories to maintain a healthy weight and cut back on all the unhealthy junk foods.

Sometimes the question isn’t about what makes up a healthy diet; it’s about why should a person eat a healthy diet. So, in case you’re wondering, here are my top ten reasons why you should eat a healthy diet.

Makes Losing Weight Easier

Oh sure, you can lose weight by eating low-calorie junk food or by following the latest ridiculously restrictive fad diet, but it’s just not the best way to lose weight and be healthy.

Eating a healthy diet that includes lots of fresh low-calorie nutrient-dense fruits and veggies, high-fiber whole grains, and legumes will help you lose the excess adipose and supply you with all the nutrients you need.

Makes Gaining Weight Easier

While there’s much more interest in losing weight, there are a number of people who need to gain weight due to illness or other reasons. Choosing healthful energy-dense foods like nuts, seeds, and dried fruit can help you gain weight without resorting to junk foods that aren’t nutritious.

Reduces Your Risk of Type 2 Diabetes

Having a history of poor eating habits and being obese are two major risk factors for type 2 diabetes. Increasing your intake of healthful foods and losing weight if you’re obese or overweight may help reduce the risk.

It’s Good for Your Heart

A diet rich in fish, nuts, fruits, veggies, and other healthy foods (like a Mediterranean-type diet) provides you with omega-3 fatty acids and monounsaturated fats that are good for your heart. It also makes it easier to avoid most trans-fats that are associated with cardiovascular disease.

And Reduces Your Risk of Some Types of Cancer

Eating a poor diet, drinking too much alcohol, gaining too much weight, and heavy consumption of red and processed meats are associated with a higher risk of some forms of cancer. And although it’s difficult to say that any particular foods prevent cancer, eating a healthy diet overall may decrease your cancer risk.

Sets a Good Example for Your Kids

If you’re a parent or grandparent struggling with a picky eater, you might find the situation easier to handle if you set a good example for your child. How can you expect your kids to eat broccoli while you’re sitting there eating potato chips? Also, getting kids and picky eaters into the kitchen is one great way to get them motivated to try new foods.

No Need to Waste Money on Supplements

Eating a healthful, balanced diet will provide you will all the essential vitamins and minerals you need every day. I mean, I know there’s nothing wrong with taking a multi-vitamin to ensure an adequate intake, but research indicates there are more health benefits associated with eating a variety of healthful foods, and in some cases, taking supplements can be risky.

Please note, however, if your health care provider has you taking supplements for some reason, you shouldn’t stop taking them without speaking to him or her first.

Helps You Feel More Energetic

Eating a healthy diet provides you with the carbohydrates you need for energy, along with enough B-complex vitamins to help the process along. Don’t forget to start with a healthy breakfast because it helps keep you alert all morning and sets the stage for a day of healthy eating.

It’s Good for Your Skin and Hair

Eating a healthy diet helps you look your best by supplying the nutrients your skin needs to stay supple and smooth and maybe stave off those wrinkles. And your hair needs good nutrition, including plenty of protein, to be soft, shiny, and healthy.

Helps Keep Your Digestive System Healthy

According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, most Americans eat far less dietary fiber than they should. needs. Fiber is essential for a healthy digestive system and helps maintain normal cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Eat right and includes lots of fiber sources such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes.

Eating healthy and avoiding processed foods will help you lose fat. Losing fat will fix all your health problems and give you the energy you had 20 years ago.

Look for my podcasts on anchor.fm, or the podcast app on your cell phone. Search “howbaddoyouwanttoloseweight”.

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, B&N.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.

When Did We Start Rewarding Ourselves With Food

I think it all began for Americans after the Great Depression, we never had the large percentage of overweight people that we have today. After the Depression and during the Second World War, everyone had a job and people were making good money. The government started the boom by increasing the military and handing out government contracts to make things the military needed. Americans were making everything from battleships and airplanes to uniforms and helmets. We were at full employment for the first time in decades. People started to move off the farms to the cities for jobs.

This was the beginning of a real economic boom. Workers had the money to buy all those things they never had. Single-family homes started to sell like crazy. The first tract housing development started in California and people wanted cars. It wasn’t until the 1960’s that restaurants started to boom and that trend just kept going right up to today. That seemed to be the beginning of America’s overweight problem. As restaurants became more popular, the types of restaurants grew larger. Fast food started to take hold in the late 1970s and kept growing until today when fast food seems to have control of the market. Today, we have chain restaurants that aren’t really fast food but the fare is so low-end that what they serve is the same as fast food.

The food manufacturing business is so large today the FDA (the government agency that safeguards our food) can’t keep up with all the new products the industry puts out. So we have a lot of manufactured food today, that isn’t really food, it’s just stuff to fill you up with the promise that if you eat it you won’t die. Somehow we have gotten away from eating real food and now most people either eat in restaurants or eat something you heat and eat like a frozen meal.

The end result is that 2 out of 3 adults are overweight and half of those are seriously overweight, I’m talking 40% body fat and taking 7 or 8 prescription drugs just to stay alive. It’s a sad situation and the only way we can change things is if we stop buying processed or manufactured food. Outside the big cities, there is a trend to buy produce in Farmer’s Markets like I remember 60 years ago.

In the 1960s, I lived in a suburb of Chicago and you could still go to a produce market, a real bakery, and a butcher to buy meat. And yes, there have always been overweight people but not as many as today. The food we used to eat was better quality and there were a lot fewer chemicals in our food.

The overweight problem we had in the 1950s and 1960s was caused more by the number of calories consumed due to food preparation and portion size. Today we still have those same problems but today some of the blame can be put on the high carb content of snack foods and the chemical additives that can be addicting like these sugar supplements.

I’m against chemicals in food. I understand that the idea is to keep food costs low by substituting natural foods with artificial ingredients, but why is that so important. Europeans still prefer real food and have been slow to accept processed foods. You can make the case that dairy is processed food but the Europeans don’t see it that way. When you study the food culture of other countries I think you’ll find that North America may be the only part of the world where manufactured food is widely accepted. I wonder why that is?

Look for my podcasts on anchor.fm, or the podcast app on your cell phone. Search “howbaddoyouwanttoloseweight”.

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, B&N.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.

Exercise will reshape your body

Exercise alone doesn’t make you lose weight, in fact, exercise can cause you to gain weight. You have to diet. Exercise helps you to retain muscle mass. The object in losing weight is to lose the fat and lose inches. Checking the scale every day won’t help you lose weight. If your plan is working then you’ll lose inches and your clothes will begin to fit better and even become baggy. You’ll start to have more energy and you’ll actually become a happier person. Exercise does play an important part in the weight loss plan.

Once you change the way you eat, start eating healthy foods and stop eating those foods and drinks with empty calories. Food and drinks that do nothing to help you lose weight are empty calories. Some people think they will lose weight by eating low-fat foods or diet foods in the grocery store that are low in calories, but this won’t help you. Prepared foods like TV dinners or ready-made sandwiches, frozen pizzas, and other already prepared foods even bread, or rolls are made to taste good, not good for you. Learn to eat fresh and make your own food. Stay out of restaurants or any place that prepares food to go. There, all the same, the food is made to taste good, that doesn’t mean it’s good for you.

So, straighten out your diet and start to exercise and you’ll lose weight. Exercise doesn’t have to mean hours in the gym every week. You can exercise at home with only one small piece of equipment. But you don’t even need that, you can start walking more. I started by walking the dog at night. After dinner, I’d walk the dog for an hour. Big dogs love it and you’ll help them maintain their weight and live longer, while you’ll be helping yourself. Small dogs don’t like walking that much, so mine walked for a while and I carried him for a while, then he walked more and I carried him more, and so on. After a few weeks, he got used to it.

If you do buy equipment, I like the stationary bike, being a senior with sore knees, the bike was perfect, no weight on the joints and it helped my knees. Of course, I did it to get exercise, not for therapy, but I got a two for one out of the bike. The other equipment I like is a rebounder. Dr. Oz says 20 minutes on the rebounder and that’s all the exercise you need all day. If you’ve never seen one and have internet access, google “rebounders”, it looks like a small trampoline. If you look on the Amazon website they have a variety to choose from. My wife bought one at a sporting goods store cheap and has had it for more than 10 years. You can spend a little or a lot, but the only important thing is that it’s rated for a person your weight.

To get back to the point, exercise will help you be a healthier person, but the diet is how you’ll lose weight. You need both if you don’t want to end up shaped like a pear.

Look for my podcasts on anchor.fm, or the podcast app on your cell phone. Search “howbaddoyouwanttoloseweight”.

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, B&N.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.

I Plan My Meals Before I Shop

Before I go to work, while I’m having coffee, I plan dinner. If there’s something in the freezer I need I’ll take it out and put it in the refrigerator. Normally, I remember I always write down the menu and take it with me. If you’re organized enough to do this a day or two ahead then if you’re missing anything from the menu you’ll have time to pick it up.

If you learn to stick to the planned menus then you can actually save money on food. It means a few more trips to the store, but the inventory of groceries around the house will start to shrink. This is a good thing and yes the kids need snacks, but this will give you the opportunity to make some healthy choices. When you wait until the last minute to shop, you don’t have time to make the proper choices, you end up buying anything just to get out quick. I wish I could count the times I nearly got run over going to the checkout line.

Fruit is great snack food, it has sugar but it's good sugar, its natural sugar. It’s all the processed foods that are causing our health problems. Try to avoid processed food. On the morning show, a health guru was talking about the six meals a day plan I wrote about in an earlier post. Maybe some of you thought I was crazy, but it’s true.

Never skip breakfast, but be careful that you’re eating the right thing. Eggs are great, but only one yolk, the rest whites. toast is good, but not white bread or bagels, it’s just empty calories, whole grain bread, and fruit. It’s very important to eat but eat good food and avoid food that does have nutrition. Get something for your food dollar.

Go back and review earlier posts where I discuss the six-meal plan. It won’t hurt to read it over again. There’s a lot of truth in that post. Remember you’re not eating to fill your stomach with things that taste good, you’re eating to give your body enough nutrition until you eat again.

The six-meal-a-day plan wants you to save the calories for solid food and only drink zero-calorie drinks like water. Of course, today we have zero-calorie flavored water that's unsweetened. This new drink has taken over a complete aisle in my grocery store. Five years ago zero-calorie water was sold with a dose of artificial sweeteners. But in this last decade, a company from Wisconsin introduced LaCroix carbonated water. It was flavored water with zero calories and no artificial sweeteners, no carbs, and no sodium. It was flying off the shelves. Now there are hundreds of companies copying their product. No one has to drink soda any longer and the soft drink companies are feeling it. 

The six-meal-a-day plan wants you to consume 300 calories per meal every 3 hours, starting the first half-hour after you get up. I had to make a change to the schedule to fit my schedule, so I cut out the last meal. I'm in bed early and get up early so 5 meals every 3 hours worked better. I could go a little over on the calories per meal like 320 or 330 calories, but I was only eating 5 meals. I was consuming about 1600 or 1650 calories per day and that worked for me. 

The idea behind the diet plan is that it's hard for most of us to digest a large meal. One hundred years ago or maybe longer ago the 3-meal plan would fit into a person's work schedule. This schedule had nothing to do with your health. Science didn't decide that this was the best way to eat, Europeans bought this to America because this was the way they ate growing up. Today, because of the weight problem that most of us have, we understand that eating large meals or consuming a lot of calories at one time only causes problems for your digestive system. 

Look for my podcasts on anchor.fm, or the podcast app on your cell phone. Search “howbaddoyouwanttoloseweight”.

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, B&N.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.

Why A Drastic Cut In Calories Is Harmful

In our fast-paced society, the Very-Low-Calorie Diet (VLCD) is quickly becoming the chosen fad or method of weight loss. It even comes with a guarantee of shedding those unwanted pounds yesterday.

Extreme measures of weight loss may be warranted and prescribed during a medical crisis. This would be understandable. However, applying drastic weight loss methods for the everyday person may not be safe or healthy.

Many very-low-calorie diets (VLCDs) are now being covered by insurance plans. This has made it even more appealing for people to sign on the dotted line. Not usually understood is only part of the VLCD program may be covered by insurance. The diet shakes are the largest part of the VLCD and a costly pay-out-of-pocket product.

Be cautious about any diet making unrealistic weight-loss claims. Extreme weight loss programs may severely restrict food intake and recommend drinking shakes in lieu of eating. Studies on very-low-calorie diets (VLCDs) do show rapid weight loss but not without adverse health risks. According to other research, once the VLCD plan is completed, the weight is gained back plus more. These starvation-type diets are very risky and should only be tried with a doctor’s supervision. You have to take supplements and your doctor will know what you need.

The human body requires nutrients from lean proteins, carbohydrates, and healthy fats. Proper portions of these macronutrients are essential for good health. Individual calorie requirements will differ per person based on overall lifestyle and activity levels. This is where your doctor comes in. He’ll know how much to cut your calories.

Personally, I think these diets should be avoided. I always recommend going vegetarian for a couple of weeks. During that time buy some protein powder at the grocery store to supplement your required amount. Get plant protein while going vegetarian and in the 3rd week or 4th week eat some seafood and chicken breasts. After one week of eating some meat or seafood (about 4 oz. a day), go back to the vegetarian diet for a couple more weeks. While on the vegetarian diet, be careful of dairy. Dairy is high in animal fat and can add body fat. I stick to “plain Greek yogurt”, that’s my only dairy. You can add fresh fruit like berries. On a mostly vegetarian diet, you don’t have to count calories. Just avoid bingeing. I eat small quantities about 5 times a day and I don’t add sugar and an only very little salt (sea salt). One more thing, don’t drink calories except for your protein shakes, don’t drink anything with calories.

A sedentary person would require much less caloric intake compared to a marathon runner for example. Regardless of lifestyle, the human body needs calories from the major food groups to function at optimum levels and to be healthy. Very-low-calorie diets (VLCDs) can restrict essential nutrients and place a person at risk for adverse effects and health issues.

Energy needs for a body at rest (Basal Metabolic Rate) remain fairly consistent and responsible for seventy percent of calories burned each day. To calculate your basal metabolic rate, multiply ten calories for each pound of body weight for a woman and eleven calories for a man.

A 130lb woman would burn 1300 calories at rest per day. More energy is required for digestion and absorption (thermogenesis) ranging from one to eight hundred additional calories per day. Physical activity calories also offer the largest variable per person demanding even more caloric intake. Don’t over-estimate your activity. One hour of heart-pumping exercise will only burn about 300 calories, even if you’re experienced at a strenuous workout.

According to the American College of Sports Medicine, a woman should consume no less than 1200 calories per day and a man no less than 1800 calories. Also indicated extreme caloric restrictions signal the body to conserve calories and significantly reduce our metabolic rate. Very-low-calorie diets (VLCDs) allow for consumption of only 500-800 calories per day and place the body into self-starvation.

Very-low-calorie diets (VLCDs) require a person to be under the care of a physician due to possible health risks.

Some adverse effects may include fatigue, dizziness, constipation, nausea, diarrhea, and increased overall cholesterol. Research has indicated more serious health effects may include gallstone development.

Very-low-calorie diets(VLCDs) promise rapid weight loss but not a lifestyle of keeping it off. Studies show weight loss with VLCDs is commonly regained once the program is completed. Participants are not learning how to eat healthily or exercise consistently.

The safest way to lose weight is by implementing healthy methods. Nutrition and fitness education is important. Learn how to buy and prepare healthy foods and include a regular exercise program. It will be proper nutrition and exercise knowledge allowing lifelong sustainable weight loss.

Instead of overspending on packaged shakes for a temporary fix, a better investment plan would be to locate a qualified personal trainer and/or certified nutritionist. They will be able to offer substantially more quality education for a lifetime of good health,

Look for my podcasts on anchor.fm, or the podcast app on your cell phone. Search “howbaddoyouwanttoloseweight”.

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, B&N.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.