I just returned from 8 days vacation in New York, visiting my parents and attending a reunion of my husband's college buddies -- Saturday night party in Manhattan and all.
And I didn't gain any weight!
I'm neurotic about this, because once I went on vacation, gained 5 pounds, and wasn't able to lose it for a very long time.
At the party, I kept a raspberry seltzer in one hand and my camera in the other -- that helped a lot! When I ate, I kept to 2 stuffed grape leaves and fruit.
At my parents' house, I didn't eat everything they served, especially for dinner, and avoided snacks when they snacked. Sometimes it was hard, but most of the time, it was OK.
Whew!
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Friday, June 8, 2007
A very basic guide to overcoming overeating
I've been talking about how to deal with a compulsion to overeat. Here's a basic guide from WebMD.
I say basic, because, although the advice is all good, it's probably not enough for most people. But, a good place to start.
I say basic, because, although the advice is all good, it's probably not enough for most people. But, a good place to start.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
50 Weight Loss Tips
Chris Pirillo, whom wrote the Foreword for my book, Syndicating Web Sites with RSS Feeds For Dummies, has a great post, 50 Weight Loss Tips, that you might find useful. He repeats much of what I've been saying about permanent weight loss.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
I'm going on vacation
I'm going on vacation, and won't have regular access to the Internet, so I've pre-posted some posts. Unfortunately, that doesn't work very well; I'd hoped they'd appear on the publish date I chose, but they appeared right away. So, if you read them, you're looking into the future!
While on vacation, I'll be focused on not gaining any weight. (Forget about trying to lose any!) For example, what will I do at that big Saturday night party I'm going to with my husband's college buddies? Right now, I'm planning to stick to veggie sticks, if any, and a big seltzer with a slice of lime.
We'll see how it works!
While on vacation, I'll be focused on not gaining any weight. (Forget about trying to lose any!) For example, what will I do at that big Saturday night party I'm going to with my husband's college buddies? Right now, I'm planning to stick to veggie sticks, if any, and a big seltzer with a slice of lime.
We'll see how it works!
Should you lose weight, or not?
You'll find a lot of opinions out there about losing weight and health. Contradictory opinions. Here is a series of articles that should give you quite a range. Before making a decision based on an article or book that you've read, I strongly suggest that you actively seek out opposing opinions, and then judge.
Overweight Boomers Risk Early Death
This article is a pretty standard run down of the risks of being overweight
Lower Your Risk, Improve Your Health
This article is written by the National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.
Focus on Fitness, Not Fatness
This article come in somewhere in between 2 commonly opposing sides.
The Case Against Weight Loss Dieting
This article goes against most opinions, and quotes lots of research doing so.
The issue can become very emotional. Sometimes you wonder about the weight of the people writing these articles.
Overweight Boomers Risk Early Death
This article is a pretty standard run down of the risks of being overweight
Lower Your Risk, Improve Your Health
This article is written by the National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.
Focus on Fitness, Not Fatness
This article come in somewhere in between 2 commonly opposing sides.
The Case Against Weight Loss Dieting
This article goes against most opinions, and quotes lots of research doing so.
The issue can become very emotional. Sometimes you wonder about the weight of the people writing these articles.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Another way to deal with eating compulsion
If you've read past posts, you know that one reason for being overweight is a compulsion to eat. I discussed this in my post, "Reason 2 for being overweight."
There I listed some ways to deal with a compulsion and in "How to deal with a compulsion to eat," I talked about one of the ways.
Now I want to talk about the first method on the list, "Rules."
If you have a compulsion to eat, when you're in front of food, your mind goes all gooey and your reason disappears out the window. Usually, the sight of the food initiates the compulsion (it could be a smell), which is why my earlier post (linked to above) talked about removing yourself from temptation.
But sometimes, you just can't. After all, you need to see food sometimes!
Creating rules helps you to avoid having to make a decision on the spot. "Should I eat that piece of cake? Maybe just a little piece. And maybe that cookie there." And so on.
Rules may rise out of a medical condition. If you have diabetes, you may not be allowed to eat sugar. That rule helps you make the decision. "No, I'm not allowed to eat sugar." Then you go find something else to eat, but it's probably something better for you.
If you have high blood pressure or high cholesterol, your doctor may have told you that you should eat a low-fat diet. Maybe you even got some literature about how to eat. But it's all so complicated and sometimes vague. Simple rules can help. "No cream, no butter" for example. Then you can't eat the cake or the cookies. You just know that you're not allowed. Again, you find something else, something healthier, to eat.
You can even create temporary rules, but they're probably not going to be as effective in the long run. For example, if you're going to a party, you can say, "No sugar or fat for me tonight." Then you know what to do and don't have to make any decisions at the party, while you're staring at the food. That's not the time to decide!
Before going to any place where you'll be tempted, make a decision about what you won't eat. Set if firmly in your mind and see if this helps you.
A cute bit of advice I once read (for women, although men might be able to find an alternative): take a clutch purse with you and immediately get something to drink. Then both your hands will be full and you won't be able to eat as much!
There I listed some ways to deal with a compulsion and in "How to deal with a compulsion to eat," I talked about one of the ways.
Now I want to talk about the first method on the list, "Rules."
If you have a compulsion to eat, when you're in front of food, your mind goes all gooey and your reason disappears out the window. Usually, the sight of the food initiates the compulsion (it could be a smell), which is why my earlier post (linked to above) talked about removing yourself from temptation.
But sometimes, you just can't. After all, you need to see food sometimes!
Creating rules helps you to avoid having to make a decision on the spot. "Should I eat that piece of cake? Maybe just a little piece. And maybe that cookie there." And so on.
Rules may rise out of a medical condition. If you have diabetes, you may not be allowed to eat sugar. That rule helps you make the decision. "No, I'm not allowed to eat sugar." Then you go find something else to eat, but it's probably something better for you.
If you have high blood pressure or high cholesterol, your doctor may have told you that you should eat a low-fat diet. Maybe you even got some literature about how to eat. But it's all so complicated and sometimes vague. Simple rules can help. "No cream, no butter" for example. Then you can't eat the cake or the cookies. You just know that you're not allowed. Again, you find something else, something healthier, to eat.
You can even create temporary rules, but they're probably not going to be as effective in the long run. For example, if you're going to a party, you can say, "No sugar or fat for me tonight." Then you know what to do and don't have to make any decisions at the party, while you're staring at the food. That's not the time to decide!
Before going to any place where you'll be tempted, make a decision about what you won't eat. Set if firmly in your mind and see if this helps you.
A cute bit of advice I once read (for women, although men might be able to find an alternative): take a clutch purse with you and immediately get something to drink. Then both your hands will be full and you won't be able to eat as much!
Friday, May 25, 2007
My cholesterol is going down!
I just went to the local hospital's Wellness Clinic to get my cholesterol, triglycerides, and glucose checked. Although my cholesterol is still high, I'm very pleased with the results.
The HDL (good) was 57.
The LDL (bad) was 136.
Total 213.
The other results were normal.
The total is not supposed to be over 200.
The LDL shouldn't be over 130.
My high HDL (which is a good thing) helps to increase the total.
In 2004, my results were the following:
HDL: 54
LDL: 198 (wow!)
Total: 252
What lowered my cholesterol? Mostly losing weight and exercise. But I have to admit, I did one more thing: I took a Chinese herb, Red Yeast Rice, which is supposed to reduce cholesterol. I took half the suggested dosage.
Unfortunately, I can't separate these two things out, so I can't be sure if exercise/losing weight or the Red Yeast Rice, or both were the most effective. You can't treat your health and life like a scientific experiment.
The HDL (good) was 57.
The LDL (bad) was 136.
Total 213.
The other results were normal.
The total is not supposed to be over 200.
The LDL shouldn't be over 130.
My high HDL (which is a good thing) helps to increase the total.
In 2004, my results were the following:
HDL: 54
LDL: 198 (wow!)
Total: 252
What lowered my cholesterol? Mostly losing weight and exercise. But I have to admit, I did one more thing: I took a Chinese herb, Red Yeast Rice, which is supposed to reduce cholesterol. I took half the suggested dosage.
Unfortunately, I can't separate these two things out, so I can't be sure if exercise/losing weight or the Red Yeast Rice, or both were the most effective. You can't treat your health and life like a scientific experiment.
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