Did You Over Eat This Weekend?

Weekend, winter weather, weakness, whatever. Eat less, exercise more!

TOMORROW: GET SERIOUS AGAIN!

Give Yourself A Treat

Don’t deprive yourself of your favorites just because you’re dieting. You can eat anything you want. Just do it every now and then rather than all the time. Keep the portions reasonable too. No huge bowls of ice cream with chocolate sauce every night! A scoop or so every now and then is okay. If you deny yourself all  the time you’ll end up resenting your healthier lifestyle. Just continue to eat les and exercise more and it will all work out. So go ahead, have a treat this weekend, and even during the week sometimes. Make sure you enjoy it. You may find it better than you remember when you were having it all the time.

TODAY: DO JUST A LITTLE MORE WALKING THAN YESTERDAY.

Bulk Up To Slim Down

Eating less doesn’t mean you will weigh less. Starving yourself isn’t healthy and can lead to craving and binging. (Followed by severe guilt.) A moderate, healthy diet is best. So stay satisfied by eating food that is low in calories but high in bulk anD fiber like veggies, whole grains and low fat soups. Add a reasonable amount of healthy fats like olive oil, nuts and protein with some cheese and you are on your way. By the way, that’s sometimes called a Mediterranean diet. In addition to being satisfying it’s very healthy.

TODAY: TAKE THAT WALK… EVEN IF IT’S A LAP AROUND THE MALL.

A Little Goal Is A Start

Just saying the word “diet” can sound daunting. It may be what’s holding you back from changing your bad eating habits. So don’t go on a “diet”. Change just one little thing at a time so you can feel like you’re accomplishing something. What you will find is that you will actually accomplish something. Just use the tips I send you each day as a starting point. Each of those little goals will work a little. That’s the idea. They aren’t meant to be the single think you do to improve your health.  Give it a try. Hey… even deciding to do that is reaching a small goal.

TODAY: DRINK MORE WATER.

For God’s Sake, Eat A Piece Of Fruit

Remember the Tim Allen movie “The Santa Clause” when he was gaining all the weight and he went to a business meeting? His boss noticed how it appeared he was “letting himself go”. His advice was one hilarious line that has always stuck with me. “For God’s sake, eat a piece of fruit once in a while.” It’s true. When those carvings hit for something sweet, a piece of fruit instead of a donut, cookies or a candy bar is an excellent choice. Fruit can be a diet saver. It satisfies and levels out your blood sugars to knock out hunger for a longer period and also gives you valuable fiber.

So set out a fruit bowl for yourself instead of cookies and milk and stay on Santa’s “good” list for next Christmas.

TODAY: SHOP FOR SOME FRESH FRUIT

Pick Up A Sack Of Potatoes

The next time you are in the grocery,  head to the produce department and pick up a five pound sack of potatoes. Then carry it around the rest of the time you’re shopping. Don’t put it in the cart. Carry it. You’ll find that five pounds takes a surprising amount of effort to carry for a while. Now imagine that you’re carrying that around from the time you get up until you go to bed at night. That’s what you are doing when you are just five pounds overweight.

The point is that with just a little effort, you should be able to drop five pounds in a couple of weeks. Eat a litle less, skip the snacks and high calorie deserts and go walk a little. It will come off. You will be amazed at the extra energy you will have by dropping just five pounds. So make the first step dropping the potatoes. The ones you eat. Then take the next step out the door. Believe me. It’s not a half-baked idea.

TODAY: SET A GOAL TO LOSE FIVE POUNDS IN THE NEXT TWO WEEKS.

Try A Plain Fiber Snack For A Change

There are a lot of snack bars and other expensive options for diet snacks. Don’t overlook the simple things in your pantry. One of my favorite standbys is Fiber One cereal. Not any of the new offerings from them. Just the basic, original sticks. I discovered Fiber One the first time I ever tried the Atkins diet. It was before Atkins came out with their own food line and to stay on the diet you had to read labels on food religiously. It was a real learning experience. After having a craving for cereal I spent quite a bit of time in the cereal aisle one night and finally got to Fiber One. It is perhaps the perfect low carb, low calorie cereal. If you are really on the Atkins diet have it with real cream as a moist cereal. It’s decadent, and still on your diet! But for the healthy lifestyle diet (where we promote eating less and exercising more) use the dry cereal as a snack. It’s naturally sweet with a satisfying crunch. Toss in a few nuts and raisins every now and then for variety. Top it off with a big glass of water and you’re doing yourself and your colon good. To steal another cereal slogan… It’s Grrrreat!

TODAY: NO JOKE. HAVE SOME FIBER ONE TO BRING A SMILE TO YOUR FACE.