Making the decision to living a healthy lifestyle by reducing your weight is not something to rush by reducing your food intake drastically. It’s not healthy and it’s not something you can sustain for long. It makes you destined to fail and even head back up the yoyo string.
Moderation is our method. Eat less, exercise more is carved in the hieroglyphics of our food pyramid.
TODAY: EAT LESS, EXERCISE MORE.
The burst exercise plan seems to have a greater effect on my bike. That’s when you do short 30 second bursts every few minutes while you’re walking, riding a bike, using a stepper… whatever you’re doing to exert yourself. Studies have shown that it increases the overall effectiveness of your exercise and gives you more residual calorie burning. It’s sort of exercise kinetic energy. That is, you get the locomotive going faster and it takes longer for it to stop.
Of course you will notice it because you will have the satisfying pore cleansing sweat for a bit longer when you’re done.
TODAY: DO SOME BURSTS WHILE YOU EXERCISE. (WALK, RIDE OR WHATEVER)
Fire up the grill today as part of the great American tradition and celebrate the 4th with a reasonable number of calories. Grill some nice chicken but keep the barbecue sauce to a minimum. The sugar is a hidden calorie waster. Use hot sauces instead.
Grill veggies too. All that zucchini that’s now coming out of home gardens is a great side. Corn on the cob is an easy grill item. Trim off the silk and then soak it water before putting it on the grill for about 10 minutes. It gets smokey and steamed in the husk.
Skip the potato salad! Coleslaw or tomato & cucumber salad is really great with an easy low cal / low carb dressing of mayo and the juice from no sugar “bread & butter” sweet pickles.
Have fruit as dessert. Strawberries and blueberries will keep the theme. Use Splenda as a sweetener. Since that doesn’t make the usual sugar syrup you’ll need to add some liquid. Water will do, or try a little orange juice.
TODAY: Enjoy the picnic, just do it in moderation or your waistline will explode.
If you have a stash of snacks in bags left in the house, get rid of them. You’ve got to change your habits and if you leave those temptations within reach you will no doubt give in to them in a moment of weakness or more likely laziness. It’s just handy to grab one of those bags and munch away. Lay’s even names the snack size bag the “Big Grab”. They ought to call them the “Big Flab”.
You can still snack in moderation when you’re hungry. Just make the snack protein filled. Eat hard cheese, meats, jerky, salami, sardines or the high protein nuts like macadamia and almonds. If you absolutely need a bag of stuff to munch get fried pork rinds. Drink lots of water too. It will help you feel more full while also giving you hydration and flush your system of the extra protein you’re now eating.
TODAY: CLEAN OUT THE PANTRY. GIVE UNOPENED BAGS OF SNACKS TO A SHELTER.
But take it easy on the high calorie, high carb food. You can have or go to the cookout but have a nice big cool salad to start. (Easy on the dressings.) Fresh veggies are great snacks. It will keep you munching without the consequences. Try some lime with ice water and some Splenda for a great lite drink. Or any number of those Crystal Lite beverage mixes. Go ahead and have a lite beer or two too. Don’t deprive yourself, just don’t overdo it.
TODAY: START THE SUMMER COOKOUT SEASON WITHOUT A LOT OF CALORIES.
Since we’re avoiding fried food this week, you probably are thinking of some grilled burgers. They’re great even without the bun. Unless it’s a great whole grain it actually doesn’t add a whole lot of taste anyway. So the calories and starch don’t get you much. Actually a knife and fork burger with the lettuce, tomato and pickle with ketchup and hot sauce is easier to eat than the same thing on a bun. On the bun a big sandwich like that tends to make us eat faster too. You’re trying not to end up wearing it all. As I’ve told you before you need to slow down to eat less.
TODAY: SKIP THE BURGER BUN.
The grilled offering at KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) may lead you to believe that it’s the diet choice you might make on their menu. Well the nutrition handout available at the stores tells the story differently. Surprisingly ORIGINAL RECIPE is the low cal / low fat winner. But there is a catch. The KFC Original Recipe breast has half the fat and 40 fewer calories than the new grilled version. IF you take the skin off. It seems that the skin absorbs most of the oil and the “secret herbs and spices” has a LOT of salt. As a matter of fact it reduces the salt and cholesterol by half! (Grilled had TWICE the cholesterol!) In addition taking off the skin and it’s minimal breading reduces transfat from 21 grams to just 2, carbs from 7 grams to 1 while eliminating ALL of the saturated fat.
The down side is that the skin may reduce the amount of actual food you get… but then again that’s sort of what I’ve been nagging you about.
TODAY: GO SKINLESS TO GET SKINNY.
Daily Nag, Healthy Recipes | Diet Nag | 
July 14, 2010 6:25 am | 
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