| If you are like 99% of everyone who has ever dieted, no matter what plan, powder, pill, program or gimmick you've used, chances are that within 1 year of stopping, not only did all the weight you might have lost return, but about 20% more packed on with it. Know someone who lost 20 lbs on some diet? It won't be long before they're 22 lbs heavier. Perhaps the saddest part is that the next time a diet is attempted, weight loss is slower and more difficult. Dieting can make metabolism slower for a lifetime! I am telling you, from first hand experience, giving up dieting is a lot more healthy and result-producing than giving up your favorite foods. When I first started this, I hadn't had a doughnut in probably five years! No pizza for about ten ! So, let me ask you this: If you tried this 3 months ago, you might be two sizes smaller, or more, by now. If you DON'T try this, where do you imagine you'll be 3 months from now? I mean, be honest, how have all those diets been working so far? |
| Ask yourself this question, "Do I really want to change? Or am I just comfortable in blaming everything wrong with my life on my inability to change?" Yes, as odd as it sounds, sometimes we sabotage ourselves because living without the drama and pain and frustration of diet and weight, well, is so foreign that we can't imagine it. "The devil we know is better than the devil we don't" |
| Doughnut is not a dirty word! It's ok to have a Krispy Kreme or Dunkin' Donut or (gasp) chocolate! Just remember, you're only one person and you only need one donut! OK, so in the real world we sometimes need two. Just pick the regular old standby "iced" type for this splurge, avoid the filled (or at least realize there's no way you can have two of these!) and make it last several bites (c'mon, you and I know we've done these in about two !). We need to give ourselves permission to enjoy what we enjoy! Just not gorge anymore. |
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| What's for dinner ? How about pizza? Stuffed salmon? Lasagna? Spaghetti and meatballs and sausage? I started ordering my pizza with 'half the usual amount of cheese' and no meats, but double up on the mushrooms (or whatever veggie you like). Then, just having two slices instead of the half a pie I was used to, made a big difference without much notice. I found a fresh food based store with pre-made stuffed salmon filets that took all of 15 minutes in my toaster oven and with a squeeze of fresh or bottled lemon juice, were better than most restaurant fare. I made my own lasagna with more nonfat ricotta than full fat mozerella and other cheeses (although I used them in their low fat versions, but in half the usual amounts). Dinner can be anything you like or want, restaurant meals or homemade...but if you're taking it out or buying it - it's probably a really, really wise choice to serve yourself just half (don't trust yourself to stop!). American portion sizes are often THREE times the size it is 'normally' and most especially, in countries without our significant weight problem, so cutting it in half is still getting more than anyone typically has, but more along the lines necessary to correct our weight problems. |
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| This is a no income, no sales, no promotions site that does not ask for your email or personal information. We have nothing to gain, or lose, by the information given here, which is from personal experience and personal research through other no sales, not for profit sites Please contribute your own experiences - questions - info through email below ! |
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| IIt used to be a joke, that one day ‘they’ll discover chocolate is good for you’. It was a fantasy. There are few people who don’t love chocolate and as many candy company employees will tell you, the more you eat of it, the more you want of it. While you can overdo it at some point, no one ever really, permanently, ‘gets sick of’ chocolate. So, when obscure, early reports seemed to indicate that chocolate had properties that helped heart health and increased antioxidants, as with any other sales pitch or marketing ploy, chocolate companies jumped on the opportunity to push their new ‘health food’.
Now, for the truth: Dark cocoa has an antioxidant, flavonol, that has a similar blood thinning effect as aspirin. The American Heart Association published a paper indicating that the flavenol and other chemicals in cocoa beans ‘have the potential’ to reduce heart disease, but point out that even they don’t know enough about flavenols to make any recommendations yet. This isn’t stopping Mars Inc. (Milky Way, Snickers, M&M’s, etc) from launching a whole line of products carefully worded to convince those of us who don’t need much convincing that chocolate is a health food. The new ‘health-chocolate’ products are further infused with vitamins and even soy products, just to be able to tout even more benefits. Unfortunately, even these additives are unproven to the degree necessary to be widely accepted by real science. The Center for Science in the Public Interest hasn’t even established a link between flavenols and a reduced risk of cancer or heart disease. It’s just not there and most certainly isn’t in the chocolate we’ve come to know and love. Even the darkest chocolate, in order to be edible or enjoyed, is largely cut with sugars, milk and other products that lend more to weight gain than any possible health benefits. Reduction in overall weight and improvement in healthy eating goes much further than eating all the chocolate you want. Still, chocolate is a pleasure and not all pleasures need be guilty. Limiting yourself to an indulgence of chocolate, even every day, is not going to mess up an overall healthy eating plan. What’s enough? Well, take any single sized candy bar you really like and cut it in half. There you go. Don’t worry, you can get used to this. And if you want the really, really ‘healthy’ chocolate, choose one with more than 60% cocoa content. |
| Mmmm Chocolate ! Good for us ? |
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| Grocery List - Let's Go Shopping! |
| Start with what you'll start the day with Breakfast ! Cereal Aisle ANY oatmeal. Even the individual packets of flavored kinds. You can also get the regular kind and add a teaspoon or two of brown sugar, or honey, some maple syrup, sprinkle on some cinnamon or get even more creative ! ANY cereal that has the words "whole grain" in the first three words under 'ingredients' and is less than 160* calories for a one cup serving (before adding milk). Pick up some whole grain bread or English muffins. Again, make sure those words 'whole grain' are not just on the front of the package, but in the first three ingredients! * Many good choice cereals will indicate that a 3/4 cup serving = 120 calories. That equals 160 calories for one cup. |
| Fruit Aisle - get some VEGETABLES too! Oranges - Apples - Pears - Blueberries ! What do you like? Just pick it up (avocados, coconuts are the exception) . In order to meet standards for servings of fruit, you only need a couple oranges with an apple or banana or a cup of melon chunks, berries. It's just not that difficult, but all those products in the magazines and on t.v. don't want you knowing this. They'd rather you send your money their way. Vegetables include carrots, sweet potatoes or yams, broccoli, spinach - if it's dark green, deep yellow or orange, it's a good thing! If you think you don't like it - you probably just haven't tried it the right way! Get some new recipes (we have some links on this page) and don't pad the pockets of manufacturers who would rather you pop a pill than peel a pomegranite! |
| Change out some basics No butter, use some of the better substitutes. I am not endorsing a product here, however, when asked what's in my frige, it's both, (tubs) Brummel & Brown and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter. A container of Lite or Non-fat sour cream Non-fat (at least one container of each) Vanilla, Strawberry, Chocolate and Coffee soy milks . Every spice that doesn't have salt in it. Be careful of those combo-bottles of 'cajun spice' or 'barbecue spice' - often, the main ingredient is salt. You don't need that much salt. |
| What's The Rest of It? Any lean meats, preferably avoiding red meats (the only people saying anything good about red meat are somehow connected to the meat industry, make no mistake about this. Chicken, Turkey, Salmon, Tuna (try it fresh as opposed to canned) and so on. A serving is about the size of a deck of cards. Quite different from those restaurant portions ! Remember - it's not about denying ourselves what we like, it's about learning how to eat these things more reasonably. |
| Grocery List is at bottom of page |
| Beans-Rice-Pasta ? These are good things! A serving size, however, is not whatever fills up the bowl! A serving of these items should be about the size of a tennis ball . A potato is best when it comes in colors (sweet potato, yam) and again, about the size of a tennis ball - or at least no bigger than a handful. Try to select brown rice over white since it's less processed and has the hull (higher fiber) and more vitamins. Save the cream or cheese sauces for special occassions and even then, remember the 'tennis ball' rule. |
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