Question:
Anna:
Every year I make a resolution to lose that same ten pounds. Usually I lose a couple and then regain them. I know I'm working out enough (you've told me so!) and the problem lies with what I'm eating. Would you please provide some of your great tips to help me practice some discipline? You gave me some a few years ago but I can't remember them. A "tips" list would be great to help me stay on track. I need a pep talk, but feel free to be tough!
Thanks very much. Janet T.
Answer:
Dear Janet,
I would be happy to provide that list for you. Here are 15 points to help you create a shift in your thinking, so you can stick to your plan.
1) Food is abundant. This is not the Great Famine of 1845. If you don't eat something at a buffet or party, where there is a lot to choose from, you're not missing out on anything. Food is everywhere. It won't mean you can never eat something that tastes good. The feeling of missing out or sacrificing something makes it harder to say "no." You're saying "yes" to a leaner, healthier body, not "no" to ever eating again. No need to feed to stock up for the winter season. The only thing you're missing out on is more body fat. You're making a choice, not sentenced to a life of not having one.
2) You never regret what you don't eat, just what you do eat. We need to fill our stomachs with food to thrive. The key is to make a healthy choice. Once you've satisfied your hunger, you won't find yourself saying, "I can't believe I DIDN'T have that double cheeseburger with fries and the triple fudge cheesecake."
3) Don't keep unhealthy, fattening foods around. Out of sight out of mind. Maybe not entirely, but they'll be off your mind more than if you can see them, or if you know they're there. Willpower doesn't rest on a continuum. It's going to be harder some days than others, so keep it out of the house. If you're keeping it around "for the kids", it's not less harmful to them than it is to you. They don't need it either. It's never too soon to teach them about healthy eating.
4) Think in terms of a daily calorie bank. You can cut back a little each day to "save" up calories for a big event, or you can just omit calories from your diet altogether and "save" the calories that add up to pounds at the end of each month or year. Let's say that every afternoon you have two cookies as a snack. There are 3500 calories in a pound. If each cookie is 90 calories and you had just one, instead of two, that would mean that after about 5 weeks, you would lose one pound. That adds up to over 10 lbs. in one year. If you replace the cookies with a low fat yogurt, that would be 15 pounds in a year; replace the butter or mayo in your sandwich with mustard and that's another 10-15 pounds of weight loss a year.
5) Don't eat everything off your plate. If you're eating at home, you can help yourself to small portions and have more control over how much food is on your plate. If you're eating at a restaurant, or being served large portions, think about this for a moment. Does is make sense that the amount of food your body requires, at any given time, is exactly the amount that's on your plate? I completely understand that a lot of this need, to clean everything off your plate, comes from how we were raised and/or guilt around letting food go to waste. If this is something you struggle with, then it might help to think of it this way. Food you don't need becomes trash in your body. Should you have all of the leftover food scraped off the plates and poured down your throat? It's not really that different when you eat beyond hunger to avoid "waste". You're not a garbage can. Once you've eaten what your body requires, the rest becomes leftovers, or should go in the garbage receptacle.
6) Let your body decide how much food it needs. It's not the same everyday. If you've been exercising a lot, you will probably feel hungrier than you would if you weren't doing much, unless you're "hungry" because you're bored. It's not necessary to eat until you're stuffed. It's not a myth that you can stretch out your stomach to the point where you require more food to feel satisfied.
7) If you're bored, don't let eating become the activity that keeps you entertained. Write a poem about how you love to jog; see how many lunges you can do at one time; now try push-ups. Still bored? Do them again.
8) Eat your protein source first. It will likely take longer to digest than your other food, so eat it first to give it a head start. Here's something else. Protein releases more hydrochloric acid in your stomach which will rev up your metabolism. If you can't commit to eating all of your protein first, then have it for the first couple of bites.
9) Follow four steps for every bite. (1) cut; (2) transfer fork to the other hand; (3) take a bite ; (4) Put down your fork while you chew. When you're starving, this is impossible and a little ridiculous. In that case, take your first 6 or 7 bites as you would normally and then slow it down. One third of digestion should take place in the mouth. When you don't chew your food properly, you weaken your digestive enzymes and your metabolism slows down. Over time you can develop digestive problems. It's not worth it.
10) Don't drink with your meal. Liquids will dilute your digestive enzymes, slowing down the breakdown of food. Drink water 15 minutes before a meal and/or one hour afterward. If you're having wine with your meal, sip it very slowly and don't use it to hydrate. It's not Gatorade.
11) Don't drink more calories than you eat. Juices, some energy drinks and coffees that require at least five adjectives to order are typically high in calories. Protein and carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram, while alcohol has 7 calories per gram. That's only 2 calories fewer than fat, which holds 9 calories per gram. Potentially, you could drink more than a day's worth of calories at one meal. Yikes!
12) A product labeled with a fat-free claim does not mean that it is low in calories. Similarly, a product labeled as low-sugar or low-carb does not mean it is low in fat or calories. Always read the nutrition label on the packaging.
13) 'Nothing tastes as good as slim feels.' I don't know who said that first, but they were right. Successful weight loss leaves people feeling elated and empowered. No piece of cake can do that.
14) Don't sacrifice absolutely everything. If you do, you'll find it's just a matter of time before you find yourself sacrificing absolutely nothing. Everyone has his or her favourite treats. Allow yourself a little indulgence, but watch out for the frequency and the quantity. Having a small treat on occasion can be rewarding to your weight loss/control experience. Enjoy yourself, but don't take it so far that you end up eventually sabotaging all of your other efforts.
15) Treat your body as well as you do your other possessions. We only put the best fuel in our cars, we use high efficiency soap for our washing machines and install energy efficient furnaces. Our clothing gets special care dry cleaning. What about our pets? We don't let them have their pick of the buffet, because we know it will hurt them. We worry about the environment and how our lifestyle will affect it. How will what we put in our bodies affect us? What about OUR energy efficiency?
Our homes get a lot of attention, but we forget sometimes that where we actually live, first and foremost, is inside our own bodies.
There's a theory that our life expectancy is genetically determined and that a healthy lifestyle will not have any impact on life extension. I'm rolling my eyes right now, but let's say (/pretend) that statement is true. No one can argue that eating and living healthily will significantly improve the quality of life. Your wellness will translate into years of actively participating in life, not just existing. And, you'll look a lot better too.
Janet, you can do this. When you think about all of the things that one has to deal with in life, this is not that hard. It's just a decision - one you can make, and stick to.
I often hear people talk about 'that last five or ten pounds' like it's some sort of condition. It's not. Of all the things we have little or no control over in life; the weather, other people, company cutbacks, taxes, in-laws, traffic - this is something, in most cases, over which we have full control. Tell yourself you can do it and prove yourself right.
Thanks for your question, Janet. If you stick to these tips, you'll succeed this time around.
Anna
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