Poor Weight Loss Resolutions – Part 1

If you’re like most people in America, your New Year’s resolution has something to do with losing weight. No matter if it’s just 5 pounds – or even 50 – everyone wants to drop a few pounds.

The problem – most weight loss resolutions go out the window the first time you walk past a donut shop or get a strong whiff of French fries from a fast food joint. An even bigger problem, expecting too much from yourself when it comes to changing your eating habits.

Throughout the month of January, we’ll be highlighting 12 ways – 3 each week – how people often fail when it comes to keeping diet resolutions. By seeing how it doesn’t work – and then learning a wiser way  – you’ll be able to set and accomplish more realistic goals.

Plan to lose too much – if you choose a large number like 25 or even 50 pounds, that’s not a very manageable way to lose weight.

In its place, decide that you’ll lose 1 pound – or even half a pound – per week for the year. It’s the same amount, but just broken down into smaller, more realistic goals. Then learn what it would take to lose that much each week. Cut out a few high-calorie coffee drinks. Don’t finish everything on your plate. Small goals are much easier to attain.

Fads are for fashion – Don’t get hooked on every new diet fad that comes along. They’re usually too extreme and not good for your overall health – both physical and emotional. They often backfire and cause you to gain more weight back afterwards.

Rather, eat well-balanced meals comprised of healthy proteins, fats and carbohydrates. Sound lofty? Basically, skip the big plate of pasta, add more vegetables and be sure to include approximately 4 ounces of lean protein at each meal. Enjoy delicious, satisfying snacks like nuts, fruit or yogurt. Eating like this has been proven to help people lose weight and keep it off.

Eating only at home – It’s often true that foods at most restaurants are higher in calories than meals cooked at home. But it’s not realistic to boycott everything not prepared at home. You can’t just skip every social outing that involves food.

Instead, go out with your friends, but eat wisely. If you can’t keep your hands out of the bread basket, move it away, or just allow yourself to try one kind. Don’t go to the restaurant starving either. Eat a piece of fruit or a handful of nuts before you go. They won’t fill you up enough to skip eating, but they will curb your appetite a bit so you don’t order something too large.

Next week, we’ll highlight 3 more common scenarios and how you can beat them to stay on your nutritional journey in 2014.

Sources

http://www.bdaweightwise.com/eating/eating_plan.html

http://www.ivillage.com/10-diet-resolutions-anyone-can-keep/4-b-414560

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/30/new-years-resolutions-diet-mistake_n_4519070.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monthly Series – All About Arthritis Part 4 – Keeping Joints Healthy

Throughout the month, we have featured an illuminating series on the common types, causes and symptoms of arthritis. Currently, there are more than 100 types of arthritis that affect more than 50 million Americans.

Highlighting what we shared the past several weeks, 2 of the most common forms of arthritis are osteoarthritis affecting 33 million Americans and rheumatic arthritis which impacts 1.5 million.

Osteoarthritis is mainly caused by damage to joint cartilage either from injury, wear or from being overweight, while rheumatic arthritis is an autoimmune disease caused by the body turning on itself after dealing with an infection.

Now that you’ve learned about what arthritis is, what causes it and some of the symptoms, we’ll finish off the series with tips to keep joints healthy.

Here are 10 ways to keep your joints as healthy as possible, for as long as possible.

Keep Moving – The more you remain active, the less stiff your joints will be. Physical activity has been shown to keep joints limber.

Protect Yourself – Even minor joint damage can hasten arthritis, so be careful when engaging in physical activity. Wear protective gear or braces to guard against damage.

Lose Weight – If your joints are hurting, it may be from the added strain of excess weight. Even minor weight loss – each pound lost takes 4 pounds of pressure off your knees – can have a major effect on keeping joints healthy.

Exercise – Avoid exercises that cause pounding and jarring on the joints. Opt for low-impact activities like walking and swimming, and make sure to lift light weights to keep joints strong.

Build Muscle – Building stronger muscles around joints has been shown to put less stress on those surrounding joints. Even building your core – your abs, hip and back muscles – creates better balance that helps you avoid damaging joints.

Stretch – Before you do even the most minor of tasks, make sure you stretch. If you’re going to be exercising, perform a little light warm up first to loosen joints and ligaments.

Eat Fish – Eat more cold-water fish like salmon that boast an ample supply of omega-3 fatty acids known to keep joints healthy. It also reduces joint inflammation and tenderness.

Keep Bones Strong – Include a variety of dairy products and deep-green, leafy vegetables in your diet. They’re all wonderful sources of calcium and Vitamin D that keep your bones strong.

Take Supplements – If you don’t like salmon, dairy or vegetables, at least take a supplement containing joint-enhancing nutrients. Consider taking glucosamine, SAMe and chondroitin which have all been found to help keep joints healthy and relieve joint pain.

Be Careful – If you need to carry heavy objects, try to keep them as close to your chest as possible. Let your larger muscles support the weight to help prevent injury to the joints.

Now that you’ve discovered all about the common types, causes, and symptoms of arthritis, apply some of what you learned to keep your joints strong and healthy.

Remember, damaged cartilage cannot ever grown back and most joint damage requires extensive surgery, so it’s wise to protect your joints and keep them healthy for your entire lifetime.

Use an App To Help Get In Shape

It’s that time of the year again to start planning New Year’s resolutions. If you’re like nearly everyone else in America, losing weight and getting back in shape is probably near the top of the list. Or more like it – right at the very top.

But most of those resolutions are tossed aside just as fast as the noise-makers and festive hats are. Even though you might have good intentions, pretty soon real life gets in the way and old habits gradually creep back in.

With smartphones in our reach day and night, now you can get back in shape with help that’s right at your fingertips.

Below, we’ve selected 5 of the best smartphone apps to help you get a jumpstart on getting back in shape before the New Year even begins.

Lose it! – This app is the total package when it comes to weight loss. Input your current and goal weights and ‘Lose it!’ will estimate how many calories to eat each day – and how long it will take – to get to your goal. ‘Lose it!’ features an online community to check in with when you need support. Plus, just scan any food item barcode and receive complete nutritional info from the app’s elaborate database.

Fooducate – With this app, complete details about what’s really in foods – calories, sugars, processing techniques – can be discovered by scanning any food item bar code. Fooducate will give you a rating of how healthy it is and if it’s a nutritious choice or not.

My Fitness Pal – Using your weight, height, goal weight and lifestyle, My Fitness Pal breaks your long-term goal into 1-month mini-goals for better success. You can also get nutritional information from some of your favorite recipes, which definitely helps with portion control. My Fitness Pal also allows you to share your successes and challenges with others to stay motivated.

Eat This, Not That – Based on a popular book and column in Men’s Health, you’d be surprised at how different two very similar-appearing meals can be when it comes to calories, nutrition and fat. By entering what you want to eat, you’ll discover something you can swap it with that will give you a similar eating experience – but a much healthier version. It also lets you track your calories and create a custom-eating plan.

Endomondo – Need a little extra motivation to work out. This app tracks your exercise routes in Google Maps and then lets you review your workout history. You can join a community that shares in your accomplishments to keep you striving forward. Upgrades allow you to include a special Polar heart monitor to track your heart rate and other vitals.

With more than one million phone apps on the market, try one of these ­– or explore others – to make getting back in shape a New Year’s resolution you’ll actually enjoy working on this year.

Source

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/diet.fitness/12/31/lose.weight.new.resolution/

Walking – The Easiest Exercise For Your Health

The holiday stress might be getting to you. So many parties to attend. So many gifts to buy. So many classic cartoons to watch. So many things happening in such a short time.

Plus you’re supposed to be exercising. How can you even try to fit that in? Easy. Go for a walk.

That’s right. The best way to keep your cool – and your health – during this most wonderful time of year is to just take a walk. Putting one foot in front of the other can be the best way to maintain your weight. And your sanity.

Walking just 20 minutes a day – that’s 10 minutes in one direction and back – can also have a profound effect on conditions like diabetes, heart disease, cancer and even your well being.

Here are 5 positive benefits from taking a short stroll during the day.

Reduces stress – just a short walk per day was found to reduce anxiety by nearly 30% – even in people experiencing a major health crisis like cancer or terminal disease.

Strengthens your heart – amazingly, just a short stroll can reduce the risk of a heart attack by up to 35% compared to those who lead a sedentary life.

Stimulates your brain – walking just 90 minutes a week helps boost cognitive function compared to those who only walk 40 minutes per week.

Chases away the holiday blues – walking 90-150 minutes a week was found to reduce depression by nearly 50% over a 3-month period.

Lose weight – Although it’s not the fastest way to lose weight, walking is a very effective way to reduce your waistline. Just walking 15-20 minutes a day – only 3 days a week – can help you drop between a half and a full pound per week. Keep it up for a whole year and you’ll be a slimmer and trimmer you.

These are only 5 of the many benefits of walking. Just lacing up your favorite tennis shoes or taking a walk around the block during lunch can maintain strong bones, lower your cholesterol and lower your blood pressure.

Take that first step today and you’ll be on your way to a happier holiday and a healthier new year.

Sources

http://healthland.time.com/2012/05/17/qa-how-a-little-exercise-brings-big-benefits/

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/walking/HQ01612

http://www.sharecare.com/health/fitness-exercise/article/health-benefits-of-short-walk

 

Everyday Activities Count as Exercise

To get in a good workout, you may think you need to pump iron like Hercules or trek up an endless imaginary mountain on a Stairmaster. That’s not the whole truth.

While those are definitely wonderful ways to work out, you can get all the benefits of hitting the gym while doing less glamorous tasks – cleaning, cooking and shopping.

Now you can think of those mundane must-dos as exhilarating exercises. See how these challenging chores can offer outstanding health benefits.

Cleaning – Fire up the vacuum or sweep the floors to burn around 150 calories per hour. Bonus – an immaculate house.

Cooking – Chopping up fresh vegetables or washing that stack of dirty dishes each burn about 150 calories per hour. Bonus – a delicious dinner or spotless kitchen.

Shopping – Next time you’re pushing a grocery cart or window-shopping for that pair of must-have shoes, you’ll be burning as many as 300 calories per hour. Bonus – new, stylish wardrobe.

Shoveling ­– If you live in a region that gets dumped on with fluffy white stuff, you’ll be burning nearly 400 calories per hour next time you’re clearing off your driveway. Bonus – the perfect mound for King of the Hill.

Decorating – It’s not just boring labor that burns calories – fun activities count too. Painting and decorating your home can burn more than 300 calories per hour.  Bonus – fancy digs.

For extra calorie burning points, just pump up the jams. Listen to music and dance while doing these activities – well … maybe not while chopping vegetables – to burn off an extra 300 calories per hour.

Next time you have a mile-long list of household chores, imagine the calories melting away. Your waistline – and home – will thank you.

Sources

http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/fitness/weight-loss/calories-burned-doing-household-chores.html#b

http://healthandwellbeingindance.blogspot.com/2008/11/listening-to-music-burn-more-calories.html

http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/tips/expert-advice/how-many-calories-do-you-burn-with-household-chores/