Sweating off the Pounds

It's been so so hot and humid here the past week. Rain all around us. All we get is threatening skies and thunder. The past three days, I've been helping my husband doing cutting grass and trimming hedges, trees, and bushes. This weather takes my breathe away. Needless to say, I was so glad we finished yesterday.

I made sure I took plenty of water with us as well as my favorite, Diet Lipton Citrus Green Tea. By the time we got done each day, our clothes were soaking wet from sweat. I know any weight loss like this is temporary.

I took my Omron pedometer with me each day as well. Although, I only cut grass one of these days, I still managed to walk over two miles each day doing the yard work. (Big yard....lots and lots of bushes)

I'm relaxing today. My knees are still giving me fits. The only thing that seems to help is staying off them for a day or two. I think I wore them out carrying mail for so many years.

My plans for lunch today is cod fish, brown rice, and a salad with fresh tomatoes from our garden.

I've lost 10 Pounds This Month

On May 28th, I decided to follow my own advice and start my weight loss program over. This time, I am following my own weight loss program. I've bought so many weight loss books and have never been able to follow any of them to the tee. So, I'm doing as Frank Sinatra would say, "My Way."

What I Changed in My Diet
I've lost ten pounds since May 28th. These are the changes I've made this past month to incur my weight loss:

• Breakfast: I don't like breakfast and that's all there is to it. I quit eating oatmeal, grapefruit, and cereal in the morning. I drink my coffee, green tea, and water.
• Lunch & Dinner: I've started making my main meal at lunch time instead of the evening as I had done in the past. I now eat salad 4/5 times a week. I am now eating fish 2/3 times a week.
• Snacks: For a snack in the evening, I've been eating the apple and cinnamon quaker little rice cakes.
• Liquids: I've traded my diet coke in for plain old water.

Mistakes I Have Made
I can't say I've been perfect. We have gone out to eat a few times and I've made bad food choices. I'm not beating myself up over it. I not throwing in the towel. Tomorrow is always another day.

Document Everything
I must say, I think the most important thing I'm doing, is faithfully documenting everything I eat and drink. I've been weighing myself twice a week and tracking my weight loss in the same notebook as my food and drink intake. This way I can compare the weeks with what I've ate.

Do What Works for You!
I'm sure many will disagree with my choice of weight loss...but the important thing, it works for me.

Lose Weight Following These Guide Lines

Here is the guide to daily intakes of the various food groups provided by the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service. Following this will not only lead to weight loss but can prevent the onset of a variety of health problems. It can reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, certain cancers, diabetes, stroke, and osteoporosis.
This pyramid is good for anyone...not just people seeking to lose weight.

Lose Weight Laying Down

I was on Ebay and decided to check out the latest on weight loss items. Weight loss with the Alpha 33 Spa (Health Environment Machine), don't like to work out, take pills, or shakes, don't worry, you can lose weight laying down. Priced at just $5,500.00.

Although I'd love to lose weight laying down, I find this claim hard to believe. It looks like a sauna to me. You may sweat off some of your water...but that isn't real weight loss. Needless to say, that weight loss is temporary.

So far no one has bid on this item, but there are still 6 days left. I wonder...will anyone be that desperate to lose weight...they'd buy this thing?

Low Calorie...No Fat Snack

Many trying to lose weight become victims of the snack attack. It's so easy to grab a candy bar or two, a klondike ice cream bar, or a piece of pie/cake. Most of the low calorie snacks, taste awful or are so small it leaves you still wanting more.
Quaker Rice Snacks are a perfect snack. They come in several flavors but I've only tried the Apple Cinnamon. They are light, crispy and crunchy with only 60 calories in a serving (8 cakes). They have a great flavor and are filling. They are fat free and have 0 grams of trans fat.
These will make a great addition to anyone's weight loss menu.

Plan a Healthy Diet Using Food Labels

To help consumers plan a heathy diet, FDA and USDA have revamped food labels. By law, most food labels must now display a nutrition facts panel containing information about how the food can fit into an overall daily diet. Nutrition facts state how much saturated fat, cholesterol, fiber and certain nutrients are contained in each serving.
On the food label %daily value shows what percentage of a given nutrient is provided in one portion for daily diets of 2,000 calories.
Whether or not a food fits into a weight-loss diet depends on what other foods you eat with it that day. For most people, the goal is to select a variety of foods that together add up to approximately 100% of the daily value for total carbs, dietary fiber, vitamins, and minerals: total fat, cholesterol and sodium each may add up to less than 100%.

Look for foods high in fiber, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains. Fiber can be an important aid in weight maintenance because eating enough if it can help a person feel full and thus not eat as much.
And as with any weight loss program......drink lots of water. If you need to drink soda, make it diet.

Lose Weight Following Your Own Pyramid

The USDA has a program called My Pyramid.gov. This site allows you to build your own pyramid. You put in your age, height, weight and time you spend daily doing exercise/physical activity. It even has a pyramid tracker. It will then recommend what your daily intake of the food groups should be. You then can use your pyramid tracker to watch your results.

There is a lot of information at this site. It even covers kids starting at the age of 2. This site even has a game called Pyramid Blast off for kids. They can reach Power Planet by fueling their rocket with food and physical activity. "Fuel" tanks from each food group helps kids to keep track of how their choices fit into My Pyramid.

Losing weight can be fun when you design your own personal program. Anyone that has tried to lose weight, has tried more than one program or diet pill with varied success. Why not try writing your own weight loss program. We all know our own bodies better than anyone else. Try different things within the program and track them.
The important thing in implementing your own weight loss program, don't get discouraged. Give yourself time to see what works best for you. I can't emphasize enough......document ..document ...document daily. It will show you what weight loss program is working best.

Two Omni Recipes: Chili And Wheat Salad

Omni Chili with Tofu:
3/4 cup frozen carrot coins
1 15-oz. can Eden No Salt Added
Kidney Beans (or 2 cups cooked
kidney beans)
2 14 1/2 oz. cans diced tomatoes
1/3 cup frozen (or fresh) chopped onions
1 15-oz. can of Eden No Salt Added
Chickpeas (or 2 cups cooked
chickpeas
1/2 tsp. safflower oil
1 pkg. McCormick Chili Seasoning
1 lb. extra-firm tofu or Roma tomatoes, chopped
1/8 tsp. dried parsley
Add all the ingredients except the tofu to a
large sauce pot. Remove the tofu from the Heat the olive oil over medium
container and blot with a paper towel. Chop into 1/4"-1/2 " squares. Bring the ingredients to a boil and add the tofu. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes with the cover
on before seving. Makes 15 servings.

Per Serving: (3/4 cup) heat to low and simmer until the bulgur
Calories 100 Sodium 170 mg
Total fat 3 g Cholesterol 0 mg c
Sat Fat 0 g/Trans Fat 0 g Carbs 14 g
Fiber 5 g Protein 7 g 8 servings.

Omni Bulgur Wheat Salad:
1 1/2 cups white onion, chopped
1/3 cup green bell pepper, chopped
2 tsp. olive oil
3/4 cup bulglur wheat, dry
1/3 cup blanched slivered almonds
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups Italian plum or Roma tomatoes, chopped
1/3 tsp. dried parsley
Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a saucepan. Saute the onion and green pepper until the onions are translucent. Add the blugur, almonds, raisins, and spices. Add the broth and water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the bulgur is tender, about 20 minutes. Stir in the chopped tomatoes and parsley. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving. Makes 8 servings.
Per Serving: (1/2 cup)
Calories 120 Sodium 50 mg
Total Fat 3 g Cholesterol 0 mg
Sat Fat 0 g/Trans 0 g Carbs 20 g
Fiber 4 g Protein 3 g

I found these recipes in the Nutrition Action Health Letter in the May 2007 edition. This monthly news letter is always has interesting health related articles.

My Mom........I'm in Awe

My mom is 79 years old and still as sharp as a tack. I'm so amazed by her memory. She can still recite long poems and sonnets she had learned in high school. (Graduated in 1946) We watch Jeopardy and she amazes me at all the weird off beat questions she knows the answers to as well.

I shared a conversation I had on the phone with one of my children...or should I say lack of conversation. (The hello, good bye...just needed some info kind of call.) She remembered the following from her childhood years: "A son is a son until he gets a wife, a daughter is a daughter her entire life." I think that sums things up perfectly.

Losing Weight Walking...Share Your Story

It doesn't matter which diet a person choses to lose weight, all the reputable programs say exercise is also necessary. Walking is always a good one to start with. We use such so many muscles while walking.
I've recommended the Omron HJ-112 many times. There is a website called WalkerTracker which is free. On this site, you can keep track of your steps as well as join groups of other walkers to share stories as well as pictures. On this site, the most popular pedometer is the Omron HJ-112.
To date there have been enough steps tracked on WalkerTracker to circle the earth more than 10 times. Check the site out....you can keep track of your heart rate, blood pressure, and aerobic steps. You can calculate you daily mileage and view charts on your progress. These are just a few of the things available on this site. The best part....ITS FREE!!!
Making weight loss fun is key to sticking with your program.

Amazed at the "YARD" Sales

I haven't lived in the south very long so I'm still amazed at some of the sights I encounter. People literally put the "Yard" in yard sales down here. It's nothing to see piles of clothes heaped up on the lawn at a typical yard sale. The classier sales have clothes piled sky high on tables. I even drove by a sale along the highway. A person just stopped their car in a pull off area and were selling stuff out of their trunk as well as having many piles of clothes laying in the grass. A sign saying "Yard Sale" leaning up against the car.
I haven't stopped at any of these sales. I'm not above wearing used clothing. I just don't like having to dig through wrinkled stuff laying on the ground to find a bargain.
I know one thing, if I ever have a "Yard" sale, my clothing will be hanging on racks and folded on tables. Maybe the people down here will be as shocked to see my sales as I was to see theirs.

Knowing my limitations doing yard work

I've come to the realization, I'm going to have to work within my physical capabilities. Today was a prime example of using good sense. I pushed the lawn mower for 3000 steps and my knee feels all right. The Omron HJ-112 pedometer is easy to use with many great functions.
My knee started bothering me when I was pushing the lawn mower up the slight incline. I resolved that problem by mowing sideways on the incline instead of up and down. Boy, did that make a big difference. For this customer, I have my grass cutting area mapped out....my husband will do the rest. A win-win situation. I can still help him and be able to walk with little pain.
We went out for lunch when we finished. I'm sticking to my weight loss plan. For breakfast I had one cup of coffee, a bottle of water, and a bottle of Lipton Diet Citrus Green Tea. (I just can't eat in the morning) For lunch, I had a salad, half a grilled chicken breast, and half of a baked potato. I plan on eating the other half of my lunch for supper.
Friday I plan on weighing myself. It will make a week since my last weigh in. I don't want to be like my new puppy. My husband weighed her last night and she has gained over 3 pounds this past week. The previous week she had gained over 2 pounds.
There are still 203 days to lose weight in 2007....it's never too late to start....or start over as many of us have done.

Finding an Alternative Exercise

For the last couple of years, I've been helping my husband with his lawn service. It's been a great form of exercise. I've enjoyed meeting the people and the satisfaction of a job well done is priceless.

This year mowing has become a problem for me. I helped my husband mowing for two hours on Saturday. My right knee and leg was hurting so bad when I finished, I could barely drive home. It was still hurting just as bad yesterday. Good news....bad news.......I'm feeling better today....but the phone rang....time to go cut a lawn. It's not quite so bad when I can stay on flat land...but that's tough to do here in Tennessee. We live in the part of the state that's called the "Rolling Hills".

Today, when my leg starts hurting...I'm going to stop immediately. I always push myself until I just can't tolerate the pain anymore....then I quit. We'll see how that works....otherwise, I'm going to have to find an alternative method to exercise.

I've lost 10 pounds since I've serious started my weight loss program again. I want to keep it off and continue to lose. I'm grabbing my pedometer and my water. Need to get done before it gets toooooooo hot.

7 GOOD REASONS TO LOSE WEIGHT

Losing weight is not easy but here are some good reasons to stick with it.

Losing even small amounts of weight can improve the following:
1. lower blood pressure
2. lower cholesterol
3. reduce high levels of blood glucose (associated with diabetes)
4. reduce sleep apnea
5. decrease depression
6. decrease the risk of osteoarthritis of the weight-bearing joints
7. increase self-esteem

Set small goals to start and reward yourself when you meet them. (ex: a manicure, a new book, a trip to the movies or rent a video) What ideas to you have for rewarding yourself?

Losing Weight with Laughter

When I saw this weight loss skit with Richard Simmons and Drew Carey....I couldn't stop laughing. This little video will add a little humor to your day. I hope everyone enjoys it. I've watched it numerous times and still laugh so hard every time I watch it.

I'm going to have to do some research on calories burned while laughing. What better way to lose weight than to laugh the pounds away.

I'm off to help my husband in the new garage. My 5 minute break is up. I'm trying to help put up OSB board....yikes that stuff is heavy. My arms already feel like jello.