Life is Healthy

What a great to start a Monday. I'm announcing a giveaway. This food journal includes weight loss tips, and it has another little journal that comes with it—it's small journal intended for people to carry more easily. It's about the size of one of those little horoscope pocketbooks you get at the checkout counter.

So for this giveaway, all you have to do comment on why you think a food journal would benefit you—just a sentence or two will do. For example, "A food journal will really help me on my weight loss journey because it will keep me honest." Anyway, you get the idea. I will post the best comments on my blog.

I stole this idea from Susan. Here blog is Let's Lose Weight This Year. I also stole her journal—well, not literally. I chose one like the one that she uses. This journal came from Books-A-Million. It retails for $14.95.

I've found that writing down everything you eat really makes you more accountable. Although somedays I'm better at it than other days, I think it's helped me eat far less than I typically would. So good luck. I'm looking forward to reading your comments.

P.S. The giveaway ends on Saturday, August 21, 2010, at midnight. Winner announced on Monday, August 23, 2010.

Today, I feel kind of blah. I'm doing well with the exercise. As usual, my diet could be better—but it isn't terrible. I mean I haven't eaten a whole pie by myself. It's just one of those days, I guess.

Or maybe I'm just questioning life. My nephew's girlfriend's grandmother—I hope you can follow that—was tragically killed in a car accident this past Friday. The story is really a sad one. And the outcome is the grandfather is now left lost and alone. He's 78. My heart bleeds for him. I have cried for him. They were married for 59 years. Even though I didn't know these folks very well, this tragedy has had major effect on me. Life is so fragile. We're here one minute—squashed like bugs the next.

So I'm not left wondering what it's all about, but wondering why we don't make the most of the time we have? Everybody's clock gets punched—sooner or later. Armed with this information, I should be more than willing to eat right, get fit, and live the life I want. And I am doing better. But I'm also taken back to when I quoted Bill Murray's Groundhog Day character when he said, "What if there is no tomorrow? There wasn't one today." Why is it so hard to do the things I need to do to make my life what I want it to be?

OK. I have another movie quote. This one is from The Answer Man: "The truth is, you're always doing what you want. Nobody makes you do anything." So my truth is that I'm not doing the things I could be doing because I'm doing what I want right now: eating the wrong things and avoiding the truth. Because there's always tomorrow, right?

I don't intend this post to be doom and gloom. It's supposed to make me realize that if I really want to lose weight, it's up to me to do it.

Don't forget about my giveaway: Pilates Ring Giveaway. It really is a cool prize. At least, I think so.

As I write this blog, I think that everything I say makes perfect sense. But when I read back through it, I realize I wasn't always as clear as I thought I was. But then I thought, "Why should anyone care if this blog is perfectly clear or not? It's a personal blog—or journal. And when you get to read someone's personal ramblings, why care if everything is written like a novel? Hey, even some novels could stand a little more editing."

OK. I'm trying to get up the courage to go back to the gym. I have to. Exercise is the missing ingredient in my current weight loss program. The diet is OK. But I'm flabby. And I tire easily. And on and on. So I need to exercise.

I'm still on my spiritual quest. And today I'm tired. I need to let all of the reading and studying jell. The meditation is going well. Fortunately, I had a wellness class a few years ago in which I learned a lot about meditation. So much of that is still with me. It is very relaxing. More relaxing than I remember.

Well, I think this will be a short post today. When I'm tired, concentration is difficult.

I finally got my blog back to its original look, but it took some finesse. I made the post about my mess before I fixed my mess. Anyway, if there's a lesson to be learned it's that messes can be fixed.

Caleb and the Ant Trap
Over the weekend, my husky mix decided that it would be a good idea to eat some ant poison. I had no idea that a dog would eat ant bait, but apparently they will and actually like it. The vet told me that the fine makers of ant poison make it taste sweet, or sometimes they make it taste like peanut butter. Well, my little Caleb thought he had something. And I panicked.

I chased him around the yard trying to get it from him. I finally got him inside the house. I remembered my friend who works for a vet said to give them a bunch of bread to eat. I did that and called the vet. I was shaking all over. I couldn't think. And Caleb seemed no worse for the wear.

To my relief, the vet said that most of the ant bait traps have very little poison—at least not enough to kill a dog. Caleb weighs about 60 pounds so it would take a lot to kill him. She said the most it would do would be to make him a little sick.

Well, his belly full of bread seemed to alleviate any nausea. And he's fine. You'd never know he decided that eating ant poison would be a good idea. I, on the other hand, am still quite nauseated.

Rabbit Feathers
After Caleb's little episode, I had to go to a birthday party for my little nephew. He's four now. A little girl at the party came up to me with her little hands filled with feathers and said, "Look. I found some rabbit feathers." I said, "You found rabbit feathers?" My brother started laughing at her, and she got embarrassed and walked away. Poor little thing. And with a big find like rabbit feathers.

No Pigging Out
By the way, at the party I ate berries, a little potato salad, and half of a hamburger—no bun. The hamburger was too greasy to enjoy. Life is better if you don't think about where you're going to get your next meal 24/7.

It's a beautiful morning in Morgantown. I love getting up early in the summer—before it gets too hot. That's the best time of day. And this morning is one of those kinds of mornings that everything feels perfect—a good morning to garden.

The Belly Fat Cure continues to work for me. I think my middle is getting smaller—at least it feels like it is. I take that back. I know it is. I'm beginning to feel more energetic, too. I wish I had known that sugar was the key. I guess I always did know, but was in denial. If I gave up sugar, I'd have to give up pie. Well, as it turns out, that wasn't so bad. While I still think of pie for time to time, I know I can go without it.

I wish I could get myself into exercising again—even if I could keep up the walking. I have no idea why I can't get moving. I know I need to, but I have a block about it.

I'm going to make potato salad for my little nephews birthday party tomorrow. Little does everyone know, I'm using olive oil mayonnaise. I used that the last time I made potato salad for a family get together, and no one knew the difference. (Evil laughter.) My little nephew will be four—such a cute age.

Yesterday when I was talking about the Mod Squad, it reminded me that had a huge stack of Mod Squadbubble gum cards when I was a kid. I have no idea what happened to them. I suppose they'd be worth something to a collector—unfortunately I didn't think that far ahead when I was 10. My only thoughts were that I was part of the team—solving crimes and arresting criminals.

I was reading Brandi's blog: A Life Change—My Journey to Happiness and she was talking about always putting things off until tomorrow. And I got to thinking.

Everyday I say: Tomorrow I will. . . do whatever. In fact, "There's always tomorrow," has become my motto. I realize I need a new way of thinking. And i came up with an idea. Remember the movie Groundhog Day? When Bill Murray is trying to get out of Punxsutawney? And he's talking on the phone to some operator and he says, "Well what if there is no tomorrow? There wasn't one today." How's that for a new way of thinking?

The procedure has reportedly been used by US celebrities to quickly slim for events as no recovery time is needed and there are no scars. Doctors claim that patients can drop two dress sizes in just two weeks, without having to exercise or diet. The Zerona treatment, which is painless, costs £1,000 for six 40-minute sessions. US safety regulator the FDA found the average patient lost 3.64 inches from the waist, hips, and thighs. Some lost 9 inches. But the laser doesn't work on obese people, as it can't cut through the layers of fat. Tatiana Karelina, who runs the Laser Lounge in Kensington, West London, said: 'It's the invention every woman has been waiting for.'




Source: Telegraph.uk

I have no idea what to post today, so I'm updating an old post from a couple of years ago. I was tagged to write 8 things about things about myself. So here it is.

8 Things about Me
1. I was born at home. Not too peculiar, but considering it was in southern West Virginia in the '50s, it's a bit of a tale. My mother did not go to a doctor throughout her entire pregnancy with me. In spite of that, I was born as a healthy nine-pound baby. A midwife named Garnett Farley delivered me. I was born in my parents’ bed. After I was born, my father took me to the “company store” and weighed me on the meat scale. How’s that for a beginning in life? Hmmm. Maybe it was indication of how I would spend my life. On a scale. And in the vicinity of food.

2. You know how people can do that “Live Long and Prosper” thing with their fingers? Well, I can do that with my toes. Now there’s a skill that will come in handy in the future.

3. I did not start college until I was 27 years old. And then I paid my own way through school. It was so exciting buying my books and getting off to school. There is no way I could go back to school now. I’ve tried, but it’s just too much. My hat is off to anyone who could.

4. I’m completely creeped out by root cellars. Those dirt walls and the roots sticking out—can you tell I grew up in the country? Anyway, one of my worst nightmares is being locked in one.

5. I’ve traveled to more than 25 U.S. states, including Vermont, Delaware, New York, New Hampshire, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Tennessee, Virginia, Kentucky, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Wyoming, Colorado, California, Utah, Missouri, Nevada, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. I can’t remember if there were any others or not. Most of my travels have been for work, but some for pleasure. I also have been to Canada and Mexico. Woo hoo.

6. I was bitten by a six-foot black snake when I was 18 months old. And I can remember it as if it had happened yesterday. It happened in my grandparents’ front yard. I saw the snake, and thought it was a rope. I wondered about it a little bit, and then I went up and kicked it. The snake bit me on my right knee. I started screaming. My grandfather, who had been in the tub, came running out of his house wrapped in a towel. My mother came screaming from some other direction—armed with a hoe. The snake didn’t live another five minutes. Don’t mess with a child when its mother is nearby. Now, I kind of feel sorry for the snake. But, needless to say, the experience left me scared to death of snakes. One time, I completely froze in my tracks, I couldn’t move, because one of those little green garden snakes slithered across my path.

7. I prefer Diet Coke to Diet Pepsi any day of the week. I don’t think I have to say anything more than that.

8. I have had trouble sleeping ever since I was born. My mother told me that when I was baby, the only way I could go to sleep was to put my head under her arm. Now, I can’t sleep if I’m even slightly stimulated. But I love to dream. I have tried to remember my dreams over the years. I think that dreaming helps me make sense of my life. The book, Our Dreaming Mind, by Robert Van de Castle is one of my favorites.

And that’s it for my list. Nothing great. I hope you all enjoyed learning a little more about me.

dreams and dreaming, weight loss, body fat

Many individuals who diet, wonder what prevents them from succeeding toward their long-term goal of losing weight. Appesat helps these individuals to overcome one of the principal hurdles that cause these disappointments: simply having a big appetite. Most individuals who go astray from their diet do so because they are undisciplined or not committed enough to their long-term goals; they go astray because their appetite gets the best of them and because the diet foods they're eating are simply not enough to satisfy that appetite. Appesat is designed to attack this problem at its root.

When we eat, our stomachs eventually send a signal to the brain that indicates that a satisfactory amount of food has been consumed. As anyone knows, this signal is sent at different times between one individual and the next. Some people who struggle with weight simply have a big appetite. Appesat is a natural fiber product which is consumed before eating. It functions to send the brain a message that the stomach is full thus turning the appetite from something which makes weight loss nearly impossible into something wholly manageable. Part of the design of this supplement is in how it's taken.



Most dietary supplements either speed up the efficiency of one's metabolism or prevent the absorption of one fattening element of food or another. Some of them may be inappropriate for some individuals due to this suppression of absorption or because they influence blood glucose levels which is of particular concern to those with diabetes or hypoglycemia. Appesat simply tells the brain, by way of the stomach, that no more food is needed. If one's lament is that they wish they didn't have to eat so much to be full, this product is likely the type of supplement for which they've been looking.
Clinical studies place the success rate of those individuals who used Appesat in addition to dieting at more than 60 percent above those individuals who tried dieting alone. The diets used in these studies were calorie-control diets with a duration period of 12 weeks in total. This much higher rate of success, of course, likely stems from the fact that those using the supplement simply didn’t feel the desire to eat as much food as those who dieted without the assistance of a supplement of any kind. There is an additional, long-term benefit that some users may realize from this supplement.



Because Appesat gives one the sensation of feeling full sooner, one may learn to get into the habit of eating smaller portions and of limiting snacks. Many obesity problems stem from the fact that people in modern society tend to eat mega-portions at every sitting and then follow that up by eating snacks between meals. Most often, these snacks are high-calorie, high-fat nightmares for those attempting to lose weight. Appesat may prove an effective way to break these habits once and for all and to get people into the habit of eating less and eating healthier.

The Mayo Clinic Diet is a program that helps you make simple, healthy, pleasurable changes that result in a weight you can maintain for the rest of your life. The Mayo Clinic Diet is a habit-based approach. With The Mayo Clinic Diet, you work to reshape your lifestyle by breaking unhealthy old habits that sabotage your weight and adopting healthy new habits that will lead you down a path toward better health.
The Mayo Clinic Diet has two phases:
Phase 1: This two-week phase is designed to help you begin seeing results right away, with weight loss of 6 to 10 pounds (2.7 to 4.5 kg). Unlike fad diets that promise rapid weight loss, The Mayo Clinic Diet approach is safe and healthy while building momentum and enthusiasm. It's based on changing habits for a lifetime so that the weight you lose doesn't come back, as it probably has in the past on fad diets.
Phase 2: Live It! This second phase builds on Lose It! and is designed to help you continue to lose weight at a rate of 1 to 2 pounds (0.5 to 1 kg) a week until you reach your weight goal. This phase also helps you maintain your weight goal permanently by continuing and tweaking lifelong healthy habits.



Read more on: MayoClinic.com

The Pokéwalker comes as the latest attempt to encourage off-the-couch activity while still being engaged in a gaming experience, which parents of aspiring couch potatoes will appreciate. The Pokéwalker counts the number of steps you take in the real world as you walk with it, using these to earn vital experience points while strengthening the bond between you and your Pokémon. The more steps you take in the real world, the more Watts are gained. Watts are used within the Pokéwalker to encounter and catch wild Pokémon using the Poké Radar or to search for hidden items using the Dowsing Machine, which can then be transferred into Pokémon HeartGold Version and Pokémon SoulSilver Version. The next evolution is a game that comes with some bathroom scales, you cannot access level two until you lose 10 pounds.

Previous research has shown that dishes full of protein cut levels of the hormone ghrelin, which stimulates hunger pangs. Although carbohydrate-rich foods such as pasta, bread, rice and sweet snacks, reduce ghrelin levels at first, the hormone then 'spikes' and rises to an even higher level than before the food was consumed. However, researchers at Aberdeen University's Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health found introducing a moderate amount of carbs into a high-protein meal did not reduce its weight-loss effects. Their study also proved dieters need not eat excessive amounts of protein because there is a point past which it offers no additional benefit as an appetite suppressant. Based on these findings, M&S has created its Simply Fuller Longer range of 40 dinners, lunches, sandwiches and salads. Dishes include chargrilled chicken and vegetable noodles with savoury miso dressing and peppered salmon, and king prawn and cous cous salad. Most of the meals in the range contain an average of 10g of protein per 100g compared to 9.5g in an average ready meal. They are made up of about 10g of carbohydrates per 100g, compared to a slightly lower 8.6g for a normal ready meal. Claire Hughes, a nutritionist for Marks & Spencer, said: 'Losing weight should be simple as basically you need to eat fewer calories than you use,' she said. 'But as we all know, it's not that easy in practice.



Source: Daily Mail

Hello, my name is Kathy, and I am a foodaholic. I love to eat. There are so many foods that I love the taste of--chocolate, mashed potatoes and gravy, hamburgers, fried chicken, and the list goes on. I make special trips to the store because I'm craving something. I eat out all of the time because restaurant food is delicious.

I eat for no other reason than there's nothing better to do. I eat ice cream out of the carton. I eat chips out of the bag. I eat alone or with company. I eat like I will never be fed again.

I eat when I'm happy. I eat when I'm sad. I make up reasons to eat. I make up reasons that I deserve this cake, cookie, ice cream, whatever. I get mad because I can't eat whatever I want because I'll gain weight. I believe it isn't fair. Other people get to eat massive amounts of food and don't gain a pound--or at least in my world they don't. If they did, I wouldn't be able to justify my anger.

I quit smoking. Why can't I quit overeating?
Seven years ago I quit smoking. That's right. I used to smoke. I came from an era when everyone smoked. Even Rob and Laura Petrie smoked. (They slept in separate beds so I guess they needed some way to relieve the tension.) Anyway, today I got to thinking. Why was I able to quit smoking? I used patches to quit. So I had a crutch. And that made it easier.

So how can I apply my ability to quit smoking to controlling my food addictions? What was it inside me that gave me the strength to do it? I don't think they make ice cream patches--do they? So what I'm doing is looking for the person inside me who can stop. The person who can make things happen. The person who wants it bad enough.

Stay turned.

P.S. I ran across The Joy Project today. Interesting stuff.

The Phase 3 clinical program evaluated Qnexa in more than 4,500 patients in the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The average baseline weight in one trial was 223 pounds and another trial had an average baseline weight of 256 pounds. All patients were asked to follow a diet representing a 500-calorie/day deficit and advised to implement a simple lifestyle modification program. "The weight loss of up to 37 pounds combined with significant improvements in weight-related medical conditions, such as hypertension and diabetes, demonstrates the importance of treating obesity, which has become a major epidemic in the United States," Leland F. Wilson, chief executive officer for Vivus, said in a statement. Across both 56-week studies, the most commonly reported side effects were dry mouth, tingling and constipation, the application said.



Source: UPI

The Couch Potato Diet, a handy guide for anyone who wants to lose weight but still eat fun foods like pizza and cookies. The three basic tenants he preaches: add fiber, reduce fat, and reduce sugar. Diets don’t work, Ladas notes, if the changes aren’t something you can live with every day. “You’ll go back to old ways unless you take smaller steps, start to exercise and create a diet that eliminates excess calories.”  “I lost over 50 pounds five years ago when I started the plan,” he says. “I knew it was different. It worked within my lifestyle,” and similarly, he thought it would resonate with “busy middle-aged folks, people who have trouble with the fact that their metabolism has slowed down.”   By substituting healthful foods for more healthful choices, he’s able to create recipes for nachos, pizza and even homemade ice cream. Interestingly enough, the diet book that’s patterned after the couch-potato lifestyle still advocates exercise. “Exercise is a tough sell with couch potatoes,”he notes. “It’s their worst nightmare, but the benefits of exercise are too great to ignore.



Read more on: Projo.com

Capsiplex's makers say the capsule, which is made from hot peppers and capsicum and is used by Hollywood stars Jennifer Lopez, Brad Pitt and Britney Spears, can eat up as many calories as 80 minutes of walking or a 25-minute jog. Trials at the University of Oklahoma showed adults taking Capsiplex burned off 278 more calories before, during and after a bout of exercise than those on placebos. A spokesman for Capsiplex said: 'For decades, scientists have known about the weight-loss potential of red-hot peppers. The problem has been the ability to consume such a highly concentrated amount, but we have overcome this by putting a protective coating on the ingredients which stops any gastric irritation.



Source: DailyMail

Tooley has developed a multi-faceted 27-week weight loss protocol that combines the power of the sub-conscious mind with the appetite-limiting features of a gastric band. Tooley's unique program provides a lower risk, lower-cost option for those considering lap band surgery, or for whom diets do not work. The "SLIMR™ gastric band," is making its debut in the United States at the Tooley Weight Wellness Clinic in Torrance, California. "The sensation of a smaller stomach suggested through hypnosis offers results similar to a physical gastric band inserted by laparoscopic surgery, commonly called a lap band. The mind is very powerful, and what you think becomes real for you," says Duncan Tooley, CHt, Certified Medical Hypnotist and developer of the program.

Read more on: The Medical News

"This is the first evidence that copy number variants have been linked to a metabolic condition such as obesity," said Dr Matt Hurles from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, one of the leaders of the study. Findings show for the first time that the condition can be a genetic one, rather than the result of over feeding. Dr Sadaf Farooqi from Cambridge University added: "This study shows that severe obesity is a serious medical issue that deserves scientific investigation. "It adds to the growing weight of evidence that a wide range of genetic variants can produce a strong drive to eat.



Read more: Telegraph.uk