Getting the Weight Off

If you are starting a serious weight loss program, your family doctor can be your best ally. He or she can advise you on what others are doing to lose weight and what plans, be it eating or exercise, are safe for you to try at your present weight and as you progress. You may have medical conditions or take medication for health issues that need to be closely monitored. Play it safe and consult with your medical provider before undertaking a weight loss plan.
Think positive

That’s right, if you want to lose the weight and keep it off, then you must retrain yourself to thinking positively. Imagine how you want to look and how your life will change for the better once you start losing the weight. If you can visualize the positive impact your weight loss will have, then you will develop a positive view of the work that is ahead of you to achieve that success.

Consider your current state

Take a good look at yourself and determine what it’s going to take to make you look and feel better. Where you are now will determine where you plan to be in a month, six months or a year from now. If you are losing weight to improve your health, then you will want to lose the recommended amount ofexcess body weight that your doctor advises. If you want to fit into a favorite pair of jeans again, then you can decide what weight you need to be to fit into them again. It’s not realistic to set a goal of losing more than 20 pounds in a month.

Consider how your life will change

Weight loss is a major life-changing event. You may want to consider how your life will change as a result of getting the excess weight off. Will you need to purchase new clothes? Will you want to join a support group to deal with any long-term emotional issues to help you keep the weight off? How will the weight loss change your relationships with significant others? These are all things that you may want to address ahead of time to prepare you for your weight loss journey so you don’t have any surprises to deal with.

Set small goals

Do you have a large amount of weight to lose? If you do, then it can be overwhelming to think about it. The best course of action is to break down the weight loss into smaller more manageable goals. Start with losing a pound a week, then five pounds in a month and so on. It’s easy to reach each small goal and you will soon feel confident about your weight loss and stay on that path to wellness.

It’s not easy to lose weight but it is a worthy goal. Maintaining a healthy weight eliminates a lot of health problems and makes you feel better.

Are all Carbs Equal?

We are getting low carbs trust down our throats right now – literally. Everywhere we look these fads are being thrown at us. Then there will be a major health scare and everyone will back off for a bit, only for someone else to pick up the gauntlet.

So let’s put the record straight. You can not cut out a major food group to such ridiculous amounts! There should be no such thing as a no/low carb diet.

In principle, the theory works. You lose weight (whether you do it healthily and keep it off is not for me to say). Eating good quality proteins definitely keeps the hunger at bay. However, if you are a normal individual cravings will start to kick in for those forbidden carbs and the whole thing goes down the pan.

So why don’t we change the concept slightly? Instead of concentrating on low carbs why don’t we start thinking about GOOD carbs? Because of course all fruit and veg are carbohydrates and everyone knows you have to eat plenty of this group for vitamins and minerals, right?

So consider changing tact. Miss off all the heavy, sugar laden carbohydrates like bread, pasta, potatoes etc and pile on the veg! Don’t stint, don’t worry about the carbs – they are good for you! Have a salad on the side tossed in a light dressing and three to four portions of non starchy veg with your chicken or fish. Have an apple to satisfy your sweet tooth. Fruit contain fructose, which has a different make up to other sugars and glucoses. When glucose hits your body the levels in your blood rise rapidly. The body has to deal with this surge by releasing insulin to clear the blood and direct this energy source to right place – that not required for muscle energy is shoved along to the liver to be stored for future use and the remainder gets stored in your fat cells. (ie, you get fat!) You are left with insulin in your blood which causes a huge drop in blood sugar. So how does body react? It wants more sugar to counterbalance! Fructose is metabolised direct in blood stream, does not cause a surge of insulin and hence the blood sugar remains stable. In other words, you won’t get an addictive craving for more, like you do with that pack of biccies! It is difficult to overeat on apples, isn’t it? You don’t often fancy eating the whole bag, do you?

Not all carbs are equal, just as not all proteins are equal. For successful weight loss a quality and good level of proteins must be adhered to (and the level necessary is different for each individual) to stop the body starting to burn muscle up for energy. Quality protein maintains muscle mass while decreasing the body fat density. A good carb programme incorporates body fat testing into its regime, wherever possible.

Prehistoric man wasn’t fat. He existed on lots of protein from animals, nuts and seeds, fresh fruits and natural vegetation. Grains, potatoes and rice did not exist and although our world has evolved to grow and produce these ingredients, our bodies have evolved at a much slower rate and are not as yet primed to cope with them. So really as we have brought the troubles on ourselves it is up to us to rectify the problems.

Paleo diet foods list, Paleo diet Guidelines

Before there were packaged goods, processed foods, GMOs and an ongoing debate between organic or not, there was dirt, seeds, water and roaming animals. It may be hard to consider now, but the dawn of man produced hunters and gatherers and humans had to get their own food – not by heading to the supermarket.

There were no sprays to kill insects, no chemicals or genes added or modified. No extra-large tomatoes or vibrant yellow bananas. Food was simple. It was either found, picked or hunted. And although there weren’t doctors or research scientists to confirm the benefits of such eating, it seems that when it comes to dietary habits, eating like our ancestors has some merit.

Diets come and diets go, but one in particular seems to have staying power and for good reasons as well. It’s based on eating similar to that of prehistoric man and it’s being touted as one of the best way to eat. It’s called the Paleo diet.

What is the Paleo diet?
The Paleo diet was created by Loren Cordain, a now-famous author, speaker and professor of health and exercise science at Colorado State University, who specializes in disease and diet. The Paleo diet itself reflects food items and methods of eating similar to our Stone Age ancestors – that’s right, this diet is framed around eating like cavemen. Through scientific research and peer-reviewed studies, Cordain has uncovered many health benefits to eating the Stone Age way.

There are seven premise on which the Paleo diet guidelines are based:

High protein
Low carbohydrates and low glycemic index
High fiber
Moderate to high fat intake – monosaturated and polysaturated fats with omega-3s and 6s

High potassium, low sodium
Net dietary alkaline balances dietary acid – some foods produce acid (meat) and others are alkaline (fruits and vegetables). Eating a balance of both alkaline and acid foods can have positive health effects.

High intake of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and plant phytochemicals.