New Years Diet HELP!

[Guest Luturna]

Heya

Since the new year is almost here its a start of a new me so now need the new diet anybody got some tips to help while on hormones? I seem to control my appetite but seems that I'm gaining and not in the right places!

So guys and girls HELP!!!! Please =)

[Guest Robin Winter]

The best way to control your weight is with healthy eating and healthy exercise. "Diets" don't usually work the way people want them to. Avoid fast food and processed snacks and get that heart rate up.

Advice? How about taking up kickboxing? It's excellent exercise...I was involved for a short time when I was in high school, it will DEFINITELY melt those pounds off. Not only that, but it's fun, and it never hurts to know how to defend yourself.

[JJ]

Well since I lost half my body weight this year I can share some tips.

First is to start tracking both nutrition and exercise. There are a lot of great free programs out there to do it - livestrong.com is the one that works best for me but caloriecountabout.com works well too. Keeping track keeps you focused and motivated and is vital in my experience.

Second is that I eat anything I want one day a week and feel no guilt. Not only does that keep the cravings under control and helps me not feel deprived but it keeps my body from going into starvation mode or hitting a set point. And as long as it works out to one day a week it doesn't matter what day so I can accommodate Christmas and New Years and birthday's or special occasions

Which leads to number three. My mantra and the cornerstone of it all is "No Excuses!". None. If I have had my eating day this week I don't eat again. Not if my best friend drops in with a plate of fresh baked cookies or I am so hungry the leaves on the trees start looking good. If you make one excuse it will lead to others and soon you may as well chuck the whole thing. And when you know you won't give in to yourself you don't argue or barter with yourself so much. It's actually easier.

And that applies to the last and most important thing. Exercise. Not going to the gym necessarily but doing something you like. How much you exercise controls how much you lose and where you lose it. Sure you can lose without exercising but it will be maddenly slow with plateaus as your metabolism falls. Exercise will keep it up. I hike cross country in fairly rugged national forest and average of 3 to 3 1/2 hours a day 6 days a week. But I worked up to that by swimming first because I had been bed ridden for 3 years. And again no excuses. My exercise is more extreme than most people need or have time to do I realize but I had a massive amount to lose-lost over 160lbs so far-and my age-64-made it extremely difficult. In fact it was supposed to be impossible But except for the occasional day a very bad knee keeps me bedridden (and I just count those as my 1 day a week off) I go rain or shine, cold or warm. As I said find what you like and are willing to do, make a plan and do it.

That's pretty much it. I don't believe in eating less than 1100-1200 calories a day because you cannot get adequate nutrition at less. I make a soup I like once a week and have it each day for lunch. I vary how I make it. I eat Quaker 90 calorie chewy granola bars (From Sams) about 3 times a day because they taste good and give me energy I need at breakfast, mid-hike and at bedtime with a light yogurt. I also eat a fruit cup or a grapefruit each day. Have never had any blood sugar problems or other problems from aspartame so use a lot of it. I eat a big salad-just tomatoes and onions and lettuce no high cal stuff but garnished with green olives, pepper rings and fresh mushrooms every night before supper. I make my own dressing-sounds horrid but I love it-vinegar, mustard and sweetener to taste. I eat a lot of Lean Gourmet meals (cheap and I'm broke) at night if I am tired or cook a chicken breast-4 oz-that I have trimmed with some vegetable and sauce. But those are things I like and work for me.

I like the way I eat and I am glad to get back to it after an eating day. Find what you like. Oh-I drink Crystal Lite lemonade. All the time. Again find what works for you. There are hundreds of great products out there. Watch your nutrition and you can lose without much pain really.

If I can lose that much at my age anybody can lose. Mostly I really believe it's attitude. Get that down and the rest is much easier. It's the only shortcut and magic pill there is.

Hope this helps some

Johnny

[Guest Robin Winter]

That's some excellent advice Johnny....I should have just waited for you to show up

I especially liked the part about eating whatever you want one day a week...I wouldn't have thought of that...but it makes a great deal of sense.

[JJ]

That eating day is a lot of what makes it work for me I think. I usually cook the family meals-often favorites I can't eat-and I handle that by bagging a serving and putting it up for my eating day if I really crave it.

In 11 months I haven't fallen off the wagon, so to speak, even once. Plus that whole metabolism thing can drive you mad as your body keeps adjusting how efficiently it is processing food. It's why people who have never dieted can eat so much more than those of us who have fought that battle frequently. We just made our bodies really good at getting fat and energy from the least amount of food. One day a week seems to be enough to fool your system and keep it from happening.

Johnny

[Guest Donna Jean]

Well since I lost half my body weight this year I can share some tips.

First is to start tracking both nutrition and exercise. There are a lot of great free programs out there to do it - livestrong.com is the one that works best for me but caloriecountabout.com works well too. Keeping track keeps you focused and motivated and is vital in my experience.

Johnny

Yup...That works well....I use "Calorie Counter.com"....,

This season has hammered my diet...lol

Dee Jay

[Guest Robin Winter]

I've checked out livestrong.com and I think it's a great site. If I ever manage to find some self control that I didn't already use up quitting smoking, I'll be going back there.

[Guest Luturna]

Cheers I think its the fear of putting on my winter weight that I normally loose is more this year that the last so i guess i will just have to go with the flow and follow your great tips =)

Thanks