“Waiting for the end to come. Wishing I had strength to stand. This is not what I had planned. It’s out of my control.” ~Linkin Park
When I was a young girl my mother was always dieting. I grew up watching her go through the latest fads in diets: The low carb (or, eat all the bacon and eggs you want) diet, the grapefruit diet, the pineapple diet, the “diet pill” (amphetamine) non-diet and everything in between. My mother was not very overweight at all. In fact, she was what I would call “normal” for her time. But no matter how “normal” in weight they are, women diet. That is what we do. Weight loss trumps all.
Being surrounded by dieting for so long (and being a serial dieter myself with my own body image issues), I learned all about what to eat – and what not to eat – to lose weight. To put it simply, in the world of dieting all the foods that taste fabulous are bad you, and all the foods that do not tickle your taste buds are good for you. Don’t eat bread, don’t eat fat, don’t eat sugar, don’t eat fruit, don’t snack, don’t eat solid foods..we are surrounded by “dont’s.” So, why, then are we still fat?
Because there are no “do”s.
Continue reading ‘Why Diets Don’t Work: Goodbye to Atkins, 4 Hour Body and More’
“Wind me up and watch me go, where she stops nobody knows. A good excuse to be a bad influence on you.” ~Pink
I used to be an avid weight lifter and hated anything cardiovascular. I would run, sure, but despised every minute of it. Sometimes I would ride my bike to school but only out of necessity because I didn’t want to take the bus. For the thrill of it, the power of it, the invincibility of it, I would always lift weights. Nothing beat the feel of cold, hard, heavy steel in my hands.
Now that I’ve gotten older I have switched teams and am a die-hard cardio fiend (in the form of Spinning® and cycling). How and when this traitorous change happened I am not sure. All I know is that I’ve played on both sides equally and aerobic exercise is now my drug, I mean exercise, of choice.
This is the question debated hotly back and forth in the fitness world: “Which type of exercise – cardio or strength training – is best for weight loss?” Trainers and group exercise instructors fight over this at length. Both camps claim that “mine is better than yours,” with trainers leading the weight lifting charge and class instructors flying the cardio flag.
All the while, Pilates and yoga gurus probably stand quietly and Zenly by, with their tight cores and neutral spines, laughing at our inability to come to an agreement.
Continue reading ‘What Type of Exercise Is Best for Weight Loss?’
“Where did you come from, baby? How did you know I needed you? ~You Sexy Thing/Hot Chocolate
Better heart health. Anti-aging properties. Decreased risk of stroke. Better sex. All from one little magic bean.
Admit it. You knew it was coming…
…the day I would write about the benefits of chocolate. Seeing that this is February, with Valentine’s Day right around the corner, it seems that an ode to chocolate is quite fitting.
If I could snort raw cocoa powder, I would. If I could have chocolate syrup delivered via IV, I’d have a drip running in 24/7.
If I could fall into that lovely chocolate river so exquisitely flowing in the original “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” movie, I’d drown a happy woman
Continue reading ‘Benefits of Chocolate – Happiness, More Sex and Heart Health’
“We were told just to sit tight, ’cause somebody will soon arrive. Help is on the way. But it never came.” ~ Help is On the Way*/Rise Against
Talking in the car today on our morning ride to school, the kids and I discuss middle school drama. We talk about material things, cliques and “mean girls.” Then I bring up life’s real woes, like the people in Haiti who still live in tents after the earthquake a year ago, with little fresh water available. Or the Haitian children playing shoeless in the streets with random objects for toys. And how kids in Africa are still starving while watching their parents die of AIDS. We talk…and we think about life.
It’s a sad world out there. And yet…in many industrialized nations we are still struggling with one huge issue: obesity. In the grand scheme of things, obesity doesn’t seem like it should be a huge (pun intended) problem. But it is. It is, indeed.
Continue reading ‘Re-Evaluating Weight Loss’
“I think I’ll find another way, there’s so much more to know. I guess I’ll die another day. It’s not my time to go…” ~Die Another Day/Madonna
It’s weird.
I love my “diet rest day,” though I hadn’t been practicing it for awhile. Almost every day had become a “diet rest day” for me over the past couple of years.
A month or so ago I got myself back on track – mostly – with the goal of losing 15 of the 20 pounds I had regained. This last week I tried something different with my diet, too. I decided to reduce my carbs and focus on eating more veggies and protein.
I am a big carb freak. I believe in carbs. I love carbs. I live for carbs. But since my goal has been to shock my body back into weight loss action, the biggest shock would be to reduce my carbs. So I did.
Continue reading ‘The Diet Rest Day Made My Bile Rise’
“It’s gettin’ it’s gettin’ it’s gettin’ kinda heavy. I’ve got the power.” ~Snap
You find yourself sitting there, a box of cookies in your lap, an empty bag of chips at your feet, a gallon of ice cream half gone. And you wonder, “What happened to my desire to lose weight? What happened to me?”
You might ask yourself where you went wrong, how you cracked, or how you ended up on this eating binge. “Why didn’t I say no?” you question. “Why couldn’t I just walk away? Why wasn’t I stronger?”
The reason, simply and honestly, is that you didn’t want to be strong…because perhaps you no longer believe in your own strength.
Continue reading ‘You’ve Got the Power’
“Turn and face the strain, ch-ch-changes.” ~David Bowie
The single most effective tool in weight loss is unpredictability and change.
What do I mean by that? Not letting your body know what to expect or what’s coming up next. Shocking it on several levels to keep it on its feet and your metabolism fired up.
You hear about “shocking” you body with exercise, but how about shocking your body with your eating habits? If you are like most people (myself included since I start 360 mornings a year with oatmeal), you get used to eating the same foods day in and day out. It’s surprising to realize that you really do eat close to the same number of calories every day, be it a higher number or a lower number. Your body knows this and depends on this information to keep you fat.
If you are focused on eating only 1,200 calories a day your mind will find a way to throw a whole pizza in there just to keep your fat stores happy. Just sayin’.
Continue reading ‘Weight Loss Secret – The Unpredictability Factor’
“Help, I’m alive…” ~Metric
There are times, a day or so after a really hard workout, when I really do feel like saying, “Help, I’m alive!” Because a) I need help to get out of bed or even just sit and b) I feel alive. Sometimes, though, after a killer session with – say – kettlebells, I wish I weren’t alive to feel the muscle soreness. That’s when simply lifting my arms or closing my legs becomes a challenge and my body laughs at me.
That level of muscle soreness (DOMS – or delayed onset muscle soreness) is rare if you’ve been working out for awhile, but when you first start an exercise program or change up your workout it’s a familiar feeling. Good pain, as we are prone to say.
Why is the pain good? Because of one simple thing: You know your muscles have been worked. Who cares about the science behind it or why we feel sore? Who cares if it really means anything? The true value of DOMS is how it makes us feel emotionally: we have done something for us, our bodies, and our minds. This one day, our muscles screaming with every movement, is a day that we have broken free of past patterns, defied the odds, and moved our bodies in a way they aren’t used to.
With every wince we are reminding ourselves that we are strong, determined and alive.
THAT is good pain.
May the DOMS be with you.
Onward and forward.
The new year is here. Did you make weight loss resolutions? Are you on track or have you been slipping? In my fitness column for LA’s the Place I outlined a simple way you can be successful with weight loss – by using one simple tool. Read the article below.
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There is one date that is magical for many people. It is filled with hope and idealistic dreams as new and unmarked as freshly fallen snow. The slate is wiped clean and empty as time starts anew, and anything feels possible. This special date? January 1, home of the New Year’s Resolution.
New Year’s resolutions are the conventional end to the Holiday season. Each year people all over the world party the old year out, with intentions of starting the new year with a bang of positive action. From quitting smoking and saving money to running a marathon, New Year’s Day marks a new beginning. But these new beginnings are often short-lived since four out of five people don’t keep their resolutions.
In fact, 30% don’t even make it to the end of January.
Continue reading ‘Sticking to New Years Weight Loss Resolutions’
What is the best way to be able to confidently look January 1 in the face? Losing weight before the Holidays.
Give yourself an opportunity to celebrate with some good food this season by taking a few pounds off now. Though you should still eat in moderation and keep up with your exercise routine over the Holidays (read more on preventing Holiday weight gain), adopting these simple tips should let you see a much happier New Year.
Continue reading ‘Holiday Weight Loss’
