Being Overweight is not Life Sentence

So… most of the people in your family are large.  Have you ever thought or been told that you were “meant to be” heavy?  Maybe you’ve always been overweight yourself, and you have just believed this to be true.  It is in your genes. Or perhaps your parents insisted you clean your plate, and you still do.

If you think about it and you give into such thinking, you’re essentially admitting defeat. Don’t throw in the towel and give up.

If you felt that you were doomed because of your weight, that is now behind you. You have happier and healthier days to look forward to. Your relationships will improve and your overall attitude will be much better, too. The resources are endless on the web and everywhere you look.

Being overweight is not a life sentence. It can be a new beginning.  Only you can take that first step.

Choose natural, unprocessed foods. A good rule of thumb: If it grows out of the ground or you can pick it off a tree, chances are it’s good for you.   From a can, package or jar it is processed and not as desirable. 

I found this on Shine from Yahoo Healthy Living by Brett Blumenthal - Sheer Balance

Healthy food on a tight budget

To ensure we are comparing apples to apples, so to speak, we are going to focus on complete proteins. The chart below does not include all foods that contain complete proteins, but it provides a good cross-section of popular foods. (All data is taken from Peapod, an online grocery shopping site.)

To really understand what is the best option, you need to factor in the quality of the food AND the cost.  If the food is high in fat it isn’t such a bargain.  For instance, chicken drumsticks, whole eggs, peanut butter and low fat milk look to be the best cost options at $0.50 or less per serving.  However, chicken drumsticks, whole eggs and peanut butter are high in fat.  Further, if a food is low in protein (peanut butter and Tofu), you might not be getting as much ‘protein bang’ for your buck.

The best quality proteins on the list (low fat, high protein foods) are canned tuna, skinless chicken breast and whey protein with milk.  The best protein type in terms of value (lower fat, high protein and lower cost) would be your dairy products, especially egg-whites and low-fat milk.  Within the meat/poultry/fish food category, skinless chicken breast is your best option.  In general, red meats tend to be the worst choice, as they are both higher in fat and higher in cost.

I found this on Shine from Yahoo and found it helpful. 

 Most economical protein
• by Brett Blumenthal -

Sheer Balance10 Comments

As the economy continues to be somewhat unpredictable, you are probably looking for ways to cut back spending in a lot of areas…food being one of them.  If you do your research, it is possible to still eat healthy and not spend a fortune.  It means understanding what things cost per serving, and what nutritional values are provided in each serving.

As a result, we are kicking off a series of articles that takes a look at different foods and compares them serving for serving, as to what provides the best value: quality, healthy food for the best price.  This will help you understand how to potentially maximize your budget around food shopping, while insuring you get the nutrients your body needs and SO deserves.  Our first healthy food on a budget is protein.  We look at the serving size, and the calories, grams of fat, grams of protein and the cost for both a regular and an organic product per serving.

Quick Facts on Protein: First, let’s understand the basics of protein and why you need them in your diet:
• Protein comes from animals and plants and provides us with everything we need to build and maintain our muscles.
• Protein is found in fish, meat, poultry, dairy, eggs and tofu, as well as beans, vegetables and fruit.
• The leaner the protein is, the healthier it is for your diet.
• Complete proteins provide you with ALL the necessary amino acids your body requires.
• Incomplete proteins, however, are not sufficient protein sources by themselves. As a result, you need to eat several incomplete proteins to get all of the amino acids your body needs.
 Look for more tomorrow

I found this on Yahoo Health and thought you would like it.

By Gabrielle Reece
Gabby’s Guide to Health & Fitness
Keep Your Eating in Check
There are days in which my eating gets a little away from me and I go to bed thinking that tomorrow I will be hyper diligent. So, let’s say I go out to dinner and have a bite of this or a bite of that, and then top it off with the house’s “special” dessert. Well, the next day I focus on clean food with maybe even a mindful eye on calorie intake.
I will even try to eat the next two days like this to reinforce my good habits. I notice that by counteracting a fun eating day with a few strict days, I end up killing a few birds at once: I stay in control of my food, and I get to enjoy delicious foods that I like but don’t want as a part of my day-in and day-out menu.
If I do have one of those days, I don’t punish myself because I slipped. Instead, I just create a strategy for how I’m going to stay on top of my goal to eat healthy for my health, body, and weight.
Over time, I’ve realize that I do feel better when I eat foods that serve my health rather than just satisfy my palette or emotional desires. I can convince myself more easily why I choose to eat healthier foods because I have truly felt, and seen, the difference in how each way of eating affects me: my moods, bloating, overeating, feeling stuffed, quality of sleep, energy levels, etc.
Listen, there is no doubt that food can be a lot of fun, but it’s important that you focus on for the most part (shoot for 80% of the time) on choosing food that will fuel your body best. Then, when you do go have some fun, you can truly enjoy it because you know that you’re still in charge. 

Look slimmer
1.  Focus more on the muscles that people see. If you wear sleeveless or tank tops, then you should be doing twice as many moves for your shoulders and arms.. People will assume everything else is toned as well too.

2.  Don’t slouch! Good posture will instantly make you look 10 pounds thinner and 10 times more confident. Pull your stomach in. Keep it up at the gym, too. Standing tall while you’re working out actually makes every move you do more effective.

3.  Stop obsessing about the number on your scale. Muscle is heavier than fat but takes up less space so be tiny, sizewise.

Tips for weight loss 

Shortcuts to your best butt, belly and thighs

Keep the Faith and Lose Weight.  Just don’t give up.  It will never happen if you do.  Don’t forget the hoodia.