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From Instinct to Extinct

May 20, 2010 – 1:23 PM

The great, liberating thing about losing weight and getting healthy is the fact that it is 100% done by you.  The worst thing also happens to be that the problem is created 100% by you.  For most of us, the health and physical shapes of our bodies is one of the only things in our entire life that we have 100%, total control over….pretty hard to make excuses when you look at it that way though!

The goal is take FAT from (seemingly) instinctually “wanting to be there” to “wanting to be EXTINCT.

So you know, excess fat only grows where your brain tells it to. Your brain only wants it to be there because it is confused- this can happen for a lot of reasons. Sometimes we learn bad food habits growing up (the standard “I don’t care if you’re full, finish what’s on your plate!” comes to mind). Sometimes the bad habits are cultural – my grandma (who was from Germany) used to tell us about eating “goose-grease sandwiches”. Yep, goose-grease. As in goose fat smeared on bread. Yummy! While other food patterns are picked up who-knows-where. Either way these bad habits only serve to make the situation worse. Sometimes we don’t even realize we have a habit and that’s the hardest one of all. Anyway, these habits progress with time, sometimes fading out, or trading places and other times just getting worse.  Makes you think about your kids, doesn’t it?)

In order to achieve any goal, you have to set one.  This is one of the easiest things to do and doesn’t require a date of December 31st to begin to take effect! So today I am going to set a goal to try to identify all of my food habits, figure out the good from the bad & try to eliminate the bad ones from my life so my daughters won’t be plagued by them when they grow up. Okay, is that one goal or three?

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Diet Diary

Day 84: Weight Loss Sales People

May 20, 2010 – 9:56 AM

Have you ever noticed that many of the people selling weight loss haven’t actually ever had a weight problem (I am not talking about the testimonials)? What’s worse, they are so confident in “their” solution that they are willing to “guarantee” that everyone will experience the same “fantastic” results.
The weight loss and nutritional industry is not regulated or monitored by the FDA (Government agency: Food and Drug Administration). Drugs and foods are. Interesting that there is not a drug available that claims to “work the same on every person”…in fact there seems to be an increasing list of disclaimers and “possible side effects”, all contingent on health, size, weight, lifestyle, bodily characteristics and make-up, diet, etc.
So who can you really trust?…I mean seriously – Does it look Jillian Michaels has ever been in a position where she needed to use her own “program” – I doubt it!

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Diet Diary

Day 81: Insecurity and Opportunity

May 17, 2010 – 11:22 AM

I wanted to write today about insecurity and opportunity because I think a lot of us go through periods where we beat ourselves up over the way we look, don’t look, walk, talk, work, don’t work . . . you get the idea. Anyway, we’re so focused on these negative thoughts that we can end up blowing right past terrific opportunities as a result…This requires our attention!!!  :)

I really got behind the “body type philosophy” because it is really about making a “better you” – not changing your shape or trying to make you follow something that is not natural; but rather, re-focusing your efforts to uncover the true you that has ALWAYS been there.  This is the “you” that is healthy, confident and can do anything, and I mean that…

I don’t really talk much about the “pre-kids” me.  I actually was one of “those people” – you know the type – size 4 pant suit, totally focused on her job, her clients & what was happening within the company. I was running so hard and so fast up the corporate ladder I couldn’t even hear my biological clock ticking. I was so totally focused on my work that I never really even saw myself having kids, getting married or (perish the thought) settling down. I thought I had it all under control when in fact, I was struggling with so many insecurities & so much chaos in my life that it seemed like food and exercise were really the only things I could control. So I did what most of us do – I channeled all of that stress and insecurity into food. For some people that means gaining 100 pounds in 6 months. For me it meant I struggled through diets 365 days a year. Food was my “out” – I couldn’t control what the market did with my business, but I could control how well I stayed on this or that fad diet. However, one thing that nobody really knew about me was that despite my size 4 pant suit and ambiance of “success”, the reality was that I nearly let the best opportunity of my life (my husband) pass right by, because I was so totally focused on “controlling” my own insecurities.

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Diet Diary

Day 80: Food: Quantitiy vs. Quality

May 12, 2010 – 12:45 PM

I have always believed that in order to lose weight, I HAD to eat less…SOOOO NOT TRUE.

After being on my body type diet, I feel like I am eating more, not less. I decided to tweak my food journal to include the serving sizes instead of just the calories (this isn’t a part of the program, but something I did because I noticed that writing down stuff really makes a huge difference!). Results: Amazing!

On one hand, I look like I am a cow (great – now instead of feeling like I do nothing but dispense milk to my constantly thirsty daughter, I also eat like one). Yesterday, for example, I only ate about 1500 calories – but I ate 8 cups of salad, a crystal light shake (try it: mix ice cubes with some strawberries and crystal light and a dollop of milk to make it a tiny bit creamy), 2 chicken breasts, one apple, a cup of spinach, 8 celery stalks (dipped in salsa) and an entire artichoke, plus 3 cups of sugar free hot chocolate! THAT IS A LOT OF FOOD for one person to eat! The best part is that I could have eaten a lot more if I was hungry because for the Adrenal Body Type, there are over 30 unlimited foods.

So the verdict is: when it comes to quantity vs. quality (for food) – I am definitely into quantity!

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Diet Diary

Day 69: Kale versus Cheesecake?

April 28, 2010 – 12:10 PM

My husband is the type of person who NEVER gains weight, never has to work out (and his muscle tone looks like he lifts weights for an hour each day).  He is also the type who effortlessly takes just one  of the most exquisite chocolates ever concocted from a box of 24 and then leaves the rest in plain sight AND reach to just sit, untouched for six months or more (which probably helps explain his nonexistent weight problems).  Me on the other hand, I get a box of chocolates and I want to first, find out which flavor each is, and then, if I’m really strict with myself, they’ll last until the end of the week (at best)!

I had already moved every tasty treat to our basement deep freeze…far from sight and difficult to get to for those “I want something sweet, and I want it NOW” moments.  And that, coupled with the fact that I have done all of the grocery shopping myself to ensure that only healthy foods are accessible, has proven to be one of the smartest decisions I’ve made… until this morning when I asked my husband to do the grocery shopping. I sent him with a list and a stern plea not to deviate from it…as a result, there is a huge cheesecake in the fridge, a giant bag of Doritos in the pantry, and sitting on the counter are two Dunkin Donuts (chocolate crème filled)…all of which my husband “kindly” bought “for us” (probably the only time when an act of kindness could be so cruel :) .  It has been like a bad remake of Hansel and Gretel!  I have eaten 4 cups of Kale in a shake mixed with some blueberries and bananas and drank 6 cups of sugar free hot chocolate.  Only 6 hours to go. Just for the record … the cheesecake, chips and donuts were NOT on the list.

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Diet Diary

Day 61: Getting Fat and The Common Cold

April 8, 2010 – 5:28 PM

Anyone who has had a cold knows that it is just a matter of time before your body will fight away the infection and get you back to normal. It really is an amazing thing. We have immune systems and seemingly endless defense mechanisms. So why then does the fight of “fat” have to be one seemingly endless battle? This is a war where even complete annhilation of the enemy (via liposuction) does not guarantee victory since the vanquished foe (aka fat cells) can, in just a few years, multiply with such a vengeance as to expand to an even larger territory! With “fat” – the term ‘gone’ actually means nothing at all. The celebration may even last through two birthdays, but in fact, like most of us have learned, ‘gone’ only means that the terrorist cells are preparing for a vengeful comeback! Not to be the pessimist here, but think about it. (honestly)

So the question is: How can our bodies see “fat” as something good? Clearly aesthetics has absolutely nothing to do with it since I have yet to meet one single person who would honestly say that “Fat is sexy” – or even really appealing at all. I mean really, it would be one thing if it stayed there and looked presentable – but fat has absolutely no restraint whatsoever…fat is sloppy, messy, has cottage cheese looking holes and hangs out with a bunch of toxins. Does this sound like something “good” to you? I am not a doctor and haven’t ever studied in the medical field, but I do have a decent amount of common sense, just like the next person. I can only deduce…if your body stores excess fat, it is clearly – confused. Maybe it thinks you need to have a one year supply of food with you at all times. Maybe this all dates back to some prehistoric trait that dictated during the hunter/gatherer eras whoever had the most fat cells would be the most likely to survive and thus reproduce. Although if that were the case, wouldn’t we naturally find fat attractive? And, obviously, that’s not the case… Rambling. Back to the topic at hand…

Several pounds ago I found myself thinking ,“I am overweight and I am stressed out because my kids are screaming and I have a million things to do on my “to do list”… What I need is a pick-me-up…I need some extra energy. I need to calm down. I need to feel better. What do I get? Cravings! – almost like I am being told (by my body, psyche, whatever), that “if I eat a piece of chocolate or that bag of chips, I will start feeling better…I will have more energy…”

Of course, these thoughts would instantly be countered with: “Absolutely not!…not good, no good…can’t have it….okay, maybe just one piece…maybe just one handful….maybe just the chips that are really saturated with seasoning… okay, only the broken chips… alright, I just need to eat the rest of the bag, box, can, etc., so it will be out of my house . Besides, if I don’t I’ll only want to have something else.” (sound familiar?)

(and the battle begins… again)

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Diet Diary

Day 56: Popcorn w/ Extra Butter For Weight Loss

March 24, 2010 – 2:44 PM
I wish I was the Thyroid Body Type instead of the Adrenal Body Type because according to Dr. Berg, the Thyroid type should add extra fats to carbs to help prevent the quick carb-to-fat conversion.
This evening I went to the Theatre…and the popcorn didn’t just call to me, it screamed, ranted, and raved from across the parking lot!  So yeah, I came running and gave in…and now I feel horrible.  I keep looking in the mirror wondering when I am going to see little kernels poking out – little did you know that stuff that looks like cellulite, is really just the pounds and pounds of butter-and-salt laden theater popcorn I just horked down (ugh – I ate way too much).

(Okay, Dr. Berg really doesn’t suggest that you eat loads of butter with your popcorn to lose weight, if you are the Thyroid type – I did stretch this…but he has said that eating popcorn WITH butter is better than popcorn without…if you absolutely must eat popcorn!)

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Diet Diary

Day 41: My jeans almost fit!

February 10, 2010 – 4:22 PM

Wow!  What a difference!  I increased my dose of Liquiboost to 4 pills at night, instead of 3 and I feel amazing.  I am eating low carb vegetables with low sugar content.  I am eating NO Dairy (something I just found out could also be hindering my success) and I am making sure I get a walk in as well as a short work out…every day starting now!  I have about ten days left till my trip and can’t wait!

…I tried on some old jeans that didn’t fit three days ago and I actually zipped them up!  In fact, I was tempted to wear them all day, just as a reminder of my success…if only I could have moved with them on!

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Diet Diary

Day 40: No more pig ears for me

February 9, 2010 – 4:21 PM

I’m done with Atkins.  I was reading about toxins and this diet is too hard on my system.  I know I would probably do well if I could just weather through the full two week induction phase; but that is at the risk of being out of energy, stuffed full of fried pig ears and sausage, and having a pizza face full of zits…not something I am willing to trade for a few pounds that can be lost better ways I’m sure.

Well, I can add this diet to my list of “tried” (and failed).

I have gotten some great information though from this…I am going to really pay attention to high sugar and high carb fruits and vegetables.  Eating high quantities of the wrong “healthy foods” totally explains my struggle with weight loss in the last several weeks.  This is a simple fix!

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Diet Diary

Day 39: More energy with this whole food supplement

February 8, 2010 – 4:19 PM

Liquiboost is helping, or I am benefiting from the placebo effect (whichever – I am happy!).  I guess the theory here is that the food based ingredients liquefy to absorb more efficiently than synthetic based ingredients…so your body actually assimilates all of the nutrients.

Whatever the case, my stomach doesn’t feel bloated anymore and my energy didn’t crash this afternoon (as it has for the last few days).

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