Feeling Good 27 Pounds Lost

I am so so excited that my lifestyle change is yielding good results, namely 27 pounds lost! That means I’m halfway to my goal. Woo hoo! I have been keeping to being more active, but still haven’t gotten into regular strength training and I should. More muscle helps burn more calories plus it’s important to build core strength to maintain posture, bone density, etc. What has been working for me? Here are my five top tips:

1. Drink more water. It helps flush toxins and can help you feel fuller so you don’t overeat.

2. Eat slower. I’ve always been a fast eater and now I am taking smaller bites and being mindful as I chew and swallow.

3. Be more active. I’ve been doing a daily walk in the a.m. and also 45 minutes on the elliptical in the afternoon.

4. Eat healthier. Eating way more fruits and vegetables. It’s been fun mixing them into my traditional recipes for things like pasta or frittatas.

5. Keep track of calories. I use my Fitbit app to track what I’m eating and make sure I’m sticking to my roughly 1200 daily calories.

One other thing that I do is to not deprive myself of a nighttime treat or sweet or carbs as a whole for that matter. I’ve done the whole no carb thing and it just creates a vicious rebound for me. So I am eating carbs, but limiting them. As for the treat, I think that if you’re too restrictive that only makes you resent what you’re doing and because of that, you eventually give up on it. Also, if you learn what is an acceptable treat, namely a small cookie or two, versus what isn’t, like an entire box, it will create a mindset that you can maintain for the future.

weight loss

January 10, 2020February 17, 2021

#FitnessFriday – Trying Out New Workouts

One of the things I’ve been doing in my new retired life, besides writing, is trying out new fitness regimens so I can maintain the same activity level I used to have when I was working. When I was working, I used to walk to and from Penn Station to my office and I’d also take a short walk around the office to drop off files and correspondence every hour or so. That added up to a lot of steps and now I don’t have that routine.

This past week I tried out a number of different classes. First up a Boxfit class that was a lot of fun and quite a workout. I liked it because I think it will improve my upper body strength.

Next up was a HIIT class – High-Intensity Interval Training. I also liked it, but there were a lot of routines with squats and my one knee was aching a little so the verdict is out on this one.

Finally, I tried a chair yoga class. My sister is a yogi and I plan on going to her classes as soon as I can, but the chair yoga was an interesting alternative. I got to do stretching which I really need and I was familiar with many of the poses since I’d done yoga on the beach a few years back (also on the list to do this year!).

I’ll keep you posted about what’s happening with these classes and I’d love to hear if you’re taking any fitness classes and what you like!

Original Image by Khusen Rustamov from Pixabay

June 28, 2016

#TransformationTuesday #TuesdayTip Walking Your Way to Better Health

A little while ago I posted a photo of myself and my transformation. 40 pounds lost and working on losing another 30.

Of course, a large part of that is diet and anyone that tells you that you can lose weight without eating healthier has a bridge to sell you (will kids even understand that saying today?).

Exercise, while important for losing weight, is also important for improving your overall health. It’s not good to be sedentary and even the smallest amount of movement will benefit you.

When I took the first step in my transformation, it was literally a first step: walking my way to health. It’s a great form of exercise and little by little I built up to how much I walk. Today I usually do about five miles a day (if not more) over the course of the day. How do I do that? Walking everywhere I can and having my Fitbit buddies challenge me to new goals.

My favorite place to walk is the beach, of course, but anywhere will do and it doesn’t take much. Just 15 minutes a day has been shown to improve your overall health.

If you’d like to get started, here are some links with good articles on the benefits of walking!

The Benefits of Walking by Real Simple
Benefits of Walking by Arthritis.org
Trim Your Waistline, Improve Your Health by Mayo Clinic
This is Your Body on Walking by Prevention Magazine (I personally love this magazine!)
3 New Walking Workouts to Blast Fat by Prevention

Another hint for those who work in an office and sit all day: Buy a cheap kitchen timer and set it to go off every half an hour. Get up, walk around, move, squat, lift, do anything! Be Mobile. You will feel the difference in your body once this becomes a regular habit.

October 10, 2014April 28, 2021

Lower Fat/Carb Mac & Cheese

Who doesn’t love mac and cheese? It’s the kind of comfort food that warms the belly and calms the soul, but oh man, talk about fat and carbs.

There is a way to cut back on both and still have a hardy and rewarding meal with a little less guilt or worry. This is my version of a lower fat/lower carb Mac and cheese. I hope you’ll enjoy it!

Ingredients

4 cups Cauliflower
1/2 pound pasta
3 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped ham
1 chopped onion
3 cups 1% milk
2 cups cheddar cheese
Panko bread crumbs

Directions

Cut the cauliflower into one inch pieces. I was able to find an orange cauliflower at a local farm stand for only $2.00! Yes, I love being frugal also! Steam the cauliflower until just a little tough to a poke with a fork. It will cook some more when you bake it. After steaming, rinse with cold water to stop the cooking while you assemble the rest of the ingredients.

Cook the 1/2 pound of pasta until al dente. I used cavatappi since they hold the sauce and add a little fun to the mix. After draining the water, rinse the pasta with cold water to stop the cooking while you assemble the rest of the ingredients.

Chop the ham and cook in the olive oil to get rid of that extra moisture. Then add the onion and cook until just translucent. Turn down the heat a little and add the flour. Mix it all up until it’s a little on the dry side. If you’re using some kind of cast iron stove to oven pan, this will happen quickly from the pan retaining the heat, so really turn it down until you add the milk.

Add the milk to the ham, onion, and flour mix. Stir until sauce is thick enough to coat the spoon. Add the cheese and stir. Then add the cauliflower and pasta and mix well.

If you haven’t used a stove to oven baking pan/dish, place the mixture in a greased baking dish. Top with the Panko and if you’d like, some additional cheese. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes and then broil for about 2-4 to brown the top! Voila, you are done!

September 30, 2013

#ManCandyMonday Chris Powell

You all know I’ve been on a lifestyle change and it’s done wonders for me. I’m 45 pounds lighter, my cholesterol is down and I’m feeling fantastic! Like many people who have struggled with weight issues throughout their entire lives, I look for inspiration from both inside and out to help keep me focused on creating a healthier life for myself.

So, I’ve been a fan of BIGGEST LOSER, but I’ve just recently found EXTREME WEIGHT LOSS on ABC and let me tell you, I’m impressed. Why? Well, put people in an artificial environment where they can workout 4 or 5 hours a day and I’m pretty sure you’ll get results.

Teach and help people create their own 24/7 365 healthier and happier place. Not so easy.

Enter Chris Powell, today’s Man Candy choice. Besides being a total hottie, his upbeat personality, caring and thoughtfulness shine through and really help inspire the people on the show. It’s amazing to watch people learn to deal with getting healthier at home and during their regular lives. It’s also interesting to see the impact on those around them and how the entire dynamic of their lives changes.

So today’s hottie and totally awesome guy is Chris Powell! Go check out his show if you haven’t seen it. You can also find Chris at chrispowell.com and www.facebook.com/realchrispowell!

Post by Chris Powell.

May 18, 2010July 14, 2023

Tuesday Tip – Weight Loss Progress & Tricks

Both my husband and I used to say, give us good bread, tasty cheese and a yummy bottle of wine and we’d be set for life.

The truth is, we’ve found that only two of the three have been good for us — the dairy and wine part. The carbs, not so good.

In our desire to pursue a healthier lifestyle and control our weight, cholesterol, etc. we’ve been decidedly better at choosing what to eat, namely, lower fat dairy, lean meats, more vegetables and fruits and the occasional glass of red wine (and yes, I know 100% grape juice has the same benefits!)

But when it came to weight loss, the one sure thing that helped and also reduced our belly fat — lowering our carbohydrate intake. We haven’t totally eliminated it, but we are much more conscious of eating high fiber, whole grain, low calorie carbohydrate products.

Of course, each person’s metabolism is different, so it’s a give and take to find out what works best for you. To help you, here are some more tips for you to consider.

Chocolate milk is a wonderful choice. I had hubby substitute it for those expensive high protein supplements and not only is it working, it’s natural! You can read more about the health benefits of milk by clicking here.

Substitute tea and iced tea for coffee or soda. Tea is packed with antioxidants and the polyphenols in tea can help ward off cancer and diabetes while providing a gentle boost of energy. Just make sure not to steep the tea too long to avoid releasing tannins which can cause stomach upset and constipation. Here’s more on the benefits of tea in your diet!

Use honey in your tea or for your other sweetening needs. Honey is one of nature’s wonder products and you can find out more about the health benefits of honey here. I had tried using agave nectar and found it quite sweet. In retrospect, and beyond all the hype about its wonders, I’m starting to hear a lot of negative things about agave nectar. So, if you’ve got diabetes or problems with your tri-glycerides, you may want to avoid it.

In my case, I had reached a plateau where I was stuck at a certain weight. No matter what I did eating wise, I could not get that scale to budge which I have to do for health reasons and not for vanity’s sake. The solution for me — increasing my weight training by adding more weight and increasing the work during my aerobic workout by likewise adding resistance. Both helped me bust through a plateau! I’ve lost 13 pounds and am looking to keep on losing until I am a recommended weight for my height.

You can read some other tricks for busting through a plateau by clicking on this link!

I hope you found this Tuesday Tip helpful! I’ll keep you posted on my progress and if you’ve got any suggestions of your own about losing weight and getting healthier, please share them in the comments section. And as always, check with your doctor about what you can and can’t do in terms of diet and exercise.

February 26, 2008May 9, 2017

The 100 Calorie Crave

One of the things I’ve found during my last two weight loss campaigns is that it was easier to lose weight if I ate more times during the day, but watched what I was eating.

Why is that? Well, skipping meals may slow your metabolism as will crash diets (anything less than 1500 calories per day). Your body will sense that you aren’t providing it with enough fuel and slow down to retain the stored energy it has (in other words — the fat you want to lose).

The other problem with skipping meals and eating less is that when you do deplete the energy you’ve taken in, you will crash and experience major hunger. That may lead to poor food choices.

What’s the answer and this Tuesday’s Tip? Those ubiquitous 100 calorie packs that are now available everywhere. The problem is finding the ones that are actually satisfying since there’s nothing worse than opening one of those bags and finding that there’s not enough there to satisfy a craving.

Which ones have I tried and found to be fairly good? Here’s a list of some of the better ones I’ve tried:

Is there anything bad about the 100 calorie packs? Price for starters. You’re going to pay more for the convenience. Also, as you can tell from my list, the snacks on my list aren’t all that nutritious — they are for satisfying your sweet tooth.

That also means they are probably high in carbs and may only provide a temporary sugar rush.

The good part about them, besides the taste, is the portion control. You know exactly how many calories you’re taking in without having to count or measure.

What other 100 calorie (or less) things can you eat that are probably better for you? Well here’s some of the things I also munch down on:

Cabot’s Reduced Fat Cheddars (which also come in pre-packaged slices)
Polly-O Skim Mozzarella and String Cheese
Apple
Orange
Low Fat/Fat Free Sugar Free Yogurt
Strawberries (10 large)
Blueberries (1 cup)
Hard-boiled Egg
Jello Sugar-Free (one serving is only 10 calories!)

Not sure of the calories? Click here to use an easy Food Analyzer from Kraft. com.

Hope this Tuesday tip was helpful!