Money as A Weight Loss Motivator

by Dave on August 8, 2010

There is a new reality show called Money Hungry on VH1 that is part Freaks and Part Biggest Loser. You have people who have put in 10,000 of their own money. The person at the end who loses the most weight gets 100,000. These are not rich people, and the thought is that money will motivate them to lose weight.

With this in mind I busted out my calculator and some old bank statements. What I found was when my family or just my wife and I eat out, we end up spending about 10 bucks a person. Some times more, and some times less.

Then I looked at a meal I had. It had a salad ($1.50), a Chicken Breast ($2.00 purchased in bulk), some frozen veggies ($2.50) and a glass of milk ($.80). That means my meal cost $7 (rounded up). For every meal I eat at home I save $3. If I eat three meals a day 356 days a year I would save $3204 just by eating at home.

Now you might say, “I don’t have time to cook.” In their book 90 Day Fitness Challenge, Phil and Amy Parham talk about cooking on Sundays for the whole week. Previously I mentioned that if you go out to eat you might:

Wait to be seated

Wait to have your order taken

Wait for the kids to pick something from the menu

Wait for them to cook it

Wait for them to give the check

Wait for them to pick up the check

Wait for them to bring back the receipt.

Face it. You’re not really saving any time going out to eat. What you are getting to do is sit down. If you cook you are up and active (burning more calories). When it comes to weight loss, if you take a realistic look at the time and money saved, you can save both time and money by cooking at home.

TV Statistics

TV FACTS Nearly a quarter of adults say they have no physical activity at all in their leisure time and the average teenager spends close to six hours a day in front of a screen of some sort—close to an hour each online and playing video games and another four hours watching TV. The average child spends twenty-eight hours a week in front of the TV and the average adult about thirty-one hours a week doing the same. This amounts to more than two months of continuous TV viewing every year. From the book Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat?

Why Are You Exercising?

One of my favorite sayings Chomsky from Jillian Michaels who says that without a WHY, all exercise is torture. When we know the why, we can get through the HOW. Another great tidbit from the book Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat is where he answers the “WHY” of exercising.

With my ideal body I will be able to: Walk to the grocery store without losing my breath Fit in an airplane seat without a seat belt extender Feel pretty/handsome when I wake up Walk around the block with my grandchildren Look at pictures of myself without getting embarrassed Walk up the stairs without becoming winded Stop having pain in my knees Stop taking blood pressure medicine that is weight related Wear a bathing suit without feeling self-conscious Tuck my shirt into my pants and wear a pretty belt without my fat tummy hanging out! Hike Diamond Head without getting winded Spend a ridiculous amount of money on a Burberry outfit (not just the shoes and handbags) Stop seeing my closet and mirrors as the enemy

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While the tempo of this song is a bit slower than I like, I could see using this as a great warm up song, to get your head on straight. It’s all about seizing the moment, making the most of every opportunity. We need to lose our old ways of living and replace them with healthier lifestyles. Every day we have an opportunity to move in the right direction, some days we choose success, and some days we fall back into old habits. This song get me mentally warmed up to take on the day.

Lose

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Foods to Help You Lose Weight

by Dave on August 2, 2010

In a recent article by Melanie Haiken, Senior Editor at caring.com 
she listed some foods to help you lose weight.

1. Oats
Oats are a whole grain, and they’re high on what nutritionists call the “satiety index,” meaning oats have tremendous power to make you feel full. Not only that, they’re also high in soluble fiber, so they cut cholesterol and blood fat. Oats digest slowly, so they don’t raise your blood sugar, and they keep you feeling filled up well into the late morning. Old-fashioned steel-cut and rolled oats, with up to 5 grams of fiber per serving, are best, but even instant oatmeal has 3 to 4 grams of fiber per serving.

2. Eggs
Nutritionists have been trying for some years to restore the reputation of the lowly egg. No longer thought to be a cholesterol-booster (eggs contain a different type of cholesterol than that in humans), eggs are a concentrated form of animal protein without the added fat that comes with meat. Dietary studies have repeatedly found that when people eat an egg every morning in addition to (or instead of) toast or cereal, they lose twice as much weight as those who eat a breakfast that’s dominated by carbs. Yes I know that oats are a carb.

3. Skim Milk
Studies in reputable publications such as the Journal of Obesity show that the combination of calcium, vitamin D, and low-fat protein in skim milk and nonfat yogurt trigger weight loss and help build and maintain lean muscle. This may take some time to get used to. I switched from 2% to 1% percent before going to skim milk.

4. Apples
To keep the pounds at bay, eat an apple — or two — a day. Numerous studies have found that eating an apple a half hour to an hour before a meal has the result of cutting the calories of the meal. Why? The fiber in the apple makes you feel full, so you eat less. Recent research suggests eating apples has other benefits, too; the antioxidants in apples appear to prevent metabolic syndrome, the combination of high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and prediabetes that tends to accompany thickening around the waist. For me I have a knife in my lunchbox which makes eating them a bit easier.

5. Red Meat
Not exactly what you think of as a diet food, right? But research in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition compared diet results for women who ate red meat and those who didn’t, and the meat-eaters lost more weight. Experts think the dense protein in lean red meat helps you maintain muscle mass — but of course this assumes you’re exercising to build that muscle. With this in mind, eating burgers for the protein and sitting home on the couch will not work.
6. Cinnamon
This simple spice appears to have the power to help your body metabolize sugar, according to surprising data that came out of a USDA study involving diabetics. Eating as little as 1/4 to 2 teaspoons of cinnamon a day was found to reduce blood sugar levels and cut cholesterol from 10 to 25 percent. So add cinnamon to smoothies, sprinkle it on your cereal, or flavor your coffee with it — particularly if you take your coffee with cream and sugar. The cinnamon will boost the health benefits of the coffee while helping your body rid itself of the added sugars.

7. Almonds and almond butter
Another counterintuitive choice; aren’t nuts and nut butters supposed to be incredibly fattening? Well, almonds are calorie-dense, but they also pack a huge nutritional punch — and they’re particularly effective in counteracting cholesterol and triglycerides. One study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that eating almonds was as effective as taking a statin. Spreading almond butter on your morning toast gives you a nice protein boost while preventing the carbs in the toast from spiking your blood sugar. The key to this is portion control. I know when I try to eat nuts, I go nuts and eat the whole container. Tread with caution.

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