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Skip The Crash Diets - Tips For Losing Weight The Easy Way
I felt compelled to write about this, because I see a lot of mixed-up, incomplete, or inaccurate information out there on losing weight. Some sites will list food groups that are healthy but don't say how much or how often to eat them. Others spout off common sense things like how exercise is good for you and eating junk food isn't always best. I struggle with having a love for food that surpasses the normal person's enjoyment, but I've learned how to manage this and be of a normal body size.
It took me awhile to learn, and after having gained a tremendous amount of weight during pregnancy and taking it off, I have learned some "shortcuts" that may be helpful for you, too. I'm not an MD, nor do I have a nutritional background, so what is written is from personal experience. And don't forget, talking to one's doctor regularly about how to manage health is a very important aspect when making health changes.
I often see women killing themselves trying to get the weight off and I feel frustrated knowing that these women have been misled by following the plans written in some "how to" books. I have a family member who is insistent that peanut butter is good for you, and I think she's right, it is, but not in the way she uses it. I observed her taking large spoonfuls and slathering it on pieces of apple. It was a tremendous amount of fat and calories she was ingesting but when I talked to her about it, she shut me down. I've found that some people like to convince themselves and others that they are doing everything they can to get to a healthy body size and in doing so, they can continue to eat the way they like.
This blog post isn't for those people. This is for the people who are baffled by watching thin people say things like, "Oh, I just eat whatever I want," and who are killing themselves trying to lose the weight, and as one family friend said, "losing weight is like a full-time job." It doesn't have to be. Here is my experience with losing weight and what I learned. I hope that it can be of some benefit and help clear the confusion so that instead of thinking of weight and exercise all the time, you can focus on the things that really matter in your life.
1) CAN FOOD BE FANTASTIC WHEN LOSING WEIGHT?
Food tastes really, really good, but it is not the main focus of the day. I'm of the lazy variety when it comes to cooking, but I've learned that if I buy high quality food (organic, fresh) and take the time to cook it well, then I've got a gorgeous, delicious dish that I can heartily enjoy. To keep food from being the highlight of my day, I make plans in advance to do something each day that is pleasurable. For me, I get comfort, excitement, peace, and joy from things like: getting a massage, meeting a friend for lunch, having that alone time, reading a book, talking on the phone with a friend, or going to a movie. Everyone has their own idea of pleasure. I just make sure to fit it into my day so that I get my main pleasure from life, not food.
2) HOW MUCH FOOD SHOULD I EAT EACH DAY?
For me, this means three meals a day and the same categories of food for each of these meals. Some people do snacks in between, and I find that two small snacks in between are good at keeping one from binging at the meal times, and a "snack" is equivalent to a piece of fruit or a cup of veggies, nothing exciting. But as mentioned in #1, I keep the rest of my life exciting, or try to, so that I don't focus on food as the stimulation for my life.
3) SO WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE PER MEAL?
I eat an appropriate portion sizes and really look into what that means. I know that protein should look like a stack of cards, but how often am I going to put a stack of cards next to my chicken to see if I have the right amount? I often use measuring cups, a food scale and measuring spoons - except at a restaurant. I find using measuring devices really keep me in check because if I'm stressed out or in a hurry or having strong emotions (happy or angry, etc) I can easily think I'm having an appropriate size/portion, but I'm so distracted that I'm having too much or too little and then wonder why I gained weight or am still hungry later. For me, I have 4 oz of protein in a meal, 6 oz of vegetables, 6 oz fruit, 4 oz grain, and 1 tablespoon of oil.
Variations also work in that when I have a more active lifestyle on a consistent basis, such as when I was in a dance competition and was going to daily dance practice, I ate more food in that I could increase my protein to 6 oz, eat more vegetables, have 6 oz of grain, and have up to 4 Tablespoons of fat a day (equivalent of 2 Tablespoons of fat at lunch and 2 Tablespoons of fat at dinner). Lunch and dinner are about the same type of food, for instance I'll have 4 oz chicken breast/thigh; 6 oz peppers, onions, mushrooms; (additional 6 oz salad of spinach, tomato, cucumber); 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil; and 4 oz rice. For breakfast, I'll eat 8 oz (one cup) of plain, nonfat or low-fat yogurt; 1 oz (dry, then cooked) oatmeal, and a piece of fruit. As far as losing weight more quickly, I can reduce or eliminate the grain (rice, potato, corn) from my diet for about one to three months (with the exception of oatmeal at breakfast). I have learned, unfortunately through experience (and not checking with my doctor at the time), that if I eliminate the grain for longer than that, then permanent health problems can occur.
4) WHAT ABOUT DESSERT?
For me, the typical dessert makes my life go 'round...and 'round and 'round and 'round, with no place to get off. I feel trapped in a quest for more sugary foods and it tends to dominate my life in a way that I have not observed with other people who have a normal relationship with food. For this, I don't eat sugar, but I think that for normal people, this can be an enjoyable part of their healthy diet. Recently, I met a very nice woman who told me she couldn't live without dessert everyday. I looked at her dessert and it was a spoonful of chocolate pudding, a small pastry, and four strawberries. She ate the strawberries, had a lick of the pudding and ate the top of the pastry. It's how you define dessert. I would define it as: a bowl of chocolate pudding, topped with one or two strawberries and a lovely pastry on top - and consume the entire thing! I read somewhere that sugar ages a person, but I'm guessing a tad a day shouldn't hurt. I also read that about 200 calories a day of dessert is appropriate. I've been out of the dessert scene, so I'm not sure what this would mean, but maybe a pudding cup? or a small pastry? or a couple cookies. Sounds pretty good. If you're like me and you tell yourself, "just one more and then no more" and keep going back until you've eaten the whole bag, then having dessert may mean eating a half a yummy papaya or cutting some fat or protein from your earlier meals and having some cheese and fruit. One woman I know who also doesn't eat sugar has a nightly dessert of rice pudding which she makes from sticky rice, coconut milk, cinnamon and dates - yum!
5) HOW DOES EXERCISE WORK?
I've found that I can workout or not workout and the difference is about five pounds. Yes, five pounds is an entire size to me, but continuous exercise, even increased exercise doesn't drop me more than five pounds. However, upon my doctor's strong encouragement, I manage to hit the gym about 3x's a week, 30 min workout, with the reward of a hot tub soak afterwards. I have noticed an increase in energy and positive mood. (I also use the childcare at my gym, in which my son has a great relationship with the childcare providers and gets to play with the other kids whose mom's are regulars. He also loves to play "basketball" with the kiddie equipment and gets a lot of exercise, too, as he is a high-activity boy). My doc recommended exercise to me because I have gastrointestinal problems which can be helped by exercise.
The main activity I think helps people look healthier and thinner is weight lifting. Joyce Vedral has written some great books which address food, weight, and body issues. In the past, I've recommended her books to people, some of whom try it and love it and others who dismiss it right away saying it won't work. I've stopped trying to convince people of things in life, recognizing co-dependency issues on my part, and find it is quite liberating to offer suggestions only when asked. And also, I've learned to open my ears and know that what has worked for me simply can't work for everyone. But back to this author, Dr. Joyce Vedral has written books on weight lifting and I found that I can weigh the same but look very different when I'm regularly lifting weights vs when I'm not. When I'm lifting weights using her program (light weights, many repetitions, not the bulky look), I look very lean, strong, and have a ballerina/swimmer type of body. When I'm not lifting weights, but am the same weight on the scale, I look kind of flabby and a lot heavier. Funny how that works.
6) DO SOME FOODS HAVE SPECIAL WEIGHT LOSS PROPERTIES?
I've read that potato skins (not slathered in oil or butter, of course), and corn can help a body shed fat because fat blobs (or whatever they're called) cling to this food as it passes through the body. In other words, you poop out more fat when you eat potato skins and corn. For this, it can be good to have corn or potato with skin for the 4-6 oz of grain in a meal. I had a trainer once who claimed that if you have a 1/2 cup of cottage cheese mixed with a 1/2 cup of nonfat yogurt before you go to bed, you'll lose weight more quickly. I hate to sound like the authors I've criticized for spouting off weight loss tidbits, but I have heard that dairy can have calming effects (some say addicting) and I'm wondering if the dairy simply calms a person down so that they don't go back into the kitchen for a late, late night snack. Who knows... I've also heard a lot of good things about omega-3, but my doctor doesn't like to promote it for environmental factors. Since I've heard that our food doesn't have the same level of nutrients that it used to, I supplement with vitamins and I take extra iron (doc suggested for me). I'd check all this out with doc because too much iron can cause damage to some organ and some vitamins can negate each other, like I learned that calcium can lessen the effectiveness of iron, so you wouldn't take those two vitamins at the same time. Also when losing weight, I tend to drink water, as it helps the comfort in bowel movements. Some people say water helps you lose weight, others say it makes no difference - I honestly don't know or have an opinion on this, only that sometimes I feel hungry when I'm really thirty and having healthy bowel movements makes a happier me.
7) WHAT ABOUT SUPPORT NETWORKS/GROUPS?
I find that having friends who are on the same track as me regarding health is enormously gratifying and helpful. Not all my friends are like me in thoughts of health, nor should they be. But having a network of friends who listen to each other and talk each other out of making silly, impulsive decisions regarding health is a great support to have. There are so many groups out there to join, in person and/or online that it makes the process of changing habits more bearable and often it becomes rewarding. A woman told me of a book she read (I don't remember the author or title, unfortunately) where it was said that talking with another person does some sort of positive chemical thing in the brain and makes a person happier and more content. And for me, when I'm anxious, I want to eat, so if I call another person and chat on the phone, I feel better and not want to dive into the fridge.
8) WHAT ABOUT BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUES?
Yes, these are hitting the public more and I find it helpful to mediate daily, to write in my journal any negative thoughts and talk them out with understanding friends. I also strive to get enough sleep (with child, this can be a feat!), and to find stress-reducing activities. I also have a worry box in that I write on a piece of paper a worry I have, crumple it up (feels good to do that) and drop it in the box. Then I mark on the calendar what day and time I have set myself to worry and on that day and time, I pull out a slip, smooth it out, and then write about it. Usually it is something that is long past, and never was a worry to begin with. With writing about it, I realize this and can help myself the next time I am concerned about something. If you haven't heard of this one and feel like giving me credit for it, don't. It's not a new idea and everything I learn from managing stress to weight loss is what I've learned from the experts.
Hope that helps! :)
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