This is the posting where I start to reveal the secret to your success. Here’s the really cool thing. It is actually easier than you think. Here’s the hard thing: it requires a little determination, perseverance, and self-motivation. At least I’m honest, which is more than can be said for the people that tell you that a little pill, a magic potion, or a revolutionary new exercise gadget is going to change your life. Nobody changes your life except you. So I call my magic formula Y.O.U.
For me, Y.O.U. stands for “Your Opportunities are Unlimited.” For you, it might be something completely different. See, that’s the idea. You are an individual, and your journey will be different from everyone else’s.
There are, however some similarities in how people approach getting healthier, and specifically, weight loss. There is an organization called the National Weight Control Registry (http://www.nwcr.ws/) that collects data from people who have lost at least 30 pounds, and kept it off for at least a year. The membership is totally voluntary. The information that people submit is solely for the purpose of gathering data and noting similar trends among individuals who have lost weight. Some of the success stories are quite remarkable. Interesting thing is that there aren’t a lot of accounts of bariatric surgery in the success stories. Here are a few statistics gathered by NWCR:
•78% eat breakfast every day.
•75% weigh them self at least once a week.
•62% watch less than 10 hours of TV per week.
•90% exercise, on average, about 1 hour per day.
•98% of Registry participants report that they modified their food intake in some way to lose weight.
Here’s an assignment if you are interested in losing weight. If you feel your weight is just fine, ignore this. But if you think you need to make some changes, simply write down EVERYTHING you eat for a week. Nobody will read it except you. Be totally honest and pay attention to portions that you eat. If you aren't sure of the calorie value, add at least 50 calories, because we usually underestimate our intake. There are several websites (ie.: http://www.myfitnesspal.com) that can give you calorie content, so you can total things up at the end of the day. There are applications you can use on a data phone that will do that, as well. If you are maintaining your weight, you can probably just stay the course (unless you are not happy with that weight). If your weight has been creeping up over the past months, you could probably “cut the fat” out of your food budget.
Don’t get crazy once you make a decision to change your eating habits. It's hard to change habits, so you move slowly, but deliberately. It pays off in the long term, Do little things. Just look for one thing that you can cut out. One of my favorite treats is a Starbuck’s cinnamon chip scone. It’s not that big, at least it doesn’t look that big…But it is 470 calories!! And they are for the most part empty calories. If you are on a 1500 calorie per day eating plan, you have just used a third of your calories before 8 (maybe even 7) AM! Let’s add a tall latte to that, and you’ve got another 80 calories, if it’s non-fat. And voila! You have lots of calories, with little nutritional value. If you want an eye-opener, go to the Starbuck’s nutritional value pdf
http://www.starbucks.com/retail/nutrition/Zone024_SBUX_Food_Nutrition.pdf and look at the calorie counts. It reminds me of looking at the price tag of an impulse buy once I get home and realizing that I’ve just shot my entire clothing budget on one pair of shoes!! I have nothing against Starbuck’s, but we have to take charge of what we put into our bodies.
That’s all for today, because I just realized I’m really hungry from writing, so I’m going to go down to Starbuck’s and… Stay tuned for the next installment! In the meantime, Write it Down.
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