I know you all are watching our favorite show that our favorite protein powders.…Oh yeah baby… The Biggest Loser show has begun and Designer Whey is the chosen protein meal! I love it and it’s good for us too!

Biggest Loser Proteins 10oz and 2GO

This season is so full of emotion, challenges and people over coming difficult past life experiences that have contributed to their weight. For me, I have never experienced being thin. I was a fat baby, a fat child, a fat teen, a fat adult, a fat mom and am a fat wife. Biggest Losers Season 8 sure has had a ton of information. So much information that I had to watch the shows two times to get the info down. I wanted to share some of my notes.

·        You can do it!
·        Realize how ill we are being obese
·        Let go of the past
·        Say you deserve to be happy
·        A lot of pounds are wounds that need healing
·        Must have plans… eating plan, exercise plan and recovery plan
·        A calorie is a unit of energy
·        Read the labels
·        Weigh your food on a scale
·        Keep a food journal…all food and all drink
·        Plan 3 meals and 2 snacks a day
·        Prepare meals ahead of time for the entire week
·        Use Ziploc bags for prepared meals and mark each meal
·        Proportion control every meal
·        3-4 ounces of meat
·        Cook your food by baking, poaching, steaming, grilling on non-stick grill or broil
·        When eating pasta eat ½ cup and fill in the rest with veggies
·        Snacks with protein are a must
·        No Soda
·        Weight loss foundation for any plan…calories in calories out
·        The way we manipulate our diet will determine the most calories out before we even start to exercise
·        To accelerate calories out…exercise
·        Circuit training for a variety
·        Protein refuels muscles, gives fullness feeling, and maintains blood sugar
·        After you workout you must get protein in to keep the body burning calories. Bob suggests 2 scoops of the Designer Whey Biggest Loser Protein Powder with 16 ounces of water
·        The contestants are just like you. They are doing it and you can do it too!
 
Well, friends keep watching… keep drinking (your designer whey that is)

I am on my Whey!
Camille

I love to eat at restaurants. But being a nutrition writer, I know that what typically makes restaurant food taste so good is lots of fat (and bloat-inducing salt). Even that healthy-looking grilled fish is likely topped with a good-sized smear of butter. But who wants to cook every night? We all deserve to dine out once in a while. I’m at a healthy weight even though my family eats out a lot — so here are my tips for dining out without gaining weight.

Share. There’s a dessert at Longhorn that’s delicious — but it consists of two full-sized pieces of chocolate cake surrounded by several scoops of vanilla ice cream. (Oh yes, and whipped cream.) While we rarely order dessert, if we do we always split it among three or even four people. Another way to use this tactic: Order one fewer dishes than there are people at the table and share. For example, if there are four of you at a Chinese restaurant, you can order three (healthy!) dishes so you each get to taste everything without going overboard.

Watch out for watch words. No matter what the cuisine, words like crispy, smothered, fried and golden brown signal lots of fat and should make you head the other way.

Order sides. At one restaurant we frequent, I used to order the salmon — which included a salmon fillet and a salad anda baked potato and rice. I would eat until I was stuffed, and there would still be food left over. Then, one day, a friend said to me, “Why don’t you just order side dishes?” So now I typically order a salad and a baked potato and that’s plenty to fill me up. (When I’m feeling especially virtuous, I get the baked potato dry instead of with sour cream.)

Instead of sides, you could also order two appetizers; many restaurants now offer boiled pot-stickers with a dipping sauce, shrimp skewers, or other healthier apps.

By the way, this tip is perfect for vegetarians who go out to eat with non-veg friends. So many restaurants have a sorry selection of meat-free meals, but you can almost always put together a nice meal out of sides and appetizers.

Box it up. I mentioned this tip in my post Sneaking Health Into Your Day : When you order a meal, ask the server to box up half of it before bringing it to you. That way you’re not tempted by the mounds of food on your overflowing plate even after you feel full. Bring home the other half and you’ll have dinner tomorrow too!

Skip the soda. There are 155 calories in one 12-ounce serving of Coke, and something like 12 teaspoons of sugar. If you’re eating out, why not treat yourself to some wine, which has heart-healthy benefits, plus fewer calories and less sugar than soda? One serving of Sauvignon Blanc has 119 calories .

Just ask. I once went out to a restaurant with a fitness model-slash-personal trainer. Even though it wasn’t on the menu, she asked the server for grilled chicken breast with no added fat, plain steamed broccoli, and a dry baked potato. The chef was happy to oblige. You’ll never know if you can get healthy options unless you ask — and if enough people ask, more restaurants will start to offer them. Try asking for meats cooked without added fats, salads served with dressing on the side, crudité plates with fresh veggies, smaller servings (even if you have to pay full price), and veggies that are steamed instead of fried.

Okay, now you have the tools to get a healthy restaurant meal that won’t wreck your weight-loss efforts. Try them the next time you go out!

Stay healthy,

Linda

In my 12-year career as a health writer, I’ve discovered many ways to fool yourself into eating more healthfully. These trick-yourself principles, all backed by research, can help you eat less and lose weight. Here’s how to psych yourself slim:

Unplug

Forget about Project Runway, and put down that copy of the latest bestseller. Instead, focus on your food. Chewing slowly and paying attention to the feel and taste of your meal helps you feel full faster and eat less. In a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, women who concentrated on the taste of their food ate much less than those who listened to a detective story while eating.

Choose Tall and Skinny

Research conducted by Brian Wansink, Ph.D., author of Mindless Eating, showed that people tend to drink more from short, wide glasses than from tall, thin ones. Apparently, the short glass looks smaller to us — even when it holds the same amount as the tall, thin glass — so we pour more. Prepare your drink in a tall, frosty glass and you’ll probably down less!

Imagine It

Whether it’s your high school reunion or an upcoming cocktail party, pick an event you want to look your best at and keep it in your mind as you make and eat your meals. You’ll eat more healthfully if you’re hoping to look and feel great at an upcoming event.

Go Dark

In another study by Wansink and his colleagues, researchers gave 30 secretaries clear or opaque containers full of Hershey’s Kisses. The secretaries gobbled an average of five treats per day from the clear containers, but just four from the opaque containers. The upshot? We tend to eat more of what we can see, so stow your goodies in opaque containers (and your veggies in clear containers!).

Put Them Away

All done with your scrumptious chicken piccata? No problem — there’s more in the kitchen! If that’s the way your mind works, fix your plate and then stow any leftovers before sitting down to eat. Along the same lines, put the least nutritious leftovers in the fridge and leave out the veggies in case you crave seconds. This same M.O. works at restaurants as well: Ask the server to pack half your meal in a to-go container so you’re not even tempted.

Scoop Small

In yet another study (boy, is this guy prolific!), Wansink and his colleagues gave people either large or small scoops and let them serve themselves ice cream. The result? The ice cream fiends who used the large scoop ate 15 to 20 percent more than those using small scoops. When you serve yourself food, use small spoons instead of ladles and other large utensils and you’ll likely dole out less.

Toss the Techno

Scientists at Fairfield University in Connecticut piped fast and slow music into the university cafeteria on different days. Researchers then counted the bites taken by the diners in the cafeteria. (Do you think the diners wondered why people were staring at them and scribbling in notepads?) The results: People take an average of 4.4 bites per minute to fast music, and only 3.8 bites per minute to slow music. So ditch the disco and listen to soft tunes when you dine.

Back in the olden days, the only way people knew how many calories were in Ye Olde Bigge Mac , how many calories they burned hoeing the fields, or whether their BMI was on target or over the top was to guess. Now, though, we have the Internet, which has tons of free resources for the health-minded among us. As a freelance health writer, I use many of these resources when I’m researching articles, and they can also help you in your quest for fitness. Here are my favorites:

1. The USDA Nutrient Data Laboratory : This website is truly amazing. Type in a food, and the site will bring you to a list that lets you further refine you choice. For example, if you enter “beef,” it will bring up all the different cuts of meat, both raw and cooked. Choose one, enter the amount — and you’ll get a spreadsheet listing the number of calories and the amount of everything from saturated fat to vitamin C to selenium. You can use this site to keep very detailed track of what you’re eating and make the best food choices.

2. Wondering how many calories an hour of water polo will torch? InternetFitness.com’s Calorie Burn Calculator lets you enter in your weight and  the amount of time you do a certain activity, from aerobics to shoveling snow, and calculates how many calories you’ll burn.

3. NutritionData lets you analyze recipes and creates a nutrition label for the entire dish. You need to register, but it’s free.

4.  YouTube has more than funny videos of cats — You can also find free vids of cardio workouts that you can use on days you can’t make it to the gym. For example, SparkPeople.com offers this 10-Minute Jump Start Cardio Workout.

(I’ve done this video — it really does kick my low-endurance butt!) Just search on YouTube for keywords like “aerobics workout” or “cardio workout” to find free vids.

5. No need to search the Wendy’s website to dig up nutritional data on its salads: The Calorie King Food Database boasts the nutritional information for over 50,000 American generic and brand name foods, including over 260 fast-food chains.

6. The National Institutes of Health offers this BMI calculator so you can find out whether our Body Mass Index says you’re fit or fat. Just enter your height and weight and the calculator will do the rest.

7. If you’re sick of your workout music mix, check out PodRunner, which offers “free exercise music mixes for runners, joggers, power walkers, cyclists, elliptical trainers, or anyone who can use nonstop, fixed-tempo music when they train.” These free techno and house beats will keep up your energy while you work out.

I am on day 3 of my detox regimen. Its going pretty good. Day one I ate only fruits, not so bad, I like a variety of fruits. Day two I ate only vegetables. That was a little harder, I don’t like as many veggies. Plus, in the detox regimen you can make French onion soup (no bread or cheese of course) loaded with any veggies your heart desires, except potatoes. You can eat the soup at anytime with the days food plan. Today was mixed vegetables and fruits. The only side effect of eating French onion soup every day, several times a day is… well… when you pass gas it smells like onion soup! LOL. I keep waiting for this huge movement but it has not happened yet. I hope it will be one of those ‘ah ha’ moments, lol.

What’s interesting is I am not craving sugar at all! So that tells me I definitely need more fruit in my diet. I think I consumed so much fruit (which we know is nature’s sugar) that I did not need to crave the candy. Maybe when you crave sugar you simply need to add more fruit to your diet.

I did have a glass of my Lite and Lean powder before I cleaned house. I felt I needed it to make it through four hours of cleaning. Good thing its only 30 calories. My daughter is a trooper; she is following it to the tee. Except she keeps saying she can’t wait until Saturday to eat the donut she put in the freezer from a school party. I do have to hand it to her for not eating the donut, she stuck to her plan. I think I will encourage her to cut in thirds and eat only 1/3. I guess… don’t know. What do you say to not offend you teen daughter??? I did tell her to eat a protein bar before track practice. Maybe that is why she is not having hunger pangs.

Today I cleaned house for four hours straight, walked the dogs then went swimming. I swam 10 laps, back stoke taking a breather between laps, just for a minute.  I take my kids with me to the pool. They are always trying to beat me. They get close, but this big ol’ mama still can out swim them. Well, for one lap anyway. I am sure I could not beat them 2 laps in a row but we will keep that secret to us right…friends????

I hope this finds you healthier then yesterday. Don’t forget to drink your whey every day!

Camille

When I was in my 20’s I could party all night, close down the bar so to speak, get up go work a double and do it all over again. But now it’s like I have been there, done that in that phase in life and really don’t care to relive it. It seemed fun back then but now I have to get up tomorrow and I don’t like the after party feeling the next day any more… if you know what I mean.

At the coffee shop my husband made a comment that has stuck in my head. We were talking about what’s to come in the next 25 years, our kids grown, college, marriages, grand kids…I will be 66 and my husband will be 76. Its not a question of where will we be in life in the next 25 years; it’s a question of will we be alive in 25 years…whoa that is scary. I am not afraid of what will happen after I die, I know where I am going. My biggest fear is the actual process of dieing. I do not want to go through it. I do not want to take my last breath. I do not want to submit to having the beat of my heart stop. I fear having to experiencing that moment between taking my last breath and waiting to come back to life in eternity. What will it be like, will it be silent and dark, or will I be aware of the surroundings. I guess that is something in life and death that is only to be know when it happens. I hope it won’t happen anytime soon.

In biblical times people lived way beyond the common years of our time. People lived beyond 100 years to 900 years maybe more. That makes me believe that it is still possible to live that long. We have to take a look at how people back then lived and try to live that way. Things that come to mind are. They walked every where, they ate the foods of the season, they went to bed when the sun went down and got up when the sun rose again, they meditated, they stuck together, they worked together, they loved each other… so maybe if I, and you, implemented the things people of that time we could extend our lives beyond what anyone would have believed.

Have a great week friends, until next time…

Camille

I have been putting off this question. Not sure exactly why but my thought is that I did not want to make ‘goals’ to fail them…but here I go…

What are your specific health goals for 2009 and what hurdles are you concerned about for each goal?

Goals for 2009                                                            

Goal #1 Lose 50 Pounds         

Hurdles- I am my worst hurdle. Not following my eating plan, not sticking to my routines, not exercising, not believing in myself, giving up too easily, giving in to my ‘cravings’, eating mindlessly, no accountability.

Goal #2 Exercise Daily (min. 20 minutes)

Hurdles- Not taking the time, not making it a priority, not figuring out what I physically can do, not having the mindset of ’just do it’, no family support to get moving, not pushing myself, not wanting to sweat or have someone see me sweat, not wanting to be short of breath or have someone hear me out of breath, no accountability.

Goal #3 Take Time for Me

Hurdles- Kids and hubby not seeing that I need time for me and allowing it, not voicing that my family needs to know that mom counts too, not wanting to disappoint by saying, sorry I can’t do that, not demanding that time, not planning ahead that time, not setting aside that time, not even knowing what ‘taking time for me’ means.

Goal #4 Eat Healthy

Hurdles- once again…ME. I do the shopping and the meal preparing, buying ‘treats’ because the kids would want them, buying foods I know I should not have, not taking the time to read the labels, hiding ‘treats’ so kids do not eat them so I can, not being honest about how many calories I really eat, not taking the time to figure out how many calories I am eating during the day. Eating even when I am not hungry, focusing on food, worry about the next thing I will eat before I finish what I am eating at the moment, worrying about the kids being hungry, no consistent menu planning, just eating what I want when I want it, not preparing to eat healthy.

Goal #5 Get my Smart and Healthy Weight Loss Site Done

Hurdles- afraid to fail those who visit my site, not organizing all the information I have learned over the years, not sure of the direction I want to take the site, not wanting to be accountable that what I do works, not wanting to fail my own weight loss goals and having it be known, making sure I have an exact plan for those suffering like I have to follow.

Whoa… I read this like I am reading about another person. But the fact is it’s me. Why do I hold myself back? I know what to do, I know how to do it, and simply I just have to do the opposite of the hurdles.

I need to start declaring my success!

I will lose 50 pounds this year. I will follow my eating plan. I will stick to my routines. I will exercise. I believe in myself. I will not give up. I will not give in to ‘cravings’. I will be aware of what I eat. I will find some one to be accountable to. I will exercise for at least 20 minutes a day. I will take the time. I will make exercising a priority. I will challenge myself to figure out what my limits are NOT. I will get my family’s help. I will push myself, its OK to sweat, its OK to breath hard. I will find an accountability partner. I will make my needs for time to me known to my family. I do count, its OK to say no. I will plan time for me. I will figure out what ‘taking time for me’ means to me. I will shop to buy healthy foods. I will pass up the treat isle. I will read labels. I will not hide treats. I will keep track of the calories I consume. I will only eat when I am hungry. I will not focus on food.  I will let my kids tell me when they are hungry. I will learn to menu plan and stick to it. I will not just eat, I will prepare to eat healthy. I will get my website done. I will not fail those seeking help with weight loss. I will organize the information I have learned by trial and error to what works to be healthy. I will reach my weight loss goals. I will have a plan that works for people just like me. I will succeed with all my goals for 2009. I will do it!

I have to print this and tape it up and declare every day. What are your goals and hurdles for 2009?

Someone said if you want to feel whole eat whole foods. If you want to feel crappy eat crappy foods. I want to feel whole. How about you?

Camille from Michigan

I have been thinking about the second question that I am suppose to be answering from the “Best Life” Series sponsored by Oprah last week. The question is… Why are you worthy of getting healthy this year? My first reaction is to say…I am a child of God therefore worthy of being healthy so that I can glorify Him. That is a great answer; it is a politically, morally correct thing to say and sounds wonderful but is it reality? Partly YES, but I need to dig deeper and discover that truth for myself. I also think of longevity and quality of life as I get older. I used to work in nursing homes and have horrible thoughts of having to get 3 people to help me get out of bed because of my weight. I know crazy but those thoughts cross my mind all the time. I think my kids deserve a healthy mom. I think about my darling husband and how he deserves to be proud to have a healthy wife by his side. You may not know this about me and by me sharing this it could cause a credibility issue with people I help. I council crack cocaine addicts and have been for over 10 years now. I think about how I am able to help one stop their addiction to crack yet can not stop my own addiction to food.

 I need to figure out why food has this power over me and over come it. I need to find the desire to exercise. I want the results but do not have the desire to do the work. I love watching the “Biggest Loser” and some of the people are 100 pounds heavier then me and they are able to walk the 14 miles a day, work out, sweat, huff and puff, eat right, and drink their Biggest Loser Protein shakes, follow an eating plan. Though, I suppose if I had someone pushing me and cooking my meals and a chance to win 250,000 dollars it would not be so hard. So I am not sure…is it the fear of failure again, fear of sweating or being out of breath, having to “restrict” what I can not eat or what is it? Maybe all of these…If I figure it out maybe it would be the cure for obesity! Or maybe I am not supposed to “figure it out” and just do the right thing to be healthy. 

So am I worth it? Yes and so are you if you struggle with weight issues.

Bye for now, 

Camille from Michigan

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