February 2007 Archives
Getting Started
After spending the month of February looking at heart disease, as it relates to being overweight, all that's left to do is get started. This final post in the series will sum up everything posted earlier this month.
Eat for health.
Choose a wide variety of low-calorie, nutritious foods in moderate amounts. Include plenty of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and skim milk, as well as fish, lean meat, poultry, or beans. Choose foods that are low in fat and added sugars. Choose sensible portion sizes. (See Portion Distortion)
Watch calories.
If you are overweight, you are probably wondering how to gauge the number of calories you'll need to cut from your current diet to lose a specific amount of weight over time. Here's a rough guide. If your body mass index (BMI) is 27 to 35 (see BMI chart on page 35), a decrease of 300 to 500 calories per day will result in a weight loss of about 1/2 to 1 pound per week and a 10 percent weight loss in 6 months. If you have a BMI greater than 35, cutting 500 to 1,000 calories per day will lead to weight loss of about 1 to 2 pounds per week and a 10 percent weight loss in 6 months.
Keep milk on the menu.
Don’t cut out dairy products in trying to reduce calories and fat. Dairy products are rich in calcium, a nutrient that helps to prevent the bone-thinning disease of osteoporosis. Instead, choose lowfat or nonfat dairy products, which have the same amount of calcium as whole-milk products. Make the switch gradually. If you are used to drinking whole milk, first cut back to 2 percent, move to 1 percent, and then to nonfat milk.
Keep moving.
Physical activity is key to successful, long-term weight loss. It can help you burn calories, trim extra fat from your waist, and control your appetite. It can also tone your muscles and increase aerobic fitness. Start slowly and gradually build up to at least 30 minutes of physical activity on most, and preferably all, days of the week. (See A Sample Walking Program)
Forget the fads.
Fad diets, including the highprotein, low-carbohydrate diets, are not the answer. As tempting as their promises may be, most quick-fix diets provide poor nutrition and cause many side effects, especially those with less than 800 calories per day. Although fad diets can produce fast results, most of the weight loss is due to water loss. The weight returns quickly once you stop dieting.
Know about medicines.
If you are very overweight, or if you are overweight and have other weight-related risk factors or diseases, your doctor may advise you to take a medicine to help you take off pounds. You should use a weight-loss drug only after you have tried a low-calorie diet, more physical activity, and other lifestyle changes for 6 months without successfully losing weight. Because weight-loss medicines have side effects, you should consider all of the risks and benefits before trying one of them. These drugs should be used alongside a low-calorie eating plan and regular physical activity, not as a substitute for these lifestyle changes.
Get support.
Tell your family and friends about your weight loss plans and let them know how they can be most helpful to you. Some women also find it useful to join a structured weight loss program (See How To Choose a Weight Loss Program). The most effective groups provide support and advice for permanently changing eating and physical activity habits.
Lock in your losses.
After 6 months of gradually losing weight, switch your efforts to keeping the weight off by continuing to eat a nutritious, lower-calorie diet and getting regular physical activity. After several months of weight maintenance, talk with your health care provider about whether you need to lose additional pounds.
Learn New Moves
Regular physical activity is a powerful way to reduce your risk of heart disease. Physical activity directly helps to prevent heart problems. Staying active also helps to prevent and control high blood pressure, keep cholesterol levels healthy, and prevent and control diabetes. Plus, regular physical activity is a great way to help take off extra pounds—and keep them off.
For women who have heart disease, regular, moderate physical activity lowers the risk of death from heart-related causes. If you have already had a heart attack, you still can benefit greatly from becoming more active. Many hospitals offer cardiac (heart) rehabilitation programs that include a wide range of physical activities. Ask your doctor for advice about the best program for you.
Regular physical activity has a host of other health benefits. It may help to prevent cancers of the breast, uterus, and colon. Staying active also strengthens the lungs, tones the muscles, keeps the joints in good condition, improves balance, and may slow bone loss. It also helps many people sleep better, feel less depressed, cope better with stress and anxiety, and generally feel more relaxed and energetic.
Women can benefit from physical activity at any age. In fact, staying active can help prevent, delay, or improve many agerelated disabilities. Older women in particular may benefit from weight-bearing activities, which keep bones healthier. Good weight-bearing activities include carrying groceries, walking, jogging, and lifting weights. (Start with 1- to 2-pound hand weights and gradually progress to heavier weights.)
Activities that promote flexibility and balance also are important, especially for older women. Practices such as T’ai Chi and yoga can improve balance and flexibility and can be done alternately with heart healthy physical activities. Check with your local recreation center, YWCA or YMCA, or adult-education program for low-cost classes in your area.
iFit
Two weeks ago I recieved the following email I offered to post here for an interested party.
My name is Jason. I help people control body weight by having them send me their menu every night. I take a very different approach as I focus on raising the body metabolism. Building on what that person already knows instead of telling them what to do. As a coach, I provide support every day, and suggestions on ways to improve. I promote exercise, and we plan out some exercise times for a 30 day period, and participants are held accountable.
This is a system I designed. I currently own the largest health club in Saskachewan Canada, and helping people understand HOW their body works is my passion. My life goal is to help people understand WHY.I would be willing to offer one 30 day session complimentary for someone who would like to give it a try. My slogan is "ask why" as I want people to understand this stuff, so they may use it for the rest of their life. My success rate using this approach is in the high 90%. It has been only since December of 06 that I have taken this system to the internet.
If you think this is something that may benefit you, please feel free to contact him directly via his blog. He's only extended the offer to one person and you must be serious.
As a general disclaimer, please do your own research, check with your personal doctor or healthcare provider before starting a fitness program and thoroughly research any method before you give it a try. If you do end up working with Jason, I'd love to have a first hand review of your 30 day experience, so perhaps you can set up as a guest blogger on this site, or send me a mini review when you are done.
A Sample Walking Program
You don't have to hit the ground running when it comes to losing weight via physical activity. Be like the turtle. Start slow. Be consistent. Make gradual increases and before long, you'll be physically active 30 minutes a day 3 times a week.
The walking program below is 12 weeks long. You'll start off in week 1 walking briskly 5 minutes/3 times a week. Each week after that you'll add 2, 3 minutes max, to your routine. By the end of the program, you'll be a genuine walker 
After you've been cleared by your doctor or healthcare provider, give it a try.
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No Excuses!
We all have reasons to stay inactive. But with a little thought and planning, you can overcome most obstacles to physical activity. For example: “I don’t have time to exercise.”
While physical activity does take time, you can reduce your heart disease risk by getting only 30 minutes of moderate activity on most days of the week. Plus, you can save time by doubling up on some activities.
For example, you can ride an exercise bike or use hand weights while watching TV. Or, you can transform some of your everyday chores—like washing your car or walking the dog—into heart healthy activities by doing them more briskly than usual.
Below are some common excuses and solutions to combat them:
“I don’t like to exercise.” You may have bad memories of doing situps or running in high school, sweating, puffing, and panting. Now we know that you can get plenty of gain without pain. Activities you already do, such as gardening or walking, can improve your health. So just do more of the activities you like.
“I don’t have the energy to be more active.” Get active first—and watch your energy soar. Once you begin regular physical activity, you will almost certainly feel stronger and more vigorous. As you progress, daily tasks will seem easier.
“I keep forgetting to exercise.” Leave your sneakers near the door to remind yourself to walk, or bring a change of clothes to work and head straight for the gym, yoga class, or walking trail on the way home. Put a note on your calendar to remind yourself to exercise. While you’re at it, get in the habit of adding more activity to your daily routine.
What are some excuses you've been using? Maybe someone else can come up with a solution to help you combat them or share your own solutions.
Portion Distortion
How To Choose Sensible Servings
It’s very easy to “eat with your eyes” and misjudge what equals a serving—and pile on unwanted pounds. This is especially true when you eat out, because restaurant portion sizes have been steadily expanding. Twenty years ago, the average pasta portion size was 2 cups totaling 280 calories; today, it is 4 cups totaling 560 calories! To keep portion sizes sensible:
- When eating out, choose small portion sizes, share an entrée with a friend, or take some of the food home (if you can chill it right away).
- Check product labels to learn how much food is considered a serving and how many calories, fat grams, and so forth are in the food.
- Be especially careful to limit portion sizes of high-calorie foods such as cookies, cakes, other sweets, french fries, oils, and spreads.
Back in January, I was sent this visual guide of what 200 calories looks like. Amazing.
How To Choose a Weight Loss Program
Some people lose weight on their own, while others like the support of a structured program. If you decide to join a weight loss program, here are some questions to ask before you join:
Does the program provide counseling to help you change your eating and activity habits?
The program should teach you how to permanently change those eating and lifestyle habits, such as lack of physical activity, that have contributed to weight gain.
Does the staff include qualified health professionals, such as nutritionists, registered dietitians, doctors, nurses, psychologists, and exercise physiologists?
Qualified professionals can help you lose weight safely and successfully. You need to be evaluated by a physician if you have any health problems, take or plan to take any medicine, or plan to lose more than 15 to 20 pounds. If your weight control plan uses a very low-calorie diet (a special liquid formula that replaces all food for 1 to 4 months), you will also need an exam and follow-up visits by a doctor.
Does the program offer training on how to deal with times when you may feel stressed and slip back into old habits?
The program should provide long-term strategies for preventing and coping with possible weight problems in the future. These strategies might include setting up a support system and a regular physical activity routine.
Do you help decide on food choices and weight loss goals?
In setting weight loss goals, the program should consider your personal food likes and dislikes, as well as your lifestyle.
Are there fees or costs for additional items, such as dietary supplements?
You need to know the total costs of participating in the program.
How successful is your program?
Many programs don’t gather information on how well they work, but it is worthwhile to ask:
- What percentage of people who start this program complete it?
- What percentage of people experience problems or side effects? What are they?
- What is the average weight loss among those who finish the program?
An Action Plan for Heart Health Part 2
Aim for a Healthy Weight
If you are overweight, taking off pounds can reduce your chances of developing heart disease in several ways. First, losing weight will directly lower your risk. Second, weight loss can help to reduce a number of risk factors for heart disease. It can help to control diabetes as well as reduce high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol. Reaching a healthy weight can also help you to feel better by contributing to sounder sleep, less pain, and more energy to take part in activities you enjoy.
Remember, if you need to lose weight, even a small weight loss will help to lower your risks of heart disease and other serious health conditions. At the very least, you should not gain any additional weight. The more overweight you are, the more likely you are to develop heart disease.
When it comes to weight loss, there are no quick fixes. Successful, lasting weight loss requires a change of lifestyle, not a brief effort to drop pounds quickly. Otherwise, you will probably regain the weight. Aim to lose 1/2 to 2 pounds per week—no more. If you have a lot of weight to lose, ask your doctor, a registered dietitian, or a qualified nutritionist to help you develop a sensible plan for gradual weight loss.
To take off pounds and keep them off, you will need to make changes in both your eating and physical activity habits. Weight control is a question of balance. You take in calories from the food you eat. You burn off calories by physical activity. Cutting down on calories, especially calories from fat, is key to losing weight. Combining this change in diet with a regular physical activity program, such as walking or swimming, can help you both shed pounds and stay trim for the long term.
Tomorrow: How to choose a weight loss program
An Action Plan for Heart Health Part 1
The last two days were about the major risk factors for heart disease. The next two posts will be about creating an action plan for having a healthy heart.
Here’s the heart truth: If you eat a nutritious diet, get regular physical activity, maintain a healthy weight, and stop smoking, you will improve your heart health. No matter what heart disease risk factors you have—or how many—you will greatly benefit from taking action in these four areas. If you already have heart disease, you can lessen its severity by following this plan.
True, you may need to take other steps to prevent or control heart disease. For example, if you have diabetes, you also will need to keep your blood sugar levels under control. But eating a good diet, controlling your weight, and getting more physical activity will help you keep your blood sugar at healthy levels. These steps will also help reduce your chances of developing high blood pressure or high blood cholesterol. Whatever your current health conditions or habits, this action plan can make an enormously positive difference in your heart health. To find out how to get started, read on.
Eat for Health
The health of your heart has a lot to do with the foods you eat. One good eating plan is the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which also includes advice for overall health and food safety:
- Choose a variety of grains daily, especially whole grains.
- Choose a variety of fruits and vegetables daily.
- Choose a diet low in saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol, and moderate in total fat.
- Choose beverages and foods to moderate your intake of sugars.
- Choose and prepare foods with less salt.
- If you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation.
- Aim for a healthy weight.
- Be physically active each day.
- Keep food safe to eat.
- Let the Food Guide Pyramid guide your food choices.
Tuesday: Aiming for a healthy weight
Major Risk Factors for Heart Disease Part 2
Physical Inactivity
Physical inactivity raises your risk of heart disease—more than you might think. It boosts your chances of developing heart-related problems even if you have no other risk factors. It also increases the likelihood that you will develop other heart disease risk factors, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and overweight.
Yet most women aren’t getting enough physical activity. According to the Surgeon General’s Report on Physical Activity and Health, 60 percent of women in the United States don’t get the recommended amount of physical activity. More than 25 percent of women are not active at all during their free time. Physical inactivity is especially common among African American and Hispanic women. Besides raising the risk of heart disease, lack of physical activity leads to more doctor visits, hospitalizations, and use of medicines for a variety of illnesses.
For women, physical inactivity also increases the risk of osteoporosis, which in turn may increase the risk of broken bones. This is worrisome, since women tend to become less physically active as they get older.
Fortunately, research shows that as little as 30 minutes of moderate activity on most, and preferably all, days of the week helps to protect heart health. This level of activity can reduce your risk of heart disease as well as lower your chances of having a stroke, colon cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes, and other medical problems.
Examples of moderate activity are taking a brisk walk, raking leaves, housecleaning, or gardening. If you prefer, you can divide your 30-minute activity into shorter periods of at least 10 minutes each.
Major Risk Factors for Heart Disease Part 1
Continuing the discussion on focusing on the heart this month, here are a few risk factors for heart disease.
Overweight
A healthy weight is important for a long, vigorous life. Yet about 62 percent of all American women age 20 and older are overweight—about 33 percent of them are obese (extremely overweight). The more overweight a woman is, the higher her risk for heart disease. Overweight also increases the risks for stroke, congestive heart failure, gallbladder disease, arthritis, and breathing problems, as well as breast, colon, and other cancers.
If you are overweight, you are more likely to develop heart disease even if you have no other risk factors. Being overweight also appears to contribute to heart disease by increasing the chances of developing other major risk factors, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and high blood cholesterol. The bottom line: Maintaining a healthy weight is an extremely important part of heart disease prevention. It can help to protect your health—and even save your life.
Should You Choose To Lose?
Do you need to lose weight to reduce your risk of heart disease? You can find out by taking three simple steps. First, check your “body mass index” (BMI). A BMI from 18.5 to 24.9 indicates a normal weight. A person with a BMI from 25 to 29.9 is overweight, while someone with a BMI of 30 or higher is obese. Those in the “overweight” or “obese” categories have a higher risk of heart disease.
The second step is to take your waist measurement. For women, a waist measurement of over 35 inches increases the risk of heart disease as well as the risks of high blood pressure, diabetes, and other serious health conditions. To measure your waist correctly, stand and place a tape measure around your middle, just above your hipbones. Measure your waist just after you breathe out.
The final step in determining your need to lose weight is to find out your other risk factors for heart disease. It is important to know whether you have any of the following: high blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol, low HDL cholesterol, high triglycerides, high blood glucose (blood sugar), a family history of early heart disease, physical inactivity, or cigarette smoking. Being age 55 or older, or having gone through menopause, also are heart disease risk factors. If you have a condition known as metabolic syndrome, your risk of heart disease is particularly high. If you aren’t sure whether you have some of these risk factors, consult with your doctor.
Once you have taken these three steps—found out your BMI, your waist measurement, and your other heart disease risk factors—you can use the information to decide if you need to take off pounds. While you should talk with your doctor about whether you should lose weight, keep these guidelines in mind:
- If you are overweight AND have two or more other risk factors, or if you are obese, you should lose weight.
- If you are overweight, have a waist measurement of over 35 inches, AND have two or more other risk factors, you should lose weight.
- If you are overweight, but do not have a high waist measurement, and have fewer than two other risk factors, you should avoid further weight gain.
- One in 2 women in the United States dies of heart disease or stroke, while 1 in 30 dies of breast cancer.M
- Thirty-eight percent of women will die within 1 year after having a heart attack.
- Within 6 years of having a heart attack, about 46 percent of women become disabled with heart failure. Two-thirds of women who have a heart attack fail to make a full recovery.
Small Changes Make a Big Difference
If you need to lose weight, here is some good news: A small weight loss—just 5 to 10 percent of your current weight—will help to lower your risks of heart disease and other serious medical disorders.
The best way to take off pounds is to do so gradually, by getting more physical activity and eating a balanced diet that is lower in calories and fat. (High-fat foods contain more calories than the same amount of other foods, so they can make it hard for you to avoid excess calories.
But be careful—“lowfat” doesn’t always mean low in calories. Sometimes extra sugars are added to lowfat desserts, for example.) For some women at very high risk, medication also may be necessary. To develop a weight-loss or weight-maintenance program that works best for you, consult with your doctor, registered dietitian, or qualified nutritionist.
Tomorrow: Physical inactivity & heart disease
As Heard On
This past Sunday I got a chance to be on the Dr. Fitness and the Fat Guy show. It was a great experience and I had a lot of fun doing it. You can hear the interview that I did. 
It's not just me for the hour. I got to hear them interview THE. TAMILEE. WEBB. AKA The Buns O' Steel lady…
…I was too speechless to say anything. She gave some really sound advice when it came to fitness, I was nodding my head in agreement through most of her segment.
It's a really great show, they are funny guys and if you hear snickering in the background, I confess, it's me. Best of all, they rally get blogging and what it's all about. It's all still so surreal. I can't yet bring myself to hearing what I sound like, so enjoy and I hope I don't sound too dorky.
Six Secrets of Successful Weight Management
If you have ever tried to take off weight, you know that it’s more than a matter of promising yourself you’ll eat less and move more. You also need to mentally prepare yourself for new behaviors. Here are some tips for getting—and staying—in a healthy weight mindset:
1. Set good goals. Many people set unrealistic goals for the amount of weight they want to lose. But you can greatly improve your health by losing just 5 to 10 percent of your starting weight. While you may choose to lose more weight later, keep in mind that this initial goal is both realistic and valuable. Overall, it’s important to set goals that are specific, achievable, and forgiving (allow you to be less than perfect). For example, “exercise more” is a fine goal, but it’s not very specific. “Walk 30 minutes every day“ is specific and perhaps achievable. But what if you get a bad cold one day, and there’s a drenching rainstorm on another? “Walk 30 minutes, 5 days each week” is specific, achievable, and forgiving. A great goal!
2. Build on success. Rather than select one big goal, choose a series of smaller goals that bring you closer and closer to your larger goal. For example, if one of your big goals is to reduce your daily calories from 2,000 to 1,200, first reduce your calories to 1,700, then move to 1,400, and finally to 1,200. When you experience success at reaching a small goal, it will motivate you to keep moving toward your larger ones.
3. Reward yourself! Rewards that you control can encourage you to achieve your goals. An effective reward is desirable, timely (something you don’t put off giving yourself), and dependent on meeting your goal. The reward you choose may be something you buy for yourself or an act of self-kindness, such as an afternoon off from work or an evening spent with a friend. Avoid food as a reward. It usually works better to give yourself frequent, small rewards for reaching short-term goals than bigger rewards that require long, difficult effort.
4. Write it down. Regularly record what you do on your weight loss program, such as your daily calorie intake and exercise sessions, as well as changes in your weight. (Try to weigh yourself at the same time of day once or twice a week.) When you keep track this way, it can help you and your health care provider determine what behaviors you may want to improve. Keeping tabs on your progress can also help you stay motivated.
5. Know your triggers. To lose weight successfully, you need to be aware of your personal eating “triggers.” These are the situations that usually bring on the urge to overeat. For instance, you may get a case of the munchies while watching TV, when you see treats next to the office coffeepot, or when you’re with a friend who loves to eat. To “turn off” the trigger, you’ll need to make a change in the tempting situation. Example: If treats near the coffeepot are hard to resist, exit the area right after you pour yourself coffee.
6. The fine art of feeling full. Changing the way you eat can help you to eat less without feeling deprived. Eating slowly can help you feel satisfied sooner, and therefore avoid second helpings. Eating lots of vegetables and fruits, and drinking plenty of noncaloric beverages, can also make you feel fuller. Another
trick is to use smaller plates so that moderate portions don’t seem skimpy. It also helps to set a regular eating schedule, especially if you tend to skip or delay meals.
The Heart Truth
Bad news first: heart disease is the #1 killer of women in the United States. Know what it means for you.
If you’ve got a heart, heart disease could be your problem. Fortunately, it’s a problem you can do something about.
You still may be thinking, “But this isn’t about me. I don’t have heart disease.” But you may have conditions or habits that can lead to heart disease, such as overweight, cigarette smoking, or not enough physical activity.
But now for the good news:
You have tremendous power to prevent heart disease and you can start today. By learning about your own personal risk factors and by making healthful changes in your diet, physical activity, and other daily habits, you can greatly reduce your risk of developing heart-related problems. Even if you already have heart disease, you can take steps to lessen its severity.
I'll spend the rest of this month highlighting excerpts from The Healthy Heart Handbook. Some of the risks and treatments are beyond the scope of this site, so I'll focus in on heart disease as it relates to being overweight & sedentary.
Do it for your heart
Ok, not only has your January resolutions fallen to the wayside, you now feel, "Why bother? Losing all this weight is too hard/impossible/boring/overwhelming".
Just for today, just for this week, just for this month...forget about the weight. Forget about the scale and do this for your health. Do this for your heart.
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and partner organizations are sponsoring a national campaign called The Heart Truth. The campaign's goal is to give women a personal and urgent wakeup call about their risk of heart disease.
I know this isn't sexy talk for fat fighters. No let's lose 10lbs quick or what's the latest diet fad or how did celebrity X lose all that weight so quickly.
This isn't what the commercials tell you when they simultaneously urge you buy the latest fat burning pill while eating all you want for $9.95, dessert too!
Look, I am having my own personal battle of working out and the scale not budging and am fighting with all my might not to let it derail me. What I do know, is in the last few weeks, after each hour long walk, I really do feel great and while the scale may not show what's really going on, I've been able to walk a bit faster and am not getting as winded.
That is what fighting heart disease is all about. Print out The Healthy Heart Handbook for Woman (PDF 642K). It provides the most recent information on women's heart disease and practical suggestions for how to reduce the risk of developing it.
And if nothing else than the sake of your heart, just walk 30 minutes a day, 3 days a week this month. It doesn't have to be a run, you don't have to break a sweat, just move. That's it. When March comes around, you want to give up, fine. I'll be here next February harassing you to do the same thing. ;)
The Heart Truth is that all women can take steps to lower their risk of developing heart disease. If you're a woman ages 40-60, it's especially important that you begin right away to lower your risk. That's the time when a woman's risk of heart disease starts to rise. Younger and older women also need to act now. Heart disease can begin early, even in the teen years. But it's also never too late to improve heart health—even for those who have already had a heart attack.Whatever a woman's age, she needs to take action to protect her heart health. [more info]
Oh and wear something red tomorrow!
