New Year's Resolution update: Strategies for Weight Loss

Over the years I have noticed that one of the hardest thing with weight loss is committing to a diet. For me diets  do not work out. I have looked up some online resources and talked to some people who have recently lost weight. about some strategies that they have used. The people I talked to pointed out some free online resources that was somewhat helpful for them. They told me about Michi's Ladder which is not really a guide to dieting but a way to substitute food that are not good for you with healthier ones. If you can replace the bad food with the good it will help with your wight loss goal. Here is a link to the ladder that I found through google: Michi's Ladder.

"Slow down tubby, you're not on the moon yet."

Another resource that I spotted a few days ago comes from an author by the name of Paul McKenna who has 4 Golden Rules when it comes to eating. He has observed the eating habits of thinner people and tries to explain how those who are not in shape have a different relationship with food.

1. When you are hungry, eat.
He makes the distinction between physical hunger and emotional hunger. Physical hunger occurs slowly over time and if you do not eat at this time the body will eventually go into its survival mode programming. The body will start to store fat and your metabolism slows down too. This will cause weight gain.

2. Eat what you want, not what you think you should.
When you tell yourself that a certain food is bad or wrong to eat you will eventually crave it more. So it's a bad idea to categorize food as bad/good. You will always want the thing that you cannot have. Follow what your body and mind are saying and you may notice that you will begin to gravitate towards food that is healthier.

3. Eat consciously and enjoy every mouthful.
Out of the four rules this is the one where I have the most trouble. I inhale food. If it tastes good I tend to eat it even faster. The big problem is overeating. We eat not to the point of being full but until we are stuffed and possibly feeling sick. We apparently get a chemical high by eating too fast and not thinking about it and afterwards we feel guilty. Then to stop these bad feelings of guilt we will overeat again. Such a vicious cycle.
So slow down. Chew food at least 20 times and another strategy is to put down your utensils after every bite.

4. When you think you are full, stop eating.
There is a point where you should feel the sensation of being full. However, the problem is that some of us have conditioned ourselves to eat past this sensation or until our plate is completely empty. It is okay to leave food behind. If you feel bad about wasting food you can also save the leftovers for later. So try to pay attention for this sensation. You will know when you have gone past this threshold because food will become less and less enjoyable.

If you want to learn more about Paul McKenna's strategy for weight loss, check out his book:
I Can Make You Thin: The Revolutionary System Used by More Than 3 Million People
or you can check out this link to McKenna's website that outlines the 4 Golden Rules to Eating:
http://www.mckenna.com/

So I think these are two great resources that I will follow as I finally try to stick to my resolution of losing weight. I hope that these will help others who are struggling with their weight as well. I will post up new resources as I come across them in future posts.

Weight Loss: The Impossible New Year's Resolution?

Well here we are eight days into the new year and I haven't really started to work on a resolution that has been eluding me for years: weight loss. Like most people who make this resolution I have found myself highly motivated towards this goal. Unfortunately, like most people this motivation lasted only a very short time. This has happened to me for the last >5 years. So this year, I am trying to reflect on why this keeps happening and looking for a new approach to lose weight. I am consulting some books and looking at some exercise courses that apparently have helped others. Although I am cautious about the claims of these products and have always been skeptical about their effectiveness.

The first thing I will do is outline the weight loss goal. I am going to be making a SMART goal. For those of you who don't know what this is I'll explain it to you. SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely. I believe that if you make this type of goal you will be able to fulfill that goal. I don't know how many times I said, "This new year I'm going lose weight", then do it for a couple weeks and then gradually stop. So time for a new way to set my goal: Lose 20 lbs by exercising with interval training at least 4 times a week, by increasing the amount of healthy foods and reducing portion size of my meals.

I am 210 lbs, 5 ft 10, not the most active person, tend to sit down for long periods of time.

I will give updates about the progress of my weight loss goal. I will outline my exercise plan in the coming posts. I am also planning to try out some work out programs and I will give my initial impressions + review them if I ever finish the program.

I hope that you will also be able to achieve your goals for this coming year.