Here is a summary of my Weight Watchers meeting on February 2, 2010.
I hope that you all are having a wonderful week. Try to challenge yourself to leave positive notes of encouragement laying around. Invest in a sticky pad and start sticking! Remember your goals and why you joined weight watchers in the first place. Go back to the basics and start tracking again. Maybe you just need to review your materials. Pull out those measuring spoons and put them to good use!
There is no such thing as perfect weight loss but we all agreed that weight loss can only be achieved when we put our mind into it. We have to keep our mind aware of what our goals are and what we have to do to make that goal a reality. Make yourself and your weight loss your number one priority. You should be at the top of your list! I have listed below some tips to help you keep a positive attitude.
Top 10 Attitude Enhancers
Keep your mind focused on your goals. Here's how:
1. Celebrate the here and now -
As long as you're committed to your plan today, you're succeeding because you're taking charge of your life. Focusing on goals that are far in the future can sap motivation.
2. Change your language -
Scratch negative phrases from your vocabulary. Instead of saying "No," "I can't" or "I'll try," substitute the positive. Say: "Yes!" "I can" and "I will."
3. Create visual inspiration -
Find a photo of yourself before you started your weight-loss plan. Tack it on the refrigerator, a bedroom or bathroom mirror or inside the food cupboard. As you reach new goals, take new pictures, visually marking your progress.
4. Weigh in -
Weigh in at your weekly meeting, and track your results. Look at your overall progress and visualize that chart whenever you're tempted by less-than-healthy choices.
5. Partner up -
Exercising with friends is always more enjoyable. Schedule days to meet with your partner, and if one of you tries to bow out, act as the other's conscience.
6. Steer clear of sabotage -
Avoid people who put you down for trying to lose weight, or who encourage you to eat too much. Often these folks feel threatened by your weight loss.
7. Set mini goals -
Start with aiming to lose 5 pounds. Although challenging, this goal is so close. Once you have lost 5 pounds aim for 5 more….before you know it you will be close to your ultimate goal!
8. Reward yourself -
When you've reached a goal (and remember to keep them small), you deserve a treat. Buy new clothes, a book or CD, or take yourself to a movie or sporting event.
9. Keep reminders in plain sight -
Treadmills, bicycles, weights, even sneakers and exercise outfits should be left where you can see them. Don't store your exercise gear under the bed or in the basement. That will only hide the fact that you need to exercise.
10. Read Success Stories -
Motivation often comes from reading about the way others have found success. Just think: "One day the story is going to be mine!" The website is full of encouraging stories of people just like you who started to lose motivation. They are also filled with pieces of advice or tips that can help you along the way.
Remember that you are worth it and that this weight loss is important to your happiness.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Walking
Here is the latest email from Dr. Jacobs.
Surprising Health Secret of Walking
By RealAge
Any committed walker will tell you: Putting one foot in front of the other isn't about weight loss (or at least it's not only about that). It's about living the good life.
One of the best benefits of exercise turns out to be the huge leap in quality of life it produces. From carrying groceries up stairs with ease to feeling energized enough to keep up with social obligations, exercise makes life better. Even if you never shed a pound from it!
Feel-Good Workout
A lot of people start a walking program with the aim of a svelte silhouette. And that's fine -- great, even! But there's a lot more to exercise than just changing your body. Research shows that the more people work out, the more their quality of life improves. Physical health, mental health, vitality, productivity, social energy -- it all gets better in proportion to how much people move.
What's Your Goal?
Try to get at least 30 minutes of moderately vigorous physical activity on most days of the week. Even this baseline amount will improve your quality of life -- although more exercise will do more for you. Have trouble squeezing exercise into your schedule? Any ol' amount helps. In a study of postmenopausal women, even those who exercised barely more than an hour a week saw improvements in some quality of life measures. So wake up your muscles with these moves:
Walking has the highest compliance of any exercise program.
Surprising Health Secret of Walking
By RealAge
Any committed walker will tell you: Putting one foot in front of the other isn't about weight loss (or at least it's not only about that). It's about living the good life.
One of the best benefits of exercise turns out to be the huge leap in quality of life it produces. From carrying groceries up stairs with ease to feeling energized enough to keep up with social obligations, exercise makes life better. Even if you never shed a pound from it!
Feel-Good Workout
A lot of people start a walking program with the aim of a svelte silhouette. And that's fine -- great, even! But there's a lot more to exercise than just changing your body. Research shows that the more people work out, the more their quality of life improves. Physical health, mental health, vitality, productivity, social energy -- it all gets better in proportion to how much people move.
What's Your Goal?
Try to get at least 30 minutes of moderately vigorous physical activity on most days of the week. Even this baseline amount will improve your quality of life -- although more exercise will do more for you. Have trouble squeezing exercise into your schedule? Any ol' amount helps. In a study of postmenopausal women, even those who exercised barely more than an hour a week saw improvements in some quality of life measures. So wake up your muscles with these moves:
Walking has the highest compliance of any exercise program.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Sesame Chicken and Broccoli
Sesame Chicken and Broccoli
Source: NORTRIEW92
Ingredients
2 tlbs. Low sodium soy sauce
1 tlbs. Honey
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp. ground mustard
½ tsp. onion powder
½ tsp sesame oil
8 oz boneless chicken breast cut into bite size pieces
1 bag (16 oz.) frozen broccoli florets
1 tlbs corn starch (or other thickening agent)
1 tlbs sesame seeds
non stick cooking spray
salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
Whisk the soy sauce, honey, ginger, mustard, onion powder, sesame oil and a 1/4 cup of water in a small bowl. Set aside.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Brown the chicken and season with salt and pepper.
Add the bag of frozen broccoli to the browned chicken. Pour the soy sauce mixture on top and cover. Continue to cook over medium heat, the sauce will begin to boil and steam the broccoli. Stir occasionally.
Once the broccoli is defrosted and the chicken is done (about 10 minutes) remove the cover. Whish the oat flour with an additional ¼ cup of water, pour in the skillet and turn the heat to high. This will thicken the sauce allowing it to coat the chicken a broccoli. (this part is optional - the sauce will be thin but it flavors the chicken and broccoli nicely)
Mix in the sesame seeds and serve!
Aprox Nutritional Information per serving
Servings Amount per Serving
Calories Fat Fiber 260 3g 6g
Source: NORTRIEW92
Ingredients
2 tlbs. Low sodium soy sauce
1 tlbs. Honey
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp. ground mustard
½ tsp. onion powder
½ tsp sesame oil
8 oz boneless chicken breast cut into bite size pieces
1 bag (16 oz.) frozen broccoli florets
1 tlbs corn starch (or other thickening agent)
1 tlbs sesame seeds
non stick cooking spray
salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
Whisk the soy sauce, honey, ginger, mustard, onion powder, sesame oil and a 1/4 cup of water in a small bowl. Set aside.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Brown the chicken and season with salt and pepper.
Add the bag of frozen broccoli to the browned chicken. Pour the soy sauce mixture on top and cover. Continue to cook over medium heat, the sauce will begin to boil and steam the broccoli. Stir occasionally.
Once the broccoli is defrosted and the chicken is done (about 10 minutes) remove the cover. Whish the oat flour with an additional ¼ cup of water, pour in the skillet and turn the heat to high. This will thicken the sauce allowing it to coat the chicken a broccoli. (this part is optional - the sauce will be thin but it flavors the chicken and broccoli nicely)
Mix in the sesame seeds and serve!
Aprox Nutritional Information per serving
Servings Amount per Serving
Calories Fat Fiber 260 3g 6g
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Web Help
Here is the latest email from Dr. Jacobs.
The following is an article from Kim Komando:
Are you eating right?
Along with exercise, a good diet is the best thing you can do for your health. It will help you maintain your ideal bodyweight. And it will help you avoid diseases.
We're constantly bombarded with new diets. And we may hear conflicting information about the risks or benefits of certain foods.
So, when you're looking for diet information, visit a reliable source. The American Dietetic Association is one such source you should check.
At its site, you can learn about nutritional needs and maintaining a healthy weight. You'll learn to spot fad diets and how to talk to your kids about weight.
There's also food safety advice. Or, read up on the role nutrition plays in preventing specific diseases. This is one site you should bookmark!
www.eatright.org
The following is an article from Kim Komando:
Are you eating right?
Along with exercise, a good diet is the best thing you can do for your health. It will help you maintain your ideal bodyweight. And it will help you avoid diseases.
We're constantly bombarded with new diets. And we may hear conflicting information about the risks or benefits of certain foods.
So, when you're looking for diet information, visit a reliable source. The American Dietetic Association is one such source you should check.
At its site, you can learn about nutritional needs and maintaining a healthy weight. You'll learn to spot fad diets and how to talk to your kids about weight.
There's also food safety advice. Or, read up on the role nutrition plays in preventing specific diseases. This is one site you should bookmark!
www.eatright.org
Emotional vs. Physical Hunger
Here is a summary of my Weight Watchers meeting on January 26, 2010.
We eat when we are hungry. We eat when we are happy. We eat when we are sad. We eat when we are bored.
This week’s topic was to try to learn and be able to identify the differences between physical hunger and emotional hunger.
The Eight Traits of Emotional Hunger
Emotional and physical hunger can feel identical, unless you’ve learned to identify their distinguishing characteristics. The next time you feel voraciously hungry, look for these signals that your appetite may be based on emotions rather than true physical need. This awareness may head off an emotional overeating episode.
Source: Virtue, Doreen. Constant Craving A-Z. (Carlsbad, CA: Hay House, 1999).
Emotional Hunger
1. Is sudden. One minute you’re not thinking about food, the next minute you’re starving. Your hunger goes from 0-60 within a short period of time.
2. Is for a specific food. Your cravings are for one specific type of food, such as chocolate, pasta, or a cheeseburger. With emotional eating, you feel you need to eat that particular food. No substitute will do!
3. Is "above the neck." An emotionally based craving begins in the mouth and mind. Your mouth wants to taste that pizza or chocolate doughnut. Your mind whirls with thoughts about your desired food.
4. Is urgent. Emotional hunger urges you to eat NOW to instantly ease emotional pain with food.
5. Is paired with an upsetting emotion. Your boss yelled at you. Your child is in trouble at school. Your spouse is in a bad mood. Emotional hunger occurs in conjunction with an upsetting situation.
6. Involves automatic or absent-minded eating. Emotional eating can feel as if someone else’s hand is scooping up the ice cream and putting it into your mouth ("automatic eating"). You may not notice that you’ve eaten a bag of cookies (absent-minded eating).
7. Does not notice or stop eating, in response to fullness. Emotional overeating stems from a desire to cover up painful feelings. The person stuffs herself to deaden her troubling emotions and will eat second and third helpings, even though her stomach may hurt from over-fullness.
8. Feels guilty about eating. The paradox of emotional over eating is that the person eats to feel better and ends up berating herself for eating cookies, cakes, or cheeseburgers. She promises atonements to herself ("I'll start my diet tomorrow.")
Physical Hunger
1. Is gradual. Your stomach rumbles. One hour later, it growls. Physical hunger gives you steadily progressive clues that it’s time to eat.
2. Is open to different foods. With physical hunger, you may have food preferences, but they are flexible. You are open to alternative choices.
3. Is based in the stomach. Physical hunger is recognizable by stomach sensations. You feel gnawing, rumbling, emptiness, and even pain in your stomach with physical hunger.
4. Is patient. Physical hunger would prefer that you ate soon, but doesn’t command you to eat at that instant.
5. Occurs out of physical need. Physical hunger occurs because it has been four or five hours since your last meal. You may experience light-headedness or low energy if overly hungry.
6. Involves deliberate choices and awareness of the eating. With physical hunger, you are aware of the food on your fork, in your mouth, and in your stomach. You consciously choose whether to eat half your sandwich or the whole thing.
7. Stops when full. Physical hunger stems from a desire to fuel and nourish the body. As soon as that intention is fulfilled, the person stops eating.
8. Realizes eating is necessary. When the intent behind eating is based in physical hunger, there¹s no guilt or shame. The person realizes that eating, like breathing oxygen, is a necessary behavior.
Once you have determined which kind of hunger it is you have to set a plan. If you are physically hungry you need to eat. Try to prevent just grabbing anything by planning ahead. Make yourself a secret stash in your car, desk, purse etc. That way you know exactly how many points you are using. You never know when hunger will strike!
If it’s emotional hunger what are you going to do? Come up with a plan to help distract your mind from your emotions. One technique is to always keep your hands busy. Get moving and distract yourself from your thoughts!
We eat when we are hungry. We eat when we are happy. We eat when we are sad. We eat when we are bored.
This week’s topic was to try to learn and be able to identify the differences between physical hunger and emotional hunger.
The Eight Traits of Emotional Hunger
Emotional and physical hunger can feel identical, unless you’ve learned to identify their distinguishing characteristics. The next time you feel voraciously hungry, look for these signals that your appetite may be based on emotions rather than true physical need. This awareness may head off an emotional overeating episode.
Source: Virtue, Doreen. Constant Craving A-Z. (Carlsbad, CA: Hay House, 1999).
Emotional Hunger
1. Is sudden. One minute you’re not thinking about food, the next minute you’re starving. Your hunger goes from 0-60 within a short period of time.
2. Is for a specific food. Your cravings are for one specific type of food, such as chocolate, pasta, or a cheeseburger. With emotional eating, you feel you need to eat that particular food. No substitute will do!
3. Is "above the neck." An emotionally based craving begins in the mouth and mind. Your mouth wants to taste that pizza or chocolate doughnut. Your mind whirls with thoughts about your desired food.
4. Is urgent. Emotional hunger urges you to eat NOW to instantly ease emotional pain with food.
5. Is paired with an upsetting emotion. Your boss yelled at you. Your child is in trouble at school. Your spouse is in a bad mood. Emotional hunger occurs in conjunction with an upsetting situation.
6. Involves automatic or absent-minded eating. Emotional eating can feel as if someone else’s hand is scooping up the ice cream and putting it into your mouth ("automatic eating"). You may not notice that you’ve eaten a bag of cookies (absent-minded eating).
7. Does not notice or stop eating, in response to fullness. Emotional overeating stems from a desire to cover up painful feelings. The person stuffs herself to deaden her troubling emotions and will eat second and third helpings, even though her stomach may hurt from over-fullness.
8. Feels guilty about eating. The paradox of emotional over eating is that the person eats to feel better and ends up berating herself for eating cookies, cakes, or cheeseburgers. She promises atonements to herself ("I'll start my diet tomorrow.")
Physical Hunger
1. Is gradual. Your stomach rumbles. One hour later, it growls. Physical hunger gives you steadily progressive clues that it’s time to eat.
2. Is open to different foods. With physical hunger, you may have food preferences, but they are flexible. You are open to alternative choices.
3. Is based in the stomach. Physical hunger is recognizable by stomach sensations. You feel gnawing, rumbling, emptiness, and even pain in your stomach with physical hunger.
4. Is patient. Physical hunger would prefer that you ate soon, but doesn’t command you to eat at that instant.
5. Occurs out of physical need. Physical hunger occurs because it has been four or five hours since your last meal. You may experience light-headedness or low energy if overly hungry.
6. Involves deliberate choices and awareness of the eating. With physical hunger, you are aware of the food on your fork, in your mouth, and in your stomach. You consciously choose whether to eat half your sandwich or the whole thing.
7. Stops when full. Physical hunger stems from a desire to fuel and nourish the body. As soon as that intention is fulfilled, the person stops eating.
8. Realizes eating is necessary. When the intent behind eating is based in physical hunger, there¹s no guilt or shame. The person realizes that eating, like breathing oxygen, is a necessary behavior.
Once you have determined which kind of hunger it is you have to set a plan. If you are physically hungry you need to eat. Try to prevent just grabbing anything by planning ahead. Make yourself a secret stash in your car, desk, purse etc. That way you know exactly how many points you are using. You never know when hunger will strike!
If it’s emotional hunger what are you going to do? Come up with a plan to help distract your mind from your emotions. One technique is to always keep your hands busy. Get moving and distract yourself from your thoughts!
Friday, January 22, 2010
Corn Dog Casserole
Corn Dog Casserole
Source: wilberfamily
Ingredients
1 cup finely minced celery
1/4 c diced sweet onion
14 oz Oscar Mayer turkey dogs (used ff beef dogs)
14 oz Hormel turkey chili, no beans
1 8.5 oz Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 egg white
1/2 c. skim milk
1/4 c. water
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 oz shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese
Instructions
Spray skillet with butter flavor cooking spray. Sauté celery and onion for 5 minutes. Slice hot dogs into thin discs and add to skillet. Cook over med-hi heat for 5-7 minutes. Add turkey chili and heat through. Spray 11x7 pan with cooking spray. Pour skillet contents into pan. Top with cheese. Combine muffin mix, egg white, milk, water, and pepper; pour over hot dog mixture. Bake uncovered 400* for 25 minutes.
Yield: 6 servings= 349 Calories; 11g Fat (27.5% calories from fat); 22g Protein; 41g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 58mg Cholesterol; 1523mg Sodium. Exchanges: 2 Grain(Starch) ; 0 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 1 Fat.
Source: wilberfamily
Ingredients
1 cup finely minced celery
1/4 c diced sweet onion
14 oz Oscar Mayer turkey dogs (used ff beef dogs)
14 oz Hormel turkey chili, no beans
1 8.5 oz Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 egg white
1/2 c. skim milk
1/4 c. water
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 oz shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese
Instructions
Spray skillet with butter flavor cooking spray. Sauté celery and onion for 5 minutes. Slice hot dogs into thin discs and add to skillet. Cook over med-hi heat for 5-7 minutes. Add turkey chili and heat through. Spray 11x7 pan with cooking spray. Pour skillet contents into pan. Top with cheese. Combine muffin mix, egg white, milk, water, and pepper; pour over hot dog mixture. Bake uncovered 400* for 25 minutes.
Yield: 6 servings= 349 Calories; 11g Fat (27.5% calories from fat); 22g Protein; 41g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 58mg Cholesterol; 1523mg Sodium. Exchanges: 2 Grain(Starch) ; 0 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 1 Fat.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Commit to be Fit
Here is a summary of my Weight Watchers meeting on January 19, 2010.
We all know that exercise is extremely beneficial to our health. Combined with eating healthy,
Exercise :
1. can help burn excess calories
2. is a key skill to weigh maintenance
3. can improve health, energy levels, and mental focus
4. and can give you a feeling of accomplishment.
We can all come up with at least one reason not to exercise but this week really try to focus on getting in a minimum of 10 minutes of activity day. That is your weekly challenge. So come up with the best strategy to suit you. I have included some of the tips listed in the meeting:
1. Stock up on motivating DVDs or videos: You can bring aerobics, toning, yoga, tai chi, kickboxing, belly dancing and all your favorite workouts to you with a solid library of workout videos and DVDs.The library, Hastings, and many other places have such videos available to rent.
2. Try winter cleaning: Nobody ever said you could only perform a major house cleaning in the spring. Vacuum a little faster, scrub a little harder and stretch a little farther for a clean house and a toned you. Put on some dancing music and start shaking your bon bon!
3. Join a group: Look for a mall-walking posse, or join a gym. Having an activity support system might be just the motivation you need. Find a workout buddy that will not only challenge you but encourage you.
4. Move during commercials: We all hate when the commercials come on and interrupt our favorite shows. This week focus on doing some activity during those few minutes. Walk in place, do some situps or pushups maybe even some jumping jacks. Just find a way to move.
5. Parking: Parking farther away is an easy way to get in exercise. Maybe try taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or walking to a friend’s desk at work instead of phoning or emailing.
Keep in mind that the many benefits of exercise are far better and much longer-lasting than an extra 30 minutes in bed or in front of the television. I have included this email address for some other ideas about getting in a workout while at home http://www.essortment.com/family/homeexerciseto_sxqz.htm
Also for some great tips on how to get exercise into your everyday life go to www.squeezeitin.com These exercises have been seen on Dr. Oz and Good Morning America! At the top of the page you can click on exercises and vuala! Easy things to do during your everyday activities.
We all know that exercise is extremely beneficial to our health. Combined with eating healthy,
Exercise :
1. can help burn excess calories
2. is a key skill to weigh maintenance
3. can improve health, energy levels, and mental focus
4. and can give you a feeling of accomplishment.
We can all come up with at least one reason not to exercise but this week really try to focus on getting in a minimum of 10 minutes of activity day. That is your weekly challenge. So come up with the best strategy to suit you. I have included some of the tips listed in the meeting:
1. Stock up on motivating DVDs or videos: You can bring aerobics, toning, yoga, tai chi, kickboxing, belly dancing and all your favorite workouts to you with a solid library of workout videos and DVDs.The library, Hastings, and many other places have such videos available to rent.
2. Try winter cleaning: Nobody ever said you could only perform a major house cleaning in the spring. Vacuum a little faster, scrub a little harder and stretch a little farther for a clean house and a toned you. Put on some dancing music and start shaking your bon bon!
3. Join a group: Look for a mall-walking posse, or join a gym. Having an activity support system might be just the motivation you need. Find a workout buddy that will not only challenge you but encourage you.
4. Move during commercials: We all hate when the commercials come on and interrupt our favorite shows. This week focus on doing some activity during those few minutes. Walk in place, do some situps or pushups maybe even some jumping jacks. Just find a way to move.
5. Parking: Parking farther away is an easy way to get in exercise. Maybe try taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or walking to a friend’s desk at work instead of phoning or emailing.
Keep in mind that the many benefits of exercise are far better and much longer-lasting than an extra 30 minutes in bed or in front of the television. I have included this email address for some other ideas about getting in a workout while at home http://www.essortment.com/family/homeexerciseto_sxqz.htm
Also for some great tips on how to get exercise into your everyday life go to www.squeezeitin.com These exercises have been seen on Dr. Oz and Good Morning America! At the top of the page you can click on exercises and vuala! Easy things to do during your everyday activities.
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