Get out a pencil and notebook, and begin your diet by recording everything you eat; when; and how much. No, this is not a substitute for weight watchers or any other diet plan. There are no rules to follow; no special menus; just you and your daily caloric intake. This is a user friendly diet which enables you to determine why you eat certain foods and how you can tweak it into a more healthy, reasonable and realistic regimen.
For the first week, eat your normal meals, snacks and desserts. Write down every little morsel you have put into your mouth; note the day, time, and amount ingested. Add notes on what you were doing at the time you began eating late night snacks, or consuming slices of cake or morsels of chocolate in between meals. At the end of the week, read the journal. Identify the areas in which you can improve your eating habits, and write them down in red. Lets continue on to week two; or what will be known as substitution week.
The first time you reach for a snack, stop! Grab a piece of fruit instead. If you absolutely must have it; take one bite and throw the rest away.
Eat it slowly; savoring every bit of it. Remember, there are no rules here; you are just readjusting your eating habits. Before going out to the supermarket, eat a healthy breakfast or lunch.
Instead of bacon and eggs, have a bowl of high fiber cereal with blueberries. If its lunch, have a turkey sandwich on rye. Drink water with every meal; in fact, drink two plus two before bedtime.
As you prepare dinner, check the journal. What did you substitute for the red meat, bread, potatoes and creamy salad dressing? Fish, leafy green vegetables, rice and low fat dressing; excellent!
After washing and drying the dishes, go out for a walk for about 20 minutes. Settling in for the night, you turn on the TV and begin to crave something sweet. Take out the box of crackers you bought earlier in the day; have a few. Perhaps another bowl of cereal with skim milk would suffice.
Cravings gone? Good.
Continue this monitoring process for the entire week; substituting all of the suggestions you wrote down in the journal in red. Week three; weigh yourself.
Did you lose pounds? If you did; then congratulations. If you did not; go back to the journal and begin again. Did you understand the point of this exercise? There was no obsessing over what to eat; you made the choices; and you either stuck with them or did not.
Eventually, you will. Why? Because you are not a quitter; you never have been. This is just one more challenge you invite openly and realistically. You will succeed because you wont accept anything less.
Dieting shouldn't be hard. For fast and easy diet and fitness tips visit Patricia's site at http://The-Weightloss-Guide.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Patricia_Zelkovsky |
The 10 best fitness apps
Keeping motivated to increase and improve our fitness levels can be a tricky task. We have selected the top 10 fitness apps to help you reach your goal.
Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie: Fat Camp Counselors?
We truly live in the age of the airhead. The next season of 'reality' show The Simple Life will have Paris Hilton and Nicole Ritchie as camp counselors. "The girls[...] will be guiding the children through a week of weight loss and fitness exercises." (src)...
Dairy: Is it good or bad for you?
There are numerous arguments for and against dairy consumption, with some experts regarding dairy intake as harmful. Is dairy good or bad for our health?
Singapore To Cancel Anti-Obesity Program
Singapore plans to end a 15-year-old anti-obesity program in schools after complaints from parents that overweight children, in particular, were being singled out and teased by classmates....
Teens get as much physical activity as 60-year-olds, study shows
Teenagers might get less physical activity than previously believed, according to a new study by researchers from the Johns Hopkins University.
Spain Removes Skinny Mannequins From Stores
Last year during Fashion Week, Spain banned models with a BMI under 18 from participating. This year, the Health Ministry in Spain is charging ahead with a new program that will prevent mannequins under a size 6 (a Spanish 38) from being displayed in store windows. Womens' sizes are also being standardized. 85,000 women across Spain, ages 12 to...
Food: Can Variety Breed Indulgence?
Every morning I have the same breakfast. With the exception of a few minor variations I have been eating the same breakfast day in and day out for years. Some people believe that too much variation can lead to indulgence. Is this really true?...
Dogs: Personal trainers for older owners?
Older dog owners walk more than non-dog owners, according to a new study, adding further evidence that owning a dog is good for our health.
Is Subway Better Than McDonald's?
Subway have taken aim at McDonald's with their new "Fresh Fit" meals. The combo meals are compared side-by-side against a Big Mac meal. Subway's meal comes out at 265 calories, while the Big Mac meal hits a gluttonous 1230 calories. But there's more to it than that......