Stay Alive Don't Eat and Drive

Of course we all know that we should not drink and drive. Over the last couple years we have also been educated on the dangers of texting while driving. But what about eating and driving--we do it, but here's why we should curb that habit (pardon the pun)...

Just like texting, eating and driving is a distraction. Let's stay focused on our driving and what is going on around us rather than adding another distraction. Even for those who can multi-task, multi-tasking behind the wheel is just not safe.

Are you more apt to have an accident while eating and driving then if you were focused completely on the road? You bet, but the reason I am challenging all of us to not eat behind the wheel is because it packs on the pounds which will cause more people pain, suffering, and ill health.

I was talking to a friend of mine last night who is a former truck driver. The conversation drifted to eating and driving and he told me that he used to be 100+ pounds heavier when he was a truck driver. Sure he ate junk food when he stopped for meals, but most of those pounds were because he was eating WHILE driving. He had bags of food right by the gear shift where they were easy to reach.

I too was a closet car eater.

Sometimes it was because it felt "safe" because I thought no one would see me. Other times it felt convenient, because I was in a hurry to get somewhere and didn't think I had the time to stop and eat a "real meal." Other times it was because I was on a long drive and I was using food as a way to keep myself awake. This all developed into a bad habit that applied fat directly to my waist, hips, and thighs...along with embarrassing food stains and a messy car strewn with empty bags that I couldn't possibly have eaten all by myself. Yet, of course, I was alone in the car, without anyone to blame by me, myself, and I.


My pledge to myself is to stop this unconscious eating in the car. If you are like most of us who are overweight, then you probably have some unconscious eating habits, too. Spend the next week being extra focused on WHERE you are eating and see if you find yourself chowing down while parked behind the wheel.

If you find that your car is not a mobile snack shack, then notice where or when you are eating unconsciously and use that information to help become more aware of your eating. Awareness along often brings about easy weight loss, because awareness is the first step to change.

For those of you who find the car is your favorite place for fast food then I hope you will join me in the Stay Alive Don't Eat and Drive challenge!

Easter Egg on Your Face?

Easter is over and the candy aisle at my local supermarket are stocked with 70% off items. Boy, in the past I would have totally stocked up.

I had to laugh as I watched a couple--both thin, by the way--having loads of fun "stocking up."

The big difference was they were buying 1 bag of candy and a couple Cadbury eggs--not lots of bags and the entire stash of eggs!

This is how people who are thin think and behave. A good lesson for me.

Chocolate freezes, right?

The funniest part was the guy actually suggested they get another bag--"it will freeze, won't it?" I couldn't resist and said, yes it freezes, but it will never make it to the freezer. The lady totally busted up and he said, "You're right, it probably won't make it through the weekend!"

The biggest difference isn't that they don't enjoy eating candy, it is they know it is not the best decision for their body and that they will regret it later. They will feel physically ill and so they choose to restrict what they bring into the house as a way to do a favor to themselves.

Pretty smart.

Do yourself a favor, and follow their example for weight loss success!

To your healthy, energetic and slender body--you deserve it!

Facebook vs Blog for Weight Loss Success Community

I'm curious. Do you like Facebook?

Do you use it for more than sharing photos and thoughts with friends and family?

Do you connect with other people, people you maybe have not met before?

If you are reading weight loss success blogs, like this one, would you be interested in information on Facebook also. Would you prefer to see information on Facebook (if so, why) or do you like finding blogs that are independent of the big FB...does it make a difference at all to you?

You see, I have a Facebook page...I actually "claimed" the Refuse To Diet name quite some time ago, but just recently built a page on it. I'd love to know what you think...

Things I like about Facebook:

1. it is super easy to share inspiring thoughts and messages from lots of great leaders. Since mindset is so important for weight loss success, I like to follow people who are positive thinkers, who uplift and empower us.
2. it is easy to put up quick snippets
   

Things I'm not thrilled with about Facebook:

1. it is easy to get lost and spend a lot of time there wandering the maze of interesting (and mundane) thoughts
2. it changes all the time...maybe I'm showing my age, but do we really HAVE to change everything so often--it gives me a headache, makes me frustrated...and I feel dumb. None of those things are good for my weight loss success

Which camp are you in: Facebook Fanatic or Foe?

Weight Loss Blogs Not Created Equal

I noticed today that I have not been doing a good job of keeping my blogroll up. Truth be told, I haven't been blogging as much as in the past, so I guess that should not be a surprise.

What is a surprise is how many of the blogs are no longer active. Hmm.

Why is that a surprise?

After all, achieving weight loss success is something that most people just can't maintain...it takes work...so does blogging about it (or about any topic for that matter.)

Some of the blogs that were pretty active in the past have converted to just being a vehicle to sell this pill or that potion. In other cases the person has moved on to a different topic.

I have found a few new blogs that are active that I enjoy. Most notably, Keeping the Pounds Off--which celebrates Jane's 220 pound loss--CONGRATS Jane!

The funniest "weight loss success" blog that I found is obviously filled with content from a 'robot' as opposed to a real, live, human-type being of flesh and blood (sometimes we have more flesh than we want, but better than a bot any day when it comes to understanding food issues!) The headline for the latest post reads "County Boards are bloated and Refuse to Diet"--HA! Great title, but hardly relevant!

So thanks to the REAL people like Jane who are out there, blogging, spreading the word, getting healthy, and commenting on other REAL blogs!

Measured Success for Weight Loss

I'm thinking about the different ways we can measure for our weight loss success. In this case, not measuring our bodies, but measuring what we take in to our mouths.

You know I Refuse to Diet and that diets don't work, so before you start thinking I'm just talking about a diet by another name, hear me out!

I'm not talking about measuring as a way of limitation--that would be a diet.

I'm saying we should measure because if we honestly look at what we are eating and drinking, most of us don't know what a "serving" is! By measuring we can train ourselves to what a serving looks like in our glass or on our plate, and to what a serving feels like in our bellies!

Of course we do not have to measure every morsel that goes into our mouths for the rest of our lives. On the other hand, it doesn't hurt to double check ourselves once in a while, especially if we find our clothes are getting a bit tighter and yet we feel like we have not changed our eating patterns.

Realize that what a restaurant serves is usually considerably more than a serving's worth, so we don't want to eat restaurant portions all the time. However, restaurants also measure what they serve. That way they know how many patrons they can serve and they can stay on their financial budget.

Measuring what we eat and drink can keep us honest with ourselves. It is another tool that we can use to keep our eating at a conscious level. It allows us to be in control and to make the choices about what we eat, and how much.

Give yourself a chance to have weight loss success by measuring--at least once in a while--to be sure you are heading down the right path and making healthy choices!

Facebook and Refuse to Diet

I just published Refuse to Diet's Facebook page. I've had the name for a while, but never did make it public. So today I was playing with the Timeline layout and created a cover image for Refuse to Diet...

What do you think?

Are you all interested in communicating on Facebook, do you prefer Blogs like this one, going to the stand alone website (RefuseToDiet.com), or ???

I know we all have limited time...so where to our allotted internet time?

Gosh...that sounds oddly like a diet, doesn't it!

Weight Loss Success Journey NOT Paved with Diet Soda

Diet soda is not the fantastic beverage for weight loss success that many (especially the makers) would like you to believe. I've said it before. I'll say it again. For most* people it does no good, and for many it causes harm. Because it has zero, or close to zero, calories many people drink it without thinking about all the chemicals they are putting in their bodies. And again because it has few calories people seem to think it is actually good for them--or at least won't make them fat!

Study after study is showing that these thoughts are wrong. This is marketing at its worst. It is on a par with marketing cigarettes as cool while knowing they cause lung cancer.

Think diet soda will make you thin? Then why are so many people who drink it obese? And they didn't just start drinking it...many of them have been drinking it for YEARS...all the while packing on more pounds.

Diet soda is not the answer.

According to a new article posted on Yahoo, more and more people are coming forward to admit they are addicted to diet soda.

Whether diet soda is technically an "addiction" or really a habit is still under debate.

Addiction definition from Wikipedia:

Historically, addiction has been defined as physical and/or psychological dependence on psychoactive substances (for example alcohol, tobacco, heroin, caffeine and other drugs) which cross the blood-brain barrier once ingested, temporarily altering the chemical milieu of the brain. Broadly, addiction is defined as the continued use of a mood altering addictive substance or behaviours despite adverse consequences.

Drinking as little as one diet soda a day is linked to a variety of "adverse consequences" including Heart Attack and Stroke, Kidney Trouble, Preterm Deliver, and yes, Weight Gain

The article continues:

Wouldn’t it be ironic if instead of helping you lose weight, diet sodas had the opposite effect? A study at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio found that compared to those who drank no diet sodas, study participants who did had a 70 percent greater increase in waist circumference; worse, drinking two or more diet sodas daily led to ballooning waist circumference that was 500 percent greater than those who drank none.

For years I've been advising against diet sodas for people on a health journey and for those who want to have weight loss success, I am not the only one. The 'Eat This, Not That' guy David Zinczenko wrote an article "The Truth About Diet Soda" back in December 2008.

Don't think you have to be "perfect" to have weight loss success. Focus on being HEALTHY first and you will achieve the right weight without damaging your body and healthy in the long-run by following some low calorie diet plan that includes unhealthy choices.
----
*I say "most" because I there are few rules that can be applied to literally every person on the planet, but in all honesty I have not seen a single report that diet soda is helpful to anyone. However, there may be a person who is diabetic for example who for whatever reason cannot give up soda 100% and therefore chooses a diet soda. I still do not buy into the soda being "good" for them, or not causing them harm, but the choice is certainly theirs to make.

Don't Hold Your Breath

We breathe by nature. We don't have to think about it.

What would happen if we didn't breathe?

Of course, if we could hold our breath long enough we would die. But long before that we would be building up the supply of carbon dioxide in our system. Carbon dioxide is the waste product we exhale.

Carbon dioxide is also the chemical the food industry uses to put the "POP" into our soda--the bubbles.

Just another reason to forgo soda...why do we drink something that is going to put more waste product into our body. That's kind of like eating...well a special ingredient that was featured in a recent, popular book and movie!

Wikipedia has more information about carbon dioxide and how it works in our body, and how it is used in products today.

Seriously, soda just adds chemicals, sugar and gas to our system...and many have caffeine on top of that. All of this does lead to more cravings (the sugar-free kind is shown to make us want more sweets and to become accustomed to sweeter foods.)

I'm not saying it is easy! I think I am actually fortunate that I am allergic to Aspartame...that really helped me to kick the diet soda habit. Since I knew I didn't want to be drinking all that sugar I switched to water (okay, and coffee!) years back.

I still love my coffee and I have a soda once in a blue moon...but mostly I drink lots, and lots, of water! I attribute much of my weight loss success to this healthy habit.

For Weight Loss Success Ditch the Soda

I’ve written about this before, but a lot of people don’t believe me that a key to weight loss success is to stop drinking diet soda.

No, I’m not telling you to load up on the sugary stuff--it isn’t good for you either:

• Drinking soda is shown to increase the amount of fat on your organs, which is a bigger threat to your health than the fat on your hips.
• Sodas (and some sports drinks) contain lots of chemicals that can cause nerve disorders, memory loss and skin problems.
• Sodas contain GMO ingredients—high-fructose corn syrup is bad for our health for many reasons, but there are unknown risks that we face when we drink it (most sodas are sweetened with this man-made poison.) GMOs are a new addition to our diet, only appearing in the 1990s, and the long-term effects are still unknown, but recent studies are suggesting they may contribute to disease, premature aging, and infertility.

Read more: http://health.yahoo.net/experts/eatthis/3-shocking-soda-facts

Don’t switch to diet soda—there are plenty of studies that show the artificial sweeteners are even worse!

Of course, moderation is the best course. If the thought of going without a soda entirely is going to send you on a binge, then allow yourself a little now and then.

For your weight loss success (and overall health) stop drinking soda (or at least start weaning yourself off) and you can easily drop weight—or you can eat more, either way, you win!

Weight Loss Success Despite No to Workout (or Desire to!)

Some days on my weight loss success journey are harder than others. And sometimes the idea of working out exhausts me. When that happens, I ask myself a question before moving on.

Could this "exhaustion" be mental or emotional rather than physical? If I wasn't exhausted before the idea of a workout then the answer is almost always "YES!"

Rather than appealing to my intellect with all kinds of facts about how exercise will actually energize me, or if I want to be healthy I have to move my body (all true), I fight fire with fire--I go for an emotional response.

No, I don't yell or cry, cajole or beg, but I apply my '1 jumping jack approach.' Somedays, it is literally,

"OK, so just do 1 and if you are still exhausted you can quit"

...and somedays I repeat "and 1 more...and 1 more...and 1 more" until I have completed a good healthy workout!

This morning part of me wanted to do my 15 minute routine, but another part of me clearly did not. 3 minutes in and that part was ready to quit. So I told myself "1 more set, then if you really want to stop, you can." Suddenly, I was at 10 minutes, so I said, "awesome! 2/3 of the way there, you can do 5 more minutes!" And I did. :-)

This journey to health and permanent weight loss success is not a straight line. Sometimes we have to learn how to maneuver our hearts and minds, as well as our bodies, along the path.

Time Flies is Weight Loss Success Challenge

The fact that time can go whizzing by, hour by hour, day by day, week by week, etc by etc, is a huge challenge for us when we are trying to have weight loss success.

As an example I found myself noting: Gosh, it has already been a week since my last post, where on earth does the time go?

The same could be said about not having eaten in hours and therefore I am ravenous...which leads to making unhealthy food choices.

Time flying by is also a good reason to make an appointment with yourself to move your body first thing in the morning--then the moving you do during the day is a bonus!

Of course it is also important to move throughout the day...studies show that sitting all day not only makes us fatter, but can lead to all sorts of diseases, including cancer. And they are not talking about cancer of the buttocks, as appropriate as that might be.

What are your health-wise time saving tricks? I'd love to hear them and promise I'll pass them on--giving you full credit, of course!

Let's all commit to taking control of our lives and our time in order to achieve the weight loss success we all deserve!

Weight Loss Success Tip: Do a Little Dance

The most important thing to remember about moving our bodies for our weight loss success is to have fun! I've been playing in the pool this week and a friend of mine was so excited because she got a workout in by dancing around the house!

What you do is not nearly as important as just doing something. Do something you enjoy. It can be the same thing every day or it can be different.

One of the reasons dancing works so well for weight loss success is that you can vary it so easily! Just change the music and you tend to move differently. So enjoy lots of different songs--long and short.

Get down tonight!

True Weight Loss Success Goal is NOT to Lose Weight

I know it sounds like I am quite confused, because I know that all of us on the weight loss journey want to lose weight, or keep off the weight we have already lost. So how can I say that true weight loss success goal is NOT to lose weight?

Easy.

Because it is not.

At least not entirely.

The best measure of weight loss success is not the weekly or monthly results of pounds lost, therefore it stands to reason that those pounds should not be the goal either.

The best measure of our success is our long-term results. Yes, that does include the pounds of fat that we dropped on the side of the road during the journey, but it goes so much further than that.

While we are shedding fat we also want to be increasing our muscle and improving our lung capacity. A toned, energetic, healthy body is the best measure (and goal) of weight loss success.

Don’t focus so hard on losing pounds…they are too easily found again! Put your attention on the true weight loss success goals—improved health, increased mobility, better flexibility, increased strength, greater endurance, feeling better physically and emotionally, added energy, increased confidence, and an appreciation for your own worth.

Weight Loss Success Resolutions for 2012

Resolutions are not really my thing. They remind me too much of diets--which are definitely not my thing! That being said, so many people believe in resolutions and that the best thing to drop unwanted pounds is to write resolutions for weight loss success I decided to give it a go.

I actually made 12 weight loss success resolutions. Seems like an appropriate number for 2012. I know that by following these resolutions my health will be better.

I divided my resolutions into 3 categories with the most important category being having the right mindset for weight loss, followed by resolutions for moving my body in order to have weight loss success and finally (and arguably least important) resolutions about what goes into my mouth.

But don't look for a list of specific exercises I will do, or a list of foods I will eat, or a list of foods to avoid. All of my resolutions deal with attitude, because I know that my positive attitude is much more important for my weight loss success than following a litany of rules and regulations about how much/when/where I will exercise or eat.

If you want to read the full resolutions, you can hop over to my main site RefuseToDiet.com.

I'd love to hear about your weight loss success resolutions--or if you didn't make any resolutions I'd love to hear what your thoughts are about them and how your weight loss journey is going!

To a healthy, happy New Year!