Olympic Fitness and Weight Loss Tip

I love watching the Olympics...and I love learning lessons from these incredible athletes.

One of the big weight loss tips I've gained from this, the 21st Winter Olympics, is that it is possible to be too strict...that over working or being to rigid can result in our downfall rather than getting a gold around our neck.

The gold medal we are going after is our health, and we aren't working for just one day or event that happens every four years (thank goodness!)...but there is the pressure that we put on ourselves to be "perfect."

Our version of the perfect 10 score (which is no longer used in the Olympics, so I'm showing my age here) is sticking to our diet without fail and working out every day super hard.

Let's learn from the athletes and apply it to our weight loss--sometimes taking a bit of a break can give us better results.

Many of the Nordic skiers who ended up with medals were ill earlier in the season. The illness didn't make them win, so don't run out and get sick in hopes that will make you more fit! But sometimes by taking a break away from the strict routine they gave their bodies and spirits a needed rest...just in time for them to excel in Vancouver.

If you find that you are bored with your routine, or you have reached a plateau in your results, then follow this weight loss tip: try something different. Try a different food, a different type of exercise...or even just give yourself a mini-vacation! Give you head a chance to think about something else for a while, and your body a chance to get used to where it is.

Rather than pushing harder because you are discouraged...give yourself a little break so you can come back again and win in the long run!

Weight Loss Success is a Dream of Olympic Proportion

If weight loss were an Olympic sport and there were only a limited number of medals given out then it would make sense why so many of Americans are overweight. Fortunately, we don't have to compete with anyone but ourselves to achieve our goal of weight loss success! And the medals are limitless--anyone can get the gold in this race of a life time.

The key to achieving success...when so many people have lost weight only to regain it, or not lost it all...is your mindset. Start there and commit to making small changes and being consistent.

It takes consistency in your actions...from moving your body a little bit more (no, you don't have to work out 8 hours a day like Apolo Ohno), to eating more healthy foods (don't believe the commercials...just because a company pays to be an Olympic sponsor does not mean the athletes eat or drink the stuff on a regular basis!) and keeping your mind on the prize.

Be inspired by the Olympians to be your best and to get a little bit better every day. They may make it look easy, but they work very hard for their success. You don't have to work as hard...just take those little steps, one after another, moving you forward.

To learn more about my Refuse to Diet philosophy...and how the Olympics have inspired me, go to RefuseToDiet where I prove that Weight Loss Success Starts with Your Mind...Not Your Mouth...I give tips and tools on mindset, exercises for weight loss and healthy eating that is quick, easy and won't break the budget!

5 Weight Loss Tips for the 21st Winter Olympics

I love watching the Olympics...winter and summer both...heck, I'd probably watch a spring and fall Olympics...ooh, guess they'd better call it the autumn Olympics...

Anyway, watching the opening ceremonies last night got me thinking...and a sore butt...

I'm visiting my mom, helping her recover from surgery (she's doing great and I'll be heading home soon) so I'm a bit out of my element and it really was an eye-opener.

Wow, was that show long! I have TIVO (and if you don't, you really ought to consider it) so I fast forward through all the commercials. On a typical hour-long show that saves me about 20 minutes! I cringe to think how much time we would have saved if we had been able to cruise through the commercials last night. Maybe my mom would have even been able to stay awake for it.

One of the frustrating things for me, besides the length and the number of commercials, was here I am in California...on the same time zone as the Olympics...and we are having to wait to watch them until "prime time." What is up with that? It meant the show wasn't over until midnight. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Especially when it was well over an hour into the show before the ceremonies even started.

OK, so what does this have to do with losing weight?

First, do what you can to NOT sit on your butt for 4 hours of television. The athletes certainly don't...if they want to achieve their goals they are out moving...some may be sitting for hours on sleds...but they are actively working their muscles while doing it.

Tivo is one option. Don't have Tivo and want to watch the Olympics? I understand...get up and move as much as you can. There are plenty of commercials which allow for you to get in some quick laps around the living room or do some isometric exercises.

Second, eat like an athlete...sort of...smaller quantities, but eat the same good healthy food that an athlete eats, a good balance of protein, complex carbs and fats. Be sure to eat lots of veggies and fruits.

Third, drink lots of clean, pure water. I know Coke and Budweiser are sponsors, but you don't need the empty calories. The athletes will be drinking more water than anything else...again, follow their model and keep hydrated...the best way to do that is with good ol' water!

Fourth, avoid eating unconsciously throughout the games. Don't have snacks out unless you are going to be okay with eating them...because you probably will. Figure out what you are going to eat...have some easy foods...or if you can prepare foods and watch the athletes at the same time, do that. Most experts will tell you not to eat in front of the television...but I don't find that to be very realistic, especially during the Olympics...heck, when are they NOT on? Instead make your goal to be mindful about your eating.

Fifth, if you have trouble keeping from eating while watching then figure out something else you can do with your hands. This can be a big challenge...keeping your hands busy and watching television at the same time...but experiment with a few things and see if they help you. I used to do a lot of embroidery and found that I could do that while I was watching television. I know others who knit. The other night I did some mending. But sewing is not the only thing you can do to keep your hands busy...you can even combine keeping your hands busy with exercising by using some light hand weights (or canned goods from the kitchen cupboard)...do some curls and other upper body work and you might just look more like the athletes you are watching!

Our Olympic challenge--to achieve our health goals...we may never be Olympians, but we can and will achieve an Olympic feat...we will achieve the healthy, energetic, slender bodies we deserve--as long as we focus on our goals and take steps every day to get closer and closer to them!

Traveling, Tech Troubles and Feeling Fat, Triple Whammy of Weight Loss Challenges

I'm visiting my mom right now. Visiting is technically accurate, but really only partially true. She had surgery on Monday and I wanted to be here to help her through it. I am glad I came and really appreciate that I have the ability to!

Traveling in general can be rough on our health and fitness goals...for me, visiting family is a bigger challenge than a business trip or simply going on vacation. They all have their challenges but being in my mom's home sets off lots of triggers for me. I love my mom, but there are tons of memories that come up and the stresses of being under someone else's roof that just does a number on my head and emotions. Top that off with the fact that she is aging and I'm having to face her increasingly fleeting memory and her dwindling size...it is just a bit scary and I don't want to have to face it. Tempting to bury myself in a few gallons of ice cream. Doesn't really make it go away, but I can forget about it for a while...maybe...not really. It doesn't work any better now than it did when I was a kid...or any of the hundred + pounds in between!

Ironically, I have had major technology issues during this trip. Ironic because I am in San Jose, California...the Silicon Valley...home of so much of this fantastic technology. Fortunately my brother, much more of a tech-head than I, was able to get things sorted out...but I was left with little ability to be online for several days. That left me with fewer things to keep my hands busy...not a good thing to have when ice cream calls from the freezer!

To top all this off, I am feeling fat...it is an interesting concept, that of self-image. I look in the mirror and see this huge person, yet I put on my clothes and they only feel a little tighter than normal. Have I really put on weight in just a few days? Lord knows it is possible for me to do...but haven't I learned all about emotional eating and how to avoid it? I mean, after all, didn't I just write a book about it???

So, I decided to take a closer look and I noticed a couple things. First I noticed that my fingers are pudgier...hmmm...that does not happen from a few days of stress eating...then I noticed my legs...where my socks stop there is a marked indentation that normally isn't there. Ah ha, Dr. Watson, I have figured it out! I am bloated! OK, makes sense...flying...drinking less water than normal...stress...hurray! I'm not fat--it is just water!

What a great relief that was...I don't have to hide my head in shame...the weight loss without dieting expert has not somehow magically gained 100 pounds in a week...and fortunately I took the time to really look at my hands...they were for me the big give away.

The truth is, I have eaten more ice cream than normal this week. And I have also NOT eaten ice cream on numerous occasions when I felt like it...because I took a moment to interrupt the urge and recognize it was the siren call of emotional eating, not physical or even pleasurable eating...or even eating just because it was there.

I'm proud of myself for all the successes I've had this week...and I may (or may not) go home weighing a pound or two more than when I arrived...but I am reassured any weight gain I do experience will be minimal and temporary. I have reconnected with support folks who help me when I am stressed...I have my walking shoes ready to roll...all is good.

Why is all this important to you? Because if I can do it, then you can too! Learning to be gentle with ourselves and not always expect perfection is a very important factor for those of us who suffer from "good girl syndrome"....we must learn to allow ourselves to have flaws and weaknesses...ironically, by allowing for these weaknesses we actually suffer from them less!

If you are feeling fat, take a minute and check out your fingers, your legs...or whatever will help you to identify if this is real or just bloat...if you are having tech troubles, or some other challenge that is causing you some stress and making you want to eat, who can you call on to help you through it...and if you are traveling, then drink your water, walk, and cut yourself a little slack!

Healthy Ice Cream...Fact or Fantasy

I love ice cream. It seems the higher the fat content, the more I like it. Based on the Spanish study I mentioned yesterday it might be at least in part because fat boosts my serotonin levels...I don't know if it is the fat, but ice cream has always been my #1 comfort food, my drug of choice when attempting to escape my emotions.

I also just like ice cream. I like the flavors, the texture...

But I don't like what eating ice cream does to my waistline!

My current solution is to eat really good ice cream in small quantities. These days rather than eating a half gallon (or two) in a day, I am satisfied with a small dish. That means a pint lasts for 3 servings.

Low-fat ice cream doesn't make it in my book...and don't even think about the ones filled with artificial sweeteners. I know that those fake "sugars" increase my carb cravings. I'm much better off with high-fat, "real" ice cream.

I just read about a new alternative--ice cream from goat's milk. Goat's milk is lower in fat and the fat it does have is more easily broken down by our bodies. This might be a really good option. The brand I read about is called Laloo's...not available in my town, but if you have a health food store nearby, give it a try--and then let me know what you think!

When you decide you want ice cream, the healthiest choice is to go with the "real deal" and savor smaller portions. That does a couple things for you--gives you the satisfaction that the low-cal versions just don't provide; retrains you mind that you CAN have "real" food and lose weight; helps you in achieving weight loss goals by reducing the unconscious eating behavior or sitting down with a huge bowl or carton of cream and chowing down.

Verdict? Healthy ice cream is in how you think about it...not the ingredients in the carton.

Eat Fat to Lose Weight and Beat the Blues

Do you eat because you feel depressed?

Even having lost 125 pounds and fought off the demon of depression, I still have strong urges to grab a pint of comfort when stressed or depressed...in my case the pint is usually Ben & Jerry's.

I know from personal experience that eating all that sugar only temporarily helps the feeling of depression.

Well a study done in Spain indicates we can actually eat foods to help prevent depression in the first place!

The famous "Mediterranean diet" appears to be the answer--eating an abundance of fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats is olive oil, nuts and fish.

It may be the fats that have the biggest benefit--olive oil has oleic acid, and omega-3 fatty acids from fish give our serotonin levels a boost. Serotonin is the feel-good hormone, and is what many anti-depressants target.

This is another important reason why we shouldn't just eliminate or drastically cut back on all fats. Keeping some good, healthy fats in our diet is important for our moods, our mental abilities...and it also helps your insides stay regulated and your skin feeling smooth.

Eat healthy fats as part of your plan for losing or maintaining weight. It is a healthy part of any successful, permanent weight loss program.

Diet Drinks Destroy Kidneys: Don't Drink Them to Achieve Health and Weight Loss Goals

I've said it before, "diet" drinks are not the best choice for us when we are trying to lose weight or achieve health goals.

New evidence is showing that consuming diet drinks can damage your kidneys!

Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston conducted a study over 11 years involving more than 3000 women. They analyzed what beverages these women drank over the time. Turns out women who drank2 or more (just 2!) diet sodas a day (that's 24+ oz) have twice the chance of their kidney function decline at a more rapid rate when compared to women who drank less than one can a month.

With age our kidney function naturally decreases. Speeding up the decrease in function can increase our risk of kidney failure. When you kidneys fail you end up on dialysis...I've known a couple people in that situation and it is no fun! 3 days each and every week they are hooked up to a machine that does what our healthy kidneys do. They are lucky there are such machines, without the machines they would die...

Besides all that, it has been shown that the fake sweeteners that are in the diet sodas actually increase our hunger levels and cravings for carbs!

So do yourself a favor, ditch the diet drinks! You don't need them to achieve your healthy, energetic, slender body!