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.
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*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!