I’ve been working on living a healthier lifestyle.  I’ve noticed that in the last year, my metabolism appears to have slowed down. It takes a lot more work to lose weight. It’s frustrating, so I am always in search of tips to tweak my diet and exercise routine in a way that will translate to more successful weight loss and overall health.
I found a great list of diet tips from AOL Health. These tips are tried and true favorites of top US registered dieticians.
Some are no-brainers, like switch out your whole milk for 1% (I use Fat Free myself). Did …read more

If you’re like me, you’ve read the magazine articles about portion control and portion sizing when it comes to losing weight and/or keeping healthy, but you can’t keep all the measurements and sizes straight in your head. If you’ve got a few bucks to spare, you don’t have to anymore!

The Measure Up Bowl is a handy dish that measures foods for you, without having to use and dirty separate measuring cups. Simply pour or serve whatever you’re eating and then eat directly from the bowl, whether it’s a snack of mixed nuts or a dinner of spaghetti and meatballs.
They come …read more

I don’t know if you can technically call it a book review if I’m still reading the book.
I’ve been reading Kim Bensen’s book Finally Thin. It seems like I’m always struggling with staying on a healthy eating plan, and gaining and losing those same pounds over and over again. Finally Thin sounded like an interesting read to me, and I haven’t been disappointed.
The book itself isn’t a diet plan, but it does outline her ten step system you can use with any diet plan. It’s a very inspirational book, and provides motivation to help you through those tough days when …read more

It’s a few weeks in to my eating consciously as suggested by Paul McKenna’s I Can Make You Thin on TLC.

Here’s what I know so far.

If one kept this up for a lifetime they could likely eat whatever they wanted and not gain weight.

Here’s the thing.

I used to think I loved food.

Turns out I loved eating food while watching TV, reading, flipping through a magazine.

Eating Consciously – thinking about the food, tasting the food, looking at the food, chewing the food slowly – well, that’s just boring.

I used to think I made a bad-ass spaghetti. Eh. It’s okay.

Loved, loved, …read more

Alli is the best-selling “weight-loss miracle pill” right now.
Of course, the side effect is that you crap your pants.
Come on Ladies. Is being a few pounds thinner worth crapping your pants?
If it’s worth that, then why is it not worth walking a mile or two?
Another study reports that women would rather take 10 years off their lives rather than gaining 50 pounds.
Well, if you gain 50 pounds you kind of DO take 10 years off your life, don’t you? And if you are willing to sacrifice 10 years of time, then why not give up 1 hour a day to yourself by exercising?
I’m …read more

So I weighed in this morning at 7 pounds less than 5 weeks ago.
That 2 hours before bed seems to be the magic key to weight loss. Well, that’s a little simplistic, because I made all the other changes first over the last year-and-a-half. - drinking water, extreme amounts of exercise, whole grain bread and noodles, baked not fried, and adding breakfast and healthy snacks.
In Bob Greene’sThe Best Life Diet you can’t eat 2 hours before bed. It took me 16 months to lose about 20-25 pounds doing all the other stuff put together.  That’s what? 1.4 pounds a month?
But, in one month, actually …read more

Have you read YOU: The Owner’s Manual: An Insider’s Guide to the Body that Will Make You Healthier and Younger? Since reading it I’ve been reading the backs of labels.
I didn’t know it but High Fructose Corn Syrup is my favorite food on the planet. I’m actually unsure if it’s possible not to eat it. Maybe if you have access to a lot of health food stores in a big-city you might be able to do it, but I’m questioning whether in a meat-n-potatoes small town it’s even a viable and affordable option.
Some of the thing I previously believed were healthy …read more

I missed my face.
My reflection is how I identify with my self.
It’s mysterious to me how I could look in the mirror every day, putting on make up, fixing my hair, or brushing my teeth and then be totally shocked when I saw a photo of myself. I was fat and didn’t see it. The power of denial about my weight issue confounded me for quite some time. I would see what I expected to see in the mirror, a memory of me, disregarding the number on my pants telling me there was an ever increasing problem.
Since losing 20-25 pounds I’m …read more

Star Jones, formerly of The View, tells all in the first person on Glamour.com. It’s a raw look at the emotional after-effects of gastric bypass surgery, and why she was trying to keep it private while on The View. She’s lost 160 pounds in three years.
Four years later, I have been successful in maintaining a healthy weight and am proud of myself for that. I try to exercise regularly and use the portion control guidelines I was taught when I had the surgery. I’m not saying that in order to be happy, women need to be a certain size, but I am …read more

I think I may have figured out the Holy Grail of holiday distress: The holiday cocktail party.
How can something that is supposed to bring cheer, actually bring fear? And as a result, holiday bulk?
The culprit is mingling.
Many of us a are afraid of mingling — even some of the most assertive and confident among us fear having to navigate through a crowded room to initiate small talk with strangers.
So what do we do instead? We over-eat and drink instead.
I for one find mingling to be the most unnatural form of social behavior on the planet…I dread going to any …read more