Nutrition and Diet

Inspiration for Motivation

2009-09-08T18:52:00.001-07:00

What is it that motivates people to do what they do? It seems that some days we are very motivated to accomplish our goals and other days we're not. Life would be wonderful if we felt motivated enough on a daily basis to accomplish our dreams and goals but there will be many days when we feel frustrated and defeated.

If your goal is to lose 20 pounds by following a sensible diet, there will be days when you don't feel like following your plan. So how do motivated people stay motivated?

Successful people stay motivated because they do a little each day to accomplish their goal despite how they feel. There is no magic solution for increasing motivation. You must accomplish a little each day, even on days when you don't feel good or motivated. Like the old Nike saying goes "Just Do it"

Losing weight is not just a goal but a discipline. Like anything else in life, losing weight takes effort. No diet pill or herbal formula will make you lose weight. To lose weight, you must burn more calories than you take in. This is accomplished by sticking to a sensible diet plan. Regular exercise helps to.

So how do you stay on a sensible diet plan to lose weight? Take it one day at a time. First, you need a plan. Write down foods you like to eat and create a diet menu of foods that form a sensible diet plan.

Control your portion size and be sure to eat 3 to 5 times daily. Never skip breakfast and prepare some of your meals in advance. Losing weight doesn't happen automatically, it takes planning and lots of it! It was easy to put the weight on, but it requires a lot of hard work to get those nasty pounds off.

Follow a sensible diet plan each day and don't beat yourself when you overeat. Tomorrow is another day and get right back on your plan. Remember, you can accomplish anything in life when you have a plan and take action on a daily basis.

Set weekly goals and if you achieve those goals, reward yourself. (with non- food related rewards!) For example, if you lose 2lbs this week, get that pedicure you need, but if you did not lose the weight, don’t get the pedicure. Believe me things like that work. You can also try putting away a few bucks with each weekly weight loss. I saved for a larger reward by putting $10 away each week that I lost my 2 pounds. Choose a wonderful reward for hitting your goal (or dream) weight, it will make it all worthwhile! I have a beautiful silk dress in mind for my goal weight reward in March 2010.

Put pictures around the house of a time when you were the ideal weight you are aiming for, or pictures of someone else’s figure with your face on them. Look at them each day, work towards that picture each day in the choices that you make.

Write a vision statement… What will you look like? Feel like?... when you lose the weight? How will your life be different from what it is today? What will you do differently? Write it out in your journal or print a copy and put somewhere you can see it daily or weekly. Go back to that statement often. Are you living the vision??

Limit alcohol when attending a brunch or dinner out. I often take the car, as it will keep me from drinking. Champagne brunches are a real killer,… perhaps keep them few and far between! Or if you do have to attend, there are several that offer a non-alcoholic option at a reduced price. Also be aware of your food choices. Just because it is all included does not mean you have to eat/try everything J

Positive pressure: tell others! Whether it is your close friends, family or the gang in the weight management class. Let people know what you are doing, as it holds you accountable to your actions. How can you possibly tell your friends your goals and then eat that extra piece of chocolate cake? Often that last piece of cheese is not so yummy looking when you think of the consequences and having to tell people you did not hit your goal for the week.

Choose your top 10 “yummy” foods that are probably not so great for you and find a replacement for them! For example:
Cheese: any type of cheddar/brie/camembert etc - Veggies/cucumbers, carrots, etc with hummus, salsa
Wine - water with lemon/lime and ice
Beer - water with lemon/lime or coconut juice (all natural)
Creamy salad dressing - oil based salad dressing (kraft has those cool “spritzers”)
Starbucks caramel macchiato coffee (used to treat myself every Friday to this!) - tea: any kind!

…Don’t forget to drink lots of water J

Yours in health,
Angela

Diet for Menopausal Women

2009-07-28T00:56:00.001-07:00

Thanks to everyone for their questions. Keep them coming! This came in from a few people so I thought I would tackle it first… “What can I eat to avoid weight gain during menopause?” During menopause your body is going through many changes and is actually craving nutrient rich foods. Typically, your metabolism will begin to slow and you may need to readjust the amount of calories you are taking in. Of course this depends on your activity levels!

What to eat?
Try to eat 50% raw foods: lots of fruits and vegetables, uncooked. Pick up a Raw Food cook book, you will be amazed at the dishes you can make with a few vegetables and herbs! If you are not already taking vitamins, now may be a good time to start. Your body will need additional calcium, magnesium, maganese, copper, B6, B12, Vitamin E and Vitamin K. Phytoestrogens in the form of flaxseeds, chickpeas and other legumes, essential fats (Udo’s Oil is popular with vegan’s as there is no fish oil) and bioflavonoids (from all the fruits and veggies you eat). Be sure to read the back of the labels as there are multi-vitamins for vegetarians, it will literally say made from plant sources.

What to avoid?
Avoid animal protein and dairy as much as possible as this will promote the hot flashes. Alcohol, caffeine, spicy foods, salt, and sugary drinks should also be avoided as they aggravate urinary incontinence and make mood swings worse. They also contribute to making your blood more acidic which prompts the bones to release calcium as a buffer. This is a key factor to bone loss during menopause.

Keep exercising, avoid stress as much as possible, drink lots of water and add 2 teaspoons of cold pressed linseed oil into your diet. These should all help in reducing the negative effects of menopause as well as helping to control weight gain.

Let us know your story. Please feel free to share any thoughts or ideas you have on the site.

Planning Your Meals

2009-07-02T01:31:00.000-07:00

Being a vegan/raw foodist, I often get asked what types of meals we have at home. Well, vegetables of course! is always the answer… though we have the odd tofu here and there, it is mostly vegetables. How then do we mix up the variety so that we can still enjoy our meals? Since we both work and then often have training before and after working hours, our time at home is limited and precious. We don’t really want to be spending it trying to figure out what we are going to have for dinner. About a year ago, I started planning all the meals on a weekly basis. On Sundays I sit down, spending at most 45 minutes and plan every single meal from Monday morning to Friday evening. It is incredible how helpful this is for your trip to the grocery store. You know exactly what you will be eating and what food vegetables you will need to buy. I go through many of our recipe books and choose new recipes, perhaps select a few favourites along the way as well.

This approach has really broadened our eating habits, as it is easy to fall into the trap of eating the same old things, especially after a tough day at the office. It reduces a lot of stress, as I know in the mornings exactly what I am packing for my breakfast and lunch and when I get home after training late in the evening I know exactly what needs to be done to prepare for dinner. Try it out and let me know how it goes for you! I promise, it will free up more time in the week with just a small investment of 30 minutes on the weekend. Bon Appétit!

Welcome to my Blog!

2009-06-21T23:39:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone!

I am very excited to share my blog with you. As many of you know, diet and nutrition has been a real passion for me over the past few years. After reading every book that I could find on optimal nutrition, I decided to take the plunge and enrol in a diploma course to become a diet and nutrition advisor. I have learned even more about the subject over the course of the program and am looking forward to running weight management workshops at Nutri-Style (Singapore) one evening per week.

The idea around the blog is that I will share information that may be useful for you and will readily take questions on any aspects of nutrition that you may have. Perhaps you even have a subject or story you would like to share with me. Please feel free to comment and tell all!

We are all very different and a diet and nutrition lifestyle that works for one person may not work for the next person. I truly believe we must all find a way that works for us when it comes to nutrition.

Enjoy the posts and please feel free to ask questions! I love researching and learning more about nutrition!