Fat lose: Losing Weight with Lorelei

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Losing Weight with Lorelei - Day 16

Dec 5, 2010 Lorelei Sieja

Feast on Healthy Foods - photo by A Gude

I'm getting bored. Dieting isn't as much fun as feasting. I'm starting to miss the foods that I used to eat - the high fat, low fiber, "tasty" foods. I know that this is normal, but the more I eat fattening foods, the more I crave them. I have heard that we can become "addicted" to fattening, cooked foods. That when we do give them up, we go through withdrawal. Some diets tell you to go ahead and eat them, just in smaller portions, but is that like telling an alcoholic that one drink a day is okay? If we keep tasting foods that are bad for us, we will keep craving them! I have to make it through this period of temptation so that I will no longer desire unhealthy food. So this brings me to the thought for today:

Only Eat Foods That Are Healthy For You

You are what you eat. That statement has never been more true. If you eat high fat, low fiber unhealthy foods, you will be unhealthy. If you eat low fat, high fiber, healthy foods, you will experience better health. It may not make you entirely healthy - there could be other issues going on besides food-related illnesses, but you will certainly be healthier than if you ate unhealthy food. According to the Center for Disease Control, the three leading causes of death in the United States today are heart disease, cancer and stroke.

The CDC reports that you can reduce your risk of heart disease by eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, and exercising daily. You can reduce your risk of developing cancer by eating a healthy diet and maintaining a healthy weight, as being overweight or obese greatly increases your risk of endometrial cancer, breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer. Finally, on the page that discusses ways to reduce the risk of stroke, the CDC again states - eat a healthy diet, maintain a healthy weight, and be active. So, the three leading causes of death in the United States are all preventable, and related to diet and exercise! Wow, that's mind boggling.

I think I'll write some slogans and post them around my kitchen and dining room. Things like "eat well, live well", or "Your brain - use it or lose it" and my favorite, "'it's better to eat to live, than to live to eat".

I need some more reminders, as well. I need to remember to:

Drink 9 - 13 cups of water a day
Chew food completely
De-stress to reduce belly fat
Start each day with a positive attitutde
Get plenty of rest
Brush and Floss after Dinner

I hope to get re-motivated! I didn't stick to my diet today. I served a chicken salad for dinner, but had donuts for breakfast. Naughty me! I love donuts, but I have a lot of weight to lose, and my husband is diabetic. I should never buy donuts again. He would have been just as happy with a bowl of hot oatmeal topped with nuts and a tablespoon of honey.

Tomorrow's menu:

Fruit smoothie - blended bananas, strawberries and kiwi
1/2 bagel topped with all-fruit spread
chicken salad (cooked, lean chicken, grapes, celery, almonds, no mayonnaise)
apple slices
lean meat and vegetable stir-fry over brown rice

Tomorrow's Fitness goal:

Walk the dogs, but if it's too icy for a good walk, then I need to go to the gym and walk for thirty minutes there. Also, lift 2 lb. hand weights, to rebuild wrist strength following hand surgery last summer.

Sources:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov/ , accessed December 5, 2010.