1. You will get out of your head and into your body. Many who do not exercise tend to focus all their energy on their intellect rather than their body. This cerebral way of being can cause you to over analyze almost everything to the point where no issues ever get resolved. When you move your body, you notice your legs and arms moving in unison. You become aware of your heart rate increasing and the sweat flowing from your pours. These physical changes are exciting and life affirming. While you are exercising, you are not feeling like an over burdened adult, but a playful child experiencing a sense of innocence and glee.
2. You will find calmness and tranquility, a means to relax. Research indicates exercising as little as 15 minutes a day can cause you to discover a sense of inner peace. This sense of tranquility can improve the overall quality of your life. The gaining of calmness allows the physical and emotional stress to lessen. The tension in your shoulders, neck and stomach will greatly dissipate and even disappear while you are working out. You will discover a glow that takes place inside and outside of you.
3. You can use your time exercising to work through issues that are bothering you. A regular exercise program, along with self-questioning, can heal emotional pain. Focusing on an emotional pain question during you workout and journaling afterwards can help you resolve troubling issues that may have been upsetting you since childhood.
4. You will gain confidence and increase your self-esteem. This phenomenon will happen simply because you are participating in a regular healthy activity. The sense of calmness you feel will lead to increased hope regarding your future. Your increased strength, stamina and skill will improve your sense of self-worth. You will find yourself looking forward to your workouts and you will spend time noticing the great results.
5. You will learn to live in present time. Achieving increased calmness, self-esteem and confidence will teach you to live in the present rather that worrying about the future or dwelling on the past. Instead of being preoccupied with what is going to happen next or what occurred previously, you can now take in what is happening right now. The present may include being at a concert, reading a good book or conversing with the one you love. Exercise can teach you the importance of taking the time to smell the roses
Singing beats of body
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Summer Fresh Diet Plan
Day 1 Breakfast -- Waffles with Honey Ricotta and Strawberries and Milk
Lunch -- Chicken-Mango Salad with Flatbread and Blackberries
Chicken-Mango Salad Recipe4 oz. grilled, boneless chicken breast 3/4 cup mango 2 cups mixed salad greens 8 cherry tomatoes 2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro (coriander) 1/3 cup avocado, chopped 3 Tbsp. dressing, Italian low-fat
Directions: Chop chicken into small cubes. Peel and chop mango; rinse and chop salad greens, tomatoes and cilantro. In a medium size bowl, mix together chicken, tomatoes, cilantro, mango and avocado; toss with dressing. On a medium platter, spread salad greens evenly and place mixed salad on top. Serve and enjoy.
Dinner -- Grilled Caesar Burger, Summer Vegetable Medley and Mixed Berries
Snack -- Mango-Blueberry Smoothie
Mango-Blueberry Smoothie Recipe ½ cup mango ½ cup fresh blueberries 2/3 cup orange juice, calcium fortified
Day 2 Breakfast -- Summer Strawberry Omelet with Toast and Orange Juice
Lunch -- Crunchy Salmon Wrap with Tomato-Artichoke Salad, Watermelon and Pineapple Spritzer
Crunchy Salmon Wrap Recipe3 oz. canned salmon, low sodium 1 green onion 1 Tbsp. low-fat mayonnaise 1/2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice 1/3 cup chopped or sliced cucumber 1 Tbsp. fresh parsley 1/4 tsp. black pepper 1 whole-wheat (approximately 6 inch diameter) tortilla
Dinner -- Island Pork Kabobs with Mango Salsa and Grilled Sweet Potato Island Pork Kabobs
Island Pork Kabobs3 ½ oz. lean pork 1/4 tsp. chili powder 1/4 tsp. cumin 1/4 tsp. paprika 1/4 tsp. black pepper ½ Tbsp. olive oil 2/3 cup fresh pineapple
Directions: Preheat grill coated with cooking spray to medium heat. Rinse and pat dry pork; cut into cubes. In a small bowl, combine chili powder, cumin, paprika, black pepper and olive oil (you can adjust spices to taste). Add pork to spices and gently toss to coat; refrigerate for about 10 minutes to allow flavor to develop. Cut pineapple into chunks. Alternately thread pork cubes and pineapple chunks onto skewer(s). Grill kabob(s) for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Serve.
Mango Salsa Recipe 1/2 cup mango 1/4 small red onion 1/2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro (coriander) 1/4 jalapeno pepper 1/4 tsp. ginger root 1/2 tsp. fresh lime juice
Lunch -- Chicken-Mango Salad with Flatbread and Blackberries
Chicken-Mango Salad Recipe4 oz. grilled, boneless chicken breast 3/4 cup mango 2 cups mixed salad greens 8 cherry tomatoes 2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro (coriander) 1/3 cup avocado, chopped 3 Tbsp. dressing, Italian low-fat
Directions: Chop chicken into small cubes. Peel and chop mango; rinse and chop salad greens, tomatoes and cilantro. In a medium size bowl, mix together chicken, tomatoes, cilantro, mango and avocado; toss with dressing. On a medium platter, spread salad greens evenly and place mixed salad on top. Serve and enjoy.
Dinner -- Grilled Caesar Burger, Summer Vegetable Medley and Mixed Berries
Snack -- Mango-Blueberry Smoothie
Mango-Blueberry Smoothie Recipe ½ cup mango ½ cup fresh blueberries 2/3 cup orange juice, calcium fortified
Day 2 Breakfast -- Summer Strawberry Omelet with Toast and Orange Juice
Lunch -- Crunchy Salmon Wrap with Tomato-Artichoke Salad, Watermelon and Pineapple Spritzer
Crunchy Salmon Wrap Recipe3 oz. canned salmon, low sodium 1 green onion 1 Tbsp. low-fat mayonnaise 1/2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice 1/3 cup chopped or sliced cucumber 1 Tbsp. fresh parsley 1/4 tsp. black pepper 1 whole-wheat (approximately 6 inch diameter) tortilla
Dinner -- Island Pork Kabobs with Mango Salsa and Grilled Sweet Potato Island Pork Kabobs
Island Pork Kabobs3 ½ oz. lean pork 1/4 tsp. chili powder 1/4 tsp. cumin 1/4 tsp. paprika 1/4 tsp. black pepper ½ Tbsp. olive oil 2/3 cup fresh pineapple
Directions: Preheat grill coated with cooking spray to medium heat. Rinse and pat dry pork; cut into cubes. In a small bowl, combine chili powder, cumin, paprika, black pepper and olive oil (you can adjust spices to taste). Add pork to spices and gently toss to coat; refrigerate for about 10 minutes to allow flavor to develop. Cut pineapple into chunks. Alternately thread pork cubes and pineapple chunks onto skewer(s). Grill kabob(s) for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Serve.
Mango Salsa Recipe 1/2 cup mango 1/4 small red onion 1/2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro (coriander) 1/4 jalapeno pepper 1/4 tsp. ginger root 1/2 tsp. fresh lime juice
Thursday, June 21, 2007
10 Biggest Weight Loss Mistakes
1. If I say I want to lose 50 pounds, I will! I know, I know, what’s the point of dieting if you don’t have a specific number in mind? Well, it’s important to understand that as your body matures, it responds to exercise and reduced calorie consumption in different ways. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the older we get, the harder our weight-loss efforts become.
Remember when you were in your 20s and you could go a couple of days without eating and BINGO, suddenly the scale was back down where you wanted it? Well, as we lose muscle mass and go through the lovely changes of life, our body doesn’t bounce back like that anymore. So set a goal of becoming more active while keeping an eye on nutrition. This is an attainable and realistic goal
2. Diet is deprivation! Generally speaking, a diet will act as a jumpstart for your weight-loss efforts. The hope is that you will find certain aspects of your selected diet and apply those to your lifestyle permanently. The problem is, many people view diets as their last chance to lose weight, and they completely exempt any "fun food" from their diet. Granted, if you are serious about losing weight, you need to rid yourself of too much sugar and junk food, but a treat is fine once in a while
3. I will look like a movie star! How often have we said to our kids, "If Johnny jumped off a bridge would you?" OK, maybe the names have been changed, but you get the gist. Our bodies are uniquely ours and how they respond to exercise, stress, love, happiness and so on can vary greatly. We have to respect our bodies, our unique strengths and weaknesses and build upon the things we recognize as strengths.
Your friend, family member or neighbor may have lost a bunch of weight, but her body type and yours are probably very different. Sure, you can find out what she did to attain her goal, but it’s more important that you find out what will help you achieve a realistic goal.
4. Once I’m finished with the diet, I can go back to what I did before! All too often people view diets with a starting and ending point. The hope is that you will use the diet to shift what you’re doing now, whether it’s limiting your sugar intake, reducing your daily calorie consumption, increasing your water or whatever it may be. Your attempt should be to lose the bad habits you’ve grown accustomed to.
5. I need someone to tell me what to eat! Here’s the deal, we all know what we should be eating. However, because of the plethora of information available, we have become a society confused with which foods are good for us and which are not. We have become consumed with eating to lose weight versus eating to be healthy. When you eat well and are active, nine times out of 10, your weight will be where it needs to be. It might not match the weight charts, but eating well and exercising will give your body what it needs to be healthy.
In other words, daily activity and mindful nutrition results in an appropriate weight! You know you should be eating more fruits and veggies and less processed foods, right? Believe in yourself enough to know that you’ve got what it takes to make the right changes!
6. If I just exercise a couple of hours a day, I can eat whatever I want! Yeah, and if I just wish hard enough, I can sing like Barbra Streisand. The truth is that just exercising in an effort to lose weight won’t cut the mustard. Your success will be short-lived and never become a regular part of your lifestyle.
Exercise needs to be embraced for all of the right reasons, including: more energy, improved quality of life, reduced risks of cancer, cardiovascular risks and osteoporosis. Find one of the hundreds of benefits that speaks to you and go for it. If you exercise simply to keep your weight in check, it will never be enough to maintain weight loss.
7. I don’t have time to exercise, so I’ll just cut out more calories! Again, you need to focus on health. If we make decisions to alter our lifestyle simply for weight loss, "Fugheddaboudit!" -- it will never last. You must figure out incentives valuable enough to you that you'll exercise and eat well for all of the right reasons
8. Writing things down doesn’t make a difference! Trust me, it does. Some of my greatest client success stories come from those who were committed to keeping track of what they put in their mouth. Come on, how many times do you pop something into your mouth and then say, "It was small, it doesn’t count?" We all have, but if you’re writing things down, you can clearly see where your biggest struggles lie.
Additionally, if you are able to see where those struggles are, you can begin taking steps to change them, one at a time. And that, my friends, is the secret to long-term success -- baby steps!
9. You’re bad! No, actually, murder is bad, YOU are not bad. Making an unhealthy food choice is NOT bad. As long as we continue to view our choices as bad or good, we will always struggle with change. When making choices about exercise or food, more often than not we try to make the best choices. Sometimes stress, time constraints and lifestyle change can have a huge impact on our choices. We all have challenging weeks, sometimes even challenging months.
Doing the best you can do is all you can do. I often pose this question to my clients when they tell me they’ve been bad, "What would you tell a friend who was struggling with good decisions?" Nine times out of 10, they end up answering that question with what they need to be telling themselves: "It will be OK, there’s always tomorrow."
10. New Year’s Resolutions! Let’s just say here and now, that never again will you look to the New Year as your time to drop weight and get active. Why? Because you’re going to do it today and tomorrow and the next day and the day after and so on. Waiting until a particular time of year because you believe it will be the key to your success just doesn’t work
Remember when you were in your 20s and you could go a couple of days without eating and BINGO, suddenly the scale was back down where you wanted it? Well, as we lose muscle mass and go through the lovely changes of life, our body doesn’t bounce back like that anymore. So set a goal of becoming more active while keeping an eye on nutrition. This is an attainable and realistic goal
2. Diet is deprivation! Generally speaking, a diet will act as a jumpstart for your weight-loss efforts. The hope is that you will find certain aspects of your selected diet and apply those to your lifestyle permanently. The problem is, many people view diets as their last chance to lose weight, and they completely exempt any "fun food" from their diet. Granted, if you are serious about losing weight, you need to rid yourself of too much sugar and junk food, but a treat is fine once in a while
3. I will look like a movie star! How often have we said to our kids, "If Johnny jumped off a bridge would you?" OK, maybe the names have been changed, but you get the gist. Our bodies are uniquely ours and how they respond to exercise, stress, love, happiness and so on can vary greatly. We have to respect our bodies, our unique strengths and weaknesses and build upon the things we recognize as strengths.
Your friend, family member or neighbor may have lost a bunch of weight, but her body type and yours are probably very different. Sure, you can find out what she did to attain her goal, but it’s more important that you find out what will help you achieve a realistic goal.
4. Once I’m finished with the diet, I can go back to what I did before! All too often people view diets with a starting and ending point. The hope is that you will use the diet to shift what you’re doing now, whether it’s limiting your sugar intake, reducing your daily calorie consumption, increasing your water or whatever it may be. Your attempt should be to lose the bad habits you’ve grown accustomed to.
5. I need someone to tell me what to eat! Here’s the deal, we all know what we should be eating. However, because of the plethora of information available, we have become a society confused with which foods are good for us and which are not. We have become consumed with eating to lose weight versus eating to be healthy. When you eat well and are active, nine times out of 10, your weight will be where it needs to be. It might not match the weight charts, but eating well and exercising will give your body what it needs to be healthy.
In other words, daily activity and mindful nutrition results in an appropriate weight! You know you should be eating more fruits and veggies and less processed foods, right? Believe in yourself enough to know that you’ve got what it takes to make the right changes!
6. If I just exercise a couple of hours a day, I can eat whatever I want! Yeah, and if I just wish hard enough, I can sing like Barbra Streisand. The truth is that just exercising in an effort to lose weight won’t cut the mustard. Your success will be short-lived and never become a regular part of your lifestyle.
Exercise needs to be embraced for all of the right reasons, including: more energy, improved quality of life, reduced risks of cancer, cardiovascular risks and osteoporosis. Find one of the hundreds of benefits that speaks to you and go for it. If you exercise simply to keep your weight in check, it will never be enough to maintain weight loss.
7. I don’t have time to exercise, so I’ll just cut out more calories! Again, you need to focus on health. If we make decisions to alter our lifestyle simply for weight loss, "Fugheddaboudit!" -- it will never last. You must figure out incentives valuable enough to you that you'll exercise and eat well for all of the right reasons
8. Writing things down doesn’t make a difference! Trust me, it does. Some of my greatest client success stories come from those who were committed to keeping track of what they put in their mouth. Come on, how many times do you pop something into your mouth and then say, "It was small, it doesn’t count?" We all have, but if you’re writing things down, you can clearly see where your biggest struggles lie.
Additionally, if you are able to see where those struggles are, you can begin taking steps to change them, one at a time. And that, my friends, is the secret to long-term success -- baby steps!
9. You’re bad! No, actually, murder is bad, YOU are not bad. Making an unhealthy food choice is NOT bad. As long as we continue to view our choices as bad or good, we will always struggle with change. When making choices about exercise or food, more often than not we try to make the best choices. Sometimes stress, time constraints and lifestyle change can have a huge impact on our choices. We all have challenging weeks, sometimes even challenging months.
Doing the best you can do is all you can do. I often pose this question to my clients when they tell me they’ve been bad, "What would you tell a friend who was struggling with good decisions?" Nine times out of 10, they end up answering that question with what they need to be telling themselves: "It will be OK, there’s always tomorrow."
10. New Year’s Resolutions! Let’s just say here and now, that never again will you look to the New Year as your time to drop weight and get active. Why? Because you’re going to do it today and tomorrow and the next day and the day after and so on. Waiting until a particular time of year because you believe it will be the key to your success just doesn’t work
10 Ways to Get in Shape for Summer
1. To lose fat and get trim, try alternating exercise activities during the week. Sometimes I fall into the trap of doing the same exercise routine over and over. Of course, other times I go for weeks without doing any exercise other than sixteen-ounce curls. But anyway, the point is that Raphael recommends changing your exercise routine at least every 4-6 weeks.
2. We’re all busy people, but the longer days and extra sunlight should keep us extra motivated. Unless you make it a priority in your life, it is easy to feel like there just isn’t enough time to exercise. However, during daylight savings time, you should take some advice from that popular 60s song and "let the sunshine in." When you find yourself really pressed for time, Raphael suggests trying three 10-minute workouts spread through the day. Believe it or not, three 10-minute bursts of activity can be just as effective as one 30-minute exercise session.
3. Take yourself off the beaten path. As the poet said, sometimes taking the road less traveled can make all the difference. Yes, I realize that Robert Frost wasn’t referring to exercise, but his advice still applies. Now that spring is in full bloom, why not go to a state park and hike on the weekends? You can alternate this with the strength training and cardio you complete at the gym or home during the week. Hiking and climbing burns a lot of calories and actually helps to boost your metabolism.
4. People attain great success when they have a goal. As I mentioned, the eDiets Million Pound March provides a great opportunity to make yourself accountable for reaching your weight-loss goal. You might also want to sign up for a 5k walk or race in your local community. As you begin to train for the race and improve your eating habits, you’ll start to get leaner. "The objective is not to win the race, but to set a goal and exercise the discipline to complete it," Raphael says. "It will be almost impossible to not lose fat and get leaner."
5. The Weighting Game. If you really want a fit body for summer, Raphael recommends: (a) performing weight training two to three days per week for 30 brisk minutes, (b) doing cardiovascular exercise three to five days per week for 30 moderate minutes and (c) slightly reducing your intake of calories.
6. Give Those Extra Pounds the Boot. If you really want to lose weight, maybe you should try going to boot camp. No, we’re not asking you to enroll in the military… although that would certainly get you in shape, too. Many gyms and health clubs offer some sort of group "boot camp" classes. "The basis of the program is combining calisthenics, cardiovascular exercise and running obstacle courses to improve fitness and lose fat," Raphael says. "As the name implies, it’s run in military boot camp style but is a lot of fun. Just two days per week of this activity will strip fat from your body. You don’t have to be in shape to participate, and you’re encouraged to go at your own pace."
7. Don’t be afraid to try something new outdoors. Try a variety of outdoor recreational activities, and you’ll be more likely to burn fat while having a great time. If you are adventurous enough to give it a whirl, Raphael recommends purchasing a pair of roller blades. "It may take you a few weeks to feel comfortable, but I guarantee you’ll enjoy rollerblading in the sunshine and listening to great music on your head phones," Raphael says.
8. Motivation is one of the keys to creating a bathing suit-ready body. Believe it or not, Raphael says you should go ahead and purchase the bathing suit that you would like to be wearing by the start of summer. Yes, I know it won’t fit you now… but that is his whole point. "Make fitting into the suit a realistic goal and leave the suit somewhere in your kitchen so it’s always visible," Raphael says. "Let the future enticement of fitting perfectly into the suit be your motivation. This isn’t psychological mumbo jumbo -- this tip really works."
9. Spend a day at the park. No, we’re not talking about going to the ballpark, although that is also an important summer ritual. Raphael recommends finding a park near you with an exercise path. Such parks usually contain fitness stations that require you to complete push-ups, sit-ups and lunges. "Most of these courses only take 20 minutes to complete, but they can be repeated to extend exercise time."
10. One of the keys to getting a leaner body is stimulating the metabolism. In order to give your metabolism that special "get up and go," Raphael recommends exercising in the mornings. "When you work out in the morning, you decrease your appetite and burn calories all day long," Raphael says. "Try to power walk, jog or swim as a start to your day, and don’t forget to include strength training to further stimulate your fat-burning progress."
2. We’re all busy people, but the longer days and extra sunlight should keep us extra motivated. Unless you make it a priority in your life, it is easy to feel like there just isn’t enough time to exercise. However, during daylight savings time, you should take some advice from that popular 60s song and "let the sunshine in." When you find yourself really pressed for time, Raphael suggests trying three 10-minute workouts spread through the day. Believe it or not, three 10-minute bursts of activity can be just as effective as one 30-minute exercise session.
3. Take yourself off the beaten path. As the poet said, sometimes taking the road less traveled can make all the difference. Yes, I realize that Robert Frost wasn’t referring to exercise, but his advice still applies. Now that spring is in full bloom, why not go to a state park and hike on the weekends? You can alternate this with the strength training and cardio you complete at the gym or home during the week. Hiking and climbing burns a lot of calories and actually helps to boost your metabolism.
4. People attain great success when they have a goal. As I mentioned, the eDiets Million Pound March provides a great opportunity to make yourself accountable for reaching your weight-loss goal. You might also want to sign up for a 5k walk or race in your local community. As you begin to train for the race and improve your eating habits, you’ll start to get leaner. "The objective is not to win the race, but to set a goal and exercise the discipline to complete it," Raphael says. "It will be almost impossible to not lose fat and get leaner."
5. The Weighting Game. If you really want a fit body for summer, Raphael recommends: (a) performing weight training two to three days per week for 30 brisk minutes, (b) doing cardiovascular exercise three to five days per week for 30 moderate minutes and (c) slightly reducing your intake of calories.
6. Give Those Extra Pounds the Boot. If you really want to lose weight, maybe you should try going to boot camp. No, we’re not asking you to enroll in the military… although that would certainly get you in shape, too. Many gyms and health clubs offer some sort of group "boot camp" classes. "The basis of the program is combining calisthenics, cardiovascular exercise and running obstacle courses to improve fitness and lose fat," Raphael says. "As the name implies, it’s run in military boot camp style but is a lot of fun. Just two days per week of this activity will strip fat from your body. You don’t have to be in shape to participate, and you’re encouraged to go at your own pace."
7. Don’t be afraid to try something new outdoors. Try a variety of outdoor recreational activities, and you’ll be more likely to burn fat while having a great time. If you are adventurous enough to give it a whirl, Raphael recommends purchasing a pair of roller blades. "It may take you a few weeks to feel comfortable, but I guarantee you’ll enjoy rollerblading in the sunshine and listening to great music on your head phones," Raphael says.
8. Motivation is one of the keys to creating a bathing suit-ready body. Believe it or not, Raphael says you should go ahead and purchase the bathing suit that you would like to be wearing by the start of summer. Yes, I know it won’t fit you now… but that is his whole point. "Make fitting into the suit a realistic goal and leave the suit somewhere in your kitchen so it’s always visible," Raphael says. "Let the future enticement of fitting perfectly into the suit be your motivation. This isn’t psychological mumbo jumbo -- this tip really works."
9. Spend a day at the park. No, we’re not talking about going to the ballpark, although that is also an important summer ritual. Raphael recommends finding a park near you with an exercise path. Such parks usually contain fitness stations that require you to complete push-ups, sit-ups and lunges. "Most of these courses only take 20 minutes to complete, but they can be repeated to extend exercise time."
10. One of the keys to getting a leaner body is stimulating the metabolism. In order to give your metabolism that special "get up and go," Raphael recommends exercising in the mornings. "When you work out in the morning, you decrease your appetite and burn calories all day long," Raphael says. "Try to power walk, jog or swim as a start to your day, and don’t forget to include strength training to further stimulate your fat-burning progress."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)