So you can’t lose weight even though you’ve been following your weight loss plan faithfully.

It’s so frustrating!  Let’s take a look at your weight loss plan and see where you can tweak it to get the results you want.

1. Are you dieting but not exercising?

Steady, permanent weight loss requires a combination of decreasing the number of calories you take in and increasing the number of calories you expend.  Exercise revs up your metabolism to keep your body burning calories efficiently.

2. Are you exercising but not dieting?

Exercise is great for your fitness but will not help you lose weight if you continue to overeat between workouts.  It takes a lot of exercise to burn just one pound of fat so, if you want to see results, you need to reduce the amount of fuel coming in so your exercise efforts can work on burning fat that is already in storage.

3. Is your diet too restrictive?

Your body requires a healthy balance of carbs (50% of your daily intake), protein (15%) and fats (35%) in order to keep working like it should.  If you give it the wrong fuel, it will become sluggish and unable to do it’s work of burning calories.  And if you limit yourself to too few calories, your body will go into starvation mode and cling to every single fat cell.  You will feel weak and miserable, plus your weight loss will stop.

4. Are you doing the wrong exercise?

For optimum weight loss, you have to include a combination of cardio and strength training in your exercise plan.  If you are using cardio alone, you are missing out on the calorie burning benefits that building muscle provides.

If your weight loss program hasn’t been as effective as you had hoped it would be, try one of these easy fixes!  And don’t forget to share these ideas with anyone else you know who might need them!

I have normal blood pressure.  Do I need to be concerned about salt in my diet?

People who don’t have high blood pressure but are at risk for developing it need to be careful with their salt intake.  Risk factors include family history of hypertension or being overweight, African American, older, or salt sensitive.

How do you know if you’re salt sensitive?  Unfortunately, you don’t really know until you develop high blood pressure.  About 1/3 of all people are salt sensitive, so why take the chance?  Besides the blood pressure issue, too much salt when you’re younger can be unhealthy for your bones, leading to osteoporosis as you age.  So whether or not you have normal blood pressure, you should be monitoring your salt intake.

So how much salt is too much?  Doctors at the National Institutes of Health recommend keeping daily sodium consumption to below 2,400 mg per day. Lower than that is even better.

Keep in mind that most of the salt we eat is not added by us when we cook or use the salt shaker at the table.  Most of it comes in processed foods such as canned soups and sauces, chips, luncheon meats, nuts, pickles, etc.

Read labels carefully.  Besides looking for sodium, look for terms such as monosodium glutamate and disodium phosphate.  And don’t rely on your taste buds to alert you to high salt content.  I was shocked to find out that a little 1/2 cup helping of cottage cheese contains a huge 914 mg of sodium!

If you eat a diet of fresh fruits and vegetables, dried beans, skim milk,  unprocessed lean meats, and whole grains, you will be limiting your sodium intake naturally while eating for overall health.  You can’t lose – except maybe a little weight!

Tell me what you think!  Please leave your comments below.

Will this kill you?

Recently I saw an alarming video clip from the Today show.  The people being interviewed talked about all the horrible, dangerous, bacteria-laden filth that covers our floors.  They made it sound as if you dropped a Cheerio on your floor, then picked it up and popped it in your mouth, you would keel over dead in a matter of seconds!

People!  Stop and think! Since elementary school science class you have known that there are germs everywhere.  Not only germs on the floor but germs in the air, in the water, on your table, in your bed.  We live surrounded by them, even covered in them, every day!  I’m grossed out every time I see that commercial about how your mattress doubles in weight because of all the dust mite carcasses that collect there!

But be honest.  You have to admit that, at least once in your life, you have eaten something off the floor. Maybe you dropped a Frito or an Oreo….

Anyway, what happened when you ate it? Chances are, if you’re reading this, you didn’t die.  Did you have to call 911?  Did you have to take to your bed for several days?  Did you have even one tiny symptom of illness from eating that food off the floor?  Most likely, the answer is NOTHING happened!

Have you ever personally know someone who got sick or died from eating something off the floor?  Probably not.

In fact, have you ever seen a news story about someone who died as a result of floor-eating? I haven’t.

Now, I’m not saying that floors are sterile and we should eat entire meals off them.  I’m not saying that you should allow your child to lick the floor.  And there are some people with compromised  immune systems who have to be much more cautious than the rest of us.

What I’m trying to say is you should apply your own personal knowledge base to a situation before panicking  over alarmist stories you see on TV.  After all, television is in the entertainment business, and stories with a disgusting factor are big sellers.

I once saw a documentary about all the micro-organisms that live on your skin.  It made me feel itchy for days picturing all those critters slithering and crawling all over me. But, when I breast fed my baby, I didn’t dip my boobies in boiling water or pour bleach on them!  Children have been nursing for generations and I’ve never heard of a single one who was killed by breast bacteria!

I suggest coming up with a list of floor eating rules that are within your tolerance level.  Here’s my list:

1. Don’t eat mushy food that has to be scraped up off the floor (mashed potatoes, custard, etc.)
2. Don’t eat off floors in public places.  I used to teach high school and would not even walk barefoot there!
3. If you have guests, don’t serve them food that has touched the floor.  You can’t force your rules on others.
4. Don’t eat food off the floor if you didn’t see it being dropped.  It could have fallen from the neighbor boy’s mouth.
5. If the dropped food is protected by a colorful candy shell, you are home free!  Those suckers have magic properties and can even survive for weeks between couch cushions!

I’d love to see your comments about this post.  Please share it with your followers and friends so we can get a real discussion going!

Fitness walking is great exercise.

It’s easier on your joints than running but, because it’s a weight bearing exercise, it helps strengthen your bones.  Keep up your pace and you’ll get a fine aerobic workout.

Follow these 7 tips to get the most benefit out of your daily walk.

1. Stretch and warm up before you begin your walk.
2. Swing your arms so that your upper body is also involved.
3. Contract your abs, pull your shoulders back to open up your chest, and walk with an upright posture.
4. Breathe deeply.
5. Alternate moderately paced walking with spikes of rapid walking.
6. Take sips of water throughout your walk.
7. Slow down/cool down toward the end of your walk and stretch again when you finish.

The next time someone tells you to go take a hike, smile and follow their advice!  Just remember to look around and enjoy your surroundings while you’re getting fit!

Myth or Fact?

Have you ever noticed that, if something is said often enough, people tend to accept it as true?  Let’s talk about 5 of these diet myths which need to be purged from your knowledge base – they are simply not true!  Some of them might even be sabotaging your health, fitness, or weight loss goals.

• Myth #1:  Carbs are bad for you. Fact:  This myth is only partially true.  It should be amended to say that “white carbs” are not good for you.  These include foods like white rice, white bread, and sugar.  Whole grains such as brown rice and whole wheat products are a vital part of a healthy diet.  In fact, the Department of Health recommends that 50% of our daily calories (energy) should come from carbs.
• Myth #2:  Vegetarians can’t build muscle. Fact:  You can build muscle on a vegetarian diet as long as you include protein.  Animal protein is not the only kind of protein.  Good vegetarian sources of protein include beans, nuts, and dairy products.  Optimally, 15% of your daily calories should come from protein.
• Myth #3:  Low fat = low calorie. Fact:  Many products labeled low fat are very high in calories because of high sugar content.  Remember, fat does not make you fat; eating more calories than you burn causes you to gain weight.  Fat is actually a necessary part of a healthy diet.  It should make up 35% of your daily calorie intake.
• Myth #4:  Low fat milk has less calcium than whole milk. Fact:  Milk’s calcium is in the watery part of the milk.  It is not in the creamy part which is skimmed off to make skim or low fat milk.
• Myth #5:  Eating past 8:00 at night causes you to gain weight. Fact:  Once again, weight gain is directly related to the total number of calories you eat during the day, not the time of day you eat them.  Although some people may not be able to sleep well after eating a late meal or snack due to heartburn, etc., it will not cause them to gain weight as long as they have not exceeded their daily calorie needs.

What other diet myths can you think of? Please share your thoughts in the comments section.

Starting a regular exercise program might just be the most important thing you can do for your overall health.

Einstein is famous for saying, “Nothing happens until something moves.”  This is especially true when talking about your body.  But what are some specific reasons that starting an exercise program is so good for you?

1. Building muscles.     Once we reach our 30’s, we begin to lose muscle tissue.  The main indicator of an aging body is loss of muscle mass.  You lose your strength and, related to that, you lose your ability to avoid falls.  And, because muscle tissue is the biggest calorie-burning tissue in the body, you burn calories more slowly, greatly raising your risk of becoming overweight or even obese.

2. Keeping your heart and brain healthy. Your heart is also a muscle and needs regular workouts to stay healthy and strong.  A fit heart is able to more efficiently pump essential oxygen and other nutrients throughout your body, including to your brain.  As long as it’s properly nourished, your brain can maintain its ability to manage the mental, physical, and emotional components of your life.

3. Keeping your bones strong. Your bones also must be worked out to keep from becoming fragile and prone to osteoporosis.  Because your muscles are attached to your bones, when you work out your muscles, you are also working out your bones.

Don’t let yourself become weak and decrepit!  If you want to have a good quality of life as you grow older, don’t just sit there hoping for the best!  Whatever age you are, start an exercise program today – all it takes is 3 times per week.  It’s the best investment in your future that you can possibly make!

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