Old Fashion Diet Rules ·  Diet Fads ·  Measure Your Success ·  Support · 
Getting Ready · Seven Habits

This is a collection of common sense information that I have learned and gathered together. I have not "lost millions of pounds" and I'm not the next "Jenny Craig." My only hope is that I can help in the efforts to become healthy, lose weight, avoid fads diets, and get off the "diet roller coaster". Without the extra cost that is involved to do it!
Remember, the goal is to eat healthy not to be on a diet! Whenever a person thinks of the word diet, they start to panic, hyperventilate, and eat all the sweets within a 20 mile radius.
Remember all a diet is, is just die with a "T"!

The less you eat the better!
Yah right! If you don't eat enough, your body panics and thinks it's starving and stores what ever you eat as fat!

Carbohydrates are fattening!
Wrong! Along with everything in life, there are good and bad for everything. People have had a tendency to group carbohydrates as a general bad thing. The sugar and sweets have had a tendency to be what to keep to a minimum where breads, pastas, and rice should be more of six to eleven servings and are important for a filler food.

Eliminating a food group or groups is a good idea for weight loss.
Wrong! Every food group has its importance in our body's system. Eliminating a food group can effect our overall health.
Balance is the key! Even fats have their good sides! The USDA Food Guide Pyramid shows that most diets are totally off when it comes to our daily nutritional needs. It is said that among the highest malnourished countries in the world, The United States is high on the list! With our addiction to fast food and constantly on diets that throw us out of a good eating balance it is no wonder!

How to Measure Your Success

It is a common task for us to get on the scale to measure our success. Using the scale is a great way to keep track, but don't use it as your only source for success. Muscle weighs more than fat, and if you are doing exercise your muscles will increase and throw off where you think you should be on the scale. Try using a measuring tape with the scale. This gives you a second opinion to how you're doing each week.

(BMI)Which stands for Body Mass Index, is another overall way of keeping track of your progress. Many sites have a calculator that will help you figure out yours. To locate this site click here

Remember: Set realistic weight loss goals, such as a 1 to 2 pound weight loss per week. Those who lose weight slowly, by eating less and exercising more, tend to keep their lost weight off.

There are several useful way to get yourself into the habit of eating healthy. By applying these few principles to the way you eat you can increase your success in becoming a healthy person.

1. Eat single portions of food at each meal.
2. Eat frequently, at least every three hours and try to eat at least five small meals.
3. Eat foods that you like making sure that each meal at least three food groups.
4. Eat only when you’re hungry.
5. Stop eating as soon as you feel full, not to clean your plate. note Sometimes this can take up to ten minutes for that feeling to kick in.
6. Drink a lot of water. At least eight glasses of water a day. This helps keep you feeling full and it also helps you flush out toxins from your body which could slow down your metabolism.
7. Eating should be a pleasure, make it enjoyable and healthy.

Diet Fads

Most diet fads tend to do three things:

1. Decrease your calories down to low;(under 1200 calories a day) which will send messages to your system to go into a starvation mode and signals your body and mind the need and desire to binge.
2. Eliminates one or more food groups; Sounds good at first, but this creates a lack of nutrients that are vital for your body to function. After a week of this again messages will be sent to your system to go into a starvation mode and signals your body and mind the need and desire to binge.
3. Is not meant for a long healthy relationship between you and food. If you look at a diet fad or otherwise, and do not see where you could continually maintain eating on that diet for the rest of your life....don't do it!

This is a major important subject. Without support, you will be less likely to be successful in your effort for weight loss. Though you might have set that your spouse will be a great idea for a support system, evaluate if your spouse is as eager to lose weight as much as you. If not, have a back up just in case!There is a great site I found that matches you up with others who are similar in weight loss goals. If you would like to participate
click here!