by Lucy | Jan 8, 2017 | Motivational Mondays
Monday, January 9, 2017
Last week, I met Peggy*, who has prediabetes. She, like many of you, is interested in managing her health and wellness without prescription medications. Peggy has a strong family history of diabetes and heart disease but does very well managing her weight with regular exercise and a well-balanced diet. She also lives with a professional chef who loves to bake cookies, cupcakes, and other sweet treats. Despite being at a healthy weight and doing regular physical activity, Peggy’s blood sugars are higher than normal and her physician recommended she start drug therapy.
In our conversation, Peggy wanted to know her options. We talked about the pros and cons of taking medications and also reviewed the importance of being a detective of her blood sugars. During our conversation, Peggy decided she would regularly monitor her glucose – sugar in the blood – to identify what times of day, meals, and snacks may be causing her elevated blood sugars.
This action plan includes several steps including: (1) buying a glucometer to check her blood sugars, (2) buying the test strips to draw the blood, (3) setting a reminder to check her glucose at different times each day, and (4) recording the results in a journal or electronic device. While this may sound excessive, to Peggy it is worth finding out the information in order to make the best decision for her health and well-being.
This situation made me remember the choices conversation we had last year. Life is nothing but a series of choices to decide how to use our time, energy, money, and other resources.
*Name changed to protect identity
Food for thought:
- Are you trying to change your eating habits?
- Are you feeling brave enough to try that new exercise class at the gym?
The only thing stopping us is the story in our minds. What’s worth the effort for you?
by Lucy | Jan 6, 2017 | Friday Favorites
This year Lucy and I will be sharing some of our favorite finds on the internet on alternating Fridays. This is a fun way for us to share some of the things we enjoy from recipes to funny pictures to new research articles. It’s meant to be fun and light-hearted, you’ll see our personalities shine through and we also hope you get some inspiration from the things we share. So without further ado, check out the first edition of Friday Favorites.
Favorite Winter Veggie Recipe: Honey Balsamic Roasted Brussel Sprouts from Kevin is Cooking. I did not like Brussel sprouts until I had them roasted and this recipe adds a wonderful dressing that takes away all bitterness. You’ve got to try it – even if you don’t like Brussel sprouts! It’s a great recipe all by itself but sometimes I toss in cubed butternut squash as well!
Favorite Emoji – I don’t use emojis much but this makes me want to! This emoji keyboard featuring odd-looking fruits and vegetables was created by Hungry Harvest to raise awareness of food waste. The fruit and veggies are imperfect like the ones that get thrown out or rejected by grocery stores causing 20% of farm fresh produce to go to waste. Hungry Harvest recovers the food that would normally go to waste and delivers it to people’s homes and offices.
Favorite Author: Brene Brown. She is a shame researcher who writes about wholehearted living and her books are truly life changing. I love how she is completely open and honest about her journey to wholehearted living which leaves you inspired to be brave yourself. I’ve read Daring Greatly (which is what we will be discussing at January’s nutrition/wellness book club) and Rising Strong. Now I’m starting The Gifts of Imperfection and taking one of her related online classes about parenting wholeheartedly.
Favorite Food Pun: Happy New Year!
by Lucy | Jan 5, 2017 | Well Balanced Wisdom
One of the easiest things you can do for weight loss is simply to step on the scale every day. I know, I know… you would rather eat a frog than see that number on the scale but hear me out. Once you own a scale it’s free to use, it takes just a second to complete, anyone can do it and research has shown that it is an effective weight loss tool.
In one study, participants were asked to weigh daily on a smart scale. The weight was sent automatically to researchers and the participants received weekly feedback by email. Participants were not told to change any other behaviors. On average, the intervention group weighed 6 days a week and consumed fewer calories/day (approx 300 calories less!) compared to the control group who weighed sporadically. That led to an average 13.5-pound weight loss in the intervention group and all they had to do was weigh themselves! Other studies that included daily weighing for weight control had similar results.
But what if the number you see on the scale makes you fret? Doesn’t it have negative effects on how you feel? Contrary to what you might expect, intervention participants in the study mentioned above, perceived daily weighing positively. And results of another study indicate that daily self-weighing does not cause adverse psychological outcomes such as depression, binge eating or other signs of disordered eating.*
While it may seem scary at first, the scale is not your enemy. The magic is all in the way you use it.
Here are some rules for daily self-weighing.
- Expect some fluctuation. Your weight will fluctuate 1-3 pounds every day regardless of your behaviors. Any fluctuation within that range is normal and to be expected. This is your grace period. Weight gain beyond 3lbs should serve as a warning sign to change your behaviors.
- Use your weight as feedback that lets you know what’s working and what is not. When you see a significant change on the scale think back to what you’ve been doing the past day or two that may be affecting your weight. If your weight is going up, use the opportunity to make tweaks to your eating and exercise habits now before it creeps up even higher and becomes harder to get off.
- Weigh at the same time every day on the same scale. Your weight not only fluctuates from day to day but also hour to hour. For example, you will likely weigh more in the evening than you will in the morning. Sticking to the same time every day gives you the most accurate comparison.
- Be consistent. Research shows those who way every day lose more weight than those who weigh 4 or 5 times a week. Think of it as a morning ritual just like brushing your teeth.
- Remember that your weight is only part of your health picture. It shouldn’t be the ONLY tool you use to monitor your eating and exercise behavior. Use it in combination with how you are sleeping, how much energy you have, how your clothes fit and so on. Weighing every day does not mean you shouldn’t look for those other non-scale victories.
So there you have it. While it may not sound fun to face that number every day, daily weighing is a simple tool that can influence your lifestyle habits and help you lose weight.
Were you shocked to hear that weighing every day can help you lose weight?
What fears, hesitations or thoughts do you have about weighing regularly?
What’s the worst thing and the best thing that could happen if you started weighing every day?
Will you give it a try? Let me know in the comments!
*An important caveat: These studies have screened out people with a history of eating disorders — who might obsess about weight and respond to falling or rising numbers with extreme dieting or binging.
by Lucy | Jan 1, 2017 | Motivational Mondays
Monday, Jan 2, 2017
We are all story tellers. I used to say I’m a terrible story teller, mostly because of my tendency to get off track and ruin the punch line (I call it my “shiny object syndrome”).
Now I see the story my mind is telling me on almost a daily basis. If I’m tired or run down the story is not all sunshine and butterflies but instead my thoughts are focused on what it difficult or “wrong.” Most days I choose a better story. I am healthy. I love my job. I enjoy helping people. I am blessed. I am grateful.
As the New Year began I asked a few healthy people – like yourself – about their own wellness story that separated them from the pack. After listening to many stories I noticed a trend. For most successful well-balanced people their lifestyle choices are simple, mindful, and fun/delicious.
It’s simple
A hair stylist and friend of mine was telling me his own 20 pound weight loss story of 2016. He said it was “almost so simple it’s silly,” but he stopped buying the trigger foods that were preventing
him from reaching his goal weight. When he cut out fast food, stopped buying Oreos, and included breakfast daily the weight easily came off (and that was without exercise!). Instead of going out for fast food he bought pita bread and alternated between hummus, peanut butter, or deli meat with cheese as an easy lunch or dinner option. He consistently eats boiled eggs with fruit for breakfast and occasionally treats himself to fried eggs, bacon and hash browns.
It’s mindful
A client of mine, who we will call Janice, was mostly on-track when we started to meet last Summer, but she struggled with her snack habit. Janice knew the candy, granola bars, and other munchies at the office were preventing her from reaching her goals. She worked in a high stress environment and often turned to snacks as a stress reliever. Janice put the DATA system into action and practiced mindful eating consistently for three weeks. In that time she lost 6 pounds! Each time she thought about reaching for a snack she paused, described the situation to herself, acknowledged it was just a temporary craving, and turned to a different activity such as deep breathing or a walk around the office. Janice soon discovered she didn’t need to force herself to eat salads for lunch every day and instead she cut the mindless snacks out and remains on-track today.
It’s fun or delicious
I met a gal, Carla, last week who loves cheesecake. She is a diabetic and knows how carbohydrates and simple sugars affect her glucose (sugar in the blood). In the last 4 years, she has progressively changed her diet to primarily eating fruits, vegetables, protein, and some complex carbs – such as whole wheat bread or pasta, quinoa, and oats. However, she still hears the call of the cheesecake when she goes grocery shopping. Carla will occasionally give into the call and buys a small cake with the intention of eating one slice a day for a week. She admits the cake is usually gone within 24 hours. While we talked, I suggested a delicious alternative to the cheesecake. Now, Carla mitigates her cheesecake cravings with 1 graham cracker, a bit of all fruit spread, and whipped cream cheese. She reports this offers a sweet and creamy alternative without guilt or running the risk of high blood sugars!
Another example, when Mama Cathy decided to get more active she knew weight training and walking on the treadmill at the gym was not her idea of a good time. Instead, she tapped into her love of group fitness classes and religiously signs up for the 10-week water aerobics sessions every quarter. She looks forward to playing in the water and getting a great workout every Monday and Wednesday evening. Having a fun exercise also stops her from making less healthy food choices so as to not “undo” all of the work in the pool.
Food for thought:
New Year’s resolutions aside, when thinking about your own wellness goals and initiatives are they simple, mindful, or fun?
If not, how can you simplify your good habits?
How can you make them more mindful?
And where’s the fun?!
If you’re looking for more guidance in 2017, we hope you’ll check out Restart, Rebalance to get you the personalized support you need!
by Lucy | Dec 28, 2016 | Well Balanced Wisdom
If your house is anything like mine, the carols have been sung, the party was enjoyed, the presents have been unwrapped and now Santa and his elves have gone on vacation. Nothing remains but the mess: a mess of toys, a mess of food, a mess of the budget and a mess of all the usual routines. This can make it hard to see past this week and into the New Year let alone the Summer.
BUT if you can, for just a moment, consider this. In a recent study, researchers found that Americans gained more 10 days after Christmas, compared to the 10 days leading up to Christmas and HALF of that weight didn’t come off until the Summer months and beyond. Perhaps it is because we spend the time before Christmas running around preparing for all the events and then once it’s over we sink back into our chairs, take a deep breath and finally get to relax. It can also be easy to over indulge in all the excess food and drinks remaining from the celebrations. It’s important to kick back for a bit and recharge with family and friends, but not to the point that our health should suffer.
You don’t have to stay on this path if you don’t like where it’s taking you. Yes, it is hard to get back on track after a major holiday. Yes, you can do it. Don’t shy away from doing hard things. Instead, remember that today’s choices affect tomorrow’s experiences. We can have the best intentions but it’s our actual choices that will lead us somewhere.
So today is your chance to focus on what you want the most (good health, energy, longevity, positivity, a well-balanced lifestyle, a healthy budget and so on), in order to say no to what you might want in the moment.
Here are some choices to get you thinking:
- Choose water or tea instead of soda, wine, beer, and other sugary beverages.
- Choose to stop when you are full and satisfied regardless of food pushers around you
- Choose to put the sweets away, off the counter and hidden in the back of the fridge
- Choose to put a bowl of fruit on the counter and the vegetables at eye level in your fridge
- Choose to move more and get outside instead of watching Christmas movies all day
Food for thought:
What DO you want most?
What could happen when you choose to focus on what you want the most, rather than what you want in the moment?
If you are ready to lose weight and do not want to do it alone, let us help. Check out Restart, Rebalance to learn more.
