Diet Motivation

Motivation is different for everyone.

Originally, mine was to lower my cholesterol
and Triglycerides.

Once the first 10 pounds came off, I was
still motivated by the fact that I had
some serious health issues related to
being overweight.

As my heart rate, blood pressure, glucose
levels and cholesterol and Triglyceride
levels started to normalize, I got excited!
That became an even bigger motivation, I
could get healthy with diet and exercise.

Now I've lost 57 pounds with 36 to go.

My clothes hang on me. My seat belt seems
much longer than it used to. Even my
shoes are a little loose on me! Who would
have thought my feet had fat on them?

And when people see me who haven't seen
me in a while, the look on their faces
is priceless.

I had begun thinking that I would never
lose the weight. It's a shame it took
health problems to motivate me.

But now it's the "I know I can do this"
that keeps me going.

What motivates you?

Irresponsible Article by Time Magazine Outrages Fitness Industry

Recently Time Magazine published an
article by writer John Cloud that
has the Fitness Industry up in arms.

And for good reason I might ad.

Basically the article stated that
exercise makes him hungry, can make
YOU hungry, therefore exercising will
keep you from losing weight, perhaps
even gain a few pounds.

This was in TIME Magazine!?!

This is an insane and irresponsible
article in the face of an ongoing
Obesity Crisis here in the United
States as well as many other parts of
the world.

You can read that article HERE

Exercise is the best way to burn
calories! And if you do get hungry,
THEN EAT RESPONSIBLY! It's a good
idea to eat something after a good
workout. Have a piece of fruit, or
a protein shake or perhaps some lean
protein like fish or chicken.

John Cloud, you can't stuff your face
with cookies and donuts after a workout
and expect to lose weight! Just because
you choose to exercise UNhealthy habits
after a workout doesn't mean that
the rest of the world is full of morons
like you! Think about what you're doing
and then give a little thought to what
you're going to write.

Word is that Time Magazine has been
bombarded with rebuttals from the
Fitness Industry since the article
appeared. I'm hoping to see him
recant the whole thing.

BTW: At this writing I am down 54 pounds!

Summertime Fare

Well, it's hot here in SE Texas
and it certainly feels like summer
when you're out in the scorching sun.

Hot weather just screams Potato Salad!

But when you're watching calories and
fat?

Here's a great Potato Salad Recipe
that won't undo all that you've
worked so hard to do.

Ingredients

* 2 pounds potato(es), new (tiny)
* 1 cup(s) dressing, low-fat mayonnaise-based
* 2 stalk(s) celery
* 1 large onion(s), chopped
* 1/3 cup(s) pickles, sweet, (or dill) chopped
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon pepper, black ground
* 2 egg(s), hard boiled, chopped
* 1 1/2 tablespoon milk, fat-free
* pepper, black ground, to taste


Preparation

1. In a large saucepan, combine potatoes
and enough water to cover potatoes. Bring
to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer
for 15 to 20 minutes or just until tender.
Drain well; cool potatoes. Cut potatoes into
quarters.

2. In a large bowl, combine mayonnaise
dressing, celery, onion, pickles, the 1/2
teaspoon salt, and the 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Add the potatoes and egg, gently tossing to
coat. Cover and chill for 6 to 24 hours.

3. To serve, stir enough of the milk into
salad to reach desired consistency. Season
to taste with additional pepper.

Nutritional Info (Per serving):

Calories: 86, Saturated Fat: 1g,
Sodium: 254mg, Dietary Fiber: 1g,
Total Fat: 3g, Carbs: 14g, Cholesterol: 27mg,
Protein: 2g

Exchanges: Starch: 1,
Fat: 0.5
Carb Choices: 1

And The Biggest Loser Is...

Helen!

Yep, Helen lost over half her body
weight and is the New Biggest Loser!

Is that women 3 seasons in a row now?

Haven't been able to post for several
weeks due to a computer virus, but
I'm baaaaack!

To recap, I lost 10 pounds which was
my first goal so that I might lower
my blood sugar.

Then I hit the 25 pound mark which
really put my blood sugar back in the
right range and lowered my resting
heart rate.

When I had hit 36 pounds a trip to
the doc revealed that I had cut my
triglycerides in half but still need
to keep lowering them. The weird thing
is that my cholesterol was up slightly
and I really don't get that.

Now at -40 and counting, I'm really
getting psyched. Even if my pants
(which were two sizes smaller) did
fall off when I was cooking dinner
the other night.

It was funny and gave me a good laugh.

Another Day, Another Pound

I weighed in at my usual morning hour
today. Lost one pound over the last week.

I guess that's better than gaining a
pound. I've lost 32 pounds so far and
seem to be at a plateau. The dreaded
plateau!

Guess it's time to beef up the workout.

The weight loss so far seems to have
eased some of the pain I have from
Osteoarthritis. I'm hoping that keeps
up.

A trip to the doctor yesterday revealed
several good things from the weight loss
and exercise.

My heart rate was 67! That's down from
98 so that's awesome.

My blood pressure has always run low, but
after packing on pounds it was showing up
at normal. Normal is fine, but it's just
not me. Yesterday my blood pressure was
106/71, and that's a little more like
what I am used to seeing.

My blood sugar is still stablized and I'm
going to fast tonight to get a new
cholesterol reading tomorrow morning.

I started taking a cholesterol medication
several weeks ago but had an allergic
reaction. Now I'll see if all that oat
meal, cheerios, Omega 3 and Red Yeast
Rice combined with the diet and exercise
have lowered it. Keeping my fingers crossed.

What Price Flat Abs?

We all want a flatter stomach, but is this
going too far?

Time Marches On

Ok, so I was in Physical Therapy A LOT
longer than I expected, but it's almost
over.

This exciting season of "The Biggest
Loser" has come and gone. Are you as
pumped up as I am?

It was great to have a woman become the
Biggest Loser this year. Go Ali!

There is certainly a lot to be learned
from watching the show not to mention
the TONS of inspiration one gets by seeing
that WEIGHT LOSS is possible.

Granted, not all of us get to go to a
Biggest Loser camp where we have expert
trainers and the right kinds of foods in
the house. Nor do many of us have 4 hours
a day that we can devote to working out
like maniacs. But that doesn't mean that
we can't still take off the pounds, get
healthy again and begin a new journey to
an overall healthier lifestyle. We CAN
do all of that and more.

One would think that just being FAT would
be motivation enough to get started, but
for me, it's taken finding out I have obesity
related health problems to get me going.
I'm pre-diabetic, (what they used to call
borderline) and my Cholesterol levels are
whack, not to mention that my Triglyceride
levels are Off The Chart! Pretty scary stuff.

Years of a sedentary lifestyle have made it
nearly impossible for me to just "get going".
I'm having to start of slowly and build up
as I slim down. No way I could just jump
in and do 30 minutes of cardio training.
I had to start with 10 minutes and I'm doing
that 2 times a day. I know it doesn't sound
like much, but it's a start and sometimes just
getting started is the hardest part.

I'd like to share a site with you that will
help you trememdously no matter what shape
you are in, or what your fitness goals are.
Spark People is an AWESOME, not to mention
totally FREE site that can help anyone get
started, stay motivated and get fit.

I urge you to go there and sign up for a free
account and get yourself going. I don't make
a dime from referrals, but please feel free
to use COWGIRLBLUES as the one who referred
you. Yep, that's me!

Then please come back here and share your
experiences with me.

Anyone up for posting Before and After photos?
Let me know. I'll set it up.