What Are You Working Towards?

Even though I now have lost 30 or so pounds, I still hate the scale. The number it shows almost always disappoints me, and it’s not enough of a reward to keep going. I’ve worked on finding other ways to measure my progress and establish short-term goals to work towards. One of my favorites is clothing. The outfit you see to the left is one that I worked towards fitting into the past 11 months....

Continue Reading...

Recovery

If you all are like me, you're recovering from the big meals of the past couple of days. We still have one more family gathering today, and then it'll be back to eating more sensibly. I haven't tracked my calories over the holiday, choosing instead to start anew tomorrow when I'm home. I also got my new pedometer, so I can start tracking my step counts again. I really want to challenge myself to see how much I can lose before Christmas. To be half way to my goal, I need to lose another 10 pounds...

Continue Reading...

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Here in the U.S., today is notoriously the biggest eating day of the year. A day of excess. Overeating, over drinking, over doing. How to keep from being an over-doer today? Here are 3 tips to stay on top of Thanksgiving overload...

Continue Reading...

The Biggest Loser, Week 11

We're down to the last day on the ranch and the final four contestants. Consequently, we had a lot of looking back and comparing where these people were when they arrived at the ranch and where they are now. We saw Rudy struggling with a 40-pound bar at the beginning and then lifting it like it was nothing in week 11. Same with Danny and a 30-pound bar. It really was awe-inspiring to see how far they'd all come in such a short time.In addition to their physical health, they got a lesson in wealth...

Continue Reading...

Living in the Land of the Unhealthy

During the past couple of weeks, I've seen so many news stories about poor health in the South, articles such as this one about obesity and diabetes rates. When lists of statistics come out regarding cancer rates, obesity and diabetes, the top 10 spots are overwhelmingly filled with southern states. These are the lists we don't want to be at the top of. But we are, and the causes are things we see from a young age. We see parents or other adults smoking or chewing tobacco; we deep fry anything that...

Continue Reading...

Can You Take a Break?

A very common complaint of dieters is that they get so sick of having to be aware of everything they put in their mouths and constantly counting calories or points. They want to be able to eat “like everyone else” and not have to work so hard at this. They’re particularly jealous of thin people who seem to be able to eat whatever they want and still stay skinny. This is definitely a complaint I’ve thought, felt and said through the years. I’ve gone so far as to say I’m going to take a break from...

Continue Reading...

Bringing a Taste of Ireland Home

Last year, my parents, sister and I went to Ireland the week after Christmas. One of our favorite activities there was to have a bowl of vegetable soup and a piece of brown bread in the afternoon. Yes, we do travel around the world on our stomachs. But, in our defense, everywhere we went served phenomenal variations of vegetable soup and brown bread, and it was often chilly outside. New Year’s...

Continue Reading...

Tami's Lists -- The Healthy Side of Lists

By Tami BrothersI’m a list type of girl. Don’t believe me? Just check out my post over at the Petit Fours and Hot Tamales blog last week where I blogged about how I found a series of books that feed this silly quirk of mine (Did you see the part about me charting the dates I put out Kleenex boxes?). Seriously, I make lists for everything: grocery lists, to-do lists, bill lists, book lists, and there is even that Kleenex list I mentioned. My house is cluttered with little scraps of paper with...

Continue Reading...

Is it Really As Easy as 2+2?

I was reading a book the other night by one of today’s top fitness gurus and she says that losing weight basically comes down to math. A pound is the equivalent to 3500 calories. To lose a pound, we have to eliminate those 3500 calories somehow – either through food choices or through exercise. It’s that simple.Or, well, not quite that simple. She also said we have to know what our daily base caloric rate is –how many calories we burn a day just by existing. Here’s the formula to figure that...

Continue Reading...

The Biggest Loser, Week 10

We made it to makeover week. Tim Gunn and Tabatha Coffey showed up to transform the contestants -- new clothes, new hairstyles and colors, even a shave for Rudy. It's amazing what a good makeover can do for a person, even if they do still have a ways to go before they reach their target weight. Loved Liz's and Rebecca's new hairstyles. And I felt Rebecca's pain when she told Tim how awful it had always been to try on clothes because she was overweight. I've been there, experienced that feeling of...

Continue Reading...

A weekend of contradictions

I was at the RWA Board meeting for the past three days, so my brain is a wee bit tired this morning. I was sitting here looking at the screen, wondering what I could possibly post about. But then I realized that in addition to a lot of board work this weekend, I'd observed some interesting things health-wise. On the positive side, there are a couple of other board members who have been on weight-loss journeys and who have had incredible success. I'm hoping I can have them guest here soon. But at...

Continue Reading...

A Healthy BMI

What’s a healthy weight goal for you? In the last 10 or 20 years, health experts have changed that question to what is a healthy body mass index (BMI) for you? The BMI takes into consideration the amount of bone, muscle and fat in your body’s composition and is considered better than the more straightforward height and weight charts that insurance companies used years ago. I’ve heard that those old charts said a woman should weigh between 3-5 pounds more than a 100 for each inch above five...

Continue Reading...

Cake as Easy as...Pie

Despite the title of today's post, there's no pie involved. But there is some easy cake. I've mentioned before that I get daily e-mails from Hungry Girl, and one day is devoted to reader questions. This week, someone asked for the recipe for the chocolate cake Hungry Girl (aka Lisa Lillien) made on a recent episode of Rachel Ray's show. When I hear people say recipes are simple, I approach with caution....

Continue Reading...

Superwoman I am Not

By Nicki Salcedo Here is the first thing that you need to know about me: One week ago, I posted my age and WEIGHT on my blog. I haven’t even reached my goal weight yet, but it was liberating to admit how much I weigh. My weight has always been a dirty little secret. My driver’s license certainly doesn’t reflect my real weight. In fact, I’m proud to say that I’m only 13 lbs over my “stated” driver’s license weight. This is what we call a victory! Here is the next thing you need to know...

Continue Reading...

My Exercise Endeavor - The Right Equipment

By Tawny WeberLast week as I re-embraced my love for jogging, I discovered three things:1. A once broken foot, even after 3 years, can still hurt.2. Support is everything.3. Sometimes an ugly shoe is okay (okay, I shuddered as I typed this one).My sneakers were, well, old and worn. My first time back on the treadmill to jog and I was almost in tears, my feet hurt so badly (especially the foot I’d...

Continue Reading...

The Biggest Loser, Week 9

Okay, talk about a roller-coaster ending to an episode, especially for Shay. She's on top of the mountain one moment when she lost 17 pounds to become the fastest woman in show history to lose 100 pounds. A few minutes later, she's fallen below the yellow line. Even with a big loss number, when you're dealing with percentages and you're the biggest person on the show, it's hard to beat out the other people. I have to say I was surprised when she was voted off.During the weigh-in, I felt Amanda was...

Continue Reading...

Preventive Measures

When I rolled out of bed this morning at 6:45, I wondered how I used to do this every day for years. When I left work full-time, my body went back to a more natural sleep pattern which is getting up between 8 and 8:30 and going to bed around 1. But this morning, I was on a mission to get my flu shot and I had to be over at my former place of employment (where I still do contract work) by 8 for the employee health day where I could get a seasonal flu shot. I'd gone by my doctor's office last week...

Continue Reading...

What's in a Number?

I’m in month 11 of my (latest) journey to becoming and staying a healthy writer. I started in the beginning of 2009 and promised myself I’d give it a year no matter what. I would go to Weight Watchers (WW) all year and go to the gym at least 100 times. I’m approaching the one-year mark, and I’m starting to obsess about what my total weight loss number for 2009 will be. Will the number be big enough?I don’t think that’s healthy or helpful. When I first set my health goals for the year, I told...

Continue Reading...

Goals for This Week

I've been remiss in posting goals on Sundays, but that ends today. I've got lots of goals set up for different aspects of my life -- writing, health and home improvement. I like dividing goals up into separate areas so I can feel like I'm accomplishing things in various areas, not just one. That's how I divide my yearly goals I compile at the end of the year. So here are the goals for this week, ones I'm determined to complete.Health:1. Eat no more than 1,200 calories a day.2. Exercise at least...

Continue Reading...

Comfort Food

Trying to eat healthy does not mean you need to leave comfort food behind you.  You can find healthier versions of your favorite meals.  The eggplant parmigiana recipe of several weeks ago is a great example of one.  There’s nothing more comforting than chicken soup, and it tends to be very healthy in all its forms.  A real staple of mine is chicken and dumplings, and it’s a pretty easy but very tasty recipe. Chicken and Dumplings 4-6 cube(s) chicken bouillon cube ...

Continue Reading...

Everything I Learned About Managing Stress, I Learned From My Dog

By Amy E. NicholsStress is a strange thing. Each creature on this planet has a reaction to stressful situations. Most of these are life and death, survival of the fittest type stuff. All animals have adrenaline reactions. What makes humans so different when it comes to stress? Stress is the common denominator in many health issues. High blood pressure, metabolic syndrome, even obesity can all be caused by stress and our management of it. It ages you as well. It robs us of our sleep. It can...

Continue Reading...

My Exercise Endeavor -- One Foot in Front of the Other

By Tawny WeberFor years, one of my exercise mainstays for first losing, then maintaining weight was my treadmill. I love to run. I love to run indoors even more because when I first started, I had an infant who slept very sporadically and poorly, so my only running time was during her naps. I’d worn through two treadmills by the time she was 6.Then in 2006 I broke my foot. In 2006, I also sold my first book and discovered the wild world of revisions, line edits, real deadlines, promotion demands...

Continue Reading...

The Biggest Loser, Week 8

We had a change of venue this week, with all the remaining contestants going to Washington, D.C., to inspire others to think about healthier living. They met with senators, talked to strangers on the street, got as many people as they could to come to the Washington Monument to exercise with Bob and Jillian, and participated in challenges with the sights of the nation's capital in the background.Observations from this week:1. When I was a newspaper reporter, the thing I hated the most was called...

Continue Reading...

My New Calorie Tracker

I mentioned a few days ago that I was trying out a free trial of a computer program to track my food and exercise. I decided to buy this program from Calorie King tonight because I like how it allows me to click and drag many common foods into sections for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and Snacks. I can also customize foods and add them to my listings if they aren't in the system. Not only does it tell me the calorie count but also things like fat content, carbs, fiber, protein, etc. And it shows me...

Continue Reading...

Cooking One Day for the Month

Years ago, I read an article about cooking one day for the month.  It intrigued me, but I never did anything about it.  My usual pattern was to cook two or three dishes for the week on the weekend, and it worked even if I often got sick of what I had made by the end of the week.  Then I bought the Oct. 2007 issue of Cooking Light.  It had a fabulous marinara sauce recipe that...

Continue Reading...

Where's the Wagon?

First, I must apologize for not putting up a healthy cooking post yesterday. I got my weeks mixed up. I probably wasn't the best person to talk about healthy cooking or eating yesterday as I've misplaced the wagon again. The hubby has been off work for the past few days and, well, I've really slacked off on keeping track of what I was eating and eaten some things I shouldn't have. Bad, bad, bad. Amazingly, when I just stepped on the scales, they didn't reflect a weight change. Total shocker! I have...

Continue Reading...