Holiday Stuffing

Don't fret if you over ate and over stuffed this past weekend. Just get back on track with your mindful eating and regular exercise. Unless you managed to eat an extra 3000 calories everyday (very hard to do) you won't gain a pound that will last. The bloat you may feel is from unusual over indulgences and will be gone before you know it.

What Burns Calories

Thought I would use this week of the Thanksgiving Feast to give you an idea of what kind of calories you burn doing different activities.

1. Inline Skating - 425 calories 30 minutes
2. Running - 374 calories 30 minutes
3. Jumping Rope - 340 calories 30 minutes
4. Hula Hooping - 300 calories 30 minutes
5. Tennis - 272 calories 30 minutes
6. Dancing - 221 calories 30 minutes
7. Walking Vigorously - 170 calories 30 minutes
8. Biking Flat - 220 calories 30 minutes
9. Cleaning Moderate - 200 calories 30 minutes
10. Swimming - 300 calories 30 minutes
11. Office Work - 120 calories 30minutes
12. Watching TV - 35 calories 30 minutes
13. Vacuuming or Mopping - 75 calories 30 minutes

So enjoy your feasting this week but make sure you move your body too.

Long Term Thinkers Make Healthier Choices

I read an article in a Fitness Journal that researchers from Kansas State University found that people who use long-term thinking have a greater capacity for implementing healthier behaviors. I found this very interesting. Think about the people you know well, think about yourself. Are you a planner, do you make lists and think about your future and how you want it to look?

Whether you are a future thinker or not, the article gives some tactics to use to help you become more successful in making healthier choices.

1. Counter impulsive tendencies with self-questions before making a decision to act. For example "Do I really need to eat this now?" "How do I want to feel if I choose to have another drink?"
2. People with similar habits are often drawn together. Think of the long term thinkers you know and include them in your circle of friends more often.
3. Try to delay an immediate impulse, craving or action by delaying it in small increments of time. Wait 10 minutes before giving in to the craving then re-evaluate the intensity of the craving. If it is strong wait another 10 minutes. Regular practice may effectively evaluate the influence that current behaviors have on future outcomes.
   

Give Up Sugar!

I was standing in line behind a mother and her daughter. The daughter was about 10 or 11 years old. This young girl told her mom she was going to give up sugar. Her very smart mother replied "what good will that do?"

That mom is so right, giving up sugar will do nothing except make you end up craving it even more. When ever you give up any food group, sugar, carbohydrates, fats, proteins, whatever, your body will let you know it is not happy. A major binge is imminently in your future on what you gave up.

So enjoy all foods when you feel like eating them. Stop eating them when they don't taste so good or you are full. Your body is miraculous, if you listen it will tell you want it needs nutritionally and let you know when to stop eating.

Thanks to that smart mom that girl will enjoy sugar and hopefully all food.

Count to 10, Pause

You may have heard the phrase "count to 10 before you speak". Usually this is reserved for an argument. If you count to 10 there is a better chance something will not be said that could be regretted.

I would like to suggest when you head for a snack, second helpings another piece that you pause and count to 10. Consider whether that food is really what you want, need and desire. This count and pause may help to prevent you from eating more than you really need or making a choice that is not the best one.

Pause and Count to 10.