It's Not a Diet, It's a Life Changing Commitment; Food Journaling

An important thing for me to keep in mind is that this is not a diet, it's a life-changing commitment. It took years to get to this point, and I won't be seeing dramatic results overnight. It's vital that I keep this perspective in mind as I hit plateaus or don't lose as much as I'd expected in any particular week.

I also need to constantly evaluate what I'm eating as well as how much I'm eating and make adjustments as necessary.

One step in making this life change is keeping a food journal. I'd blown that idea off before, but after reading this article (The Single Best Way to Lose Weight) on WebMD.com I'm realizing it's something I need to do.

The article states:

Studies show that a journal doesn't just aid weight loss — it turbo-charges it. When researchers from Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research followed more than 2,000 dieters who were encouraged to record meals and snacks, they found that the single best predictor of whether a participant would drop weight was whether the person kept a food diary. It trumped exercise habits, age, and body mass index. The number of pounds people lost was directly related to the number of days they wrote in their log.

If keeping a food journal means a higher possibility of successful weight loss and maintenance, then I am going to do this.

Why this works? Check out these reasons from the above linked article (be sure to go to that article for more information, these are excerpts only)

Here are five more reasons to start a journal today — even if you swore off diaries in middle school.

1. You'll get a reality check about how many calories you consume.
Americans typically underestimate their daily intake by about 25 percent, reports nutritionist Carrie Latt Wiatt, author of Portion Savvy.

2. You'll cut back on between-meal munching.
Make a mental checklist of what you ate yesterday. Sure, you can probably remember breakfast, lunch, and dinner — but what about that mini Snickers you snatched from your coworker's stash? Or that spoonful of mashed potatoes you took off your husband's plate?

It's easy to overlook bites, licks, and tastes (known as "BLTs" to professionals). But that's a huge mistake — there are 25 calories, on average, in each mouthful. Translation: Six little bites a day add up to around 15 extra pounds a year.

3. You'll discover where your diet detours.
"I thought I ate a lot of vegetables — it seemed like I was constantly cooking spinach, broccoli, or Brussels sprouts," says Melissa Smith, a 32-year-old mom from Omaha who's been keeping a food diary for the past 18 months. "But looking back over a few weeks of my journal, I was surprised to realize that I was only eating veggies once or twice a week." So she made salads a regular part of dinner and noticed that it helped her eat less of her entrée. Her analysis and follow-up action paid off: She's lost more than 27 pounds.

A balanced diet is the key to weight loss, says Suzanne Farrell, R.D., who owns Cherry Creek Nutrition in Denver. "Whole grains, low-fat dairy, green vegetables, orange veggies, beans, nuts — science shows that we need to eat these regularly to reach a healthy body weight. So when I flip through my clients' journals, I always look for what I'm not seeing."

4. You'll learn why you pig out.
Experts suggest that, to help break bad habits, you record not only what you eat, but the circumstances that prompt you to eat. For example, maybe you indulge in more sweets at work because you sit close to the vending machine. Maybe you have a milkshake several times a week because you pass Wendy's on the way home. Or maybe every time you worry about money, you retreat into the kitchen for chips.

When you begin to notice these patterns, you can figure out ways to change them.

5. You'll see real results — quickly.
Your food diary can be as revealing as the one you kept in fifth grade. For example, to get a glimpse into how much you've improved your diet, compare the entries in week one (Twinkie-filled) to week four or five (ideally, veggie-filled). You can also discover which decisions translated into pounds lost — for instance, that week you had fish for dinner twice might've helped you lose weight.

How to keep a food journal? The article has some great ideas:

Choose Your Medium
If you're using pen and paper, buy a regular spiral notebook. Or go for a pre-organized book like the DietMinder. Computer addicts should check out online journals, such as myfooddiary.com ($9 per month) and nutrihand.com (free for a basic plan; $10 per month for extras). If you can't live without your PDA, visit weightbydate.com and download the software (starting at $19).

Start Recording
The crucial info to write down: the time you ate, what you ate, and how much you ate. Make a habit of jotting notes right after you eat. "If you wait until the end of the day, it's too easy to leave things out," warns Suzanne Farrell, R.D. Tracking your diet online? Remember to take paper with you to restaurants, so you can write down every ingredient and calculate its nutritional content afterward.

Get Personal
Customize your diary so it reflects the info that's most useful to you. For example, if you're someone who eats whenever food is in front of you, create columns in your journal to rate how hungry you were before and afterward. If you snack your way through hard days, add a column to describe how you were feeling when you ate. Trying to figure out when you're most drawn to junk food? Record where you were when you indulged and what was going on at the time. Also, if you're trying to break a specific habit, like scarfing down ice cream at night, create a column for that, so you can give yourself a star for each day you resist the urge.

Be Honest
Include every single bite, lick, and taste (anything larger than a crumb counts). And don't forget to keep track of your sips. Even the most diligent diarists often forget to include the glass of white wine they had at dinner (120 calories) and their 3 p.m. can of Coke (155 calories).

Find Your Favorites
Counting calories is easier for creatures of habit: If you have a bowl of cereal for breakfast almost every morning or a turkey sandwich three times a week, you won't have to look up the number each time.

Keep Your Diary Close
"I'm forgetful, so I always need to put the journal where I can see it — on my kitchen table, on my desk at work. I carry it a lot in my hand, too, as a reminder," says Melissa Smith, 32, of Omaha, who lost 25 pounds keeping a food diary.

Examine the Evidence
No matter how diligent you are, a food log won't help in the behavior-changing department if you don't analyze it. At night, sit down and calculate how many calories you consumed. Tally up what food groups you're eating, and make adjustments. (A big plus of online tools is that they do a lot of the analysis for you, totaling everything with a click of a button and often giving you charts to show what you can improve.)

Reward Yourself
"I read that it takes 28 days to build a habit," says Mealey. "So when I have a new goal — like eating veggies more often — I do it for a month, then treat myself by shopping or going to a movie with a friend. Rewards give me an incentive to keep going."

I'm convinced :) I am keeping a food journal beginning today. The way it's helping me is to make me stop and think before eating something, because if I do, I have to write it down in my food journal.


~ His Sweet Gypsy Rose

Keeping-It-Off Superfoods

From WebMD.com:

Keeping-It-Off Superfoods
9 foods that can help keep the extra weight away
By Elaine Magee, MPH, RD

Are there really certain foods that can help you lose weight and keep it off? We're not talking about any so-called miracle food that "melts the fat" (does the cabbage soup diet ring any bells?). These are foods that really can help you lose or maintain weight, either by helping you to eat less or to burn more calories -- or, in some cases, maybe even helping to decrease your body fat.

Experts say there are two basic categories of foods that can be considered "keeping it off superfoods" because they fill your tummy without piling on the calories: fruits and vegetables. For example, two whole cups of steamed broccoli packs a measly 87 calories. Or how about two cups of strawberry slices? They'll add only 99 calories. Even a denser vegetable, steamed carrots, has only 140 calories per two cups. And two cups of a denser fruit, apple slices? That's only 130 calories.

If fruits and vegetables are the "keeping-it-off superfood groups," fiber may well be the "keeping-it-off supernutrient." (Incidentally, the two-cup servings of fruits and vegetables mentioned above all contribute from 5 to 9 grams of fiber.)

Protein is another supernutrient. It's becoming more scientifically accepted that protein may help to curb appetite. But whether we need more than 0.4 grams per pound of body weight is still up for debate among many researchers.

"Eating enough protein-rich foods of low energy density [calories per portion] is a good strategy for increasing satiety, especially if you are trying to lose weight," says Barbara Rolls, PhD, a researcher at Penn State University and author of the book The Volumetrics Eating Plan.

Protein can slightly boost metabolism, Rolls says. But, she explains, eating more calories than your body needs -- even in the form of protein -- will promote weight gain, not loss.

Before we get to the list of "keeping it off" superfoods, let's make sure we keep things in perspective. At the end of the day, weight loss is still about burning more calories than you take in. The advantage to these foods is that they may help you do just that -- if you eat them instead of some higher-calorie choices.

9 'Keeping It Off' Superfoods

1. Green Tea

Go out of your way to indulge in a tall glass of iced green tea or a mug of hot green tea when you get the chance. Here's why: In a recent study, volunteers who drank a bottle of tea (fortified with green tea extract) every day for three months lost more body fat than another group who drank a bottle of regular oolong tea. Except for the different teas, their overall diets were similar. Researchers suspect that the catechins (helpful phytochemicals) in green tea may trigger weight loss by stimulating the body to burn calories and mildly decrease body fat.

2. Soup (broth- or tomato-based, that is)

Calorie-containing liquids generally are less filling than solid foods, but soups are the exception, says researcher Richard Mattes from Purdue University. In Mattes' study, participants were fed 300-calorie servings of various soups before eating their lunches (they could eat as much lunch as they wanted). Mattes found that the study participants tended to take in fewer total daily calories on days when they had the soup, suggesting that eating low-calorie soups (the broth- and tomato-based ones) before meals may reduce hunger and increase feelings of fullness.

Kathleen Zelman, MPH, RD, director of nutrition for WebMD, agrees that lower-calorie soups (that is, tomato- and broth-based varieties) are highly satisfying.

"If you have soup before a meal, it helps control hunger and you eat less," she says.

3. Low-Calorie Green Salads

Having a low-calorie salad -- not to be confused with salads brimming with cheese, croutons, high-fat dressings, and so on -- as a first course can help you feel fuller and reduce the calories you eat during that meal, according to a study by Rolls. She found that eating a small low-calorie salad tended to cut calories eaten at the meal by 7%, and a larger salad by 12%. But the study found the opposite is true with high-calorie salads. These increased the calories eaten during the meal by 8% for a small salad, and 17% for a larger salad.

Just how low-calorie can a green salad be? Consider that two cups of fresh spinach leaves, 10 slices of cucumber, one medium tomato, and 1/4 cup of grated carrot has a grand total of 67 calories (along with a hefty 5.5 grams of fiber).

4. Yogurt

Yogurt is a dairy food, and several studies have found that including dairy products as part of an overall lower-calorie diet may give you a weight-loss advantage. Still, some scientists aren't convinced, pointing to other studies that show no strong effect between dairy and weight loss.

One study looked at a group of obese adults who ate three, 6-ounce servings of fat-free yogurt a day as part of a diet reduced by 500 calories from their normal intake. The study found that this group lost 22% more weight and 61% more body fat than another group of participants who ate the reduced-calorie diet without emphasizing calcium-rich foods. Even more impressive: the yogurt eaters also lost 81% more stomach fat.

More needs to be learned about the mechanism responsible for this increased loss of body fat, but in the meantime, consider giving yogurt a little more respect. At the very least, a light yogurt may help you stave off hunger due to its combination of protein and carbohydrate. Six ounces of plain, low-fat yogurt contains approximately 9 grams of protein, 12 grams of carbohydrates (from milk, not sugar), and 311 milligrams of calcium. It's also a great vehicle for healthy additives like fruit or omega-3-rich flaxseed.

5. Beans

Beans help you feel full longer, which means they may work to curb your between-meal appetite. They also give you a big fiber and protein bang for a minimum of calories. One-half cup of pinto beans or kidney beans has around 8 grams fiber and 7 grams of protein, all for about 110 calories.

6. Water

Water is a keeping-it-off superfood because it's a great alternative to other, calorie-containing beverages. When you drink beverages that have calories (say, fancy coffee drinks or sodas) you are not likely to compensate by eating less food. Mattes' research suggests that people who drink liquid carbohydrate (in the form of soda) are more likely to consume more calories than their bodies needs, compared with people who ate the same amount of solid carbohydrate (in the form of jelly beans).

Water is necessary for life, and you should be drinking it throughout the day. You can get your water via unsweetened tea, flavored unsweetened mineral water, regular water with lime or lemon, or cucumber. Even brewed coffee (especially decaf) counts if consumed in moderation.

7. Light Diet Shakes

While diet shakes are not the solution to weight loss or maintenance, research shows that they might help. Women who had lost weight on a reduced-calorie plan that included meal-replacement beverages maintained their losses after a year by drinking at least one diet shake a day in place of a meal, according to a study done by Clinical Research laboratories (and funded by Slim Fast Foods). The study authors concluded that the one-shake-a-day strategy might be helpful for people that have difficulty changing their eating habits.

Of course, it's hard to beat the convenience factor of diet shakes. If you go for a diet shake, choose types that have more fiber and less sugar.

8. High-Fiber, Whole-Grain Cereal

We've all seen those whole-grain cereal commercials ad nauseam. But the keeping-it-off potential value of a good whole-grain breakfast cereal is worth mentioning. Whole grains in general help boost fiber and the nutritional value of your meal, but many studies done on their relationship to weight loss have specifically involved breakfast cereals (many funded by cereal companies).

A Purdue University study suggested that having a portion-controlled serving of ready-to-eat cereal (with 2/3 cup skim milk plus a 100-calorie portion of fruit) as a meal replacement may promote weight loss. Other research that looked at data on over 27,000 men over an eight-year period found that as whole grain consumption went up, weight gain over time went down. Another study followed more than 74,000 women (aged 38-63) for a 12-year period and found that those with the greatest increase in dietary fiber gained an average of 3.3 fewer pounds than those with the smallest increase in fiber.

One of the easiest ways to give your daily diet a whole-grain boost is to have a bowl of higher-fiber whole-grain cereal as breakfast or a snack.

9. Grapefruit

Maybe there was something to the old grapefruit diet after all: A study found that grapefruit may help encourage weight loss and reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Study participants who ate a grapefruit at each meal for 12 weeks lost an average of 3.6 pounds (some in the group lost as much as 10 pounds), while a comparison group that didn't eat grapefruit lost 1/2 pound, according to a recent pilot study by Scripps Clinic in San Diego. The researchers noticed that after the meals, the grapefruit eaters also had reduced levels of insulin and blood sugar.

The American Institute for Cancer Research notes that "there's no scientific evidence to support that grapefruit enzymes burn away fat." And according to the American Dietetic Association, "if you lose weight when you add grapefruit to your eating plan, it's probably because you're substituting it for another food that has more calories."

Of course, there's nothing wrong with that. One pink/red grapefruit takes a bit of time and effort to eat, and it adds 3.5 grams of fiber with only 74 calories. Keep in mind that grapefruit can interfere with the effectiveness of some medications, so check with your pharmacist if you're taking medication.

~ His Sweet Gypsy Rose

Moving On to Phase 2

Today marks day 14 of Phase 1, I'll officially weigh myself tomorrow morning to determine my loss for the last 2 weeks.

This afternoon I'm preparing food for the coming week, and am introducing some whole grains. The recipes I've chosen are:

Breakfast
Spinach and Cheese Squares with Sausage
Sausage and Cheese Breakfast cups
1 slice of sprouted whole grain bread each morning

Lunch and Dinner
Butternut Squash Lasagna
Spinach and Bulgur Warm Salad
Brown Rice, Sausage and Apple Stuffing
Seattle Black Beans
I'll be supplementing each meal with fresh summer squash from our garden. It's beginning to ripen at a fast pace, so we'll have plenty :)

Desserts
Orange Dream Cheesecake
Strawberry Rhubarb Dessert

Snacks
Dry roasted unsalted almonds
Cucumber
Celery
Bell Pepper
Cheese Sticks
Natural Peanutbutter
Laughing Cow Cheese

I have some cooking to do this afternoon, but not as much as last week. I'll be reviewing a few recipes in the coming days.


~ His Sweet Gypsy Rose

Diet and Exercise Blinkies

I wanted to dress up my blog a bit with some fun diet and exercise blinkies, so I just spent a couple of hours looking online to see what I could find. I've included the ones I like the most on my side column, feel free to copy these and use them on your own blog.


~ His Sweet Gypsy Rose

Map Your Walk

Prevention Magazine has a really neat tool where you can map your walk and see exactly how many miles it is.

With My Walking Maps, "you can find a walking route in your neighborhood, share it with friends, or you can create a personalized route just for you. Plus, you'll be able to keep records of your distance, pace and calories burned." (from Prevention.com's website)

Check it out! I discovered that the distance around my block is actually 1.17 miles, so I'm walking just a little further than I realized. Very nice :)


~ His Sweet Gypsy Rose

Thoughts on Day 12 of Phase 1

Today marks day 12 of South Beach Phase 1. I'm feeling pretty good, and have also begun getting into the habit of walking regularly.

Not only is this helping me physically, but I think it's helping me mentally as well. I think I have a better overall attitude, and that I'm feeling happier.

I'm also beginning to see small changes in my shape. It's amazing how even a few pounds can have such an impact. It makes me excited to see other positive changes over the coming months :)


~ His Sweet Gypsy Rose

Perseverance Quotes to Ponder

I'm pooped at the moment...last night there was the strangest thunderstorm...I woke up around midnight to nonstop thunder and lightning that went on for well over an hour if not longer. I didn't get good sleep last night.

Earlier this evening I met up with my friend Amy at McKinley Park and we walked around it twice. It was hard tonight. I was so ready to be done once we got back to my car. I think part of that is being so tired. Tomorrow night I'll be walking once around my block.

I decided to look up a few quotes about perseverance and share them here:

The difference between perseverance and obstinacy is that one comes from a strong will, and the other from a strong won't. ~Henry Ward Beecher

Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did. ~Newt Gingrich

You can't go through life quitting everything. If you're going to achieve anything, you've got to stick with something. ~From the television show Family Matters

Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they've got a second. ~William James

Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use. ~Earl Nightingale

"Never, never, never give up!" ~ Winston Churchill

"Never Quit. "Don't ever, ever quit. Recognize that stopping now, regrouping to try a new approach isn't quitting. If you quit you'll regret it forever." ~ Rudy Ruettiger

"It's not whether you get knocked down; it's whether you get up." ~ Vince Lombardi

"It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop. " ~ Confucius

"When things go wrong as they sometimes will;
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill;
When the funds are low, and the debts are high
And you want to smile, but have to sigh;
When care is pressing you down a bit-
Rest if you must, but do not quit.
Success is failure turned inside out;
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt;
And you can never tell how close you are
It may be near when it seems so far;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit-
It's when things go wrong that you must not quit."
~ Unknown

I bolded the parts that really spoke to me. Here is my goal....never quit, rise up whenever I fall, and STICK WITH THIS!


~ His Sweet Gypsy Rose