|
|
Dotti's Newsletter |
June 21, 2007 |
|
Issue #026 |
WelcomeHi everyone! Is it warm enough for you? We've been having warm weather but it's not been too hot yet. I'm sure that day is coming. Al has installed our A/Cs so we are ready to go! Today we are going to talk about some diet myths. We've all heard them and wondered if they were true or not. We've also wished some of them were! It's that time to get settled into our most comfy chair with our tall glass of water! Don't forget to bring your beautiful SMILE ☺ There are so many diet and nutrition myths out there how do we discern which ones are true and which ones are not? First, the key is to read and learn all you can on the subject matter. There is always ongoing research in this area of our lives which helps us to better understand what is happening as we move along on our Journey. Knowledge is the key. A good gauge to go by is "If it's too good to be true, it probably isn't" as we all know there is no magic pill or fad diet for this Journey. Of course, if there actually was one whoever invented it would never have to worry about money again because we'd all be willing to pay anything for such a thing, wouldn't we? If you see phrases like these, “Lose 30 pounds in 30 days!” and “Eat as much as you want and still lose weight!” run the other way! Al has written a wonderful article called, To Conjure or Not to Conjure, on this very same subject. If you are interested in reading the article just click on the title.
1. Skipping meals can help you lose weight. We have all heard more than our share of dieting and nutrition myths. The one that sticks out in my mind is "Skipping meals can help you lose weight." When I started my Journey the first thing I wanted to do was eat less than I was supposed to because I KNEW it would make the weight come off faster. Of course, my Weight Watcher leader let us all know that you have to "eat to lose", a concept I had a hard time grasping. My mind just could not believe such a ridiculous concept. We all know that fewer calories in means more weight lost - don't we? After studying a bit about metabolism I learned there was science behind that concept, and it doesn't look so ridiculous anymore. According to Dr. Mark Hyman, who wrote the wonderful book, Ultra-Metabolism, when you repeatedly restrict calorie intake you are causing your body to lose both fat and muscle. When you gain the weight back, as most times you do, you gain it back as fat, which leads to a slower metabolism. Now, after gaining the weight back, you need a lot fewer calories to maintain your weight gain. An interesting fact Dr. Hyman brought up was that fat burns 70 times fewer calories than muscle. As you can see by restricting your calorie intake you are actually doing more harm than good for yourself. Yes, you might lose some weight but at what cost? Researchers have found that our bodies metabolize food a lot more efficiently when we eat a little every few hours. In fact, I can tell you that was certainly true on my first Journey to Goal. I ate small meals throughout the day until my dinner meal. I then had something a couple hours after dinner. Many people think they will eat more by doing this but just the opposite occurs. Smaller meals throughout the day keep you invigorated all day without those highs or drowsy lows. And as if that were not enough: these little meals keep you 'satisfied' and never overly famished—which we all know leads to overeating. I would eat my cereal or oatmeal in the morning with a yogurt. I like a banana on my cereal but I knew I'd want something in a couple hours so I would save the banana for then. Remember, by eating regular mini-meals throughout the day you are never going to be "starving" at any time, and that keeps you from overeating. When you skip a meal you are so famished by the time you do get to eat that you will surely overeat before your stomach realizes you are actually full. In fact, you won't even remember your first plate of food; you will have 'inhaled' in so quickly because of how hungry you were. Research has shown that people who skip breakfast and eat fewer times during the day tend to be heavier than people who eat a healthy breakfast and eat four or five times a day. 2. Certain foods, like grapefruit, celery, or cabbage soup, can burn fat and make you lose weight. There are no foods that can burn fat. There are some foods with caffeine which may speed up your metabolism (the way your body uses energy or calories) for a short time, but they do not result in weight loss. I had a friend who did the "Grapefruit Diet" and yes, she lost weight but it wasn't the grapefruit, it was the fact that she was eating very few calories. Of course, the weight came back on, and then she found herself needing a lot fewer calories to maintain what she had gained. 3. Fad diets work for permanent weight loss.How many of us have tried a fad diet? I'll bet most of us have tried at least one of them sometime in our past. Of course, here we are, so we also know it didn't work ☺ Fad diets and quick weight loss gimmicks are definitely not the best way to lose weight. Fad diets promise you all sorts of results by just cutting certain foods out of your diet. You will probably lose weight at first on one of these fat diets but fad diets that limit calories and foods are hard to follow. Most that try these diets get bored easily and regain the weight they loss plus a few pounds more. Fad diets are unhealthy when they restrict certain foods, which in turn keeps your body from getting all the nutrients it needs. Some fad diets cause a rapid weight loss which increases your risk for developing gallstones. When you lose 1/2 to 2 pounds a week with healthy food choices, moderate portions and exercise you are losing weight the right way to keep it off. Healthy eating habits and regular exercise may also lower your risk for developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure. Sounds good, doesn't it? 4. Eating at night will make it harder to lose weight. Boy, I bet we've all heard this one! It goes along with the "no eating" after dinner or 6 pm. Of course, this is rather ridiculous because it really is all about the number of calories you eat every day and the number of calories you expend in exercise every day that count; not WHEN you do this. There was a study done with 7,000 people. The results were that the people who ate 64 percent or more of their calories after 5 pm were no more likely to gain weight over a 10-year period than those who ate only 25 percent of their calories after 5 pm. The national average is 46 percent of calories eaten after 5 pm. I guess I fit that percentile because on my first Journey I split my food intake in half for the day. I ate half up until dinner and the other half for dinner and after. It worked fine. Some of us have a different schedule and so therefore are eating late at night. Not to worry though, because your late night calories will be burned when needed. Remember, you do burn calories while you sleep; about 50 calories per hour. 5. Eating a healthy diet cost more. I now know for a fact this is not true. Do you know how fast a daily trip through Starbucks drive-thru costs? Let's see, about $3.00 a drink times 30 days equals $90.00. You could have an 8 oz glass of fruit juice every day for a whole lot less. Or better yet, a nice healthy smoothie you make at home. When you are eating in a healthy manner you are eating less but eating much healthier food. Actually, not eating a healthy diet costs more, in more ways than one! 6. Sugar causes diabetes. Sugar intake will not cause diabetes. The main risk factors for Type 2 diabetes is a diet high in calories, being overweight and having an inactive lifestyle. 7. All fats are bad. I know it's a hard one to swallow but we actually need fats in our diet. There are many reasons to include fats in your diet. Fats help your body with nutrient absorption and nerve transmission. Fats assist with maintaining stronger bones, better vision and cell membrane integrity. Of course, when consumed in large amounts, fats will contribute to weight gain, certain cancers and heart disease. When consuming fats keep in mind there are good fats (monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats) and bad fats (saturated fats and trans fats). The healthy way to go is to replace bad fats with the good fats. I remember when I first started my Journey; I was going for all the foods with no fat. That is not good. You tend to be overeating while on low-fat/no-fat diets because you are hungry all the time. By adding fats into your diet you are helping your weight loss because you feel full and satisfied for longer periods of time, up to four hours. 8. Vitamins give you energy. The bottom line is that calories give us energy, not vitamins. Vitamins are essential for health and they help the enzymes that release the energy from food. Calories come from fat, carbohydrates and protein—food, not vitamins. 9. Nuts are fattening and if you want to lose weight you should not eat them. Nuts can be part of a healthy diet when eaten in small amounts. They are high in calories and fat but it is the good fat, which do not clog arteries. Nuts are also good sources of protein, dietary fiber, and minerals including magnesium and copper. A half ounce of mixed nuts is about 270 calories. My mother-in-law eats a small amount of nuts every day. I love how she can control the amount she eats. Both Al and I have a hard problem just eating say, '16 nuts'. We want the whole jar! 10. Becoming a vegetarian means you are sure to lose weight and be healthier. It's true that research does show that those people who eat a vegetarian food plan, on average, eat fewer calories and less fat than non-vegetarians. So, yes, choosing to "go vegetarian" may help your weight loss, but beware. As my husband Al learned—by spending much of his childhood as an overweight vegetarian—just like non-vegetarians, vegetarians can make poor food choices (high-fat, high-calorie foods, or foods with little or no nutritional value) which leads to weight gain. By becoming a vegetarian you need to be extra careful to keep an eye on your nutrients because by cutting out animal products you might be losing iron, calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12, zinc and protein. You can replace those nutrients by including some of these foods: Iron: cashews, spinach, lentils, garbanzo beans, fortified bread or cereal
Until we meet again, have a great couple of weeks, get in lots of exercise and water (dehydration is common during these hot summer days), and keep smiling ☺ ~~~Ultra-Metabolism by Mark Hyman, M.D.
"Determination gives you the resolve to keep going in spite of the roadblocks that lay before you." ~~~Denis Waitley "You've got to get up every morning with determination if you're going to go to bed with satisfaction." ~~~George Lorimer Do you want some extra support during your Journey? Would you like to have a place you can call "home," where you can be yourself? Our Message Board is just the place. It's home to all our Zonie friends who share their Journey experiences and are always willing and ready to offer support, laughs, friendship and I feel that I need to step back out of the "spotlight" for a bit, and I am going to try a little experiment: for the next three summer months, I am going to run my journey "offline" with no updates or graphs. I will report back to you at the end of the summer to see how this has worked for me. As you might be able to imagine, the spotlight brings stress, and life is hard enough without that. Don't worry, I am not giving up. That will NEVER happen. I will continue to live the Journey as I have been, but without public updates. I need the break from the stress of "prying eyes" for a while. (This is one reason that I don't go to Weight Watchers meetings right now. I cannot remain anonymously there each week, and with being "Dotti" there would be a fuss, which I am not up to dealing with.) So, please bear with me while I try this for the summer, and see how it works. It's what I need to do for me at this time. Of course, I will continue to be a big part of our message board. In fact, I'm hoping to post a lot more. I am also hoping to get into chat a bit more too as I miss the fun there and meeting all of you 'live'. As always, I will still be relying on Dr. Roberta’s Enjoying Weight Loss Hypnosis CDs to help me to continue to move in the right direction, and to live my journey from day to day. They have been an irreplacible part of my journey back to goal. I am happy to see that the Hypnosis Network is continuing to offer Dr. Roberta’s Enjoying Weight Loss Hypnosis CDs for $97. For anyone who is "hypnosis-friendly" (about 90% of the human population can derive some beneifit from hypnosis) the money could not be better spent. At the end of the summer of 2005, I was 223 pounds and had no reason to believe that I would not be 245 pounds again in the future. I was struggling very badly. Today I am in the 170's, and while my return journey has been a slow one, it has been wonderful getting these results. If you are interested in learning more about Dr. Roberta’s Enjoying Weight Loss Hypnosis CDs you can read our review at http://www.dwlz.com/hypnosisreview.html. I would not recommend them if they hadn't of worked for me. Here is what the Hypnosis Network says:
Click Here to go directly to their site and find out more about the Hypnosis Network, and how you can order your CDs. Once again I want to say, thank you for being there for me. Thank you for caring. Always remember, "If you always do what you always did, you'll always get what you always got."
Are "Diet Bars" really good for you? According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a consumer group based in Washington, D.C., many diet bars are not much better for you than a candy bar. CSPI analyzed the nutritional value of 86 kinds of cereal, snack, and diet bars. Only five earned its "Best Bite" award. [to win, a bar could contain only whole grains, provide at least 2 grams of fiber and contain no more than 1 gram of saturated fat and 14 grams of sugar.] Some of the diet bars that were evaluated (many with the name of a specific diet plan) contained double the calories, twice the sugar and nearly as much fat as another snack bar marketed as being diet-friendly. Many of these "diet-friendly" bars have a lot of fat and it's not the good fat we're talking about! It would be better to replace these meal-replacement bars with a real meal. If you're not using them as meal-replacements and eating them along with your meal then go ahead and have that Snickers bar. Nutritionally speaking, you won't be any worse off for eating the Snicker's bar. ~~~Outwit your Weight by Cathy Nonas, R.D. with Julia VanTime
The Weight Commander is an awesome program for your Journey. I highly recommend it to everyone who is on a Journey of their own. It is a wonderful program to track your progress on any weight loss program you are using. You can read My Review of the Weight Commander or go straight to the source and check out this great software by following this link to Weight Commander. He has many tips and ideas throughout his program which will help you be successful on your Journey. Dieting Humor A dietitian was once addressing a large audience in Chicago. "The material we put into our stomachs is enough to have killed most of us sitting here, years ago. Red meat is awful. Vegetables can be disastrous, and none of us realizes the germs in our drinking water." Continued the dietician, "But there is one thing that is the most dangerous of all; and all of us eat it. Can anyone here tell me what lethal product I'm referring to? You, sir, in the first row, please give us your idea." The man lowered his head and replied, "Wedding cake?" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Did you hear about the gourmet who avoids unfashionable restaurants because he doesn't want to gain weight in the wrong places? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A mother complained to her doctor about her daughter's strange eating habits. "All day long she lies in bed and eats yeast and car wax. What will happen to her?" "Eventually," said the doctor, "she will rise and shine!" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Balanced Diet: A cookie in each hand. Dieting: Breaking the pound barrier. Destiny: Rich foods are like destiny. They, too, shape our ends. Sandwich Spread: That which you get from eating between meals. Seafood Diet: When you see food ... you eat it. Stressed: The word "stressed" makes perfect sense when you realize that it is "desserts" spelled backwards. Successful Diet: The triumph of mind over platter. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On a diet? Go to the paint store - you can get thinner there. A great way to lose weight is to eat naked in front of a mirror. Restaurants will almost always throw you out before you can eat too much... ~~~Sent to me by a fellow Zonie
15% off thru 6/28---See details below! Dessert is one of the most pleasurable parts of a meal and you don't have to deny yourself. Penny's offers big healthy cookies and muffins that are delicious. Many members state how these sweet treats have kept them going! No artificial sweeteners or preservatives and they are individually wrapped in a generous serving size. Try the many muffin and cookie flavor while they're on sale! Zucchini, Orange-Cranberry and Cherry muffins to name a few. Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter cookies taste great and are very filling to hold you over until the next meal! ♦ Rum & Coke - 2 ozs rum, 5 ozs coke [193 calories/0 g fat] Al's Essays on Weight Loss and Maintenance Al has written many in depth essays on Weight Loss and Maintenance and they are now available on the website! Al has also added links on his Essays Page to his other articles on DWLZ, so you can find all of them easier.
You can find Al's Essays on Weight Loss and Maintenance at: New Food Find -- LightFul Satiety Smoothie LightFull Foods, creators of the all-natural, surprisingly filling LightFull Satiety Smoothie, are on a mission to spread the good word that “Fiber Is Sexy!” That’s because the right amount of fiber each day keeps you feeling and looking your best. With 6 grams of fiber in every 90-calorie (OK, Peaches & Cream flavor has 100) all-natural smoothie, LightFull Satiety Smoothies are a deliciously satisfying way to get the fiber you need. And, if you are on Weight Watchers, they’re only 1 point! There are other great reasons to drink LightFull too: each LightFull smoothie is packed with 6 grams of protein; is an excellent source of calcium, is low-glycemic and is gluten-free. No wonder Prevention magazine named LightFull as one of 25 “Best New Foods For You” in their July 2007 issue!
To let you know how much I love these smoothies, I ordered 9 cases from Amazon.com. There are 12 in each case. Why not try some today? LightFull Foods Did you know...?
Coffee Talk: Are you an average Joe-drinker? ~~~National Coffee Association Do you need a cup of coffee (or two) to get going in the morning? Do you have coffee during breakfast? How much do you drink each day? Whatever your coffee habits, rest assured, you're not alone.
At Pizza Fit'n Free we believe in making a great tasting pizza that is fat free and nutritionally complete. That has been our goal since starting the company back in 1991. We know that it is hard to diet and eat your favorite foods. Since pizza is one of America's favorite foods we are here to help. For over 15 years we have been helping America's lose weight and keep it off. If you Compare Us to other "low fat" pizzas you will agree that Pizza Fit'n Free is in a class of its own. FREE PIZZA!! Order Online at Pizzafree.com Makes 3 servings ~~~Recipe Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens Smoothies & Healthy Snacks Fresh, Healthy Food Delivered To You How would you like a personal chef and nutritionist to do all your food shopping and cooking? You would never again worry about eating healthy and you’ll save so much time. PurFoods Fitness makes it happen. Their food is absolutely delicious! I loved how it was delivered fresh to my door, ready to eat for whenever I wanted. Click Here to read our review of PurFoods Fitness ~ we have tried these meals and they are absolutely delicious! If you prefer you can Click Here to go directly to the PurFoods Fitness website to find out more about this wonderful program. Have you ordered your DWLZ Cookbooks yet? These cookbooks are filled with recipes that are Zonies' favorites, dishes that are delicious but on program, with nutritional information listed. This is two books in one package: DWLZ Cookbooks Volumes One and Two. The recipes are easy to make and don't use hard-to-find items. They are together in one PDF file, viewable in your free Acrobat Reader (Version 5 and higher). These make wonderful gifts. Below are a few snacks that come in under 200 calories. Enjoy! Receive a 1 day shopping pass to Sam’s Club from Philly Swirl Now that the sun is shining and the weather is warming up, it's a great time to stock up on some great tasting Philly Swirl's Sugar-Free, Fat-Free Swirl Pops! They are delicious and only 10 calories. Don't forget to get your FREE 1 day pass to Sam's Club from Philly Swirl. All you have to do is go to http://www.phillyswirl.com/aboutus/1day.cfm to get your Free 1 day pass to Sam’s Club. Shop as if you were a member all day and don't forget to stock up on Philly Swirl’s Sugar-Free, Fat-Free Swirl Pops Keep your freezer stocked with these great 10 calorie pops which can be enjoyed anytime throughout the year. If you are interested in learning more about the Philly Swirl products please visit them at http://www.phillyswirl.com/ and drop them a line. They would love to hear from you. Psst...don’t forget to pass the word! We want to see these awesome Sugar-Free, Fat-Free Swirl Pops remain available to all of us on our Journey. Let's take the power we have to make a difference by passing the word about these awesome pops and keeping them available to us in the future. I've updated all the Palm files and the HTML Zip files to view the restaurants offline (saves my bandwidth). I've put the HTML Zip files of all the restaurants in two files now: A-L and M-Z as we now have about 559 restaurants listed. I've done the same with the complete Palm Restaurant files. There are, of course, still the individual restaurant files if you just want to download certain ones for your Palm - they have also been updated through today. All my updates can be found on the Message Board in the DWLZ Website News & Updates forum at:
US restaurant updates can be found at our Restaurants
TOC page at: Canadian restaurant updates can be found at our Canadian Restaurants TOC page at: Life's up and downs provide windows of opportunity to determine your values and goals. Think of using all obstacles as stepping stones to build the life you want. ~~~Marsha Sinetar Until our next visit, always keep in mind you are never alone on this Journey. We are all here with you, right beside you, rooting you on. Take care until next time...
"I cannot relive yesterday and tomorrow isn’t here yet, so I will just deal with today." ~Dotti If this newsletter was forwarded to you, you can sign up for it yourself at: Dotti's Newsletter Subscription Page - http://www.dwlz.com/eletter.html Dotti's Weight Loss Zone
And please don't forget to come and visit DWLZ! If you are not already a regular visitor, it is time for you to come and make yourself at home at my web page, where you will find lots of tips on losing weight, and help in picking out good things to eat at your favorite restaurants, while still remaining on program. We have motivation, success stories, and much more. It is a lot like Disneyland: you'll have lots of fun, and you could never see it all in just one day! However, unlike Disneyland, Dotti's [ http://www.dwlz.com ] is open 24 hours a day, every day. Copyright © DWLZ, Inc. - 2007, all rights reserved. This document may be reproduced freely as long as it is always reproduced in its entirety, including this copyright message, and the disclaimer below, and as long as it is always distributed free of charge. Disclaimer - This newsletter is not meant to be a substitute for any professional advice, guidance, or counseling. We are not doctors. Any information contained in this email reflects our own opinions and experiences. It is not intended in any way to serve as or take the place of medical advice from a physician. |
|||
Weight Commander 
 |