A New Year - Lets Make Change for 2011

Self-restraint is a rational desire.  If you deprive yourself of anything, it is just a matter of time before you give in to these urges.  As humans, we naturally want what we can't have.  I myself fall victim to this vicious cycle at least once per month.  I can give up just about anything for a month, but eventually cave in and fall victim to these urges.  In retrospect, after I have satisfied this urge, I always feel guilty about my inability to control this desire.  However, as I said before, deprive yourself of anything and you will eventually give in to these urges.  Our brains are hardwired to reward us with deeply satisfying jolts of dopamine (feel good chemicals released in the brain) when we give in to these kinds of urges.  This is why, when we give in to these urges, we get that "rush" or "high" feeling.  However, this "high" feeling is extremely short lived and is often followed by feelings of guilt and remorse. Remember humans have only a limited amount of willpower; that's why most resolutions do not work.


So what is the Solution?


(1) Make One Change at a Time and be Realistic  


Make your New Years resolution realistic.  If you have not been to the gym in the past year, do not set a goal to go everyday of the week.  This will only lead to failure.  A more realistic goal would be to go to the gym 3 times per week for the fist few months.  At the end of 3 months, revisit this goal and set new goals (perhaps 5 times per week).


(2) Avoid Making 100 percent resolutions 


Give your willpower some wiggle room.  Humans want what they can't have.  Avoid making absolute restrictions such as, "I am going to give up all sweet" or "I am never going to drink alcohol again".  A more practical solution is to make more limited restrictions.  Such as, "I will only eat sweets or drink alcohol when I am out in a fancy restaurant."  By treating yourself in these situations you will satisfy that urge.  


(3) Revisit your Goals daily (Morning & Bedtime) 


Remind yourself daily of your goals.  If your resolution is eliminate sweets from your diet, you need to remind yourself of this every day.  You need to look in the mirror every morning and realize, that at the end of the day, you will be looking in the mirror again, and congratulating yourself on anther successful day of accomplishing your goal.  A great strategy to track your resolution is put a calender next to your bed.  For every day you accomplish your goal put a star on that day to signify success.  At the end of the month, if you have all stars, reward yourself.  Avoid "candy/sweet" rewards.  Try treating yourself to a new pair of sneakers or new exercise outfit.  Remember candy/sweets are short lived and only provide temporary feelings of satisfaction.  A new pair of sneakers will last you months!


(4) Avoid the all or nothing principle 


Avoid the "go big or go home" principle.  If you are going to "treat" yourself or diverge from you resolution, do so in moderation.  Do not think that if you have a piece of cake that you need to spend the whole evening bingeing on junk food.  It is quite common to loose focus of your goal and fall off track.  However, if you fall off the bandwagon, its not the end of the world.  You can refocus and get back on track! Do not think because you had one "slip" that your resolution is ruined. A resolution is something that we need to work on daily.  It is not intended to be easy.  If it were easy everyone would be making resolutions. 


(5) Harm Reduction


Reduce the amount of harm that typically occurs from bingeing or indulging.  If you feel the urge to indulge and you see yourself falling off the bandwagon, harm reduction can help.  Treating yourself when you feel self deprived may be just the fix you need to overcome that urge.  After treating yourself, you will loose that self deprived urge, and the damage you have done will be minimal.  Your body will not even notice this small treat!

The Eat- Clean Principles

If you have never heard of Tosca Reno, I would highly recommend reading her, "Eat -Clean Diet Recharged book.  Tosca Reno reinvented herself at the age of 40 by going from fat and frumpy to lean and purposeful.  Her story and body transformation is proof that anyone can take control over their body and live a more self fulling life, via nutrition and exercise.


Tosca's Eat-Clean Principles are my Bible and I follow these principles daily. I have experienced great success with eating clean and I feel great!


Principles  


(1) Eat more often - eat six small meals each day


(2) Eat breakfast every day, within an hour of rising


(3) Eat a combination of lean protein and complex carbohydrates at each meal


(4) Eat sufficient (two or three servings) healthy fates every day


(5) Drink two to three liters of water each day


(6) Prepare meals in advance. Carry a cooler packed with clean foods each day


(7) Depend on fresh fruits and vegetables for fiber, vitamins, nutrients and enzymes


(8) Adhere to proper portion sizes


What to Avoid


(1) Avoid over-processed foods, particularly white flour and sugar


(2) Avoid chemically charged foods


(3) Avoid foods containing preservatives


(4) Avoid artificial sugars  


(5) Avoid artificial foods (such as processed cheese slices)


(6) Avoid saturated and trans fats


(7) Avoid sugar-loaded beverages, including colas and juices


(8) Avoid (limit) alcohol intake


(9) Avoid all calorie-dense foods containing little or no nutritional value


(10) Avoid super-sizing you meals.  Stick to proper portion sizes. 

It’s a long long road to tipperary

Change does not happen overnight.  The fitness industry would like to make you believe so, but unfortunately your body shape will take several months to find it’s new “set point.”  By set point, I mean the healthy weight that is desirable/stable for your body shape and size.  Biologically not all people will be lean and skinny regardless of how much hard work they put into their workout routines or follow a strict nutritious food plan.  Unfortunately some people are born with a predisposition for storing more body fat.  However, this does not mean that all individuals can not have a healthy body weight by engaging in regular physical activity and eating clean.  In this regard, we are extremely lucky; we can control two of the most important things; physical activity levels and what we put into our bodies (nutrition).

Keeping the idea that change does not happen overnight, I would like you to think about your current lifestyle.  How many years have you lived your current lifestyle being inactive and mindless of nutrition?  The answer for most people would be several years.   In fact, studies suggest that the average person puts on 2 pounds per year from age 20 onwards (this is when most peoples metabolism slows down).  With that being said, if you are 50 years old and you were 160 pounds at age 20, and you gained 2 pounds per year, thats 60 pounds over 30 years.  So if you were 160 lbs at age 20, it is quite plausible you may currently weigh 190 lbs.  Doctors and health experts refer to this type of weight gain as the creeper weight.  Meaning it gradually creeps up on you over the course of several years.  Keeping this in mind (it has taken you several years to get to this current weight) would it stand to reason that a weight loss program would also take quite a bit of time?  The immediate/rational answer should be yes.  If it has taken you several years to become overweight, you should not expect to loose all your desirable weight overnight.  In fact, diet studies have continually shown that individuals who loose weight “dieting” will regain all weight lost within a year, and a good majority of these individuals will actually gain more weight then when they originally started their diet.  This information alone should be enough to deter anyone from starting a diet.  I mean, who would want to start a diet knowing they will gain more weight? 

Thankfully, if you have taken several years to become overweight, it will not take years to undo this process.  Our bodies are miraculous in that they can be transformed relatively quickly.  Most health experts agree that loosing 1-2 pounds per week is a desirable goal.  Loosing weight too fast only results in gaining the majority of weight back after several weeks/months.  Consequently, the Physical Active Clean eating lifestyle plan looks to target 1-2 pounds per week.  Remaining patient is key to any weight loss program.  Remember, if it took you a year to gain all this weight, it will take time to loose it as well. 

Are You Ready For Change?

Are you ready for change?

Before beginning any lifestyle change, one must ask themselves a few fundamental questions.  Why do you wish to make such lifestyle changes?  This answer will be different for every individual.  Some may fear the onset of diseases associated with excess body fat (ex: type 2 diabetes) while others may feel inadequate (ex: depressed) about their current body image.  Others may look at their aging parents and see the health problems associated with an inactive lifestyle.  Whatever your reason for change, it is important to recognize why you wish to change.  Recognizing the reason for change will allow you to peruse your new lifestyle change in times of difficulty.  For example, If your reason for change, is the fear of not being able to play with your grandkids, walking 30 min every morning may be just the motivation you need to muster up the energy to go for that walk when your lacking personal drive.  You need to continuously remind yourself of what you wish to accomplish, and keep this at the forefront of every meal and exercise session. 

Portion Control

Controlling portions is essential in following a well balanced nutritious eating plan.  Take any food and eat too much and it looses its nutritional value.  Almonds for example are a great source of protein and healthy fats.  In fact, eating 1 oz of almonds (approximately  25) is a great snack paired with a handful of grapes.  However, eating too many almonds (too many calories/fats) would outweigh any health benefits gained from choosing such snack.

Going back to the basics is fundamentally essential.  In general, everything today is supper sized and portion sizes are much larger.  Are society wants large portions at cheep prices.  We want to go into a restaurant for dinner and order a plate that is full of food (we want to get both our moneys worth).  We want to leave feeling full and satisfied.  As paying customers, who doesn’t want to get their moneys worth?  However, at point of departure from the restaurant, does it really matter weather you finished that extra chicken or cup of pasta? Could you not take the rest to go? Are all those starving kids in Africa really going to starve if you don’t finish your meal? 

Food for Thought - Your Dinning Out Experience

Situation 1

Think about your latest family dinning experience.  Imagine you are the only one adhering to the “diet”. In this case you are on the famous Atkins diet (no carbs).  At this family meal the rest of your family is eating garlic bread, pasta salads, chicken, and cake for desert.  You have decided that you will prepare your own salad and just eat the chicken (protein), while neglecting to eat the bread, pasta, and cake.  While the rest of your family enjoys the “normal” meal, you feel envious of the “tasty” foods that everyone else gets to eat.  You eat your salad and chicken while feeling edgy and irritable.  The end result, you won’t be long before you get tired of cooking different meals then everyone else, and feel restricted by what you can eat.  You end up giving up on the diet and go back to your normal eating habits.  So what is the solution?

Situation 2

Think about this same dinning experience, except you are not dieting.  You are following the Physically active clean eating lifestyle plan.  You sit down for dinner and eat garlic bread, pasta salad, chicken, and cake for desert.  You do not feel restricted by what foods you have eaten and you do not feel guilty.  In eating such foods you have given your body and mind exactly what they have craved/desired.  

What makes situation two different is that you have exercised 30-60 min 5 days this week before your family dinning experience.  In addition, you also have a greater understanding of portion control (see portion control and serving sizes).  You recognize that 4 inches of garlic bread, 3/4 cup of pasta, 1/2 chicken breast, and a small portion of cake is more then enough to fill you.  You understand that the reason you are eating is to provide your body with nourishment and nutrients to sustain life.  You are not eating to feel uncomfortably full.  You are not eating excessive amounts because there is no food to consume in the latter hours of the evening.  You are eating to live; you are eating because you are hungry! 

The Problem/Truth about Diets

Sure Diets work! Restricting your body of certain foods or number of calories will produce a caloric deficit, which results in weight loss.  If you eat only fruits and vegetables, it is no wonder you will loose weight.  However, is it not practical, nor should you have to give up eating breads, cereals, pastas, chocolate, cake, ice cream, and other foods you enjoy.  However, we need to make healthy food choices 90% of the time.  

People try diets and later give up on them. I don’t blame them!  Restrict yourself of anything and your bound to fail.  Try giving up anything you enjoy and I guarantee you will fail.  You will fail because you enjoy and find pleasure in that particular thing.  I’m not ready to give up ice cream or chocolate for my entire life.  Who would be?

Diets do NOT work!

Diets do not work!  The very word diet makes me cringe.  Diets are short lived, shed unhealthy weight, are restrictive, impossible to maintain, and not practical.  Take for example the soup diet.  Is it really practical to eat soup every day for the rest of your life?  Or take for example the famous atkins diet (restricts carbohydrates).  Can you actually go your entire life not eating the very food group that provides the body with energy?  The short answer to both these questions is NO!  Its impossible to eat soup every meal and give up the very food group that provides the human body with energy. 

Back to the reason diets don’t work.  They are impossible to maintain and are not a way to live your life.  A quick search on google for the term “diets” will give you close to 20 million hits.  The fitness industry has made billions of dollars selling diets to people that simply do not work.  Well, thats a lie, they do work.  However, this weight loss is short lived and usually results in extra pounds gained in the long run.

So what am I proposing?  I propose a taylor made physical activity and nutrition plan that caters to YOUR LIFESTYLE AND TASTE BUDS.  You need to choose physical activities that you enjoy, and foods that you like.  Choosing foods and activities that I like will not be conducive with your lifestyle; the foods and activities I like are without doubt very different than the ones you like.  Thus, in order for this to be a lifestyle change (long-term) you need to look at physical activities you enjoy.  You also need to recognize that the foods you have been eating your entire life have created neurological pathways that your body is accustomed to.  Therefore, you need to recognize what foods your body has developed a liking for and begin to slowly add additional foods (create new pathways) to your diet.  By adding new foods (high in nutritional value) your brain will develop new pathways and crave less of those low nutritional valued foods.  This will take time! So how much time? Everyone wants the quick fix.  What you must ask yourself is, how many years has it taken me to develop my current lifestyle and eating habits.  If the answer is 40 plus years, you must recognize that changing your eating habits is something you will have to work on every day for the rest of your life.  It is something I continuously work on every day, meal by meal.  You too will need to work hard. 

Defining Physical Activity and Proper Nutrition

Think about “Daily physical Activity” and what a “Well balanced diet” includes.  Think about this for just one second.  Do not read ahead, just think... What does a lifestyle that revolves around physical activity and proper nutrition look like?

Now that you have thought about daily physical activity and daily proper nutrition, I would like to let you know what I consider daily physical activity and daily proper nutrition.

Daily Physical Activity: A planned/structured activity that results in physical energy expenditure by an individual.  This planned structured activity (walking, running, dancing, biking, swimming) is at least 30-60 min, 5 or more times per week.

Daily Proper Nutrition: Choosing foods that are clean.  By clean I mean, eating foods that are as close to their natural state as possible; not foods that are full of preservatives, saturated fats, sugars, or refined.  Daily proper nutrition should include foods that provide the best fuel possible for your body.  For example, choosing almonds and grapes would be a better choice than choosing a processed granola bar.  A processed granola bar is full of ingredients and food preservatives that most people have not heard of nor can pronounce.  Try to choose foods in their most natural state.  

About Me

My name is Matt MacDonald and I am a certified Kinesiologist.  Graduating in 2009 from ST.FX I am currently finishing off an education degree.  As an avid fitness enthusiast, I have structured my life around physical activity and proper nutrition.  I eat, sleep, breath physical activity and nutrition.  In my opinion, physical activity and proper nutrition are the two most important things in life!  I believe they are the key elements to leading a happy self fulfilling life.  By including physical activity into your life, and eating a well balanced diet, you will think better, feel better, and have a great outlook on life!  Just like a high performance car needs proper maintenance and superior fuel, your body requires the same.  Your body needs daily physical activity and proper nutrition to function at its absolute best. 

Now, if you have not been treating your body like a top performance car there is still hope! Just like you can trade in an old car for a new one, you can do the same with your body.  You can trade in that non serviced body for a new fit and healthy figure.  This however will take time and education.  This time and education is a worthwhile investment that will transform your life.