Eat More Chicken...and Beef!

Do you want to raise your metabolism, burn more calories and store less fat? Thought so...EAT ANIMAL PROTEIN! Every part of your body uses protein, but it's not able to use protein in meat form. Therefore, it has to break down all the protein you eat into proteins the body can use, in the form of amino acids, hormones and enzymes. This is hard work, and hard work burns calories and increases metabolism. It is such hard work that very little of that protein can be stored as fat; it's used for nourishing, repairing and strenthening all of your tissues and muscles. Your metabolism is raised for hours during this process, and the more you eat, the more your body has to work. You burn twice as many calories when you eat proteins than you will with carbohydrates, so make the switch and get your body ready to work - for you! Melissa

Fair Day

I was both excited and afraid to go to the State Fair - excited because it signifies the beginning of fall, it brings back lots of fun memories of the fair our church held every year in Midland when I was growing up, and it's always fun to people watch. However, that brings up the afraid part...it brings out the corn dog in everyone (except me, of course!). If it was just that, it would be okay - they smell and taste terrific, and it's just part of going to the fair. But, we've all heard about the fried butter that's the hot, new thing, and sure enough, there was a LONG line to try it - along with fried cheesecake, fried peppers, fried peaches, fried sweet potatoes, fried chicken and yes, fried corn dogs - wow, I could keep going - the whole place smelled like one big deep fat fryer. That smell combined with the waffles, cotton candy and and popcorn is reassuring in an odd way - it's the fair and it's like how we've always remembered it. I just don't remember how I rode all the rides after eating all that stuff - and probably don't want to!! Hope you had a nice weekend! Melissa

Take An Exercise Vacation

You probably think I am the LAST person to promote this - and you're right. But, I have been so sluggish lately, and a friend of mine has had foot surgery, so we're both taking some time off - starting tomorrow, haha! It is hard to back off from working out when you have been successful in losing weight, changing your shape and getting stronger; you're afraid you'll get fat IMMEDIATELY and lose all that muscle tone you worked so hard for. The fact of the matter is you are able to take a week off, and even TWO weeks, from exercising, and lose very little of your fitness. You'll come back stronger, more enthusiastic, and free of that muscle soreness that creeps up after too many days, weeks, or months of working out with no rest. When you exercise, your muscle breaks down - a little to a lot, depending on your intensity. The remainder of the day your body spends it's time repairing and rebuilding muscle tissue, and replenishing your stores of glycogen (energy) in the muscle. If your workouts are too strenuous, or too often, your body never has the chance to totally repair itself, resulting in injury, burnout and a general feeling of fatigue that stays with you, which only leads to decreased performance, no matter how hard you push yourself. It's not the workout that makes you stronger - it's the rest, so that your body has time to adapt to the stress on your muscles and make you stronger so you can do it all over again. It may take a couple of days to be okay with taking off, but you and I will do fine; sleep in, drink coffee and read the paper, go for a walk with your dog and enjoy a relaxing morning. Don't worry about getting fat - you can't go crazy, obviously, but you're body will continue to burn calories repairing and replenishing, and you may even notice some leaning out - WOW! Melissa

Tis the Season

Don't panic - it's nothing to do with Santa; it's the beginning of APPLE season! They are great anyway, but here's why they are PERFECT: 1) they are crunchy, which actually makes you feel like you are eating something; 2) they cut your appetite, so when you are starving an hour before dinner, a medium apple has only 80 calories, lots of fiber so very filling, and truly will help you to eat less; 3) they are easily portable, so great for lunches or snacks (with some peanut butter or cheese); and 4) they are portion-controlled! Because of the fiber and water, an apple expands in your stomach, satisfying your immediate hunger with a lot fewer calories and fat than, say, a handful of peanuts (and who ever has just one??). You can find apples anywhere; there are over 200 varieties and they all taste a little different, so next time you need something quick, do yourself a favor and have an apple! Melissa

Just wondering...

I didn't get to watch the Emmys last night because the Cowboy game was on, so I'm catching up on my ironing and watching it now - and I would LOVE to know what all these girls have on under their dresses...they can't all look this perfect! This is a little "catty", I know, but can you just imagine all the spanx, stickies and tape! I must say, most of the girls looked great - beautiful, in fact - so whatever they did, it worked; the unfortunate few who were stuffed, squeezed or otherwise forced into a dress that was obviously too small need to get a new stylist; you'd think it would be impossible to look bad after all the time, effort and money that goes into getting ready for one of these shows! But it does prove that anyone can make a fashion mistake - that's why you want to take your best friend (or your mom!) with you, or listen to your inner self when you need to look your best. Any sign of doubt from any of them, put it back and keep looking. Don't ask your dad - he won't want to hurt your feelings - and don't ask the sales person (they'll always tell you you look "amazing"...). But, I was wondering, do guys ever wear that stuff underneath? We probably don't really want to know that, and they don't either!! Anyway, have a nice evening - I'll be watching the fashionistas rip everyone apart tonight (no football for me, although I was proud of my team Saturday night!) Melissa

Go Tech!

It's hard to ignore ESPN ripping us to shreds all day; I'm a very optimistic person, so we might win anyway, even though half our players our injured, our quarterback hasn't played much, and UT is favored by three touchdowns - but we've done it before, and wouldn't it be SO much fun if it happened tomorrow! Anyway, one thing is FOR SURE - we will all eat too much, drink more beer than water, and yell like crazy whether we do something great or terrible. The average guy will eat/drink about 4000 calories during the pre-game and game-time activities, and half of those will be FAT calories. Keep in mind, guys, that if you sit on the couch quietly, you will burn LESS than 100 calories an hour; waving your hands in the air and screaming will double this. However, if you go outside at the end of every quarter and throw the football around yourself, you can burn 140 calories in that fifteen minutes - wow, what a relief! Honestly, if you had a day like this infrequently, I'd just ignore all this and have a great time - probably you'll do that anyway. But, realistically, football season goes until the end of January, and you could gain several pounds - in addition to whatever you'll do at Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's! Before you tune me out, here are a couple of tips to survive the season, still having fun, but keeping yourself from looking like a puffed up football: (1) substitue pretzels for chips; (2) use lowfat sour cream in your dips - believe me, you'll never notice the difference; (3) use only 1/2 of bun for your hamburger or hot dog, get thin-crust pizzas, and double-load your tortillas with meat and veggies; (4) don't make too much food - most of it isn't going to look too good anyway after it's been sitting out for four hours; and (5) drink 2 glasses of water between every LIGHT beer - you might have to put a TV in your bathroom, but you'll thank me later! Okay, enjoy your weekend! Melissa

SLEEP

It's a word we all love to hear and look forward to every night - until we can't do it! So frustrating to go to bed and either not fall asleep for what seems like hours, or wake up an hour or so later and just lay there. We've been talking about ways to cut down your stress; it should come as no surprise that this is the biggest culprit to a bad night's sleep. You have to calm your brain down - it's worn out and ready for a break. So an hour before you go to bed, stop thinking, stop doing email, and stop paying bills; turn the lights down, which puts your brain in sleep mode. Fifteen minutes before you want to go to sleep, develop a regular routing of light stretching, meditating, praying (you get a good night's sleep!) or reading; do this every night so that your mind recognizes it's time to call it a day. Don't expect to sleep a full eight hours; it's actually normal to wake up every so often - even as much as every hour and a half. By expecting that you're going to wake up, you won't panic, which only keeps you awake. Just roll over, enjoy your sleepy but awake state, and you'll fall back to sleep easier. It may take a couple of weeks to train yourself to do this, but it'll be worth every hour of extra sleep you get! Melissa

You're starving - what to do??

Drink something hot - soup, hot water with lemon, V-8 - anything; hot liquids curb your appetite immediately, and will have huge weight loss benefits when you sit down to eat. You will not feel as hungry, and can end up eating 1/3 to 1/2 LESS than you would have; your brain has had time to send a signal to your stomach that you are getting something - it doesn't have to know what - but it gives your stomach enough time to settle down before your meal and be satisfied with much less. You have to pay attention to this - don't eat mindlessly or feel like you have to eat everything on your plate; you'll just end up feeling too full and you will have eaten way more calories than you needed. Instead, by combining lower food intake at meals and working out regularly, you'll be able to control your weight easily and simply. There are tons of new soups on the shelves - less salt, more fiber, higher protein, portable, microwavable and great tasting. Don't be afraid to throw in some extra frozen vegetables, or even a chicken breast; this makes a great snack or mini-meal, with the added bonus of being quick, low-calorie and nutritious at the same time. With regards to yesterday, good thing the tennis tournament was fabulous - I could have never taken a bath with Jay Leno! Melissa

Just one more thing....

Even ABOVE playing hookey and watching a movie in the middle of the afternoon as the perfect stress reliever is taking a bath! Yes, even you guys - I'm serious! Nothing beats a hot bath at the end of a long day; whether you are tired, sore, pissed or just want to wind down, it's the perfect thing to do. Pour a nice glass of wine, or get a cold beer -whatever's your thing, turn on your favorite show or pop in your favorite CD, and chill out. Hey, even tonight - it's Monday, it's raining, there's a football game or Jay Leno - hmmm...very relaxing - aren't you feeling better already just thinking about it? Enjoy your evening! Melissa

Attitude is Everything

It seemed everywhere I went today I heard some unhappy news about somebody; I try to stay positive and supportive, hoping everything works out for them, but I know in some cases it won't. It has been a long day, for sure; the good news is the market closed higher today, there is some great football and tennis on tonight, and tomorrow is Friday! Sometimes it is work to find the good, but it's worth it; not only does your level of stress go down, but you can influence somebody else to look at things in a different way, or at least put them aside and relax a little tonight. This stuff always comes back to you in a good way, making you feel as though you were the high note in someone else's bad day. Ask them to take a walk with you, or have a beer and watch the game, or even just play with the dog - you'll sleep better, and so will they! Good for you! Melissa

Sit back and put your feet up...

A friend of mine had foot surgery, so we spent this afternoon laying on her sofa watching a movie - when is the last time you did THAT on a Wednesday afternoon? It's been awhile for me too! And since I wasn't at MY house, I couldn't jump up and put a load in the wash, or answer the telephone from an ANNOYING solictor, or do any of those things that interrupt you from watching a movie from beginning to end without anyone bugging you. You know, the guys got it right a long time ago - they just want to lay on the couch and watch some game - the whole game (any game...) - and not be asked to do one thing. How relaxing is that! So when I was talking last week about ways to relieve stress, here is one at the top of list: take an afternoon off at someone else's house; lay on their couch and watch something you want to watch. Run your errands another day, do your chores tomorrow, turn off your phone - it's great to be one of the guys! Melissa

Something New

The next time you're on the treadmill or stairmaster, take a look at what the trainers are doing with their clients. Many of the exercises don't require a trainer, so not only can you save a LOT of money by learning to do them yourself, you can also add something new to your routine. Start with one exercise, paying attention to form - where the shoulders or knees are, how they bend (from the hips or knee), and what equipment is being used; all of it should be available to you. Watch yourself in the mirror so that you maintain the proper form. Starting out you might not be able to do as many reps or use as much weight as a client might but start with two sets of eight, or 3-pound dumbbells - or whatever - but teach yourself and add some variety to your workout. Then go buy yourself a new pair of shoes with the money you saved! Melissa

It's not just the genes...

I have one dog (a rat terrior) that is either sleeping or jumping six feet in the air; he's skinny - I know that's their breed, but he also rarely finishes his own food. I have another that looks like Piglet - he's supposed to be a toy fox terrior but doesn't look like one to me. Anyway, he's either sleeping or waddling around, and he ALWAYS finishes his own food, and, if you turn your back, he's finishing everyone else's. He's on thryroid medication, but he's still chubby - he just eats too much and doesn't move very fast. Yes, genetics does play a role - a big role - in determining your body type. But a lot more energy goes into jumping than waddling, and watching your food portions is critical when watching your weight. If you are working out regularly and eating healthy, but still not losing any, take a look at what you're doing. Maybe you need to rev up your workout - make it harder and longer. And then look at the amount of food you are eating at each meal - remember the later it gets in the day, the less you need on your plate. Your body only uses approximately 500 calories of a meal, and everything else gets stored as fat. If you don't burn it for energy, you will see it. Smaller portions, regular meals and snacks spaced every three hours during the day, and eating foods that your body can use instead of store will give you the results you want; add a tougher workout 3-4 days a week, and YOU'LL be jumping up and down! Melissa

Happy New Year!

Well, this should have been yesterday's blog, but as I said, I was so excited about the wedding weekend that it's taken me an extra day to settle down. So...September 1st is sort of like January 1st - it's the end of summer holidays, the pool toys and blenders are all put away, and the kids are back in school. Resolutions are being made to get back to the gym, go to bed earlier at night, and eat more healthy. This is a great time to try something new - a new recipe, or simply a new vegetable; maybe you could take a different route to work, workout to some music that's a little faster and pushes you a little harder than you really want to, or try one of your new stress relievers (take a deep breath, add ten minutes to your commute, iron...). Just think, by starting now, you'll be in the shape you want by Christmas (oh God, did I really say that!!) - but it's true! The weather is beautiful, so take advantage of it and get out there. Melissa

Hello...

Well, sorry about not getting back to you yesterday, but I was so exhausted, excited and happy about the whole wedding weekend that I couldn't concentrate on one thing long enough to get anything done. That said, it was the MOST fun! To see one of your boys get married, have everything go perfectly, AND have all those relatives in one spot for three days and have a great time is overwhelming - but we did it all! I will say I didn't work out much, I did eat a LOT of icing and I still didn't gain a million pounds - THAT'S really the "icing on the cake". Not sure how that happened, but my heart was beating so fast and I was running around so much, I must have burned it all off - yeah!! Funny how you work so hard leading up to something special - working out every day, watching what you eat, and worrying about every little thing and freaking out about all of it - but it was worth it!! I don't think you burn very many calories looking at pictures, so it's back to the gym! See you tomorrow - Melissa