Healthy B.P.M.

Have you ever had a food high? Do you recall a time when you were eating something that was just so good you couldn’t stop even though you were way past full? The need to feed just wouldn’t go away. Food was so instantly gratifying you wanted the feeling to go on and on, so you continued to eat. Most overweight people have felt that loss of control. When you were finally lulled, back into reality what did you feel? Probably guilt and lots of it.Once again, you allowed yourself to go overboard; you relinquished your control and self-esteem to the goddess of goodies. We all have the ability to pull ourselves out of the food basket, we just don’t know it. In some cases, we don’t want to. We don’t want to because living in the food basket is comfortable, we know what to expect there. Even though we know the detriments of living there, of setting ourselves up for debilitating health conditions, we remain, hoping that the miracles of modern technology will provide us with a quick and easy way out. That is precisely where the $30 billion a year weight loss industry wants us to stay. Overweight and in search of a quick fix.Put it into context, say it aloud, ask this question as many times as you need to: DOES THE FOOD YOU OVEREAT TASTE THAT GOOD?? Does it taste better than feeling good, physically and emotionally? Some of us don’t have anything else to compare it to, because we’ve lived in the food basket all of our lives. Could it be that we are hiding inside the basket? We don’t know what it’s like to be healthy, we don’t know what will happen to use or we’re afraid of what might be expected of us should we be successful in our weight loss and fitness goals. There’s a part of us that is afraid to reach our goals and this doesn’t just apply to weight loss. How much better are we expected to perform in all areas of life if we succeed? That is part of the reason we sabotage our success. Take ownership of your fitness.

I’ve just about had it with weight loss commercials. Especially the ones that feature celebrities. Granted a few of them do use the products (at least I think they do). Valerie Bertinelli for instance, she looks great. She called Jenny, did what she had to do and made progress. On the other hand there’s Kirstie Alley. Jenny obviously didn’t answer when she called or girlfriend called the wrong number. Then she had the nerve to say she was starting her own weight loss line. Line of what, deep fried chocolate cake?

Testimonials like hers give way to serious concern about the validity of celebrity hawkings.I would guess that the celebs are paid to be mouthpieces for the companies. In cash and products. I wonder how much and do they “give it to charity”. Yeah right. Please don’t get me wrong I’m not saying Jenny doesn’t work, or Nutrisystem, whatever. Most plans will work, if you stick with them. To be sure there are some that are a crock of you know what and should be taken off the market, like most of the pills that are advertised. Kirstie had a company willing to pay and work with her to lose the weight and she still didn’t do it. Ms. O, bless her pea-pickin heart, has trainers, chefs and counselors at her beck and call and she still backslides. Oh I forgot she has a thyroid problem, my bad. It just goes to show you that it’s not about money, it’s about commitment. You can call whoever you want and buy tons of gadgets, pills and potions, but if you don’t commit for the long haul you’ll be yo-yoing for a long time. Next time call me.

JM, the author of Fiction Scribe and 100 pounds to go describes how difficult facing a mirror can be for someone who is trying to lose weight…..

I was getting dressed to go out yesterday - something I actually do with a bit of pleasure now - and I stood in front of the mirror for a bit to look at myself. My pants are a little loose - just enough for me to notice. The shirt I was wearing was no longer a little too tight.

I thought for a while that I don’t look horribly overweight. I wondered what I would have looked like had I kept on gaining weight, which was easy for me to imagine because I know where my weight goes when I gain.

I didn’t like that track of thinking (more…)

My guest blogger today: JM from Fiction Scribe and 100 pounds to go…..

Have you ever noticed that sometimes you might shove your hands in your pockets around people? Maybe you like to, like me, hide your hands in your sleeves.

That’s called body language, and hiding your hands means you don’t want to be noticed and/or you don’t want people looking at you.

It’s no wonder a lot over overweight people wear clothes that are way too big for them! (more…)

JM, the author of Fiction Scribe and 100 pounds to go decided to do some guest blogging for me…I hope you enjoy her posts. I definitely love them!

Here she explains the truth behind binging…it’s not always calories that bring on the pounds. Life does that to you too……

I’ve mentioned before that losing weight, to me, is more than just losing weight. There’s more to why I’m overweight than I got a desk job or I’m working of pounds I gained at university. Those things didn’t help, but I’ve been overweight since I was a little girl, long before ’sit on your butt’
jobs came into play.

On our way back from our road trip yesterday, I asked Husband if listening to tapes at night really helped people to learn languages and kick habits.

“Yes, actually. Listening to them doesn’t automatically mean you know a language, but it makes consciously learning it like second nature.”

“So,” I said, “kicking a habit means it will easier than normal because the suggestions are already in your subconscious and you only have to fight it on a conscious level.”

He nodded.

The reason I was asking is because the urge to eat until I’m in pain has been very strong lately and not always easy to resist. My extra eating yesterday was a peanut butter sandwich when I didn’t need it. Other days it has been crackers, toffees, chocolate, and even making too much for dinner and not stopping even though I was well full.

I want help.

(more…)

Spunk from 100 pounds to go posted this message on her blog. It’s interesting for all of you who want to beat the belly.

Join the 2007 FatBlokeThin weight-loss challenge . Here’s the message:

Anyone can join at any time but to be a founding member of this thrilling challenge, you need to let me know by Thursday 26th July 2007 (i.e. 2 days times !!).

Finally, F U N…this is what this is all about, it is not about starving yourself or doing dangerous things to your body to lose weight quickly. This is to create some community and some sorely needed motivation for each other. I reserve the right to discount contestants excessive weigh loss if i suspect naughtiness of any kind. Keep it real people!

Check it out….it looks great!

fat bloke thin weight loss challenge

I find this hard to believe as I’ve had many friends who were on the chubbier side.Studies have shown that having fat friends fattens you up.

Obesity seems to be socially contagious - it spreads from person to person within the same social group.A study of 12,000 people whose height and weight were measured repeatedly over 32 years has shown that when one person gained weight those around them(not the family;this is a phenomenon among friends) tended to gain weight, too.

The idea is that you are influenced by your friends’ habits. So if your friend is fat, you don’t care much about your eating habits. It hasn’t been the case with me though…

Do you think your friends can really have that kind of effect on you?

obesity

The new buzz is a tax on unhealthy foods. Although it is not about to be implemented in any country, researchers believe that with such a tax, 3,000 deaths can be averted in the UK alone.

That means all your favorite foods could be taxed. Obesity experts are thinking of different ways to stop people from purchasing danger foods. An ‘unhealthiness score’ could help. So what could happen is that healthier foods can come cheaper and the wallet decides what you should eat.

Several US states have given the twinkie-tax a go and it hasn’t really gained weight; wonder what will happen in the U.K with this debate.

fat tax, trans fat, saturated fat

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“I was not delicious. I was slightly salty. But I was my own breakfast, lunch, supper and snacks. I was eating myself, I see now, alive.” says Judith Moore in her book Fat Girl.

I like the way Judith explains why she wrote fat girl in the first place. She talks about things like what food means to a fat person. I wondered about this when I saw an interview of one celebrity who talked about his weight loss story. When he talked he made analogies to food and taste. Normally losing weight is a struggle against your love for food and Judith explores that reality- something that is usually ignored.

Check out the review here.

fat girl, Judith Moore

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Researchers believe that being able to switch on an energy-burning type of fat called brown fat may be the way out of obesity.

The gene called PRDM16 is found in brown fat- the kind of fat you see in babies.White fat is what we adults have. Scientists believe that using this gene can help turn white fat into the more harmless brown fat in humans to. They have been successful with mice.

Brown fat cells generate heat and burn calories. Check out this Science Daily story.

obesity, brown fat

I’ve read a lot about what men think of fat women…the literature on that issue is copious and filled with interesting vocabulary. But what do women think of fat men?

Many women I asked this question to smirked. Their husbands were fit and driven to the gym. A paunch is definitely undesirable. Look at all those fabulous metrosexual males out there…they are as beauty conscious as women, lean, muscular…

But Tobsha begs to differ. I was smiling when I read her article Why I love getting to grips with a fat man. Love is all cuddles and warmth when you are with your favorite rotund man.

Fat or thin, love is all about being able to give the biggest hug to your man.

fat men

Many Type 1 diabetic women suffer from Diabulimia…that’s a condition when you skip your insulin injections just to keep off the weight.

This dangerous trend is becoming a huge problem and just goes to show how much losing weight has become embedded in the psyche. Diabetics who do this risk a chance of coma and even an early death from diabetes-related complications.

Type 1 diabetes happens when your body’s immune system destroys insulin-producing cells in the pancreas . Without insulin your body will not receive the glucose it needs to survive and your cells literally starve.

If a diabetic forgoes shots, he/she will lose weight and have high blood sugar. That could damage the kidneys and have other implications that could make life so difficult. Before diabetic teens skip insulin to lose weight, they have got to understand that they could be losing more than just weight.

diabetes, diabulimia, anorexia

Turns out that stress can make you fat.

Studies show that repeated stress+a high-fat, high-sugar diet stimulates the release of neuropeptide Y,a hormone that causes fat to build up in the abdomen.The study could lead to effective replacements of chemicals like LipoDissolve to beat the bulge.

So if research reveals how to tackle this hormone, you could be saying goodbye to obesity.

Abdominal fat is undesirable and could result in metabolic syndrome, a condition that usually could result in heart disease, diabetes and stroke. While experiments in rats are now using blockers to prevent the formation of this hormone and thus prevent fat formation, humans haven’t been tested with these drugs. But it looks like obesity could be a thing of the past thanks to science and research.

Read this.

fat, Lipodissolve, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, research

If you are a size 4 in Mauritania, then chances are that you will be considered unattractive.

This story goes to prove that beauty is in the eyes of cultural perceptions. There is no golden standard.

In Mauritania girls have to be gavage(as in fattening geese for foie gras). Girls are force fed from a young age. Mauritanian love songs praise fat women, and the health ministry is trying to change all that. Husbands complain that their wives are not fat enough:) and women actually have appetite-inducing pills including cattle steroids as opposed to diet pills.

Things could be changing because of satellite channels. But it’s strange that men’s preferences from voluptuous to size zero dictate women’s own body preferences. A Mauritanian woman would probably keep the pounds to please her husband.

Until he decides to leave her if she doesn’t look like Britney Spears.

Mauritania, fat women, steroids

I was scouting around for foods that burn the fat and came across some interesting links I want to share with you:

1.LadyThrill’s compilation of health foods. My favorites are cayenne pepper and ginger!

2.Tom Venuto’s tips are great! He’s classified his top 10s into starchy carbs, fruits, vegetables and lean proteins.

3. Have you tried grapefruit and black soya? Consider these foods to be your allies. Read this if you think that grapefruit is the fruit for you to stabilize your weight.

4.Learn to love foods that love you eg, fiber and more fiber.

grapefruit diet, weight loss, fat burning foods, fiber, calories, health foods