Our Country is Sick and it's SAD!

Our country is growing more and more ill by the day. It makes me sad to look around and see how unhealthy we are making ourselves. Fast food (and I'm not just talking drive thrus) seems easier now but really it causes you problems in the long run and eventually takes it's toll. Not only are adults feeling these growing pains but our children are too. I read this article this morning regarding Type 2 Diabetes in children. It gives the statistic that 17% of pediatric patients are overweight! That is nearly a quarter of of our countries children! We need to do better than this! I know it seems hard to take on. Where do we start? We start with ourselves! Make a change in the way you eat be and example to those around you ESPECIALLY your children! I challenge you to learn something new about what you are eating today and share it with someone else!

Another GREAT Spark People Article

I get several spark people emails a week and they are always jammed packed with great information. I LOVED this last email:Burn 100 calories in 10 minutes. Here is an excerpt

People often say that they don't have time to exercise, but I disagree.Everyone can spare 10 minutes a day to work out. One of my personal goals is to do something active every day, even if it's just for 10 minutes. So even on my busiest days, I won't make excuses. And I definitely won't convince myself that 10 minutes is too little to really matter. Ten minutes DOES matter—and it really does add up to big benefits for your body. If all you only did 10 minutes of exercise per day, that's 70 minutes and potentially 700+ calories that you could burn over the course of a week.

20 Ways Burn 100 Calories* in 10 Minutes

1. Cycling (12+ mph) or mountain biking
2. Racquetball
3. Running (at least 12 minutes per mile)
4. Swimming laps or treading water
5. Playing basketball
6. Spinning class or stationary biking
7. Rowing
8. Boxing
9. Martial arts
10. Digging (heavy yard work)
11. Jumping rope (continuously)
12. Jumping jacks
13. Rock climbing
14. Walking on the treadmill (at least 4 mph with a 5% incline)
15. Water jogging
16. Kettlebell training
17. SparkPeople's Jump Start Cardio workout
18. SparkPeople's Bootcamp Cardio workout
19. SparkPeople's Kickboxing workou
20. SparkPeople's Jump Rope workout

I love working out. But I didn't ALWAYS love it. I had to grow into it. I started by trying out new things and discovering what I hated, liked, and really loved. Once I found strength training and Jillian Michaels DVDs I really began to LOVE working out. I can make just as many excuses as you can about working out. I don't have the time, I'm too tired, blah blah blah. But the simple truth is that it's IMPORTANT! It may be hard but start slow, just like this article says 10 minutes a day. And they even provide you with FREE 10 min workouts. Now 10 minutes a day is not your quick fix. It's a STEPPING STONE. You have no excuses now get to work. And become the best you you can be!

PS If you still haven't checked out the Jillian Michaels podcasts on iTunes you are missing out! They are wonderful!

PPS Have you seen the new TV show Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition! It's incredible! This last week they focused on Food Addiction! It was heartbreaking! But very eye opening. I feel like people think food addiction isn't a real thing but it is. And it is KILLING our country! It is SO sad it breaks my heart!

Spark People.com

Okay I know that I am always bugging you with different websites to try but I have to tell you that I have been REALLY impressed with Sparkpeople.com. I've been ready their emails for about a year but it's only been a couple of weeks since I started using their site consistently. I still love fatsecret.com and livestrong.com. They are GREAT but sparkpeople provides SOOOO much more!

Here are some of the reasons I LOVE Sparkpeople.com

1st-The Reports

I am a VERY visual person! It is EXTREMELY helpful to see a pie chart of my calorie breakdown. Someone can say SueAnn you are eating to much fat and that would register but it REALLY clicks when I can look at a pie chart and see that 45% of my caloric intake is fat (by the way it's not that was just a for example. :))

2nd-Custom Food Entries

Sometimes you just can't find something you've eaten on your calorie counter. But Sparkpeople let's you enter your own items. This is also a GREAT tool if you have a specific recipe for something. So you can input your recipe at Calorie Count.com and get the nutrition info and then plug it in here at Sparkpeople.com. I love this because it means that my calories will be way more accurate!

3rd-The Articles

They have great articles! Whether you are looking for information about food, exercise, health, etc. you can find a great article about it on Sparkpeople.com. Plus if you sign up for their emails you get these articles everyday! LOVE IT!

4th-The Challenges & The Community

There is always a challenge going on at Sparkpeople.com! They have thousands of members and you if you are ever feeling a lack of support just hit the message boards! You will get the boost you need!

5th-Sparkrecipes.com

LOVE this site! It's easy to search and just about everything I've tried has been wonderful!

Like this recipe for CRISPY RANCH CHICKEN! Super easy and VERY yummy!

6th-The iPod Touch App & Website Sync EFFORTLESSLY!

Anything on entered on my iPod is recorded on the website within seconds and visa versa!

LOVE IT!

I could go on and on about the reasons I love Sparkpeople.com but I won't bore you any longer. Over the last 10 months I have tried at least a half a dozen calorie counting sites and I will tell you that this is HANDS DOWN my favorite. So go on-try it out and be sure to tell me what YOU think of it!!

What are your reasons for working out?

We all have reasons why we wake up early or stay up late to get our burn on but are your reasons the RIGHT reasons? If any of the following are included in your reasons you should definitely check out this article on SparkPeoplpe.com!

Do you exercise because...

You feel fat

You want to eat whatever you want

You want to run away from your problems

You want to energize when you're lacking sleep

You want to get skinny

Apparently these are the Top 5 Worst Reasons to Workout. You may not even realize these are on your list. Read the entire article to find out if you are doing this absentmindedly and learn how to make your reasons positive and motivating!

Spark People Does It Again!

That is catch my attention with another great article.

5 Secrets of the 5%

What You Can Learn from Successful Dieters (I HATE the word DIET! It's a lifestyle!!)

-- By Mike Kramer, Staff Writer

More elusive than Bigfoot, more mysterious than the alien residents of Area 51—they’re so anonymous, we’re tempted to ask "do these people actually exist?" I’m here to tell you that YES they do exist. You may even know one or two.

They’re the legendary 5% of people who have lost weight and actually kept it off for the long-term. If you’ve never met one these people before, don’t be surprised. They prefer to stay relatively unknown. Having discovered the prized secret to a healthy lifestyle, they tend to enjoy their status and privacy.

But what about the other 95% of us who have struggled with weight loss and continue to do so? Are we doomed to a life of frustration and failure, with no promise of good health in sight?

Of course not! At SparkPeople, I’ve witnessed a lot of these 5%ers in action. I wondered, what do they do differently than the rest of us? After a non-scientific review, I was able to boil it down to a handful of key strategies and tactics that are pretty common among people who succeed. For the first time, their secret is out. The doors are blown off. Join me in exploring these secrets and use them in your own life. Pretty soon, you can be part of this group too.

The 5%…

1. …Make It Public. The 5% generally don’t keep their weight loss efforts to themselves. They recruit supporters. They ask for help. They swap war stories with friends. They give and take encouragement. Often a goal buddy is involved, or at least a positive, supportive friend who holds the dieter accountable. Studies show that just by writing down or announcing your goals, you automatically increase your chances of success. Keeping a Community Journal or blog is a non-threatening, productive way to make your goals public.
   
   
2. …Pay Attention. A permanent, healthy lifestyle is created on purpose. Planning, tracking, reading menus, asking questions, following progress reports—they’re all part of the 5% strategy of knowing what’s going on and preventing setbacks. This crowd doesn’t believe in fooling themselves or relying on chance to make things happen. Usually (if not always) aware of the foods they eat, and on the lookout for opportunities to stay active, they know that good health is no accident. Nutrition Trackers and Fitness Planners play key roles in this strategy.
   
   
3. …Enjoy Themselves. There’s a reason that a healthy lifestyle sticks around for this small minority. They make weight loss a positive experience and have fun with it. Because they feel good about their goals and their new habits, they also feel good about themselves and what they’ve accomplished. Programs based on negative messages, dread, resignation, or criticism are doomed to disappear. Optimists are proven to reach more goals than pessimists. They also live healthier, longer lives.
   
   
4. …Make Gradual Changes. The 5% know that permanent change is a process, not a 21-day event. Able to see what waits on the horizon, they spend time building a few small habits at a time, rather than diving into a program that’s totally incompatible with their current lifestyle. Too much too soon is like moving to a new country and expecting to adopt the new culture and language in a week. It works much better if you simply stick around and pick up a few bits and pieces at a time.
   
   
5. …Allow Themselves To Fail. It’s a guaranteed certainty. Every one of the 5% has failed at some point along their weight loss journey. The difference is that they learned to forgive setbacks and refused to beat themselves up. Every failure is simply one step closer to ultimate success. With this outlook, and using lessons learned along the way, they kept these setbacks from turning into full-fledged disasters.

Not so mysterious, now that you know their secrets, huh? A permanent, healthy lifestyle may be closer than you think!

Another Article to Read

Spark People hits us with another great article

Fitting Healthy Habits into Your Hectic Life

13 Tips to Get More Nutrition and Fitness into Your Day

1. Drink water throughout the day. You don’t hear this nearly enough: water is an all-purpose wonder-substance. It’s great for your skin, your digestive system, and circulatory system, and aids in weight loss and cellulite reduction. If you feel fatigued during the day, it’s often because you aren’t hydrated properly. Drink water throughout the day, sipping from a large bottle or glass. If you have it nearby, it’s easy to remember. If you don’t like the “taste” of water, keep a supply of lemon so that you can add a slice to your water – it cuts any bitterness, adds a bit of vitamin C and makes it taste more festive!
   
2. Cut back on the amount of soda and coffee you drink. Sugar and caffeine dehydrate you and create energy rushes followed by crashes, which are ultimately energy-depleting. Substitute with drinks like green tea or 100% fruit juice.
   
3. Replace high-sugar foods with low-sugar versions. Cutting back on the amount of refined sugar you consume helps reduce calories and weight gain and also helps you avoid the energy slumps that come from sugar withdrawal. Items high in refined sugar include most soft drinks, cereals, baked goods, and of course, candy and ice cream. Look for low-sugar or no-sugar versions of these, or simply opt for healthy snacks instead.
   
4. Stock up on healthy, portable snacks. When you are grocery shopping, pick up bags of baby carrots, string cheese, nuts, fresh and dried fruit, single serving packs of applesauce, yogurt, wholegrain crackers, peanut butter, turkey jerky, etc. Having healthy portable snacks around will help you avoid bad vending-machine, convenience store and fast-food options. Read some more portable snack ideas.
   
5. Take the time to plan healthy meals for the week. Spend 15 minutes or so to map out your meals. Keep it simple. Then, when you shop for groceries, make your purchases based on the meals you will make during the week. This will help you avoid relying on less healthy take-out or fast food choices. Learn even more grocery store tips.
   
6. Purchase frozen, ready-to-cook ingredients. Frozen fruits and vegetables have high vitamin and mineral content because they don’t sit around losing these nutrients for long before they are preserved. Although you’ll want to keep plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables around, it’s great to have frozen produce available for quick meal additions and smaller servings. Also, some grocery stores offer frozen boneless chicken breasts and a wide variety of seafood items in re-sealable packages. These are great for quick, healthy meals.
   
7. Pack your lunch the night before. You'll have given yourself the gift of extra time in the morning and you will assure that you have a healthy meal during the day. Don’t forget to pack snack items so you can avoid the vending machine.
   
8. Cook double batches of whatever you’re cooking. When you prepare dinner, especially on weekends, cook extra and freeze to use for another dinner or lunch. Then, you'll have a healthy meal ready to go when you are.
   
9. Give yourself some slack. If you are stressed out about preparing healthy meals every day, use what some experts call the "80/20" rule in your eating. If 80 percent of what you eat is healthy, then allow yourself to take it a little easier for the remaining 20 percent. You and your diet will survive.
   
10. Fit in exercise whenever you can. Experts recommend that adults exercise a minimum of 30 minutes three times per week. Aim for this amount, but don’t kick yourself if you can’t meet this goal. Any amount of exercise is better than none. No time to go to a gym? Build a stock of exercise tapes – many have routines that you can complete in 20-40 minutes. Use hand weights or do crunches, leg-lifts and lunges while watching television. Or invest in an exercise bike – you can pedal while catching up on your reading. Think of what would be most interesting to you and what best fits your schedule and budget.
    
11. Take a walk break during the day. Even 20 minutes can make a difference in your energy level, plus it gives you time to clear your head. If you walk with a friend or colleague, it also gives you time to socialize.
    
12. Whenever possible, walk. Increase the amount of time you can walk, versus sit or drive. It doesn’t take that much extra time to park a bit farther from the store entrance, or to make a personal visit to a colleague rather than phoning, instant messaging or e-mailing.
    
13. Get enough sleep. Even if you gain more time in your day by cutting back on sleep, you will be less effective throughout the day, as your energy level and cognitive functioning will be reduced. Insufficient sleep also makes you more susceptible to illness. By getting enough sleep, you become more efficient during the time you are awake.

A thought from me: Remember not to be hard on yourself. Everyone who decides to change their lifestyle has good days and bad. Just remember--don't give up. Eventually your the habits your are trying to create will just become part of your lifestyle, until then take it one day at a time.
:) Good Luck today!

What Does 300 Claories REALLY Look Like!

So I believe in counting calories. At first it was annoying! But now I feel like I am playing a game. Anyway I have searched for different ways to count my calories. There are A LOT of free websites you can join, apps you can download, etc. Some good ones that I have like are Calorie Counter, Livestrong, and Sparkpeople. I currently use Livestrong but I browse the other sites articles. This one TOTALLY grabbed my attention! It gives several examples healthy meals virus unhealthy meals. When you are counting your calories you want to get the bang for your bite. At first you may think that you will be eating like a church mouse but as this article proves you can eat healthy and get FULL! I am a visual person and being able to SEE the difference in the amount of food was incredible! I snagged a photo from each meal (see below) to see more check out the article! I thought it was fascinating!! Now the pictures are served to match the calories, the calories I listed are for the entire portion.

Breakfast
300 Calories VS 420 Calories

Lunch
350 Calories VS 1370 Calories

Dinner
400 Calories VS 1060 Calories