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As a working mother of a toddler, I can see how easy it is to fall into the trap of taking care of anyone else, but not yourself. For me, I make a strong commitment every day to wake up early, very early, before my daughter rises so that I can have one hour, minimum, to myself to do my yoga practice. It’s my time and with the day that lies ahead of me, I need it. From the peace it engenders to the amazing physical workout it is, it’s how I take care of myself.
Being a mother is inexpressibly hard and rewarding work. I’ve seen moms forget about their own needs and place the needs of their families first. It happens all too often and one of the first things that we sacrifice is our own health. Whether it’s not exercising, eating leftover mac & cheese for breakfast as we clean cereal bowls and empty juice glasses or simply forgetting who we are - it happens.
So for me, Mother’s Day isn’t about getting flowers or a card from my daughter with her scribbles on it..as much as I LOVE and cherish her artistic endeavors, it’s more about remembering that in order for me to be the mother I want and dream about being, I must take care of myself. And I have faith that my commitment to taking care of myself physically and emotionally will serve my daughter ten-fold in the years to come.
Just recently released is the newly expanded South Beach Diet. I’m so happy to report that this latest book, The South Beach Diet: Supercharged Faster Weight Loss and Better Health for Life, has added a strong exercise component to its traditional diet. The diet hasn’t changed per se, but the menus, recipes and food selections for Phase 1 and Phase 2 have been enhanced. I myself have never done the South Beach Diet, but I was speaking yesterday to a registered dietitian about the diet’s components. She gave a big thumbs up to Phase 2 and Phase 3, but felt that Phase 1 was a bit too strict to do for 2 weeks. Three days seemed a more appropriate time span according to this diet expert.
Regardless of what you think of the South Beach Diet, it seems like the Supercharged edition includes a more practical and longterm approach to keeping weight off. That’s great news because most diets fail since there are little lifelong lessons built into their program. If you love the Supercharged version, there is also a Supercharged Workout DVD that goes along with it.
I’ve not tried the South Beach Diet, but I know of a lot of people who have and I’ve read a lot about it. What struck me as being particularly fascinating about this diet is the emotional effects that come from removing sugar, mostly refined sugar, from someone’s daily repertoire of eats. I myself have sworn off of sugar for small bouts of time and I must admit, I’m cranky, at least for the first few days of my abstinence. I have serious sugar withdrawal symptoms, usually in the form of mood changes. When this has happened, it catches me in my tracks and makes me wonder how much of a sugar addict I am?
I’ve heard that in the Phase 1 of the South Beach Diet when you are requested to remove all sugar from your diet, that a similar withdrawal occurs with mood changes and serious sugar cravings that appear to wane as you move forward in the diet.
I wonder too, how many South Beach Dieters have banned white sugar from their diet all together? If you’re out there, I’d love to hear from you and find out HOW you did it and how it’s working for you. It’s always been a distant dream of mine to squash my love of sugar for good, but as of today, it’s still just that - a dream.
Who out there feel like their butts get a little bigger by the time they leave the office each evening? With tinkering away on your computer all day long and an office kitchen full of cookies and donuts, it’s no wonder staying in shape is tough to do when you work in front of a computer all day long.
That is why I love this new creation by “The Biggest Loser” trainer, Bob Harper. He paired up with MSN to create a website that is devoted to helping all of us stay in shape as we work. We’re not talking about getting up at the crack of dawn to go to the gym before our 9 a.m. meeting, but rather simple and effective exercises we can do from our computer chairs or in our offices in under five minutes!
5 Minute Office Workout has 22 webisodes, Bob drops in on various offices around the country and talks to them about their exercise goals and their eating habits. From gently berating workers who keep stashes of chocolate in their desk drawer to encouraging fast-food lovers to opt for the healthier versions of typical fast-food fare, like tossing out the bun on their burger, Bob does a great job at inspiring and informing you. His message is realistic, motivating and best of all, quick! Check it out - Bob Harper’s 5 Minute Office Workout.
Tulum, Mexico….I’ve never been but I’ve ran across hundreds of brochures and announcements for spa-like retreat vacations. From yoga on the beach to six-days of detoxing amid white sandy beaches and crystal blue water, what could be more divine? Maybe losing some weight as you bask in the sun and snorkel?
We’ve all heard of Bikini Bootcamp, the diet right? What about an actual Bikini Bootcamp getaway where for one week you get in shape, eat great and get a tan. Not bad, huh? I love the idea, especially since the 2008 bikini season is just weeks from kicking into full gear. Flamenco workouts, silent morning walks on the beach, scenic hikes, meditations and of course low-fat, low-cal yummy meals are just some of the daily activities that you keep you busy as you get trim.
You gotta admit, living in such a glorious setting, even if just for one week, serves as such a massive impetus to lose weight and get in shape. It’s tough to muster up the motivation to knock off some pounds when you’re wrapped in wooly sweaters and turtlenecks and your only exposure to the outdoors is when you get in and out of the car to go to work, the gym or the grocery store.
I don’t know about you, but I have waited so long for a cookbook like this. In Lisa Lillien’s “Hungry Girl’s Cookbook“, she takes decadent eats like brownies, pasta-dishes, and sandwiches and shows you how to very simply make them low-fat and very low in calories. Her tricks are numerous: using pureed pumpkin in baked goods in lieu of oil and eggs, adding shirataki noodles (low-cal and low-carb tofu noodles) to make soups, pasta dishes and more, and using light vanilla soy milk in place of cream or milk.
The names of her dishes are just as colorful as the recipes: “rockin & choppin taco salad,” “fancy schmancy oatmeal,” “my big fat greek pita,” and “lord of the onion rings.” Whatever your craving is, the Hungry Girl has got it covered for you.
Also in the book are fun tips on how to snack and eat on the road, in the office, or at the movies without jeopardizing your jean size. The great thing about this book is that Lisa’s recipes are healthy, full of fiber and they are not meager! With a reliance on veggies, lean protein and sneaky replacements, you don’t have to worry that this cookbook will serve you up mouse-sized portions that lead you to raid the fridge when dinner is over.
For $17.95, you can’t beat this book! It’s creative, delicious and so much fun!
If I had to dream up my ultimate dream job it would be to eat chocolate AND get paid for doing it. Well, I think I’ll be turning in my 2-weeks notice because a team of British researchers are recruiting participants for a study that involves eating chocolate daily for one full year all in the name of science. The purpose of the study is to investigate any effects gained from consuming flavenoids, the compound found in chocolate since flavenoids have been found to reduce the risk of heart disease among certain people.
Unfortunately for me, two of the requirements for the study are that you must be past menopause with type 2 diabetes. If you know of anyone who fits the profile, loves chocolate and also has the good-hearted intention of furthering medical research, check out this call for study participants.
I would be very curious to speak with these 150 ladies one year from now and see if their love of chocolate has dwindled or stayed steady. You must wonder if the guilt is taken away and the ingestion of each bar is consumed out of necessity rather than free-will, how will our brains and emotions respond to that? Will we derive the same pleasure from it? Or will our sweet, endorphin-releasing indulgence be reduced to a mere required routine that is enjoyed a bit more than the daily habit of brushing our teeth or taking our multi?
Ever dream about having a little person over your shoulder to remind you when you need to take your vitamins, eat your veggies, or get to the gym? Well Wellsphere, the online destination site for healthy living, created a new device called the Wellphone which sends wellness tips, reminders, and logs your diet or exercise progress to your phone. You can pre-program your Wellphone so that every three hours it alerts you to get up from your office chair and take a mini-walk around the building.
To check out how to get this free service, you have to sign up to become a member of Wellsphere. If you’re someone who loves playing with their phone and needs motivation to nudge you to make better food choices or to encourage you to exercise, the Wellphone might be just the friend you need.
With obesity being the number one public health problem facing Americans today, finding long-term solutions that reduce the harmful effects of this growing epidemic. On the 4/20/08 episode of 60 Minutes, Lesley Stahl reported on the surprising healthy effects that having weight loss surgery is having on many patients. When the surgery is performed and the individual adheres to the post-operative dietary and exercise guidelines, reductions in hypertension, coronary artery disease, Type II diabetes are seen as well as reduced risk for certain cancers like breast, colon, endometrial cancers. Obviously, bariatric surgery is not just about losing pounds. These new findings are also broadening the medical community’s knowledge of the complex interplay between obesity and these other health conditions.
On Tuesday, April 15th, while most of us were scrambling to the Post Office to mail in our tax forms, France’s parliament adopted a bill to make it illegal for anyone to promote extreme thinness in men or women. From fashion moguls and magazines to websites on how to subsist on 200 calories a day or less, this legislation, if passed, would be truly groundbreaking for all of us who have suffered or who have known anyone to suffer from a body image or eating disorder.
It’s no doubt that extreme thinness in fashion models, as well as thousands of women throughout the world, is a serious and grave problem. You also have to consider how complex eating disorders are. It’s not just about food and a number on a scale. All of us are bombarded with images of skinny models wearing size 0 clothing, but only .5% to 1% of all young American women have anorexia and about 10% of young American women are bulimic. Obviously something else is going on here on a much deeper level than just being exposed to billboards and photographs of emaciated women.
That aside, A legislation like this would surely send a message to anyone or any company that idolizes or promotes the beauty of razor-thin women. And as someone who has battled with body image issues her whole life, I see this kind of initiative as a step in the right direction, even if proving it in court is near impossible.
What do you think about this legislation? Do you think it’s a step in the right direction or is France just putting a band-aid on cancer?
