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Lately I find myself in the kitchen baking. I use to bake a lot in my old life. It helped me cope with stress. I don’t feel stressed out but I’m baking nonetheless. But baking does require using a sweetener at times.
Oh sure I use my go to low carb sweeteners like Stevia or Swerve. I’m even using less of them, as the normal serving size seems too sweet for me these days. Now I’m thinking about kicking them to the curb completely.
Why? Read More
This morning I find myself sitting down with a cup of coffee and a book I read more than a year ago – Better than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives by Gretchen Rubin. I find myself in need of remastering one simple yet special word.
In a world where nearly everything is at your fingertips, it’s a word you don’t hear very often — “No.”
“No” was my essential tool in losing 150 pounds over 4 years. But if you don’t use it you lose it. And I haven’t used it for a long time.
The Vacation Is Over
I just got back from a weeklong visit with family in Texas. It was fun but I discovered I lost the ability to tell myself “no” when it came to snacks, desserts and alcohol. I told myself, “Your on vacation. Enjoy it.”
The problem is my vacation has lasted 373 days. Read More
An interesting article in the New York Times about the potential benefits of fasting before exercising. I know a lot of bodybuilders and athletes play with timing their meals and workouts. And scientists like Jeff Volek have studied ketogenic diets and athletic performance. Well a new study looks at us regular folks and how when we eat may play a role in lowering insulin levels.
Gee, I wonder where I heard that before?
Anyway, it’s nice that science is starting to put to the test the “benefits” of fasting.
An interesting read was making the rounds this weekend in the twitterverse. It was a perfect take down of the latest variation of the Mediterranean diet. According to this version, the people of the Mediterranean don’t eat red meat or butter so neither should you. Wow!
Just one tiny problem. The article’s writer, Joanna Blythman, is an investigative food journalist and someone who has actually traveled around the Mediterranean. She’s learned about their most popular foods. Turns out, dishes aren’t so free of red meat and butter. You can read the article yourself.
Sorry, but there isn’t a mythical foreign diet. The best way to get healthy and stay that way is to eat real food and avoid processed foods (a.k.a., fake food) rather than healthy fats.
Caution — Shoes are much, much more neon yellow than they appear! More steps a day just wear these puppies out sooner.
Here’s an interesting morning read about mail carriers in Glasgow, Scotland and heart health. Those who deliver the mail are far more heart healthy than their counter parts working a desk job. Why? Glaswegian mail carriers deliver the mail by foot! While The New York Times article is focused on whether we should target 15,000 steps a day vs. the current 10,000 step recommendation, I think they are missing another piece: strength.
If the Scots deliver the mail on foot, that means they are also doing a lot of weight training too. A mail bag loaded with bills, letters, flyers and Amazon boxes adds up in pounds/kilograms.
Yes walking is good for you. However, if most Americans can’t even get 10,000 steps in a day, what’s the point of upping the number of 15,000. Also the mail carriers in Scotland deliver by foot. That means they walk for nearly 8 hours a day, 5 days a week and get paid to do so. In the US, somewhere around 100 million employees are sitting at a desk.
Does your manager encourage you to get in a chunk of your 10,000 steps while you’re on the clock?
I’m curious if the study actually looked at their diet. If you had to walk every day for your paycheck wouldn’t you eat better too? Again walking is healthy, but you can’t out walk a bad diet.
I’ve been in need of some motivation lately. Thankfully I found Nerd Fitness’ YouTube Channel. Although I’m a frequent visitor to their site, I wasn’t aware of the videos. This one is great for anyone thinking of “going on a diet.”
An amazing keto cookbook that I’m relying on as I start my 30-Day Keto Challenge, eating up to 80% healthy fats a day.
For the last week I’ve played with my diet to see what works in minimizing my menopause symptoms and it’s looking like a strict ketogenic diet is the way to go. When I say strict, I’m talking about reducing both my carbs and protein intake while increasing healthy dietary fat.
However, there are a few other changes I’m making to my diet and lifestyle that will go into my March 30-Day Keto Challenge. I’ve been easing into those changes in February so it isn’t such a shock to my system, but they are significant.
Dot’s New Macros*
As for calculating my macronutrients, there are a lot of good ketogenic macro calculators online (here and here). I’m a fan of nutritionist Maria Emmerich and after listing to a podcast of her answer questions about keto and menopause I decided to go with her calculator.
I just got a little note in my inbox about a Valentine’s Day special on the CW tonight about one of my obsessions (it’s at the top of my bucket list!!!) — The Tough Mudder. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Valentine’s Day than curled up on the couch with my husband learning about the folks doing the world’s ultimate muddy obstacle race.
Mudlove is in the air tonight!
No, it isn’t true: A calorie isn’t just a calorie. The quality of the calories is far more important. Need proof? Here’s your tweet of the day courtesy of Dr. Ted Naiman (if you don’t follow Dr. Ted’s tweets you really should).
Besides being fun, camping can reset your circadian rhythm. I always sleep better in a forest.
Having issues falling asleep at night? Just not getting in your full 8 hours of shut-eye? Try a weekend in the woods…seriously.
I’ve written before about how a good night’s sleep is critical for weight loss. Unfortunately modern technology is disrupting our sleep patterns. Thankfully there is a possible solution: