Author of Scale Down: A
Realistic Guide to Balancing Body, Soul & Spirit
Wouldn’t it be incredible if every
pound you lost stayed off forever? It’s easier than you think if you make
consistent lifestyle changes. (A lifestyle change is something that you can
truly do most days of your life without too much effort or deprivation. Everything else is just another diet! ) Choose one or more of Danna Demetre’s
lifestyle tips taken from her book, Scale Down: A Realistic Guide to
Balancing Body, Soul & Spirit.
Start applying them to your life and begin losing fat without dieting.
Do you
really believe you can get and stay lean for life? If you don’t…you won’t! Get
in tune with your self-talk. Discover your lies…and replace them with truth!
You believe what you tell yourself most often. So, what do you believe? In the
human mind, the most dominant thought wins. If you tell yourself a new truth
long enough, your behavior will change. Make an audio tape with the new
messages you truly want to believe and play it a two to three times each day.
You’ll be amazed at what can and will happen over time. Within a few months,
your new self-talk could reset your “automatic pilot” and lead you down a
leaner lifestyle path!
Get rid of your old diet mentality
and legalize all foods. If you can have any food you want, any
time you want it…then you don’t need to have it all right now. Give
yourself permission to enjoy your favorite foods without feeling guilty.
Chances are your cravings will diminish and your will power will increase. And,
while you’re at it, get rid of your “all or nothing” attitude as well. It’s not
either a “diet day” or a “blow out day”. Every time you think you’ve gone a
little too far off the path…start fresh right then and there. Don’t wait until
the first day of the week, the first day of the month or the first day of the
year. Restart again and again…right now…even if it is Wednesday afternoon!
The higher your energy, the less likely you will be to overeat. There are several important factors that will energize you to the max. Each is important in its own right, so make sure you don’t neglect any of these critical factors:
1.
Eat to
stabilize your blood sugar: Include a good source of protein and fiber
in most meals and snacks, especially at breakfast and lunch. Shoot for at least
30 grams of fiber everyday. Try to avoid highly processed or sugary foods until
after lunch. This will help you maintain a more stable blood sugar and that
will significantly diminish cravings.
2.
De-stress
your life:
Stress releases hormones and sugar into your blood stream creating a
vicious cycle of fat storage and adrenaline rushes. When the excess sugar
released during stress goes unused, (since most of us aren’t being chased by a
wild animal) it ends up getting stored as fat. The answer: Decrease your
stress.
3.
Sleep
until you are rested: Well-rested people have
higher mental, emotional and physical reserves. The body regenerates at the
cellular level only during deep, quality sleep. Most people need a minimum of
71/2 hours per night. Try it…you’ll be amazed at how well you’ll perform in
many areas of your life…including your lifestyle.
4.
Exercise
for maximum energy: Don’t wait to get up and
get moving until you have enough energy to exercise. Get moving purposely every
day and you will have more energy. You’ll feel better, more focused
and have better self-control. Get at least 10 minutes of purposeful activity
every morning before you jump in the shower. In seven days, you will
definitely feel a difference. The ideal is to work toward at least 30 minutes
of purposeful activity (a.k.a. “exercise”) most days of the week.
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The bottom line to all weight
management is simply: Calories In
vs. Calories Out. But, most people severely underestimate how many
calories they eat and over estimate how many they burn during exercise. If you
only eat ten calories more than you burn each day, you’ll gain an extra pound
of fat every yea. It’s the small stuff that adds up over time. So, take action
and reverse that equation by burning more calories each and everyday. Just a
little improvement can make a huge difference over time!
The average woman eats over 2,000 calories per day, but she only burns about 1,700. That’s the perfect formula to gain about 30 pounds in a year. And people wonder why Americans are getting fatter every year—it’s simple math.
Here are a few ways to burn a
pound of FAT off your body each week:
1. Eat 500 less calories every day. (That’s about 2/3 of a scone at
Starbuck’s)
2. Burn 500 calories more every day. (That’s about 4 miles of
walking or jogging)
3. Eat 250 calories less and burn 250 calories more each day.
(That’s a lifestyle change)
4. Get motivated to burn more calories with a Caltrac activity monitor.
4. Build two pounds more muscle and increase your metabolism 100
calories a day.
6. Always park farther away, take the stairs and walk instead of
ride whenever you can.
25 Ways to Cut Calories Every Day
Author of Scale Down: A
Realistic Guide to Balancing Body, Soul & Spirit
Try a few of Danna Demetre’s calorie-saving tips taken from
her book, Scale Down: A Realistic Guide to Balancing Body, Soul &
Spirit. Start applying them to your
life today and begin losing fat without sacrificing taste!
1.
Try frozen grapes or blueberries for a fun snack.
2.
Land O’ Lakes light whipped butter is excellent—and only 35
calories per tablespoon!
3.
When you dip veggies, chips or other snacks, dip sparingly.
It adds up fast.
4.
Hard candy or mints are low in calories and satisfy the
sweet tooth. They also take about 3-4
minutes to eat.
5.
Graham crackers with warm herbal tea satisfy sweet
cravings—with less sugar and fat.
6.
Choose rolls instead of high fat biscuits.
7.
Leave the cheese off your sandwiches and save at least 100
calories!
8.
You can easily save hundreds of calories weekly by reducing
the amount of butter, mayonnaise, and other spreads on your breads, rolls,
etc. The spread should totally blend
into the surface of your food. Scrape
off any excess with your knife before you take the first bite.
9.
Love cheese? Select
parmesan or low-fat mozzarella. Buy
sharper cheeses for more flavor—and use less.
10.
Never eat regular mayonnaise. Cut low-fat mayo with Dijon mustard to decrease the calories and
increase the flavor.
11.
Reduce the frequency of red meat in your diet and increase
the frequency of fish—your brain and heart will love you.
12.
Angel food cake can be dressed up in many ways for a non-fat
dessert. Try making a chocolate angel
food cake—yum!
13.
Lower fat cookies include biscotti, vanilla-flavored wafers
and good ol’ Oreos.
14.
Low fat frozen yogurt and fruit sorbet with berries have
fewer calories than most ice creams.
15.
Avoid the guacamole and stick with low calorie salsa. If you can’t resist the avocado, mix it with
generous amounts of salsa and fresh tomatoes.
16.
Substitute ground turkey for beef. Brown and rinse with hot water in a colander to remove excess
fat. Save about 160 calories per pound.
17.
Croissants contain about 300 calories from fat. They’re not worth it! Stick with your favorite fresh bread.
18.
Order pizza with thin crust, 1/3 less cheese and lots of
veggies. Save 100 -150 calories per
slice.
19.
Use less low-fat mayonnaise in tuna or chicken salad by
adding a little low-fat dressing such as rice vinegar.
20.
Never butter your pancakes, waffles or French toast. Just top with reduced sugar syrup or
jam. Pancakes are generally the lowest
calorie choice. Make your own in a
nonstick pan.
21.
Reduce the amount of meat or poultry in your fajitas,
casseroles or other dishes and increase the vegetables, rice or beans.
22.
All tortillas are not equal. Read the labels and buy the smaller, low-fat selections.
23.
Eat a turkey sandwich instead of chicken salad. Save 200 to 300 calories.
24.
Add an extra two cups of beans to your turkey or chicken
chili to increase fiber and decrease calories.
25.
Bake a big, fluffy potato and stuff with low-fat cottage
cheese, chives and top with a little sharp cheddar. Very satisfying.
Energize Your Body and Your
Will Power: With the Nutri-Max Six
Author of Scale Down: A
Realistic Guide to Balancing Body, Soul & Spirit
Begin incorporating Danna
Demetre’s Nutri-Max suggestions, and you’ll find yourself enjoying a more
balanced life. These suggestions are
taken from her book, Scale Down: A Realistic Guide to Balancing Body, Soul
& Spirit.
Nutri-Max #1 Water: Essential for Life
Second only to air, your body must have a
constant supply of water to survive. Most people will die of dehydration within
a few days without it. Your body doesn’t sweat soda or iced tea; it sweats
water and electrolytes. It needs water to perform all of its bodily functions.
When you don’t drink enough, your body resorts to handling only the most
essential functions first. And, that is not metabolizing excess fat. Try
to drink at least 4-8 ounces of water for every hour you are awake. If you wait
to drink until you’re thirsty, you’re already a quart low (4 cups). Only water alone can be drawn
directly into your cells from the gut without going through a “filtering
process.” All other beverages must
first be “cleaned up” before entering your blood stream. If you want to look
younger, have more energy and live longer…drink pure, fresh water all day long!
Nutri-Max #2 Plant
foods: The key to a longer and
healthier life!
Fiber-rich fruits, vegetables, whole
grains, beans, legumes, seeds and nuts are packed with phyto-chemicals,
antioxidants and fiber.
All
three help fight cancer, provide anti-aging protection and more. Mom was right
to encourage you to eat more of these foods. Now that you’re not under her
watchful eye, how are you doing on your own? And if you are a mom…how are your
kids doing? The old recommendation to have 7 to 9 fruits and vegetable servings
today is still great advice. When was the last time you even came close?
Study after study shows increasing
evidence that this area of nutrition will have the most profound long-term
affect on your health and vitality. Supplements cannot completely fill in
the gaps left from not eating enough live, whole foods. The fiber alone in
plant foods has an incredible balancing affect on blood sugar; not to mention
the incredible benefits to your entire digestive system. And, don’t forget that
your breads and cereals should have enough whole grains to actually be
considered “food.” Most refined, packaged foods enter the body and are pretty
much turned to sugar and paste within minutes of ingestion. Wonder why you feel
so sluggish?
Nutri-Max #3 Protein: Building tissue & balancing blood sugar
Protein is
essential for tissue repair, maintenance and growth of muscles, blood,
hormones, enzymes and antibodies. You should always eat some protein with
breakfast and lunch because the protein digests very slowly, stabilizes your
blood sugar and makes you feel satiated longer. However, more is not always
better. Too much protein can overtax your body, particularly wreaking havoc on
your kidneys. There is absolutely no healthful evidence to validate the
outrageous propensity toward high protein diets. Why did God create such an
incredible array of colorful foods for us to eat, if we were designed to be
predominately carnivores? Try to get at least 12 to 14 grams of protein at both
breakfast and lunch. Also find creative ways to add a little protein to
your snacks such as nuts, peanut butter on whole grain crackers, and so on.
(That’s right…nuts! Yes, I know they are high in fat…good fat. Eat them in
moderation and you can enjoy both the taste and health benefits.)
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Nutri-Max Six/page two
Nutri-Max #4 Fats: The right choices are essential
Choosing the right fats and understanding
their benefits and drawbacks will help you dramatically in your weight
management efforts. Keeping the right amount of healthy fat in your diet will
leave you feeling full and satiated longer than non-fat meals. Fats have long
been getting a bad rap, but the truth is, some are essential to your health.
The key is to eat the right kind of fats because, as with carbohydrates, not
all fats are created equal. Lots of people simply eat too much fat. But, many
more get almost none of the vitally essential Omega 3 fatty acids—which impacts
brain function and cardiac health dramatically and has been linked to
protection from Alzheimer’s disease.
For now, try to reduce the saturated
(animal and dairy) fats in your diet as much as possible. The total fat in your
diet should range between 15 and 30 percent. Stay on the lower end until you
reach your ideal size. Olive oil is always a good choice for cooking and
salads. Most importantly, add Omega 3 fats by eating coldwater fish like salmon
and tuna at least two times per week. Walnuts and flaxseed are also very high
in Omega 3 fat. This is an area where most people need to supplement to meet
the recommended daily allowance.
Nutri-Max #5 Vitamins, minerals &
antioxidants: Nutritional spark plugs
Vitamins and
minerals are nutrients that occur naturally in foods, are essential for health,
yet provide no calories. Antioxidants are a specific group of nutrients that
together form an army that captures the metabolic waste products called free
radicals and transport them out of your body before they can damage your cells.
All these “micronutrients” act like spark plugs, working to help your body do
its various functions effectively. They also help us utilize our food as fuel
more effectively and prevent nutritional deficiencies. God provides all the
nutrients we need in natural foods. The problem is that we don’t eat the amount
and variety of whole foods needed to meet all of our nutritional needs. We also
have corrupted our natural food sources with depleted soil, polluted water and
chemical agents like pesticides.
Today, it’s important to take vitamins
and minerals as an insurance policy in your diet. However, they do not take the
place of healthy eating. New spark
plugs won’t make your car run better if you forget to gasoline in your car—and
vitamins without good food are of little value. If you’re not already taking
vitamins, start with a good multi-vitamin mineral complex and an antioxidant
formula. Then, if you have a specific need, supplement based on the
recommendations of your healthcare professional.
Nutri-Max #6 Vitamins
Z & X
Vitamin Z, better known as “sleep,” is
another frequently neglected “nutrient” that plays a much more important role
in our health than we previously realized. Vitamin X, better known as
“exercise,” is essential for maintaining high energy, low body fat and overall
health and vitality. Okay, okay…I know
neither are technically nutrients. But, if these two lifestyle factors
are not a high priority in your life, even perfect nutrition will not bring you
the health, vitality and fast-burning metabolism you desire.
Sleep is the time that you get both
physical and psychological rest. During deep sleep, your body accomplishes its
most important cellular renewal. Even modest amounts of sleep deprivation can
diminish your immune system and ability to cope with the daily challenges of
life. How much is enough? My
suggestion: Make a sleep a priority. Try it for a full month and see for
yourself the impact it makes in your lifestyle. Exercise is an incredible
energizer. The more you move, the better you feel. Feeling good motivates you
to stay active and activity tends to distract you from sedentary habits that
include eating. Get in a positive cycle and get a good dose of Vitamin X every
day!