and another thing

For you planners out there, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has launched a new on-line meal planner that helps you adhere to the food pyramid (kind of like Canada’s Guide to Healthy Eating, only in handy pyramid formation).

protein

I’m told protein is the key to losing weight – and that most commercially available protein bars are bad bad bad for you. So here’s a recipe:

4 ounces soy protein powder, approximately 1 cup
2 1/4 ounces oat bran, approximately 1/2 cup
2 3/4 ounces whole-wheat flour, approximately 1/2 cup
3/4-ounce wheat germ, approximately 1/4 cup
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 ounces raisins, approximately 1/2 cup
2 1/2 ounces dried cherries, approximately 1/2 cup
3 ounces dried blueberries, approximately 1/2 cup
2 1/2 ounces dried apricots, approximately 1/2 cup
1 (12.3-ounce) package soft silken tofu
1/2 cup unfiltered apple juice
4 ounces dark brown sugar, approximately 1/2 cup packed
2 large whole eggs, beaten
2/3 cup natural peanut butter
Canola oil, for pan

Line the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch glass baking dish with parchment paper and lightly coat with canola oil. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the protein powder, oat bran, wheat flour, wheat germ, and salt. Set aside.

Coarsely chop the raisins, dried cherries, blueberries and apricots and place in a small bowl and set aside.

In a third mixing bowl, whisk the tofu until smooth. Add the apple juice, brown sugar, eggs, and peanut butter, 1 at a time, and whisk to combine after each addition. Add this to the protein powder mixture and stir well to combine. Fold in the dried fruit. Spread evenly in the prepared baking dish and bake in the oven for 35 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 205 degrees F. Remove from the oven and cool completely before cutting into squares. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Health eating 101

A Calorie Counter link for you.

Energy

I’ve been sick for more than a week – and feeling plenty guilty about not exercising and not eating properly. Which is silly, when you think about it, when you’re sick, you’re sick, no?

Anyway, the break has allowed me to consider my goals a bit more carefully and come up with something that I believe is both realistic and achievable. Smart, one might say. So here’s the magic number: 15.

As in 15 per cent. As in my goal is to lose 15 per cent of my body weight – that’s 37.5 pounds (we’ll round up to 38, just for the fun of it) – by Dec. 31. So here we go.

I’m taking one more day to fully recuperate, and am going to give C’s suggestion – working out in the evening, after work – a try for the next few weeks. It will likely involve a few changes to my eating schedule, as I can’t really see having anything heavy after 9.30 or so – a light dinner will have to suffice.

Which brings me to the matter of snacking. And this article, which might help matters a little when it comes to the critical after-work time, when overeating seems to be a big problem.

Am I ready?

From the Mayo Clinic:

Weight-loss tip: First, make sure you’re ready
Ask yourself these questions to see if you’re ready to start a weight-loss program.

Your weight-loss success depends on your readiness to take on the challenge. These questions can help you judge whether now is the best time to start your weight-loss program.

* Are you motivated to make long-term lifestyle changes that require eating healthy foods and exercising more? Be honest. Knowing you need to make changes in your life and feeling up to the challenge are two different things.
* Do you currently have distractions in your life that may prevent you from committing to your weight-loss program? You may set yourself up for failure if you’re distracted by other major events in your life, such as marital problems, job stress, illness or financial worries. Give your life a chance to calm down before you start.
* Do you truly believe that slower is better? Losing weight at a relatively slow pace has proved safe, healthy and effective over the long term. You should aim for a weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds a week.
* Are you realistic about your weight-loss goal? Remember, losing as little as 10 to 20 pounds can improve your health if you’re overweight or obese. Ask your doctor how much weight you can safely lose.
* Do you have family and friends to support your weight-loss efforts? It certainly helps to have someone in your corner. If you don’t have someone you can rely on, consider joining a weight-loss support group.
* Do you believe that you can change your eating habits? Sounds easy to do in theory, but in practice, it’s often difficult. It’s hard to cast aside established behaviors.
* Are you willing to become more physically active? Increasing your level of physical activity is essential to losing weight and keeping it off.
* Do you have time to keep records of your food intake and physical activity? Keeping records increases your chance of success. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by how helpful it is to track your progress.
* Are you willing to look at past successes and failures in weight loss and other areas of your life? Learn from the past about what motivates you. Keep working to resolve barriers that might prevent success.
* Do you view a healthy-weight program as a positive experience? Lose weight because you want to and not because you think it’s expected by others.
* Have you resolved any eating disorders or other emotional issues that make it difficult for you to achieve a healthy weight? If you have a tendency to binge, purge, starve or overexert when you exercise, or if you’re depressed or anxious, you may need professional help.
* Do you believe that a healthy weight is a lifelong commitment? Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is a lifelong process. There’s no going back to your old behaviors. Are you ready to make a permanent change?

If you answered yes to all of these questions, you’re ready to make the lifestyle changes necessary for permanent weight loss.

If you answered no to one or more of these questions, you may not be ready. And that’s OK. Explore what’s holding you back and face those obstacles. In some cases it may be a simple matter of timing. For instance, you may need to resolve other problems in your life. In other cases, you may need to work on related issues — such as your feelings toward weight loss or your willingness to commit to permanent changes.

You may be able to make these changes alone, or you may feel you need additional help. Educating yourself about the process of successful weight loss and maintenance is a start. For example, learn more about the dietary changes necessary for losing weight. See a dietitian or enroll in a behavioral-based program — a program that can help you change the behaviors that can interfere with weight loss, such as eating when you’re stressed or bored.

If you’re ready for weight loss but fear you’ll become discouraged quickly, think toward the future. As you become more physically active and make dietary changes, you’ll feel better and have more energy. And rather than thinking of weight loss as a short-term drudgery, view it as an enjoyable lifestyle change that persists indefinitely.

A to Z

From Women’s Health magazine:

The ABC’s of Slim
Ready to ditch some pounds? Start with the right vocabulary
Amy Paturel

A is for Alcohol
You booze, you lose: A daily serving of hooch may be better for keeping off
weight than abstaining. Alcohol may increase leptin, a hormone that curbs
your appetite for sweets. To get the perks with minimal calories, order a
glass of sauvignon blanc (119 calories per 5 ounces).

B is for Buddies
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine compared solo
dieters to teams of dieters. After 10 months, the latter were likelier to
have maintained their loss (66 percent versus 24 percent). Find a bud 24/7
at weightlossbuddy.com.

C is for Cortisol
Your adrenal glands secrete this stress hormone to help you handle threats,
but too much can be bad news. Last year, researchers at the University of
Leeds in the U.K. linked high levels of cortisol to increased snacking on
junk food. Spend the cash you’d pay for a big dinner on a stress-reducing
massage.

D is for Density
A yearlong study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
found women eating water-rich foods low in calories but high in nutrients
(like veggies) as part of a low-fat diet lost more weight than those who
only cut back on fat. They were less hungry than the low-fat-only bunch,
too, most likely because they ate 25 percent more food by weight. Go for
grub with an energy density (calories per serving ÷ weight in grams of
serving) of 2 or less. Or snag ideas from Barbara Rolls’ The Volumetrics
Eating Plan, which lists the energy densities of dozens of foods.

E is for Estimation
Developing an eye for appropriate serving sizes can make or break your diet.
Commit these serving-size visuals to memory:
3 oz lean meat = a standard deck of 52 cards
1/2 cup of fruit, vegetables, or grains = half a baseball
1.5 oz cheese = 3 dominoes

F is for Fructose
A study published last year in the journal Hepatology found that feeding
fructose-laced water to rats increased their risk of obesity. Ditch the
artificially sweetened juices and sodas and get your fructose from fruit–a
form that researchers say could be kinder to your waistline.

G is for Grapefruit
Kick off every meal with half a ruby red or 8 ounces of grapefruit
juice–you could speed up your weight loss. Subjects of a 2006 study in the
Journal of Medicinal Food who ate half a grapefruit before each meal lost
more weight after 12 weeks than those who didn’t (3.5 pounds versus less
than a pound).

H is for Hydration
Studies have shown that drinking water can slightly increase your caloric
burn rate. The researchers behind one such study at Franz-Volhard Clinical
Research Center in Berlin estimate that sipping six extra 8-ounce glasses a
day can burn 17,400 more calories (about 5 pounds of fat) per year.

I is for Insulin
The amount of this sugar-regulating hormone you secrete may dictate the diet
you should follow. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical
Association found that high insulin secretors dropped about 13 pounds on a
low-carb diet but only about 3 on a low-fat/higher-carb diet. Look in the
mirror: If you store fat in your belly (have an “apple” body shape), you’re
more likely to secrete excess insulin and benefit from fewer carbs.

J is for Journal
If you write down everything you eat, research has shown, you can cut your
intake by 500 to 1,000 calories a day. And you’ll keep the weight off: Food
journaling is one of the successful behaviors used by people in the National
Weight Control Registry, a list of dieters who have maintained a loss of 30
pounds or more for at least one year.

K is for Ketosis
The point at which your body runs low on carbs and starts burning fat stores
for fuel, ketosis can jump-start a diet or bust a plateau. Studies show that
dieters who restrict carbs typically lose more weight during the first 3 to
6 months, but after about a year their results are comparable to those who
go low-fat. So after dropping those initial pounds, it’s okay to have
whole-grain pasta and bread again–in moderation.

L is for Leptin
Fat cells secrete this hormone to tell your brain you’re full. But
researchers have found that fasts and extremely calorie-restrictive diets
can lower leptin levels, prompting you to eat more. To keep this hormone in
balance, strive for a slow, steady weight loss–no more than 1 to 2 pounds
per week.

M is for Milk
You might get better results from your workout if you imbibe moo juice. A
study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that downing 2
cups of skim milk after intense weight-lifting workouts built more muscle
and burned twice as much fat as drinking carbohydrate beverages (such as a
sports drink). But go with real cow’s milk–in the study, drinks made from
soy had no effect.

N is for Numbers
Nobody enjoys weigh-ins, but research shows that people who hop on the scale
once a day are more likely to lose and to maintain their loss. Make a
standing appointment for yourself–just don’t obsess over the number you
see.

O is for Omelet
Eggs are an ideal protein source, says Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S., author
of The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth. Protein helps build muscle, which will
fry more calories per pound than fat. Bonus: You’ll burn about 25 percent of
the eggs’ calories just by digesting them (protein metabolism uses more
energy than that of fat and carbs). A two-egg omelet takes you a quarter of
the way to your protein RDA.

P is for Peanuts
Subjects in a study at Purdue University received about 500 calories’ worth
of peanuts a day to eat at their discretion. After 8 weeks, they had gained
an average of about 2 pounds–much less than the 8 pounds researchers had
predicted. Probable cause: The high-protein and high-fiber nuts filled them
up. And after 19 weeks, they also had boosted their resting metabolic rates
by 11 percent, possibly due to the fatty acids in the nuts. Take the edge
off your appetite by snacking on a handful (a quarter-cup) per day.

Q is for Quinoa
Quinoa (keen-wa) has more hunger-taming protein and fiber and less carbs
than most other whole grains. Swap it for white rice and other refined
grains.

R is for Replacements
Researchers at the University of Kansas found that dieters who drank liquid
meal replacements lost just as much weight over 52 weeks as those who used
the weight-loss drug Orlistat with regular meals. Who needs pills?

S is for Stress
Scientists at Georgetown University fed two groups of mice a diet of
high-fat, high-sugar feed and measured how much weight they gained. Stressed
mice (you don’t want to know how they pushed them over the edge) gained more
than twice as much weight as the group with the same diet but no stress. The
reason? Researchers believe that stress causes the release of a molecule
that helps increase the size and number of fat cells. The next time you’re
feeling the strain, do yoga (see Y) instead of dessert.

T is for Tea
The fat-busting benefits of green tea boil down to disease-fighting
compounds called catechins. One study of 240 Japanese men and women found
that when subjects drank green tea containing 583 milligrams of catechins
per 12-ounce cup, they dropped more weight–and inches–than those who
ingested tea containing only 96 milligrams. Max your results by steeping
your bag of green tea as long as possible. The darker the hue of your brew
(and the more bitter it is), the more catechin-rich the cup.

U is for User-Friendly
A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association assigned
160 overweight and obese volunteers to one of four popular diets for 6
months. They found that the strongest predictor of weight loss wasn’t the
type of diet but compliance with the selected plan. The takeaway: Find a
plan you can live with so you’ll stick to it (e.g., if you need help
controlling portions, try WeightWatchers’ Core Plan).

V is for Vinegar
A study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association found
that swallowing 60 grams (about 4 tablespoons) of an apple cider vinegar
mixture with a high-glycemic-index meal caused test subjects to eat 200 to
275 fewer calories over the rest of the day. If you can’t stomach the stuff
straight, try mixing it into a low-fat dressing.

W is for Weights
If you’ve put off pumping iron, get to it. According to experts, you burn
calories faster after a strength-training session than you would after a
cardio session. And researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham
found that lifting weights three times a week for 25 weeks caused women to
lose an average of 4 pounds of body fat.

X is for Xenical
This prescription fat blocker made news last year when the FDA green lighted
its over-the-counter version, Alli. But both drugs come with an unfortunate
side effect: loose stools. We say pass on the gas and slim down the
old-fashioned way.

Y is for Yoga
A study at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle found that
normal-weight women who practiced yoga for four or more years gained three
pounds less over 10 years than those who didn’t. Grab a mat and get going.

Z is for Z’s
When you skimp on sleep, your brain thinks you’re low on fuel and sends a
message to your stomach to start growling. A study published in the American
Journal of Epidemiology found that among 68,183 women, those who slept for 5
hours or less were an average of 5 pounds heavier than women who snoozed for
7 hours. Want to stay slim? Go to bed.

Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto

Researchers at MIT have created a robot weight-loss coach.

I’m not sure even a robot could have gotten me out of bed and to the gym these past few days. I’ve just been feeling wretched – no energy, dizzy, headachy – and yet none of your traditional sneezy, coughy, pukey flu symptoms. Just general malaise.

Hey, if this thing can cook low-fat, low-calorie meals, I might be in the market…

That’s a relief

The horrid, cold weather and lack of sunshine has a way of sucking the soul out of me. Plus, I think I’m developing a cold, to boot. Haven’t much felt like going to the gym since last Thursday, when I did an anemic 30-minute workout mid-workday. But good news is on the horizon. According to scientists, my blues should lift any day now.

The mid-winter blues, or January blahs, are well documented. But according to a Welsh researcher, Jan. 21 is the day in 2008 when most people should have hit rock bottom in their emotional plunge.

Happy days are here again, I can just tell.
Link

The games people play

Not sure how I feel about this guy, although he’s certainly earnest enough. I think part of what sabotages my own efforts to slim down is a latent cynicism – I’m not sure if I really believe I can do it. I’ve had small successes in the past – about a year and a half ago, I lost 25 pounds (then gained it all back again). I feel like I have the smarts to accomplish this, just not sure about the whole “willpower” thing – the notion of willpower itself seems ludicrous. I’m fighting biology here, by all accounts. How does one battle biology?

Poker nights are going to be a challenge. Last evening, I set myself up well, making a delicious bowl of squash, lentil and chickpea soup before the kids came by to play. I prepared a veggie plate for snacks, thank you very much, and had Diet Pepsi in the fridge (conveniently forgetting to buy beer). But in walks Friend 1, with a bag of Smart Food (which, despite the clever name, is not smart, nutritionally speaking) and Doritos (evil incarnate). Friend 2 had something called “Skinny Corn Chips” which looked like the packing peanuts you use when you move and didn’t taste much better. Friend 3 brought Gummi Bears. I am powerless against Gummi Bears.

With so much food on the table, I found it difficult to avoid nearly constant grazing. I’m definitely one of those “see it, eat it” people. So, strategy for next time: Make sure the food (especially the bad stuff) is at the other end of the table.

Choices

It is about choices, you know. Yesterday, I chose to lay in bed rather than go to the gym. I told myself that I deserved a day off, that I can’t exercise every day, muscles need time to regenerate yada yada yada. Then, a meeting was scheduled for 9.30 a.m. this morning, curtailing my exercise time today as well. I guess the lesson is to take the opportunities as they arise.

Anyway, did 30 minutes of hard cardio today (the legs are still throbbing). The one thing I love about exercise is that it doesn’t take weeks (or months) to feel the results. Almost immediately I feel more energetic and am getting better sleep. If only the diet thing were as easy.