The holidays are winding down. The resolutions have been made. But this is NOT the day to go on a hard core diet. You’ll fail and give up entirely by mid week. Sure you rip of the Band Aid and dive into the cold pool, but you need to make a lifestyle change or one year from today you’ll be reading this and starting over again. (Like you have before.) I’m not giving you justification to eat as much of whatever you want. Today you start reducing your food intake and purging your house of bad stuff.
Here’s today’s plan: Use up the snacks, cookies, candy and high calorie foods. If you have guests around, send them home with a goodie bag. If you have unopened snack foods, return them to the store. (Yes they take returns too.) Don’t binge on the stuff! Just don’t replenish the pantry.
Oh… GET OFF YOUR BUTT AND TAKE A WALK!
TODAY: WEIGH YOURSELF AND MEASURE YOUR WAIST. IT WILL GIVE YOU A BENCHMARK STARTING POINT FOR THE YEAR TO COME.
We’ve been celebrating Half Week and you have probably realized by now that this has been an exercise in the easy way to reduce calories. Fix your meals the way you always have, order the meals you always have, eat what you want, just take the portions you are used to and cut them in half. Set them aside, share them, freeze them for another meal do anything you want with them, just DON’T EAT THAT OTHER HALF. In the end it will all add up to less you.
TODAY: WALK DOUBLE YOUR USUAL DISTANCE.
A calorie reduction diet doesn’t involve buying anything special. Replace those bags of snacks with more fruits and vegetables and you have spent the same amount for better nutrition.
Then invest. Invest time for your walking exercise. Just a half hour a day is all it takes.
The big return will be a smaller you and significant savings in medical bills.
Can you afford to diet? Can you afford not to?
TODAY: BANK ON BETTER HEALTH.
Unfortunately it’s the waistline that’s growing. We were introduced to it when we were kids. The club is so prevalent in American society that it has resulted in 67% of us eating everything on our plate, no matter how much is on it! That figure came from the American Institute fo Cancer Research. Now combine that with the way portions have grown in the US and you begin to understand why we have gained weight. Burgers are bigger, drinks are bigger than we can gulp, value meals are valued for quantity and “all you can eat” is much more than we should.
The habit that can cut the most calories faster and let you literally lose weight by doing nothing is to simply eat single servings. Cut back to just single servings. Eat favorite foods, just eat less of them instead of the huge amount of calories you decided was “normal”.
Go ahead and maintain your life membership in The Clean Plate Club… just use a smaller plate.
TODAY: EAT ONLY SINGLE SERVINGS. DON’T FORGET TO WALK.
A study by the US Department of Agriculture found that people who spend more time planning, shopping for and preparing food are less likely to be over or under weight. They think it has something to do with being around the food so much. Of course those little tastes may also help you eat less too. Though I’ve seen my share of fat cooks. So don’t overdo the samples, unless you also reduce your portions when the meal is done.
TODAY: GET OUT AND WALK. NO FOOLING!
Jelly can be a source of hidden calories. Sure, you think it’s just a little dollop of goodness. It’s made from fruit, so how bad can it be? Well… most jelly os almost pure sugar and a tablespoon is a whopping 50 calories. But I found a great jelly that is actually low cal and sweet and even has fiber! At just 10 calories per tablespoon Polaner Sugar Free has now also added 3 grams of fiber to that. So if you’re following Atkins you actually get back 3 grams of carbs. So that can offset some of the carbs from a slice of whole grain toast.
I also like to skip the toast and just use a spoonful as a condiment with sausage, or ham and eggs. The berry ones are great with meats and I even skip the meat entirely and fry a couple of eggs hard and top them with some orange marmalade. I know… it’s odd, but it has a flavor a little like a crepe. So add a jar of the Polaner Sugar Free jelly to your pantry and have a guilt free treat.
TODAY: DO SOME STRETCHING EXERCISES.
Remember the Tim Allen movie “The Santa Clause” when he was gaining all the weight and he went to a business meeting? His boss noticed how it appeared he was “letting himself go”. His advice was one hilarious line that has always stuck with me. “For God’s sake, eat a piece of fruit once in a while.” It’s true. When those carvings hit for something sweet, a piece of fruit instead of a donut, cookies or a candy bar is an excellent choice. Fruit can be a diet saver. It satisfies and levels out your blood sugars to knock out hunger for a longer period and also gives you valuable fiber.
So set out a fruit bowl for yourself instead of cookies and milk and stay on Santa’s “good” list for next Christmas.
TODAY: SHOP FOR SOME FRESH FRUIT
The holidays are winding down. The resolutions have been made. But this is NOT the day to go on a hard core diet. You’ll fail and give up entirely by mid week. Sure you rip of the Band Aid and dive into the cold pool, but you need to make a lifestyle change or one year from today you’ll be reading this and starting over again. (Like you have before.) I’m not giving you justification to eat as much of whatever you want. Today you start reducing your food intake and purging your house of bad stuff.
Daily Nag | Diet Nag | 
January 2, 2019 6:08 am | 
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