Just so you don’t think that I nag you to walk because I think it’s a good idea. The nags all have factual basis. I may not be a doctor, but I’ve read what they recommend. And the big guy, the Surgeon General, recommends “30 minutes or more of moderate intensity physical activity on five or more days per week to improve your health and fitness.” It can be accumulated walking of 30 minutes, meaning it can be done in shorter lengths throughout the day. 10 or 15 minutes at a time during different parts of the day is fine. The ‘moderate intensity’ means you feel the exercise and get warm and slightly out of breath when you do it.
So get up and walk or we’ll have to stick a big red surgeon general warning on the side of your couch, because it’s hazardous to your health!
TODAY: GET OUT THERE AND WALK!
I ate at one of those “New American Cuisine” restaurants a while ago where the plates are large and the portions are beautiful but small. I’ve also noticed that those places also make a meal an event by drawing out the service over an hour or more. I ate well, though not much and it turned out I was full. It was the perfect demonstration of what you may have heard before. Namely, you won’t feel like you’ve had a satisfying meal until your brain tells you. It turns out that it takes 20 minutes until your stomach sends that signal. So slow down, even take a break mid meal to let the time pass. You’ll find that you will feel full on less. Maybe try eating with someone you like to talk with and share in conversation rather than calories. Your life will be fuller too.
TODAY: SPEND AT LEAST 20 MINUTES EATING YOUR MAIN MEALS.
Did you know that you don’t have to do all of your daily exercise at once? That’s right. It turns out that you get much of the same long term benefit by exercising in 10 minute chunks as doing it in one swoop. It only takes 30 minutes a day to start, and you can do it 10 minutes at a time. Do these 10 minutes like a regular workout with a couple of minutes of warm up stretches, then at least 7 minutes of exercise at a medium or high intensity and minute of slower cool down.
Begin your day with 10 minutes before breakfast. Ten at lunch and the last 10 in the evening. Take a power walk after dinner and take one of the family members with you. It will help get those in your support system involved. They may even want to partner with you during the day. You’ll feel better and even sleep better in just a short time. You may also find you want to add some more time as well.
TODAY: TRY A BRISK WALK IN THREE TEN MINUTE SESSIONS.
Call them garbanzo beans, chic peas, or spanish beans but call them part of your diet. They’s really good for you in a number of ways. They are loaded with protein, fiber and polyunsaturated fatty acids. All those things are good for your diet and heart. A surprising bonus is that they actually lower your total cholesterol and (bad) LDL while raising your HDL (good) levels. Eating about 25 ounces per week for 12 weeks is all you need to make this magic happen. That’s not all though. Insulin levels also improved and participants in the study actually lost weight without diet OR exercise. (Imagine how great you’ll do!)
Toss some whole beans on your salads. Puree them with some seasoning and olive oil to make hummus. Add them to three-bean salad. I like them with shredded cheese and a sweet and sour dressing (Splenda NOT sugar) They’re tasty, inexpensive. and filling.
TODAY: ADD GARBANZOS TO YOUR MENU.
Making the decision to living a healthy lifestyle by reducing your weight is not something to rush by reducing your food intake drastically. It’s not healthy and it’s not something you can sustain for long. It makes you destined to fail and even head back up the yoyo string.
Moderation is our method. Eat less, exercise more is carved in the hieroglyphics of our food pyramid.
TODAY: EAT LESS, EXERCISE MORE.
The burst exercise plan seems to have a greater effect on my bike. That’s when you do short 30 second bursts every few minutes while you’re walking, riding a bike, using a stepper… whatever you’re doing to exert yourself. Studies have shown that it increases the overall effectiveness of your exercise and gives you more residual calorie burning. It’s sort of exercise kinetic energy. That is, you get the locomotive going faster and it takes longer for it to stop.
Of course you will notice it because you will have the satisfying pore cleansing sweat for a bit longer when you’re done.
TODAY: DO SOME BURSTS WHILE YOU EXERCISE. (WALK, RIDE OR WHATEVER)
Fire up the grill today as part of the great American tradition and celebrate the 4th with a reasonable number of calories. Grill some nice chicken but keep the barbecue sauce to a minimum. The sugar is a hidden calorie waster. Use hot sauces instead.
Grill veggies too. All that zucchini that’s now coming out of home gardens is a great side. Corn on the cob is an easy grill item. Trim off the silk and then soak it water before putting it on the grill for about 10 minutes. It gets smokey and steamed in the husk.
Skip the potato salad! Coleslaw or tomato & cucumber salad is really great with an easy low cal / low carb dressing of mayo and the juice from no sugar “bread & butter” sweet pickles.
Have fruit as dessert. Strawberries and blueberries will keep the theme. Use Splenda as a sweetener. Since that doesn’t make the usual sugar syrup you’ll need to add some liquid. Water will do, or try a little orange juice.
TODAY: Enjoy the picnic, just do it in moderation or your waistline will explode.
Daily Nag, Exercise | Diet Nag | 
August 9, 2010 6:02 am | 
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