Brown Honey’s Diet Tip Corner! - VOLUMN 1; ISSUE 4: "Positive Focus"

Behavior Tip - Positive Focus
Staying positive helps you stay focused on your weight loss program. While you’re dieting try to view the changes you need to make in a positive light. For example, instead of thinking that you have to avoid certain foods, you can focus on selecting foods that will help you lose weight and promote a healthy body.

You can also benefit from keeping track of your accomplishments in a journal. This journal could be filled with short-term goals you have met. You could also write about first time experiences such as when you prepared a low fat meal, when you selected only healthy items at a restaurant, or when you discovered new fruits to eat. Make sure whatever you enter in your journal is a positive thought or event. You want to be able to refer to it whenever you need a little motivation.

Plan rewards for yourself when you reach special goals. This way you have something to look forward to. Instead of focusing on the fact that you may have not met a goal yet, you can focus on how good you’ll feel when you can reward yourself with new shoes, or a relaxing massage. Focus on being positive throughout your weight loss program. It will help you stay motivated and achieve positive weight loss results.

Exercise Tip - More Muscle, Less Fat
Muscle burns fat and calories, so obviously you can benefit from building muscle and/or protecting the muscle you have (from natural loss with age). A researcher at Tufts University found in a study that women who followed a weight loss diet along with doing weight-training exercises lost 44% more fat than women who followed a diet without weight-training.

Any physical activity will help you burn calories and fat. However, weight training will help give your metabolism an extra fat burning boost. You should consult your physician before beginning an exercise routine. You may also want to consult a fitness trainer to learn how to perform exercises properly. Consider weight training to strengthen your muscle and slim your body.

Nutrition Tip - Selecting Sauerkraut
Your weight loss program may allow for sauerkraut as a vegetable choice. Sauerkraut is a nutritious option, however, you should be aware of the sodium content. Sauerkraut is usually available canned. It’s a salted, fermented form of cabbage. Try to select the low sodium varieties. Sauerkraut is fat-free and cholesterol-free. It’s also a good source of iron, fiber and folate, and an excellent source of vitamin C. Sauerkraut also provides vitamin B6, potassium and copper. So as long as you keep track of your sodium intake, this vegetable can fit into a healthy diet. Go ahead and serve up some sauerkraut!

Weight Loss Tip - Holding Back Hunger
You should be able to hold back your hunger until it’s time to refuel your body. Eating balanced meals and snacks throughout the day is one way to control your hunger. Skipping meals will probably cause you to be so hungry by meal times you’ll either slip an extra snack in, or binge at the next meal.

It is also important to try and balance the protein, carbohydrates and fat in your meals. For example, at breakfast you can consume eggs, whole grain toast and margarine. For a snack you may consume fruit, nuts and yogurt. For lunch or dinner meals you can have a portion of lean meat, a side of high fiber veggies, and a good starch choice (i.e. baked potato with skin, brown rice, or corn). This will help keep you full until the next main meal. If you don’t select high fiber foods, consider consuming fiber supplements. Also, don’t forget your water! Water has natural appetite suppressing qualities, which is one reason why fruits and vegetables help you feel full (they consist primarily of water).

In order to hold back your hunger until it’s time to refuel your body, it’s important that you consume a balance of nutritious foods when you do eat. Think of it as filling your body with a premium blend of fuel that will keep your body running at peak energy levels and burning fat efficiently.