The elections are over and we now have the holidays to focus on. Over the next couple months most of us will celebrate holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah and New Years. On New Years Eve we so often find ourselves making that annual resolution to eat healthy and go on a diet to shed those pounds. But is there a better way? Can we still enjoy the holidays and not have to worry about packing on the weight?

Even if we are on a diet we need not give up the joy of getting together with family and friends for those holiday celebrations of good cheer. Sure we may be tempted with an abundance of food and drink. Driven mad by the site of those delicious desserts of pies and cookies. Pushed over the cliff as we control our temptations to enjoy the hot chocolate and spiced cider. And naturally we must enjoy that prime rib, ham and turkey along with all of the fixings. And to top this off as we shop for the perfect gifts we will be faced with the challenge of avoiding fast food.

A good start is for us to enjoy that holiday food while not eating in excess. Some of you might be thinking, “But Terry that will be easy for you since you have had gastric bypass surgery!” Well folks I hate to tell you but even those of us that have a smaller pouch due to weight loss surgery can still over eat. For all of us regardless of the method we have chose to lose weight, portion control has to be at the top of our list. While you need to be careful you need not starve yourself. Spread out those delicious holiday dishes over time while taking small portions. So often as little of a tablespoon of a yummy looking food will satisfy our craving so take a small amount to start with instead of loading your plate. Spread out the pleasure, eating slowly and enjoying every morsel. Enjoy the desserts while again thinking portion control and choosing wisely.

Now is not the time to forgo those 6 – 8 servings of daily water. Especially during parties when others may be drinking fancy drinks it can be difficult to stick with water. What helps me is to drink from a glass like others are using for their calorie-laden beverages. If I plan on drinking bottled water this is one time that I might splurge and purchase that designer labeled water. The upside of drinking water is you will find that you will be less hungry and not eating as often. Plus the water will help to flush excess waste from some of those fatty meals causing less bloating.

With all that is happening during the holiday time it is easy to overlook exercise. Take every chance you get to work in some extra walking. Can you think of a better excuse to go to the mall and shop? With the crispy cool weather a short evening walk is still invigorating and will help us to keep down those extra pounds and keep up our holiday spirit.
If you eat too much do not allow it to get you down. Instead look at the next day as a new day as you pick back up and get back into a healthy life style. By using a bit of common sense you will not gain a lot of weight during the holiday season. You may even surprise yourself finding that you have lost weight and have proven that you can maintain a healthy life style.

Happy, Healthy Holidays

Terry

This can be depressing for most people because the results confirm what they have been avoiding: they’re overweight, unfit, and at high risk of heart disease!

But these people a looking at it all wrong. Don’t get depressed, get focused!

This could be one of the biggest turning points in your life. You can get fitter, you can rid yourself of fat, and you can reduce your risk of heart disease. And it doesn’t take much work.

Just commitment!

Ok. Let’s get into the Fitness Assessment. You will need a pen and some paper to write down your measurements, and a cloth measuring tape (like the ones used for sewing). Remember, you should use these results to measure yourself against every 6-8 weeks.

Process:

• Take shoes and socks off.

• Stand against wall with feet together.

• Pull shoulders back and look straight ahead.

• Place a book on top of your head (make sure that it touches the wall and is level).

• Measure from bottom of book to floor.

Weight

This is the one everyone hates. Too much emphasis is placed on weight and it isn’t an accurate measure of how much excess fat you carry. You can burn 10kg of fat but the scales only show you as 5kg lighter. It happens all the time. When you haven’t exercised much and you start a regular program, it can be quite easy to put on a bit of muscle. So remember, your weight is only a measure of gravity (and gravity sucks!).

You should only weigh yourself every couple of weeks. You can measure your progress more accurately with the measuring tape.

Process:

• Take shoes and socks off.

• Stand on the scales with feet evenly spaced and weight evenly distributed over both feet.

Resting Heart Rate

This is the number of times that your heart beats, per minute, when totally rested.
It’s best to measure this when you first wake up.

Process:

• Sit on a chair and use the first two fingers on your left hand to feel for your pulse on your right wrist. Your palm should be turned up, and you will feel it on the right side of the wrist.

• Count how many beats you have in 60 seconds.

If your heart is healthy, it will be below 80 beats per minute. As you get fitter, your resting heart rate drops, which means that your heart doesn’t have to work as hard. Your goal should be to reach 50-60 beats.

Girth Measurements

Measure your waist, stomach, and hips. Keep the tape measure firm. This is what you will measure your improvements against.

The measuring points can be found at these locations:

Waist: This is the smallest place between your hips and your chest

Stomach: In line with your navel.

Hips: This is the biggest measurement at the pelvis.

Body Mass Index (BMI)

Body Mass Index basically measures your level of fatness (I know, I just made that word up!).

It’s calculated using the formula: BMI = ( Weight in Kilograms / ( Height in Meters ) x ( Height in Meters ) ).
So if your height is 1.73 meters (173cm) and your weight is 90 kilograms, you would start by multiplying 1.73 * 1.73. This equals 2.99. Next you would divide that number into your weight (90).

Therefore, the formula would look like: 90 divided by 2.99 = 30.1!

If you don’t use the metric system, use this formula: BMI = ( Weight in Pounds / ( Height in inches ) x ( Height in inches ) ) x 703

Although a small amount of excess body fat (26-27) is not likely to be very harmful to the health of most people, having a BMI above 30 (obese) significantly increases the risks of a wide range of diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, stroke, osteoarthritis, and gall bladder disease. This is especially true for people who have excess fat in the abdominal area.

Waist-to-Hip Ratio

This measures your risk of heart attack. It does this by assessing body fat distribution. The closer the score is to 1.00, the higher the risk of heart disease. A good score is

Today at the doctors office I proudly stepped on the scales anxiously awaiting the result. The scales read a whopping loss of 0.7 pounds (about the same as a glass of water). My initial feeling was that of frustration even though I have been on enough diets to understand that weight loss can be deceiving.

Perhaps I am too focused on pounds though I know that a pound is not the only measure of weight loss. During the past few days I have noticed that my shirts and favorite jeans fit looser; my muscles are becoming firmer; the skin on my upper arms is becoming looser and I have started to get back a small chin that is defined. Best of all my energy is on the rise. Muscle is denser than fat and I realize that the loss of pounds will follow.