At the start of each new year, millions of people want to loose some body weight. Not an easy task if you consider that obesity and drugs addiction share common brain characteristics. Click here to read the NIDA article written in 2001 with this statement. For most people losing weight is a lifetime fight. Sounds like a cliché but to loose weight consistently, you have to commit to a new lifestyle.
Although I am not obese yet, I have to watch out for the foods and drinks that I select.
In order to make smart eating choices, you need to eat fresh foods. Of course you need to like the food you choose otherwise you can’t keep up with your new eating lifestyle. Dirty drinks like Slim-Fast does not motivate me. It makes me quit after the first zip.
The “tool†that I used to select my food is the USDA National Nutrient Database. This database has lists of foods sorted by nutrients.
Click on the USDA logo below to go to the nutrients list.
So I took the list that sorts food by Energy (Calories) and highlighted foods that I really like and are low in calories. I repeated this process with other lists, like the cholesterol list. Healthy items, that I have highlighted on both lists, are now topping my weekly grocery list. If I didn’t go through the nutrient list, I would have missed several delicious low calorie food items.
Another good site to use is: calorie-count. This site grades foods and provide nutrition facts. I have always been told that I should avoid food items where more than 30% of the total number of calories comes from fat.
This means that reduced fat Jif creamy peanut butter is not a healthy choice. Even when the label on the jar reads: reduced fat. Luckily this site provides me other brands that have healthier peanut butter. Be careful though, less fat does not necessarily mean less calories. Calories are only one component of selecting healthy foods.
Bad food choice: more than 30% of all calories is coming from fat.
Besides selecting healthy foods, I have a hard time to stay motivated to a healthy lifestyle but found a good support solution. On the Internet, there are several weight loss forums that show pictures from people before and after their weight loss. Many people look beautiful after their weight loss. Losing more than 20% of your starting weight makes you physically and mentally a different person. My compliments to those people with a significant weight loss. You are my motivator.
Here are 2 sites/forums that show before and after weight loss pictures. Take a look yourself, pretty awesome transformations you will see on these sites.
| weight-loss.fitness.com |
| Southbeach-diet-plan.com |
Do you have any tips or cool websites that can help people with their weight loss? Please let me know.
Disclaimer: I am not a weight loss expert and can not be held liable for the information in this posting. Please consult with your doctor before starting a weight loss program.
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Omron HJ-112 Digital Premium Pedometer |  |
Tanita BF681W Family Scale Plus Body Fat Monitor with Body Water |  |
CalorieSmart – Handheld Electronic Calorie Counter (Silver) |