What I Learned on My Vacation

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Oct 212009
 

Well Casper is back with an eye opening look at the American way life – from someone who is American, but no loner calls the US home:

Well after a much needed vacation (been three years already) I have had some thoughts. My wife finally convinced me to go “home” whatever that is. I was opting for taking a trip to Thailand or India or Dublin or Greece or Argentina or Cape Town or some other great place I have not yet seen… but the winning argument was that my folks have never seen the baby and hadn’t seen the oldest since she was a baby.

So while I was back home I could not believe how overweight people are. Consistently I was counting 8 out of 10 people were over weight, 2 of which were grossly obese. My wife didn’t even believe my decleration until I said check it out for yourself. then she really started to look and was like ” Wow your right ”


I understand that typically asian people tend to be ectomorphs but this isn’t always the case just look at sumo wrestlers and the people who frequent McDonalds (not kidding… if you want to see a fat Japanese person go to McD’s) The one difference I have to say though is that the diet we eat here in Japan is drastically different. Lots of veggies, lots of raw fish, a little beef, a little chicken, a little tofu and a small bowl of rice with every meal. The food here has not been mass produced by agribusinesses using NPK and GMO. While “Certified Organic” is not as big of a deal here, a lot of the food here is organic anyways, there just isn’t a great need to get certified.

Now for the hard truth. I kinda did crude experiment. I am a pretty lean person, after a fight Iwill take a week or two off of training. Not totally off but I give my body some time to recoup. So I will put on two or three pounds. Not really a big deal. So while home on vacation I pretty much said I am just gonna relax. I am not gonna hesitate on moms good ole apple pie, baklava, brownies, and pecan pie. Or my sisters cheesecake ( she also makes a mean bowl of mashed potatoes), or my dads grillin two full cows. I decided I am gonna actually have a real vacation and just let the discipline slide. I’m not going to mention the Mead and Beer my family makes.

The hard truth is that American food has caused me to gain 17 lbs in 6 WEEKS!!!!!!!

Now this doesn’t matter to me because already back into training for the last week I have lost 5 lbs. Now that jet lag is over I can actually train unhindered. The fact is the American way of life will KILL you. I can’t see it any other way. Pay attention to what your putting into your body. You can do it!

 Posted by casper at 6:58 pm  Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , ,

Top 3 Reasons We Eat Too Much and How to Gain Control

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Oct 012009
 

Cnn.com had an excellent article discussing Why We Eat Too Much an How to Gain Control. The three reasons they gave are all reasons I cna relate too and are the main reasons why I’ve had such a hard time droping the weight this go around:

1. You’re not getting enough sleep

Missing out on your zzz’s not only puts you in a mental fog, it also triggers a constellation of actual metabolic changes that may lead to weight gain. A lack of shut-eye harms your waistline because it affects two important hormones that control appetite and satiety–leptin and ghrelin…According to a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, people who slept only four hours a night for two nights had an 18 percent decrease in leptin (a hormone that signals the brain that the body has had enough to eat) and a 28 percent increase in ghrelin (a hormone that triggers hunger), compared with those who got more res

How to get control:

When we’re exhausted, we hunger for just about everything in sight, especially if it’s sugary or high in carbs. That may be because these foods give us both an energy boost and comfort (since lack of sleep is a stressor), Knutson says. To quell the urge for fattening foods and still get the energy kick you need, reach for a combination of complex carbs and protein.

2.  You’re sabotaged by stress

Constant stress causes your body to pump out high doses of hormones, like cortisol, that over time can boost your appetite and lead you to overeat. “Cortisol and insulin shift our preferences toward comfort foods–high-fat, high-sugar, or high-salt foods,” says Elissa Epel, Ph.D.


How to get control:

When we’re exhausted, we hunger for just about everything in sight, especially if it’s sugary or high in carbs. That may be because these foods give us both an energy boost and comfort (since lack of sleep is a stressor), Knutson says. To quell the urge for fattening foods and still get the energy kick you need, reach for a combination of complex carbs and protein.

3. You’ve got fatty foods (literally) on the brain

We’re hardwired to hunger for fatty, sugary, salty foods because, back when our ancestors were foraging for every meal, palatable eats meant extra energy and a leg-up on survival, says Dr. David A. Kessler, former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and author of “The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite.”

How to get control:

Avoid eating your favorite treat if you’re in a particular mood, if it’s a certain time of day, or if you’re in a specific place; this will prevent you from creating a triggering link between those feelings or locations and that treat, Kessler says. And since the smell and sight of fatty, sugary foods is pure temptation, try to keep yourself from passing the bakery or ice cream shop you can’t resist.

Read the rest of the article. I can definitely relate to the first two reasons. The lack of sleep combined with high levels of stress had me craving  every fatty, salty, sweet thing I could get my hand on. I learned that eating protein helped quell my hunger and drinking lots of water helped kill the cravings for salty/sweet things. It’s been helping, especially as I get my stress levels down an have ben geting more sleep.

Can you relate to this article?

What are your strategies for dealing with sleep and stressed induced hunger?

 Posted by t.s. johnson at 7:45 pm  Tagged with: , , , , ,

Bad Habits That Pile On the Fat

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Aug 092009
 

Business Day has a good article about all of the bad habits people have that are keeping them fat:

The experts have identified seven common diet mistakes most people make and how to fix them.

1. Underestimating how much you’ve eaten

Studies show overweight people tend to underestimate significantly how much they eat, and the bigger their portions, the more their calorie calculations go off track. One recent investigation by Dr Brian Wansink, author of Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think (Bantam Dell), found that people who supersize fast-food meals actually underestimate the calorie content of their burger and fries by as much as half.

2. Discounting the effects of peer pressure

Findings from the Framingham Heart Study reveal that when one person in a family or network of friends gains weight, others tend to gain weight too, perhaps because it becomes more socially acceptable to be chubby.


3. Distracting yourself from eating

Wansink’s studies show that environmental distractions, such as watching television, talking on the phone, reading while eating and eating with others, can be a big disconnect. In one study, he learned that even stale popcorn can lead people to overeat at the movies, not because they’re hungry, but simply because the bucket is there. This occurs as much due to the fact that you’re not paying attention to what you eat, as to a habit you’ve developed of multitasking while munching, he says.

4. Eating too many different foods

The more choices, the more you tend to eat — just think of all the temptations at a food buffet and the overwhelming desire you have to sample it all.

5. Not weighing yourself enough

“We have exhaustive evidence that people who weigh themselves daily lose more weight than those who don’t,” says Dr George Blackburn, associate professor of surgery and nutrition at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, and author of Break Through Your Set Point: How to Finally Lose the Weight You Want and Keep It Off (Collins). People who watch their weight are more likely to closely monitor their eating and exercise behaviours and regain control of their diets quickly if they gain weight.

Keep readng the rest of the article. There’s some great information and tips there.

Weighting yourself daily is something I do and something I’ve recommended before on this blog as a way to maintain your weight. People have a tendency to ignore the tightness of their jeans, but if you see the weight go up on the scale a couple of pounds you’re more likely to adjust your diet or workout to lose the weight as opposed to waking up 20 pounds heavier trying to figure out how you got there and how you’re going to drop the pounds…again.

Now I know I’ve been guilty of all of the above habits. However, as far as peer pressure I am usually the biggest in my group of friends, so you’d think that being around the skinny crew would make me slimmer – yeah not so much – lol. Although I will say that I’m from a big city (by big I mean the average person is chunky) and that makes me the “skinny” girl here, so it’s easier to be heavier and not stress about it as much.

So, which of these bad habits is keeping you fat?

How do you work your way around them?

If these aren’t your bad habits what are the habits you have that’s preventing you from losing wight?

 Posted by t.s. johnson at 9:22 am  Tagged with: , , , ,

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