While I may be able to eat myself thin I doubt very seriously I can think myself thin. The folk over at Blackdoctor.org seem to disagree however:

Exercise is only half of the equation; what you eat is the other half. Your attitude towards food can either make or break your weight loss regime. Follow these simple rules to slim down.

The Way to Eat

Eat MUFA. Monounsaturated fats (MUFAs for short, pronounced MOO-fahs) come from the healthy oils found in plant foods such as olives, nuts, and avocado. Include a MUFA at every meal. Incorporate a serving of one MUFA-rich food every time you eat.

Have a clear calorie goal. Consume four 400-calorie meals a day. Significant weight loss requires calorie control. For the average woman, 1,600 calories per day is ideal because it’s low enough to create weight loss while maintaining energy and preserving calorie-burning muscle.

Eat often. Have a meal every 4 to 5 hours to help control your blood sugar and hunger and keep your metabolism in high gear.

The Way to Think

Manage stress. This emotion causes a spike in the hunger-stimulating hormone cortisol, sending you straight for the sweets. And when cortisol is high, extra calories are deposited directly as belly fat.

Ask for help. Among people who have permanent weight loss, 70% reported having strong social support, compared with only 38% of those who lost and regained weight. Recruit others to join you (or encourage you), or sign up for an online support group…Keep reading.

The “mangae stress’ tip I can relate too. Not only will you eat yourself fat if you’re reeally stressed, but no matter how much exercising or eating right you’re doing the weight willnot come off.

Talk about frustrating.

As far as asking for help, studies have shown that black women in particular lose weight in groups, but not so well solo, so if you have some freinds you can join up with so so. Hell, make a game/competition of it. Loser has to by everyone dinner…or something.

Keeping up the day to day of working out can be tough. Motivation is key, but keeping up that motivation, particularly if you don’t like working out, can be just as difficult as saying no to that extra piece of cake. Well The Health and Fitness Guide offers 12 Keys to Staying Motivated:

# 1. Vary your routine every so often to prevent boredom and provide enhanced benefits by working different muscle fibers within the same broad muscle groups. Try different exercises; try doing more reps and lighter weights one day; more weight and less reps another day, etc.
#2. A little bit is much better than nothing and in fact goes a long way. While an hour or so 3 to 4 times a week is great, exercising for 15 to 20 minutes once or twice a week is much better than no exercise.
#3. Work with a trainer when bored or discouraged– even if it is just for a few sessions – to get you back on the right track, learn some new things and rejuvenate your workout.
#4. View work-out time as “your time” to escape from the demands placed on you from others and take care of yourself. Get in a “zone” by focusing on the music you’re listening to, the results you will achieve or how good you will feel after your workout.
#5. Write down your goals – You are more likely to remain committed to them. Also, keep a diary of your workouts and your progress – what gets recorded and measured gets improved.
#6. Workout with a friend – you will push each other and time will go by faster.

Keep reading for the other six.

What do you think?

Do any of these tips resonate with you?

When do I get to be a Skinny Bitch?

So how do you stay motivated when you’re not seeing any results?

What’s going to keep you going to the gym or doing that workout video or waking up early to run everyday?

I ask the question because that’s the situation I find myself in right now. My weight is fluctuating between 165lbs – 169lbs which is down from my high of 172lbs, but nowhere near the 140lbs I’m trying to get back too.

It’s beyond frustrating.

I know that my body is prone to weight gain and not so much weight loss. I also know that I gain muscle easily as well so that’s a bit of consolation. So except for the occassional experience with back fat (that’s gone now by the way) I’m not saggy or flabby and I still have a small waist and relatively flat stomach.

But still..

I’m tired of being fat.

And all the running and walking and jumping doesn’t seem to be doing the trick.

Sigh.

It can be tough.

Ultimately I don’t have any major words of wisdom, but to keep going to the gym, doing those videos and waking up and running. I think you have to be very methodical about it. Tracking your weight, being congzinant of what you eat and making the necessary changes if what you’re currently doing isn’t working. Basically you just keep pluggin away because the alternative isn’t an option.

Hey All!

Well, I am happy to report that as of my weigh in tonite, I have lost a total of – 16 POUNDS!! Happy Dance! So far for this month, I have lost a total of seven pounds. I would like to take off another three pounds before the end of the month. According to my online trainer Grant, (yep the same one!) 10 lbs a month for the first few months is a do – able month. Now, he didn’t say that it would be easy – apparently it involves a lot of sweating – but still an attainable goal. Next week, I start in with the weights! Oh Joy!

Because Mr. Grant has helped me in my greatest hour of need, and also cuz I am lazy and can’t think of anything funny tonite, I am going pass along some information that he gave me about weight training! Enjoy!

When do I add weights and how much? I’m glad you asked that question! Use the following guidelines: when you are able to do the scheduled number of sets and reps in a given exercise, increase the weight by the smallest increment possible, e.g., on the bench press if you can do all 3×15 with the weight of the bar only, add a 2.5lb weight to each side and use that until you can again do 3×15, then take the 2.5lb weights off and use two 5lb weights and start the whole process over again, and on and on. You will probably reach a point that you think you will never get beyond, but keep at it and you WILL eventually get to the next level.

Machines are a little more difficult, because the weight increments are usually in 10-20lb increases. In this case, again increase by the smallest amount of weight you can but you will probably have to reduce the number of reps you do because of the large increase in weight, e.g., on the wide grip pulldown, the lowest weight is probably 20 lbs and the next jump would be 40lbs-that’s a pretty big step so instead of doing 3×15-or 12 or whatever was specified, do 3×12, if that is still too much try 3×10 until you reach a spot where you can do at least two full sets and have to struggle to finish the last 2-3 reps of the last set. Make sense? By going in small increments and slowly you are less likely to injure yourself or to overtrain and get mentally and physically burned out.

The mental part of lifting is very important, it’s not just about beating your way through the next weight plateau, mentally push yourself along the lines that focus on the muscle that you are using to lift as well as the lift itself. For instance, when you are doing tricep kickbacks really concentrate on the contraction of the muscle all the way through the range of motion and also watching yourself in the mirror to make sure that you are moving the weight in a steady and controlled method-no swinging the weights and basically just flailing away-I’m sure you’ve seen some people doing that from time to time in your gym. Another thing, do not worry about how awkward you may feel when you first start doing and exercise or how much weight you are doing compared to what others may be doing-you have your own schedule and your own pace, concentrate on that-focus, focus, focus.

LISTEN TO YOUR BODY, my guess is that you will be pretty sore in the beginning-maybe even a little sore at me too, HAHA-that is to be expected and with time it will become less and less intense (but it ain’t never gonna go away, so get over it!!). Having said that however, as I said in my email, if you feel pain that is not muscle related stop the exercise immediately -ankles, knees, hips, elbows, necks, etc. Remember death is nature’s way of telling you to slow down when you don’t listen. And we don’t want that now do we?

Thanks Grant! Til next time, you can do it!!

Hey All!

Nona does the tango and plays tennis. TS has dance fever. Ms. Runchilde takes karate lessons. And your’s truly is a hiking fanatic.

What do these women have in common? Besides the fact that they are four strong beautiful Black women that could snap mere mortals in two like a dry twig (don’t know about you, but if I ever meet Dia / Runchilde I’m gonna be reeeeeeally nice)?

We all have found a way to combine fun and fitness into a formula for success. Exercise does not have to be a chore. In fact, the more you dislike it, the more excuses you make for not exercising, and poof! it’s back to the cheeto’s and tv.

But find something that you love and cannot wait to do, like dance or tennis, push a little harder so you get your cardio in, and WALA! There is your no nonsense, gee was that exercise workout routine. Try it! YOU CAN DO IT!!

I would like to wish all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving!! Course, mine can’t be too happy, cuz I weigh in on the Tuesday after! What genius thought of that one? So far, I have dropped 3 more pounds for a total of 22 lbs since the start. Would like to get in the 2 – teens for weigh in – that was my goal. Sooo, eww I’m gonna be like those folks that you see in the afternoon on Thanksgiving, running or walking their dinner off! Guess I’m hooked!

Sorry to be so short – been battling the flu bug! But I got well just in time to cook dinner for the pack of ingrates that are passing themselves off as family members. Think I will cough all over the turkey……

Til next time!

It’s been hot. Really HOT. One day it was almost 5:30 in the evening and it was 98 degrees outside. 98 DEGREES! Sheesh. Last Friday was 100 degrees, without the heat index. SMH.

Anywho this heat is wrecking havoc on my workout. I usually get up in the mornings and go for a jog. But because I’m a bit of an insomniac and because it gets hotter much faster in the mornings, I haven’t been able to run in the mornings.

Also, my school’s gym is closed for the rest of the summer until school starts up again at the end of the month. But hey, even if it was open I wouldn’t make it there because it’s too hot to walk (I don’t drive) there. I guess I could take the bus. But who wants to wait on the bus?

So now I try to jog or wog as I like to call it (walking + jogging = wogging) in the evenings around seven. However, because I haven’t been able to sleep lately I’m usually knocked out taking a late nap only to wake back up to go to bed late to start the cycle all over again. Sigh.

Thank goodness I work from home ’cause I don’t know what I’d do. But I am a little paranoid that I’m putting back on the weight that I lost. Sigh. I’ll be glad when school starts and the gym is back open and I can get back on my regular exercise schedule.

Oh and here’s praying for an early cold snap.

Today is new day. So what are you waiting for?