But I don’t have time to exercise!

I often hear, “I just don’t have the time to work out!” However, if you stop and look at your day, I’m sure you can find 20 minutes here and there which you can easily add some form of activity to your day.

I know we are all busy. Between getting to and from work, balancing responsibilities and having time for yourself, there's little time left over for workouts.

Escape the lack of time reasoning with three easy steps:

Step One: Schedule Your Workouts: If you treat your exercise time with the same importance as a work meeting then you'd never skip a workout. So mark 3 to 4 dates in your calendar right now and commit to these as if they are important business meetings. But, DON’T start something you know you won’t or can’t commit to. This applies to the dates and times, but also to the activity itself. If you don’t like step aerobics, then DON’T sign up for it! Do an activity you enjoy, this will help you to commit to the plan.

Step Two: Get the Most from Each Minute: You don’t need to spend 2 hours at the Gym for an effective workout. A great workout can take place in under an hour, when done correctly. The idea is to burn more calories each minute. This is done through short, intense bursts of exercise.

To help make every minute count, use the following three tips:

1. Be Unstable: Use your entire body, and target your core, by performing exercises that engage your muscles to stabilize. You can do this with an exercise ball, a balance board or a balance disk.

2. Add Resistance: The more resistance that you incorporate with your routine translates into higher intensity and more calories burned. Some ideas for adding resistance include: carrying dumbbells while doing lunges or putting a weight between your feet while doing leg raises.

3. Use Intervals: Interval training is a tool for creating short and effective workouts. All this means is alternating between different short activities.

For example, if you’d like to focus on your legs and abdominal muscles, you can do the following:

• Lunge while curling dumbbells, 15-20 repetitions

• 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope, or jumping jacks

• Squat while pressing dumbbells overhead, 15-20 repetitions

• 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope, or jumping jacks

• Crunches on an exercise ball, 15-20 repetitions

• 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope, or jumping jacks

• Leg raises off the end of an exercise bench, 15-20 repetitions

Step Three: Get Better Results in Less Time: What if I told you that I have a proven way to deliver twice the fitness results in half the time? It's simple really...

When you attempt to get to your ideal healthy weight on your own, the odds are stacked against you. Sure, you could do it over time – but it's a long and lonely road. A road lined with temptations and insecurities that threaten to undermine your progress.

When you start a program with me, you suddenly have the upper hand on weight loss. You have me in your corner, coaching you every step of the way, keeping you accountable and giving you the daily encouragement you need. And I'll be the one congratulating you when your goal is met.

Call or email today to get started. If you start on our weight loss program before the end of March, and stick to the program for 3 consecutive months you will receive your FOURTH MONTH FREE!

As always, I’d like to end my blog post with a quote which I hope will inspire you to go for it: "Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you're ready or not, to put it into action." Napoleon Hill, 1883-1970, Author

To your health,

Nadia

Your weight loss partner

1-877-405-4471

healthyweightdancingfeet@gmail.com

www.healthyweightdancingfeet.blogspot.com

Let’s shake this weight off once and for all!

This week’s blog post concludes our 5 part blog on the 5 questions YOU need to ask yourselves when it comes to what is standing in your way of a healthy weight. We’ve covered the first 4 questions so far: Why? When? What? and Where?. And today we’ll cover How do we eat? I hope this has helped you to determine your challenges and empowers you to overcome them on your path to a healthy weight!

So, How do you eat? Are you always eating on the run? Is lack of time your reason for rushing through your meal? Are you eating at your desk while working, or in the car, or while walking to work? Although you may not think this makes a difference to your healthy weight, it actually does! Consider preparing your lunch and snacks the night before. Pack yourself a container of cucumbers, celery and radishes, these are all negative calorie vegetables. What I mean by negative calorie is that your body burns more calories to digest these veggies than the caloric intake of them, at the same time they tide your over to your next meal!

To most of us, eating right means eating more fruit and vegetables; whole-grain breads and cereals; leaner cuts of meat; and cutting back on high-sugar, high fat foods that provide empty calories.

But the truth of the matter is that eating right means much more. How you eat is equally as important as what you eat. It means eating mindfully—relying a little more on our intuition and eating with increased awareness. Not just awareness of the foods on our plate, but awareness of the entire eating experience. Eating with increased awareness is especially important for anyone trying to achieve or maintain a healthy weight.

Choosing to eat mindfully means you're giving your full attention to both food and eating. It means you don't eat and watch TV or sit at the computer at the same time. It means you don't eat while you're driving, while you're working, or while you're talking on the phone. People who eat and multitask tend to eat too fast, take in excess calories, miss the subtle signs of fullness, and don't enjoy their food as much. Mindful eating makes it possible for you to fully experience your food so you can actually eat less but feel more satisfied.

Although eating mindfully with increased awareness may be different for every person, try embracing the following strategies:

• Eat when you're hungry, stop when you're comfortable.

• Don't wait until you're starving to eat. If you do, you’ll overeat

• Select foods satisfying for your body and your mind and eat them

in moderation.

• Savor the flavor, appearance, and aroma.

• Slow down, don't chew too fast. Chew your food 30 to 50 times

before swallowing.

• Just eat. Don't do anything else. Don't eat while watching TV,

sitting at the computer or in your car, driving, or while working.

Remember, eating right is not just about mindlessly gobbling up carrots and celery. It’s about giving eating and your body the attention they both deserve! So start practicing mindful eating strategies and you’ll begin to savour your food, find eating more pleasurable and get greater satisfaction from eating smaller quantities of food that, in turn, can help you achieve your healthy weight goals.

I’d like to close with the following quote:

"Only one who devotes himself to a cause with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason mastery demands all of a person."

Albert Einstein

I hope you devote yourselves to achieving your healthy weight goals.

To your health,

Nadia

Your weight loss partner

1-877-405-4471

healthyweightdancingfeet@gmail.com

www.healthyweightdancingfeet.blogspot.com

Fast Food, Restaurant or Home-cooked?

Continuing with the answers to five questions to help you understand the challenges you face in attaining a healthy weight, this week we are addressing the answer to the question “Where?”.

Where do you eat? The obvious concern is for those who are eating at fast food establishments or even restaurants. Don’t get me wrong eating out is okay but you need to keep it to a minimum or really ask what is in the meal being prepared for you. Remember it is more socially acceptable nowadays to request a meal be made for you in a specific way. Don’t be shy to ask for your chicken to be made with cold pressed extra virgin olive oil instead of margarine or butter, for instance.

The problem is that frequent visits to your favourite restaurant can present big challenges to your weight control efforts. But with some pre-planning and pre-thinking, you can change this.

Where You Go - If you decide where to eat on the spur of the moment, you're more likely to run into trouble. Give it some thought ahead of time and choose a place that has a varied menu with lots of options; skip the "all you can eat"-type places.

Before You Go - Look up the restaurant's menu on the Internet. Deciding what you will order before you get there can reduce temptation once you're there. Making reservations reduces waiting time, so you won't be starving when seated.

When You Get Seated - Just say no to the bread basket and the chip bowl - don't even allow them to be placed on the table. The same holds for the dessert and fancy drink menus - return them to your server as well. And remember to order water and start sipping; that will help ward off hunger.

What to Order - Be the first to order so you won't be tempted to change your mind. Order à la carte to keep overall portion sizes down. And don't be afraid to ask for substitutes like a salad instead of fries. Ask for a "half-order," choose an appetizer as your entrée, or share an entrée with your dining partner. Ask for sauces, dressings, and gravies "on the side."

When Your Food Arrives - How you eat is just as important as what you eat. Slow it down and enjoy the experience. Eat the lowest-calorie stuff first (for example, the salad or the steamed vegetables). After you've eaten half your meal, ask yourself if you're still truly hungry. If you feel "comfortable," guess what? You're done. Stop and ask for a doggie bag.

Then There's Dessert - Be cautious about playing mind games (like rewarding yourself with a piece of gooey chocolate cake because you've had such a healthy dinner). However, if you must indulge, make sure you are truly biologically hungry. Again, don't devour your dessert just because it's there; save some for later. Fresh fruit, or even a small serving of sorbet, is always a good option. Angel food cake is another possibility, if you must.

After You Eat - If you do indulge in that cake, or if you're just feeling like you ate a little too much, try taking a brisk walk around your neighbourhood. Or exercise a little longer or eat a little less the next day.

Stay tuned to next week’s blog when we discuss the answer to the question “How?”.

I’d like to close with the following quote which I hope will inspire you to get to your healthy weight!:

"You gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience in which we really stop to look fear in the face. You must do that which we think we cannot." Eleanor Roosevelt

To your health,

Nadia

Your weight loss partner

1-877-405-4471

healthyweightdancingfeet@gmail.com

www.healthyweightdancingfeet.blogspot.com

A whole lotta eating going on?

Continuing on with the struggles of weight loss, we are answering five questions to help you understand the challenges you face in attaining a healthy weight.

We’ve addressed the questions of "Why?" and "When?" This week we’re addressing the question of “What?”

What do you eat?

Do your meals consist of coffee and a donut for breakfast, burger and fries for lunch and pasta with a 10 oz steak for dinner?

Or do you rush to work in the morning, skip lunch to get your work done and grab fast food on the way home because you are starving at that point?

Unfortunately this is not going to help you stay within your ideal weight and heart health range. In fact, 95% of North American adults don't consume the recommended 7 to 10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day resulting in 70% of health issues being related to poor nutrition and lifestyle. A well balanced diet is essential to your health.

But what do we mean by diet?

Diet is what you choose to eat and nutrition is what your body takes from the food you choose to eat.

This is an important point to keep in mind when you plan your meals. Should you choose to eat fast food, your body will store the fat, block your arteries, increase your cholesterol and much more damage.

Take a look at an ideal diet for a person with a weight loss/maintenance goal:

Breakfast:

Banana and a Protein Shake (CINCH® Shake is recommended) made with 8 ounces of non-fat milk. This is a total 323 calories, 3g fat, 51g carbohydrates and 25g protein (powered by Leucine™ with a CINCH® Shake)

Lunch:

Another CINCH® Shake in another flavour (available flavours include Vanilla, Chocolate, Strawberry and Cafe Latte) with the same amount of non-fat milk. This is a total 280 calories, 3g fat, 38g carbs, 25g protein (powered by Leucine™, which has been clinically proven to preserve and build muscle)

Afternoon Snack:

Apple, medium sized with peel (preferably locally grown)

CINCH® protein snack bar (available flavours include Lemon Cranberry, Chocolate or Peanut Butter)

Peanut Butter - all natural smooth style 2 tablespoons

This is a total of 371 calories, 19g fat, 32g carbs, 18g protein

Dinner:

Baked Salmon

Broccoli, cooked/boiled and drained (1/2 cup)

Cauliflower, cooked/boiled and drained (1/2 cup)

Nuts, natural almonds (1 tablespoon)

Small garden salad with tomatoes, onions with fresh made salad dressing

Dressing: vinegar and 5 crushed cherry tomatoes mixed together

This is a total of 500 calories, 28g fat, 28g carbs, 31g protein

Daily total equals: 1473 calories, 53g fat, 155g carbs, 99g protein

Having said that, although eating plenty of fruit and vegetables is crucial to a well balanced diet, it is a well known fact that the fruit and vegetables that are available to us today are devoid of the rich nutrients that were present 20+ years ago.

This is why supplementation is also important but do your research and find whole food supplements of quality, scientific integrity and efficacy. If you simply purchase whatever you find on the health food store shelf, you cannot be certain that the supplements are bio-available and of the quality your body requires.

My research led me to the only study conducted comparing supplement users with non-supplement users by the University of Berkley’s School of Public Health, California. The study now referred to as the Landmark Study (http://www.landmarkstudy.com/) answered three questions:

Do supplements do any good?

Do supplements do any harm?

How do the brands of supplements compare?

The conclusion of this study was that Shaklee supplement users* had markedly better health than the group of other brand supplement users and those who didn’t take supplements. Shaklee, established in 1956, is the natural nutrition company I recommend to my clients as my preferred supplier. You may refer to the following website for a complete catalogue of their supplements and other products: http://giftofnature.myshaklee.com.

*Shaklee supplements users in the study group had been solely taking Shaklee supplements for 20 or more years.

If you are interested in starting on the path to a healthier you, Shaklee is currently offering your fourth month of their weight management program (CINCH®) FREE when you purchase your first three months of the program. The first month must be purchased no later than March 31st. You may call us or email us for complete details.

I’d like to close with the following quote which I hope will inspire you to get to your healthy weight!:

"The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small fire makes a small amount of heat."

Napoleon Hill, 1883-1970, Author of Think and Grow Rich

To your health,

Nadia

Your weight loss partner

1-877-405-4471

healthyweightdancingfeet@gmail.com

www.healthyweightdancingfeet.blogspot.com

Let's shake this weight off!

Continuing on with the struggles of weight loss, we are answering five questions to help you understand the challenges you face in attaining a healthy weight.

Last week we addressed the question of "Why?" This week we are discussing "When?"

So, when do you eat?

Are you eating 3 sensible meals a day, drinking lots of water and eating sensible snacks in between each meal?

Or do you skip breakfast, eat at your desk for lunch or skip that too and then eat a huge meal for dinner?

If you are the first person, great! If you are the latter, you are shocking and ultimately slowing down your metabolism. YES, that’s right! You NEED to eat throughout the day in order to keep your metabolism awake and working.

Drinking lots of water is also essential because your body often doesn’t know the difference between hunger and thirst. Therefore, if you feel you are hungry all the time, stop and think about how much water you’ve had to drink. You need at least 8 to 10 glasses of water per day, more if you are overweight. In fact, in order facilitate weight loss, every day you should consume between 0.5 and 0.64 ounces of water per pound of lean body weight (Lean Body Mass X 0.64 ounces = Optimal Intake in Ounces). A person that has 200 pounds of lean body mass should drink 128 ounces or 1 gallon of water. This equals eight 16 ounce glasses of water.

Having said that, most of us eat in response to environmental triggers instead of responding to true biological hunger. It’s something we are unintentionally taught early on in life; to eat everything on the plate instead of struggle with Mom or Dad, or to suffer through a plate of broccoli so we can have dessert. We learn to eat because food smells good or it's "lunch time" or because we are bored. As a result, we ignore our own body signals and eat whether we are truly hungry or not.

So do you know what your biological signals for hunger are?

Is it a mild stomach growling, an empty feeling inside, or something else?

Take some time to identify what your body's first signs of hunger are. Use the following hunger-rating chart to assess when you usually start eating and when you stop.

10- Thanksgiving stuffed

9 - so full it hurts

8 - feeling quite full

7 - starting to feel uncomfortable

6 - slightly ate too much

5 - just right, you feel comfortable

4 - first signs it’s time to eat

3 - strong signs that it's time to eat

2 - very hungry, cranky

1 - extremely hungry, dizzy and weak

If you start eating at level 5 or higher, you are eating for external reasons and not because you are biologically hungry. On the other hand, if you wait too long to eat and you start eating at level 1 or 2, you were overly hungry and most likely will end up overeating. Starting to eat at level 3 or 4 is perfect. At this level, your body is telling you that it's time for some nourishment but not to overeat.

If you stop at level 6 or above, you are overeating (when we eat because of external reasons, we tend to overeat). It's also important to remember that if you overeat even healthy foods, those extra calories will be converted to fat and stored in your body. You should aim to stop eating at level 5, when you are feeling perfectly comfortable. At this level, you have taken in the right amount of food to nourish your body, but not too much so that it will be stored as fat. Keep in mind that if you eat your meal too fast, the signals will not transmit to your brain that you feel comfortable until you no longer feel comfortable with the amount you’ve eaten.

Stay tuned to next week's blog when we address the answers to the question "What?"

I’d like to close with the following quote which I hope will inspire you to get to your healthy weight!:

"There comes a moment when you have to stop revving up the car and shove it into gear." David Mahoney Executive and Philanthropist

To your health,

Nadia

Your weight loss partner

1-877-405-4471

healthyweightdancingfeet@gmail.com

http://healthyweightdancingfeet.blogspot.com/

Take Control of Your Health!

Interested in taking control of your health?

JOIN US for this very informative seminar and plan today for a healthier tomorrow!

The keynote speaker, Dr. Richard Brouse is an international doctor with over 40 years experience. He is an accomplished Biochemist, Chiropractor, Physician and Board Certified Nutritionist.

He will be here in the GTA for a nutritional health seminar.

It is FREE to attend!

SAT. FEB. 27, MISSISSAUGA, ON
International Centre
6900 Airport Road
1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

More about DR. Richard Brouse:

Dr. Brouse founded Sunnyside Health Center in Portland, Oregon in 1977, where many have regained a greater measure of health by following his recommendations. He's a widely recognized teacher, author and lecturer on health preservation and disease prevention.

For more details or to register, email us at healthyweightdancingfeet@gmail.com.

Why can't I shake this weight off?

Welcome to my first blog. This has been a long time coming and I'm happy to put this together.

Healthy Weight Dancing Feet is all about health, nutrition, healthy weight and achieving optimum health and weight. We will offer you information, statistics, healthy recipes, and much more to help you attain optimum health.

Remember you are the creator of your own destiny and therefore if better health is truly what you desire, you WILL attain it.

The topic of my blog today is(are) the struggle(s) most of us face with health and a healthy weight, and how we can overcome these struggle(s).

Is the number one reason REALLY that you don’t have time to exercise? Let’s be honest with ourselves, this is usually just an excuse. If healthy weight is what we want we will schedule activity into our day and make it happen.

It does not need to be at a Gym in an organized manner. Make it work for you. Walk or bike to work if you are close enough. Power walk for 30 minutes during your lunch hour. Go out dancing once a week. Do something you enjoy and make it fit into your schedule.

The next five weeks we will be covering five questions you need to ask yourselves: Why, When, What, Where and How do you eat? Once you have an understanding of this you are well on your way to your goal healthy weight!

Firstly, why?
Do you eat because you are hungry?
Or because you are upset or stressed?

If you eat because you are hungry, great! If you are eating to deal with stressful situations, you are an emotional eater and you have other concerns that need to be addressed over and above a sensible diet and exercise.

The reasons for emotional eating can be deep rooted for some of us, ranging from something as serious as child abuse to using food as a coping mechanism for dealing with uncomfortable emotions. When we are stressed, depressed, angry or sometimes just bored, we use food to numb our senses and give comfort.

However, as is alcohol with alcoholics, the truth is this is a short-term solution which often intensifies the emotion. For example, your employer read your the riot act in front of your colleagues and you decide to eat an entire bag of chips to make you feel better and you do, temporarily. But once you realize what you’ve done, you now feel even more depressed and guilty about the calories you’ve consumed and ultimately the fat you are likely to gain.

The key to controlling emotional eating is to identify what it is you really need.
Ask yourself these questions:
What specific emotion am I experiencing?
Will food really help?
What do I really need?
What can I do differently at the moment?

The following strategies may also help increase your awareness of your emotional eating:
Allow yourself to feel the emotion instead of drowning it with food.
Journal your thoughts and feelings.
Ask for a hug, some quiet time, or a break.
Stop and take a few deep breaths (meditate)
Go out for a walk/exercise.
Wait a full minute before taking a bite of food.
Get up and walk into another room to distance yourself from the cause of your stress.

Some additional steps which may be taken to alter emotional eating patterns include:

1) Determine if emotional eating is truly an issue for you. Keep an emotion/thought journal to keep track of the day, time, and emotions that you are feeling and what you really need.
2) Positive self-talk is very powerful, even if you don’t initially believe the statements you are saying to yourself, eventually you will. "I am in control of my food intake, my emotions do not control my food intake."
3) Stay in touch with supportive friends and family and stay away from the nay sayers. Isolation and emotional eating go hand in hand. Food can easily become your best friend, your support, and your comfort so you need to nip that in the bud!
4) Stay active, even if you don't feel like it. Physical activity helps decrease feelings of anxiety, depression, and irritability. Believe it or not, exercise can replace food as your source of enjoyment, maybe not as you are doing it but once you are done, you will feel great!

If the causes of your emotional eating are not too deep rooted, these recommendations can often help. But for some counselling may be necessary. There are professionals who specialize in severe cases of emotional eating, and in such cases, I’d suggest such a professional be consulted.

Lastly I’d like to leave with with a quote:

"Those with goals tend to succeed because they are focused and know where they are going, while those without goals do not."

Ted Karam
Author, from his new book Jumping On Water: Awaken Your Joy - Empower Your Life