Are you ready to Change?

 

I know, I talked about choices last week, but sometimes we have a hard time making those choices.  You can choose to eat another handful of chips, you choose to skip the gym, or choose to skip a walk. But what happens then? Because you feel so disappointed in yourself you rummage through the pantry for a “quick pick me up” cookie. Then the new habit/behavior begins and continues to spiral done from there.  Do you want to get a hold of your unhealthy behavior?  According to Authors James Prochaska and Carlo Diclemente, there are five stages to change:

1.      PRECONTEMPLATION STAGE: In this stage, people are not thinking seriously about changing and are not interested in any kind of help. People in this stage tend to defend their current bad habit(s) and do not feel it is a problem. They may be defensive in the face of other people's efforts to pressure them to quit.

2.      CONTEMPLATIVE STAGE: In this stage, people are on a teeter-totter, weighing the pros and cons of quitting or modifying their behavior. Although they think about the negative aspects of their bad habit and the positives associated with giving it up (or reducing), they may doubt that the long-term benefits associated with quitting will outweigh the short-term costs

3.      PREPARATION/DETERMINATION STAGE: In the preparation/determination stage, people have made a commitment to make a change. Their motivation for changing is reflected by statements such as: "I've got to do something about this - this is serious. Something has to change. What can I do?"

4.      ACTION/WILLPOWER STAGE: This is the stage where people believe they have the ability to change their behavior and are actively involved in taking steps to change their bad behavior by using a variety of different techniques.

5.      MAINTENANCE STAGE: Finally the action is maintained for several weeks. But most having maintained the change, whether in diet, smoking habit, exercise or whatever, will sooner or later fail and revert to the first or second stage. Then comes the verdict that is most helpful; namely TO FAIL IS NORMAL!!! Next comes the best advice I have found; we should not engage in self retort but instead DISCOVER WHY WE FAILED.

“Most health concerns can be successfully addressed based on the willingness and ability of persons to change aspects of their own behavior.” FOCUS ON HEALTH, sixth edition

I challenge you to take the time to review the five stages, find out where you are and move to the next stage and keep moving until you reach your changed behavior!

Visit the link for more information on this topic:

http://www.addictioninfo.org/articles/11/1/Stages-of-Change-Model/Page1.html

”It’s your Choice”

 Know the nutritional value in what you eat; and once you learn how much energy and sweat it will take to burn off that treat, you'll have a much harder time eating it. After making lasagna this weekend for the family, I had to choose not to have seconds!  It is all about choices: input vs. output!
Do you ever wonder how much you’d need to exercise to burn off that dessert? Think about it; a workout that requires half an hour of your time to burn the 200 to 300 calories that took less than a few minutes to eat!
Take a look at a few examples from Montgomerydiet.com site that will surprise:
To burn off common, seemingly small treats, such as one chocolate chip cookie, one serving of potato chips, one candy bar, one soda, a bowl of ice cream or a couple of mozzarella sticks, you would have to do aerobics for thirty minutes. That's considered a good, average workout to burn off treats such as medium movie popcorn, the typical regular sized smoothie, most regular sized frozen chocolate drinks, a small Dairy Queen Blizzard, a small McDonald's McFlurry, or a medium order of fries or onion rings, (each of these items average up to 800 calories) you would need up to an hour and a half on the elliptical! Yikes! Think about it before you put it in your mouth…how much will this cost me in the gym?
“Knowledge is everything!” If you're interested in an appetizer such as a blooming onion, an order of cheesy fries, and cheesy bread from your favorite pizza place, or a southwest eggrolls, plan to walk briskly for 6 hours!!  
Do you know that the Wendy’s Apple Pecan Chicken Salad is 520 calories? Just because it has the word “salad” you would assume it is healthy…

Remember, the choice is yours!

To find out how many calories you are burning, go to the following link and simply enter your bodyweight and the average time you spend doing one of the exercises/activities and click on Compute Calories Burned.

http://www.internetfitness.com/calculators/calburncalc.htm

Nancy @ healthiswealth.1@netzero.com or nlarson@co.delaware.in.us

How to make exercise easy!

    Here’s the simple way

We all know that exercise is essential for wellness and especially helpful for losing weight or managing it.  The U.S., Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all healthy adults get the following:

At least 2 hours and 30 minutes (150 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobics activity (e.g. brisk walking) every week. (You can break up your exercise into smaller chunks of time as long as you do your moderate or vigorous activity for at least 10 minutes a t a time). OR - at least 1 hours and 15 minutes (75 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity (e.g. jogging or running) every week.

You also need muscle-strengthening activities (e.g. push-up or weight lifting) on two or more days a week that work all major muscles groups (legs, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms).

Now, here’s the simple way to do all of them:

                -If you drive to work, park a distance from your office and walk the rest of the way.

                -Whenever you take the bus, get off a stop or two before your destination and walk.

                -Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

                -Plan family activities such as bike rides, hikes, and outdoor games.

                -Walk or ride a bicycle whenever you trip is a mile or less.

                -When out shopping, park at the far end of the lot.

                -After dinner, bypass the TV and walk around the block instead.

                -Stretch, skip rope, lift weights, or ride an exercise bike while watching television.

                -Take a walk doing your lunch hour.

We really do not have an excuse to not do something for our selves in a healthy way everyday.

 

See you on the Cardinal Greenway soon!

               

GET LEAN in 2013

Healthy living does require a small amount of commitment and a desire for being re-energized.  I too find myself facing the same challenges juggling family and work and play. Here are a few healthy living tips from lifeback.org for those of us on the go that helped me:

 

1. Exercise in the A.M. Morning exercise is a healthy way to lose weight, plus you'll beat the crowds. Morning exercisers tend to stick with their exercise habit

2. Enjoy a pint of water first thing in the morning; I like the taste of water, but I know some people do not so if you’re one of them, squeeze some fresh lime into your water to give it taste and drink up. 3. Get Off to a Healthy Start: Grab a few fresh fruits on your way out. Fruits are great for their nutrients, vitamins and sugars that are required in our body

4. Avoid going to junk food shops with your work mates: Go for a nice salad instead, but be wary of the salad dressing you choose. Or any other healthy meal that takes your fancy. Junk food is full of “empty calories” that do nothing for your body but put on extra unneeded and unhealthy fat. Do you know one pack of cookies is equal in calories to some meals!

5. Exercise on the go. If you work in an office, get up every 30 minutes and go for a walk. Get your blood was flowing and your muscles moving. Take the stairs one or two flights, when you sit back down at your desk your will feel refreshed!

6. Drink herbal teas. When at work or home, many people love to get a cup of tea or coffee. Decide that you’ll be healthier and get a warm cup of herbal tea.

7. Eat a handful of nuts.  Get your favorite selection of nuts and raisins and have a big handful of them at around 3pm. This has been shown to increase afternoon energy and productivity.

8. Deep breathing. When you’ve got time - at your desk, driving the car, cooking food - do some deep breathing. Inhale and count up to 5 seconds, hold it for a few seconds, and release slowly.

 
Most people want to get healthy, and look and feel younger, yet they can’t seem to find the time for it. Make yourself a priority today and decide to  GET LEAN in 2013!

Now go and enjoy your day~

Nancy larson, my.healthiswealth@comcast.net