Just One Meal...

January is a great time to focus on your health, as we all feel that sense of renewal and a "clean slate" start-over. Rather than jumping into a strict diet that consists only of twigs & berries, why not start with JUST ONE MEAL? We eat (in theory) twenty one meals per week, right? (As an aside, if you are skipping breakfast, please start with adding IN that meal before anything else.)

I would like to suggest that you commit to having ONE vegetarian meal per week, and ONE meal that includes FISH as an entree. Vegetarian meals do not need to be bland, by the way. Picture a delicious taco salad, but with beans instead of beef or chicken. I often have the do-it-yourself version of this at home by making nachos loaded up with beans, onions, lettuce & tomatoes. Or you might try a colorful collection of veggies sautéed in olive oil and serve them over a bed of pasta or rice. I find that keeping bags of chopped onions, shredded carrots and bite-sized tomatoes minimizes my prep time and therefore makes it far more likely that I will include them in my lunch when I only have ten or fifteen minutes to prepare & eat it.

BOTTOM LINE: Make permanent changes in your diet by starting with ONE MEAL per week...and then feel free to increase that frequency as you enjoy these healthy, delicious meals!

My Metabolism STINKS!

Do you feel like no matter what you do, you simply cannot lose weight? Many people ask there doctors what is wrong with their metabolism. Physicians run many thyroid function tests trying to find an answer for their patients, but the majority of the time, those tests are normal. In addition, even if your thyroid is sluggish, starting on thyroid medication does not guarantee that the pounds will melt off!

There are certainly other factors that go into your metabolism. Co-factors such as vitamin B12 and adrenally produced steroids play a role as well. However, most of the time, our science is not advanced enough to detect subtle changes. We cannot give people thyroid medications to "speed things up" unless they are truly low thyroid, because excess thyroid causes medical problems such as irregular heart rhythms, osteoporosis, and anxiety.

So what can you do? There are only two behavioral modifications that YOU can do to help speed up your metabolism. Ready? Here they are:
1. NO SKIPPED MEALS, especially BREAKFAST (because you have already "fasted" while you slept.)
2. DAILY AEROBIC ACTIVITY (walking, biking, hiking, dancing- anything that raises your heart rate)

Additionally, realize that it has been proven that when we record or recall our food intake and exercise, people always UNDERestimate what we eat, and OVERestimate our exercise. Recognize that you (like all of us) have that bias! If you are frustrated with your metabolism, try a different approach. Obviously, what you are doing now is not working, right? So talk with your doctor, your registered dietician, and/or your personal trainer and find ways to step it up a notch!

BOTTOM LINE: Naturally speed up your metabolism by making sure you don't skip meals and you DO increase your daily exercise!