3•2•1 Slim - Fast!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Slim-Fast for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.
 
I haven't really had a problem with my weight since freshman year in college.  They say now that the 'Freshman 15' is a myth, but I think I must've gained at least the 15 my freshman year, if not more.  Thankfully I was aware of my weight gain and determined to take care of that before it got totally out of hand.  I swam and played basketball every day all summer, and I ate better.  Between the physical activity and better eating habits, I lost most of the weight I'd gained by the time my 2nd year of college started.   Since then I've tried to stay active and eat right.
 

When Jeffrey and I first got married and I worked in a department store, I lost about 10 pounds right away because I was on my feet and moving all day long - from the front of the store to the back, up and down the stairs, etc.  I didn't need to go to the gym.  I got my exercise at work!  So you're probably wondering why I ever tried Slim-Fast, aren't you?  Well, first of all I got a good deal - sale, coupon, something like that - and I thought it sounded good.  So I tried it, and I liked it. What I liked about it was that, if I had a Slim-Fast shake for breakfast, I wasn't starving before break time.  It really did keep me feeling full and satisfied for hours - better than a regular breakfast.
 
I'm sure that's a big reason Slim-Fast helps people who are trying to slim down.  Slim-Fast shakes provide up to four hours of hunger control and offer 10 grams of protein, five grams of fiber and 24 essential vitamins and minerals, making it easier to stick to a plan and achieve weight loss goals.  The Slim-Fast 3•2•1 Plan promises quick results when followed correctly.  It's a great way to lose weight and look fabulous for that special upcoming occasion - or just to get a start on the rest of your life with a slimmer, healthier you.  The Plan consists of 3 nourishing snacks, 2 Slim-Fast shakes or meal bars, and 1 500-calorie balanced meal per day.  When you start a Plan, you can also register on the Slim-Fast site and use all of the great features of the site - chart your progress, personalize a meal plan, get recipes, and connect with others for inspiration and support.
 
Besides the shake mixes that I tried, Slim-Fast has recently introduced the richest, creamiest, best-tasting shakes ever in nice convenient bottles designed to go anywhere, along with their meal bars and snack bars - all in delicious sounding flavors.  There is a lot of chocolate!  But the Fruit & Yogurt Trail Mix Meal Bar looks really good to me - rolled oats, roasted almonds and cranberries - yum!

 Slim-Fast products are available online from amazon.com and drugstore.com with free delivery on orders over $25, as well as retailers nationwide, including Wal-Mart, Target, Safeway and Kroger.  Like Slim-Fast on Facebook and enter to win a $10,000 Wow! Moment as well as instant prizes like gift cards and free Slim-Fast.
 

Time to Get Back in Shape

Now that I'm back home, it's time to get back in shape - and hopefully get Jeffrey back to walking.  He hasn't been walking with me for a while because he was having knee pain.  He still is some, but he went to the doctor when it didn't go away, and the doctor said he's getting arthritis in that knee.  So he's been taking some kind of medication that will hopefully help him.  Did you know that the regular medicine for joint health has shellfish in it?  We didn't, so that's what I bought him at first - then we found some without, so he's been taking that.  It did make me wonder when I read the introduction to the What the Bible Says about Healthy Living Cookbook where Rex Russell, M.D. (who wrote the book What the Bible Says About Healthy Living) talks about his quest to eat only what God would have him eat.  He cut out pork and shellfish and, among other things, realized within a month that his arthritis was gone! Kinda makes me think that shellfish isn't good for joint health after all - not isopure at all!

Anyway, I don't think I really gained any weight while we were gone, even though we had plenty of good food to eat.  It's just that I didn't get as much exercise as normal - though I did walk as often as possible, but under half a mile to get up to the Lodge doesn't really add up to much exercise.  So, since I've been home, I've gotten back to walking every day and exercising with some of the videos I get from our on-demand stuff from DirecTV.  I'm really liking those because they make me work different muscles, so I feel like it's working.  Having sore muscles means they're getting toned, right?

And next week, I'm just going to get Jeffrey moving and back to walking.  Why next week?  Daylight Saving Time ends next weekend, so we'll have a little extra light in the mornings.  We figure it will be easier for him to get started if he doesn't have to start in the dark!  Oh, it's so hard to get up in the mornings when it's still dark outside!  Eventually we'll have to, but it's better to ease into it.  It's time to get my honey back into shape!  There was also a diet (way of eating) on Dr. Oz last week that I'm going to check out.  Dr. Oz had some people eat that way for a week (I think) and they were already losing weight and lowering their blood pressure and cholesterol.  Definitely worth checking out - along with that cookbook I mentioned earlier.

No More Desserts

Now that summer is almost here, it's time to think about shorts and swimsuits and how I look in them.  Beth gained a bit of weight this winter, but she had an excuse.  I'm not sure what my excuse was, but I gained a few pounds this winter, too.  I could probably blame my husband and his need to eat dessert or have a snack.  Instead of saying 'No' I go along with him and have some too - not as much as he does, but still.  It's just that if I had dessert or sweets as often as I wanted them or thought of them, I wouldn't have them - or rarely.  If he's having some, I feel like I need to have some too, or he'll eat it all, and I won't get any.  Which makes no sense, really - since I didn't really want any in the first place.

Anyway, now that I've actually admitted those extra pounds, it's time to do something about it.  No more desserts (well, maybe once a week) and no more second helpings!  Also, several times a week, I've been walking an extra mile.  I figure that's the best way - eat less, and exercise more!  Also, actually doing something about it when it's only 5 or 10 pounds instead of 20, 30, 40, 50.... It's not quite so overwhelming,

For those who have let those pounds creep up (I catch myself wondering did they not notice? but whatever),  eating less and exercising more is still going to help, though it's going to take longer.  Adding special foods like protein pancakes, following specific programs, and getting extra support can help, too.  The main thing is the desire to do it and the willingness to do whatever it takes.

Now, if I can just get that husband of mine to cut out the desserts and get back to walking...

Walking for Health

Image via Wikipedia

Jeffrey has been walking with me in the mornings for a while now.  He took some time off early last year - I can't remember exactly when, but things were extra hectic at work, and he just didn't feel like he had the time.  But he started again in May, and he's kept at it pretty much ever since.  I'm really, really glad, because I'd love to see him lose some weight.  I don't want him to be the skinny little guy he was when I married him, but it would be nice to see a little less of him.  I know it'll be better for his health.  I also think that exercising, along with eating right, is a better way to lose weight than resorting to diet pills and hoping for a miracle.

Sure, there is a lot of information about which are the best diet pills and which ones should be avoided because of all the side effects, but I think the best thing is to avoid all of them altogether.  Of course, I'm one of those people who doesn't really like sweets and doesn't understand food cravings and all those other things overweight people have to deal with.  It's easy for me to look at junk food and candy and greasy foods and just say NO.  Yeah, go ahead and hate me!

Now that I'm more than halfway through my forties, I'm worried that it won't always be so easy to keep the weight off.  I've heard it works that way.  Thankfully, since Jeffrey's been walking for a while, he's started to pick up the pace, and if I don't work really hard, he leaves me behind.  That's good for me because it steps my workout up a notch, and it's good for him because it means he's getting in better shape - and good for both of us, because we shouldn't be needing weight loss diet pills!

Also, since he's mostly in front of me and not talking much, I get to listen to my books while I'm walking.

The Freshman 15 - Truth or Myth?

When I mentioned the 'Freshman 15' to Cory, he thought I was joking or maybe just trying to scare him.  It's something we've all heard - it's kind of expected that the typical college freshman will gain 15 pounds.  Come to think of it, that is pretty scary!

A study by Marquette professor Dr. Olga Yakusheva who has a PhD and is a health and labor economist, states that the freshman 15 really is a myth, or an exaggeration.  Dr. Yakusheva found the so-called freshman 15 really ends up being between 2 to 6 pounds, with women gaining an average of 1 to 4 pounds, and men gaining between 2 and 7 pounds. (wisn.com)

If college students aren't careful, though, they can end up gaining those 15 pounds over the course of their college careers.  I definitely don't think it justifies the use of weight loss pills among college students. The study went on to show that students who had a dining hall in their dorms gained more weight than students who didn't.  I'm not really sure why - maybe because those who had to go a bit further to find a dining hall also got more exercise actually getting there.  Or maybe because it wasn't as convenient, they put more thought into when and what they ate, instead of just eating because it was convenient.

We only had one dining hall where I went to college, and it wasn't in any of our dorms.  We had to walk to get there and walk uphill to get to most of our classes - and I still ended up gaining quite a bit of weight my freshman year.  I don't know that it was any 'Freshman 15' but it was enough to make me say "Enough is Enough!"  I took one look at myself in the picture of me and my date at Grad Ball, and I decided something must be done.  I didn't go looking for the best weight loss pills, I watched what I ate all summer, and I exercised.  A lot.  I swam laps practically every afternoon, and I played basketball for a couple hours every evening - and since I couldn't eat much before playing all that basketball, dinner usually ended up being watermelon and iced tea.  By the end of the summer, I'd achieved enough weight loss to get back into my jeans - and I paid closer attention to what I ate, how much exercise I got, and how my clothes fit after that.

The Freshman 15 may be a myth, but it's still important for college freshmen (and sophomores, juniors, and seniors, too) to be aware of what and how much they eat and how much exercise they are getting, and avoid letting those 2 to 7 pounds continue to add up each year.

My Shrinking Husband

Jeffrey has been watching what he eats ever since Thanksgiving. He's slowly but surely losing weight! I'm happy to see him do it, and I'm really glad he won't have to resort to something like lap band surgery. The LAP-BAND System is the safest, proven weight-loss surgery available today and it is the only weight-loss surgery that is completely reversible and adjustable – for life. Still, I'd rather see him control his own eating.

I'm glad dieting is working for him. Actually, it's more like eating sensibly than it is actual dieting. For some people dieting doesn't seem to work. For them, lap band Houston might be the right choice. Besides the surgery, they also offer extensive follow-up, aftercare, and support. I guess I'll have to be Jeffrey's support - without being pushy. That's the hard part, standing back and letting him do it because it's something he wants to do.

brought to you by JourneyLite

New Weight Loss Pill

I once heard someone say that the secret to weight loss is to eat less and exercise more. My first thought was, "Well, duh!" It seemed pretty obvious to me. Unfortunately, obesity is a nation-wide epidemic, so, either eating less and exercising more doesn't work for some people, or they just don't have the incentive, willpower or time to put it into practice. I know that Jeffrey has gained weight since we've been married, and, even though he likes to blame it on me and my cooking, it's really because he works behind a desk all day and doesn't get nearly enough physical activity. He can lose weight, because he did a few years ago when they had the diet club at work. It was a challenge to see who could lose the most weight, and he did it. He lost the most weight. Then, once that challenge was over, he gradually went back to his old habits.

There are people who have tried every diet known to man (or woman) and just can't seem to lose the weight or keep it off. The new weight loss pill Akavar 20 50 is supposed to let people eat all they want and still lose the weight. The pill blocks caloric intake and then pulls excess fat from the body. It's supposed to work for virtually anyone, and if it doesn't work, there's a money-back guarantee.

Weight Loss with the Lap-Band

The other day on Good Morning America, they had a young girl on who had liposuction at 12 and then a lapband procedure at 13, when she started gaining the weight back. There seems to be quite a bit of controversy over a girl so young having the lap band done. Because she was under 18, her parents chose to go to Mexico to have the procedure done.

I'm thankful that I don't have to make that kind of decision for my own kids. Though they may not be as active as they could be, neither one of them has a weight problem. If they did, would I consider surgery? I don't know. Any kind of surgery seems drastic, but, if it's a health issue and needs done, I like the fact that the LAP-BAND® procedure is an adjustable and reversible weight loss surgery. That makes it seem a better choice than some of the others out there.