Sunday, December 28, 2008

To Gain Good Health, Stay The Course In The Face Of Failure

By Ferda Shinsky

How would you like to have a healthier you without taking a whole lot of time out of your day? Well you can! You have to start by setting your mind to reshape your body...and here is how. First you need to set forth good habits.

Many people eat without thinking about it when they are bored. Eating just for fun makes you gain a lot of weight, and it makes you eat things that you would not decide to eat in large amounts. The habit of eating when you are bored also trains your body to feel hungry when you're really just bored, and if you sit idle, all you do is sit and store fat from the foods that you eat, which is a huge cause of obesity. Diabetes, heart conditions, cholesterol problems, and breathing problems are signs from your body that it is time to make a change in your life.

Your brain is the biggest ally and your biggest enemy in gaining a healthier you. Your current poor health is an obstacle that you need to over come on your path to becoming a newer, healthier person. You have to cover your current habits with newer, healthier thinking. Self-esteem is important, because self-esteem will eventually drive you toward your goal. Don't wait for someone to pat you on the back when you do a good job; do it yourself. Learn to reward yourself for good behavior with small rewards that keep you on your path.

First, reduce your consumption of high calorie foods. You have to replace them low-calorie, nutrient dense foods. High fiber is key. You can also learn to make healthy substitutions for the unhealthy indulgences you make daily. For instance, if you were thinking of having a cheeseburger and fries, you might decide to forego the fries and make a beeline for a garden salad with low-calorie ranch dressing instead. If you are a sucker for chicken nuggets with creamy pasta sauce, you can try some low-fat chicken breast with vegetables and a high-fiber bun or bread, or you might want to replace that creamy pasta with a low-fat marinara sauce. Instead of oily take out pizza, try some oven baked fish with rice and a small salad instead. Your body will thank you.

Another great change is to exercise when you are bored instead of eating. Go outside; plan some physical activity instead of sitting in front of the computer. If you're a total hermit, get a stationary bike and pedal while you watch your soap operas. You can take a walk with a friend, go swimming, explore your local mall, or pace around the house; any kind of moving is better than sitting.

Change #3: This change will help the most of all. DOCUMENT EVERYTHING YOU EAT!!!! In doing this you can actually see everything you put into your mouth therefore keeping yourself accountable for either weight gain or loss. Itas important to remember that you are in charge of YOU and no one else. In order to change bad life habits into good life habits, retraining is a must.

Another good item to document is your activities. Keep a log of your activities that you work at daily or weekly. You can go online and access different websites that will tell you the approximate amount of calories that you burn during an activity. One such website is http://www.nutristrategy.com/activitylist4.htm. You can also find other websites to your liking as well.

One of the most important things to remember is not to fear failure; in fact, expect to fail multiple times before you reach your goal. Remember that those failures are small battles in an overall war for your health. Remember that you must stay the course to win the war. Everyone is going to have their bad days. If your boss yells at you, and you get sad and sit in front of the television and eat too much pizza or an entire tub of ice cream, this is no reason to give up or beat yourself up about it. If you slip, it's just a sign that you haven't reached your goal yet, and you need to pick yourself up and get back on track instead of falling back into the pattern. - 15995

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