It's important to be P.H.A.T.T. (Praising Him All The Time)

I'm not trying to be sacrilegious, but I couldn't think of a more fitting title for this post. P.H.A.T.T. by the way is the name of a Christian rap group I happened to see on one of the Christian TV channels while channel surfing several years ago.

In response to my "How do I bounce back when the wheels come off?" post, my friend Tom, who has done a phenomenal, consistent job of losing a lot of weight, offered a tip I believe to be among the most important (I'm embarrassed I failed to mention it after the the help I've received): "when I slip up, I pray about it, remember what I'm trying to achieve and how it will bless my life, then pick myself up and move on."

As I was losing, I asked God for help and tried to remember to thank Him as progress was made. I recognized that He gave me my life and I believed that He wants me to treat my body right, be healthy, and use my good health to help others. I still try to thank Him for my good health but should be more consistent.

I'm not trying to be preachy, but if you're serious about losing weight and maintaining, sincerely ask God for help if you haven't already.

Atomic Avocado recipe

Ingredients:

-1/2 avocado
-1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese
-6 Roasted Garlic Triscuits

Directions: mash the avocado into the cottage cheese and put it on the crackers.

Yield: serves 1

Calories: about 350

Lindsey discovered the avocado and cottage cheese on Triscuits part. May her name forever be praised for this glorious gift to mankind! The other day however I was shopping for the ingredients and had a eureka moment, probably as powerful as the one experienced by Dr. Emmet Brown when he invented the Flux Capacitor...USE ROASTED GARLIC TRISCUITS INSTEAD OF REGULAR!!!!!, entered my mind. It was more thrilling than inventing the wheel- it was like inventing the Monster Truck wheel!

Try Atomic Avocado and let me know what you think.

Weird health trivia

If you eat too many carrots, you can turn orange.

I'm not kidding! Not only did the interweb tell me this is true, it actually happened to my brother when he was young. My mom took him to the doctor thinking he had jaundice and the doctor said, without any foreknowledge of the situation, "now there's a kid who loves carrots!" He was right.

How do I bounce back when the wheels come off?

My wife stared at me in awe as I ate piece after piece of white bread dipped in salad dressing last night. Yesterday the wheels came off- not only was I naughty in the evening, enjoying chocolate chips and white bread and butter, but during the day I went to a French bakery and indulged in a croque-monsieur (cheese-smothered ham and cheese sandwich loaded with creme fraiche, a FATTENING dairy derivative) and a pain au chocolat (a croissant-like pastry filled with chocolate). To top it off, I didn't exercise at all! How did this happen? I just felt like it dude, and I shutter to think about how fun it was!

So now what?

Well, I can choose to keep up the naughty behavior and let one slip-up turn into a snowballing mess, or I can choose to bounce back.

How do I bounce back?

I've found it's a lot easier to bounce back when I have good momentum and motivation firmly in place.

Here are some momentum and motivation tips for bouncing back that work for me:

-Establish a habit of eating healthy well in advance. An occasional, atypical disaster-day won't throw me off when I can easily fall back on healthy eating habits. For example, all of the food I have at work is healthy. I would have to leave and buy unhealthy food if I wanted to consume it.
-Keep short-term and long-term goals in mind. For me, maintain a certain weight and live a long, healthy life.
-Remember that tomorrow is a new day and its outcome is up to me.
-Exercise ASAP. For me, there's something about exercise that helps me want to eat and live better (I have to admit, it was an acquired feeling).

To give a little context, a disaster-day happens to me probably every few weeks.

The one good thing to come out of yesterday: I learned another way to get my wife's attention:)!

Please share any bounce-back tips that have worked for you.

How do I control portion sizes?

I used to think Weird Al's "Eat It" was just an annoying parody of Michael Jackson's "Beat It" until I realized two things: 1. it's actually an ingenious example of art imitating life and 2. Michael Jackson probably wrote "Beat It" as a parody of "Eat It." The King of Pop obviously won't be remembered for his attempts at comedy.

On the first point, I believe Weird Al was artistically commenting on his observation of America's growing weight problem back in the 1980s. One causal factor that he identifies in particular is growing portion sizes. For example, take this section of the chorus:

"I don't care if you're full
Just eat it, eat it, eat it, eat it
Open up your mouth and feed it
Have some more yogurt, have some more spam
It doesn't matter if it's fresh or canned
Just eat it, eat it, eat it, eat it"

One could argue that "Wise Al" is a more appropriate nick-name for Alfred Matthew Yankovic.

Now for the question I posed in the title, instead of just "eating it," here are some tricks I use to control portion sizes:

-I eat many (at least 5) small meals throughout the day. This keeps my metabolism high, my stomach used to small meals, and keeps my hunger largely at bay.
-I drink a lot of water throughout the day (personally I shoot for a gallon or more).
-I drink water before I eat.
-I try to savor each bite, allowing my mind to tell my I'm full before I've eaten too much.
-I use smaller bowls and plates.
-I chew gum or brush my teeth immediately after dinner (I seem to always want to graze in the evening).
-When I go to restaurants, I try to share with Lindsey or I'll eat half and take the other half home. Restaurant food is usually loaded with calories and salt.
-I pay attention to suggested serving sizes and keep the calorie numbers in my mind when I'm eating.

I want to draw from your well of experience. Please share any other tricks that have worked for you by comments or email. fitfattydaddy@yahoo.com

P.S. I'm very upset that Michael Jackson is no longer with us. If he were, he could possibly redeem himself on a comic level by writing a parody of Carrie Underwood's song, "Undo It," called "Control It," about controlling portion sizes. Based on his appearance and behavior, I think he would have been even more successful with country music than with pop anyway.

How do I control my eating on Thanksgiving?

The exercise guide is still coming, but today I had to write about the topic that's weighing the heaviest on my mind, the most glorious of glutton-days, Thanksgiving! As a fatty, I used treat it like a buffet- eat, lay down, eat, lay down, groan, eat, feel sick, eat. As fun as that was, being fit is better. Here's a poem I wrote about how I manage Thanksgiving now:

With Turkey-Day less than one week away
On how to control it I have much to say
I must in advance be prepared with a plan
And force myself to stick to it my good (wo)man
Before I eat I will drink lots of water
Which might make it hard to sit through Harry Potter (I probably wouldn't go to it after the meal anyway- too scary)
First I will focus on fruits and on greens
Then I will switch to plain yams and to beans
Go light on butter, salt, gravy, potatoes
Heavy on white turkey meat and tomatoes (even though I love the dark meat)
If I must have a slice of pumpkin pie
Or some pretzel jell-o, I'll try to be mellow
I'll try and I'll try and I'll try and I'll try!

Let me know what ideas have worked for you to manage Thanksgiving!

You Shook Me All Night Long

I know I promised an exercise guide (should be coming tomorrow) but wow!!!...the response to yesterday's post was fantastic! You sent me many reasons to be unfit, which will all be listed. I thought about them all evening- check out a few of these gems:

-It's funnier when fat guys fall down
-You love the feeling of your heart racing when you push yourself up off the couch
-Double chins are cozy

In all seriousness, thinking about how uncomfortable I was before I lost weight helps me maintain. For example, I remember when cutting my toenails felt like squeezing into a Smart Car full of sweaty clowns.

If you need to lose weight but haven't taken action yet, write down a list of every uncomfortable issue you're dealing with that weight-loss would improve. You might be surprised at how long it is.

A rebuke to my readers

I don't want to do this, I really don't, but I'm very disappointed in both of you! I asked you several weeks ago to help me come up with a million reasons to be fat (I changed it to unfit to be more encompassing) and you haven't sent me any! Why? It's really not that hard- I just came up with 3 more:

-Heartburn makes you horny
-Chest pain makes you cheerful
-Sleep apnea makes you sunny

It's like neither of you cares about the feelings of all the unfit people out there and the legitimate excuses they make for their behavior! Shape-up and start sending them ASAP!

A Day in the Life (food guide)

First, you should talk to a doctor before making any changes to your diet or exercise routine.

Second, although I'm sharing my long-term, daily weight-loss/maintenance diet, I should repeat that the point of this blog is to help motivate busy people to lose weight and maintain while navigating the seas of real life, not to be an authority on diets and exercise. Since each person has a unique body, unique nutrition needs, and unique goals, what I do could be different from what you need to do, depending on what you are trying to do. For example, I have been trying to gain lean muscle mass, so I consume more protein than I would probably need to otherwise. It's important for you to find what works for you, and most important for you to reach your goals.

Third, I haven't followed this diet from the beginning. I actually started with a strict, low-carb diet and transitioned to this a couple of months later at the wise recommendation of some fitness-savvy co-workers. More on diets in an upcoming post.

Fourth, there are differing opinions (depending on the source) as to what constitutes the optimal diet. One universally accepted nutrition principle I follow is a strict avoidance of saturated fat, salt, and refined sugar consumption.

The categories of foods I eat include lean meats (chicken breast, turkey breast, tuna, salmon, etc.), vegetables (with an emphasis on greens), fruits, carbohydrates (whole grains, whole grain products, black beans, sweet potatoes, etc.), and healthy fats (olive oil, canola oil, almonds, peanuts, etc.).

Here is a typical day for me:

Breakfast (7:30):
-protein shake
-1/4-1/2 cup oats
-piece of fruit

Snack (10:30):
-Orange
-1/2 cup lowfat cottage cheese
-1/4 cup oats

Lunch (1:30):
-can of tuna
-1 cup of greens
-1/3 cup black beans

Snack (4:30):
-1 cup greens
-1/2 cup lowfat cottage cheese
-1/4-1/2 cup oats

Dinner (6:30):
-1 chicken breast
-1/2 yam or a couple slices of whole-wheat bread
-1 cup of greens or a salad with vinaigrette dressing

Snack (after workout):
-scoop of peanut butter or another protein shake

I'll substitute different foods from the same category in there to add variety, but that's the structure. Can you wee why the folks at the office mock me for eating like a horse?:).

Key takeaway:
-eat many small meals throughout the day to keep metabolism high and hunger at bay

I know it looks scary! If someone told me this during my fat days, before I was motivated to change, I would have screamed in church! Believe me though, the longer I do it the more it becomes just "the way I eat," my body actually craves the nutrition, and I actually enjoy the food. Remember too, I reward myself with treats as I go along (usually every Saturday, but not always), so no love is lost between me and naughty foods.

Here are some helpful resources:
nutrition.gov, cdc.gov, bodyforlife.com, bodybuilding.com, mayoclinic.com

Let me know if you have any questions.

Monday Morning Gut Check

After my much-deserved weekend indulgence described in my "Hungry Like the Wolf" post, I'm up a wee bit. It's pretty normal for me really- I can easily fluctuate several pounds after just one salty meal.

My plan is to get back to my target weight by defaulting to my normal eating and exercising routines throughout the week. I began this morning- check.

Folks have been asking me about my routines, so my next two posts will be outlining them (one for eating and one for exercising) to share ideas about what works for me. I'll also share some good resources for more ideas, operating from the premises that everyone's body is different and everyone has different fitness goals.

For a laugh at my expense, here's a link to me attempting "Hot Blooded" on karaoke at a job party last week. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_wKbz8TqKU To me, one of the most cherished benefits of being fit is the ability to more easily make a fool out of myself! Enjoy!

Hungry Like the Wolf

I hit a personal fitness goal yesterday after a period of strictness and celebrated the best way I know how- eating Mexican food and cookie dough, and watching Teen Wolf with Lindsey.

I could relate very well to Michael J. Fox's character. As an unfit person, I was like the unsure, weak Scott Howard. As a fit person, I'm a werewolf baby! AAAooouuuwww!

Keep an eye out on the road for a hairy guy doing back-flips on top of a van and yell 'hi Todd' when you see me!

Like a Rolling Stone

As I referenced in my "Still Haunted by Halloween" post, Halloween weekend was particularly unhealthy for me. The net damage was about 4 pounds. Since then, to get back down, I've been reducing my carb and overall calorie intake. It's working and it hasn't been very hard to do.

It's important to know that in terms of behavior changes, I'm a laaaazy man. In my fatty days, an increase in weight may have inspired a temporary fitness fixation that always ended in failure, discouragement, and usually even more weight gain because I'd quickly relapse.

The difference now, I believe, is momentum. With nearly two years of mostly healthy behavior and habits behind me, it's noticeably easier to make healthy decisions in the first place and correct my behavior when I do make bad (but admittedly fun) decisions.

From your experience, how long on average do you think it takes someone to build momentum strong enough to help make consistent healthy choices?

A look back at living large

Ahhh. The past. Right now I'm thinking about my days as a "husky" person. :)

Chuck-A-Rama and Chinese Gourmet were like Cheers to me..."everybody knew my name...dum, dum, dum, "and were always glad I came...dum, dum, dum. "I wanted to be where I could see, everybody ate the same, I wanted to go where everybody knew my name...do, do, do, do, do, do...do, do.

Buying big pants and stretchy pants for church, indigestion, sweating, constant fatigue, refusing to wear shoes (only flip-flops because my feet would get too hot) and getting called a "beached whale" by someone I'll call Lindsey L. No, that's too obvious. I'll call her L. Lamoreaux. (Here's the story: we were on a family vacation and I was sprawled on the floor, next to the luggage, groaning, and keeping everyone from leaving. Really, I deserved it...she was joking and not trying to be insulting.)

Getting fat was fun. Do I miss it? Like I miss the flu.

Am I shrinking or are portions growing?

Over the years, I thought I noticed gradual increases in portion sizes at restaurants. If you're like me, you remember fondly specific marketing initiatives like "super-sizing" and "free-refills." As a boy, and then a man with an insatiable appetite, I took full advantage. My goal was to make restaurants lose money through my uber-consumption.

It turns out portions both in restaurants and at home have grown significantly over time. It's no wonder America has a "growing" weight problem. I found some information on NIH.gov that confirms my observations. One example given is the difference between a hamburger today in terms of calories vs. 20 years ago. 20 years ago, the average fast food hamburger had 333 calories. Today, 590! It goes on to say that you would need to lift weights for an hour and a half to burn the extra 257 calories consumed!

Now, I still love to eat. To combat the trend however, I try to eat smaller portions at home and share meals at restaurants with Lindsey. Give it a try- you'll consume fewer calories and save money that you can then spend on lottery tickets!

Still haunted by Halloween

I woke up Tuesday with a cold and I'm starting to believe I won't get better until I do this, so here goes: I. had. too. much. fun. on. Halloween. weekend. (Read: I ate too much on Halloween weekend.) There, I said it!

Here's the story.

Everything was going well last week. Although I spent the first part of it on a business trip, I still managed to eat fairly healthy by ordering fish and vegetables at restaurants. Then, like a tsunami, Thursday evening came. My mother-in-law threw a Halloween party at her house, featuring heavenly, home-made doughnuts, naughty Navajo tacos, and scrumptious scones. Having been good to that point, I thought, "why not indulge a bit?" It was downhill from there. Friday we ate out for dinner, Saturday I ate candy, Sunday I ate candy, and Monday, we ate out again (this is unusual because usually I'll try to limit indulging to one day per week or less)!

This isn't scientific, but I swear every time I eat unhealthy for an extended period of time, I get sick. You'd think I would have learned my lesson by now, but considering I still haven't learned to put the toilet seat down, I guess it's not a huge surprise.

Another reason to be fit: Economic opportunity

In these less-than-ideal economic times, it makes sense to give oneself as big of an advantage as possible in terms of employment.

A Forbes magazine article published on 5/21/08 entitled "Is Weight Affecting Your Career?" cites several sources suggesting that weight-based discrimination not only happens, but is prevalent.

Cort Rudolph, a Wayne State University researcher cited in the article states, "the bias appears to be most prominent during the hiring process, when an employer knows a potential employee the least and therefore is most likely to be influenced by stereotypes (such as fat people are lazy)".

The information I found most interesting was the mention of legitimate reasons employers have to discriminate against overweight people. A report cited in the article by The Conference Board claims that "obese employees cost U.S. private companies an estimated $45 billion annually in medical expenditures and work loss." Also, a study done by the Duke University Medical Center says that "between 1997 and 2004, obese workers filed twice the number of workers' compensation claims, had seven times the medical costs and lost 13 times the days of work from work injury or illness compared with other employees, and the average medical-claims costs per 100 employees amounted to $51,019 for the obese, compared with $7,503 for the non-obese." Given this information, of course cost-conscious employers with any accountability to their companies' bottom lines are going to be wary of hiring overweight people!

Michigan State University associate professor of human resources management, Mark Roehling states, "while employers may think they're saving money by not hiring an overweight person, they might not be taking into account an applicant's qualifications, which could be far more valuable."

True...but since being overweight is ultimately a choice (I know there's a genetic or chemical imbalance element in a small segment of the population, but the CDC clearly points out that weight management is still all about "balancing the number of calories you consume with the number of calories your body uses or "burns off"" on its "Overweight and Obesity" page) for the vast majority of people, why would I want to put myself in that situation to begin with?

I have decided I'm going to give myself an employment edge by being fit. Are you with me?