The Slim Habit Blog

I have come across so many people who are overweight who have given up on diets and weight loss programs because they ‘just don’t work’. They feel that they should just come to terms with the fact that they are always going to be overweight, it’s in the genes or they have a ‘dysfunctional’ metabolism.

In most cases it has very little to do with genes or a ‘dysfunctional’ metabolism. There is absolutely no reason why anybody should resign themselves to being overweight. It is possible for everybody to lose weight.

In simplistic terms, weight is all about calories consumed versus calories burnt. Burn more calories that you consume and you will lose weight. There are ways of burning calories. The first is through normal every day activity and the other is by taking exercise. How effectively you burn calories is again down to how much exercise you take and also to the health of your muscles, both contribute to making your metabolism more effective. Keeping properly hydrated is also important for better metabolic efficiency. If you have been a serial dieter, then your muscle mass may have been seriously depleted. Resistance exercises are needed to build your muscles back up and make your metabolism more effective.

How many calories you consume is very important. If you reduce your calorie intake too much your body will work against you and prevent you losing weight. If you consume too many calories you will put weight on probably whether you take exercise or not.

One common trait amongst those who have ‘given up’ trying to lose weight is that the majority of people fool themselves about the number of calories they consume. In one instance the person concerned was convinced that she was only consuming 1600 calories a day. She was incredibly proud that of her healthy diet. The reality was that her daily calorie intake was 3500 not 1600. The extra 1900 calories she consumed was due to the fact that her portion sizes were too big and that she was economical with the truth when it came to totalling her calorie intake. She was not destined to be overweight. She had it in her power to lose weight and lose weight permanently. A dose of honesty and new eating and lifestyle habits the answer to her problem.

Popularity: 16% [?]

Technorati Tags: diet, diet and weight loss, diet free life, dieting, diets, fat loss, healthy diet plan, healthy weight loss, how to lose weight permanently, lose calories, lose weight, lose weight permanently, losing weight, permanent weight loss, say goodbye to diets, skinny, slim down, Slim habit, slimming, slimming program, stay slim, the best way to lose weight, weight loss, weight loss diets, weight loss help, weight loss plan, weight loss program, Weight loss tips

If you want to lose weight should you start counting the
calories? To many people who are caught in an endless cycle
of dieting, counting calories is something they don’t look
forward to. It’s a chore and it’s boring. What’s more they
question whether it ever produces any worthwhile results.

It’s important that we have control of the energy you
consume and use. There is a maxim that states that ‘if you
want to lose weight you have to burn more calories than you
consume’. It’s true.

Knowing about calories is not difficult, but know about
them you must. It really doesn’t take very much to be able
to monitor what you eat. It is not really that much of a
chore to remember the calorie value of what you put in your
mouth. Your diet is not likely to be that complicated.

If you change your daily menu it’s easy to look up and
remember the values of the new food you are eating. What you
don’t need to do is to get concerned that you may be 15 or
20 calories out in your calculation. Don’t forget your
portion sizes will vary too.

What you need to do is to develop an ‘informed judgment’
of calorie values of the food you eat. After a while you’ll
get pretty good at it. You’re not counting the calories
exactly, but with practice you’ll be pretty close.

Once you have developed your ‘informed judgment’ you will
become quite skilled at knowing exactly what you’re eating
which should prevent you from making any big mistakes.

Your ‘informed judgment’ should prevent you from making
any huge mistakes. ‘If in doubt leave it out’ will also
serve you well so that you end up on the right side of the
equation.

Getting the Calorie habit is important if you are going to
be successful at losing weight permanently. Changing your
eating habits does involve counting the calories – not
obsessively, but with common sense.

Popularity: 3% [?]

Technorati Tags: permanent weight loss, the best way to lose weight, weight loss, weight loss program, Weight loss tips

If you haven’t already registered it, this is a new era of responsibility – at least that’s what the new President of the United States is telling us, but what does it really mean? Why do we need to take note of what he’s saying? Surely he doesn’t mean us?

In case you haven’t noticed we’re all suffering because of the lack of responsibility of others. Both bankers and politician have failed to meet their responsibilities to us all. The misery that many will suffer as a result is unacceptable in a modern society. A new era of responsibility, Mr President? Bring it on – please!

So what does the new President’s call for a new era of responsibility have to do with slimming? The simple answer is – a lot. Responsibility is a word that is used very freely, but without much responsibility! Implied in the word is honest, affirmative action for a positive outcome. It’s what we all want, but rarely practice.

If we are going to have a new era of responsibility, then we need to start with ourselves. If we can’t be responsible to ourselves, how on earth can we expect to be responsible to others? It is our first duty to pay proper attention to ourselves. This is, if you like, self-responsibility. If we allow ourselves to become overweight or obese this is definitely not responsible. How can we function properly, keep our minds alert and keep fit and healthy when we allow the pounds to mount round our middle? Being responsible to ourselves means doing the right things to keep fit and healthy and keeping our weight at the right level.

If you want to be responsible and lose weight you need to learn new habits, new slim habits. This way you will be able to change your behavior, lose weight permanently and remain slim and healthy. It’s not difficult to do, it’s just a question of being responsible to yourself. If you want to be part of the new era of responsibility and make a difference to you, and the world, give it a go!

Popularity: 5% [?]

Technorati Tags: permanent weight loss, the best way to lose weight, weight loss, weight loss program, Weight loss tips

If you want to be successful at losing weight, you need to know about fats.

So much of our food today is processed in some way or other. Much of it is tasty and ‘moreish’. Food manufacturers have been very clever at putting temptation in our way, but this abundance has not gone hand in hand with health. A lot of the processed food we eat is detrimental to our health. Much of this is due to the ingredients added in the manufacturing process. One of the additives you should be most aware of is fats. Consume too many of the wrong fats, and weight loss will be impossible. You’ll also run the risk of raising your cholesterol and developing heart disease. 

Your body needs fat, but not a lot. Fats are essential for energy and promote cell growth. They also help your body absorb some nutrients and produce important hormones. But there are ‘good fats’ and ‘bad fats’. You need to be aware of two ‘bad fats’: saturated fat and trans fat. These are fats which are most commonly included in the processed foods we eat. Saturated fats are found mainly in margarines, cooking fats, sweets, chocolate, biscuits, ready meals, animal produce and dairy produce. Your diet needs to contain no more than 7% saturated fat.

Trans fats are produced when vegetable and fish oils are ‘hydrogenated’. These fats commonly appear in margarine and shortening. Trans fats are ‘bad’ fats and your diet should include only 1% of them because your body can’t digest them properly.

As your food awareness grows, look out for the fats on the labels of the food you buy, and avoid saturated and trans fat products as much as possible.

‘Low fat’ products are fine, but just be careful that extra sugar hasn’t been substituted for fat.

If you want to lose weight permanently here is a useful weight loss tip: know your fats. Permanent weight loss means that you must always be on guard when it come s to fats. Too much of the wrong type of fat and your weight loss program will not be successful.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Technorati Tags: best diet, losing weight, slim, Slim habit, slimming, the best way to lose weight, weight loss plans, weight loss program

Do you know what is pure, white and deadly? It’s not some terrible poison, it is sugar!

We all eat a huge amount of sugar. It makes things taste good. It makes us want to eat more, but do we ever really think what it is doing to us?

Here are some facts about sugar.

• Each of us consumes approximately 135lbs (61kg) of sugar every year. A hundred years ago the figure was 5lbs (2.3kg), and cardiovascular disease, cancer and obesity were rare.
• Eating sugar upsets your blood sugar balance and triggers the release of insulin. The body uses insulin to keep blood sugar at a safe level. Insulin promotes the storage of fat, so when you eat food full of sugar, you’re promoting rapid weight gain.
• Sugar raises your insulin level which inhibits the release of growth hormones. This in turn depresses your immune system – not good if you want to be healthy and stay healthy.
• Sugar is a mojor contributor to many of our ailments and health problems such as: diabetes, osteoporosis, the aging, tooth decay, allergies, depression, coronary heart disease, increased harmful cholesterol (LDL), and reduced helpful high-density cholesterol (HDL).

Unfortunately too many food manufacturers love to add sugar whenever they can. Breakfast cereals are stuffed with sugar. So are baked beans, ready meals, snacks, sweets, chocolate, fruit juices, fast foods, biscuits, cakes, colas and fizzy drinks. One can of cola can contain as much as 7 teaspoonfuls of sugar.

From now on, try to significantly reduce your sugar intake. Become a ‘sugar detective’. Discover how much sugar you’re eating each day. Read labels and understand the sugar content in what you buy.

If you want to lose weight permanently and lead a life free from diets, you need to very careful about the amount of sugar you eat. Sugar is public enemy number one when it comes to losing weight. You need to get into the habit – the slim habit, of limiting the amount of sugar you eat. It will help you lose weight and do your health good too.

Popularity: 7% [?]

Technorati Tags: diet, how to lose weight, permanent weight loss, the best way to lose weight, weight loss

It’s all happening! Not all of it is what we would have all wished for, but life’s certainly interesting! It may not seem like it to you right now, but this is a time of amazing opportunity. The New Year will undoubtedly have some surprises for us, but if we have the right mind-set we can achieve great things.

If you want a lead when things are difficult, it’s good to look for a good example. You need to find somebody who has persevered, somebody who has succeeded against all the odds.  Such a person is the 44^th President of the United States, Barak Obama.

The world has been given an example that can be an inspiration to us all. He has demonstrated self-discipline, determination and self-belief. These are such important qualities. Set out to apply these qualities in your life in the New Year, and a whole new world of opportunities will be open to you.

This is also a period of great change. Change is sometimes spoken about as if it was something unusual or something to be feared. Life is about change and we all need to embrace change and manage it to our advantage.

If you are overweight maybe you’ve been contemplating going on a diet in the New Year? It’s certainly a good thing to do something about losing weight, but perhaps going on a diet is not the best idea. You’ll probably know from past experience that after losing weight, the weight will come back again. Your lack of enthusiasm for your ‘trial by ordeal’ or ‘trial by diet’, in the New Year is understandable.

This New Year why not try something different? If you want to lose weight permanently then you need to make change. Carrying on with the same behaviors that made you overweight in the first place will mean that you will never make change and you’ll continue to be overweight.

To lose weight permanently, you need to change your behavior . You do this by learning new habits – slim habits. Show the same qualities as the new President and you can achieve great things. Choose the Slim Habit program and success is assured.

Make Change!  A New Year can mean a ‘new you’. It’s a great thought – all you have to do is to make a decision to make it happen.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Technorati Tags: best diets, diet to slim, fast weight loss, slimming, the best way to lose weight, the slim habit