The U.S. Dietary Guidelines for daily sodium intake are 2,300 mg for adults under 50; 1,500 mg for adults between 50 and 70; and 1,200 for those over the age of 70. Americans typically consume from three to five times these amounts daily. If you want to lower your sodium intake for the health of your heart, consider these simple steps:

1. Eliminate the table salt, which has 2,300 mg of sodium in one teaspoon.
2. Use sea salt. Sea salt has more minerals and adheres better to food than table salt. It tastes better letting you use less.
3. Avoid visibly salted foods, especially snack foods.
4. Rinse canned foods packed in salt water such as beans, vegetables and tuna, all of which can have high amounts of sodium.
5. Limit foods that are cured, brined or marinated. These foods are typically high in sodium.
6. Use alternatives such as herbs, sodium-free spices, vinegars, lemon and lime juice and toasted sesame seeds.
7. Read labels.

This famous tagline from Nike is a great slogan to live by….especially when it comes to exercise. Here are some thoughts to hopefully get you motivated or keep you going in your exercise regime.

Some People Don’t Like Exercise
It’s true some people just don’t like exercise, it’s hard sometimes, it takes time, it takes energy, and it takes planning. It is just so easy to say, “I just don’t have time, or don’t feel like exercising today” stay in your comfort zone and your body WILL decay. The mind and body are one, you cannot separate the two, what happens to one happens to both. If you get sick it will impact your mental well being, if you get fit it will enhance your ability to perform physically every day. How much energy you have to give to the things that are most important to you will be determined by your physical capacity. Wish you could do more of the things you want everyday, but are just too tired and worn out? It does not have to be that way. You don’t have to like exercise you just have to do it! Once you create a regular ritual of exercise you will be amazed how much you miss it when you don’t exercise. Give a try; you might just like the benefits of being fit so that the benefits out weight the challenge of exercise. Your choice: growth or decay one or the other WILL occur you can determine which one by your actions.

Creating Just the Right Level of Challenge
Whether you are just getting started with an exercise program, coming back to exercise after a layoff, or a seasoned athlete, creating sufficient and appropriate challenge in your exercise plan is the difference between succeeding and another failed attempt at getting fit. Training the right amount to promote growth without over training or getting injured will determine your success. Starting with a check up at your doctor’s office is a good place to start to be sure you don’t have any limitations that could put you at risk. A fitness assessment is also important to allow you to start at the right level of intensity for your current fitness status. Being able to track your progress, and give feedback to your fitness professional or coach is critical to your ability to progress and avoid setbacks that could derail your improvement. Start at a reasonable intensity and never increase intensity more that ten percent per week as you develop your next challenge. Using a heart rate monitor will allow you to do just the right level of work by being able to observe your body’s performance during exercise and evaluate your progress when your work out is finished. If you train too hard you may get hurt, if you don’t train hard enough you won’t see the results you want, either way these pitfalls can keep you from getting to your desired fitness goals. Train smart, give your body time to adapt, and continually push your limits to create the opportunity for your body to adapt and grow stronger and more efficient at exercise and help you realize how really good it feels to be fit and strong everyday. Set your benchmark and build steadily from there for consistent improvement and continued motivation to succeed.
“Younger Next Year” By Chris Crowley and Harry Lodge, MD

You can’t turn on the TV, drive down the road or go to a party without being confronted with America’s hottest obsession: weight. Diets are a billion-dollar industry; companies spend millions and millions luring you to try the latest diet (low carb, high protein, low fat, no fat, you name it) with promises that this will (finally!) be the solution—your shortcut to a thinner body. Advertising efforts also deeply affect our children, who develop distorted body images and are often on diets as early as nine or 10 years of age.

Our culture touts diet pills, celebrity workouts, convenience foods and trendy diets to help us achieve our desired weight, but these quick-fix solutions have backfired. America’s populace has reached its highest weight in history. About half of Americans are overweight; one-third are obese. Diets steer us away from our common sense and dip deeply into our pocketbooks while eliciting few, if any, lasting results. Why?

• Diets don’t work because each person is unique, with different needs based on gender, age, ancestry and lifestyle; how could one diet be right   for everyone?

• Diets don’t work because they are extreme solutions. As in physics, if a pendulum swings to one extreme, it has to swing equally to the other. A diet might work for a short amount of time, but research shows that almost all diets result in a 10-pound gain once off the diet.

• Diets don’t work because they are too restrictive. People who fail on diet plans are not flawed or weak. Diets by nature require discipline and restriction at levels that are unsustainable by a healthy human body.

•  Most people are disconnected from why they gain weight and see diet as the only culprit. For example, ignoring or discounting emotions is often the first thing to cause weight imbalances.

In our fast-paced world, we have lost sight of many aspects of life that truly nourish and balance our bodies, such as slowing down, eating a home-cooked meal and spending quality time with loving people. Eating consciously and making simple lifestyle changes will create positive results and release you from the endless cycle of dieting.

Given half a chance, your body will balance out by itself, but this is only possible by getting out of the diet mentality and listening to what you truly need. Imagine taking all of the outward energy you expend on diets, fads and gimmicks and turning it inward, so that you can listen to your heart and inner wisdom. There is no such thing as a quick fix; you already have everything you need within you. With careful thought and loving reflection, you can feed yourself in a nourishing way. Working with your body rather than against it will bring you increased energy, stabilized weight and sustainable health.

If you are a yo-yo dieter or just watch the dieting craze, you are probably familiar with the new Body by Vi. These meal replacement shakes are pretty tasty but are they good for you? I have looked up a few of the ingredients and would ask that you consider the information before eliminating a meal for a shake.

Hydrolysate whey – The biggest concern is casein which has been shown to be a trigger for cancer – reference The China Study, T. Colin Campbell. Other concerns:  Allergies. During the cheese-making process, two proteins are produced: whey protein and casein. Casein accounts for 80% and is mainly what triggers allergic reactions. By contrast, whey comprises only 20% of milk’s proteins and also has a higher quality rating. While isolated pure whey protein is generally safe, there’s still a risk for allergies. For severe dairy allergies, the protein should be avoided.
Lesser side effects include bloating, cramps, and loss of appetite.

Soy Isolate – According to the American Dietetic Association, soy protein isolate contains antinutrients that can actually delay your body’s ability to digest food and absorb nutrients into the blood stream.

The method by which soy protein isolate is processed and manufactured involves acid washing it in aluminum tanks. As a result, large amounts of aluminum are placed into the finished product. In addition, nitrites and chemical flavorings are used to add flavor. These chemicals have been linked to the development of certain cancers, allergies and even Alzheimer’s disease.

Soy increases estrogen activity in the body.  It is important to note that this only refers to the consumption of large amounts of processed soy isolate proteins, not natural soy protein foods such as edamame, soy beans or unprocessed soy products.

Sucralose – Although it was also a short-term test, Duke’s study found that sucralose contributes to obesity, destroys healthy intestinal bacteria, and prevents prescription drugs from being absorbed properly. So much for it being a “diet food.”

Need to lose weight or improve your daily nutrition through healthy eating habits. We will help you understand what food does in your body and teach you to eat real, whole foods. The foods your body knows.

“No. Try not. Do… or do not. There is no try.”   Yoda

Have you made your New Year’s resolution yet?  It makes me think about how every year we all set a “New Year’s Resolution” and within a couple of weeks or months the intent has vanished. Why? Because they are just plain hard to keep and not always specific. So maybe we should approach the “New Year’s Resolution” a little differently than having a glass of champagne and making a toast to what we think we should do in the upcoming year.What if we approached our resolution with commitment and an action plan? If you are going to make a resolution, it is important to be disciplined in your approach to make the change happen.

According to Time magazine the top three New Year Resolutions are 1. Lose Weight and Get Fit 2. Stop Smoking 3. Learn Something New. According to Squidoo the top three are 1. Quit Smoking 2. Get into the habit of being fit and 3. Lose Weight – Beat the battle of the bulge. These same three resolutions are on the list year after year after year. And year after year people do not succeed at meeting their goals. Success does not just happen. It begins with a well-thought out plan. It begins with a decision.

Decide that you are going to make it happen for you. I recently read a statement from Joshua Wayne, Personal Development Coach, which applies to all the goals we set for ourselves and why we struggle with making the changes. In regards to weight loss Joshua says, “You haven’t fully DECIDED to lose the weight.” He continues by saying “This may sound like a strange thing to say, particularly considering you may have been focused (or even obsessed!) with weight loss for a long time by now.”

Joshua points out that “being focused on your desire to change something, and truly deciding it will happen (in your core) are two different things. The greatest form of commitment is making a DECISION that IT IS DEFINITELY GOING TO HAPPEN in your life. It’s helpful to understand that the suffix of DECIDE is C-I-D-E…same as homicide, suicide, genocide. ‘Cide’ means to kill off. So when you DECIDE, you are killing off other options.

You are killing off:

- The possibility of remaining overweight or any other resolution you are making.
- the old notions of who you were before accomplishing your goals
- old habits that held you back from living the way you want (without the weight, being fit, being healthy….you fill in what you desire to be).
- self-sabotage and belief that you don’t deserve it or can’t have it.”

So when you DECIDE that you are going to make it happen, then you are ready to do whatever it takes. And that means that you will do whatever it takes to reach your goal and not let anything stand in your way. You will make a decision with determination. Write it down. Post it where you will see it. Put a plan in place. Work with a coach to keep you on track. Make it happen. This is a commitment to becoming stronger in you and changing your habits for a more positive and healthy lifestyle.

If you are like many others and have put weight loss, getting fit and being healthier at the top of your list, are you ready to really decide and commit to your goal? Part of the process of making lifestyle changes is identifying what is your motivation. It’s easy to say ” I need to lose 10 lbs.” But, as we all know, it’s not easy and takes work to really lose it. So what is behind your saying I need to lose 10 lbs.? Step number 1 is to set your goal, not just say it. Why are you setting a goal of 10 lbs.? In order to make it happen, you need to be very clear with yourself as to why you have that goal. Why do you want to lose weight? It might be to feel more confident in yourself, to get into your favorite jeans or a swimsuit, to be more attractive to your husband. You may have a special event like a wedding or reunion coming up. Or, you may have a deeper reason such as your last visit to the doctor where you were told that you needed to lose weight to lower your blood pressure, change your cholesterol readings, and that you were pre-diabetic. You may just be tired of feeling run-down, foggy brained, low energy, hormonal. Also you could feel like you’re aging to quickly.

Establishing why you want to lose weight, get fit and be healthier with no questions about it is the first step to setting a goal with determination. You need to own this because this is what will keep you motivated each day. As you write down your reason, also write down all the feelings that come with meeting that goal. For example, if it’s because you want to get into your old skinny jeans how will you feel when you pull those jeans up over your hips? Happy, sexy, confident, powerful. Paint the picture in your mind of what you will look like in those jeans and how you will be feeling.

Establishing your “why” and being very clear in your motivation is a very important first step. The next step is to become focused in whatever way works for you. Studies show that those individuals that write down their goals and commit to paper are 90% more successful. That is a good place to start. Write down goals and motivations on index cards or post its. Put them where you will see them daily to help you keep focused each day. It’s very easy to get stressed and lose sight of your goals unless you have a system in place. Recording in a daily journal is an excellent tool. Working with a coach that can help you stay focused and energized is very successful. (Athletes and successful business people work with coaches every day.) Join a group and gain support with peers. Just remember that “success is not owned, it’s rented. The rent is due every day.” Make 2012 your year!!

Vickie Bunzey

Director, Renew Natural Weight Loss

Now that the holidays are gone, it’s time to get rid of foods that are doing more harm than good. Here is a quick check of your refrigerator.

Get rid of: Creamers with artificial additives or sugars, regular margarines or spreads that contain “partially hydrogenated oil,” yogurt with added sugary fruit or artificial sweeteners, and American or processed cheeses, “cheese food” and cream cheese.
Replace with: Organic, hormone-free milk, organic soy, almond, rice or oat beverages (look for organic soy products that do not contain the thickening agent carrageenan, and that are calcium-fortified); low-fat, organic yogurt (plain or a lower sugar vanilla – add your own organically grown fruit); and small amounts of natural, hard cheeses or varieties of soft cheese that are naturally lower in fat.

Dr. A. Weil

New research suggests that many weight problems are all in the head, but not in the way you might suppose. Two studies published in the December 27, 2011 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation indicate that the poor dietary choices that have led to much of the obesity in the U.S. might damage brain cells around the hypothalamus, an area that helps regulate hunger and thirst, possibly causing you to feel hungry even though you’ve eaten more than enough. The damage appears to stem from inflammation promoted by high fat diets. Although we’ve known for some time that high fat diets can lead to inflammatory changes in the body, these changes were believed to take weeks or months to occur. However, the researchers who conducted the two studies are now reporting that changes in the brain due to inflammation can develop within as little time as 24 hours based on their studies with mice and rats. The same effects were seen on MRIs of the brains of obese humans. The investigators found that while initial brain changes due to high fat diets were only temporary, they become permanent with continued high fat eating.

Reference: Andrew Weil Weekly Bulletin

Beat the Holiday Weight Gain

Did your holiday weight gain begin with Halloween candy? Did you spend November getting off a few pounds before Thanksgiving dinner? And now here it is….the wonderful, joyful, crazy, dreaded month of December.

I checked my calendar (before Thanksgiving) and I already had four holiday events that I RSVP’d yes to. My plan is to enjoy the holidays, my friends and family, selected foods and remain the same weight. For those of us that watch the scales climb way too easily, now is the time to make a plan. For this time of year, a plan to maintain your weight is a good plan. Trying to lose weight over the holidays can be a struggle.

1. The first thing you can do is make a commitment to yourself to relax and enjoy the season without stressing about food. It will be a little different for everyone as to how this is done. The important thing is that you do it. Think about a mindset for each day. Plan the day, especially when you know that you have a lunch, dinner or party to enjoy. Tip, those that write down their goals and keep a food journal are twice as successful than those that don’t write it down.

2. To ward off cravings or over indulgence, remember to start your day with a good breakfast. Your breakfast should have a healthy protein that will help set your metabolism for the day as well as give you a good start to keeping your blood sugars level.

3. Don’t save up calories. By skipping meals you set yourself up for disaster. Your blood sugars drop and you begin craving. Your metabolism slows down and your body panics because it doesn’t know when the next meal is. When faced with a table of sweets, treats like sausage balls and cheese crackers, chips and dips and so many other temptations, it’s almost impossible not to dive in. Your body is hungry, needing nutrition and it’s much too easy to say I haven’t eaten since breakfast so I can eat now. Breakfast, lunch and dinner should be a balance of protein, carbs like vegetables and fruits and healthy fats. A balanced plate will keep you in control of the party. When your body is functioning properly with good nutrition, a balanced metabolism and energy, it is much easier to peruse the goody table and pick and choose what you will actually enjoy. Pick your treats and chew them slowly, savor them. You will find that a bite here and there will give you satisfaction. If you are out for lunch or dinner, use the same principles of a balanced plate for your meal. Your hypothalamus takes about 20 minutes to tell your body that it is full. So eat slowly, take small bites and chew before swallowing.

4. A balanced plate will also help you control the calories. I don’t like counting calories but know that calories count. By making healthier choices, eating the right portion sizes, it is much easier to control and limit the not so healthy choices. When you do have a day that you know is higher than it probably should be in calories, enjoy the day. Tomorrow have a mindset to nourish your body the right way and not begin the roller coaster of gaining weight.

5. The holiday season is also a great time to play. If you already exercise on a regular basis, then by all means do not stop. But you can also add some extra fun….go dancing, walk with your children or husband or maybe try the local ice skating rink. If you do over indulge, a little extra exercise will help burn those calories.

6. Be nice to yourself. This is a season of joy and love. Start with yourself. Eat healthy, balanced meals. Treat yourself but don’t over indulge. Don’t stress. Stress leads to weight gain. Pick your “me” time and take care of yourself. When you take care of yourself, you have much more to give to others. You feel well. You have energy. You have balance.

Many of us use caffeine to give us energy and keep us going. There have even been reports that caffeine is a healthy dietary supplement. The controversy is how much is OK. Caffeine gives us a false energy and ultimately produces more stress on our bodies. The downside is that caffeine causes the release of adrenaline , a stress hormone, making it part of our stress cycle of needing it to keep up our energy. The adrenal glands producing these stress hormones wear out. Over production of adrenaline also interferes with the balance of our metabolism. In the long term, caffeine can contribute to weight gain in conjunction with a poor nutritional diet.

by Gayle Bookout, Renew Weight Loss Coach

“In the moment the stress response is activated, heart rate speeds up, blood pressure increases, respiration quickens, hormones that help provide immediate energy such as adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol are released into the circulatory system, blood flow is rerouted away from the midsection and toward the head for quick thinking and to the arms and legs for the power necessary to fight or flee. Most importantly, the digestive system shuts down… All of the body’s metabolic functions must be geared directly for survival” This is an excerpt from ‘The Slow Down Diet: Eating for Pleasure, Energy and Weight Loss’ by Marc David (I will be quoting from his book a lot in the paper). This is what happens to your body when it experiences stress. Your body goes into survival mode. Now, stress can come in many forms… your kids are driving you crazy, the phone won’t stop ringing, the boss is pressuring you to meet a deadline, someone cuts you off in traffic… a bear is chasing you… you eat too fast, or beat yourself up for what you are eating. Whatever your stress is, the body’s reaction is the same… shutting down your digestion. Have you ever eaten in a hurry or while driving the car and later you feel like that food is just sitting in your stomach? Well, depending on how stressed or anxiously you eat that meal, your food is sitting in your stomach waiting on your body to go out of survival mode and back into digestive mode. You could eat the healthiest meal on the planet, but if you are stressed or anxious when you eat it, you are doing your body more harm.
When you’re under stress, one of the chemicals your body produces is Cortisol. There are a number of studies that show a strong correlation between high levels of cortisol and fat accumulation. “One of cortisol’s chemical responsibilities is to signal the body to store fat and not build muscle.” Insulin is another bodily chemical that job is to store fat. When you eat a lot of high carb/high sugar foods, your body produces too much insulin and tells the body to aggressively store excess dietary carbohydrates as fat. Insulin also signals the body to not release stored fat. Wait, so when I’m stressed not only do I store fat, but I also don’t build muscle. Right! and the fat that is stored is usually around the midsection. So, ask yourself, am I really trying to eat the right things and exercise and yet I am still gaining or not losing weight? If the answer is “yes”, then you need to look at and address the stress in your life. “Chronic stress decreases the thermic efficiency which is your ability to burn calories and metabolize stored fat. The bottom line is this: Worrying about fat increases fat. Anxiety about weight loss causes your body to put on and retain it.”
So, what’s the solution? Relax! Have you ever gone on vacation, eaten more than you usually would, but lost weight or at least didn’t gain any? Because most people when they go on vacation relax. Some are more stressed than when they were home, but most find a way to relax. Now, how can you relax without going on a permanent vacation? Start with something simple… breathe. This is simple enough and something we do every day. However, when you take several deep breathes and as you exhale you blow out the stress; you are helping to put your body in relaxation mode. So, whenever you feel stressed, take a couple of deep, soothing breathes and feel the tension leave you. Oxygen, by the way, is a fuel for your digestive system. The more you breathe and take in Oxygen, the more your metabolism burns. So, next time you’re eating, check in with yourself, get back into your body and your of your head and see if you’re eating in a hurry or in a stressed attitude. If so, stop and take a couple of deep breathes, then pay attention to what you’re eating. Enjoy it! Notice the way it tastes, feels, it’s texture, it’s aroma and everything else about that piece of food you are putting in your mouth. Get some pleasure out of it. Yes, pleasure. Your brain needs to register pleasure when you eat something. If it’s doesn’t get any pleasure or you eat so fast that the brain didn’t have time to even realize you’ve eaten, then you might as well not have. If the brain doesn’t get what it wants, pleasure, it will tell you so, but not by saying “excuse me, I didn’t get any pleasure in the foods you ate today, could you slow down and let me savor what you’re eating?” No, it just knows it didn’t get what it needed and it says one thing “Hungry”. Then you end up eating everything in the house to try to satisfy the brain, but you do this in such a hurry that the brain still doesn’t get any pleasure and it keeps saying “Feed me”.
Ever had a candle light, soft music, decadent meal? Why not! Set the mood, not for romance, but for pleasure. Pleasure with your food. Now, I know you can’t eat that way at every meal. But try to be still, calm and breathe. Add at least 5 to 10 minutes on to the time you spend eating every meal. I know you’re busy. But what is more important than your health. Try this for one week, even one day and see if it doesn’t make a difference in your life and on the scales.