An easy example for changing your Paradigm

Hello everyone,

I am going to use a simple example for paradigms and how to change them.  Are all of them going to be this easy?  That depends on you, your core values, and your willing to change or at least to accept a different point of view.

For many people, it is hard to accept a different point of view on a situation, hence the reason many of us have arguments, and disagreements. 

Sometimes, even when we can see and accept the different point of view, it still clashes with one of our core values, and again, the heated discussion ensues.

We have seen this many times in the past, wars have been fought over the inability (or unwillingness) to accept a different point of view.

My example should not create a war, or even a heated discussion, it is entirely meant to be used as a thought exercise to help one to understand the basics of trying to change one's own paradigm.

I will start with the question:

How many sides does a coin have?

Answer:

Almost everyone, immediately says two.  I would have to disagree, its more than that, and here is why.

We live in a 3 dimension world (really more than that, but I would like to keep this simple).

A coin has height, width, and breadth.  Most people forget about the edge of the coin.  So at the very least, the simple coin has 3 sides.

On occasion, I have taken this a step further, and added it has an outside and an inside.  So now, based on language, we are up to 5 sides.  Again, I still have not broken any major paradigms for people, I have just points out some not so commonly used ones to make a point.

Hence the simple coin, has now gone from a 2 dimensional circle (heads and tail) to a 3 dimensional round piece of flat metal, with a given thickness, giving us an edge in our thinking.  Furthermore, we just added 2 more dimensions, giving us a 5 dimensional coin, and still all we have done is changed how we think about describing the same object.

Changing our paradigms, can be this easy, we have to be able to accept, understand, and use the other points of view and the new rules to change how we think about a particular situation.  This is one of the key concepts to changing your own paradigm, and changing yourself for the better.

Until next time,

Dan W.

Shifting Your Paradigm...

Hello everyone,

In case your wondering about this topic, and how it applies, is easy to explain, a little harder to understand.

The answer is training.

Your paradigm, each of them that you have, was created based on observation by you.  Later, it was reinforced by further observation of your environment and your perception of the people, things, and events in that environment. 

Some may argue this, and say well some one told this to me...well, you were paying attention.

The paradigms you have are yours alone, you created them, you use them, and you would not behave the way you do with out them.

The issue comes up when you want to make a change.  Doesn't matter the reason, you no longer want to be overweight, you no longer want to be skinny, you no longer want to have a habit, good or bad.

Well, you have made a conscious decision to change.  Now how to make that change?

When it comes to weight loss, people want a system, (already proven system), to use.  When it fails, they want to blame the person(s), that provided or developed it.  Rarely, do they place the blame on themselves.

The reason, your paradigms!

• It's too easy
• It's too complicated
• It's too hard or demanding
• I don't have enough time
• etc...

While these paradigms also sound a lot like excuses, they have a very real impact on you, and your behavior.

Let's examine what a paradigm really is:
It is a model or pattern that is used to evaluate an object, situation, person.

The paradigm is normally used by the subconscious mind to moderate your behavior, for a given situation, or circumstances.

I would like to challenge you to explore all of your paradigms and how they affect your behavior with respect to your weight and health.

Maybe, once we understand what our (your) paradigms are, we can then work to change them.

Until the next post...

Dan

Paradigms...

Hello everyone,

I was sitting through some training the other day at work.  In the training they were talking about what it takes to make something a "value" to a person.  You know the type of something that guides your everyday behavior, with out you really knowing it.

What they were talking about was changing a person's paradigm, to make something a value.

I had to think about that, a lot!

We all have core values, and some are our religion, our family, the set of ethics we live by, based on our previous experiences, you the sort of stuff I am talking about.

Every once in awhile, some "thing" comes along and it causes us to question our values.  This is the point where a person can make a significant change in themselves.  This is the point where we can discuss paradigms and how to change them.  This is where you can effect sufficient change to make it to the next level.

Now, sometimes it is an "a-ha" moment, other times it just kind of creeps up on you, with out you really catching on to it, until it's too late.

Our paradigms, drive our values, which drive our behaviors, our actions, and our feelings.

How do I know this, I have had to change a few of them in my time, and I am sure you have also, you just may not have realized it for what it was.

Let's take the "Flat Earth" concept for a little bit.  If we keep going east, and we end up back in the original location from which we start, we disprove the concept, and have to consider that the earth is something other than a flat plane.

This same time of thinking can be applied to other areas of your life.  So consider my blog, and opinions, as my attempt to help you have an "a-ha" moment, and start you on your journey to change your paradigm, your way of thinking, about how to look at your health.

Stay tuned,

Dan

Catching Up 2

Hello,

For those that have been following my blog...I apologize for not keeping up with my end of the bargain.

I did not pick up the blogging thing after completing my taxes for the year.

I had a health issue that I did not expect, and a slight reversal in managing my weight.

For those of you that want to read about it, please go here:

The Day Diabetes Said Hello

Needless to say, dealing with this issue and the issue of weight loss, has been complicated for me.  As I am sure it would be complicated for anyone being newly diagnosed with the disease.

There have been some things that I am considering, and I am thinking about.

I will provide you posts, as I am better able to explain the point-of-view that would like to express about the situation.

Additionally, during this time, I have picked up a second job, and changed my primary job, so these past few months have been extremely busy, with very little time to do normal things.  Let alone, setting aside time to think coherently about what it is I would like to say, and express to the readership.

Thank you for you patience, and may you all enjoy the holidays.

Dan

Diabetes

Hello Everyone,

I am sorry I have not posted in a while.

I was recently diagnosed with Diabetes.  Those of you that know me, already know this.  Those of you that don't, you now know.

I have written an article about the day I was diagnosed.  Please read it and pass it on.

It is here: The Day Diabetes Said Hello!

My hope is that my experience and openness about the symptoms I had, will help others catch it early.

I will be making more posts about this disease, as I learn more, and figure the best way to manage it.

Thank you

Ah...Yes Getting back into the swing of things...

Everyone,

I apologize for being so distracted, and not continuing with the posts.

During my short hiatus I learned a few things, or should I say was reminded of a few things.

In the last 6 weeks or so:

I have enjoyed the experience that a new birth brings to the family, again.  Except now, I am a grandfather.

I have been reminded of the sorrows that follow the passing of someone you know well.  And the importance of memories.

I have also had the opportunity to accept a responsibility everyone has, and that is to deal with taxes.

Each of these events, carries their own level of stress, and other peculiarities.  Such as emotions, and many of these emotions relate to how well we eat or don't eat.

For me, I stayed within the weight band I have been at for awhile.  I normally pick a 5 pound band to be within.

Now all of these happened with a relatively short period of time, as well as a few other stresses.

Again, upon reflection, I believe what I'm saying about the changing of personal habits, and how these changes can have a lasting, and meaningful impact on one's own health and weight.

Thank you for reading

Daniel W.

Catching Up

All,

I apologize for not posting for the last few weeks.  My life has been very busy, with the birth of my first grandchild, the passing of a friend, and well the only other thing that never goes away, taxes.

I will pick back up with my posts after the taxes are taken care of.

Thank you for your patience.

Dan

Let's Think Long Term...

Hello Everyone,

First, I apologize for not making a post for awhile.

I had to think about something I have known for awhile, but was recently reminded of during my participation in a few different discussion on the Internet.

Let's consider a question or two.

First, what is dieting to almost anyone that is overweight?  The real answer?

It is temporary, period.  People who diet, or use weight loss products, are wanting a short-term temporary fix to a permanent problem.

 To me this means that they are not committed to making the change necessary to loss the excess weight they are carrying around.

I know, I am not as committed as I can be, as I have hit another plateau, in my weight loss regimen.  I am working on it, by evaluating my current situation and trying to change it.  I need to work on my self-talk, how much I'm sleeping, and on my overall attitude.  I know this is what I need to be doing, because it has worked for me already!

I have to go and re-adjust or tweak my habits to get rolling again.  Well, I also fell off the food wagon again, and ate a little more than I should have over the last several days.

So I Plateaued.  That's the point of a plateau when your trying to lose weight.  For me, my plateaus are about a 5 lb band that I am stuck in.

Now back to my point, if I was relying on a weight loss product, I might be considering using another one, more of the same one, or maybe mixing more than one or two of them together to plow through the plateau.

It would probably never even enter into my mind, that this is the worst thing someone can do to their body.  Nor would it enter in my mind to change my eating habits, or improve my attitude, or get enough sleep, or learn to breath correctly, or heaven forbid, drink an extra cup of water during the day.

Please consider if you are going to use a "shake mix" to lose and maintain your weight, what are you going to be doing 3 years, or 5 years, or maybe even 15 years down the road?

At some point in time, you are going to want to stop drinking that shake mix.  Please only consider those plans that are going to help you develop healthy eating and cooking habits.

Oh wait, cooking habits?  Did I just mention another rule to add to my list?

Yes, I did.

There is more than a ton of recipes out there, probably even more than that. 

Let's just imagine some of the ways we can improve our cooking habits to help us be and eat healthier. 

If more of us paid attention to this, maybe, just maybe, we wouldn't need to have that shake mix for the rest of our lives, because we chose to do that instead of learning a few healthy habits to better manage our weight.

Until the next post....

Dan W.

Eat...Substitution

Hello Everyone,

Let's talk about substitution...I did in my other blog, and it got me to thinking about this one.

Man, I love a great idea.

There are lots of substitutions one can make in their diet.

Some of the substitutions one should consider:

Mashed Cauliflower instead of Mashed Potatoes.

More chicken versus steak or other dark meats, and if you're in the south, maybe a little gator to go along with the chicken.

Another, more fish instead of pork or chicken.

Rotate through your veggies at the store, talk to the people behind the counter about different recipes, or the best way to cook parsnip!

How many different lettuces are there?  Make a salad with different ones, through in some shredded carrot, purple onions, different olives, a few slices of them little bitty oranges they have in the store, and tie it all together with a clear and fruity vinaigrette.  WOW!  Your taste buds just freaken' exploded!

You just made an awesome salad, probably one that you would have to pay good money for at a decent restaurant.

Anyways, the point is mix up your diet a little, your body will just absolutely love you for it. 

Maybe, just maybe, you'll have to change that menu you keep of all the good ole stand-byes.  Every one has one, I do.  I have made some changes to mine in the past.

I used to have a foster child that was a vegetarian, after some talking I made some substitutions in the recipes I normally cooked.  You know, some of them were not half bad.

The point, if you have plateaued, and you believe you have checked everything else on my little list of things, change up your diet, try some new foods, or at the very least, try a few new recipes.

Until the next post....change up your diet, your body will thank you.

 Dan W.

Know Your Signs - Plateau!

Hello Everyone,

Let's talk about the dreaded plateau.

You know the one that you hit after you been dieting for awhile, and well you either really slow way down or stop altogether with respect to your weight gain or weight loss.

Everyone seems to hate them, I don't, it just means that I have met one of my mini-goals and it's time to move onto the next one.

A plateau is where the goes in = goes out.  Personally, it may even be a little beneficial for you body to re-gauge or get used to the balance.  It's a stepping stone to the next level.

So let's re-evaluate your situation.  Find out what your new BMR is, tweak the level of activity you're at, and adjust your diet a little, and set your next goal.

Tweaking your activity is not adding another 5 miles to your run or bike ride, but how about let's knock of 15 or 20 seconds from you 5 minute walk to and from the car when you get to work.  Maybe it's parking a few more spaces away from the store or mall entrance,  maybe its just picking up the pace a little as you walk around during the day. 

It's these little things that will add up and make a difference, both with your weight loss goals, your overall fitness going down the road, and your overall energy level going forward.

Think, and do...make the change and commit yourself

Until the next post

Dan W.

Eat and Sleep......Sleep and Eat

Hello Everyone...

Well, my last rule is really two rules.

The first one I want to talk about is getting sufficient proper sleep.  I am a long time sufferer of Sleep Apnea.

Now I know, everyone is going to tell me that they get enough sleep.  Unless you're hitting the 7 1/2 hour mark, with a major portion of that being deep REM sleep, then well, I have to the throw the BS flag.

One of the things the doctor told me when I started my therapy many moons ago, was that oddly enough, my weight should go down, as I would be getting better sleep.  In part he was right, there were a few more factors he didn't mention, but I do in my other posts.

Currently, I am nearing a plateau, and I know this by the rate of my weight loss, it has gone down.  So a took some time to think about it, and here's what I came up with.  I have been putting a lot of time into the blogs and developing some online presence, to eventually build into some thing more, so my sleep has suffered.  Well, this affected two other things, such as my appetite and my attitude.  These have both gone in the wrong direction, and well maybe my choices have not been so stellar of late when it comes to food.

Hence, I have decided to add some sleep time, (again), yeah its just like watching what you eat, you have to watch how much you sleep, as well.

How much sleep is enough, watch your attitude and your weight, these signals will tell you when you are getting enough.

Now onto eating...

If you have noticed, I have not specifically laid out what to eat, or made a recommendation for any specific plan.  Why?  Because I made the choices of what to eat or not eat, that best suited me and my life style.

Last year I noted that when I eat too much chocolate, I get a migraine.  So for me, I had to change how much I ate of it.  Yeah, the offset, when I do indulge, it really is that much better.

Another choice I have had to make was about peanut butter.  I could eat a few tablespoons of good peanut butter for a snack and not even think about.  That was one of my problems, not thinking about it.  I would go through a large jar of peanut butter, in a matter of a week or so.I have significantly reduced the amount of peanut butter I ingest nowadays. 

Both of these decisions about my diet are my own.  I did them for me, and to reach my goal.  I have made other decisions, but mostly they have been about the portion sizes.

You know about 4 oz of meat, should fit into the palm of most adults?  Hmmm,

America is overweight, mostly due to the fact that we overeat.  Now, I understand going out to eat, you want to splurge a little, I do.  You just cant splurge all the time.

You need to ensure that you eat sufficiently through out the day, to meet the needs of your body.  If your going to work out later, by all means, eat a little extra.  but only as much as you plan exercising or working off.

Remember goes in < goes out to lose weight.

If it helps, by smaller plates and bowls and cups...after all our species is very visually orientated, so a small plate with the same amount of food on it, will look more filling than if it was on a larger plate

Once you have your body working normally, you need to ensure you don't end up in the starvation mode, this would be bad, you body then needs to relearn that you are feeding, and then start burning the fat when your body is hungry.

What's wrong with the starvation mode?  You body's main concern is storing if for later.  This is what we are trying to avoid.

The point is, you eat what you would like to within a balanced diet, you don't have to buy into the prepackaged deals if you don't want to.  It takes some time evaluating what you are eating and paying attention to what your body is telling you, to get to the point where you can effectively manage your weight.  It takes practice, and it will be ongoing.

You need to learn what a serving is for all of the different types of foodstuffs.  You only need so many servings a day, if you have more servings, well then you wont lose weight, maybe maintain, or go up  a little.  If you are at your goal weight, then great, your golden.

Make it average out, your weight will average out also.

So there you have it, my rules for weight loss, this is what works for me.

Now I am going to keep blogging, go into more detail on some stuff, point out relevant things on the net, etc...  Otherwise, just try to keep everyone motivated to reach their goal.

If you need some inspiration, let me know, if you want to know more about one of my rules, let me know.

If you want to sell your own product, don't let me know, start your own blog, please do not comment here about your pills or supplements, or a specific diet.  My rules should work for most people on any reasonable diet plan.

May the tape measure be with you....until the next post,

Dan W.

Move It!

Move It!

I can't believe I'm saying this at all...

I firmly believe in couch potatoes.  I love to watch TV, I hate the fact that the "seasons" have grown shorter, and the shows I love are being taken off air and replaced by well, junk.  Not to mention the fact that 2 weeks into a new season, and they are already playing reruns.  Gimme a break.

That's probably why I have a few gaming systems and more than a few games to play on them.  I really like the Wii Fit...need to start using that again.  Anybody that thinks that they are a master at any of the online games hasn't been playing against the true professional (not me) and been taken out by a couch potato or a 10 year old.  Yeah, my second favorite is Halo, pick one, snipe one.

Anyways, I have always hated exercise.  Why...it really hurts, we're not talking aching muscles (I can deal with that), we are talking true pain, whole body type. I should know, I have suffered with migraines since I was about 25.  Ask anyone that has migraines, they know the level and type of pain I am talking about.

I know for most people exercise is just achy muscles, and burning lungs. Hey that's the way it should be, go for it. The point is, if your goal is to lose some weight, then you obviously have to increase your activity level, along with properly managing your diet.  Still comes down to goes in < goes out.

However, I do realize that any part of a lifestyle change, which is what I am advocating for with my blog, does involve activity.  So when I say Move It!, I mean increasing your overall activity level on a consistent basis.  If you are into biking 3 time a week, rain, snow, sunshine, then so be it, add a little something, something on the side. You know walk up the stairs a few extra times in house.  Play with your puppies on the floor, (I have 6 of them), and they love running and jumping and nipping, and, and, and.

By slowly increasing my activity level, consistently over time, well it makes a whole lot more sense for me.  Here's why.  I used to weigh 285 pounds, close to 100 pounds over the medically recommended weight for my height.  Well, when you run, jump, bike, stomp, all of that extra weight is moving right along with you, increasing the stress and strain on both joints, and tendons.  I'm sorry, I'm just not into injuring myself.  But by increasing the amount of daily activity, such as walking, going up stairs, moving, dancing, Wii Fit Hula Hooping, I don't hurt as much, and I can deal with that.

I do realize that at some point in the near future (I hope), that I will be at a weight were doing more moderate exercise won't pose such a risk of injury.  Until then, I will find the little extras in my daily life, that I can do to increase my overall activity level.

The really important part, is to be more active then what you were previously.  This is what I have committed myself to, and to date, I have been successful in losing weight consistently, (currently going on over a year), and working on the 40 pound mark.

The other part of this, is in order to sustain your activity level for increasing periods of time as well.  For those of us confessed (or not) couch potatoes, it also means that we need to relearn to breath properly during exercise.  You do not breath the same as when you are not exercising.

So there is a lot of information on the net for breathing correctly, both during exercise periods and non-exercise periods.  Don't blow this part off...seriously, you need to breath correctly or suffer the consequences.  My 2 cents are in my previous post...The Breathe of Life.

If you need some suggestions for activities:

- Turn on the radio and dance, don't worry about, the only ones watching you are the dogs, and they just think your playing with them anyways.

- Like I said before, walk up and down the stairs a few times...

- Play the Wii Fit, it starts of easy, but the higher levels, they will make you sweat!

- Take your dogs for a walk.

- Maybe you and the significant other can figure out an activity you can do together, for say 20 minutes or so...

- Maybe play with your kids at the play ground.

- Go roller skating, I know the local rink has an 80's night, and well some of the current music isn't so bad either.

The point is increasing your activity is possible if you want to, you will see opportunities everywhere.  If you don't want to yet, you won't see the opportunities, period.

If the latter is the case, refer back to my post on "Drink and Be Merry".

Until next time, the little things you do add up, keep doing

Dan W. 

Know Your Signs!

Know Your Signs!

No, I'm not talking your astrological sign or anything exotic like that.  I'm talking about recognizing how you are feeling and what your body is telling you.

I'm talking about recognizing your feelings, how your body is feeling, how you think about yourself.  You know the hardcore stuff.

These are what will make the difference for you, when you chose to lose weight.

For example, without acknowledging it, I started to become depressed for a short while last year, and I plateaued  on my weight loss.  I would fluctuate a few pounds, but I was not losing the weight on the whole.

Additionally, because of the situation, I was distracted and lost significant focus on my weight loss goal, resulting in my plateau lasting for more than several weeks.

Up to this time, I was losing almost 1 pound a week.

I had to refocus, on both my weight loss, and on what I was eating.  Now, like a lot of other people in the world, when you get depressed, you change what you are eating, what you are drinking, how much you sleep, and yes I believe how you breathe.  This is what happened to me.

I started overeating some, my attitude tanked, my breathing was off, I was not drinking as much water, and was drinking more sodas, etc...

This was mentally very challenging, I had to concentrate on resolving each of these problems.  When I did, my body started losing weight again!  It did take effort on my part, and time.

So for this post...the signs I need you to know are:

Attitude
  - depression or happiness
  - commitment
Physical
  - Belly breathing or chest breathing
  - Water at least as much as (or more then) other fluids or less then.  You can tell by the color of your urine. dark yellow not enough water, light yellow to clear, enough water.
  - Hunger signals, are you overly hungry, pleasantly hungry, comfortable, full or stuffed (like a turkey on turkey day).
  - and of course on average, is your weight decreasing on average or has it plateaued.
  - Lastly, how tired you are, is a direct sign of how much sleep you get and / or how depressed you are.  You need to ensure that you get enough sleep through out the day.  Your body needs it to complete its normal processes, such as getting rid of waste and repairing itself.

So going forward, learn you signs, if you need to, write them down, along with your goal.

Until the next post

Dan W

Commit Yourself!

Commit Yourself.

What does that mean?

In the context that I use it, it is a process.

It is:

• Having a smart goal
• Focusing on that goal
• Being knowledgeable 
• Being honest to yourself
• Being dedicated
• Being action orientated

 The single biggest difference between successful people and unsuccessful people?  Clear, written goals.

Please see this article:

http://www.darinspindler.com/general/successful-vs-unsuccessful-people-business-owners/

Now last year, I had the goal of losing 50 pounds.  Did I achieve that goal, I am sorry to say that I did not.  I only lost a little over 30 pounds.  I started 2012 at 285 pounds

My goal this year:  I will lose another 30 pounds by 31 December 2013, by using the "8 Rules for Weight Loss."  This year I started the year off at 252 pounds.  I am already below that as of this post.

Why did I not achieve my goal last year.  There are a few reasons, and one of them was not writing down my goal, and focusing on it.  I believe that there are a few other reasons, but the bottom line.  It is my responsibility, I did not stay focused as I did not have a goal.

This year, I am going to stay focused and I just wrote down my goal.

So until the next post...Commit Yourself!

Dan W.

Be Hungry!

Wow.  I do not believe how simple this is.

Your body has to be hungry to lose weight.  This is so common sense.

Having said that, your hunger, like your food, your activity level, your breathing and your attitude, your water, all have to be managed.  The tough part about that, they have to managed together, regardless of what diet you're on.

So what do I mean by that, manage your hunger.  Yep.  If your always full, your body has no need to tap its reserves.  That means no fat loss and no weight loss.

Now, going to an extreme is more detrimental to your health and weight, than just being comfortably full.  If your hunger is the result of you starving your body of sufficient food and nutrients, well, that's just bad.  If your hunger shows up between meals or just after you wake up, well that's supposed to happen.

Your hunger is the best sign you have that you need to eat, and you need to eat in a reasonable time frame.  Obviously, you're not going to rush off and pound down the 2lb burrito from the food cart on the street.  Unless that was your planned meal, and within your calorie budget. 

It means, you're going to need to take a break, have some food, preferably stuff that is on your diet plan, and go back to work or play, and just doing your thing.

No, I'm not going to cover any one specific diet in my rules.  Why?  I am going to focus on what most diet plans do not even mention.  I'm going to focus on you, and your other habits.

Again, I am not a doctor, a nutritionist, or any sort of medical specialist.  I am just an average person, like 98% of you out there.

The difference is I started paying attention to what my body was telling me, and I am passing onto you.

I was slowly gaining weight, regardless of what "diet" I followed.  Yes, I exercised plenty, and still no avail.  Again the reason why, was because I was eating to be always full.

Always full to me, meant security.  I'm sure some psychologist would be happy to tell me why, now at this point it doesn't matter.

I now know that I need to be hungry between meals, and when I wake up.  Its not like when I was a child and could burn through the calories just being an active, growing youth.

I'm slightly older, and well being full all time results in my horizontal growth.  So, I have chosen to be hungry for short periods of time, through out the day.  The results over the last year or so, I have lost over 30 lbs, and I AM STILL LOSING WEIGHT.

Again, Practice your Hunger, take it out for a short walk, finish the next task on your agenda, then feed it!

Until the next post, Be pleasantly Hungry.

Dan W.

Drink and Be Merry!

Drink and Be Merry!

Well, that should catch the attention of almost every one...

This phrase alone, generally means its party time!

I get that, I used to be in the Navy, and as well as you can imagine...well never-mind.

However, I am putting rules 2 and 3 together for the reason that I consider them both equally important to my health, and to how much weight I lost.

The resolution I made last year, was to drink as much water, as any other drink I took.

Why?  I realized that there was a significant amount of calories I was neglecting to take into account, for my diet.  It was what I was drinking.  My personal habit, was such that, I would have between 10 to 15 drinks a day of soda, milk, juice, etc...  Keep in mind, this was not servings, this was the convenient container size, the large cup in the cupboard, the 20 oz bottle from the machine, the 32 oz drink at the local fast food joint.  So as you can imagine, a significant source of calories for me was the liquids I was consuming.

So why am I advocating some one to drink?  I am advocating for a person to replace 1/2 of what they are drinking (that is non-water) to be water.  I do understand that this will be no easy task.

PLEASE NOTE: Ice does not count, unless you consume it.

Now for the Be Merry part...

I am talking to those of us that truly know that they are just not happy, probably even depressed, or worse.  You know, what you feel inside, not what other people see, or what you present yourself to be to others.

Having a good, happy attitude is conducive to losing weight.  I did not realize this either until I did a little research online...hmmm.

Maybe this Drink and Be Merry thing has a little merit.

Start small, I did.  It took work and effort, but I started saying the words like "Have a good day" to people.  I also used my words, "please" and "thank you."  I even did small acts of kindness, like helping out a few children at the register in front of me, because they didn't have enough change to get what they came into the store for.  After a while, I was not as depressed, and I was less grumpy.  I still do this, and my overall attitude has improved. 

I also believe that breathing better helped with improving my attitude as much as the actions above did.  That's why the rule for breathing is number one.

So the short strokes are:
 - use more ice in your drinks
 - replace up to 1/2 of your liquids with water
 - use the words that lead you to a better attitude, and it will follow
 - Also, work on your own self-talk, this will speed up the process

While I could write more in depth as to my situation and why these helped me, I will save that for a different venue.

Until the next post,

Drink and Be Merry!

Dan

The Breath of Life

Hello everyone,

I am starting with what I feel has helped me the most, over the last year, to improve my overall health.

I improved how I breathe. 

Last year, I made a decision, based on what I learned when I was a teen, and was reminded of several times over the years, but really just didn't pay attention to or ignored.

With out going into the history of that statement, which may be better saved for another venue, I chose to start "belly breathing."  I actually made a conscious decision, a few times a day, to slow down, relax and force myself to breathe using my abdomen , instead of using my chest muscles to breathe.

While I am not going to cover anything special as far as techniques, as there are many techniques out there for proper breathing, I will say this. Start.  Pick one and start.  I will put a quick description of the important steps at the end of this post.

Why Start?

Oxygen is one of the most critical chemicals for your body. Period.  Ensuring you have sufficient supplies to allow your body to work properly is crucial.  I found this out during my research.

For me, subjectively,  I experienced the following:

Slowly, I started feeling less depressed and less grumpy.

Almost immediately, the amount of weight I was loosing over a week, increased.

Wait...did you catch that?

Did I just say that this was not the first thing I changed in my life last year to lose weight, well in hindsight, it is definitely the most important.

This is now my Rule #1

During my research over the holidays, I found information relating to the use of your diaphragm, the muscle used to "belly breathe." It affects the overall performance of the lymphatic system.

Huh? I know what you people are saying. I said it myself, So What?

Here's the so what.  The lymphatic system is the waste system of the body.  When it is not working right, things back up.  The best analogy to use, is a slow drain or blocked drain in your house.  Yep the shower water swirls around your feet, the bathroom sink doesn't drain quickly and you end up with a ring in the middle of the sink from the soap and toothpaste you used during the morning and didn't have time for the drain cleaner or just no drain cleaner period.  The same thing happens in your body. 

So take a moment to think about the imagery to go along with that statement.

You keep putting stuff in, and the "goes out" keeps backing up.

Make the commitment, take a few moments during the day and focus on your breathing processes.  The diaphragm is the single, biggest muscle that helps move the fluids in the lymphatic system, and keeping the drainage system of the body flowing properly.

Today, a year or so after I started to focus on belly breathing, I take time to do it 10 or 12 times a day.  Additionally, I add in a deep breathe every time I think about it.

I can't wait to try some of the other breathing techniques I read about.  When I do, and I discover the results, I will clue you in, in a future post.

For now, take breath, use your diaphragm, and be happy.

Simple breathing steps.

1. set up a few minutes of quiet time.
2. Stand up, sit down erect in a chair, or lie down on the floor on your back.
3. take a slow deep breath, by consciously using your diaphragm and not your chest muscles until the very end of your breath cycle.
4. hold it a moment or two...relax
5. exhale over the same amount of time you inhaled.
6. repeat steps 1-5 for a few times.

Then go about your business of the day.

Check yourself after doing this for a few weeks and let me know if you see an improvement or not.

Breathe Happy

Dan W.

Why I am writing this blog

Hello,

My name is Dan, and yes, like almost everyone else in the USA, I am working on, aah "managing my weight."  Yeah, I like that phrase a whole lot better than dieting.

But last year, my eyes were opened a little wider about weight loss, and some practices that are not that well known (at least to me) and the impact they have on weight management.

Let me tell you a little history first.  No I am not a doctor, nor am I related to any job the medical field.  In fact, why I started doing what I did, when I did, did not have to do with weight loss at all.  It had to do with my personal well being.  So like everyone else, I am speaking of my personal experiences.  I did not use any pills, or other diet program, I used some advice, and some common sense.  Just don't tell my wife, because then she might raise the bar on the expectation thing.


Anyways, I made the commitment, last January to lose some weight by the Holidays, specifically 50 lbs.  Even with this goal, I still have room to lose more.

Needless to say I fell a little short of my goal of 50 lbs.  Just so you know, I lost 30 lbs by my goal date.  Since then, I have lost 2 more pounds, and I expect to achieve my first goal during the summer of 2013.

What bugged me about my weight loss?  I lost more weight than I expected to lose by making the changes I made.  So during my vacation, I evaluated changes in my life that I did over the year, and researched them.

Almost every one of the changes I made last year, has some basis in fact, or a study done and the effect it has on weight loss.

I'll discuss these, habits if you will, going forward. 

I wish you well in the New Year, and may you achieve your New Year's resolution.

Dan