You’re Thanksgiving Dinner Game Plan

You’re Thanksgiving Dinner Game Plan

Weight loss on the mind or not, everyone thinks of Thanksgiving dinner as a time of overeating. Sure, the holiday is supposed to be about appreciating what you have and spending time with friends and family, but what do you really think of first when you think of Thanksgiving? Thanksgiving dinner, of course.

The Bad News First
How bad can a single meal really be? Pretty bad. Think about the following meal, which isn’t really all that unrealistic.

• 6 ounces of turkey with skin: 351 calories
• 1/4 cup cranberry sauce: 110 calories
• 1 cup stuffing: 260 calories
• 1 cup mashed potatoes plus gravy: 240 calories
• 1 cup candied yams: 280 calories
• 1 dinner roll with butter: 200 calories
• 1 cup green bean casserole: 200 calories
• 1 slice pumpkin pie: 530 calories
• 1 slice pecan pie: 920 calories
• 2 cups apple cider: 300 calories

That’s a total of 3,391 calories! That’s about the amount you need to gain a pound of body fat. It’s nearly three times as much as you might be eating most days on your weight loss surgery diet. And it’s probably enough to make you feel sick. But you’re not doomed to eat that much on Thanksgiving.

Enjoy the Turkey
There’s at least one lucky thing about Thanksgiving dinner. If you’re a traditionalist, your main course will be one of the best possible choices for weight loss surgery patients. That’s right: turkey. How often has your surgeon suggested that you eat turkey breast? Well, now’s your chance.

A 3-ounce portion of boneless, skinless turkey breast has 114 calories and 26 grams of protein. How’s that for a good start? Even if you have seconds, you’ll still be at 228 calories, and get in a whopping 52 grams of protein. If you can’t face white meat on Thanksgiving, go for the dark. A 3-ounce serving of dark meat only has 138 calories. Just make sure you don’t eat the skin. For a condiment, stick with deli mustard or cranberry sauce made with a calorie-free sugar substitute – just make the sauce like you would with sugar, but add sweetener instead of sugar.

Look Out for Yourself
Make sure there’s at least one dish besides turkey that’s on your weight loss surgery diet. If you’re hosting dinner, serve steamed or roasted vegetables, such as green beans or Brussels sprouts, and a large green salad with light dressing on the side. You can make and serve all of the guests’ other favorites, too – nobody says you have to eat them.

If you’re going to be a visitor at someone else’s Thanksgiving celebration, be a good guest. Don’t arrive empty-handed! Bring a festive-looking salad that everyone – especially you – can enjoy. For example, you could have a salad with:

• Mixed greens
• Sliced artichoke hearts
• Low-fat feta or goat cheese
• Sliced pears
• Balsamic vinaigrette on the side.

Portion Control to Save Yourself
You may not realize it, but there are some easy things you can do to cut back on your calories on Thanksgiving. One is to watch your portions, just like you do every day. It’s a little harder to do on this day, but you can do it. Have you ever truly tried? Focus on portions, instead of piling as much as possible on your plate. A little bit of concentration can literally save a thousand or more calories that you won’t even miss.

Stick to the Good Stuff
Whatever ends up on your plate is probably going to get eaten, so try not to put it there if you know you shouldn’t eat it. Before serving yourself or letting anyone serve you, take a good look at the table. What can you eat? Probably the following.

• Turkey without skin.
• Green salad.
• Steamed or roasted vegetables.
• Roasted sweet potatoes.

How Do You Know if a Food is Organic & Is It Healthier For You?

Do organically-grown foods contain fewer residues of toxic crop pesticides than conventionally-grown foods do? 

The answer is yes, according to a scientific study published today in the peer-reviewed; Journal Food Additives and Contaminants. The study team included analysts from Consumers Union (CU), the Yonkers, NY-based publisher of Consumer Reports magazine, and from the Organic Materials Research Institute (OMRI), an independent research, and education and evaluation organization in Eugene, OR. Organic foods are grown without most synthetic chemical inputs used in conventional farming, and many consumers who buy organic do so to avoid dietary pesticides. But the issue has been surprisingly controversial, with some conservative and media commentators claiming organic foods have just as many residues as foods grown conventionally. "We have shown that consumers who buy organic fruits and vegetables are exposed to just one-third as many residues as they’d eat in conventionally-grown foods, and the residues are usually lower as well," said Edward Groth III, Senior Scientist at CU and one of the paper’s co-authors. The paper published the first detailed analysis of pesticide residue data in foods grown organically and conventionally. The obtained analyzed test data on pesticide residues in organic and non-organic foods from three independent sources found that organic samples were consistently lower than levels of the same pesticides found in conventional samples. SO TRY TO BUY ORGANIC AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE: HERE ARE DETAILS TO HELP YOU GUIDE YOU IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION! 

 Look for the word "organic" on vegetables or pieces of fruit, or on the sign above the organic produce display. The word "organic" may also appear on packages of meat, cartons of milk or eggs, cheese and other single-ingredient foods. Foods labeled "100 percent organic" must contain only organic ingredients. Products containing at least 70-percent organic content can be labeled "made with organic ingredients." Those foods labeled simply "organic" must have at least 95-percent organic ingredients, by weight or fluid volume, excluding water and salt.

 Produce stickers and labels hold a lot more information than simply the cute name or slogan of a fruit of veggie. By reading the sticker number, you can actually confirm if the piece of produce you hold in your hand is organic, not organic and/or genetically modified. How? notice that the bar code on that sticker is for price information.  Next, notice that the labels on fruits and veggies will have a 4 or 5 digit code. If your produce has 4 digits, it means that it was "conventionally grown, but not organic". If it has 5 digits, and begins with a 9, it means that the produce was organically grown. A 5 digit code that begins with an 8 indicates that the produce was genetically modified. For example, the kiwi in the photo above has a code “4030” or "3586". So, this kiwi is not organic, but conventionally grown. It is NOT genetically modified. The same is true for the melon with the number: “4317”. If an apple sticker said "96584" it would have been grown organically. An apple with "86584" would be genetically altered. 

www.weightlossthatlasts.com 

The 3 Worst Things to NEVER Do While Dieting

1.  Heavily restrict your calorie intake.  Sure, it may make logical sense that if you only eat a cup of salad a day, you'll be losing fat like melting butter.  Unfortunately, it doesn't quite work like that.  The truth is, your body hates heavy calorie restriction and crash diets...they almost instantly send your body in to "starvation mode", decreasing metabolism and causing your body to hold on to your fat stores as a starvation protection mechanism. Moderate, not severe, calorie restriction is the way to go for consistent, week-to-week fat loss...but even that can become problematic.  Bringing us to our next worst thing to NEVER do while dieting:

2.  Restrict calories for more than 1 week.  No matter how moderate your calorie restriction, it won't take the body long to figure out that you're eating fewer calories than it's used to getting on a daily basis.  The result?  Slowed fat loss and the dreaded fat loss plateau.  Not only do fat loss plateaus suck from a results standpoint, but they're incredibly disheartening psychologically and cause many people to give up on diets from the lack of progress. I mean, who wants to sacrifice for no reward?  Not me.

Research has shown that it takes just under a week for important fat burning hormones to drop off due to calorie restriction, so it's best that calorie restriction be limited to 1 week at a time.  So what do you do to "reset" your metabolism after a week of dieting?  Well, that brings us to our next worst thing to NEVER do while dieting:

3.  Deprive yourself of your favorite foods.  Do you like ice cream?  Yeah, me too.  How about pizza?  Love it.  Shame that these delectable favorites aren't on the "approved" foods list of very many "diets", and that brings up several problems:

A) You're GOING to cheat.  Yes, even you with the supersonic will power.  And when you do, you're going to feel guilty and defeated...but you don't have to, and you shouldn't feel that way.

B) Depriving yourself of your favorite foods for weeks at a time will actually detract from your results due to the reasons shared in #2.

******Bottom line, your favorite foods should be strategically implemented in to your fat loss program at least once a week*******

20 Daily Habits That Will Enrich Your Life

20 Daily Habits That Will Enrich Your Life

MATT MAYBERRY

Take time each day to visualize your goals.

As entrepreneurs and business owners, it can be very easy at times to fall into a rut and get in the habit of having just average days where we seem to not get much of anything done.

Here are 20 ways that will hopefully rekindle that passion of yours and help make each day amazing.

1. Engage in consistent action.

2. Constantly picture yourself beyond your current circumstances. Dream enormously big and hold that dream deep within your mind, body and spirit.

3. Spend time in solitude to just think and visualize.

4. Write your most important goal on a note card and look at it five times a day. Say it out loud and believe with a deep conviction that it will become a reality.

5. Drink plenty of water. It's impossible to operate to the best of your ability and tap into your full potential if you are dehydrated. Our minds and bodies need water in order to perform at an extremely high-level.

6. Eat to win. If you don't want junk results stay away from junk food. The bottom line is that we are what we eat.

7. Get your sweat on. One of the best productivity tools that you can utilize is to get a workout in at some point throughout your day. Whether you go to the gym or at home, make the time.

Find time to read every day.

8. Pick up a book for 15-20 minutes and get lost in it. Just as our bodies need physical exercise, our minds need to stay mentally fit.

9. Spend your time around those who lift you up and encourage your vision, not belittle it. We are the average of the five people we hang out with the most. Pick your company wisely.

10. Make time to grow. Carve out 30 min to an hour and find ways to personally and professionally grow.

11. Turn off the music in your car to an audiobook. Most of us spend hours in a car daily, utilize that time to better yourself and learn.

12. Keep a journal. Record your thoughts, ideas and strategies. We have roughly 20,000 to 60,000 thoughts per day. Don't let an idea or strategy go to waste. Never rely solely on your memory.

13. Think of five things you are grateful for right this second. It can be something as simple as how beautiful is mother nature or how wonderful your family is. Be grateful for what you have and you will eventually end up having more.

Almonds will give you more energy and keep you going all day.

14. Snack on almonds. Great source of protein and other minerals and vitamins that will increase your energy levels and keep performance in peak state.

15. Say "I love you" more often. Don't let a day go by where you don't tell those you love how much they truly mean to you. Life is short and by simply saying the words "I love you" will bring you an immense sense of satisfaction.

16. Treat others how you want to be treated. In business and in the game of life, people matter. If you want to truly win in both, make every person you come in contact with feel important.

17. Have a green smoothie. Instead of turning to caffeine turn to the power of mother nature and blend yourself up a delicious, energizing and healthy green smoothie. One of my favorites is two handfuls of organic spinach, one apple, juice of one lemon, three stalks of celery, and ginger root. There are plenty of recipes available to you online.

18. Take a post-it-note or note-card and write down some quotes that move, inspire and empower you. There will be times throughout the day that might upset you or discourage you. Constantly feeding your mind with words that inspire and empower you will instantly get you back on your feet ready to hit the ground running.

19. Cut off all distractions. When it's time to work, work. When it's time to relax, relax. Discipline yourself to stay off Facebook and other social media sites when you are working on a computer. If you are in an office, hang up a "Do Not Disturb'' sign if possible. Focus completely on the task at hand.

20. Take full and complete responsibility for your life. Own up to your mistakes and never fall into the trap of playing the ever-so-popular blame game.

Adopting winning habits is one of the surest ways to get to where you want to go. What we do on a daily basis determines the results that we end up with. If you don't like what you have been producing up to this point, then change what you do daily. It's my hope that this list of 20 ideas is of extreme value to help make today utterly amazing for you.

http://www.businessinsider.com/daily-habits-that-will-enrich