Are you 25 or older? Did you know that after you turn 25, your metabolism can slow down by 5 – 10% per decade! For the average American, that means their metabolic rate decreases by 20 – 40% over their lifetime.
This decline in metabolism is made even worse by the fact that as you age, your body requires fewer calories. This is because we are often less physically active, more sedentary and many of us suffer muscle loss as we age. (more…)
Got chocolate cake cravings? Don’t give in! Instead try these tricks…
Last week we talked about the Corn Refiner’s Association marketing campaign of “corn sugar”. The cornerstone of their campaign is that “sugar is sugar”. That high fructose corn syrup is no different than regular sugar. This is false. (more…)
Last week, I told you a little about the NIH Look Ahead Study and how they found that people who participated in group weight loss programs lost significantly more weight than those who didn’t. This week I’m going to tell you a little bit more about that study. The NIH also found that there were three key factors that helped those people in the group weight loss program be so successful.
Are you trying to lose weight but aren’t seeing results? Listen up; the National Institutes of Health published it’s findings from the largest randomized controlled trial studying behavioral weight loss. And they have the recipe for success. (more…)
Our focus on the OBB program is progress NOT perfection. Every day try to make the changes that will help you to reach your ultimate goals of health, wellness, weight loss and increased energy.
We want you to be able to enjoy food, feel full, have variety, and have flexibility & fun! We recommend the 80/20 Rule.
What is the 80/20 Rule? It means that 80% of the time you are on plan and 20% you have the option to ‘Splurge’. Does that translate to ‘Weekends Off’ or 20% of the week you can eat everything and anything that you want? Nope. It means that you need to plan a head for the whole week and enjoy the splurges that you choose.
If you eat 4 meals a day 7 days a week 20% of that is 6. So, 6 times a week you can have something extra that you want.
What are some ideas that all into this ‘Splurge’ category? Here are some ideas. Talk with your OBB counselor to get more specific for you.
4 oz of wine, 1 shot of alcohol, an extra ‘carb’ serving per day, a small serving of desert, cake, cookie, or sweet. A small serving of chips, popcorn or tortillas. Get the idea?
MOST of the time you will be on plan. Some of the time you can mix it up a little.
TRACKING YOUR 80/20
It is essential to pre-plan and to track your 20%. We all kid ourselves once in a while. It is easy to ‘forget’ that you had a cookie at a meeting or that you ‘helped’ your son finish his waffle. (Trust me…I know…) Start by thinking ahead for the week. On Sunday see if there are any trips, luncheons, events, dinners out, drinks with friends or anything that you may need to save your 20% for. Try to hold on to them throughout the week, if possible. I’ve heard it over and over and over…’The weekends are the hardest!’ so why not try to hold on to your splurges for when you need them? You know what is NO FUN?! Getting to Tuesday and being out of your 20% for the WHOLE REST OF THE WEEK!! At that point you know you are CHOOSING to be off plan if you eat any more splurges.
One way to track your 6 items is to put 6 (I like the cute, colorful ones) paperclips on the front side of your journal. Then when you use one, flip it to the back. Also track it in your food journal, too.
Make them count! Save them for something worthy! A specialty chocolate from Ambrosia chocolates? Yes! Junky tootsie roll left over from the last ‘candy’ holiday? Not so much.
Give the gift of health!
