I remember Dr. Weil mentioned in one of his specials on PBS ( or was it one of his books? ) about how he thinks walking is the best form of exercise you can get.  I cannot remember exactly why he said this but maybe I ought to exercise my mind a bit and see if I can think of some points why walking is one of the best forms of exercise.

1. It is low impact
2. It’s free
3. It is fairly easy to do no matter what your age
4. It improves and hones your proprioception
5. It burns a good cumulative amount of calories over time if done regularly.
6. It gives you all the other normal benefits of exercise.

There are probably a lot more reasons why walking is great for you as part of a health and wellness plan.  Maybe I will think of a few more later on.

I think probably the hardest part about walking is actually reserving the time for it each day and making a point to do it consistently.  That is my own personal experience.  We all have busy lives, but making walking a priority surely will go a long way towards helping you meet your fitness goals.

By the way, the best walking shoes I have seen so far are from MBT.  I believe they were designed by a Swiss engineer and we already know how good the Swiss are at making watches…

So there you have it, my little take on walking…

Now instead of me typing on this keyboard anymore I think I am going to go out for a little stroll, I mean walk .

One thing I have learned over the years is that the greatest obstacle to getting anything done is the inability to control your own mind to achieve the desired results you want to get.

Humans posses one of the greatest gifts of all time.  That is that they have the ability to control their own thoughts.  It seems like a very simple concept and maybe not even that significant when first considered.  However, it is indeed the greatest tool that anyone can have for his or her well being, no matter what the goal is.

The thoughts that float around in your head on a daily basis and over the weeks and months will in the end give you exactly what you were thinking.

Some books have made this concept popular in recent years. One of them came in the public light with a flurry of publicity and the book was called ‘The Secret’.  But in my opinion that book and concept basically copied the original ideas of Napolean Hill and his book ‘Think and Grow Rich’.  Napolean Hill was the original thinker on this concept.

So what does this have to do with dieting?

Well, in his book, he talks about a process, if followed exactly without fail will allow you to achieve almost anything you desire in life.  So why not apply this to losing weight or dieting?

The first thing he says to do is create a DEFINITE CHIEF AIM in your life of exactly what it is you want to accomplish.  This has to be specific in terms of exactly what it is you want, and then also specific in terms of time (by when you want it).

Then he says to write down on a sheet of paper your definite chief aim along with the specific date by which you intend to achieve it.  Then you must also write down as part of this statement what you intend to give in return for your desired goal.  After that you must also write down specifically HOW you intend to achieve your goal (this is the specific plan part).  So when all is said and done you will have a written statement on a sheet of paper.

The next action you must take is to recite this statement aloud with passion every night before you go to bed and each morning right after you wake up.  And you must also believe in every fiber of your being that you have ALREADY achieved your desired goal.

So what he is saying here is that you can program your mind to achieve your desired results by believing it to be already true.  The exercise I just wrote above goes a long way towards convincing yourself that it is already true.  And in time, you will likely achieve your goal because your mind will believe it to already be true.  You will take the actions that you had written down in your statement that you read every night and every morning.

So an example statement may go something like this:

“I intend to lose 50 pounds in one year from now by the date of 7/4/2010.  I intend to lose these 50 pounds by exercising at least 3 times a week for 60 minutes at a time and restricting myself to a healthy diet with careful portion sizes of foods that are only good for me.  I will map out a specific diet that includes every day of each month which I will follow to the letter as written in a document I have saved called diet.doc.  In return for losing this 50 pounds I will sacrifice my desire for junk foods and sweets, I will exercise more, and I will become a more happy and pleasant person to others because I will feel healthier and look better making me feel better about myself.”

So that is an example of a definite chief aim statement.

Does it work? Well I believe it will but only if you follow it consistently and be sure to read it aloud every day and with passion.  I can tell you that I have tried a different definite chief aim for a different goal I am trying to achieve and the hardest part is remembering to actually read it twice every day, and also to find a place to read it aloud without embarrassing yourself.

But it definitely can have some positive effects on you no matter what you are trying to achieve.  There is a person I work with on the weekends that does almost the exact opposite of the above technique.  Maybe you know someone like this too.  It seems like every time I see her at work she makes comments about herself that put herself down.  For example, “I am so @#$@# that no guys like me”…  That kind of self talk is not good for you. Instead try to re program your mind using the tools that Napolean Hill recommends.

Indeed, our minds are the most powerful asset we have in our desire to achieve anything we want in life, including losing weight.

There is a short but interesting article in the personal liberty digest that talks about a study that shows that high sodium diets increase blood pressure.

High salt consumption has long been linked to cardiovascular disease, but it is only now that scientists are learning about some of the mechanisms behind the phenomenon. An international group of researchers from Germany, Austria and Finland has discovered that under normal physiological conditions excess salt is accumulated in a "storage area" within the skin. The study provides yet another piece of evidence of why low-sodium diets are better for long term health.

It seems we already know this but what are we to do about it?  Trying to avoid high salt foods in your daily life is no easy things.  Personally I find it extremely difficult.  It requires a lot of label reading in your grocery store and a careful measuring of portion sizes in your daily diet.

Even some of those low sodium canned soups contain relatively high amounts of salt.  Pickles in a jar? TONS of salt. V-8 tomato juice? TONS of salt.  Lots of processed foods contain high sodium as well as canned foods.  Why? Well of course because salt acts as a preservative and also adds significantly to the flavor of food.

If you like to eat out a lot, chances are you are getting very high amounts of salt in most prepared dishes you find at your favorite restaurant.  And of course this is done to enhance flavor – they want you to come back again and again.  And of course they want you to order extra drinks (because of the salty food which makes you thirsty) as they are some of the highest profit products a restaurant can sell.

What doesn’t contain salt? Hmmm. Well you have fruits and vegetables for starters that are not canned, and we are supposed to eat 12 servings of those per day anyway so that should help fill in a good part of your daily diet .

The University of California at San Francisco says that the average American eats 5 or more teaspoons of salt each day.  And goes on to say that this is 20 times as much as the body needs. Your body only needs on quarter of a teaspoon per day.

Incidentally they have some great guidelines on this page for a low sodium diet as well as popular low sodium alternatives to foods you might be eating during the week.

I just happened to stumble upon this website, intense-workout.com and was a bit shocked to read the following proclamations from the author. Check this out:

• There is no best weight loss program
• You can NOT turn fat into muscle
• Fast weight loss – you can’t lose weight fast
• There are no weight loss secrets
• Muscle soreness is not and indicator of a good workout
• Diet Tips and Fitness tips are stupid
• Your post workout meal is pretty important

I am not sure I agree with all of the points here. But the ‘shock’ factor of his points does make me think of and bring up something which occurred to me from reading his points.

And that is that we as a society are inundated with constant flows of information from the media, internet and other people about the right way and wrong way of doing things. Whether it be dieting and exercise or how to grow your investments for a good retirement, the amount and speed of information flow from multiple sources can be mind boggling at times.

So I guess the point I am trying to make is be careful before you assume any advice is good advice when it comes to your diet and exercise program.  There are great programs out there for dieting and health and wellness, but not all are created alike and not all are necessarily designed with YOUR best interests in mind.

So there is my little public service message, but I will leave it up to you to decide if the points made be the author above are all valid

For some reason this question has popped into my head now and then.  I can remember asking my Mother many times whether or not it was healthy, but I don’t think I ever really got a clear answer. The people over at helium seem to think it is.

I could be wrong but I think the general consensus is that pizza is a fast food and generally not good for you?  Maybe that is what the consensus is, I really don’t know for sure.

Definitely I would say though that if I had to choose between a cheeseburger and french fries and pizza, that pizza would win hands down as the healthier option.

Of course everything is relative and probably the factors that go into making a pizza will determine how healthy or unhealthy it really is in the final analysis.

I mean pizza is basically just bread and sauce and cheese.  So there you are getting your dairy group, grains, and veggies in the form of the sauce. Tomato sauce is pretty healthy and has an anti cancer nutrient in it called lycopene which acts as an antioxidant. If you eat whole grain crust you will get some fiber and the flour itself has many B vitamins.  The cheese would be a good source of calcium.

But the magic of pizza is of course in the toppings, so the ones you choose will make it more or less healthy.

But to keep fat and calories low go with the following toppings:

• Artichoke hearts
• Bell peppers
• Broccoli or cauliflower
• Canadian bacon or lean ham
• Mushroom, tomato or zucchini slices
• Spinach and onion
• Pineapple slices.

So I think the verdict is that yes pizza is a healthy food option to have once in a while as long as the portion sizes are kept in check and the toppings are carefully chosen. Simple enough eh?

The recommended amount of fruits and vegetables that should be eaten EVERY DAY is 9 to 12 servings. Wow.  So if you decide to be bold and go for 12 servings per day, that would mean if you start your day at 8am and then end your day at 8pm, you would need to have one serving of a fruit or vegetable every hour. Wow again.

It seems like a tall order to be able to accomplish that every day.

But what exactly is one serving of a fruit or vegetable? A tennis ball size portion would qualify as one serving.  So when you wake up tomorrow, try to imagine 12 tennis balls sitting there waiting for you.  Their bright yellow-greenish color sure does stand out.  Heck maybe I should keep them right on my desk so I won’t forget.

It sounds daunting but in actuality it is really not too bad to get this accomplished every day.  I mean one large green pepper would probably count as 2 servings given the size of it.  And for the the most part vegetables are not so filling, they do down easy and in general you probably will have no trouble reaching the 12 serving requirement.

I think another big plus of trying to keep up with this requirement is that it will help offset your desire for other less healthy foods. 

If you can spread out your consumption of veggies and fruits throughout the day, then it will help you avoid hunger spasms that might lead you to head for the junk food aisle.

So are you eating 12 servings of fruits and vegetables every day? If not then why not?  I think cost might be an issue here as well in addition to convenience.  To keep a ready supply of 12 servings of fruits and veggies for an entire 7 days is quite a task in my opinion.  For 7 days that would mean you would need to have enough on hand for 84 servings.  That is a lot to stuff in your refrigerator.

Maybe it is best to aim for 6 servings per day and then if you can afford it and it is convenient to add the other 6 as appropriate.

Ok off I go to get some veggies and fruits…

What would 4th of July be without some good veggie burgers on the grill or even some veggie hot dogs?  I have to be honest and tell you that every time I even hear the word veggie burger I get all clammed up at the thought of eating one, especially on the 4th of July holiday.  I am not sure exactly why, maybe it is just a guy thing.  Or maybe eating veggie burgers is something I just never got used to.

But maybe keeping an open mind on veggies burgers for the 4th of July is not a bad idea?  I don’t know. Maybe the guys can chime in here.  I just get the feeling that most guys are not too keen on going with veggie burgers most of the time.  But I could be wrong.

Anyway,  maybe it would be interesting to do a little experiment for the 4th of July holiday weekend especially if you have a good crown of people who you are celebrating with.  In addition to regular hot dogs and burgers, maybe offer veggie burgers and veggie hot dogs too and maybe put a label next to them to see if there are any takers.  A simple experiment indeed, but I wonder how many would go for the veggie style variety, and how many guys versus women would go for them.

The American Dietetic Association did a little nutritional breakdown on veggie burgers and veggie hot dogs. Here is what they said:

• Most veggie burgers with 10 grams of protein or less contain vegetables such as mushrooms, onions, celery, carrots, bell peppers, tomatoes, spinach, broccoli, zucchini and whole grains such as brown rice, rolled oats, and bulgur wheat.
• Most veggie burgers with more than 10 grams of protein contain primarily soy protein and wheat gluten with very little actual vegetables or whole grains.
• Many brands offer vegan options without animal products such as eggs or cheese. However, just because it is vegan doesn’t necessarily mean it has more vegetables or less protein than non-vegan versions.
• Veggie hot dogs have many nutrition advantages over traditional meat hot dogs. On average they have fewer calories, less fat, less sodium and more protein than your standard frank.

So it looks like based on their research that if you really want veggies in your burgers you should go with the ones with 10 grams of protein or less.

They also included a table that breaks down the brands of veggies burgers and hot dogs with their nutritional values. You can see it here.

I sorted the table columns so that the veggie burgers with the least amount of calories, total fat and saturated fat would be at the top:

So it looks like the Boca brand veggie burger ‘OriginalVegan’ Style is the winner as far as least calories and leas total fat and saturated fat.

Hey and by the way, let me know how that experiment goes at your weekend barbeque to see how many guys versus women opt for the veggie style burgers or hot dogs .