Diet Tips

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.

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…