I am at Risk, Are You? Know the Facts on Heart Attacks
I have a lot of reasons for wanting to lose weight. Right up at the top of the list is be with my family. To be there to watch my children grow up. To spend quality time with my wife. To enjoy all of the great things that come with this wonderful life.
I was reading about heart attacks online and found a great resource. St Jude Medical, Inside Cardiac Arrest. They provide information about the risk factors, warning signs, and treatment of Sudden Cardiac Arrest. It also had a couple of videos explaining cardiac arrest and the anatomy of the heart (http://www.insidecardiacarrest.com/video_suddencardiacarrest.aspx and http://www.insidecardiacarrest.com/video_humanheart.aspx.
Given both my current weight (360 at last Friday’s weight in) and my body shape (I carry a lot of my fat in the mid section aka belly fat), I am at risk of sudden cardiac arrest aka a heart attack.
Did you know that sudden cardiac arrest kills 325,000 people a year - or nearly 900 per day? Usually without warning and if you don’t get help in the 1st 4 to 6 minutes it can be fatal.
So, enough of the morbid talk… My apologizes for those with a weak disposition. Having learned more about heart attacks and sudden cardiac arrest I am convinced more now that ever that it is time for me to lose the weight and get into shape for the rest of my life.
Hoping you are have a great day… I plan on swimming and maybe playing some volleyball (although it is supposed to be 100 degrees today so maybe I will just swim.)
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How to Keep Weight Off Permanently
How many times have you gone on a diet, only to gain back the weight, plus a little dividend? For many people, dieting is a vicious cycle full of ups and downs, and plenty of discouragement. If you want to keep your weight off permanently, you are going to need to implement a few techniques. For most of us, staying at a healthy weight requires a lot of dedication and hard work, but it will pay off in a longer life span, less sickness and simply feeling better. Let’s look at a few of the ways that you can keep your weight off permanently.
1. Change your lifestyle -
If you want to keep your weight off successfully, more times than not this means changing your entire lifestyle. It’s not easy, but it is worth it. You don’t have to become entirely preoccupied with your weight, that’s not healthy. But you will need to keep focused on eating right, getting enough exercise and avoiding trigger foods that you know will put you back on that wrong path again. It’s fine to cheat now and again, but you can’t let it become a regular event. Allow yourself a nice dinner out every few weeks, but don’t fall back into your old habits.
2. Replace bad foods with better foods -
There are some foods that you may never be able to enjoy in large quantities again. There are also other foods that simply may be too dangerous for you to eat ever again. These are known as trigger foods, like we mentioned above. These are the foods that start you on that downward spiral that can be nearly impossible to overcome. If you simply cannot eat one piece of chocolate cake, it’s better to avoid eating it at all than risk falling back into your old habits.
Replace that cake with something that still satisfies your sweet tooth and chocolate craving but doesn’t trigger that old behavior. This works for any food, not just cake, that you simply cannot control your reaction to. It’s not easy and it’s more than a little sad. But, you can look at this way. Which would you rather have - a few bites of cake or a longer life that you can enjoy? A little extreme yes, but sometimes you need to get tough with yourself.
3. Treat every day as a brand new challenge -
If you’ve fallen off the wagon, don’t let that cycle continue. Every day is a brand new day where you’re going to have that chance to succeed at your healthy lifestyle. We all fall down every now again, but not all of us can get back up. Stop that cycle of falling and staying down, and start realizing that you are on a lifelong path towards getting healthy. It’s ok to take a break for a few days, but don’t let those days stretch into week, months and years. Get back in that saddle!
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The Right Kind of Foods Your Body Needs
When you’re trying to lose weight, it is all so easy to fall into the trap of thinking that deprivation is the only way to go. There are some foods that your body really needs, even if you are on a diet. In addition, there are foods that your body “thinks” it needs, and by failing to address these problems, you can doom your diet to failure once your cravings start.
The key to successful and healthy weight loss is to first identify the foods that you simply cannot do without as well as the foods that your body really needs. You’ll need to begin a program of retraining your body to accept the new foods and replace your bad habits with healthier ones. This should not be a process that happens overnight. By gradually removing and introducing foods you can make sure that you’ll be successful.
The second key is making sure that you’re getting the right percentage of foods in your diet. While many people turn to the food pyramid for their guidance, this is not always the best method. It is best to check with your doctor or schedule a visit with a nutritionist that can guide you on the proper percentages of foods that your body needs.
This equation usually takes the form of Proteins/Fats/Carbs. In order to maintain healthy body function, you need the right balance of these elements. You can also reduce the amount of cravings you have by keeping to this balance. Most people prefer to go for a 30/30/40 plan, but each person is different. Some of us need more protein, while others may need more carbs.
Once you get the percentage down, you’ll need to find healthy foods that meet your requirements. For example, instead of relying on potatoes for your carbs, you can eat fresh fruit or vegetables. Instead of fatty cuts of meat for your protein allotment, switch to lean chicken or fish. You’ll be able to eat a more balanced meal that will not leave you feeling deprived.
For fats, it is important to make sure you are using so-called “healthy” fats. These include olive oil, soy oil or even nuts. Switch out butter with olive oil and avoid saturated fats as much as possible. Everyone needs fat in their diets, but they need to make sure they are using healthy fats.
Now, let’s go back to the first point, substitution of your favorite foods. This can be a little tough at first, but once your body gets used to it, you’ll find that you actually prefer the new foods to the old ones. Let’s look at ice cream as an example. Instead of indulging your sweet tooth in a pint of ice cream, allow yourself one serving of frozen yogurt. It’s much lower in calories and fat, and there are many different flavors that will make it seem as though you’re eating the real thing so that you don’t feel deprived.
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