Post: #1

Hi all, Happy New Year!! Here in Texas, it's still New Year Eve. So, I'll start tomorrow.

Here is my Journal for my Healthy Diet:
- Eat well balanced meals composed of complex carbs, lean protein and essential fatty acids (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, healthy nuts, seeds, fish, skim milk/soy milk, tofu, olive oil, canola oil)
- Avoid sugar, simple carbohydrates, refined carbs and saturated fats
- Eat the proper portion sizes
- Eat 4 to 5 small meals per day. Do not skip meals but watch my portion sizes.

And, here is my journal for Exercise Regime:
- Engage in cardiovascular exercise at least 5 days per week. I run and/or jog 5 days a week, 3 to 3.5 miles daily
- Build muscle mass through a consistent strength training program (I do pilates exercise to build my strength, 20 minutes/day, at least 3 times a day). I did pilates exercise yesterday, but not today, will do again tomorrow.
- Get at least 7 to 8 hours of quality sleep every night (yesterday, I didn't get 7 hours sleep yesterday because I'm still catching up with my 30DLBL December exercise). I will catch up with a good sleep tonight so I can exercise tomorrow! All the best for everyone!

Post: #2

Hi Xina,
That's a well thought out regimen. I liked the part about eating small meals at regular intervals. Wish you luck with your schedule.
Happy New Year!!!

Post: #3

actually, I read somewhere (3 Season Diet?) that its better to not eat frequent meals, but to stick to three or less. Why? To give our digestive system a chance to do its job! Eating constantly doesn't allow that to happen. I know, totally opposite conventional thinking right? I can dig up the reference if you want more info. However, I'm no expert, otherwise I wouldn't be here... do what works for you! Good luck!

Post: #4

(01-01-2011 02:21 PM)rohit.kshirsagar Wrote:  Hi Xina,
That's a well thought out regimen. I liked the part about eating small meals at regular intervals. Wish you luck with your schedule.
Happy New Year!!!

Thanks Rohit!! Happy New Year to you too!!! I usually eat 3 times, breakfast, lunch and dinner. In 2011, I'd like to try eating 4-5 small size portions. My breakfast today is banana and orange and my today's lunch is vegetable and small portion of rice. This late afternoon I just consumed Oatmeal soft-baked cookies. Dinner, I will eat steamed fish! I haven't run today yet because I'm still catching up with my 30DLBL December exercise. But I will do pilates exercise tonight and I will run 3 to 3.5 miles tomorrow. I wish you luck on your plan to Rohit!!

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(01-02-2011 12:11 AM)tperez330 Wrote:  actually, I read somewhere (3 Season Diet?) that its better to not eat frequent meals, but to stick to three or less. Why? To give our digestive system a chance to do its job! Eating constantly doesn't allow that to happen. I know, totally opposite conventional thinking right? I can dig up the reference if you want more info. However, I'm no expert, otherwise I wouldn't be here... do what works for you! Good luck!

Hi Tperez, I'd love to read the reference if you don't mind. I'd try to eat 4-5 small size portions for 21 days, if this doesn't work for me then I will go back to my routine. I wanted to try because I read so many good things about eating 4-5 small size portions. I will post the article later. I wish you success in your schedule as well!!

Post: #5

Here's an article from the author's ( Dr. John Douillard) website discussing meal frequency. I thought it made sense. He says:

"If we want the body to burn fat we must give it a reason. Why would the body burn its stored fat reserves if it is getting fed every 2-3 hours? When we eat this often, the body burns what it has just been fed and has no motivation to burn stored fat."

Here is the link:
http://www.lifespa.com/article.aspx?art_...check=true
(if this doesn't work, search for his article called "lose stubborn weight effortlessly")
enjoy!

Post: #6

Hey, Xina!

Super glad to see that you will be participating in this months challenge.

Tperez330 brings up an interesting point I haven't thought of before. For years I have read that 5 meals a day is the healthiest way to eat. I usually stick to 2 to 3 meals though. There is so much information out there on health and fitness saying so many different things. It's hard to know what information to use and what to drop. Personally I say try something you find interesting and just listen to your body. Just do what makes you feel best.

Post: #7

Interesting ideas here. I always thought eating several small meals was supposed to be better because it kept your metabolism humming. Eating too little food would cause your body to "think" it's starving and therefore conserve fat. Not sure there is any ONE correct process. It probably differs a bit for every person and we need to find out what works for each of us.

Shannon Entin
http://disciplineproject.com

Post: #8

Hi, Xina, it`s great to see you here!

I`m amazed that with every journal that I`m reading (I`ve started visiting all the 30DLBL participants first ) I discover a healthy habit that I forget to add on my list and I`m feeling more and more inspiring to make more changes into my life..
After reading your plan I remembered that I want and I must include more healthy oils into my meals, thank you very much for it!

I believe you`re doing a great job with your running and exercises, one day I wish I could do the same.. for the moment I only walk very much, I run on all the stairs and for this challenge I`ll start also exercising more.

I wish you all the best in the world with your plan, my good thoughts are flying to you and I hope you`ll enjoy a wonderful week!

Post: #9

Hi Matt, Andreea, glad to see you again in this challenge after an amazing 30DLBL exercise!! I wish you all the best in this challenge!!

Sorry for the late response guys as I've been so busy lately...:-/

Matt, it's true there's so much information on the internet about health, nutrition and fitness. And you're right, the best is to know your body and follow what is the best for your body. I've been wanting to try this for a long time. I guess, now, it's the time And see what happens, but so far so good

Andreea, as usual, you're indeed so sweet , thank you so very much for the wishes and I wish you all the best in this challenge as well and I hope you enjoy your holiday with your family
About the healthy oil, I bought the extra virgin olive oil to be included in my salad or my meal. It's so yummi!!

Hi Tperez, thanks for the article. I'll keep it for my reference. I appreciate it! I read so many good articles about eating small portions meal often. This is just one of them (I copied and pasted it):

“Have many small meals, rather than a few big ones. Nutritionists point out again and again that this is a better, healthier way to eat. In general, it is considered healthier to eat five meals a day than three. In fact, if you watch any makeover or weight loss reality TV shows, they are always eating about 5 to 8 meals a day (with small portions and healthy choices at each meal, of course). This is because it keeps your body in the digesting-food mode. In scientific terms, it keeps your metabolism up. Think about it: Your body is made to process fuel effectively. If you don't feed it, it slows down to reserve your fuel. This means your metabolism slows, and you process and use less of the stored fuel (calories). If you allow yourself to become too hungry by eating hardly anything during the day, your metabolism will be slowed way down; then when you finally do eat, your metabolism will be so slow that your body won't be using it and digesting it efficiently.”

So, I will try to see if this is indeed the best for me.

Hi Shannon, I always thought that way too. That's why I wanted to try. Let's see what happens! I wish you the best in this challenge too!

Post: #10

Hi Xina, as far as I know there's nothing wrong with eating more smaller meals through the day. I think the term is 'grazing'. If you look at animals in the wild, they never eat 3 meals a day. They just eat whenever they're hungry. Monkeys, chimps, apes, gorillas etc, they're the closest species to humans, and look at how much energy they have!! So I think you're on the right path there. Might try that myself sometime.

Glenn Thomas - Sydney, Australia
Avene Website | Personal Website | Facebook Page | Twitter

Post: #11

Hey Xina and all! I think we all agree that whether or not eating few or several meals a day works depends on the person. I'm all for whatever works and hope Xina and all, that we can reach our goals. I thought I'd offer a different point of view that I came across which is definately unconventional... But lets not get caught up in frequency... I think we can all agree that if we are to reach our goals, it will likely be more because of what we ate, and how much, rather than how frequently we ate it! Speaking of what we are eating... are we all eating healthier? Xina? (yeah I'm calling you out! this is YOUR journal after all!)

ps... I read that 80% of weight loss comes from eating right, not excercise. If true then why bother going to the gym? It's that old 80/20 rule Celes blogged about! What do you think?

Post: #12

Hi all, here is my daily meal journal: (I changed the fruits and veggies here and there and added almond nuts or other healthy nuts or healthy seeds in the salad, but basically, this is it:

Xina 21DHL Journal

Meal #1 (My Breakfast): 1 serving of Apple and Meal #2 (few hours before lunch): 2 servings of Oranges

Drink 5 Glasses of Water (not reaching 8 glasses yet :-)

Meal #3 (My Lunch): "Baby Spring Mix" Salad with Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar & Chopped Garlic

Meal #4: Small Portion of "Baby Spring Mix" Salad

Olive Oil Included In My Salad

Balsamic Vinegar Included In My Salad

Chopped Garlic Included In My Salad

Meal #5: Eat 2 Servings of Bananas

Meal #5: Eat 2 Servings of Grapes

Meal #6: Dinner with Steamed Tilapia

Meal #6: Dinner with Steamed Mixed Veggie (sometimes, I changed Steamed Veggie with Salad


I don't know how to post the pictures here, maybe someone could help me?? I try inserting the images, but to no avail. I think the above links works!

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(01-05-2011 11:02 PM)tperez330 Wrote:  ps... I read that 80% of weight loss comes from eating right, not excercise. If true then why bother going to the gym? It's that old 80/20 rule Celes blogged about! What do you think?

Hi TPerez, with regards to exercise, I think we need to find our balance between eating healthy food and doing exercise. Here are the excerpts I found from The American Dietetic Association:

"Physical Activity
Find your balance between food and physical activity. Regular physical activity is important for your overall health and fitness—plus it helps control body weight, promotes a feeling of well-being and reduces the risk of chronic diseases. To help control body weight, the Dietary Guidelines
for Americans recommends that adults be physically active for about 60 minutes a day. You can break up your physical activity into 10 minute sessions throughout the day. If you are currently inactive, you may need to check with your doctor concerning increased physical activity."

Hope it helps! BTW, I love exercise, especially running or jogging. So, running/jogging is actually part of my recreation too!

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(01-05-2011 09:44 PM)Glenn Wrote:  Hi Xina, as far as I know there's nothing wrong with eating more smaller meals through the day. I think the term is 'grazing'. If you look at animals in the wild, they never eat 3 meals a day. They just eat whenever they're hungry. Monkeys, chimps, apes, gorillas etc, they're the closest species to humans, and look at how much energy they have!! So I think you're on the right path there. Might try that myself sometime.

Thanks Glenn!! I wish I could have their energy!!

Post: #13

(01-07-2011 03:51 AM)xina Wrote:  Chopped Garlic Included In My Salad

Xina, I hope you didn't use all that garlic in the salad?!!! [looking for garlic breath smilie]

xina Wrote:I don't know how to post the pictures here, maybe someone could help me?? I try inserting the images, but to no avail. I think the above links works!

I could see the thumbnails of your photos after clicking on one of your links and visiting the gallery, but couldn't veiw the full size version. I've never uploaded any photos to Picasa, but have the software. Mine are all on Flickr, and I use an older version of the Flock Browser 2.61 to upload the photos, and then easily drag the BB code for the photos into my posts here. It's a simple process, but might be a bit confusing if you haven't used it before.

But Celes mentioned the other day that she had enabled photo attachments? I don't see any options for it, and haven't seen anyone else include an attachment, so I'm guessing it might still be an administrator only function here.

xina Wrote:Thanks Glenn!! I wish I could have their energy!!

Or the energy of these guys!

Glenn Thomas - Sydney, Australia
Avene Website | Personal Website | Facebook Page | Twitter

Post: #14

Hey Gina, looks like you are doing very well... nice work! Are these your meals everyday since we started? So you haven't given in to temptation and had some ice cream or cookies or junk food? Impressive! The first two days I totally failed... but these last four I was able to eat healthier. I'm probably 50 lbs overweight and its definately a tougher challenge for me since I've had a lot of bad habits.

Regarding the diet vs. excercise, one thing I've experienced is that I can work-out everyday (running/lifting weights, burning 600-1000 calories) but not lose weight. Why? Because my diet wasn't in control. I didn't count calories and had little appreciation for nutritional content of what I was eating... that's why I mentioned the 80/20 rule. I believe by changing diet alone, weight loss can be achieved, but not by excercise alone... it comes down to calories consumed vs. calories burned. Anyway, here's an article discussing it further:

"Objective analysis shows that cuts in calorie consumption add up faster than increases in exercise. Studies show that a combination of smaller portions and changes in what we eat can easily add up to reduce calorie consumption by 500 daily, whereas burning an extra 500 calories daily can be a daunting target." source: Karen Collins, R.D on MSNBC Health http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13821677

Enjoy! (ps... for the record, its far healthier to do both, I have working out 3-4 times a week as part of my action plan!)

Post: #15

(01-07-2011 11:13 AM)Glenn Wrote:  Xina, I hope you didn't use all that garlic in the salad?!!! [looking for garlic breath smilie]

LOL..of course not.. only 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped plus 1 cup extra virgin olive oil, 1/4 balsamic vinegar & pinch of salt...

(01-07-2011 11:13 AM)Glenn Wrote:  I could see the thumbnails of your photos after clicking on one of your links and visiting the gallery, but couldn't veiw the full size version. I've never uploaded any photos to Picasa, but have the software. Mine are all on Flickr, and I use an older version of the Flock Browser 2.61 to upload the photos, and then easily drag the BB code for the photos into my posts here. It's a simple process, but might be a bit confusing if you haven't used it before.

I might want to try Flickr, thanks Glenn! The saga continues between me & the images

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(01-07-2011 11:48 PM)tperez330 Wrote:  Hey Gina, looks like you are doing very well... nice work! Are these your meals everyday since we started? So you haven't given in to temptation and had some ice cream or cookies or junk food? Impressive!

Thanks Tperez! These are my meals since I started December 30DLBL a month ago. I haven't eaten ice cream for a along time so I don't have problem with craving an ice cream. My cravings are salt, fried food and sometimes chocolate. My strategy to fight cravings is as follows:
- If my body is having a salt craving, I will pick up some lightly salted nuts like roasted almond or pistachios
- Ride it out. I will distract myself during craving time, go for a jog or run, call a friend, pick up a book. I will forget about the urge to snack.
- Schedule my Indulgences. I will schedule in some treats into my diet and make sure I savor every bite so they are truly satisfying my craving.
- Always remind myself of my long term goal to achieve my ideal healthy vision and tell myself “I am still in control. I can choose to make wise food decisions.” Put the vision board with a slim body everywhere I can see.

So far, the above strategy works! And believe it or not, after a period of time of eating more raw food, even though it's not 100% raw, I'm more and more avoiding junk food and seldom have cravings on them because of the benefits I experience from eating healthy food.

Post: #16

Hi Xina

Nice journal. Actually I was going through different journals to get an idea of what/how to write, your is very impressive. I will b coming here everyday!

Post: #17

Wow your meals are really really small, more like a snack huh? (eg. 2 bananas) What were your previous meals like? How's it going? Do you get hungry alot?

I like how you try and "distract yourself" from snacking if it's not on your meal plan, hahaha i'll try this next time.

Post: #18

Hi Xina,

It's great to read your posts again after the Dec 30DLBL
This is the first time I'm visiting this group, and the debate here is very interesting.
I've also read that eating small, regular meals thoughtout the day is better. There's an interesting book from an indian nutritionist called "Don't lose your mind, lose your weight" - more details on
http://www.suite101.com/content/dont-los...ar-a245768

Post: #19

Good tips on handling cravings. I like the "in control" affirmation. I needed to remember that today when I ate a few too many chocolate-covered pretzels! Sooo good!

Post: #20

(01-09-2011 07:41 PM)rolandi Wrote:  Hi Xina

Nice journal. Actually I was going through different journals to get an idea of what/how to write, your is very impressive. I will b coming here everyday!

Thanks Rolandi! I actually did not visit the forum yesterday as I was busy doing some events yesterday I would post some recipes of raw food that I plan to eat later