Tuesday, October 5, 2010

How to lose weight

Now there's a headline which I am sure garnered either a second look or a sigh of 'not another pile of crap'. Well I actually like this list so I am going to write about how to lose weight. But first the news this morning tells us that the best way to lose weight is to get a good night's sleep. Not sure what one has to do with another but I'll keep listening to the news until I find out - maybe it will be before I finish this post in which case I'll tell you why.

The real reason I'm writing is about this new list of how to lose weight.

1. Ditch your scale. It is merely a tool to drive you crazy. Your weight goes up by one pound and you get depressed. Your weight goes down one pound and you eat a pizza. Then you repeat the cycle. I will stop weighing myself.

2. To get in shape you need to do cardio, strength training, AND flexibility training. Well this is not me. I will continue to go for a walk every day but the strength and flexibility issues are a problem due to my back.

3. What you eat is important. Just because you are dieting doesn't mean you need to go hungry. Eat real food and good fats to keep you feeling full.

4. Skip the quick diets and fads. (The same goes true for the get rich schemes and the promise of a cure for cancer.) Anything that takes pounds off fast will put them back on right away.

5. Apparently you will miss the old you. You got fat because you ate chocolate cake every night. You might miss that. Pay attention.

I think there are more articles on weight control than on cancer on the internet. Also this morning I have learned that fat grows differently on different parts of the body - this is important because it is some kind of breakthrough. (I need coffee to compute all this.) And if you are fat, you can't remember anything - so can I claim being fat and having chemo brain for being a spaceshot? Finally, if you are tired, you feel hungrier so get more sleep. This is another reason why we need a good night's sleep regularly.

I need to get moving and take a shower - I promise not to weigh myself this morning like I often do. Then I will make us healthy lunches to take with us.

2 comments:

Cynthia said...

Excellent reminders, Caroline. It's funny, but cancer gave me the gift of not allowing me to procrastinate about my weight anymore. Now I just need to make all this good advice a REGULAR part of my day.

Have a great day.

Nancy said...

I am finding it so hard to get a good night's sleep during my cancer treatment. When I'm tired,it's harder to exercise, so there definitely is a connection. I do know I need to take better care of myself from here on in.

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