Quantum
HEALTH
Issue 9 February 2011
on. Also remember that different body types naturally have different shapes and bone and muscle densities, so your friend may weigh less than you but not actually be thinner. It’s not your weight that really matters, it’s how you feel about your body.
Avoid ‘diet’ food Fresh food will always be the best nutritional choice, especially if you are on a diet, so don’t succumb to the media hype about “low-cal’ or ‘diet’ food. If it comes from a packet or box, it is likely to have preservatives and chemicals added to prolong its shelf life. Diet food especially may use flavour enhancers and chemical-based sugar substitutes to improve taste without upping the fat content. Another issue with diet food is that if it tastes bland or doesn’t fill you up, ultimately you’ll go back to your old—and probably unhealthier— way of eating. Why rely on unsatisfying and unhealthy diet foods when you can make your own healthy meals from fresh ingredients and use herbs and spices to enrich flavour? The best diet advice is always the simplest one: choose a healthy way of eating that you can maintain for life.
Be realistic about your body image Most of us are unhappy with our bodies. Our self-criticism is often fuelled by the unrealistic expectations set up by media—movies, TV, and the like. It’s time to get real! Real life isn’t airbrushed! It’s time to learn to love yourself for how you look right now. The truth is that most of us think we look worse than we do, and others don’t see all the tiny imperfections that we see in ourselves. But if you are motivated to improve your appearance, then do yourself a favour and set yourself up for success by praising yourself while also noting what you want to change. The best way to make positive changes is to first acknowledge what you like about yourself. Remind yourself of your strong points whenever negative thoughts about your body creep in. Edit your self-talk to bolster your self-esteem. If you catch yourself thinking ‘My thighs are so big!’ stop and restate that opinion in a positive way: ‘My waist is trim and toned, and soon my
74 Quantum Health
thighs will be as well!’ A more positive attitude translates into greater motivation to actually take the actions that result in the desired change.
Remember to eat often
If you eat small meals frequently throughout the day, you’ll not only keep your appetite satisfied but will probably eat fewer calories overall. Cravings are more likely to creep in when you are hungry and tired, and your willpower is impaired when you get to the point when you are so hungry you don’t care what you eat! So try spacing your meals out over the day, eating six small meals instead of two or three large ones. Try not to go longer than three hours without eating something—something healthy! Keep healthy snacks available, such as some nuts or a piece of fruit, so you won’t have to rely on candy from the vending machine or the doughnuts in the office lounge to satisfy that midmorning or mid- afternoon craving.
Choose your exercise wisely It’s a good idea to get balance and variety in your workout, and most people who exercise regularly try to do some cardio and some resistance training every week. There’s a good reason for that. Cardio burns fat and raises lung and heart fitness, among other benefits; however, its effects on burning calories tend to be short lived. Resistance training, in contrast, provides calorie- burning power even hours after you r workout. Resistance training stresses muscles, and as they recover throughout the day, your body continues to burn calories. Even if you stop working out for a few days or weeks, because you have built muscle mass, your body will burn more calories as you go about your day-to-day activities. So, if you are seeking to lost weight but are not doing some kind of resistance training, you might want to add it to your plan, as it will provide both an extra calorie-burning boost and help you more quickly tone and trim up.
Don’t count calories—make every calorie count
Meticulously counting every calorie can be a chore—and generally annoys everyone around
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