Month: September 2010

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My Weight Loss Story

I’ve been overweight basically since I was eight years old. It was like a switch flipped and all of a sudden the same activity level and diet I had had backfired on me for no apparent reason. Unfortunately, I think this inexplicable weight gain actually handicapped my efforts at weight loss. I believe I grew up from that point on convincing myself that I wasn’t a fat person (though I couldn’t deny that I was larger than most my age) simply because something outside of my control and my efforts—or lack there of—had caused me to balloon. I’m 24 now and I’ve finally had a change of mind – and a change of life.

I had honestly thought that I ate relatively well. Sure, I didn’t have the healthiest of eating habits, but I didn’t see my daily food intake as extreme by any means. A little under a year ago, it was like another switch had flipped – not a sudden weight gain or weight loss this time, but instead a sort of enlightenment, as silly as that sounds. I don’t recall simply realizing that I was eating way too much in each meal. Instead, it was like my mind began this gradual process to segue myself into healthy eating. I know I read on some random weight loss tip websites, magazine articles, and so on that people have a bad habit of eating when they’re not hungry. So I came to understand that one of the biggest hindrances to weight loss is continuing to eat even though your stomach is satisfied. That was the first big step. When I would make burritos, I used to eat three. I tried two for dinner the next time we had them and I found that I was filled. The next time I tried one and some veggies on the side and, again, I was filled. This same pattern happened with all my food.

Now that I sit back and look at it, I can’t believe that my meals are now about a third the size they originally were. I’m still flabbergasted that I thought the way I ate wasn’t all that bad. I really do believe this is the problem that the average person has when dealing with weight loss: seeing the truth for themselves and accurately weighing their diet. We’re too afraid to admit to ourselves just how unhealthy we are because we like what we eat. But now that I’ve changed (and lost a good 65 pounds), I like myself more than I ever liked the crap that I ate.

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Can almonds help you lose weight?

A lot of people believe that nuts may make good snacks but they are full in calories when it comes to losing weight. Recent study and research has revealed that on the contrary, one type of nuts namely almonds are actually a good way to enhance your weight loss goal. So for those of you looking for all possible and healthy means of losing weight and maintaining good health should keep almonds a part of your diet as one of them!

Almonds can make a very healthy snack for people enrolled in fitness programs and weight loss regimes. This is basically because of the fact that almonds are full of nutrition and have the quality of stabilizing blood sugar which is even good for diabetic people. Additionally, almonds are full of healthy fat, complex carbohydrates, fiber, minerals and vitamins that are an important part of your diet, especially when you’re losing weight.

As snacks, almonds are also very satisfying and have found to curb hunger pangs much better than other snacks. So it is a good idea to eat a handful of almonds before each meal so that you can eat adequately and you can even keep a handful of them in your pocket and during work so that you don’t have an incentive to go for calorie-high snacks any time during the day.

Nutritional Benefits of Almonds

So what exactly is in almonds that make them so healthy? Well, they are an excellent source of Vitamin E, fatty acids and magnesium, not to mention the power of fiber. Together, these elements in almonds can help boost your nutritional diet and to curb and control your hunger and appetite, two very important weight management tools in the dictionary of weight loss. But always go for raw almonds, not processed almonds or ones that are coated in sugar or any other calorie-high stuff.

You can however, consume roasted almonds because they will be tastier but make sure they are not salted and are dry-roasted, not roasted in oil. You can even roast almonds at home or purchase packs of dry-roasted almonds to keep with you at all times. You can also add raw cocoa nibs to the nuts; this makes a very delicious and interesting combination and it is a good solution for those people who say that snacking on almonds alone is too boring. Plus, you can also get more antioxidants from the cocoa!

You can even add blue berries or cherries with your almonds, which is another delicious combination and one that is also appetizing. In fact, you can place almonds in your vegetable salad or fruit salad as well adding a whole lot of other raw and healthy vegetables and fruits to your diet as well! Goji berries are another addition to your almond snacks; they also have vitamins and minerals along with amino acids to provide protein.

So keep a handful of almonds with you at all times and whenever you feel hungry, you can always pop a few instead of snacking on unhealthy and calorie-high food. But remember; consume almonds in moderation and only as snacks because even healthy food items taken excessively can have a negative impact on your weight loss objectives.