SelfControl Equals Guaranteed Weight Loss

How does one best lose weight? Well, there are many different things that I can say but none as important as this: Self-control. And by control, I mean, willpower. One has to view the unhealthier things as discomforting and consciously tell yourself that the healthier choices will yield happiness. Working on your willpower is no different than working a muscle. Maybe it would be helpful to purposefully choose the healthy things that seem so unappealing at first as an act to develop willpower as if lifting a dumbbell. Eventually, you will be making healthier decisions more often than not, which is the ultimate goal, to tip the scales in the right direction. On a further note, don't bite off more than you can chew; take baby steps toward your healthier goals. If you dive in altogether, then most likely you'll be overwhelmed. Start slow and set goals that are a bit challenging but obtainable.

Underneath this canopy of Self-control sits vital concept if weight loss is the goal: portion control. Eat more meals, but eat smaller portions. Ideally,you want to eat more than the typical 3 square meals a day. In at all possible, aim for 5 meals. The reason being that your body becomes hungry during the lulls between meals while on the traditional 3 meal plan. You might be saying, ?Well, I was always told to only eat when hungry.? Well, it's now been discovered that your body panics when hungry, not knowing when its next meal will be, and slows down its metabolism and hoards fat in order to conserve valuable energy. Think of your body as a furnace and the meals as adding coal to the fire. The greater the fire, the more calories burned. Next, I'll give you some useful tips on figuring out adequate portion sizes for different foods. For fruits and vegetables, one serving equals one cup. The American Diabetes Association says that 1/2 cup looks like a halved tennis ball sitting on your plate. So at each meal, imagine a full tennis ball's worth of colorful vegetables, fruit, or starchier vegetables sitting on your plate. For lean meats, 3 ounces equal a single serving. In the case that you don't feel like measuring, just imagine putting a piece of chicken or fish on your plate that's the size of a deck of cards. Now, when dining out, large portions seem almost mandatory. The best way to fix that is to have the server immediately box up half of the meal and have you take the rest home for lunch the next day. Or, you could always just split an entree with someone and, if you haven't indulged in awhile, then split a dessert with someone.

Also beneath this umbrella of self-control and even beneath the canopy of portion control, lies another important tenet of healthy weight loss: insulin control. Insulin is a hormone released by the pancreas that's main role is to regulate carbohydrate metabolism. Essentially, when blood sugar levels start getting past a certain threshold, insulin is released to drag off the excess glucose to the liver, muscles, or to fat stores. Unfortunately, when you have a lot of simple, refined sugars like sodas or sweets, then the bloodstream is hit with too much glucose from the breakdown of simple carbs and, as a result, insulin is released in large quantities to get rid of the excess and return the bloodstream to normal blood sugar levels. However, too much can be released and the excessive insulin can rid your blood of most of its glucose rather quickly. This is why one feels exhausted and cloudy not too long after making a meal made out of sugary stuff. So, ideally, one wants to eat complex carbohydrates like colorful vegetables, grains, and starches. The reason being that complex carbohydrates have what is called a low glycemic index score. The glycemic index is a means to rate how quickly a carbohydrate hits the bloodstream, Table sugar has a score of 100, while a golden delicious apple rates as a 39. Typically, any carbohydrate that has a glycemic index score less than 55 is usually considered to be a good carbohydrate source since the raise in blood sugar is gradual and thus insulin isn't over-released (an exception would be carrots, with a score of 92). Now, if one spends a long time eating a lot of refined sugary foods, then one would not only become obese but would most likely develop a resistance to insulin that would eventually lead to diabetes. Essentially, your body finds itself unable to use the insulin that is already in the bloodstream and yet the pancreas still produces more and more. Many researchers believe that any carbs ingested would immediately be taken to be stored as fat since both the liver and muscles don't need to be replenished of energy. So, in order to avoid these maladies, control the amount of carbs ingested. Aim for no refined and processed carbs like white bread and sodas, even if that means eliminating one soda at a time. By replacing your potato chips and french fries and Wonder Bread with broccoli, apples, asparagus, and bell peppers, then things like Alzheimer's disease, strokes, arthritis, heart disease, and diabetes can all be sidestepped. As the noted English author and critic, Samuel Johnson once said, ?Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but by perseverance.? So, persevere, for trimmer waistlines and longer lives await thee.

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