Loss weight

Question
Dear Expert,

I am a male, 25 years old, weighing 84 kg (in the same weight for years), height 166 cm.
I know that the key to loss weight is to burn calory more than the amount
of calory I get from food I eat.

I am a programmer. I wake up aroung 4.15am in the morning, commute to work
place by bus (a total of 5 hours trip) and get home around 8.30pm. I usually
walk for 450 - 500m every morning from my home to the first bus stop.

It appears that I don't have enough time for sport unless Saturday and Sunday.
I am trying to use my treadmill for 30 minutes on Saturday and Sunday.

So my strategy is eating food contain less calory. My girl friend makes
boiled potatoes, boiled young corn and some boiled vegetable-which-I-don't-
know-its-name-in-English for my lunch every Monday to Friday.

When I get home, I usually eat in small amount. It can be fruits, food we
call it 'siomay' (I don't know its name in English), bread.

I live in Indonesia.

That is the big picture of my eating habit and my activity.

Am I in the right track to loss weight?
Can you suggest me of another strategy?

Thank you.

Answer
Hi Frans

Here's the bottom line: one pound is equivalent to 3,500 calories. Whether by making slight changes to your diet like the ones listed below or exercising, a deficit of 500 calories a day will lead to the loss of a pound a week! Remember, it's the small changes we make every single day that make a big difference in the long run!

  1. Switch to water first thing in the morning instead of fruit juice. Fruit juice is high in sugar. Since most of us are dehydrated in the morning, water's the best thing to do the trick anyway.

  2. Switch to sugar-free yogurt instead of eating regular yogurt.

  3. Switch to a low-fat store-bought bagel instead of a bakery bagel.

  4. Save even more -- use all-fruit instead of flavored cream cheese on that low-fat bagel.

  5. Replace bacon at breakfast with reduced-fat turkey bacon or Canadian bacon.

  6. Steam veggies instead of saut閕ng them in butter or oil.

  7. If you drink a lot of soda, switching to diet soda will probably save you hundreds of calories a day.

  8. Switch to boiled shrimp instead of steak on shish kebabs.

  9. Replace 1 tablespoon of regular mayo on your turkey sandwich with 1 ?tablespoons of reduced fat mayo.

 10. Indulge in Sunday-morning French toast... modified. Use non-fat milk and egg whites instead of whole milk and eggs.

   * Here's a Red Light to Snack!
     When I first started trying to lose weight, I went along with the old school thinking that eating between meals is a no-no. So, I stopped snacking altogether. Wow, did that ever back-fire! When meal times rolled around, I was often so hungry that my good intentions went right out the window and I ate much more than I normally would have in the first place.

     Eating sensible snacks between smaller meals will stave off hunger and keep your blood sugar at a good level and prevent this type of situation. In fact, studies in recent years have shown that eating several small meals a day instead of three large ones is better for your health and helps your weight loss by keeping your metabolism revved up! To make sure your snack does the trick, mix carbs with a protein, like reduced-fat cheese on wheat crackers and some grapes.

   * Counting 1, 2, 3...
     I have an easy way of "forcing" myself to practice portion control: buying single serving packages and using plastic baggies. I've found that buying the pre-packaged single serving of some types of foods proves too costly, so I buy the regular size packages of those items, but I never eat anything straight out of the package. One of my biggest danger zones is to sit down with a whole bag of baked chips or an entire box of low-fat cookies!

     We have all heard that even if something is reduced in fat, it doesn't mean we can eat all we want. That's because calories still count. So, look at the nutrition chart and find how much of your favorite snack is in a serving. Then count those crackers or measure out that popcorn and store your snack serving in individual plastic baggies. If you do this ahead of time, not only do you already have your snacks measured and prepared, but having them on-hand keeps your hunger from leading you to the vending machine, a definite diet danger zone for anyone!

   * Chill Out, Man!
     You'll be hard-pressed to find any weight loss advice that doesn't recommend drinking more water. I don't mind downing plenty of H20, but my pet peeve is that it has to be really cold. It's hard to get a nice glass of ice water when you're on the go, so I often put a pint sized bottle of water in the freezer. If you put a single serving water bottle in the front of the freezer for a while, you'll have super cold water to drink for a long time. Don't leave it in long enough for it to freeze solid, but just long enough for a "core" of ice to form. Then, as the ice melts, your water gets colder! Ah, just perfect for the summer season around the corner!

   * "When Life Gives you Lemon Juice..."
     I drink so much water during the day that I like to have something different at meals, especially when dining out. I am convinced that I've tried every diet soda on the market and I've yet to find one I can tolerate. But giving in to regular soda can add hundreds -- thousands if re-fills are flowing -- of calories on to the day's quota.

     I keep plenty of no-cal fruit flavored waters in the fridge at home. But those aren't always available at my local eateries. So, I like to ask for ice water with a juice glass full of extra lemon slices or a bottle of lemon juice. I add a couple packets of artificial sweetener and voila -- instant diet lemonade!

# Don't Make a Sugar-Free Snack
Despite what you may think, the special section of sugar-free treats for diabetics at your local supermarket isn't exactly a dieter's dream. These specially-made sugar-free sweets like cookies or snack bars often contain nearly as many calories as their "normal" counterparts on the regular food aisles. Same goes with reduced-fat, "diet" cookies like Snackwells... just because they have less fat than other cookies doesn't mean they don't have calories galore. Calories count, no matter how "diet-friendly" you think what you're eating is!

# "Clucker" vs. Burger
Sure, chicken is a smarter choice over burgers, but not so good an alternative if the chicken you choose is battered and fried. That burger just might start looking healthy when compared to a greasy fried chicken patty! In fact, many fast food chains' fried chicken sandwiches have as much (or more) fat than a regular hamburger. Your best choice is always to go with a grilled or baked chicken sandwich whenever possible; add fresh veggies like lots of tomato and lettuce to make your sandwich more nutritious and filling.

# Be Choosey About Chicken Toppers
Your next chicken choice pitfall is what you put on top of that sandwich. Mustard is a great fat-free alternative to mayonnaise, which is very high in fat. Be sure to watch out for those mysterious "special sauces" some fast food chains automatically slather on your sandwich. For example, Kentucky Fried Chicken has a roasted chicken sandwich, but the sauce is so fat-laden it literally triples the fat content! The KFC Web site tells us that the healthy-sounding Tender Roast Sandwich with sauce is a whopping 15 grams of fat and 350 calories. Skip the sauce, but have the sandwich, and you'll only be taking in 5 grams of fat. You'll save about 80 calories, too.








7 Tips to Increase Metabolism


  
  

To increase metabolism, always eat breakfast in the morning. Break-fast...break the fast. Don't skip breakfast. If you wait  until mid morning or afternoon to eat, your metabolism will run slower. Think of breakfast as adding logs to the fireplace. Your metabolism is the fireplace and logs are the breakfast.


  

Increase metabolism by eating smaller meals through the day. Eat 4 to 6 six small meals, 2 to 3 hours apart.


  Don't depend on herbal products to increase metabolism or energy level. Any metabolic increase will be minimum  and herbs are not cheap.  Instead, include more energy foods such as whole grains, beans, vegetables and fruits.

  Park further away and walk. Use the stairs instead of the elevator when possible. Walk to the post office instead of getting into the car. Take your dog on a daily walk. Do more activities around the house to burn energy instead of wasting money on pills and potions that don't work.


  Incorporate a walking routine to increase metabolism at least three to four times a week. Walk 30 to 40 minutes each time. This is the best way to increase your metabolism.

  Don't starve yourself when trying to lose weight. This will slow down your metabolism in a hurry. Avoid 5 to 6 hour gaps between meals without eating.


  Be committed to eating smaller meals at regular intervals. Prepare food in advance and bring it with you. Never eat sporadically and plan each meal. The common mistake is to skip meals and eat too little during the day. This makes you vulnerable for eating junk food later in the day. Eating to lose weight takes planning.

ELIMINATE TEMPTATIONS

Keeping baked goods, chips and other easy to eat, fattening snacks at
home in places where you frequently visit and have easy access will
sabotage your weight loss effort. Remove the temptation if you have a
problem snacking on pastries, chocolate or chips, particularly late at night.

Lunch buffets and office parties can be equally distracting when you're
trying to lose weight. The first 3 to 4 weeks are critical to establishing
good eating habits and little things such as birthday cake at the office
or chocolate bars can destroy your motivation to lose weight.

Remember, weight loss is not an overnight process. It takes weeks to
establish good eating and exercise habits and several more weeks to start
seeing results. Below are a few tricks you can do to REMOVE temptation
so your efforts will pay off.

(1) If family members don't normally eat junk food, DO NOT buy baked
goods, pastry, chips or other high calorie junk food. You can ALWAYS
treat yourself to something sweet and fatty once or twice a week, but
don't keep it around the house.

(2) If family members are not willing to give up their junk food then put
all fatty snacks in a designated place where you seldom visit. The old
saying "Out of sight, out of mind" is very true when it comes to removing
tempting foods from your reach.

(3) If family members eat all the goodies in a short time, DON'T BUY MORE.
Wait until the next scheduled time to go grocery shopping. This will train
family members not to over indulge in junk food because once eaten,
they'll have to wait until the next time you go grocery shopping.

(4) Office parties and celebrations are notorious for getting people off
track from their diet. Usually, you'll know in advance of an upcoming
celebration of cake and ice cream. Remove yourself from the party area.
You can always walk to the opposite end of the office / building for 10 or
15 minutes.

(5) Congratulate your office mate after all the goodies are gone. Explain
why you did not participate in the festivities. They will understand!

(6) Not all fast food restaurants are bad. It depends on what you select.
Grilled chicken sandwiches, grilled chicken and rice bowl, sandwiches
with no cheese and small amount of mayonnaise, fat free or baked chips,
diet soda or water, salads with light dressing are available in most
restaurants. BUFFETS will do you in, so avoid them.

cheers

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