3 May

It Is Never Just About Food!

By Darci In Anxiety, Darci, Health, Life Coaching, Stress, Weight Loss /  3 No Comments

What are the biggest things that help someone stick to a weight loss program/lifestyle change?

1. Food journal/diary. Those who keep detailed notes of what they eat and drink each day are at least 60% more likely to succeed in their long-term health goals. Unless you lie in your own journal, it works as an accountability partner and a history that you can review to determine changes you need to make at different points or when something isn’t working.

2. Simplicity. Those who believe they need lots of variety and complicated recipes often overwhelm themselves in the process. While it’s great to make foods you enjoy and avoid boredom, it seems at least in the early stages, most people are more successful when they have fewer choices to make and less time to spend on a daily basis preparing food. This is why the next piece is so important…

3. Food prep. While most people do not enjoy the time and effort it takes to prep food for a healthy diet, the willingness to do this work not only reduces The time to prepare meals throughout the day or week, but it also makes it much more convenient and motivating to make healthy food choices once the prepped food is ready and/or packed up. If you are eating mostly vegetables and fruits and simple meals, food prep really doesn’t have to take that long. You can even shorten the time by breaking up food and pulsing in a food processor or using the slicing blade to make the prep time shorter. YOU CAN ALSO PREMAKE DRY SALADS BY ADDING SMALL AMOUNTS OF EACH INGREDIENT TO THE PROCESSOR, PULSING LIGHTLY AND THEN PACK IT UP. DO THIS A FEW TIMES AND YOU WILL SEE WHAT A TIME SAVER IT IS.

Yes, there are other important aspects to staying on track to lose weight and improve health, such as family/friend support, cooking skills/practice, regular blood tests, vitamin/mineral supplementation when necessary, exercise…But these top three can take you a long way all on their own and especially in addition to the other aspects.

Need a health/life coach to take you to your goals using a holistic approach to food and behavior? Hire us! It is never just about food! Learn how to change habits, use tools such as delayed gratification, visualizations, how to approach new food choices, the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle, reduce inflammation and pain, fight anxiety with food and psychological tools.

 

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24 Apr

Sleep, Health and Weight Loss

By Darci In Anxiety, Darci, Health, Life Coaching, Stress, Weight Loss /  1 No Comments

If you feel tired, you automatically grab a cup of coffee or many cups, along with a sugary snack to get fast energy. Then when you get hungry later, you might be tempted to go for some fast food and bring home a pre-cooked meal for the family instead of feeling the desire to cook a healthy meal at home.  By the time you lie down in bed, you can’t fall asleep due to the sugar spike. So you sleep little and wake up tired again the next morning…and so the cycle continues. Or maybe you have inordinate stress due to say a pandemic or normal stress from work, finances, or family.

The short-term result is that you may have the ability to get through the day, but in the long term, you gain weight due to less than stellar food choices in combination with none or minimal exercise.

If you keep adding on to your sleep debt, you will pay dearly with your health, weight, and emotional well-being. Eventually, you will crash – possibly in a literal sense. Those who are sleep-deprived are more likely to cause a car accident than a drunk driver. 
This article is not suggesting that if you get enough sleep, life will be perfect; however, when you do not get enough sleep on a continuous basis, your body does not function correctly. The result is a lot more than just the weight gain that comes from hormone imbalances, but for those reading this article, let’s focus on that for a moment.
The recommended sleep is about 7-8 hours per night. Sleeping more will not equate to dropping the last 10 pounds of our weight goal – but if you are currently sleeping around five hours at a time and you increase it to 7 or 8, you will likely drop some of the extra weight in a reasonable timeframe. You will also potentially improve your blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and other health indicators – but you should check with your doctor to see where you are today and how proper sleep might impact your medical concerns and any prescriptions you are taking.
There are two important hormones (besides cortisol) that affect our weight management – ghrelin and leptin. Ghrelin determines your hunger. Less sleep causes your body to produce more ghrelin and in turn to eat more. Leptin decides when to stop eating. When you sleep less, your body produces less leptin.

In addition to the above, metabolism slows down quickly when you don’t sleep enough. While slower metabolism in a healthy nutrient-dense lifestyle is a good thing (to be discussed in a future article,) sudden metabolism drops due to sleep loss is another cause of weight gain, even without increasing your intake of poor food choices.

How do you resolve your lack of sleep?

  • Avoid caffeine after lunch.
  • Exercise regularly to improve the quality of sleep. It’s up to you when you exercise but it is suggested that most people should not exercise close to bedtime.
  • Cut out junk food at night – high-calorie, processed foods or “heavy” foods can cause indigestion, bloating, and cause your body to focus on digestion instead of healing when you are sleeping. This impacts the quality of your sleep and body functionality and can result in quick weight gain.

If you are getting a full night of sleep most nights and still wake up exhausted, you may need to evaluate your current stress and anxiety levels. There are many exercises you can use to reduce anxiety and stress for short-term and long-term needs. On the other hand, there may be underlying conditions, and you should seek your doctor’s advice for further examination.

Need someone to help you put down that ice cream or pick up those vegetables? Hire a coach. @darcikingry is available via Zoom, phone or other media to help you with tips and tricks and the facts. It’s never just about the food. That’s why hiring a coach trained in holistic life and health coaching can make a difference in your success.

Darci has been on The Doctor Oz Show, highlighted in the 2015 PBS special with Joel Fuhrman, M.D., interviewed by Elisha Lee of Eat to Live Daily and the popular Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/eattolivedaily/ and is included in the book Legends of Change by Rebecca Frith. Follow Darci on Instagram at @darcikingry or Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/eatforlifesupport and https://www.facebook.com/SimplyNutritarian.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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