3 Keys to Tapping Into Your Weight Loss Zone: Part 1

What Is A Weight Loss Zone?

When Kobe Bryant scores 40+ points in an NBA game, we say "he's in the zone."  When Michael Jordan scored over 60 points in an NBA playoff game, he was in the zone.

When Drew Brees, Tom Brady, or Peyton Manning completed over 20 passes in a row in route to an NFL victory, we say they were in a zone!

Likewise, there is a weight loss zone that everyone has that can be tapped into.  It’s that place where you can shed the pounds like an animal sheds a bad coat of fur & it stays off!

I have tapped into that Zone!  I used to weight about 270 pounds.  I weigh just under 190 pounds & I've kept the weight off for over 5 years!

Part #1 will cover Key #1.

Key #1:  Put Your Body In Position to Succeed – Get Into the Zone 

It was Einstein who said the definition of insanity was to do the same thing over and over again and expect different results!  Let’s face it! You’re not going to lose weight trying to stick to the same eating habits for years and years, and expect different results.

And let’s not kid ourselves either!  We’ve all probably heard it: “Give me 2 Big Macs, a large fries, AND a Diet Coke!”  As if to think that the diet coke is going to help!  

No, you’ve got to do something different! 

The simplest way to put your body in a position to succeed is to change your eating habits!  If you've read my blog, I did that by eliminating added sugar and high fructose corn syrup from my diet.  You can Google the benefits of eliminating these 2 things from your diet and how that speeds up your metabolism.  When I changed my eating habits in this way, I lost 30 pounds in 4 months, without exercising or counting calories!

I understand that it may seem hard for some people to figure out how to change their eating habits to lose weight.  I started this blog by showing people how I did it.

But even if you don’t do it the way I did, there are lots of companies out there whose business model is that very thing: losing weight by eating their meals.  For example, here in Texas we have MyFitFoods, Mel’s Meals, and Snap Kitchen. 

These companies prepare the meals for you: breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as well as snacks in between the meals.  For example, MyFitFoods (which also has locations in States other than Texas) has a 21 day challenge, where the typical client loses 6-15 pounds, just by following their eating plan.

Snap Kitchen has a similar 21 day program as well.

So if you want to tap into your weight loss zone, change your eating habits!  You can do this be doing what I did, or find companies that will set up a plan for you, even with meals they have prepared!

On a side note, I've tried meals that were prepared by each of the companies I've listed, as a post-workout meal, and they taste very good!!

Stay tuned for Parts 2 & 3!

It's Not Too Late to Lose Weight!

I don't know when that age is, but there are a lot of people that reach a certain age & think they are too far gone to lose weight!  At that point, they just kind of "let themselves go."

Let me tell you, you are not too far gone, and it's not too late!

Look at me!  I used to weigh about 270 pounds!   I'm in the high 180's/low 190's now!  AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) sends me mail at least 2X per month that says "please join us!"

So if I can do it, you can do it!  Go for it!  And keep reading this blog & be encouraged!

WOW - Workout Wednesday

I want to first say that I consider myself very blessed to be able to train and compete in Master's Track & Field.  I am at an age where I constantly receive mail from the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) asking me to join!  LOL!

I've come a long way since weighing about 270 pounds!

If you don't know my story, please read my blog profile.  Also take a look at my before & after pics!

Now this blog post highlights something I've been wanting to do for a while: post a video of one of my workouts.  So what you'll see below is one of my track workouts...I'm calling it WOW for Workout Wednesday (shout out to Flotrack.org for the idea).

Anyway check it out.  I expect more WOW videos to come!

WOW - Workout Wednesday Video

Quick Workout after Eating Too Much!

Today is one of the few days that I'm doing two workouts!  I needed it because I had fajitas for lunch yesterday and Chick-Fil-A for dinner!  LOL!

I did a quick 20 minute workout around lunchtime.  Then late this afternoon will be my track workout where we will run some bleachers (among other things) as part of some one's graduate school research project!

Here was my lunchtime workout:

1. Jogged 1/4 mile on the treadmill to get the juices flowing - about 2 minutes
2. Did some stretching - about 3 minutes
3. Did the workout in the video below
   
   

4.  Then I did 3 sets of 100 sit-ups per set consisting of knee-tucks, twists with a 10 pound weight, scissors, and combination dumbbell press.

Real simple, real cardio, real quick!

Weight Loss by HIIT!

If you've Googled anything about losing weight and exercise, you probably found that High Intensity Interval Training or HIIT is the rage!

What is HIIT?

HIIT is when there are alternating periods of intense exercise with periods of recovery.  For example, you go as hard as possible on an exercise for let’s say 1 or 2 minutes have a recovery period of say 4 minutes, and then repeat the cycle maybe 4 times.

Another thing about HIIT is that your body will spend the rest of the day expending energy to recover from the butt-kicking you gave it from a HIIT workout!   This means you’re burning calories/fat while sitting!  And it also speeds up speeds up your metabolism!

4 Benefits of HIIT

#1:  Less time to exercise.  You can do a hardcore HIIT workouts in 30 minutes or even less.  And the workouts are so intense, many experts recommend no more than 3X per week!

#2:  Burn more fat!  As I stated earlier, your body will burn fat/calories recovering after your workout!

#3:  You don’t need equipment or to join a gym!  These workouts can be as simple as running as fast as you can for 100 Meters, then taking a 2 -4 minute recovery period, then doing it again 4X.

#4:  It’s challenging!  I remember a time when going to the gym to workout was boring.  With HIIT workouts, there is never a dull moment!  You can do a HIIT workout with dumbbells, or you can do a series of plyometric (jumping type) exercises.  Or you can do different sprint workouts on a track.  Or you can purchase a program like INSANITY that incorporates HIIT concepts.

An Example HIIT Workout

All HIIT workouts typically consist of 3 things:  Warm-up, the HIIT, and cool-down.  It’s that simple.

I train and compete in Master’s Track which is part of USA Track & Field.  What’s fun to me about it is that it’s really just structured HIIT workouts with goals and camaraderie all wrapped up into one.

For example, I train for the 200 meters & 400 meters.  After warm-up (jogging, stretching & mobility drills), a typical workout in March would be 3 sets of 3X 200 Meters.  We would take 2 minutes recovery between each 200, and 6 minutes recovery in between sets.  We would set a goal of what to run each 200 Meters in…for example below 32 seconds (most of us are between 50 – 58 years old - LOL!).

We workout 2 – 3 times per week.  And believe me, not only do you feel the workout all day, but you welcome the typical 2 day recovery period!

If you want to find out more, I encourage you to Google HIIT.  But I also want to encourage you to get involved in some type of club or organization that does HIIT workouts on a routine basis.  Who knows, it may be so enjoyable, you'll completely forget about losing weight just from enjoying the camaraderie, goals, and accountability.  Then you'll realize that you’ve lost more weight in a shorter time than you could have imagined!

Still Losing Weight: Now Down to a 34!

I've had a lot of people remark that I've lost weight.  I'm thinking - of course, I've lost weight and kept it off for almost 6 years! 

I've been noticing over the past 6 months or so that my clothes were getting too big.  I finally got around to hopping on a scale and I weighed 189 pounds!  The last time I was below 190 was about 30 years ago!  I've come a long way from when I weighed about 270 pounds!

I've also dropped another size!  This is amazing, considering now I'm not trying to lose weight!  I'm just doing the Master's Track thing, training hard, setting goals, and trying to achieve them!

Fun Workouts!

Master's Track is fun!  The camaraderie is great, the workouts are fun, and it's very inspirational!  I think the best ways to lose weight is to do something fun that also involves exercise & goals!  You don't even have to pay attention to weight!  That's what my "Phase 3" of weight loss is about!


Check out the video below!

Master's Track Meet Results: 100 Meters

Here's the video of the 100 meters that I ran on May 19th.  

My time was a 14.1 seconds.

I ran this event 30 minutes after the 200 Meters, and decided to do it at the last minute.  I did it mainly because my family had arrived a little late & missed me running the 200.

Technically, I should be able to run faster than a 14.1 seconds.  Since I ran the 200 in 28.61 seconds, it should translate to a 100 Meter time of in the low 13 second range!

Masters' Track Meet Results - 200 Meters

This is the event that I've been training for & focusing on for the last 2 weeks.  I'm also excited that I got to wear my Waterloo Track Club gear for the 1st time!  Check out the video below.

The next video shows the race.

Here's my analysis of my race:

Masters' Track Meet Results - 60 Meters

I just ran in my 2nd track meet of the 2012 season - the Lions Championships in Austin, TX!

It was a fun meet!  My intention was to run the 200 Meters.  But based on my arrival time and the order of events, I decided to run the 60 Meters to warm-up for the 200.  I'm in Lane 1 & next to Lamar, who is one of my training partners.

I've never ran this race before.  My time was an 8.8 something.

Catching Up

I know it's been a while since I've posted.  I've been super-busy over the last month.  Here's a brief update!

As you know, in Phase 3 of my weight-loss, I don't focus on losing weight - imagine that!  I'm a Master's Track athlete.  So I just focus on my workouts and getting faster!  The weight loss or weight maintenance takes care of itself.

Last month, my brother Q came in town.  He came to one of my track workouts.  He crushed it by running the 150's with us (at his own pace).  After the track portion of the workout, we did the medicine ball workout, then ran the stadium steps!

Q lives in CA, takes daily hikes, and plus runs some 3K's and 5K's.  While he was here, we ran a 5K for cancer research!  We hope to do some more of that when we get together!

Busy? Get a Quick Workout In!

I've got an extremely busy day today preparing for my daughter's symphony debut of her original composition.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to get my track workout in tomorrow, so I got an intense workout in at the gym!  This entire workout took only 30 minutes!

In order to complement my track workouts, all of my gym workouts are heavy on plyometrics (jumping) and include a core component.

After warm-up, I did 4 stations, 5 minutes per station.  The goal is to do the maximum amount of supersets per station in 5 minutes.  Here's the workout:

Warm-up:

• 0.5 Miles on the treadmill
• Dynamic stretching (leg swings, etc.)

Station #1:  5 sets of 50 jump rope.  Odd sets jump with both feet, even sets alternating one foot jumps

Station #2:  Did 3 Supersets: 1-leg stiff leg deadlifts with 30 pound dumbbell (10 reps on each leg), 10 bent over lateral raises

Station #3:  Did 3.5 sets of Inverted rows, 3 sets of fish tails (fish tails are similar to this, except I jump from side to side while in push-up position)

Station #4:   Elevated side plank dumbbell reach with an 8 lb dumbbell.  1 set = 10 reps on each hand (note: it's similar to this exercise on youtube, except I'm elevated b/w 2 benches); supersetted with 20 bench jumps.  I did 3 supersets in 5 minutes!

And that's it!  30 Minutes!

Never too Old for Track & Field

This picture of Lamar & I was taken on Friday, 4/13/2012 after my track workout.  [I'm the one in the Chicago Bears shirt.]

A young lady named Megan who was doing some sprint workouts on the track was inspired seeing us "older" people working hard on the track.  She took the picture and tweeted it to her blog followers. Megan is a fitness trainer and I am now following her blog http://showoutmeg.blogspot.com.


Megan's tweet was entitled "Not too old for track work"  hash tag #Inspired.

That day, Lamar & I did 2 sets of 3x200 Meters.  I did all of them except the last 2 in 33 seconds or below.  The recovery period between 200's was 3 minutes.  The recovery period between sets was 6 minutes.

After the sprints, we did various types of situps using the 6 pound medicine ball.  Then we ran up the stadium steps.

By the way, my track training partners keep telling me that I've lost weight.  Compare this picture with others on my blog and they're probably right!

Track Meet Results: 200 Meters

On Saturday April 7th, I ran the 400 Meters and the 200 Meters in that order.

My goal was to run the 200 Meters in less than 29 seconds.  Here is a video of the race - I'm the one in the maroon shirt - I'm easily found!

I ran it 30.1 seconds.  That is actually the pace I should have for the 400 meters.

This race took place about 20 minutes after I finished the 400.  I was really tired running this 200.  I need more training to be able to run both races hard in the same meet!

Track Meet Results: 400 Meters

On Saturday April 7th, I ran the 400 Meters and the 200 Meters in that order.

My goal was to run the 400 Meters in 65 seconds or below.  Here is a video of the race (I'm in Lane #3 in the Maroon shirt):

There was a serious headwind on the backstretch which seemed to slow me down.  Also, my plan was to pump my arms to speed up my legs on the last 150 meters.  With 100 meters left to go, all I could tell myself was maintain this speed, don't slow down!

I ended up running it in 67.2 seconds.  That is my personal best in Masters Track by almost 2 seconds, but it wasn't my goal.

So that means I need to train harder by running faster intervals in practice!

Of course, from a weight loss perspective...I don't even focus on that!  My focus is on getting better/faster in my events.  Now my training partners keep telling me that I've lost weight!  I guess one of these days I'll find a scale & weigh myself!  LOL!

Track Meet Today!

I have a track meet today!

I'll run the 400 Meters and the 200 Meters, in that order.  My goal is to run the 400 in less than 65 seconds, and the 200 Meters in less than 29 seconds.

I hope to post videos soon!

My #1 Tip of How I Kept the Weight Off!

Phase #3 of my weight loss is how I keep it off!

That is a struggle for many people out there.  Phase #2 of my weight loss lasted for about 3 years.  During that time, I did various circuit training workouts that I designed for myself from youtube videos.

As you can see from my weight management timeline, I did very well weight loss wise.  But as with a lot of people, you have to have variety so that boredom won't set it!

My #1 Tip for Keeping the Weight off is find something athletic and fun that involves goals, and pursue that!  Then keeping the weight off will be a benefit, not something you focus on.

Here are some examples:

• Master's Track & Field (this is what I do, and I will blog a lot about this in Phase #3)
• Triathlon
• Kickboxing
• Marathons
• Iron Mans (similar to Triathlons I believe)
• Power Lifting (a friend of mine does this - after he had lost 40 pounds avoiding sugar consumption & exercising in the gym at his high-tech job)

I started doing Master's Track & Field in March 2010 (which started my Phase #3 of weight loss).  Frankly, I don't pay any attention to my weight.  I workout with members of a Masters Track & Field Track Club.  Our workouts are pre-set:  3x per week (although I'm only able to make it 2x per week).

My focus in track is getting better.  I have goals time-wise in the events I run.  I typically make it to the gym 1x per week.  My workouts at the gym are all geared toward track:  getting stronger in my core & getting faster.

So even if I ate too much like I did on my anniversary, no worries:  I had a track workout coming up.  

Track is also a year around sport, meaning in the off-season, we train for endurance.  It's also a sport where if you are inconsistent in going to workouts, it is hard to improve.  

So again, do something athletic where you shift the focus to improving in that activity, and not in losing weight!

Pressed for Time? Try this Short but Intense Cardio Weightlifting Workout!

Since I’ve been exercising for a good while, I’ve found some ways to shorten my workouts, but they are still extremely intense!  I still break it down into 3 phases:

• Phase #1:  Warm-up on the treadmill (I usually do about 5 minutes)
• Phase #2:  Dynamic Stretching
• Phase #3:  The workout!

I separate the Phase #3 workout portion into 4 or 5 stations.  I typically have 2 exercises per station, which are called supersets.

For the workout, you spend 5 minutes on each station.  10 reps for each exercise is called 1 set.  The goal is to do as many supersets at each station in 5 minutes, with 3 supersets being the minimum goal.

When the 5 minutes are up, you move to the next station.

This is a workout that is done typically in 45 minutes max!

Recent Workout

Here’s an example of a recent workout.  I did it the morning after celebrating my 20^th wedding anniversary.  We celebrated at PF Changs Chinese Bistro – I had the Almond/Cashew Chicken.  I ate too much (& still brought some home) – wow I don’t say that very often (LOL!) and I ate at 9:30 pm.  But I digress…

This is what I did after warm-up on the treadmill & dynamic stretching:

Station #1:  Jump rope.  Did not superset it, but did 5 sets of 50 jumps.  On even sets, I jumped on one leg, alternating legs on every 10 jumps.

Station #2:  Stomach:  20 Knee tucks, 20 Russian twists with a 10 pound dumbbell = 1 superset.  Did 5 supersets.

Station #3:  Burpees with push-up combination.  Did 3 supersets.

Station #4:  Dumbbell rows (10 with each hand) and 20 bench jumps.  A bench jump is when I jump on each side of a weightlifting bench while grasping it with my hands.   I did 5 supersets. 

Because of time, I only did 4 stations.  This entire workout (including treadmill & stretching) lasted 35 minutes!

My Cardio Circuit Training Weightlifting Workouts to Lose Weight

People who knew me at my Sumo weight are awed by my body's transformation when they see me now!  And things really accelerated for my with my cardio/circuit training/weightlifting workouts that I designed for myself.

My workouts consist of 3 phases:

1:  Warm-up on the treadmill – initially for 15 minutes when I 1^st started Phase 2.  Now it’s for 1 mile – which is about 8 minutes.

2:  Stretching

3:  Weightlifting/cardio.

For #3, I did exercises in a circuit – I would do 10 reps of one exercise, then move immediately to the next exercise without a break. 

My exercises included either weightlifting or body weight exercises that targets all the major muscles from shoulders to legs.  Therefore I did exercises for the following:

• Shoulders
• Chest
• Stomach
• Biceps
• Triceps
• Lats
• Thighs
• Hamstrings
• Calves (sometimes)

I worked out 3x per week at my neighborhood Rec center.  I would do a youtube search for exercises for each body part, and in my case, I used dumbbells.  For example, to find a shoulder exercise, I would type in “shoulder workout with dumbbells”.  I would pick 1 exercise, and do it for a month, then switched it up to another exercise.

My #1 Tip regarding Cardio:

Any exercise that involves running or jumping is guaranteed to get your heart rate up!

I did Burpees with push-ups (which covered the chest portion of the workout) for at least 6 months as part of my circuit training.  After that, I incorporated various exercises that involved some sort of jumping.

Circuits

One circuit would be to do 10 reps of all 8-9 muscle groups without stopping.  Then I would take about a 30 sec – 1 min water break, then start the next circuit.

One workout would be 3 circuits.  The workout would typically last about 1 hour and 15 minutes.  I was able to cut the time down as I found some combination exercises (multiple muscle groups at once) on youtube.

I did circuit training/weightlifting/cardio throughout the entire Phase #2 of my weight loss!  You can only imagine the body transformation & the weight falling off coupled with the eating habits I developed in Phase #1 of my weight loss!

You'll notice from my Weight Management Timeline, I lost about 15 pounds in one month doing this workout!

Top 4 Ways to Start an Exercise Program to Lose Weight

Many people are at a loss as far as how to start a consistent exercise program.  So the purpose of this post is to give you the top 4 ways that I’ve found to start an exercise program from scratch.

1. Do it yourself – either at home or in a gym.  This is what I did.  Having been a track athlete in High School and a walk-on football player in college (albeit for one semester), I knew about working out.   I did some google searches & youtube searches.  I ended up doing circuit training weight lifting workouts, which I will talk about in a separate post.
   
2. Hire a personal trainer.   Again, if you don’t know where to start, that’s where a personal trainer comes in.  There are a variety of personal trainer options available.  Now-a-days, you don’t have to meet with a personal trainer face-to-face!  There are several products online, as well as downloadable apps that do this for you!  Examples include Fitbit and Cyberfit360!
   
3. Join a bootcamp.  Bootcamps typically combine cardio, weight training, and circuit/interval training which is considered the best way to lose weight (more about how I’ve done this in later posts).  I go to a free bootcamp in my home town 2x per month.  Oh – that’s another tip: Many bootcamps offer at least 1 free session!
   
4. Purchase an exercise program!  My faves are: any program that involves kettlebells (KettleWorx and RKS), P90X (which I’ve done some of their exercises that are posted on youtube as part of some of my circuit training workouts), and the INSANITY WORKOUT  (I've also done some of their exercises that I found on youtube).

#1 Tip for Faster Weight Loss

Well, here it is!  My #1 tip I found for faster weight loss: weight lifting!  Why, because weight lifting sped up my metabolism.   I also combined weight lifting with a cardio component, which I’ll discuss in a future post.

There are numerous articles on the internet that talk about this.  Here's one article that provides an overview about weightlifting for weight loss.

Here is an excellent article that talks about how weightlifting helps you lose body fat, and alters your body composition.  Note:  This applies to men & women!

The Role of Eating Habits in Weight Loss 

Have you seen any of those exercise infomercials?  Every single one of them has some type of diet plan or eating habits plan in addition to the workout.  Why, because they know that if there’s no control in your eating, you won’t lose the weight.

Looking back, I see that’s what happened with me – my eating habits were conducive to losing weight! [Duh! I already lost 30 pounds before exercising! LOL!]

So that is my advice to you.  Make sure your eating habits are conducive to losing weight.   Otherwise you may experience the yo-yo effect (lose weight/gain it back). 

      

My hope is that you would see similar results if you do what I did.  Alec Baldwin avoided sugar and started exercising & he saw similar results!

I Guess It's Time to get on a Scale!

I've had a lot of people tell me that I've lost weight recently, including my workout partners!  I guess they might be right - all of my clothes are loose.

I think I might weigh in the 180's.  If I'm in the low 180's, that means I'm nearing the 100 pound loss mark!

I don't have a scale, so I'll have to find one - LOL!

So when I weigh myself, I'll let y'all know the results!

P.S.:  I've been super-busy lately, so the posts had slowed down.  But I have a lot of things in the works!

Breakfast of Champions!

Well, okay, maybe not.

But I decided to "earn" this breakfast by having an intense workout this morning.  Now, I'm in Phase #3 of my weight loss.  So I don't workout to lose weight - strange as that may sound to some.  I workout for a purpose.

And now, my purpose for workouts is to build/enhance power and explosion.  I'm jumping ahead of myself, the nuts and bolts of that statement will be discussed when I get to Phase #3 in the blog.

My workout lasted about 45 minutes.  I think I do what some call "interval training."

My workout consisted of a warm up, then 5 stations where I perform "supersets."  A superset is where I do 1 exercise immediately followed by another.

I allocate 5 minutes per station.  The goal is to do as many supersets in 5 minutes as possible, with the goal being 3 sets minimum per station.  When the 5 minutes are up, I take about a 15 second break or so and go to the next station.

Here was the workout:

• Warm-up:  1/2 mile on the treadmill in about 4 minutes, followed by stretching, then into supersets described below.
  
• Station #1:  Jump rope (5 sets of 50) supersetted with 5 sets of 20 situps.  On even sets of jump rope, jump on 1 leg, alternating legs on every 10 jumps.
  
• Station #2:  Stiff Leg Deadlifts supersetted with alternating lunges (I did these while holding a 25 lb weight)
  
• Station #3:  Bicep curls supersetted with tricep curls with a curl bar (I actually added this at the last minute because my next station was being used at the time
  
• Station #4:  Inverted rows (I did this one resting my feet on a bench) supersetted with fishtails.  Fishtails: remain in the push-up position and jump your legs from side to side, 10x each side = 1 set.

• Station #5:  Burpees.  I was only able to do 2 sets in 5 minutes.
  
• Station #6:  Elevated side plank dumbbell reach (note: it's similar to this exercise on youtube, except I'm elevated b/w 2 benches); supersetted with bench jumps.  I was only able to do 2 sets in 5 minutes.
  
• Cool down with stretching.

And here is my breakfast reward:

Steak (left over from yesterday's dinner), herb scrambled eggs (seasoned with basil & pepper) cooked in extra virgin olive oil, and orange slices!  Yum!!

Xcellent Dinner Idea!

I may have to join Pinterest.  I saw a great "pin"  on my Facebook page that read: "Eat Right Rule: If your food can go bad, it's good for you!  If it can't go bad, it's bad for you."

I thought of that when I went to Sprouts (one of my favorite stores) and bought some zucchini and yellow squash that were on sale for 99 cents/pound.

I had some top round steak that was thawed out & needed to be cooked, so I threw together this dinner!

Here it is:

• Broiled top round steak (seasoned with Montreal steak seasoning & thyme - no sugar in it of course)
• Cut up and sauteed zucchini & yellow squash

This was the 1st time I had ever sauteed zucchini & yellow squash.  1st I diced about 1 tablespoon of onion and sauteed it with extra virgin olive oil in the skillet.

Then I added the cut up zucchini & yellow squash, and cooked it covered over low heat for about 5 minutes.  Oh yeah, for seasoning, a used a dash of season salt (no sugar in it of course), allspice, and basil.

After the squash was soft, I added a sliced tomato.

Let me tell you - it was very, very good!

Oh, and for "dessert" about an hour later:  I ate some raisins!

As I've said in a previous post, one of the benefits by default to avoid sugar & high fructose corn syrup was that I eat healthier!

Product Review: Mountain High Yogurt

I really like eating plain yogurt.  For me, it is a key staple for breakfast and/or dessert since I stopped consuming added sugar and high fructose corn syrup.

I have tried various brands of yogurt.  I have to admit, one of my absolute favorites is Mountain High Plain Yogurt.  I prefer the fat-free version, but sometimes the store is out of them.  When that happens, I buy the low fat version.  And if they're out of that, I buy just buy the Plain Yogurt.

Mountain High Yogurt is smooth and creamy.  I also like that it doesn't have that "sour" taste to it.

Of course, the other great thing about yogurt is that it has live and active probiotic cultures.  That is good for your digestive tract.  Mountain High has 5 of these active cultures.  I do know that there are some yogurt brands that have 8 active cultures.  Maybe that's a drawback to Mountain High - I don't know, that's not really something I pay attention to.

The other really cool thing about this product is the recipes on their website - which are categorized and easy to follow!

I definitely plan on trying some of these recipes.  Needless to say, the smoothies initially caught my eye! Obviously I will weed out those that involve added sugar and high fructose corn syrup, as well as artificial sweeteners.

There are also a lot of recipes on this website that provide excellent ideas for sugar/high fructose corn syrup replacement!

Peach Mango Smoothie Recipe

I did a track workout earlier this evening, had a nice post-workout meal (leftover baked chicken, raw broccoli, cut up tomato -  sorry no pic: didn't have my camera on me) and was ready to sit down and relax.

My bananas were getting a little ripe, and I had bought a couple of mangoes the other day (they were on sale), so I decided to make a smoothie!

Here's the recipe:

• 1 sliced Medium - Large Banana (I like it a little ripe)
• 1/2 of a cut up mango
• 1/4 cup of sliced peaches (I used them from a jar that was packed in 100% juice - but fresh peaches - which are not in season right now, are great)
• 1/2 can of 100%  frozen white grape juice from concentrate
• About 3 and 1/2 cups of crushed ice
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1/4 cup of plain yogurt ( I use pro biotic yogurt, preferably low fat or fat free)

• Place white grape juice concentrate, crushed ice, and water in blender and blend until smooth
• Add banana, mango, and peaches to blender, and blend until smooth
• Add yogurt to blender, and blend until smooth

Makes about 3 - 16 oz servings

 And it tastes very good!  Side note: Smoothies are my favorite desserts!!!

Ready for Phase #2 of My Weight Loss

My transition to Phase #2 from Phase #1 was really by accident.  As I mentioned in a previous post, I felt new energy when I was chasing my young daughter around and I realized I wasn’t tired.

My digestion improved – I didn’t have that bloated feeling anymore.  And of course, my cravings were under control – I didn’t have the late night 2^nd meals anymore!

Not only that, I feel like I created healthy eating habits that will hopefully last a lifetime – and this occurred by default – as I said in a previous post!

So with this 2^nd Phase, I’m going to introduce and talk about the #1 tip I found that enabled me to lose weight at a faster pace.

Sensa (TM) Diet Product Review

If you're wondering - "why is he reviewing a diet product - since he didn't diet?", I'll let you know later in this post - so please keep reading...

I had never really heard of Sensa until it came up on the first page when I googled  the words “lose weight without dieting” for my blog.  I decided to click on it and see what it’s about.  Before I tell you why I’m reviewing this product, I’ll briefly describe what Sensa is about.

According to Sensa’s website, Sensa is a product that looks like crystals (patented technology called tastants) that are sprinkled on food, and when ingested activates hunger centers in the brain to let you know that you’re full.  Hence the nickname “the Sprinkle Diet.”

With Sensa, a person is allowed to eat anything they want, but when they sprinkle the product on their food, the consequence is that they’ll eat less – since their brain is “tricked” into letting them know they’re full.  Sensa’s website offers a 30 day free trial, after that you sign up for auto-ship  for a 2-month supply of the product for $89.99. 

Why I’m Reviewing this Product

My number one reason for reviewing Sensa is this:  Sensa’s website cites a clinical study that the average weight loss is 30.6 pounds in 6 months.  I lost over 30 pounds in 4 months.  Plus, I didn’t have to buy a weight loss product for $90 (or $270 to try to match the results of their 6 month study) to accomplish that.

Another concern I have about Sensa is that people can eat anything they want – they just end up eating less.  But what if the food eaten is bad for you?  I mentioned in a previous post that one of the benefits I saw in Phase #1 of my weight loss was that I started eating healthier.  And this was by default, not be willpower!

My Conclusion

I’m sure this Sensa Diet has worked for some people.  But as I wrote in my 1^st blog post, I have been complimented about losing weight the right way (and even stress free way).  And  I’ve kept it off, without buying weight loss products!

Vita Coco Coconut Water Product Review

My calves have been cramping near the end of my track workouts (sometimes in the middle of the workout too).  My training partners & I suspected that the culprit is not being hydrated enough.

Let me say that I am not a Gatorade drinker, because Gatorade has sugar in it.  Now I know there is a new Gatorade out without sugar, but that might be for another review.

I started hearing about how Coconut Water has way more potassium than bananas, and more than sports drinks.  Since coconut water is also “natural”, I decided to give Vita Coco 100% Pure Coconut Water a try.

Vita Coco comes in several flavors.  I had the Peach & Mango flavor.

Not only did it taste good, but it did not disappoint on the hydration aspect.  I drank some during my 10x 100 Meter workout.  In a typical workout, I would start cramping around the 6^th 100 Meter.  But that didn’t happen this time!

I definitely plan on using Vita Coco 100% Pure Coconut Water more often.  This stuff isn’t cheap, so I may look at ordering it in bulk from Amazon.

Motivation Reminder!

Sometimes you need to be reminded of your "why."  For example:  "Why am I losing weight?"

Well, here is my reminder!

This!

And This!

Dr. Oz and This Picture

I was reading an email today from Men's Health Magazine that talked about Dr. Oz's 25 Greatest Health Tips. 

Tip #13 is Lose the Beer belly!  The tip said to take a measuring tape around the body level of your belly button. So that's what I did:

Dr. Oz said the result should be less than half your height.  I'm about 5' 11" tall, so my waist should be under 35.5 inches.

Well looky there...if you can see it, the reading is just under 34.5 inches.  Woo Hoo!

Of course when I was at my "Sumo" weight, judging from my pants size back then (and my hanging stomach), this measurement would have been at least 44 inches!

The Top 5 Benefits to Avoiding Sugar & High Fructose Corn Syrup in My Diet

This is probably the most important post for Phase #1 of my weight loss.  Here I will talk about the top 5 benefits that I realized from avoiding sugar and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) during Phase #1 of my weight loss. 

The Benefits are summarized below.  The videos below expound on these benefits.

Benefit #1:  I drank a lot more water.  This was not by willpower, but by default, since the sources for sugar & HFCS were eliminated!

Benefit #2:  I ate less food.  Again, this was not by willpower, but because my body started to let me know when I was full, so I stopped eating.  No more late night cravings that I felt like I had to satisfy!
 

Video #1:  Benefits 1 & 2

Benefit #3:  I started eating healthier.  This was not by willpower, but by default, after eliminating the sources of sugar & HFCS.

Benefit #4:  I started losing weight.  I lost 30 pounds in 4 months without exercising! 

Again, this was by default, meaning, I wasn't monitoring my weight or anything.  The weight just started falling off - my clothes were getting too big!  Check out my Weight Management Timeline for Phase #1.

Also, click here to see my "Before & After" pics.

Benefit #5:  I had more energy.  Before starting Phase #1 of my weight loss, I would get tired walking up the stairs.  After Phase #1 of my weight loss, not only would I have energy going up the stairs, I would play with my young daughter & not get tired!

Video #2:  Benefits 3 - 5

Turns out these benefits also fit into the K.I.S.S. method - Keep it Short & Simple - where they happened by default, not by willpower.  If anything, the hardest part was making the initial decision to avoid sugar & HFCS, then figuring out what to eat & drink instead.

Hopefully, I've provided enough info on this blog about what to eat/drink instead of consuming items with sugar/HFCS in it. 

Click here for ideas to replace sugar & HFCS.  And remember to keep up with the blog for recipes ideas and other updates!

Dinner Ideas Without Sugar or High Fructose Corn Syrup

When it comes to dinner, I usually eat meat, vegetables, and sometimes a starch.  Of course, the main key is for what I eat to be free from added sugar and high fructose corn syrup.

I know there are some people that read that might be vegans or vegetarians, and that's fine.  I'm sure there's a lot of great stuff to eat that doesn't have sugar of HFCS in it.  If you have ideas, please share!

Here's examples of some recent dinners:

Pan-fried Pork Chop with spinach, broccoli and cut up tomato

The broccoli and spinach were actually leftovers from the previous day.  The vegetables were bought frozen.  

The pan-fried pork chop was made by seasoning it with a touch of season salt (no sugar in it of course), thyme, sage, and marjoram.  It was fried in about 1 tablespoon of virgin olive oil.

Baked Chicken breast with baked potato and broccoli/carrot/cauliflower mix

Broiled Chicken breast with spinach and baked potato

Of course, there are endless combinations with steak, fish, and even hamburger - although I don't eat hamburger very often.  The beauty about vegetables is there are lots of them, and they are good for you.  

Product Review: Think Thin Protein Bars

I discovered these bars one day after my track workout, when I went to the supermarket looking for some type of protein bar for recovery.  This was the only protein bar I found that did not have sugar in it.

Let me tell you this bar is flat out awesome!  Or to put it another way, it is da’ bomb!  This bar has 20 grams of protein in it, which is more than all the other protein bars that were sold in the supermarket, including the ones with sugar in it!

These bars taste good!  Oh, and did I mention that the bars are gluten free?  I know that is a concern to some.

My only purpose for eating this bar is protein recovery immediately after a workout – which is my recommended usage.  And it definitely fulfills this purpose!

There are different flavors.   My favorite is the White Chocolate, which is hard to find in stores.  Other popular flavors are Chunky Peanut Butter and Creamy Peanut Butter.  For the chocolate lovers, there’s  Dark Chocolate, Chocolate Fudge, and Brownie Crunch.  

I have found that Amazon.com is cheaper than buying these from the supermarket.   So click on the flavors above if you want to read more reviews and if you decide to purchase some. 

Celebrity Weight Loss

In this Section, I will feature celebrities that have lost weight the same way (or similar) as me.  I say "similar" because most celebrities don’t go into the detail of “how they did it” like I’m trying to do on this blog.

The 1^st one I’ll feature is Alec Baldwin.  He’s the guy in the Capital One Credit Card commercials, among other TV roles (30 Rock, etc.).  He lost 30 pounds in 4 months (which is what I did).

Read his story here.

Breakfast Ideas for Replacing Sugar and High Fructose Corn Syrup

I hear a lot from people that they cannot give up sugar.  I also think that many people don’t realize that a lot of the food they eat has high fructose corn syrup in it.

I can relate.  The 1^st thing that came to my mind was no more waffles or pancakes!  But rather than focus on the negatives (what I can’t eat), I chose to focus on what I can eat!

So like I said in a previous post, the key to Phase #1 in my weight loss was to find some replacement foods for sugar & high fructose corn syrup.  Take a look at this video of my suggestions.

Suggestions include:

• Plain yogurt mixed with fruit – I usually do bananas + peaches, or strawberries, or mangoes, etc.  You could even put nuts in it.
• Grits (sometimes even with eggs)
• Scrambled eggs – eat with a tortilla.
• Fruit:  Examples: cantaloupe, bananas, grapefruit, etc.
• Cream of Wheat – Sometimes I sweeten it with pure maple syrup or honey.  Also like to season with nutmeg & cinnamon
• Oatmeal:  I sweeten this like I sweeten Cream of Wheat.
• Note:  I have not been a cereal eater, but there are cereals out there with neither no sugar nor high fructose corn syrup

So these are 7 ideas, enough to get you through the week.  What suggestions do you have?

How to Avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup and Sugar in Your Food: 2 Simple Steps

In keeping with my Phase #1 Weight Loss K.I.S.S.  (Keep It Short and Simple) theme, here are 2 simple steps that I found to avoid HFCS and Sugar in what I eat:

Step #1:  Learn to read food labels.

This is the key step!  Some manufacturers try to get hip with this and disguise sugar especially on the labels.  So if it also has these names sucrose, glucose, cane sugar, cane juice, dextrose, corn syrup, brown sugar, malt syrup, crystalline fructose in the label, I don’t eat it!  And sometimes I have to periodically refresh myself on the sugar disguise names!

Why I don't Eat Mayo!

Spaghetti Sauce!

 And of course, remember, if it has High Fructose Corn Syrup and/or Sugar in the ingredients, don’t eat it regardless of the calories, or whether it says “all natural,” etc.

Step #2:  Learn what to have as replacement foods. 

 I actually learned this the hard way as I wrote about in Initial Struggles.  I will be posting lots of ideas and foods that I eat as time goes on.  In the meantime, check out an example from the videos below.

Replacement Food Ideas!

So I followed these 2 steps, and the weight was falling off, without exercise!

4 Unexpected Sources of Sugar

Like HFCS, refined sugar is in many items that we consume.  Common sources of sugar include:

Baked Mixes

This includes cakes, pancake mixes, muffin/cornbread mixes, etc.

Pancake Mix - Sugar on 4th line

Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix - Sugar on 2nd line

Desserts

This includes the obvious such as ice cream, pudding mixes, cake icing, etc.

Candy/Cookies

Enough said.

Cereals

There are many, many cereals sweetened with sugar, even those not thought of as being sweet cereals, like Kelloggs Corn Flakes.

Sugar is on the 1st line of Ingredients

Unexpected Sources of Sugar

Crackers

Although unexpected, it is very common.  If you read about my Initial Struggles, I was very surprised to find sugar in crackers!

Club Crackers: Sugar is in the 4th line in the Ingredients

Condiments

There is a push by some manufacturers to state on their product that it contains no high fructose corn syrup.  Well the problem is that it contains sugar.  Example condiments with sugar include salad dressings, ketchup, many spaghetti sauces, and mayonaise.

Sugar is in the 1st line of Ingredients

 Says it's rich in Omega 3 ALA but...

Sugar is located in line 3 of Ingredients!

Drinks

All the fruit drinks labeled "fruit cocktail" have either sugar and/or high fructose corn syrup in it.  Some have reduced sugar, but they still contain sugar nevertheless.

Baked Goods

Bread, muffins, and bagels all fall under this general category.  Also, just because a baked good is low calories doesn't mean its free of sugar!