How to spot processed foods

Need help figuring out which foods are processed? If you shop at an all-organic market or food co-op, you're already taking a step in the right direction; however, you still need to look out for processed foods. Check the labels on all the foods you buy. If you see any ingredients that look questionable, don’t buy the food! If you see an unpronounceable list of ingredients that look like gibberish, put the item back on the shelf! Go with foods that are truly natural and contain minimal ingredients. More specifically, don’t buy anything containing: Anything not 100 percent whole wheat; trans fats or hydrogenated oils; corn syrup or high-fructose corn syrup; a chemical; MSG; butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA);  sodium nitrate or nitrite; or sodium benzoate; potassium benzoate.

How to lose those extra pounds— and YES—keep ‘em off

How to lose those extra pounds—

and YES—keep ‘em off

Getting the right nutrients, while cutting calories, can make or break your goals for weight loss, weight maintenance and overall health. While there are many products designed to help people control calories for weight management, the majority of these “diet products” don’t provide proper nutrition or quality protein to stave off muscle loss that often accompanies weight loss.
Proper snacking is also imperative in reaching your weight loss and weight maintenance goals.  Eating between meals curbs your cravings, enabling you to make smart choices about your food intake. It’s easy to be tempted by high-calorie foods when you’re feeling overly hungry.
In addition to cutting calories (while still getting proper nutrition), and keeping on track with smart snacks, exercise is the third essential component of successful weight management. Let’s explore these three key facets of weight control…


Healthy Ways to Cut Calories
First, you want an easy way to get the nutrients your body needs, while cutting calories to lose weight. Meal-replacement shakes are an ideal choice. However, you want to make sure your meal-replacement shake has the right kind and quantity of protein, as well as provides essential nutrients for safe weight loss and maintenance. With 23 grams of whey protein (the highest quality protein) and active enzymes for easy digestion, IsaLean® Shake is a complete meal replacement that delivers optimal nutrition. When evaluating your meal replacement shake, consider these important components:
Five “must-haves” for your meal replacement shake

1. It works. Whether you’re aiming for weight loss and/or maintaining your ideal weight, you want a product with a proven track record. Does the product deliver long-term weight loss results? This is likely the most important question you need to ask. After all, your dedication to your weight loss and overall health deserves real results. Founded in 2002, Isagenix takes great pride delivering long-term weight-loss results. More than 5.4 million pounds and 6.5 million inches have been lost by people using Isagenix products. Theprimary pillar of Isagenix weight loss protocol is IsaLean Shake—our best-selling product.

2. Third-party scientific evidence. Referencing clinical studies is another excellent measure of a product’s efficacy. Did you know that in a university study IsaLean Shake surpassed other protein shakes for weight loss results?  In this controlled experiment, two IsaLean Shakes replaced two meals each day for seven days. Participants experienced a greater percentage of weight loss when compared to results obtained from other protein shakes on the market.

3. It’s a full-meal replacement shake, not a snack shake. When you cut calories to lose weight, it’s essential to get proper nutrition to prevent muscle loss, as well as achieve optimal health. You’ll want to be wary of “snack shakes” on the market lacking adequate nutrients and offering inferior protein. Whey protein (the protein in IsaLean Shake) is superior to other proteins (including soy protein) in staving off muscle loss that often accompanies weight loss. It’s important to get the correct amount of protein, too. IsaLean Shake has 23 grams. (To trigger a protein synthesis response for supporting muscle, you need at least 20 grams.)
A protein synthesis response is also dependent upon amounts of balanced-chain amino acids that are highest in whey protein. Getting the right vitamins and minerals, as well as healthy fats, is also critical in preventing muscle degeneration that often occurs with weight reduction. Make sure you’re getting sufficient calcium, vitamin C, vitamin B12 and vitamin D in your shake. While low in saturated fat, IsaLean Shake is high in healthy poly- and mono-unsaturated fats. Moreover, the enzymes in IsaLean Shake help break down carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

4. Nothing artificial. Be sure to check the ingredient list on any product you consume for additives and artificial ingredients; you don’t want to find any artificial flavors or sucralose. IsaLean Shake is all natural—with no additives—containing whey protein produced in New Zealand from cows never treated with hormones or antibiotics. This high-quality whey protein exceeds USDA organic standards and is guided through fine filters under low heat to separate whey from other diary components including fats and lactose.
Also, be wary of products that haven’t been evaluated for contamination with pollutants and heavy metals such as mercury. Isagenix Quality Assurance Department inspects all ingredients to test potency, amino acid profile, as well as presence of microbial, pesticides and heavy metals.
5. Superior value. While IsaLean Shake retails at around $3.64 per meal, its cost is $2.78 at the Associate and Preferred Customer Price. As a full-meal replacement, this saves you money on groceries each time you replace a meal with your meal-replacement shake.

For more information about the nutrition products. please go to: www.skinnybrides.isagenix.com

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21 Ways to Make Your Diet 100% Easier

Small tweaks to your diet can make a huge difference -- and these 21 painless fixes will make weight loss even easier.

By Hallie Levine

Diet Drinks, Scheduled Eating
We're with you: Dieting is no picnic. But here's a little secret -- it's not nearly as hard as most of us think. "A lot of women believe they need to change everything, but in reality small tweaks to your diet can make a huge difference," says Dawn Jackson Blatner, RD, a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. We've got 21 absolutely painless little fixes, culled from the latest research and the country's leading weight-loss experts, to make dropping those pounds as easy as 1, 2, 3, and beyond.


1. Say So Long to Soda
Every diet soft drink consumed each day could increase your risk of being overweight by 65 percent, according to a study presented at the American Dietetic Association. Other research suggests that artificial sweeteners may actually stimulate appetite, causing you to overeat. Instead, sip plain or sparkling water with lemon added for flavor.

2. Eat Like Clockwork
Women who eat erratically consume more calories and burn them less quickly than those who have six regular small meals each day, according to a British study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Don't go more than three or four hours without eating something.

3. Become a Tea-Totaler
Green tea not only has about half the caffeine of coffee but also contains catechins, which may boost your metabolism. A recent Japanese study found that people who drank a daily 11-ounce bottle of green tea lost 5.3 pounds after three months, while those who drank regular tea lost only 2.9 pounds. If you find green tea too bitter, consider one of the new green teas flavored with fruit essences. Most have no calories and just the right kiss of sweetness, says Blatner.

4. Dust Off the Grapefruit Diet
Eating three servings of grapefruit a day (either half of a whole one or a cup of juice) for 12 weeks could help you lose just over three pounds, according to a recent study. "It helped lower insulin levels, which can contribute to weight loss by reducing appetite and encouraging fat burning," explains study author Ken Fujioka, MD, director of nutrition and metabolic research at Scripps Clinic in Del Mar, California.

5. Pack in the Protein
A University of Washington study found that doubling up on protein could help you eat less without feeling hungry. "Protein may make your brain more sensitive to leptin, a hormone that helps you feel full," says study author Scott Weigle, MD, a professor of endocrinology at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Make sure at least a third of each meal and snack is a source of lean protein.

6. Shop Around, Literally
The center aisles of your local supermarket are loaded with highly processed, sugary, and fatty foods. "The first couple of outer aisles is where you'll find all the fresh produce, dairy, and seafood," explains Oz Garcia, PhD, a nutritionist in New York City.

7. Buy To-Go Veggies
"Most of the vegetables in your fridge should be as easy to pop into your mouth as a potato chip, which means they should be precut and prewashed," says Bethany Thayer, RD, a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. Same goes for fruit. "And keep them at eye level in your fridge, so they'll be staring you right in the face when you open the door."

8. Get Some Sleep
People who sleep seven to eight hours per night are leaner than those who get only five or six hours, according to research from Laval University in Quebec. "When you're sleep-deprived, your body produces more stress hormones, which may increase your appetite," explains Michael Breus, PhD, cofounder of Sound Sleep Solutions in Atlanta. Having trouble nodding off? Consider hitting the treadmill before, not after, work: One study done at Seattle's Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center found that women who exercised in the a.m. fell asleep faster at night than those who did a p.m. workout.

9. Shop from a List
"Never go to the grocery store without a master list, which provides insurance against impulse buys," suggests Donald Hensrud, MD, an obesity specialist at the Mayo Clinic. And never, ever shop when you're hungry.

10. Stock Up on Frozen Shrimp
"I always have a bag or two in my freezer," says Ellie Krieger, RD, a New York City nutritionist and author of Small Changes, Big Results (Clarkson Potter, 2005). "I add them to stir-fries and pasta or sometimes just serve them with cocktail sauce as a snack." Bonus: At 84 calories per three-ounce serving, shrimp has about a third the calories of chicken and about half that of sirloin. Food snobs, take note: Frozen shrimp is often fresher than "fresh" because it's frozen just after it's caught.

11. Count to 100
These days, everything from potato chips to yogurt to ice cream is being rolled out in 100-calorie snack sizes. "You may have to pay more than if you bought an economy size bag, but the smaller portions mean you'll end up eating less," says Barbara Rolls, PhD, a professor of nutritional sciences at Pennsylvania State University.

12. Look What Brown Can Do for You
"Instead of refined and processed white foods, aim to have whole-grain starches such as brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat breads and bran cereals," says Blatner. For the most part, the browner the food, the higher the fiber, which spells w-e-i-g-h-t l-o-s-s. According to a 2005 research review, increasing consumption of dietary fiber is critical to losing weight, because it helps you feel fuller and decreases absorption of calories from other food sources. Some easy adds: Sprinkle two tablespoons of a high-fiber cereal such as Kellogg's All-Bran Bran Buds into your yogurt (5 grams); substitute whole-grain bread for white in your turkey sandwich (2 grams), and throw a half cup of white beans on top of your salad (6 grams).

13. Revisit Your Skillet
Successful dieters eat out fewer than two and a half meals per week on average, according to the National Weight Control Registry. If you're strapped for time, simply nuke a frozen dinner. A recent University of Illinois study found that dieters who followed a meal program that included two frozen entrees a day lost more weight than those who followed the USDA Food Guide pyramid. "Frozen dinners serve as a form of portion control, so you don't overeat," explains Dr. Hensrud. Look for entrees with fewer than 400 calories each: Lean Cuisine, Weight Watchers, and Uncle Ben's Rice Bowls are all good choices.

14. Have a V8 While You Cook
"I've had clients come in complaining that they can't lose weight, but then I find out that they're taking in hundreds of calories while preparing dinner," says Blatner. "Every little 'taste' counts!" Her tip? Sip a Low Sodium V8 juice. "It's only 50 calories per serving, but it will keep you feeling satisfied and stave off hunger pains so you're less inclined to snack," she explains. (The new Calcium Enriched V8 makes it easier to protect your bones, but that's another story!) Hate V8? Chew gum to keep your mouth occupied.

15. Switch to Salsa
"I have clients spoon it on everything -- baked potatoes, veggies, even chicken or salmon,". "It's a serving of veggies that gives otherwise bland diet staples a little flavor and zest." The calorie savings are worth it: Two tablespoons of salsa instead of sour cream on a baked potato, for example, saves 42 calories and five fat grams.

16. Feel the Heat
"When food is warm, its molecules move around faster, which means it will have a stronger smell," explains Alan Hirsch, MD, director of the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago. The result: The aroma affects the satiety center in your brain, leading you to think that you've eaten more than you have, so you feel full faster. In addition, if your food is hot, you'll be forced to eat it more slowly, which will give your stomach time to signal to your brain that it's full.

17. Brush It Off
Brush your teeth or rinse your mouth right after you have a meal or a snack to quell the urge to keep nibbling. "It's both a physical and a psychological signal to your body that you're done eating," says Blatner.

18. Name That Craving
"One reason women overeat is that they don't hit their food craving right on the head -- they keep bingeing until they're finally satisfied," explains Blatner. Ask yourself what you really want: Salty? Sweet? Smooth? Crunchy? "Food cravings can be broken down into four categories," says Blatner. "If you are craving sweet and crunchy, try a mini bag of popcorn mixed with a little bit of artificial sweetener or even sugar. If you want sweet and creamy, opt for a light vanilla yogurt. If you're thinking about something salty and smooth, try a couple of pieces of low-fat string cheese; if you really want salty and crunchy, try a handful of dry-roasted nuts or soy nuts."

19. Fill Your Glass
Optimists are more likely to eat fiber-rich foods such as fresh veggies, salad, and fruit, and less likely to be overweight, according to a Finnish study published in the journal Appetite. "Eating right and exercising seems to be second nature for them," explains Bruce Rabin, MD, PhD, medical director of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's Healthy Lifestyle Program. Happily, it is possible to shake away your pessimism. "The next time a negative thought pops into your head, force yourself to come up with something positive to replace it," says Dr. Rabin. If you practice this often enough, it will eventually become an automatic response.

20. K.I.S.S. (Keep it Simple, Sweetie!)
People who eat a variety of foods, even low-fat ones, are more likely to have trouble keeping weight off than those who rely on a few diet staples, according to a National Weight Control Registry study published last May. "When people have a wide range of foods in front of them, they generally eat more," explains study author Holly Raynor, PhD, RD, an assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior at Brown Medical School/the Miriam Hospital. The study showed that the most successful weight losers consistently consume just three to five staples from each food group, switching them around occasionally to prevent boredom.

21. Distract Your Taste Buds
Visions of Godiva flooding your head? Before you rush out to buy a box, try deflecting your attention. New research from Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, has found that the more vivid your mental image of a particular food, the more likely you are to crave it. But there's plenty you can do to tone down those visual cues. Researchers found that randomly flicking through images on a computer screen or, to a lesser extent, listening to a speech in a foreign language, was enough to distract students from their food cravings. Anything that engages both your eyes and your mind -- like playing Sudoku -- should help, say researchers.

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Why Eating Out Is Making You Fat

In recent years, American restaurants have been piling layers of fat, salt, and sugar on their creations -- all of which tricks our brain into craving more food, says former FDA commissioner David Kessler, MD, in his book The End of Overeating. "Even lettuce has become a vehicle for fat," he says, citing the cream-based dressings, cheese chunks, bacon bits, and oil-soaked croutons that turn many restaurant salads into health hazards.

If you're watching your calories -- or your life expectancy -- there are a few fast rules to follow if you eat out at a popular restaurant chain:

• Avoid anything with the word "sampler" or "platter," unless you plan to share it with three or more people and make it your main course.

 

• Skip anything that comes in an edible bowl or includes the words stacked, stuffed, double, triple, slammed, or dunked.

 

• Nachos are something best shared with a group, and subs are something best measured in calories, fat, and sodium -- not inches.

 

• When you see the words crispy or glazed, realize that's what will happen to your arteries and your eyes, respectively, if you consume too many of these items.

 

• Dressing and sauces are among the major calorie culprits of many restaurant choices, sometimes doubling the fat and sodium content of an entree. Ask for all sauces on the side, and try replacing cream-based dressings with mustard (straight mustard, not sugar-loaded honey mustard), suggests New York City-based nutritionist Sharon Richter, MS, RD. Other good alternatives: lemon and grated cheese (25 calories per tablespoon).

 

• Just because an item falls under the word "appetizers" does not mean it should be followed by more food. Not even in the same day. Some of the country's most ubiquitous food establishments serve appetizers that would stuff a Sumo wrestler.

And remember the average woman needs 1,500 to 1,800 calories a day to maintain weight (depending upon activity level and frequency), and the American Heart Association recommends limiting dietary fat to 30 percent of total calories.

Armed with these basic tenets, prepare yourself as we unveil some surprising calorie bombs -- and the choices you can make to avoid them.

With the experience of Skinny Brides staff, We have being helping our clients loss weight and get to their goal weight. By staying on our programs, you can still enjoy your favorite food with moderation.

Supercharge Your Metabolism!

Burn more calories 24/7 (even while you sleep!) with our metabolism-boosting plan.

Turn Up the Burn
Last winter I put on a few extra pounds. No biggie -- I do it every year. The weight usually comes off in the spring once I stop chowing down on pasta and bread and shift my outdoor running program into high gear. But this year the scale refused to budge, at all.

"Maybe your metabolism is slowing," a friend suggested. She had a point; I was in my thirties, which is when scientists say the ebb usually start. Yikes! How could I rev it back up and drop the flab? Here's what I learned to turn up the burn -- and how you can do it too.
The M Factor

Metabolism sounds mysterious and complicated, but it's actually pretty simple: It's the amount of energy (a.k.a. calories) our bodies need daily. About 70 percent of those calories are used for basic functions, such as breathing and blood circulation, says Rochelle Goldsmith, Ph.D., director of the Exercise Physiology Lab at Columbia University Medical Center. Another 20 percent is fuel for physical activity, including working out, fidgeting, walking, and even holding our bodies upright while standing. The remaining 10 percent helps us digest what we eat (it's true; eating burns calories!). The trouble begins when you consume more calories than your body needs to do these things: That's when you pack on the pounds.

You can partly thank your parents for the speed of your metabolism. Genes contribute to the levels of appetite-control hormones we have floating around in our bodies, Goldsmith explains. "Some people are genetically programmed to be active; they're naturally restless and use more energy," she says. Those are the lucky high-metabolism types.

Gender also plays a role. "The average man's metabolism is about 10 to 15 percent higher than a woman's," Goldsmith notes. That's mainly because men have more muscle mass than women do, which means they burn more calories. "Muscle does the work to help you move, while fat just sits there," says John Porcari, Ph.D., a FITNESS advisory board member and director of the clinical exercise physiology program at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Not only that, but women's bodies are designed to hold on to body fat in case of pregnancy.

The good news is, you can make your metabolism faster, experts say, despite genetics and gender. These are the 10 simple secrets to boosting it big-time.


1. Exercise more often.
Working out is the number-one way to keep your furnace cranking. The more lean muscle you have, the more calories you burn all day. That's because muscle uses energy even when you're resting. Exercise enough and you can help prevent the natural metabolic slowdown that can begin as early as your late twenties, according to Goldsmith.

Your amp-it-up game plan: five workouts a week. "Do three days of aerobic activity and two days of weight lifting," advises Shawn Talbott, Ph.D., an exercise physiologist, nutritional biochemist, and the executive producer of Killer at Large, a documentary about the U.S. obesity epidemic.

2. Kick up your cardio.
Aerobic intervals will help you maximize your burn, doubling the number of calories you torch during a workout, studies show. Intervals also keep your metabolic rate higher than a steady-pace routine does for as long as an hour after you stop exercising, according to Michele Olson, Ph.D., a FITNESS advisory board member and professor of exercise science at Auburn University at Montgomery in Alabama. That means you could blast as many as 65 additional calories after your sweat session. The ideal metabolism-boosting interval routine is to "go hard for a couple of minutes, then take it down to an easier pace for a minute or two, and keep alternating like that throughout your workout," Talbott says.

Just pick your cardio carefully. Aim for exercises that require your body to work its hardest by using a lot of muscle groups, Talbott says. That means running is better than cycling. Or try a cardio circuit. "Do a variety of activities -- like running stadium stairs, jumping rope, and squat thrusts -- for two minutes each, aiming for a total of 10 minutes," Olson says. "That will really rock your metabolism."

3. Put some muscle behind it.
Too many women steer clear of weight machines, fearing that they'll bulk up. Or they work only their legs and skip their arms. Don't make this mistake. Head-to-toe strength routines will turbocharge your calorie-blasting quotient. Add five pounds of muscle to your body and you can zap as many as 600 calories an hour during your workout, Olson says. Be sure to choose a weight-lifting routine that targets your core, legs, arms, chest, and shoulders; challenging numerous muscles will help your body function like a calorie-burning machine, according to Goldsmith.
Find some great total-body strength workouts here!  >>

4. Don't skip meals.

We know you're super busy, but make sure you grab lunch. "Simply chewing, digesting and absorbing food kicks your metabolism into gear," says Jim White, RD, a national spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association.

"The more frequently you eat, the more often it revs up." Conversely, missing a meal, or going too long between meals, brings your metabolism to a crawl. "Your body switches into starvation mode and your system slows down to conserve energy," White explains. Keep your engine humming by having three healthy meals of 300 to 400 calories and two snacks of 200 to 300 calories every day, he advises.

5. Fill up on smart foods.
Start by serving yourself protein at every sitting, says Darwin Deen, MD, medical professor in the department of community health and social medicine at City College of New York and a co-author of Nutrition for Life. Not only does your body need it to help build lean muscle mass, but protein also takes more calories to digest. To get your fix, have low-fat yogurt at breakfast, chicken in your salad at lunch, and salmon for dinner. Between meals, snack on protein-rich walnuts. They contain omega-3 fatty acids, which help promote weight loss by increasing your feelings of fullness, according to a recent study in the journal Appetite.

While you're at it, eat more foods that slowly release the sugar you need for sustained energy, like high-fiber fruits and veggies and whole-grain breads and pastas. Munch a food high in fiber three hours before your workout and you'll also burn extra fat, a study at the University of Nottingham in England found. Sipping java can also help. "Caffeine stimulates the production of adrenaline, which speeds up the metabolism," White says. Research shows that caffeine can significantly accelerate your burn. Just limit yourself to no more than two cups a day; too much caffeine can overtax your system, resulting, ironically, in fatigue.

6. Eat breakfast.
It will switch your metabolism from idle to high speed. That's because your level of cortisol, a hormone that helps you use calories to build muscle, is highest just before you get up in the morning. When you eat an a.m. meal, your body is primed to turn those calories into muscle pronto -- the only time during the day this happens. Take advantage of the natural torching process by having a healthy breakfast of scrambled eggs, low-fat turkey bacon, and a piece of whole-grain toast.
Part 3: Small Changes, Big Results

7. Get off your butt.
Sitting too much -- at the computer at work, at home in front of the TV -- slows your metabolism, even if you're exercising regularly. An easy fix is to stretch, stroll, and fidget throughout the day. That's what scientists call NEAT, or non-exercise activity thermogenesis, and it can boost your burn and help you drop weight, says James Levine, MD, Ph.D., professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and author of Move a Little, Lose a Lot. The proof: In a study of lean volunteers who were fed extra calories, those who paced frequently, for example, maintained their weight, while the people who did no additional walking got chubbier. If you take advantage of every opportunity to walk and climb stairs, it can make a big difference. "A woman who needs to lose weight would have to burn about 190 to 200 extra calories a day to lose 10 percent of her body weight, which you can do by increasing your overall activity level," Goldsmith says. "Try striding around your house or office when you're on the phone, standing up at your desk whenever you can, and walking to your coworker's cube instead of e-mailing her."

8. Go to bed earlier.
Deprive yourself of sleep and your body starts to respond as if it were under siege. "When you get two hours less shut-eye than you normally do, your system becomes stressed and produces about 50 percent more cortisol," Talbott says. "That in turn triggers your appetite."

At the same time, lack of zzz's throws the body's hunger hormones leptin and ghrelin out of whack, making you more likely to overeat. Skimp on pillow time for too long and you could be facing a serious weight problem, says Michael Breus, Ph.D., author of Good Night: The Sleep Doctor's 4-Week Program to Better Sleep and Better Health. In a 16-year study of sleep-deprived women published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, researchers found that those who slept seven to eight hours a night had the lowest risk for major weight gain, while women who got six hours a night were 12 percent more likely to pile on a significant number of pounds, and those who logged five hours or less were 32 percent more likely to gain weight.

9. Schedule a nighttime workout.
Do a 20- to 30-minute moderate-intensity cardio routine before you hit the hay to keep your metabolism humming all night, Porcari says. The average woman's metabolic rate naturally decreases by about 15 percent while she sleeps, but an end-of-day sweat session will make the drop closer to 5 percent, he explains. So take the dog for an evening walk or go for a bike ride with your family after dinner. And don't worry that the activity will keep you awake: As long as you exercise at least two and a half hours before lights out, you should be able to drift off with no problem, Breus says.

10. Check your Meds.
Some of the most dramatic metabolic dips occur when women start taking birth control pills and widely prescribed antidepressants known as serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs. "These drugs commonly slow the metabolism because they affect the functioning of the thyroid gland, which regulates how our bodies use energy," says Kent Holtorf, MD, a thyroidologist and the founder of the National Academy of Hypothyroidism. Depo-Provera, a contraceptive that's injected every three months, seems to cause the most weight gain. "It's high in the hormone progestin, which stimulates insulin secretion, leading to increased appetite and a lowered metabolism," Dr. Holtorf explains. "It also signals the body to store fat." (Oral contraceptives, which contain less progestin, aren't as problematic.) If you've recently started taking any new medication and the scale is inching upward, ask your doctor if there's an alternative treatment that is less likely to cause weight gain.

www.skinnybrides.com

Recharge Your Exercise Motivation

Reboot Your Exercise Motivation

Don't let the mental hurdles standing between you and the body you want block your weight-loss progress. To steer around any slim-down speed bumps and excuses, follow these simple secrets for rebooting your mood and workout.

By Carey Rossi

You Think: "The scale is stuck. Why bother?"

Rethink: "This pudge will budge."
Stick with the scale: Love it and you'll probably lose pounds. In a study at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, of 3,026 adults who were watching their waistlines, those who weighed themselves more frequently lost more weight over two years or regained fewer pounds. This research backs up the benefits of daily weigh-ins, but weekly may do the trick: Three-quarters of the successful long-term slimmer’s listed in the National Weight Control Registry step on the scale at least once a week. "Plateaus are part of the process," says Kim H. Miller, PhD, associate professor of health promotion at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Stay motivated in the meantime by giving yourself credit for how much better your clothes fit and for improving your overall health.


Redo: Rev up your routine

"As your metabolism changes to accommodate your smaller size, you are going to have to change what you're doing to coax your body to keep responding and shedding fat," Miller says. If you're eating light already (around 1,500 calories a day), don't cut back more; turn up the intensity and/or increase the length of your workout session a smidge.

This will not only burn more calories but also increase your cardio capacity, meaning that everything feels easier to do, so you can keep exercising. Crank the resistance on your stationary bike, push the pace of your walk or run for one-minute intervals, or add step-ups or jumping jacks between sets of toning moves: The cardio-strength mix of circuit training burns 512 calories per hour, more than double that of lifting alone.

 You Think: "I can't do another rep."

Rethink: "My biceps rock!"
Need a lift? Just psyching yourself up while you're strength training can increase your muscle power by 8 percent, according to a study from the School of Sport and Exercise Science at Wintec, Waikato Institute of Technology in New Zealand; you'll reap about 12 percent more power imagining those perfect lifts versus when you're distracted. Depending on how pooped your arms are, "mental imagery could help to activate additional motor units," says Brad Hatfield, PhD, professor of kinesiology at the University of Maryland in College Park, stimulating muscle fibers enough to help eke out more curls.

Redo: Dumb (bell) it down
If you can't muster more reps at the same weight, go lighter. Decrease the amount that you're lifting in 10 percent increments until you can finish the set with good form, suggests Juan Carlos Santana, director of the Institute of Human Performance gym in Boca Raton, Florida. "The bigger the effort, the bigger your body's response will be," he says. That means netting some 46 percent greater strength gains by doing two or three sets compared with only one, says a study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. And don't beat yourself up: Pushing your limits just a little further gets you firming results you'll feel, Santana says.

You Think: "Run a mile? Me? Not!"
Rethink: "Hey, doesn't that jogger look like Brad Pitt?"
When you're trying to slog through that first -- or extra -- mile, shift your attention to the things around you, says Alan St. Clair Gibson, PhD, MD, chair of sport sciences at Northumbria University in England: "You might slow down, but it will help you keep going." Also add a can-do mental mantra, like "I'm a running machine!" to put more mettle in your pedals.


Redo: Divide and conquer
Split your run into walking and running parts at first, says Joe Puleo, head cross country and track-and-field coach at Rutgers University in Camden, New Jersey, and coauthor of Running Anatomy. Jog a quarter of a mile, walk for half a mile, and finish by jogging another quarter. As you improve, stretch out the jogging and shrink the walking segment before jogging that final quarter mile. Do this three or four times a week and "you'll be able to run the whole distance in about six weeks," Puleo says.

You Think: "I hurt my knee. There goes exercise for a month."

Rethink: "Pilates, here I come!"
Your body starts to lose conditioning within three days of your becoming a couch potato. If that isn’t enough to light a fire under you, tell yourself that there's more than one way to reach your exercise goal, says Trent Petrie, PhD,

Rethink: "That guy in bike shorts doesn't look so tough."
"Usually, we're afraid of the unknown," Petrie says, so testing the waters first will eventually allow you to dive in. Observe a class from the warm-up and beyond rather than peek in at the midpoint, when the action is sweatiest and most intimidating.


Redo: Go at your own pace
"The great thing about Spinning is that you control your experience," says instructor Kimberly Fowler, founder of YAS Fitness Centers in California. "If the instructor tells you to turn up the resistance, go to where you feel you can keep up; then if you get tired, lower it." (Psst! Those classmates who look like Lance Armstrong are probably doing the same.) In any group exercise class, your main goal is to get the hang of it, so aim for form over speed.


You Think: "Exercising at home is my only option: blechhh."
Rethink: "There's no place like home -- to get a hot body."
First, identify what would give you the willpower to stay off the couch, "then make a plan to get you in the right frame of mind to commit to exercise," Petrie says. Put your workout clothes on so you know that exercising is the next thing to do after you fulfill your obligations, he says, whether those involve feeding the cat after work or taking the kids to school in the morning. Then create a workout schedule with built-in accountability: Recruit a friend to do fitness DVDs with on specific days or join a walking or running club (rrca.org) that meets regularly.


Redo: Order takeout
Beam a trainer to your living room for a fraction of the in-gym cost. At sites like fitorbit.com ($9.99 a week and up), trainers give you the drill-sergeant (or cheerleader or buddy) treatment by means of e-mail and their personal Web pages. Even celeb trainers, like Kim Lyons (kimlyons.com), formerly of The Biggest Loser, see clients via Internet sites. You can also get a customized routine and diet from FITNESS's online Personal Trainer that progressively challenges you on your way to Slimville ($39.99 for three months, $8.99 a month thereafter; or the free 10-day trial).



You Think: "Staying on a cardio machine for more than 30 minutes is slow torture."
Rethink: "Who'll be eliminated tonight on The Bachelorette?"
"Dedicate your treadmill time to doing things that you normally can't, such as watching your favorite TV show or listening to a new playlist or podcast," Petrie says. Start a few minutes before Showtime so you'll be inspired to push past the 30-minute barrier to see how the episode ends.


Redo: Save the rest for last
Plan your workout so the end is all downhill, so to speak. In a study at the Department of Health and Exercise Science at the College of New Jersey in Ewing, tread millers who did higher-intensity followed by lower-intensity exercise burned more fat and felt that their workouts were less stressful than when the order was reversed. Try it yourself on any cardio machine with this 45-minute plan from Los Angeles based personal trainer Michael Berg.