Rugby World Cup

Has the RWC thrown your best intentions of eating well over the weekends out of the window? Well, you are not alone judging from what I’ve spied in supermarket trolleys over the past few Fridays and from what clients are telling me.

Entertaining and socialising can weaken the strongest resolve and with so many weekends of events coming up it can make a big dent in your fat loss endeavours.

With Christmas now a mere 12 ½ weeks away and with Christmas functions starting earlier every year, there isn’t a great deal of time left to drop those extra kilos before the silly season starts. It’s time to get serious now, if you want to be swimsuit ready by Christmas. Those extra kilos of fat won’t disappear by wishful thinking, but you can say goodbye to them if you are prepared to put in the effort to eat well and exercise regularly.

It is vitally important not to give up at the first hurdle when you start with a weight loss programme. Persistence, not perfection will get you there. There will always be special occasions that make sticking to your plan challenging, but just do your best, choose the best option there is and move on. If you regularly let your weekends slide with extra alcohol, high calorie food and little exercise, you can’t expect to make progress.

Something interesting I read the other day in respect of our growing obesity problem in New Zealand is that if we look back at our grandparent’s photo albums there weren’t too many overweight people in the photos. Children, teenagers and adults were pretty much of a healthy weight and if you did spot an overweight person, they were the exception. Why was that? It certainly wasn’t because our grandparents were hitting the gym five times a week, or training for half marathons, in fact, how many of our grandparents actually did partake of regular, formal exercise? Not many from what I recall.

So, if it wasn’t the exercise, what was it that kept them slim? The food they ate and the amount of it they ate, combined with more incidental exercise from having less labour saving devices. They stayed slim because they were more physically active during the day, but they also didn’t have access to the huge range of foods that we do today, including all the processed foods and takeaways and in general they didn’t eat out, unless it was at friends’ houses. There weren’t any food courts or takeaway coffees in those days!

How things have changed. But are we better off for it? Probably not if the figures released last week are anything to go by. The shocking statistics, taken from 2009, are that 40.7% of New Zealand men are classified as obese (with a BMI higher than 30) and 48.1% of New Zealand women are obese. That is obese, not overweight. The Health Ministry commissioned survey found that 65% of us are overweight or obese. 65%!! To quote Heart Foundation’s Professor Norman Sharpe “New Zealand is in the grip of a global obesity epidemic, the future costs of which will be enormous and potentially unaffordable for the health system.”

Overweight and obesity leads to so many health conditions, not only the well known heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and cancers, but also to things like worn out joints and depression. There is no way that our public health system can possibly cover the cost of treating the huge numbers of potential patients needing hip and knee replacements, kidney dialysis, cancer treatments, etc. Already obesity is the cause of many hospital beds being occupied by patients who ate themselves into illness.

I recently watched a documentary where a 40 year old woman had a BMI of 126. I’ve never heard of anyone with a BMI that high. Normal BMI is 19-24.9, overweight is 25-29.9 and obese is over 30. If you want to calculate your BMI check it out here: http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/ You need to know your height in feet and inches and your weight in pounds. To convert kilos to pounds, multiply your weight in kilos by 2.2.

We are literally digging our graves with our knives and forks. Remember, if you are 35 years of age now and you gain a mere one kilo of fat per year, by the time you are 50 years old, you will have accumulated another 15 kilos of fat. Excess fat around the abdominal area combined with inactivity are the two main risk factors for developing type 2 diabetes.

Behind every four premature deaths in developing countries you’ll find diabetes, with cardiovascular disease the most common complication. Diabetes is also the leading cause of blindness, disease-related amputations and chronic kidney failure. Sadly it doesn’t stop there. Diabetes and obesity are associated with a greater risk for several cancers, osteoarthritis, migraines, psoriasis, asthma, and other inflammatory diseases. In addition, far more people with diabetes develop depression and Alzheimer’s disease.

One of the most alarming features of diabetes is that for every person diagnosed with diabetes, another person has the disease but doesn’t know it. It’s mainly the rise in cases of type-2 diabetes that is fuelling the epidemic. This used to affect mostly people over 60, but increasingly it affects younger people. The thing is that Type-2 diabetes is generally a direct consequence of diet and lifestyle and it can be prevented in most cases with the right diet, regular exercise and stress management. Isn’t that the case with so many health issues – if we ate better and took regular exercise we would feel better, look better, perform better and live longer, happier and more productive lives. Don’t become a statistic.

The Last Two Kilos

Sometimes the last two kilos can be the hardest to lose. Why is that? It’s often because by the time you get down to the last two kilos you are feeling pretty good about yourself, your clothes fit, your motivation is waning and you become a bit complacent about dropping any more fat.

Whereas before you would have said No to treats, you now say Yes. Where before you were measuring your portions, planning your meals, keeping a diary and living it’, you aren’t so focused now and have less motivation to keep up with the good habits. Those two kilos can still be lost, but you have to re-harness your focus and pay attention to detail again. If you do mean business, and you do want to drop those last few kilos before Christmas, then think about taking up my spring special offer of an initial half hour appointment + 5 x 15 minute weekly appointments for $170.

Protein Bars

As you know, I am no longer able to buy in the FX Lo Carb bars, but a really nice bar that I would recommend are the Carbrite bars. You can buy these from NZ Muscle on Constellation Drive, Mairangi Bay. Carbrites come in a good selection of flavours and contain no artificial sweeteners, no trans fats or preservatives and are gluten free. Probably the most popular flavour is the toasted coconut (like a Toastie bar), but the chocolate mint and chocolate are my favourite flavours. NZ Muscle have given me some $5 vouchers to give my clients who wish to buy boxes of bars (or you can use the voucher on any of their products), just ask. www.nzmuscle.co.nz

Cafe with healthy options on the menu

How many times do you walk into a cafe and look at the menu and think “there’s nothing here that I can eat”? Well, now there is a local cafe offering healthy options on their menu. Altura Cafe & Roastery at 23 Douglas Alexander Parade in Albany have included a yummy, weight-wise chicken salad and also a lite omelette option in their new spring menu. www.alturacoffee.co.nz

Travelling somewhere?

I can highly recommend Amanda MacLeod of The Travel Brokers http://www.thetravelbrokers.co.nz/main.asp?broker=amandamacleod if you would like help with planning a trip, organising accommodation, transport or need advice on any aspect of travel. Amanda takes the hassle out of it for you and is mobile, so she can meet you at your home, business or a cafe if preferred. She is accessible 24/7, researches the best solution for you and has 27 years experience.

From the Kitchen

This month’s new recipes are on my website and are:

• Entertaining platter
• Simple vegetarian pizza
• Chocolate orange mousse (with mocha option)

The mousse is delicious and is low fat, low sugar and takes only a few minutes to make. Find the recipes here: http://www.nutritionforlife.co.nz/recipe-index/

Summer Wrap Ideas

Now that iceberg lettuce are back in season and almost affordable (!), try washing a large leaf, drying it, then using it as a wrap for a protein and salad filling. Add some chutney or dressing and a few cubes of feta and you have a delicious wrap.

Egg wrap. Beat up two eggs with a little salt and black pepper then pour the mixture into a heated, non stick pan. It will cook within a couple of minutes, no need to turn it over. Remove from the pan, cool, add a salad filling (the wrap is your protein) and roll up.

The take home message from this newsletter is that it will be Christmas before you know it, so don’t let social occasions and weekends throw you off track, keep your goal in mind and stay focused. The rewards are so worth it!

Lynda