Celebrate Your Independence!

Here in the U.S., we’ve just celebrated Independence Day. Freedom of thought and speech are huge cornerstones of our country’s government, but do we really use those freedoms?

Thinking for ourselves is so important… after all, we are people, not sheeple! Although I mindlessly followed the crowd of yo-yo dieters, procrastinators and the denial-prone for many years, I realized it forced me into a decidedly unexciting existence: overworking, never complaining, stressed and unhealthy. Uncle Sam might have been happy, my boss was happy, my doctor was happy as I marched with my little white prescription to the pharmacy… but I was not.

We are people, not sheeple!

We are people, not sheeple!

Huge amounts of money are spent every day in an attempt to get us to think one way or another.
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Weight Loss and the Illusive Finish Line

I love this quote by Bill Gates:

“If I’d had some set idea of a finish line, don’t you think I would have crossed it years ago?”

I differ from many weight loss experts since I’ve accomplished permanent weight loss. I learned my lessons down in the trenches, instead of in a book, and my experiences smashed many of the widely accepted tenets of weight loss.

Jogger

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McDonald’s Reputation Repair

In the past few years, McDonald’s has taken a hit to their reputation – from movies like “Food, Inc.”, “Fast Food Nation” and “Super-size Me.”

Now, they are out to improve that “unhealthy” reputation.

On March 3, 2010, they announced that Weight Watchers would promote and endorse several McDonald’s meals as healthy options for weight loss. If Weight Watchers ever had a serious reputation, it was gone that day.

BoyBurger

Now, another layer of PR has appeared with McDonald’s seeking to convince consumers of their financial importance to their communities and to the farmers of their state. Recently, an insert into a Wisconsin newspaper made many interesting claims. I particularly like the “returned nearly 45 cents of every dollar earned to the local economy.” – Translated, that means they paid their workers less than half of what they earned and more than half was profit.

They listed the following as purchased from Wisconsin farms:
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Sick & Tired of “Food Decisions”?

Talk about a “Food Decision” wall!! I hit it hard this week. Take a bit of fatigue and add several last-minute twists to a schedule that was a tad too tight in the first place, and all of a sudden food decisions become hard. I found myself saying, “I don’t want to DECIDE what to eat. It’s too much work. I just want someone to make dinner miraculously appear for my family and me.”

FoodDecisions

My clients describe this place of indecision and frustration a lot! Today, women work so hard in their careers and have so many additional responsibilities PLUS they are often expected to also fulfill the traditional “wife” duties of social planning, intra-family communication, scheduling, housework and meal planning/preparation. Overscheduling is a way of life. It can be a huge burden to carry.

The Food Decision Wall is that point when there’s nothing in the house to feed the kids except raw carrots and dog food and you’re seriously considering which would be more nutritious. It’s when you scream, “I NEED A WIFE!” It’s when you KNOW the best possible solution is to grab the phone for … FAST FOOD DELIVERY!
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When Doing Everything Right = More Weight on Scale!!

My twitter buddy Trish was having a tough time this week. She felt she did all the right things and yet she gained 2 lbs on the (*%#@^^!!) scale!

Trish’s blog

Here’s my answer to her:

I’ve had to work through many frustrating situations in my weight loss journey. Since I’ve kept my weight loss for over 10 years now, I’ve learned a lot. You might not like what I’m going to say, but you asked “what would I do?”
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