The clocks changed last week meaning we have now had a week of coming home from work in the dark. I don't know about you but that first week or two, really plays with my brain! It affects my psyche by giving me the message
"Go home, go straight home, do not pass go, do not collect $200"! Then once I get home I want to begin the process of hibernation, that means 2 behaviors; eating traditional comfort food - you know the type; heavy, starchy, gravy'y, cheesy and fatty, and sitting on the sofa in front of the TV and staying there till bedtime.
So Why is this a Problem?
The
combination of consuming extra calories and inactivity that often accompanies television time can be detrimental to weight-loss and maintenance efforts.
So, take a hard look at your
showtime habits and begin to change some things to make this time more weight-loss friendly. The first step is to figure out some alternative healthy, satisfying snacks to munch in front of the box. The second step is to eat meals at the table - NOT in front of the screen and then thirdly; identify hobbies that could keep hands busy and find ways to incorporate activity into viewing time,
chair exercises anyone?
Sit Less, Move More
This is from the experts at Weight Watchers, taken from a NY Times Article, see below --- Adults may stave off weight gain by simply spending less time watching television, according to a study from the Stanford University School of Medicine. Sitting is “lethal,” according to James Levine, M.D., Ph.D., a researcher at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. That may sound extreme, but recent research has shown that even spurts of exercise can’t offset the health effects of long periods of inactivity. Sitting for many hours has been linked to a slower metabolic (calorie-burning) rate, lowered levels of good cholesterol, and insulin ineffectiveness that leads to type 2 Diabetes. The more time adults spend in front of the television, the Stanford researchers say, the more likely they are to suffer from obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
It’s important to note that even though in, this post, I am focusing on developing healthier habits during television time, research shows that all screen time contributes to excessive sitting, so all forms of screen time, including working on a computer and playing video games can have the same effect.
One solution is to make screen time more active, which will aid you in weight loss. It doesn't have to be super-strenuous either. Just bending down to tie a shoe registers as a spike in activity level. The take-home message is simple:
Sit less, do more. Eat less, move more.
For more information about Dr. Levine’s inactivity research, visit
nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17sitting-t.html
and by the way - since we changed the clocks - don't forget to
your smoke / carbon monoxide detectors need energy too!!
---oo000oo---
Upcoming this week - Best meeting of the year... don't miss the "Thanksgiving Meeting"
In preparation for the meeting - I thought you might enjoy this:
ODE TO A TURKEY
Author Unknown
When I was a young turkey, new to the coop,
My big brother Mike took me out on the stoop,
Then he sat me down, and he spoke real slow,
And he told me there was something that I had to know;
His look and his tone I will always remember,
When he told me of the horrors of..... Black November;
"Come about August, now listen to me,
Each day you'll get six meals instead of just three,
"And soon you'll be thick, where once you were thin,
And you'll grow a big rubbery thing under your chin;
"And then one morning, when you're warm in your bed,
In'll burst the farmer's wife, and hack off your head;
"Then she'll pluck out all your feathers so you're bald 'n pink,
And scoop out all your insides and leave ya lyin' in the sink;
Well, the rest of his words were too grim to repeat,
I sat on the stoop like a winged piece of meat,
And decided on the spot that to avoid being cooked,
I'd have to lay low and remain overlooked;
I began a new diet of nuts and granola,
High-roughage salads, juice and diet cola;
And as they ate pastries, chocolates and grapes,
I stayed in my room doing Jane Fonda tapes;
I maintained my weight of two pounds and a half,
And tried not to notice when the bigger birds laughed;
But 'twas I who was laughing, under my breath,
As they chomped and they chewed, ever closer to death;
And sure enough when Black November rolled around,
I was the last turkey left in the entire compound;
So now I'm a pet in the farmer's wife's lap;
I haven't a worry, so I eat and I nap;
She held me today, while sewing and humming,
And smiled at me and said
"Christmas is coming"
ON SALE THIS WEEK IN THE MEETING ROOM
WEIGHT WATCHERS FRUITIES - BUY 2 Duo-packs and get 3rd one for FREE
(you can mix and match flavors)
ALL Flavors -
BlackBerry Strawberry
Cherry Cappuccino Creme Melts
One Last Thing:
"We gain strength courage and confidence by each experience in which we really stop to look fear in the face... we must do that which we think we cannot." - Eleanor Roosevelt
Come on back to the blog on Wednesday for the Recipe of the Week :)
See you at your meeting.
Warmly
Nina
PointsPlus® Value: 5
