I understand the pandemic has contributed to some of you gaining weight and with restrictions on movement, no opportunity to burn all the calories you have been taking in. Those who are able to exercise (those new year resolutions) kudos. I hope you manage to keep the pounds down.
I am here to share good news. It should be obvious but I have discovered that things that are generally obvious to me are not so obvious.
In a previous post that I did on weight loss, I mentioned healthy eating, portion size and sustainable plans. This Times article based off some studies in Ecuador and Tanzania show that the difference is in types of food and quantity.
My free advice to anyone struggling with weight is to check their portions, and adopt low calorie dense healthy foods (where possible). And remember to sleep well and drink plenty of water. Sometimes you think you are hungry when you are dehydrated.
To healthy living and better quality of life.
Random thoughts 
As long as there is chocolate and coffee, I’m fine!
😉
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Those are good for your health
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Good for mine, (mental health) that’s for sure.
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Link is broken, but I can confirm that proper rest, diet, hydration, exercise, fresh air and sunshine go along way towards improving your health.
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Let me know if the link is ok now. Otherwise it is here https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/24/well/move/weight-gain-amazon.html
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Works now. Thanks.
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I have read of people who think it is something to brag about that they make do with 2 hours of sleep or less. I can’t understand humans.
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I get plenty of exercise by moving my jaw muscles 50 times a minute whilst eating pizza! 🙂 Actually, been dropping a few pounds simply by eating less and avoiding eating at night when I get up to pee. After a hardy pee, I always crave a spoonful of peanut butter, but by cutting that out, I’m droppin some pounds!
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Hahaha, Jeff. I have missed you.
I think that plan of yours works just fine
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I always limit my portion size, drink water, tea, coffee all day long, use my exerbike, & have even lost a couple of kilos during this virus thing.
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You will live for long sweetheart
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I never use food as ”something to do” because of boredom.
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I have lost a bit, but it has had nothing to do with the virus. I simply made up my mind and changed some of my eating habits (less snacks, smaller portions). And guess what!??! It works!
If my “elderly” body allowed me to do more exercising, I would undoubtedly return to that svelte body of my younger years. NOT! 😛
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Ooh nice.
We would love to see your sweet 16 self😀
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Terrific posting here! Great job (as always!) 🙂
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Interesting blurb from New Scientist on this topic:
Today, a widespread obsession with fitness and body weight has led to a new era of calorie counting. Diet books and magazine workouts promise a kind of shiny metabolic nirvana of calories burned, villainous foods avoided, waistlines melted and health and vitality restored. The reasons they fail – and they almost always do – are as varied as the schemes themselves, but the common theme is a fundamental misunderstanding of metabolism. Yes, diet and exercise are critically important for our health, but they don’t work in the ways we are usually taught. Our bodies aren’t simple calorie-burning engines that we can easily manipulate to keep us looking trim and feeling good. They are complex and dynamic metabolic systems meticulously shaped by evolution for survival and reproduction.
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What i know almost for a fact is fad diets inevitably fail even when they appear to produce results in the beginning.
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I’ve been watching Secret Safari filmed in Ol Pejeta. Which of the guards is you?
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The tall one.
Good to see you, Pink. I guess you and Mike are alright
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It’s the time of year that gets me. Winter months, with lots of cold rainy weather, some snow/ice, many days of no, or little sun, lots of time indoors, it is half depressing. I want to get out and do stuff, but the reality is I spend too much idle time inside.
I usually gain a few pounds.
Then come spring, I’m much more active, and tend to lose it again.
We don’t vary our diet a lot, though we do try to keep the intake from being monotonous to the point of “oh (fill in blank) again!?” We do treat ourselves to ice cream, or donuts, or the like, every once in a while. But we do not do that all the time. I generally maintain my weight to within a few lbs. through the year.
The wife has been losing weight. Not sure how, but she has lost maybe 15 lb. in the last few months. Which is fine by me.
Not sure if this has anything to do with dieting, I guess I just rambled on 🙂
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I can’t wrap my head around snow or winter life.
Here during the rainy season, I can run if it is not raining in the morning or cycle in the afternoon if the weather permits it.
I love ice cream and cake.
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I have been able to maintain my exercise regime, and I coast towards my soon and inevitable retirement, my passion for work has diminished to the point I feel no shame at taking single days off to go cycling. So, I am pretty “fit” for an old guy. But I am also a raging sugar addict, so I am too heavy for sure, Bicycling is the on ly thing tat keeps me from full on insulin-dependent diabetes, sadly. I talk and talk and talk about it, but addictions are hard habits to break!
I think healthy weight is 20% genetics, 20% exercise, and 60% food. I fail on two of these grounds. 😦
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You do well with exercise, my friend.
I agree, addictions are difficult things to overcome.
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That plenty of water tip is definitely the tried and tested one. However, drinking water when you are not thirsty is one of the hardest things!
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For me, it’s not so much the actual drinking … it’s REMEMBERING to drink when I’m not thirsty. Once I get started, I can usually swig a fair amount, but more often than not, I just don’t think about it.
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I don’t get thirsty….I have water, green or back tea on my side table at all times, with a couple of cups of coffee in there too. I don’t wait to get thirsty, I just drink liquid all day long.
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Oh, I have a bottle of water within reaching distance … I just forget to reach. 😋
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Lifelong habit, I automatically reach.
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Hahahaha.
This happens to me as well.
Since generally it is fluids that matter, I take copious amount of tea or coffee to ensure I am well hydrated.
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That’s where the challenge is.
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By the time you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated.
Sometimes I drink warm water. Seems to make drinking water slightly easier.
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Room temp is my choice. Definitely not ice water! Nice for a refresher on a hot day, but definitely not a rehydrator. Although some people (my daughter, for one) carries a bottle of ice water with her everywhere!
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I like cold water.
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Hydrate yourself well before exercising, Hydrate yourself and eat well after exercising! Drink water before dinner, it will decrease your hunger.
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[…] Exercise vs diet […]
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