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Managing Weight is Simple - Just Not Easy.

If it were, everyone would be thin.

Since we are not, here are some tips that successful people use to lose weight. Feel free to share them with others so they can benefit, too.

Your desire to become the person you’ve only imagined and a weight management supplement may be the catalyst for helping you achieve your long-term weight management goals.

SUCCESSFUL WEIGHT LOSS TIPS

TIP NO. 1: TAKE A WEIGHT MANAGEMENT DIETARY SUPPLEMENT.
Used with common sense exercise and moderate changes in your diet, weight management supplements are an indispensible part of any weight management program.  Choose good quality weight management products, kits or program to help you achieve your weight management objectives.

TIP NO. 2: DRINK 8-10 GLASSES OF WATER EACH DAY
To begin with, you should drink a glass of water in the morning first thing, before you eat.

This is probably the easiest, and the healthiest glass you will drink all day and it will help you remember to drink water all day long.

For some people, this is a problem because water doesn’t really “taste” like anything. Drinking water 8 to 10 times each day gets easier the more you actually do it. It is simply a matter of conditioning your taste buds, and yourself, so that it becomes easier to do.  Once you get started, you will begin to crave water.

If you really cannot bear the taste of water, try using a water purifying pitcher or filter. You can also add a few drops of lemon or lime juice to your water – but no sugar or sweetener! Ice also helps.

TIP NO. 3: EAT BREAKFAST
Do not skip breakfast. If you need to go to bed a little earlier so that you can get up 20 minutes earlier each morning – do it!

Breakfast is so important to your good health and to weight control because it increases metabolism – your body’s fat burning mechanism.   This recipe for The Perfect Breakfast is, well, perfect.

And, it will help you stay on track the rest of the day. You are more likely to binge on something sweet and in the “bread” group if you skip breakfast. You can always keep a couple of hard-boiled eggs in the fridge or some high-fiber, low starch fruit around.

TIP NO. 4: EAT AT LEAST 3 MEALS AND 2 SNACKS EACH DAY
Eating more meals to lose weight sounds wrong, doesn’t it!  Eating more often will increase your metabolism … just like eating breakfast.

Eating regularly also helps you curb your bad carbohydrate intake by making sure that your snacks are planned and occur at regular intervals throughout the day.

It takes a minimal investment of planning time at the grocery store and at home each morning before you head out for the day to make some healthy food choices and prepare a few healthy snacks and meals.

Confused about what meals you can prepare? Tanya Willis’ recipes for 10 healthy meals is a great start – and preparing and eating healthy meals saves you money.

TIP NO. 5: EAT SLOWLY & ENJOY YOUR FOOD
You will feel full and more satisfied if you take the time to savor your food and chew it slower.

Don’t get in the habit of eating while standing or eating quickly. Sit down and chew. Eating slower will help you enjoy your food more, pay attention to what it is you are actually eating and get a better sense of when you are actually full.

TIP NO. 6: EAT MORE PRODUCE
If the only vegetable you have eaten in the last 5 years has been the potato, now is a good time to begin experimenting with other vegetables.

Eating lots of low-calorie, high-volume, high-nutrient vegetables and fruits crowds out other foods that are higher in sugar, fat and calories.

Move the meat off the center of your plate and pile on the vegetables. Try starting lunch or dinner with a vegetable salad (not a lettuce salad) or bowl of broth-based soup. The U.S. government’s 2005 Dietary Guidelines suggest that adults get 7-13 cups of produce daily.

Stock your kitchen with plenty of fruits and vegetables – include a few servings at every meal and snack.

Confused about what to buy at the supermarket? Harvard University School of Public Health can help – and eating healthy saves you money.

TIP NO. 7: CLOSE THE KITCHEN AT NIGHT
Establish a time when you will stop eating so you won’t give in to the late-night munchies or mindless snacking while watching television.

Have a cup of tea, suck on one piece of hard candy if you want something sweet after dinner, but then brush your teeth so you will be less likely to eat or drink anything else.

TIP NO. 8: AVOID WHITE FOODS
This is one easy way to remember what not to eat. If it is made from sugar, flour, potatoes, rice or corn – just say no. Remembering this rule of thumb will make it easier to recognize those rice cakes as an unhealthy high-carbohydrate snack.

Always look for colorful fruits and veggies to substitute for the white ones. Buy broccoli, bell peppers, green beans and peas, brown rice in moderation, leafy greens like kale and spinach, apples, melons, oranges and grapes. These foods are not only colorful they are also high in fiber, nutrients and important antioxidants. Eating colorful fruits and vegetables will give your diet variety as well as give you added health benefits.

TIP NO. 9: GO FOR WHOLE GRAIN
By substituting whole grains for refined grains like white bread, cakes, cookies and pretzels, you add much-needed fiber and will fill up faster so you’re more likely to eat a reasonable portion. Choose whole-wheat breads and pastas, brown rice, bran flakes, popcorn and whole-rye crackers.

TIP NO. 10: ADD MORE STEPS
Get yourself a pedometer and gradually add more steps until you reach 10,000 per day.

Throughout the day, do whatever you can to be more active — pace while you talk on the phone, take the dog out for an extra walk and march in place during television commercials. Having a pedometer serves as a constant motivator and reminder.

TIP NO. 11: TRIM PORTIONS
If you did nothing else but reduce your portions by 10% – 20%, you would lose weight.

Most of the portions served both in restaurants and at home are bigger than you need. Pull out the measuring cups to get a handle on your usual portion sizes, and work on paring them down.

Get instant portion control by using smaller bowls, plates and cups, because the food will look plentiful on dainty dishware.

TIP NO. 12: CONTROL YOUR ENVIRONMENT
If you don’t buy it, you can’t eat it!

Controlling your environment includes everything from stocking your kitchen with lots of healthy options to choosing the right restaurants. That means avoiding temptation by staying away from all-you-can-eat restaurants.

And when it comes to parties, eat a healthy snack before so you won’t be starving and be selective at the buffet. Before going back for more food, wait at least 15 minutes and have a big glass of water.

TIP NO. 13: 3-6′s, 2-9′s or 1-18
If you aren’t eliminating wastes, everyday, you are storing it – and those pounds of stored waste add up faster than you think.  There are estimates that people are storing 10, 20 and even more pounds of waste.

Choose a supplement to promote and support regularity.

Everyone knows that too much sugar is bad for you.  It can make you “hyper”, fat and sick; give you cavities, diabeties and a whole host of other conditions people would rather not endure.

People are pouring over labels to search out the amount of sugar that is in the products they are purchasing, and ultimately consuming, because it is common knowledge that “Sugar is bad for you.”

When you read sugar on a label, it generally refers to a sweet flavored food additive that is a simple carbohydrate such as sucrose (which primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet).  Other simple carbohydrates are used in industrial food preparation, but are usually known by more specific names—glucose, fructose or fruit sugar, high fructose corn syrup, etc.

What most people don’t know is that the term “sugar” is more than table sugar and various syrups.

Sugar is actually a biochemical term, derived from a more complex term, saccharide, that is a synonym for carbohydrates.

Where the the confusion starts is:  when experts utter the term “sugar” they, for the most part, are talking about all carbohydrates (saccharides) – foods that are particularly rich in starch (such as cereals, bread and pasta) and/or sugar (such as soft drinks, candy, jams and desserts).

For dietary purposes, carbohydrates can be classified as simple or complex.  The term complex carbohydrate denoted fruit, vegetables (that grow above ground) and whole-grains.  This excludes such sources of simple carbohydrates such as candy and sugary drinks; starches such as processed grains, flour and convenience, packaged grain products and vegetables that grow underground.

Simple carbohydrates are not essential nutrients in humans: the body can obtain all its energy from protein and healthy fats.  Simple carbohydrate provide 4  kilocalories per gram, but because they are absorbed quickly, contribute to spikes in blood sugar and, when needed, a spike in energy.

On the other hand, proteins also contain 4 kilocalorie per gram, while fat 9 kilocalories per gram and, because they require digestion to release their energy, provide a more regulated source of glucose (blood sugar) for energy.*

Complex carbohydrates, which are absorbed more slowly, perform numerous roles in living things including: storage of energy, structural components , coenzymes and as a component of DNA. Saccharides and their derivatives include many other key roles in the immune system, fertilization, cellular protection, repair and regeneration, blood clotting, and development.

Based on the effects on risk of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular issues and others, attributable to simple carbohydrates, the Institute of Medicine recommends that American and Canadian adults get between 45–65% of dietary energy from complex carbohydrates.

The Food and Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization jointly recommend that national dietary guidelines set a goal of 55–75% of total energy from carbohydrates, but only 10% directly from sugars (their term for simple carbohydrates).

The long and short of the issue of sugar (carbohydrates) is:  glucose is glucose.  Too much, delivered too fast is not good.  Choosing diverse dietary sources of protein, healthy fats and complex carbohydrates, all of which require digestive action, will support the energy requirements of your body in more healthy way.   

Attention to detail, good judgement and balance are the pillars that support your health.

How Healthy are You?  Take the FREE health test.

*  The glycemic index and glycemic load concepts have been developed to characterize food behavior during human digestion. They rank carbohydrate-rich foods based on the rapidity of their effect on blood glucose levels.   Glycemic index is a measure of how quickly food glucose is absorbed, while glycemic load is a measure of the total absorbable glucose in foods.  The insulin index is a similar, more recent classification method that ranks foods based on their effects on blood insulin levels, which are caused by glucose (or starch) and some amino acids in food.

Are you considering starting a weight management program?  Learn More:

“Which weight loss supplement can help me lose weight?” continues to dominate the questions we receive.  And, since the most recent data indicates that 2/3’s of Americans, men, women and children are obese, it is easy to understand the reason for the questions.

The answer is always:  Some can but none will.  You are probably asking yourself:  “What?”

The answer revolves around a simple concept.

All food contains energy (calories) that fuels your body along with nutrition (protein, healthy fats, vitamins, minerals and water) that feeds your body.  In a perfect world, you would be consuming a diet that creates two equations that zero out – which is the basis for the balanced diet.

The equation would be:
Energy expended = Energy consumed
Nutritional needs = Nutrition consumed produces a healthy, energetic body

An out of balance equation produces predictable outcomes.

When the energy expended is less than the energy consumed the equation is:
Energy expended + FAT = Energy consumed

When the nutritional needs are less than the nutrition consumed the equation is:
Nutritional needs + UNHEALTHY = nutrition consumed

Mathematicians are likely pulling their hair out, but the point is when you are making balanced choices, you will experience the preferred outcome.

The report on obesity further indicated that most obese people are malnourished, which would seem to be an oxymoron.  However, if you consider the amount of package, process and fast food (and their food values) that is consumed today, the findings in the report are easy to understand.

The conclusion, in the report, is that 2/3 of the population is fat, malnourished, less healthy and likely to die sooner than any generation before them.

Finding the Silver Bullet

This is the precise population that is searching for silver bullets; natural, pharmaceutical or medical, to substitute for their judgment.  Writing from my perspective (I’m not a Medical Doctor or Pharmacist), these people should balance the equation by choosing whole food, drinking water, exercise and rest.  All of the excuses in the world will not change the inevitable outcome.

The good news is that, once they are doing the best they can, supplements can help fill the gap in the equation.

Some Can But None Will

In the final equation, you must change the things you do to change the way things are.

How healthy are you?  Take the Test

Thanks for all of your comments on weight management. The two questions, most frequently asked about weight loss, revolve around what to eat and how to exercise. Here is an example of one of the many questions we receive and my response:

Question:  “So happy to enjoy such a insightful article “How to lose weight with diet pills” that does not depend on base posturing to get the topic fulfilled. Thank you for an enjoyable read.

2 questions: What kind of diet should I go with? I need to get some kind of workout what kind of exercises should I get into? Your input is appreciated.”

Response:  Your questions regarding diet is one I hear often. The key a healthy diet, and successful, long-term weight management is to avoid high calorie/empty nutrition food. The most common culprits are soda, snacks, convenience and fast food, processed and packaged food.

The answer is explained elegantly here:
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat

The short version is: eat 7-9 servings of differently colored, fresh vegetables that grow above ground, a serving of about the size of a deck of cards of fish or poultry each day, a serving about the size of a deck of cards of red once a week, with limited, (if not eliminated) amounts of milk and milk products, white flour (processed wheat, rice and oats), sugar, fruit juice and tropical fruits and vegetables that grow underground.

And drink water; at least 8 – 8 ounce glasses each day. Preferably, you can determine optimum hydration by dividing your body weight by two for the number of ounces of water to drink each day.

Exercise is important, but strenuous exercise takes a toll on your body. I’m a fan of walking for about 15 minutes a day. The important thing to remember is to vary the pace – start normally then speed up until you feel your body compensating, then slow down, speed up, slow down.

 Also, landing your foot into the arches is important, so shorten your stride. Many people over-stride when they walk which causes excess impact force that radiates from the heel of the foot all the way up through your spine.

Finally, considering a weight management supplement may be appropriate.  I’m not a fan of many of the supplements on the market because they simply focus on using high amounts of natural stimulants to raise waking time metabolism. 

Therefore, my Company approaches the issue of weight management supplements on an around-the-clock basis by restoring the efficiency both daytime and nighttime glucose utilizing.  By default, the regime is intended to promote and maintain efficient metabolism that, in turn, will address healthy weight management.

Thanks for asking these important questions.  In the end, it is your life,  the choice is yours to make.

How healthy are you?  Take the test.

Each of you has a dilemma:
•  Whom can you trust to advise you about your health?
• Who or what is the single most reliable source for the “stuff” you need to stay healthy or regain your health if you are not healthy.

This dilemma is complicated by insurance co pay, Doctor participation, appointments, travel time, Physician specialization, Physician referrals, treatment protocols, sick time from work and a myriad of other frustrating details that make up the health care paradigm.

What if  … the whole dilemma is a straw man?
A false dilemma concocted to direct your attention toward one particular option – away from another.

Do you want the red one or the blue one?
Every salesman recognizes this questioning technique.  The purpose is to focus a prospective buyer’s attention on one particular issue when other options could be considered.

The blue one is prettier.  Ka – Ching!

What if … you would stop worrying about the color of the car?
What if … all of the details of your health care are false dilemmas that disguise another option?

Consider this …  Healthy People Don’t Get Sick.
That’s right, you get sick, because you are not staying healthy.

You Are In Control Of Your Health

The choices you make, everyday, create one of two predictable outcome:  your choose health or you choose sickness and disease.  The fact is, unless you have been severely injured, the vast majority of the afflictions affecting people are self-induced.

Four choices will predict the outcome:  diet, lifestyle, rest and exercise.

The best health advice you will ever receive is:  Do everything you can to protect your most valuable asset.

Stop expecting that there is something or someone who can fix your health once you have squandered the resource.

Start treating your body with respect.  It is the only one you will ever get – and it can “fix” itself if it has the time and the tools it needs.

Create your strategy for health and healing and stick to it!

Do you really want the blue one?

If you were shown a substance that: aids in weight loss, reduces puffiness, clears complexion, improves circulation, improves breathing, improves digestion, improves endurance and fights constipation, would you be interested?

This could be the wonder product of the century!

 I’ll bet you are you asking yourself:  “How much does it cost?” and “Where can I get it?”

 Here’s how you can get your supply today:

 Go to your kitchen sink, fill a glass with water and drink it. That’s right – it’s WATER

Incredible as it may seem, water is the most important component of good health known to man.

In fact, 60% – 70% of the body’s weight is water.  Water is the body’s solvent:  it thins blood, carries away toxins, helps metabolize fat, liquefies consumed food, rinses out organs, balances electrolytes to support nerve function, carries hormones for endocrine function – in short it is the body’s magic potion.

However, when the body gets less water than it needs, it perceives the situation as a threat to its survival and begins to conserve every drop. Many of the cleansing functions of water are affected as it reuses and reuses and reuses the conserved, filthy water.

Drinking enough water is the best treatment for a whole litany of things – headache, constipation, digestion, sluggishness, clarity of mind, water retention, weight gain – all symptoms of dehydration.

There is a good rule of thumb for drinking enough water:  divide your body weight by two. The result is the number or ounces of water to consume every day.

Caffeinated beverages such as coffee, soda, energy drinks and certain teas are diuretics, which force the body to expel water. If you consume caffeinated beverages, compensate for their effect by drinking two ounces of water for each one ounce of these beverages

If you are trying to lose weight or are not healthy, increase the amount by 20%. Contrary to popular opinion, juices, soups and other liquids that require digestion do not count! Water is water!

Follow this schedule to utilize water effectively:

• Morning (right after rising):  consume one quart of water during a 30-minute period.
• Noon:  consume one quart of water during a 30-minute period.
• Evening:  consume one quart of water during a 30-minute period.
• Drink the remainder of your requirement throughout the day.

 The body’s signal for hunger and thirst are similar and are often confused. Try drinking a glass of water instead of eating something. Your body just might need hydrating instead of a snack!

When the body gets all the water it needs to function efficiently, its fluids are perfectly balanced. Glands, nerves, and bowel begin to function efficiently. Skin begins to glow, water retention subsides, weight normalizes, endurance increases, concentration improves, and on … and on … and on!

P.S.  Chlorine isn’t good for your body but it kills the stuff that gets in your water pipes that can make you sick. Chlorine is normally a gas … so if you put a one gallon, open topped container full of tap water in your refrigerator before you go to bed, the chlorine will dissipate and your fresh water (without chlorine) will be waiting for you in the morning.

P.P.S.  Most people are deficient in trace minerals because they aren’t eating enough fresh vegetables (5 to 7 baseball size servings – daily).  Add an ounce of a trace mineral supplement to your daily water to fill the gap in your diet.

NOTE:  Are you doing the best you can to stay healthy?   Take the test.

There is so much information about health that it is easy to be overwhelmed by the tsunami.

 Books, magazines, infomercials, talk shows, television ads, radio ads, newspaper ad feature experts dissecting real and imaginary health concerns that “every American should know about.”  Media advertisers are bombarding you with sound bites or glossy pages for: prescriptive medicine, natural advances and smiling faces extolling near miraculous additions to everyday food.

 Is it any wonder that this torrent of minutia has you confused?

 Your challenge is to remove yourself from this quagmire of irrelevance and come face-to-face with this warning about your health that is similar to a sign you often see in antique stores, “You break it – you bought it.”  Your motto, concerning your health, should be:  “It is easier to stay healthy than to become healthy.”

 Certainly, you need to consider the possibility of the “bad luck” of an unforeseen accident or a particularly virulent infective agent, but, if you manage the factors that you can control, it is more likely that you will enjoy the benefits of being healthy.

 Personally, I cover the known deficiencies that exist in my, and everyone’s, diet – the essentials for wellbeing.  Next, I filter my choices through a question that I ask myself before I choose to do something:  “Will my body thank me for this later?”  When the answer is yes, more often than not, I know I am contributing to my wellbeing.  If the answer is no, I use a nutraceutical supplement that is formulated with combinations of complementary, natural ingredients, intended for a particular purpose, to fill the gap left by my choices.

 Declining Health Is Not Inevitable, But It Is Predictable.   The predictors are:

 You are what you eat.

Joel Wallach, DVM, ND, a noted author, sought out speaker and producer of a controversial tape: Dead Doctors Don’t Lie frequently points out:  “If a visit to the Super Market results in bags of cans, boxes and bags of food, you should throw away the contents and eat the packaging.”  The message is that processing, preserving, enhancing the appearance and taste of these products significantly diminishes their nutritional value.  Whole food, fresh, ripe and properly prepared, is the superior choice.

 Keep your body clean.

In 2006, The American Holistic Medical Association, Guide To Holistic Health reports:  “There are an estimated 80,000 chemicals regularly in use today, with an additional 1,000 to 2,000 chemicals added to this list each year.  Only 3 percent of them have been tested to determine whether they are toxic or carcinogenic.  In 1998, the United states released approximately 500 billion tons of toxic chemicals into the environment.”

 People shower or bathe everyday to keep the outside of their bodies clean.  It is the healthy thing to do.  What about the inside?  The “stuff” in the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat builds up over time.  Keeping the inside of your body as clean as the outside pays dividends.

 Take responsibility.

Invest in your health.  You have the most to lose if your health is compromised.  Stop expecting that someone or some magical machine; thing or plant will fix what you have broken.  It is your body that maintains your health using the nutrients derived from the things you put in your mouth.  Ask the question:  “Will my body thank me for this later?” 

 Do the best you can.

Stress, fast food, skipping meals and inactivity are one set of predictors; rest, a healthy diet and moderate exercise are another.  Choose wisely.  Make changes where you can, then use supplements to fill the gap.  Just remember:  “You break it, you bought it.”

 Health is a journey that features you, the person who has the most to gain, or lose, when you choose a path.

 NOTE:  Are you doing the best you can?  Take the test.

Trying to Lose Weight in the Dead of Winter is Next to Impossible.

Those of you who are trying to realize your New Year resolution to lose weight are, in all likelihood, frustrated.  The fact is:  metabolism is turned down every fall; it is restored every spring.  Overwhelming this cycle is not very likely. 

Take heart!  Spring is just around the corner.

Children, all over the U.S., will soon be repeating a simple poem:
Spring has sprung, the grass has riz,
I wonder where the flowers is?

Plants will be budding, putting on leaves with blossoms springing toward the sun.  Animals will be awakening from their winter doldrums, or their hibernation, to welcome the return of the season of plenty.

It is the cycle of all living things on Earth; it is basic survival and, it is a testament to the adaptability of life on Earth.

Even though people live in modern homes, with central heat, abundant food and water, this natural cycle exerts the same, unavoidable impact on the human body.

There are a few steps you can take can assure you that your metabolism will come roaring back when it is time.

Are you 3 – 6’s, 2 – 9’s or 1 – 18?
It’s time for a spring-cleaning.  Your bowels should move at least once every day – preferably after each meal (3 –  six inch cigar-shaped.)  Even then, it is a good idea to clean up any residual wastes from the winter diet.  Supplements are especially effective in that regard so, choose an effective supplement to refresh your bowels.

Are you suffering a hangover from the holiday goodies and/or craving carbs, sugar and starches?
They, and most other winter foods, are notoriously short of trace minerals. Often referred to as “The Currency of Life”, trace minerals deficiencies have been known to contribute to a listless feeling, cravings and constant hunger.  Once again, the fastest way to address the issue is with a full-spectrum trace mineral supplement until fresh, mature vegetables are readily available.  By the way, if you are a vegetable-hater, you should consider trace mineral supplementation year-round.

Feed your Metabolism.
The 3 Day Diet, once attributed to the Cleveland Clinic, has been around for a long time.  None-the-less, it is still an effective way to feed your metabolism.  Follow the instructions, wait a week to repeat the diet. Two cycles is usually sufficient to jump start metabolism.

If you have packed on more than a few pounds, weight management supplements are in order.
However, caution in order, too.  Some weight loss supplements rely on stimulants to “spike” wake-time metabolism.  Advertisements for these types of supplements often emphasize energy as their most notable characteristic.  The tendency to consume more than enough sweets, bread and pasta, starchy vegetables, and caffeinated beverages (coffee, tea, soda and energy drinks) may already be taxing metabolic functions.  Adding another source of stimulants may not be the best idea.

A better choice may be weight management supplements formulated to support metabolic function while managing appetite, cravings and alertness.  While you won’t get the “buzz”, you won’t be anxious and/or jittery either.

Feed your body.
While it seems counter-intuitive, you must eat to lose weight.  Starvation and low-calorie dieting send a signal to your body that food is in short supply so it goes into survival mode – protecting fat and reducing metabolism. 

What you are consuming is the issue.
Before you put something in your mouth, ask yourself one simple question:  “Is this going to feed my body something it needs?”  If the answer is no, don’t eat it.  You already know the answer when you consume junk, packaged, comfort and fast food, so don’t eat them. 

Eat, eat, eat.
Eat breakfast, eat vegetables for lunch, eat a healthy supper early.  You should eat a baseball sized apple or pear for mid-morning and afternoon snacks. (Add a sprinkle of cinnamon and/or a dash of lime juice for variety.)   Here are 10 healthy, easy to fix recipes.

Drink water to help flush away the byproducts of burning fat – at least 8 – 8 ounces glasses each day.

Lose it and keep it off!
Besides appearance, losing weight is a healthy choice.  Researchers have shown, time and time again, that maintaining a healthy weight will reduce your chances of enduring many of the health issues that are confronting others.

Would you care to know how healthy you are?  Take the test.

Editor’s Note:  Rather than the prevalent “miracle in a bottle” paradigm, we believe maintaining health is a life-style. We have developed a strategy that promotes and maintains health.  You can review our work at the Natural Health Consulting Center at NURPO.

One of the first lessons I learned, once I began earning a paycheck, was the importance of a budget.  My mother, who was my unofficial financial planner, showed me the “envelope trick.”

Mother patiently showed me how to identify my expenses, label an envelope for each expense, divide my money between each expense and put it in the appropriate envelope.  She explained that when the expense came due, the money would be “tucked” away.  All I needed to do is take the money out of the envelope to pay the bill.

And, my mother explained, once my expenses were provided for, I needed to prioritize any remaining money between needs, wants and building a nest egg; then make choices. 

Choices like: wanting to go to the movies to have fun or needing to maintain my car.  Mother pointed out that the car would need tires, the oil changed and repairs; all of which, if not tended, would affect my ability to earn money.  The choice, and the consequence, would be mine.

It was like hearing Aesop’s fable about the grasshopper and the ants.  The grasshopper whiled away the summer – the ants worked to store away food for winter.  When, inevitably, winter came, the grasshopper starved and died – the ants did not.  The grasshoppler failed to budget.  The moral of Aesop’s fable is:  It is best to prepare for the days of necessity. 

The body is a marvel of engineering: joints, ligaments and muscles, working in synchrony to produce force and motion; cells, coordinating with one another, to produce energy, sensation and thought; systems for protection from external and internal agents that could disrupt the harmony that we describe as health; systems to repair damaged and injured cells and tissue.  The coup de gras is the miracle of regeneration that provides the ability for the body to completely rebuild itself, perfectly, every 7 years.

 With one exception, this miracle of life happens automatically.  The body converts food, using water as medium and catalyst, into building blocks that are reassembled to become part of a healthy body, the systems that support it and then, dispose of the waste.

What is the Exception?

The one, and only, thing your body cannot do for itself is select the quality and quantity of food that enters the system.  That is your job.  Making sure that you are “putting enough in the envelopes” to pay the bills when they come due – with something left over for emergencies. 

You can make 3 choices:

When you choose whole food: vegetables, fruit, whole grain, fish, poultry, lean red meat and water, your are meeting your health budget, with a little left over for emergencies.  These whole foods contain the building blocks on which your body relies: protein, essential fatty acids, complex carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins on which the body depends to flourish.  You will enjoy the bounty of health.

When you choose cans, boxes and bags of processed, packaged and preserved food, convenience and fast food, soda, artificial sweeteners, coffee and energy drinks, you are bankrupting your health budget.  The labels on these foods clearly proclaim that they contain flour, sugar and chemicals, the hyphenated words that you can’t pronounce, to enhance taste, color and shelf life.  None of which benefit your body.  If you aren’t sick, you soon will be.

When you choose a combination of the two, you are creating a deficit or, as my mother would say, “You are going broke slowly – ask for a raise or get a second job.”  Your body will do the best it can with what it has to work.  Lacking energy and endurance, obesity, frequent illnesses, declining quality of life and vulnerability to degenerative disease are all predictable outcomes.  You won’t be sick, but you aren’t healthy either.

Are you the grasshopper or are you the ant?

The grasshopper fiddled the summer away, while the ants spent time preparing for winter.  Enjoying a life- time of radiant health is truly a simple issue:  Are you investing in health or are you paying for sickness? 

Do you want to know?  Take the test.

Not so many years ago, people practiced self-care.  The incidental complaints like: a tummy ache, colds, aches and pains were inconveniences that were handled at home. 

 When people did go to the Doctor, they went to an office.  They used the Doctor’s services for injuries, inoculations, a “shot” for protection from viral infections, anti-biotic pills for bacterial infections and an occasional surgery at the hospital.

Today, people practice sick-care.  They go the Doctor at the drop of a hat.
The 1^st Physician, at a Medical Center, offers a prescription and a referral to a Specialist for further evaluation, and/or for tests and/or more prescriptions and/or a referral to a Surgeon for more tests and to schedule surgery and/or a referral to the 1^st Physician, who  . . .  .  

 Pointing to life expectancy charts, some people argue that the transition from self-care to sick-care has resulted in a longer life.

 Could it be that better waste management, cleaner water and food, safer machines at work, safer cars and highways and a more gentile society could have accomplished the same thing?

 And, in the final analysis, is living 10 years longer, if you spend the time in a nursing home, a dream come true?

 Ignoring your health is foolishness.  It is your most valuable asset.  You will lose a lot when your health fails you.  But, what do you gain when you allow a stranger, even if that stranger is a professional, to manage your health for you?

Get off of the sick-care merry-go-round.
Take control of your most valuable asset, your health, and start managing it by selecting professionals based their field of expertise and training.  Besides Medical Doctors, Chiropractors, Dieticians, Herbalists, to name a few, all have a place. Use their expertise to address your needs.

Clean up your act!

1. Make lifestyle choices that respect your body.  It is the only one you will get.
2. Make dietary choices that feed your body instead of your desires.

Stop kidding yourself.

The gap in your diet, created by fast and convenient food and the preserved, processed, packaged and commercially produced food, available at the super-market, is creating a gap in your diet between what your body gets and what it needs is real.  Choose supplements to fill that gap.

Just remember:  there are no magic bullets.

You have the most to gain when you are healthy or lose when you’re not.

Some truths are ageless and will never change.
 ”If you want to change the way things are, you must change the things you do.”

How healthy are you?  Take the test.