We all have habits and patterns that we fall into automatically.  Rethinking these actions is healthy on many levels.  Research has shown that changes in routine can help improve memory and cognitive function,  and when applied to eating and exercise habits can improve your physical health as well.

Why not give lunches a twist?  Ditch the ham and cheese and skip that run to the corner store for a wrap.  You can make something more interesting and delicious by changing out a few ingredients.  Just be sure to label your lunch if you want it to still be waiting in the kitchen when you’re ready to eat!

- Make the outside tasty.  Choose a good quality whole grain bread, or a gluten free version if you need to.  Think about making your own bread.  Try naan bread, pita bread, or nori sheets for extra nutrition.

- Spread the goodness.  If you’re in a mayonnaise rut you can try Veganaise or Nayonnaise for a healthy change.  Or mix it with a little mustard or horseradish for extra flavor.  Try hummus instead of mayo.  It comes in many flavors and adds dimension to anything you’re having.

- Let the supporting players take the lead role.  If you use vegetables to dress up the meat why not give them a chance to shine on their own?  Try tomatoes with avocadoes, cucumbers and sprouts.  There won’t be room for much else, but there won’t be much need either.

- Go green in a whole new way.  Leave off the iceberg lettuce and try watercress which is nutrient dense, or arugula for a little kick.  Red leaf lettuce is delicious and pairs well with roasted peppers and portabellos.

-Get Fancy.  There’s nothing wrong with having finger sandwiches at your desk.  It will keep the fires stoked if you’re working those mini meals.  And having something that’s easier to divide into smaller meals will  keep you satiated all day.  Pinkies up!

Join in the discussion.  Post on the boards and tell us about your sandwich creations.  Pictures are a plus !

We talk a lot about finding your “new normal” in relation to building a healthier lifestyle.  This article suggests that this is more important than ever, as some people have a very unhealthy view of what’s considered normal in weight and health these days.  It’s well worth your time to read this.  Could you, or someone you care about, be falling victim to this mindset?

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/09/12/overweight-is-new-normal-weight/

Many women don’t want to build up their muscles (what the guys like to call bulking up), they want long, lean muscles, like ballet dancers have.

The thing is, to get those “toned” muscles, you have to do the same strength and resistance training that’s required for bulking up. Don’t panic, ladies – you don’t have enough testosterone to get the “bulk” effect. But you do need to do the same work.

Overall strength and resistance training will increase your basal metabolic rate (the rate at which your body burns calories at rest), thereby reducing your body fat content. And you need to reduce the overall body fat in order to see the muscle you’re building with specific exercises for specific muscle groups.

Here’s an example – you want toned arms. So you’ll do exercises to build and strengthen your biceps and triceps, but you’ll also work on reducing your overall body fat percentage with other exercises, so the fat on top of those muscles starts to melt away, showing off the muscles underneath.

Get moving! Now that school is starting, lots of gyms and community ed programs are starting their fall classes.

We saw this as we were skating around the internet. Kinda scary.

Fancy putting your daughter off her food? Then buy her Maggie Goes on a Diet, a children’s book aimed – according to Barnes & Noble, one of the many booksellers on whose website it is currently listed – at six- to 12-year-olds. [...]

The book tells the story of 14-year-old Maggie, who according to its blurb “is transformed from being overweight and insecure to a normal-sized teen who becomes the school soccer star”. It’s not out until October, but so disquieting is the cover image that perhaps we may, in this case, allow ourselves to judge the book by it. Maggie is depicted as dumpy, pigtailed, wearing an unflattering jumper (has nobody told her that wide lateral stripes aren’t a good look when you’re carrying a few extra pounds?), staring into the mirror, presumably dreaming of a thinner self who will one day wear the tiny pink prom dress she’s holding wistfully to her chest.

~ Laura Barnett, The Woman’s Blog, The Guardian

There are better ways to teach your kids about health – starting by modeling healthy behavior yourself, and always emphasizing lifelong healthy eating habits over dieting. The book does get one thing right – being physically active (in this case, involved in sports) is good for kids.

While the author probably has good intentions, there are better health messages for kids aged 6-12.

And we’re not even including quitting smoking or using sunscreen daily. Check out nine more ways you can fight aging.

1. Not enough sleep * If you’re up watching late night television, you’re probably not getting the 7-8 hours of sleep you need each night to help fight high blood pressure, diabetes, weight gain, and looking and feeling old.
2. Too many sweets * Sugar not only adds pounds, it also makes your skin dull and wrinkled. Here’s the biology: There’s a natural process known as glycation, in which the sugar in your bloodstream attaches to proteins to form harmful new molecules called advanced glycation end products (AGEs, for short). The more sugar you eat, the more AGEs you develop; these damage surrounding proteins like collagen and elastin, which keep skin firm and elastic. Once damaged, springy and resilient collagen and elastin become dry and brittle, leading to wrinkles and sagging. These aging effects start at about age 35 and increase rapidly after that (British Journal of Dermatology), so limit your sugar intake.
3. Stress! * Stress increases the concentration of the hormones cortisol and norepinephrine in the bloodstream, kicking up blood pressure and suppressing immunity. Over time, stress that doesn’t go away can delay healing, harden your arteries, and possibly shrink areas of your brain involved in learning, memory, and mood. Try deep breathing or meditation to relax consciously.
4. Sporadic exercise * It’s not just for losing weight. Research shows that vigorous exercisers have longer telomeres—cellular biomarkers that shorten as we age—compared with healthy adults who rarely work out. Being active consistently can help fight brain fog, reduce inflammation, and prevent type 2 diabetes and other chronic conditions that crop up over time. Get moving for at least 20-25 minutes a day.
5. Big sound * Hearing loss usually develops gradually, but the more you play that iPod at full volume, the more quickly you’ll need a hearing aid. Keep the volume as low as possible, and use noise-cancelling headphones so you’re not using the volume to fight ambient noise. Use earplugs when you’re around other loud noises, like the lawn mower.
6. Setting friendships aside * Satisfying friendships predict longevity better than even close family ties, and they can protect against obesity, depression, and heart disease, among other health problems. Your friends keep you young—simple as that. Make time for friendships.
7. Skipping fruits and veggies * You’ve likely heard that antioxidant-packed fruits and veggies can help you stay young. These powerful compounds fight free radicals that would otherwise wreak havoc on your body and skin, damaging cells that can lead to cancer and make you look older. Antioxidants remain active for only a few hours and need to be continually replenished, so it’s a daily deal – even better at every meal.
8. Cutting the fat * Don’t cut out the fat; choose the smart fats. Stopping the artery-clogging saturated and trans fats is a heart-healthy move, and keeping the unsaturated fats, like those found in fish, nuts, and olive oil, is wise. Omega-3 fatty acids are the ultimate anti-aging fat, essential for protecting your brain, heart, bones, joints, skin, and more. Monounsaturated fats can lower bad LDL cholesterol, raise cardio-protective HDL cholesterol, and decrease your risk of atherosclerosis.
9. Not enough sex * It’s not just fun, sex is great for your health. People with active sex lives have stronger immune systems, less pain, a lower cancer risk, healthier hearts, and less stress. The best news: It can even make you look younger—up to 12 years, a study shows. So rekindle the romance between you and your partner.

Adapted from Prevention magazine on MSN Health

It’s one of our favorite Marilu-isms!

Make sure you chew your food. Your stomach doesn’t have teeth. Unless you chew every single bite, you’re not going to lose weight, you’re not going to get the nutrients, you’re not going to have a clean colon, you’re not going to digest properly.

You’re eating whole grains, you’re eating legumes, you’re eating vegetables – all foods with fiber. Make sure you chew. The ideal is fifty chews per bite, but aim for at least thirty. Of course, counting your chews is kind of odd, so try this – chew each bite until it’s so liquified you could drink it.

April Fools!

Yes, here at Marilu.com we can help you lose weight, but it’s going to be a reasonable pace, and it’s going to be because you’re eating food that nourishes your body. No health robbers that keep you wanting more, or gimmicks that cost extra money. No chemicals, no magic pills. And… well, you’ll meet your goals faster if you actually break a sweat every day.

We can also help you improve your health. Most of those numbers that measure your health are at least partially within your control. Why not give them a chance to be better?

When you compare “diet plans,” Marilu’s Total Health Makeover® makes sense. There may be steps that seem odd or different, but that’s probably because the reasons behind them are new to you. You can take the steps at your pace – try one at a time, or several in combination, or all 10 at once. You can commit to the steps at different levels.

And best of all, here at Marilu.com, you can join a group to go through the program, and get daily personal coaching from people like you who have been selected by Marilu to help you. Our coaches don’t just give you a canned message once a day – they’re available to answer your questions and help you make decisions that will work for you.

You can lose weight; you can improve your health. THM works. And that’s no April Fools’ joke.

Join now and get started on YOUR Total Health Makeover®!

It’s one of our favorite Marilu-isms!

Make sure you chew your food. Your stomach doesn’t have teeth. Unless you chew every single bite, you’re not going to lose weight, you’re not going to get the nutrients, you’re not going to have a clean colon, you’re not going to digest properly.

You’re eating whole grains, you’re eating legumes, you’re eating vegetables – all foods with fiber. Make sure you chew. The ideal is fifty chews per bite, but aim for at least thirty. Of course, counting your chews is kind of odd, so try this – chew each bite until it’s so liquified you could drink it.

The important thing to remember with portion size is that you have to listen to your body – but not the body that’s been created by emotional eating, your actual physical body.

Some portions on recipes are going to be too small or too large for you. Even if there’s food left over, that’s okay. When you’re full, stop eating. Save the leftover food for a snack in 2 hours, or save it for another meal.

If you’re eating consciously – paying attention to how the food tastes and smells and feels, chewing each bite thoroughly, and listening to your body’s response – you’ll know when to stop. As a guide, remember that your stomach is about the size of your fist. How many “fists” are on your plate?

Some people don’t do well measuring their weight loss in numbers on a scale. Why not use pictures instead? Take a photo of yourself today, wearing something that fits you well right now. You don’t have to post it on Facebook or tweet it to the world. Just file it away where you’ll be able to find it. Or post it on your closet or refrigerator door.

Take your picture every Monday wearing the same outfit. You’ll know if you’re doing the right things – eating well and exercising regularly – by the way your photos look.

Need help getting started with your weight loss and healthy eating goals this year? Take our 7 in ’11 online class (starts today!) with Marilu – get menus and recipes for delicious meals, and personal coaching to help you be your best this year! Register here.