Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Helping Fellow Members

What can you bring to a new relationship?  In this case, you are helping your fellow Healthper members to eat right, exercise, lose weight and manage their lifestyle. All in the name of getting healthy and creating a place where each person can come to socialize with other like-minded individuals.   What's better than showing off that  new, slimmer body?  How about telling the world how you achieved those results?  Why not help others to create those same stories of success?

It's amazing how hearing a positive story can change your level of enthusiasm.  It can bring you to a point that you never believed possible.  "What if I could achieve change?" Imagine looking on the mirror and complimenting and face and body you see looking back at you.  These results are attainable!  They are waiting for you, and perhaps all it takes is a boost of moral.  A simple exchange of methods between members.

Share your experiences and what works...you may just create more success stories than your own.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Surprising Fact...Let's Change Together

Stop and think about the last time you made a personal change because you really wanted to.  Does anything come to mind?  Changing behavior is one of the hardest tasks to accomplish, but it can be done! Ultimately its about reinforcement and engagement.  How can we start making changes in our lives that create balance and allow us to maximize our choices?

Surprisingly, 67% of American adults are overweight and over 60% do not incorporate exercise into their life.  Even more shocking, is that over 20% are still smoking.  Every day fast food restaurants are "creating" "healthier" menu options to lure customers in, but their calorie and fat laden meals are the anchors for which their patrons are visiting.  Perhaps once in a while the customer may choose a salad or baked potato, but generally, they are there for the 65 grams of hamburger fat with a side of fries.  It's fast and easy and convenient....but so is keeping fresh vegetables, salad and a fully cooked chicken breast in your refrigerator.

We have got to make a change!  Diabetes and heart disease are real and they are preventable.  Taking action to increase your activity and move the needle must become an important part of your goals in 2012.  What makes us want to change?  Start small...5 days...10 days...20...soon, it's 30 days and you are 5 pounds thinner and your energy level is through the roof and you have haven't visited your ex-favorite fast food joint.

Log your progress at www.healthper.com.  Invite your friends and friends on your journey!  Help them to create their own story of change.  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays...Until next time :)

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Write it Down

Do you remember what you ate this morning?  How about last night for dinner?  Often times, our busy lives force us to eat whats available, rather than what is "good for us".  Unfortunately, much of the time, we don't realize that we've had only a few handfuls of cheerios and a sip of coffee at 9 am and it's already 4PM.  This type of cycle, does not do a body good!  Our bodies and minds need fuel to survive and to thrive.  The energy that gets us through the day comes from the food we consume.  Try making that food as healthy as possible, at least 5 days a week.  You're allowed to have those few cheat days, but everything in moderation.

A great way to keep track of your intake, is to keep a food diary.  It's one of the oldest tricks in the book for weight loss and management.  This tool can give you keen insight into your calories and fat as well as the timing of your meals and snacks.  It can also help you pinpoint where you might be going wrong (or right) in your efforts to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Healthper.com has a built in tool to help you keep track of your food consumption.  And, in addition to learning how to manage your intake, you can earn points, take challenges, invite friends and motivate others.  It's almost the new year and time for a few new changes...let's make health a priority!

Thursday, December 15, 2011

How do your kids start the day? Get rid of the sugar....

I don't have kids, but I was a kid once (a long time ago) as I just hit the 35 mark recently, and what I know is that in my days our shelves weren't packed with sugary cereals and pop tarts.  If we didn't have time to eat, my Mother (who is a nurse, so I presume this was OK) would throw eggs, milk and chocolate syrup into the blender and we drank her version of "egg nog" before we were allowed to go to school.  We loved it!  It's a favorite past time of my sister, brother and I.  Otherwise, we had the option of Cheerios, Corn Flakes, Total (when it was only bran flavored), bagels, English muffins and Eggs.

Every day (and night now) we are bombarded with commercials that have smiling parents handing their kids chocolate sugar cereal in a bowl or a piece of frosted cardboard from the toaster acting like they just did their job!  Really?  These are easy ways to send your kid off without trying very hard.  You are allowed to say no! Start them early eating bananas, apples, pears, low sodium oatmeal, cheerios, whole grain breads and yogurt. Whip up a batch of fresh pancakes or french toast, wrap them up and store them in the fridge rather than buying the prepackaged kind with tons of preservatives.  Getting closer to nature is better!  It's healthier and they will keep these habits ingrained in their behavior as they grow.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

That Small Change

What does it take to make a small change?  Willpower?  Need?  Time?  Perhaps all of those elements come into play when talking about changing how we think, act and most importantly eat!  Why is it so difficult for us as humans to change our behavior?  We tell ourselves, "just one more potato chip and I'm done", but inevitably we have 10 more.  Why can't we control our wants?  Of course there are people who can put that bag down when they feel satisfied, but let's be honest....they are rare. 

So how can we start making those changes and still feel satisfied?   Start small.  Allow yourself to ease into your new way of thinking.  Trick your mind into believing you've had exactly the right amount you desire of that snack.  No one is saying that you have to become a devout rice cake follower, but if you must eat something salty, try a healthier version of that snack and ensure it's a smaller portion than your usual half a box.  Eventually, you will negotiate with yourself and the everyday snack will become every other day and then maybe, just maybe it's only a cheat day.  Try it...the results can only be positive

Monday, December 12, 2011

Day One

Good Day Healthper Members

Welcome to the new (and only) Healthper blog :)  This blog will be a place for you to leave your comments, suggestions for Healthper and just to talk about the world of social health.  Our goal at Healthper is to bring social networking to the ever changing world of health.  We want you, our members to network with one another, guide peers with their goals, gain insight into how other people lose weight and/or maintain their healthy outlook on life.  We know its not easy to make changes to your daily life, especially when those changes mean "giving up" something you love to eat or adding a bit of exercise to your routine.  What we do know is that it will set an example for your family and friends and help you to lead a more productive life.

Join us as we create a path to well being.  Log on to http://www.healthper.com or follow us on twitter @healthper and let's start making healthy lifestyle changes together!  Until next time....