It’s the Monday after New Year’s and I bet most of you have already broken your New Year’s Resolutions. If you resolved to work out everyday or go on a crash diet, have no fear! My brother Nick is guest blogging today with some wonderful health tips to help you avoid the diet and win. Nick is a Chiropractor in Charlotte North Carolina and is a huge advocate for health and wellness. I hope you enjoy his post and please leave comments for him if you have any questions. Also, become a fan of his business on
Facebook to find out more about his practice.
When the New Year comes, it usually comes with new plans, ideas and expectations. One of the most common trends for typical America is to diet, to lose the winter weight and to get back into a healthy routine. It can be overwhelming, frustrating and difficult to implement changes when you think about all the things you want to change. That is why I want to make a few small suggestions that I feel will go a long way for each of us. First of all, diets rarely work, long term that is. Diets are usually so extreme that we can only tolerate them for a short period of time, 1-4 weeks. Most Americans then will binge or crash after their diet is over and then they find themselves once again on the road to another extreme diet plan, the cycle repeats again and again. This year I think it is time to implement small changes that over a greater length of time will produce bigger longer lasting improvements. Here are a few suggestions…
First off, start your morning EVERY day with at least one fruit, preferably an apple or banana. Fiber is key to regulating your digestive tract and aiding in removal of waste from our bodies, plus the natural sugar from these fruits give you a nice boost in the morning. If you are drinking latté’s and coffee with lots of cream and sugar then STOP. They may taste great but you are drinking your calories and I do not know about you but I enjoy eating calories much more than drinking them! Adding 1 tablespoon of sugar and cream can add up to 75 calories per 14 oz drink. Most of us that add cream and sugar do not just add one tablespoon do we? Try replacing your morning beverage with green tea or black coffee. If you cannot possibly stand black coffee then add a little skim milk, if you do not like the taste of green tea then add a little honey. Coffee and Green tea will both aid in boosting metabolism slightly which will help burn more calories throughout the day. A positive of green tea is that it contains antioxidants that help destroy free radicals (bad) in your body; free radicals if left undeterred may lead to mutations in the DNA makeup, leading to greater risks like cancer.
Secondly try to avoid high carbohydrate meals late in the evening. Eating pasta or pizza or that delicious bowl of ice cream before bed is horrible for blood sugar levels and weight gain. Just think of it this way, your body is sleeping, metabolism is lower than it is throughout the day, insulin is higher thus it will take more of this carbohydrate and store it in fat stores throughout the body, because at night there is no real need to burn it. Don’t get me wrong, eating carbohydrates is not a bad thing just try to avoid it 1-3 hours before going to bed, also you will sleep better without the late night sugar spike.
My last tip, light, sustained cardio for about 40-60 minutes, cardio is great for the heart, but sustained cardio is even better for weight loss and the heart. Short runs and sprints help burn calories and condition the lungs but sustained walking or biking provides greater benefits altogether. Sustained cardio helps boost metabolism throughout the day which means you will be burning calories even 1-2 hours after your long walk each day. Walking or biking is also better on the joints in our feet, ankles, knees, hips and low back. Unless you have been running 3-5 miles a day for a long time your body usually isn’t used to the forces involved with running and eventually force wins! (foot, ankle, knee, hip and low back pain).
Overall starting your morning right, not drinking calories, taking a long walk or bike ride each day and not loading up on carbohydrates late in the evening will help you lose weight and keep it off, creating a routine that we can all follow and not have to go crazy trying to incorporate. As I always say, give yourself a cheat day each week, you deserve it, eat what you want and drink what you want, but when that day is over, get back on track and your body will thank you for it!
-Dr. Nicholas Chappel D.C.
Chiropractor Monroe, NC
