I'll Pass On The Gastric Bypass

Thought I'd clarify a point about this blog and our thoughts on surgical methods such as gastric bypass or lap-band surgery.

We intend to stick with non-surgical methods in this forum and leave discussions on gastric bypass to others with a medical background. Because any surgery contains risks, gastric bypass is really a "last resort" method of weight loss. As such, we'll stick to non-surgical methods that include (but aren't limited to) diet, fitness, and lifestyle.

If I come across a good gastric bypass blog, I'll link to it from a future post here on Weight Loss Forum.

Walking or Jogging -- Any Difference?

Many of us with bad knees who can't run are avid walkers (or power walkers) instead. The question always arises whether fast walking (with ankle weights) has the same calorie burning power as jogging or running.

The good news is that although there's a slight cardiovascular advantage to jogging, brisk walkers typically burn as many calories as the average jogger. The only real exception to this would be marathoner runners who "carb-load" for a couple of days ahead of a race.

As long as the typical healthy walker doesn't eat nothing but pasta for two straight days, we can burn as many calories as a jogger can! Now go take a brisk walk....and smile!

Don't Skip Breakfast

Not only from a nutritional standpoint, but having breakfast every day is a necessity from a weight loss standpoint. You can't lose weight unless you jump start your metabolism -- and having breakfast does just that!

Once your metabolism is engaged, it's also a good idea to eat 5-6 small meals per day rather than two large meals (lunch and dinner). It's like stoking an old-fashioned furnace. You feed it 6 times during a 24 hour period to get an even consistent burn. If not, the furnace overheats then underheats.

Weight Watchers Success Without Meetings

I've explained how I lost 55 pounds, but my wife also lost 55 pounds (coincidentally) using a totally different method than I. She joined Weight Watchers and bought their hand-held "Points Calculator".

She and a friend then committed themselves to getting good at using the calculator and knowing the points of everything they ate. Neither of them ever attended a single meeting! They kept each other motivated at first, which later developed into competition. The "competition" kept my wife focused and she lost 55 pounds in 6 months.

Her friend also lost 50-60 pounds in the process. Weight Watchers works folks -- even without going to meetings.....

Old Fashioned Weight Loss

When I first lost 55 pounds six years ago, I did it the old-fashioned way with diet and exercise because that's all I knew. My cardiologist simply told me:

1. Walk 30-45 minutes a day
2. Quit eating greasy, fried foods

Later, I fine-tuned my diet and exercise routine, but my weight-loss journey has been done all on my own. No meetings, no buddies, no forums, no websites or blogs. I'd describe my weight-loss method as the "Scared Straight" plan. My cardiologist showed me my angiogram and I freaked out! I've been a good boy ever since.

There has to be others out there whose weight loss journey started the same way. Feel free to post a comment or response.

Keeping A Weight Loss Diary

Of course it's a good idea, but the tendency is to start and stop, start and stop. Especially when we begin to see results from all that effort.

There's many sites that provide suggestions on keeping a daily food diary. I've linked this post to a good one that you can see by clicking the title above. It's actually a blog detailing one person's struggles and success stories. I think you'll like "Tracey's Diary".

And by the way, I'm still researching the pros and cons of Hoodia. Honestly, the cons are hard to find. This is a supplement with a lot of fans out there. Stay tuned.

Fat Free Pizza

Came across what looks like a great product -- Pizza Fit n' Free's Fat Free, Cholesterol Free, Sugar Free pizza! I'm going to order online at www.pizzafree.com and have some shipped to my door in the next few days. Will report back here on the blog once we've tried them.

I've added them to my link list as shown in the left sidebar of the blog's main page. Click the link to visit and be sure to click the "Weight Loss Success Stories" button on their site while you're there. Lot of good testimonials on there as well.

Weight Loss Supplement Of The Day -- Hoodia

Have been researching the current "fad" weight loss supplement (Hoodia) and looking into both its pros and cons. There's a lot of information to sort through before I post what will hopefully be a balanced review of Hoodia and its claims. Stay tuned however.

In the meantime, hit the comment button below and post whatever you'd like about Hoodia. Thanks!

Weight Loss Articles In Prevention Magazine

I don't read Prevention magazine as often as I should but visited their website today and noticed that their articles on weight loss are indexed to make them easy to find and locate.

What a deep archive of weight loss articles!! Wow! Click the title of this post to be re-directed to the weight loss index page at www.prevention.com.

Lock Up Your Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream!

Read a review of a great product offered by Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream. It's designed to keep you from opening a tub of their ice cream until AFTER your craving subsides.

Rather than try to explain it here, click the title of this post and you'll be re-directed to www.theweighwewere.com where you can read the product description and review firsthand.

If it works as advertised -- it's ingenious!! If you've seen this before, please come back here and comment.

Losing Belly Fat

Of course we know that men primarily carry extra fat around their belly while women carry it around their hips. We also know that losing belly fat requires abdominal exercise and a very focused "ab-specific" diet.

Came across a blog with a very good article on belly fat that I want to share. Rather than link this post directly to that article, I'll link to the blog's main page because there's a lot of good diet, fitness, and weight loss info posted there. Click on the title of this post to redirect to "The Daily Ongoings" or go to http://daily-ongoings.blogspot.com.

Come back here and comment and we'll continue the discussion....