The DIY Diet

I’m always on the lookout for beneficial diet ideas that would help make the process of reducing to a healthy weight more appealing and less of a struggle.

Since being introduced to the concept of energy healing and energy medicine in April (see blog about topic) I’ve done a lot of reading about it, participated in some teleseminars, and have attended some workshops through Spring Forest Qigong (SFQ).  I’ve learned some things that may prove helpful.  I’m trying some of those techniques now and want to share them with you.

I know all of you have seen the advertisements for Wu-Yi tea and Wu-Long tea, supposedly a miracle diet aide.  In my research I learned that both of those teas are brand names for types of oolong tea.  Oolong teas (halfway between green and black teas), indeed, contain large amounts of polyphenols, that according to the Health24.com website help to control obesity by activating the enzyme responsible for dissolving fatty deposits (triglycerides) and enhancing the function of fat metabolism.  So oolong tea can help with dieting.  You can buy oolong teas from many tea merchants but it isn’t a miracle diet aide.

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One day when I was ordering vitamins and supplements from my favorite mail order supplier, Swanson Health Products, I asked the order taker about Slendesta, the new product that I’d seen advertised in one of their catalogs. The order taker said she was using Slendesta for appetite control and she said, that for her, it was working as advertised.

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It seems that every magazine I open these days is talking about the virtues of apples. Like many of you, I was told as I grew up that "an apple a day keeps a doctor away". I have no doubt that the old adage is true. Apples it is said, may protect against heart disease, various kinds of cancer (breast, colon, digestive), age-related memory loss, stroke, Type 2 diabetes, and arteries from plaque build-up. They may improve lung function, learning ability, and reduce the risk of asthma. Prevention Magazine’s website calls apples "nature’s toothbrush" saying apples cleanse and whiten teeth.

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Steaming is my favorite way to prepare certain vegetables. That’s the way I like to prepare cauliflower, broccoli, asparagus, green beans, peas pods, and carrots. I often fix cabbage and corn that way, too. When I steam my vegetables, I use a bamboo steamer. I own a metal steamer basket but I’ve never used it. In fact, I have no idea where it is - probably stored in my garage. I love the very slight bamboo fragrance it seems to impart to the air as the vegetables cook. It reminds me of living in the Orient. I find that one of the big advantages to cooking with a bamboo steamer is that I can quickly stop cooking when the vegetables are al dente or still a bit firm when you bite into them (used typically to describe pasta).

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For the last many years I have managed perfectly well with my two regular scales. But I had been looking at digital scales and decided I simply had to have one. I dropped hints before Christmas. And guess what, I received an Escali Primo Digital Scale as a gift.

I love the Escali Digital Scale especially the tare weight feature where I can get the exact weight of an item in a container by subtracting the weight of the container. The scale will do it automatically when you place the empty container on the scale and press the "on/tare/ off" key then add the product. I can weigh products in grams, pounds and ounces, or ounces. It’s a versatile tool. Not only do I measure food products, I weigh my outgoing mail to make sure I place sufficient postage on it. I suppose most digital food scales have pretty much the same features so it’s your choice as to which one you chose.

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It’s true. My daily food diary is one of the best tools I have in my diet arsenal. For a year now I’ve been actively dieting, on and off, following an eating plan I designed for myself. I say "on and off" because a lot of the time it has been a major struggle for me. I couldn’t keep my mind on track for one reason or another. As a result, during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays I gained back seven of the 35 pounds I initially lost . Since then I’ve gotten my mind back on track, have lost those seven pounds, and am continuing my quest to lose more weight, heading toward my ultimate goal of 165 pounds. It’s not easy. Like everyone else I continue to deal with events in my life that sidetrack me.

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Recently I was watching a re-broadcast of the Fox Channel’s "Morning Show with Mike and Juliet" when the program featured a segment about the four best diet plans according to Consumer Reports magazine.

Consumer Reports based their ranking on research published in major medical journals. Among the four best diet plans were Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, and Slim-Fast.

The no. 1 best diet was The Volumetrics Eating Plan, designed and researched by Barbara Rolls, Ph.D. The Morning Show hosts, like me, said, Volumetrics, what’s that? Here was a diet plan that few people seemed to know anything about and it sounded like it would work perfectly with the calorie-based DIY Diet I had designed for myself that includes the foods I love and am accustomed to eating.

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I thought I had my mind in the right place preparing for Christmas and the holiday season in general. I was wrong with a capital "W".

The moment I started making Christmas cookies and going to Christmas luncheons with my friends, I started to fall apart. Not only was I not able to get back on my diet schedule the day after a Christmas party or gathering, I simply put the food diary aside. I found it today under a pile of Christmas cards that I was trying to write.

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Let’s admit right at the start that you will probably eat more than you planned to eat during the holidays.

On my diet, my goal is to eat 1600 calories per day. But during the holidays, that goal can be very difficult with all the seasonal cookies, candies, pies and treats readily available.

I’m doing the best I can to manage my diet, and I think the best thing I’m doing for myself is making sure I write everything I eat into my Daily Food Diary.

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For the first three months of the DIY Diet, I cruised along, losing 10 pounds per month.

I was thrilled, my diabetes doctor was happy, it was easier for me to walk, my clothes were getting too big for my new body, and everything looked rosy in my world.

I was following my diet and keeping a daily diary of my calorie intake. I was doing everything right.

Then the dreaded thing happened. I hopped on the scale one Tuesday morning and the scale read the same weight as it did the previous Tuesday morning.

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