Texas Lap Band Surgeons Talk With You

TIP 5: You don’t have to eat a restaurant. Just because you are joining friends at a restaurant does not mean you have to eat.  You can eat a healthy and sensible meal at home first and then join them for conversation at a restaurant.  That way you control what you are eating and don’t have to struggle with the challenge of finding something healthy to eat at a restaurant.

TIP 4:  always take the stairs.  Although you will not lose 100lbs doing it, every extra calorie you burn helps get you toward your goal a little quicker.  I have seen estimates that just by taking the stairs instead of an elevator, you can lose 11 extra pounds per year! Consider that free weight loss without having to suffer calorie loss

TIP 3: watch out for “naturally” sweetened products or “organic” products. Just because the sweetening isn’t sugar doesn’t mean it doesn’t have lots of calories! “Natural” brown sugar and honey have as many calories as sugar. “organic” just means it was grown without chemicals, not that it is low-calorie or even particularly healthy for you in other ways.

TIP 2: When you go out to eat in a restaurant, ask for a “to go” box when you order your meal. Yes, this may seem a little odd at first, but if you carve out the portion you’re supposed to eat and put the rest away in a box at the very beginning, you’ll be less likely to overeat at your meal. Plus, it will mentally prepare you/remind you to eat only what you’re supposed to and not everything that’s put before you.

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A recent comment on one of the posts suggested we start a “Tip of the Day” section which I think is a great idea.  I’m not sure if I can actually manage to come up with a new quickie idea every day, but I’ll try to post a tip at least 4 times per week.

So with no further ado, my first quick tip: Find something to mentally distract you while you work-out. If you can hear yourself panting, huffing and puffing it will make you feel more fatigued than you really are and make you quit a lot earlier than your body really needs you to.  Playing music on headphones serves this purpose well, but studies have also shown that if you play music with a moderate to fast beat, you’ll actually walk/jog/gazelle at a faster pace and therefore burn more calories.  TV also works well as does exercising with a friend or in a super pretty place (like a beach).