Naturally Thin

I have mixed emotions about this book, like many other friends and bloggers. But, like ANY how-to book or political book, for example....I don't think we have to agree with every word in the book in order to pull something from it to apply to our lives or to learn something. So, my opinion on this book is that it is well worth the read, but you have to look past some things in the book to get to the part that is relevant and applicable to your life.

To be honest, also, I did not read the second half of the book, which is the first week's plan on her "diet" because I am working with a trainer and can't apply this diet to my life yet anyway. I AM trying to apply some of Bethenny's principles to my life as I am working on "healthy eating habits." I am working on a healthy relationship with food and some of the items in this book have helped give me a great perspective on some aspects of food and eating.

I think some of the aspects of this book are a bit obsessive and I've heard that the last half of the book has Bethenny eating so little that it's almost sickening. I also do NOT envy her physique. As you have all seen on my blog, the ideal body type that I envy and am striving for is muscular, strong and lean, not skinny fat! BUT, that doesn't mean that she doesn't have some principles that apply to my life and my relationship with food.

She has some great "Heavy Habits" and "Naturally Thin Thoughts" that are neat and though provoking. She also has some great recipes in her book that I have yet to try but will blog about them after I try them!

As you can see on Amazon under the Table of Contents, the Rules are as follows:
1. Your Diet Is a Bank Account
2. You Can Have It All, Just Not All at Once
3. Taste Everything, Eat Nothing
4. Pay Attention
5. Downsize Now!
6. Cancel Your Membership in the Clean Plate Club
7. Check Yourself before You Wreck Yourself
8. Know Thyself
9. Get Real
10. Good For You

Some great quotes from the book that I have highlighted for myself...

* "I don't believe in eating mediocre food just because it will supposedly make you thinner. It won't. We should all aknow that by now" (p. 4)
I apply this to my cheat days when I don't waste my cheat meals on anything I'm not truly craving.

* "They [Europeans] value food more than Americans do, but obsess about it less." (p. 11)
I find this interesting because I find that those of us who try to stray from the American way of eating are looked at like we're crazy though other countries have discovered that there is a better way to eat and a healthier relationship with food exists.

*I LOVE her "Point of Diminishing Returns" (p. 28) "The point of diniminshing is what I call that point when a bite you take isn't quite as good as the bite before it." I am really working hard on apply this and I have been successful with some things....but not my trigger foods (more on that in a later blog entry on food addiction).

* "Pick what you want, what you really want most, and enjoy it." (p. 35)

* "If I can't stop thinking about it, I probably want it, so I decide to have a small portion. The key is that I decide to have it. I'm in control...If you decide you really want somethikng, then indulge. Otherwise, you will eventually rebel against the unfair restrictions you are putting on yourself, and you'll end up eating twice the calories you would have eaten otherwise. But (here's the key), when you do indulge, really enjoy yourself....And if you don't stop? Give yourself a break. Shrug it off. Chalk it up to experience, and move on." (p. 36-7)

* She spends a lot of time in chapter 3 talking about Italy and their eating habits. It is so interesting! Americans use fat-free and sugar substitutes, while Italians use real sugar and full fat millk but they don't eat the quantities that we do! And, the idea that I don't have to finish everything shouldn't be that hard for me to grasp but IT IS!!! I have to work very hard at this one!

* It's a give and take...I have often said that I don't choose to drink because I'd rather have dessert and it's the same principle applied in her book.

* "(Celebrity Secrets) To me, it makes a whole lot more sense (and costs a whole lot less money) to eat right every day. Then you never need to go to such extremes." (p. 46) It's true that it'd be WAY better to maintain your weight rather than splurge and gain 10 pounds and hate yourself and then diet that 10 pounds off, be happy with reaching your goal and then going back to eating everything in sight and gaining weight again. This is a goal for me to work on...maintenance!

* Conscious Eating....spend time preparing beautiful food, take time to take your food and enjoy it, chew your food, be ok with being a food snob, sit down and enjoy your food.

* Downsizing your food says it all....I have to work on this when it comes to filling a plate or bowl with more food than I need because I'm starving or it looks good. "There is never any reason to eat a huge oversized portion of anything. There is never any reason to stuff yourself until you feel sick." (p. 65)

* A great point that she made is how you disrespect your dinner guests (meaning ME) when the food comes and I am so obsessed with the food! "If you focus on your friends and having a good time, you'll focus less on the food." (p. 67) It's a great point!!! "HEAVY HABIT: Are you a person who stops everything the second the food arrives and focuses entirely on eating? Well, stop it. It's just rude, for one thing. And think about it: is food really that important? You can relish and enjoy every bite of your food without acting as if you are having hte last meal of your life. If you focus on the company, the conversation, the environment, the atmosphere, and having a calm and relaxing time, you will have a much better experience, and enjoy your food even more. Balance your dining experience. It's not all about the food." (p. 80) [bold/underline added by FItori].

* My favorite chapter, I think, is the one on binge eating. I have recently realized that I have a "food addiction" towards certain foods and "binge" on those particular, favorite foods. I plan to blog on that later.

* "improve your relationship with food, so you never have to waste another day immersed in negative thoughts. I want you to be able to enjoy food and not be chained to it like a prisoner. It is posible to get there. I know, becuase I did it." (p. 92)

* "I was also obsessed with food. I used it for comfort and to dull strong emotions. It took me a long time to realize that food was not my friend or my enemy...It's also not your girlfriend who will always be there for you when you are feeling stressed out, depressed, or emotional. It doesn't love you and it doesn't hate you. It's food...I always know I can stop, and I always know tehre will be plenty of other chances to eat french fries again. I quit my bad habit by recognizing that it's OK to eat, but it's not OK to hurt myself with food. Binging is self-lothing, anxiety producting, and bloating, with no upside." (p. 93-5)

* "It's a great feeling when you first learn how to stop binging, especially when you recognize that you are in the situation where you might have binged, but didn't. When you can taste something good and stop, or when you decide not to eat at a certain moment because you are particularly anxious, or when you learn to fill up on healthful food first and they calmly and happily enjoy something that once would have triggered a binge, you'll know you've made a huge step in the right direction." (p. 96)

* "Obsess about more important things--cleaning your house, wearing a great outfit,...long-distance running,...or whatever it is." (p. 96) This is so true! I'm learning to put the focus on things that are SO much more important! It has been freeing to me to have a plan written by LBC so that I just follow it and quit obsessing over what to eat, when, how much, etc!

* "It's time for you to make your own peace with food. The journey toward a healthy relationship with food can start today, but it won't end today. Be kind to yourself, and if you slip up and wreck yourself with a binge, forgive yourself so that you don't make it any worse. Step back and look at where you are going and what role you want food to play in your life, and then gently return to thep ath." (p. 97)

* "You can't be a size zero when you are six feet tall." (p. 101) Hello! Why don't tall girls realize this??!! We will never be 100 pounds!!! Our 145 pounds is shorter girls' 125 or whatever!

* KNOWING YOUR TRIGGERS!!! This is a huge one for me. I'm learning I have a few dessert triggers that I simply cannot control myself around! I tried on one of my cheat meals to see if I could handle it b/c I have done really well with a lot of items during my cheat meals, but I'm learning that there are some that I cannot control myself around. I did not beat myself up!!! I learned this lesson about myself and may try again later down the road.

* "One person might not be able to keep chocolate in the house because she knows she can't possibly control how much chocolate she eats. Another might be able to keep it in the house with no problem because the simple recognition that chocolate is OK is enough to put the brakes on. Which one are you?" (p. 103)

* I get made fun of for this all the time.....I have portion-controled baggies of foods in my pantry. It's a great way to watch your portions!

* "If you follow the ten rules, you'll be able to participate in anything life thows at you without fear that you are breaking your diet." (p. 137)

Order Naturally Thin from Amazon.com

New Monica Brant Photo Shoot

As you all know, Monica Brant placed a whopping 6th at the Arnold!! But, these are some of the amazing photos she took around that same time. Talk about inspiration!!!!

Boden

I started getting these catalogs and I like the clothing...it's kind of like J Crew. I wasn't sure if you all had started receiving these catalogs yet. They're a bit pricey, but like everything....they do go on sale.

Bodenusa.com

Believe in yourself and all that you are

Last page of the May 2009 issue of Oxygen Magazine

A smaller you. In a much bigger world.

Forget that it's a Hydroxycut ad and read the text...think it at the gym and BE THE PERSON YOU IMAGINE YOURSELF TO BE.

My new iPhone background

Sent from my iPhone

Progress Update - 4 Weeks with LBC

Far Left is Just before my injury (I gained a bit more weight...5 lbs probably after that before starting with Erik 4 weeks ago)
Middle picture is 2 weeks ago and FAR RIGHT is today (after 4 weeks with LBC) 5/21/09

Call me crazy, but I see the transformation after in the last 2 weeks above.
The pic on the left is from less than 2 weeks ago and the one on the right is from today 5/21/09.

I promised progress pics a month ago!!! So, here are some of them. It's been four weeks with LBC and I've lost about 10 pounds since my highest weight this year in 2009. I just updating my second bi-weekly and sent it to my coach, Erik.

If you don't remember, I started bulking mid-January and I tried it on my own, gaining too much fat for the amount of muscle I put on. I then, decided to work with LBC and I got injured. I took almost 2 months to get my writes to where I could get back in the gym and now I'm still almost healed again. I still have limited strength in my right wrist which limits me in the gym but I'm doing the best I can!

I am losing at a pretty slow rate of about a pound a week with LBC but I am also gaining strength while cutting!! It's amazing! I'm increasing my weights on a lot of exercises while I'm cutting. I'm not ridiculously exhausted...in fact a feel pretty good most days, even though I'm "dieting" or "cutting." I'm trying to remind myself that the slower the better to maintain my muscle mass that I've worked SO hard to gain!

Stay tuned for more great cutting!!! (Then back to bulking!)

Plans are still to compete in 2010. And, my plan to get my priorities in order have worked well!!! I think I'm getting a B in this current masters class...no more 4.0 GPA which was part of my plan for backing off that and realizing that I don't have to have a 4.0 in order to get my masters. I want to get my masters while having a life and still giving to my husband, my job, my fitness and myself and rathan fully cutting one out...I realized that there was another way to balance. I don't have to be perfect at everything!!! So, I spent a bit less time, energy and stress on my masters and it was much more manageable!! Can you believe it? I can let go and not worry about being perfect!!! I'm working on adding that into all aspects of my life! It's coming along! Thanks al for your support!

Twitter link at the bottom of my blog

Thanks to my BFF.....it's been a year since all this began. First, I started this blog with no idea what I was doing. Then, I joined Facebook (true, way better than Myspace) and now I'm on twitter! Can you believe it?? And, even worse, I have now added twitter to my blog!! It's at the bottom of my blog down there and you can read my last 5 tweets and "follow me" into tweetland. I'm a sellout...and I'm more connected!!! Thanks BFF

Live the life you imagined.....

My new iPhone background

Testing my new blog signature

Testing that my new blog signature works below.....

HYDROXYCUT RECALL!!!!

I stopped taking it for my new diet, but I know a lot of you use it and love it...please stop taking it and read below by the FDA....

FDA News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 1, 2009
Media Inquiries:
Susan Cruzan, 301-796-4540
Consumer Inquiries:
888-INFO-FDA

FDA Warns Consumers to Stop Using Hydroxycut Products
Dietary Supplements Linked to One Death; Pose Risk of Liver Injury
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers to immediately stop using Hydroxycut products by Iovate Health Sciences Inc., of Oakville, Ontario and distributed by Iovate Health Sciences USA Inc. of Blasdell, N.Y. Some Hydroxycut products are associated with a number of serious liver injuries. Iovate has agreed to recall Hydroxycut products from the market.

The FDA has received 23 reports of serious health problems ranging from jaundice and elevated liver enzymes, an indicator of potential liver injury, to liver damage requiring liver transplant. One death due to liver failure has been reported to the FDA. Other health problems reported include seizures; cardiovascular disorders; and rhabdomyolysis, a type of muscle damage that can lead to other serious health problems such as kidney failure.

Liver injury, although rare, was reported by patients at the doses of Hydroxycut recommended on the bottle. Symptoms of liver injury include jaundice (yellowing of the skin or whites of the eyes) and brown urine. Other symptoms include nausea, vomiting, light-colored stools, excessive fatigue, weakness, stomach or abdominal pain, itching, and loss of appetite.

“The FDA urges consumers to discontinue use of Hydroxycut products in order to avoid any undue risk. Adverse events are rare, but exist. Consumers should consult a physician or other health care professional if they are experiencing symptoms possibly associated with these products,” said Linda Katz, M.D., interim chief medical officer of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.

Hydroxycut products are dietary supplements that are marketed for weight-loss, as fat burners, as energy-enhancers, as low carb diet aids, and for water loss under the Iovate and MuscleTech brand names. The list of products being recalled by Iovate currently includes:

Hydroxycut Regular Rapid Release Caplets
Hydroxycut Caffeine-Free Rapid Release Caplets
Hydroxycut Hardcore Liquid Caplets
Hydroxycut Max Liquid Caplets
Hydroxycut Regular Drink Packets
Hydroxycut Caffeine-Free Drink Packets
Hydroxycut Hardcore Drink Packets (Ignition Stix)
Hydroxycut Max Drink Packets
Hydroxycut Liquid Shots
Hydroxycut Hardcore RTDs (Ready-to-Drink)
Hydroxycut Max Aqua Shed
Hydroxycut 24
Hydroxycut Carb Control
Hydroxycut Natural

Although the FDA has not received reports of serious liver-related adverse reactions for all Hydroxycut products, Iovate has agreed to recall all the products listed above. Hydroxycut Cleanse and Hoodia products are not affected by the recall. Consumers who have any of the products involved in the recall are advised to stop using them and to return them to the place of purchase. The agency has not yet determined which ingredients, dosages, or other health-related factors may be associated with risks related to these Hydroxycut products. The products contain a variety of ingredients and herbal extracts.

Health care professionals and consumers are encouraged to report serious adverse events (side effects) or product quality problems with the use of these products to the FDA's MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program online, by regular mail, fax or phone.

–Online: www.fda.gov/MedWatch/report.htm
–Regular Mail: Use FDA postage paid form 3500 found at: www.fda.gov/MedWatch/getforms.htm and mail to MedWatch, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20852-9787
–Fax: 800-FDA-0178
–Phone: 800-FDA-1088

The FDA continues to investigate the potential relationship between Hydroxycut dietary supplements and liver injury or other potentially serious side effects.

Link to the info on FDA.GOV...

http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2009/NEW02006.html