I am so excited about working out tomorrow. Michelle gave me for Christmas, new workout clothes and shoes, name brand stuff. I am going to be so decked out tomorrow in sporty looking new stuff. You know that's really important at our fitness center, since I am one of the rather few aged members, I get a pass on being out of style. Now Michelle does try to keep me all sporty looking, you do know she is a member there, and well, your children never out grow that thing about, "Isn't that your dad over there on the treadmill in those dirty smelly gym clothes? Nope don't know that poor misfortunate soul"...... This has been an interesting week at the fitness center. They have really been on a new member drive, and they have done well in numbers. It's kind of like a luxury cruise ship pulling into port and taking on 2000 new passengers who weigh over 250 each....and they all grab a diet coke and run down to the fitness center for a good workout before buffet time....Well, I give them two weeks and most of the new members and the wait on the strength machines, will go away. No, I am not being rude or obnoxious, it's just the way things work. Listen for about 40 years I would have been leading that crowd trying to be first in the buffet line on the USS Cholesterol.
A little more health info about sunflower kernels, first, I eat them daily, and like other healthy foods are part of my regular diet and are unsalted. Sunflower kernels contain vitamin E and magnesium. They also contain phyosterols which are a compound found in plants which reduces cholesterol. I normally eat a couple of handfuls daily as a snack, or will sprinkle over a salad. I drink and enjoy milk. Every day since I changed to a healthy food lifestyle, over 2 years ago, I have drank and had milk with cereal each and every day. Skim milk, which is fat free, is what I drink. I prefer the taste of skim milk much more than whole, or 2% low fat milk. In the past I have done research on skim milk and wrote a posting about it earlier in this blog. There is much misinformation about skim milk and is, or is it not healthy. Through my research I am absolutely convinced it is healthy for me. Based on the amount I drink and consume daily, my 2 year reduction in cholesterol and fat, I think I am proof of skim milk being healthy. A 8 oz serving of whole milk contains 150 calories, 2% contains 120 calories and skim 90 calories. The serving of whole milk has 24mg of cholesterol, and skim milk 5 mg of cholesterol. Skim contains more protein than 2% or whole milk. Read post #32 it contains more detailed information and may be more conclusive for you to decide for yourself.
Yesterday, while Cindy was watching the Today Show, I heard a segment where they commented about studies show a very large percentage of people who have gone on diets and lost weight gained it all back in some period of time. What surprised me was there has been a government funded study to determined why you gain back weight you lose, after being on a diet. I guess we could have told them it is because a diet is not what you need to do, you must change your eating habits, to a healthy eating foods lifestyle. It is difficult for me to stay with the my daily program, even after being 2 1/2 years into a healthy foods lifestyle. The reason I say that is I have been on many diets over my adult life, and all of them resulted in weight loss, but it did not last. For one thing, most diets, not all but most diets, are not such that it is anything you can stay with for an extended period of time. The other problem was me, I didn't have the will power to completely change my lifestyle, I took the easy fix of a short term diet. I am saying this not in criticism of people struggling with dieting, but for you with serious heart problems looking for a way to lower your cholesterol, eat heart healthy foods, and get back to a better than before lifestyle. To be strong, healthy, and able to function normally. Do the things you enjoy doing.
Another consideration about changing your habits is focusing as much on what foods you can completely stop eating. That can have more of an impact on improving your health as what healthy foods you eat. One food I gave up was carbonated drinks, Cokes, Pepsi, fruit flavored soft drinks, orange crush, strawberry crush. I have had a couple of sips of a coke in over 2 years and that is it. I replaced those type beverages with water and limited fruit juice. Give that some thought. What foods or drinks could you stop having that would have a positive impact on your health? More on this later............
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