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 MAKEOVER STARS MARK WEEK SEVEN
We check back
in with Amber, Frank and Janet to see how they're dong on their
weight loss program seven weeks into their six-month timetable.
Answer: pretty good. They're all headed in the right direction and
collectively our makeover team has lost 32 pounds.
Janet is
down 3.5 pounds since last weight in, has lost 14.5 pounds total
(averaging a little over 7 pounds a month) -- with 35.5 pounds left
to lose in the 4 months remaining. Frank has also lost 3 pounds
since he last checked in, making his a total of 12 pounds lost so
far (averaging 6 pounds lost a month), with 33 to drop before Aug.
1. Amber has lost another 2 pounds, which means 5 pounds (and an
average of 2.5 lost a month), with 14 remaining.
While they
won't reach their six-month weight loss goals if they continue at
the same rate, our candidates are not too far off their targets. A
little extra effort can push them past the finish line -- so give
them your best support. Most importantly, they have each emphasized
that they committed to these goals for their health rather than any
external prize, in which case they're all clearly going to be
big-time winners!
Besides, as you'll glean from their updates
below, they have made significant lifestyle changes that will stand
their health in better stead for years to come.
 FRANK JACOBS
Height: 5'7"
Starting Weight:
236 lbs
Current Weight: 224 lbs
Weight loss goal: 45
lbs
POUNDS LOST: 12
"I've had three tough
weekends with all-day-type events that have not been kind to my
diet. But I'm confident that it's going to get easier once my
schedule evens out. Ideally I want to change my habits so that going
to a wedding or a bachelor party doesn't have the power to throw me
off my regimen. My pattern is still about being good during the week
and splurging during the weekends, but I need to face up to the fact
that these splurges are holding me back, and I've got to get myself
on an even keel so that I can lose weight and maintain it over the
long run.
"I'm still going in the right direction but I was a
little disappointed with my most recent weigh-in. I think the weight
loss has slowed down -- maybe partly because I'm simply carrying
around less weight, so I've got to factor that into my calorie plan.
One terrific bonus to the changes I've made is that the more fruits
and vegetables I eat, the more I love them! I really look forward to
my salad at lunch with the same kind of gusto that in the past I
would have reserved for less healthy, higher calorie meals. So
that's a good sign: My tastes are changing, which will hopefully
make a difference not just in terms of future weight maintenance,
but also in terms of all the health benefits that come from
increased consumption of fruits and vegetables."
 AMBER SPAHR
Height: 5'1"
Starting Weight:
134 lbs
Current Weight: 129 lbs
Weight loss goal: 19
lbs
POUNDS LOST: 5
"It's working. Nothing
dramatic or snazzy -- it's actually been a mellow couple of weeks.
It's becoming easier to make the right choices -- it's becoming a
little more routine. The scale is still kind of slow, but it's
moving. And that's what I'm going for: slow and steady wins the
race. So while I don't have any huge triumphs or setbacks to report,
I feel like I've achieved something more real and enduring: I'm
changing my lifestyle. It doesn't feel like a sacrifice -- it just
feels like me.
"That's the upside of steady progress. The
downside is that I kind of feel like I'm going through the motions
-- and I need another "oomph" of inspiration. So I'm still
continuing to try new activities -- and I'm still learning. For
instance, I've learned that you eat a lot less at night reading a
book than you do sitting in front of the television. You're not up
and down with the commercials -- which always seem to be pushing
food at you anyway.
"I'm also noticing changes in my body --
and that's very gratifying, a lot more gratifying than the fleeting
few minutes of pleasure you get from over-indulging in fat-laden
foods. When you think of it that way, it's not a sacrifice, it's an
exchange. I'm letting go of bad habits and gaining something of far
greater value -- better health, better fitness, better feelings
about myself. Because in the final analysis I'm doing this for me,
and that's what feels good."
JANET PICARELLI
Height: 5'5"
Starting Weight: 255
lbs
Current Weight: 240.5 lbs
Weight loss goal: 50
lbs
POUNDS LOST: 14.5
"If you look real close
you can see where I lost the weight. No, look closer. Okay, hint --
my hands -- my wedding band slides off and on easier. It took my
husband 10 minutes to convince me that every scale I step on is not
broken. I do not see where 15 pounds (OK, our dietitian has it at
14.5 pounds) used to be.
"I have been able to get to the gym
more [except this week] and I've learned that I can work out at
lunch time and it won't kill me. Work permitting, I hit the gym for
30 minutes Monday through Friday, take off Saturday, and then do
75-90 minutes on Sunday. I actually feel the difference when I can't
get to the gym. My energy level is off, and I am really hungry in
the morning.
"Special thanks to all of you that stop me in
the hall, e-mail or phone me with support. I can't begin to tell you
how it touches me to have so much support. Thanks again and hope to
see you at the gym!"
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 NO SPRING CHICKEN? NO PROBLEM!
Even if you're
in the autumn of your years, two recent news features showed how you
can put some spring in your step and possibly extend your lifespan
through strength training and calorie reduction.
While most
people gradually begin to lose muscle mass in their late 20s and
early 30s, it doesn't become a potential health risk until they
reach 60. Sarcopenia, a debilitating loss of muscle mass that can
rob people of their mobility, affects an estimated 17% of people by
age 75.
Fortunately, lifting weights appears to ward off
muscle loss while strengthening bones -- and gerontologists say it's
never too late to start lifting! Frailty and
dementia are the two plagues of old age and pumping iron will help
keep seniors strong and independent. For further reading, here are
three worthwhile articles: Catch-Up Fitness, Never Too Late and Weight Lifting for Older Americans.
Click here to see how fitness founding father Jack
LaLanne plans to celebrate his 90th birthday!
This just in:
Cutting back on calories even later in life can help
make it a longer one. Previous research showed that starting
young mice on a restricted calorie diet can lead them to live twice
as long as those on standard diets, but a new study just published
in the proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that
fewer calories also can benefit older mice, increasing their
lifespan by more than 40%.
Whether the same benefits will
accrue to humans remains to be proved, but if they do, lead
researcher Stephen Spindler says "this could mean a lot more years
and a lot of good years. The mice on calorie restriction live longer
and they are healthier."
Bottom line: Even if you're long in
the tooth, watch what you nibble if you aren't ready to bite the
dust.
ATKINS ENDANGERING THE UNBORN?
Another story
about the negative health risks of low-carb diets -- this time
raising concerns that such regimes could lead to a sharp rise in birth
defects and childhood cancers. Scientists worry that declining
consumption of foods fortified with folic acid -- a micronutrient
essential to the neurological development of fetuses -- might have
grave consequences for the natal health of the next
generation.
While folate-fortified foods such as orange
juice, breakfast cereal and bread are among the first to be cut out
by low-carb dieters, this key compound also is found in asparagus,
beans, papaya, legumes, citrus fruits, whole grains and dark leafy
greens like spinach.
While folic acid is fundamental to fetal
development, it's also integral to a host of physiological functions
throughout life, such as cell division and tissue growth. Folate is
necessary for the proper formation of red blood cells and its
deficiency weakens our resistance to disease. While the recommended
daily allowance of folic acid is 180 mg, research suggests that
consuming twice this amount protects arteries and thus reduces the
risk of heart disease.
As Atkins insanity sends folate intake
into decline, guess what commodity's consumption is flying high?
Pork rinds. Of course! Grocery and convenience store sales of pork rinds have perked up 39% over the past
year. That little data point alone should tell you that this
low-carb thing is going to have seriously unhealthy consequences
down the line.
Pork rinds are deep-fried pieces of pork skin
and fat. No carbs there, but there's plenty else: An average size
bag contains 125% of the daily value of "total fat," 75% of the
daily value of sodium, and a whopping 541 calories. All of which can
send your LDL (bad) cholesterol, your blood pressure and,
eventually, your weight soaring. The only thing that seems to be
rising faster than pork rind sales is the American obesity rate,
proving once and for all: You are what you eat.
HAVE A HEALTHY EASTER
As holidays have evolved
from religious occasions to heavily-commercialized opportunities for
excessive consumption, they contribute to rising rates of childhood
obesity, not so much by serving as perennial pig-outs for kids
(think Halloween bags, Christmas stockings and Easter baskets) but
rather by cementing the association in their young minds between
celebration and stuffing themselves silly with sugar-loaded,
fat-laden, high-calorie foods.
Maybe these once-in-a-while
indulgences won't matter so much when they're young and their
furnace-like little metabolisms can make quick work of the typical
2,000-calorie Easter basket and its 100 grams of fat. But when those
marshmallow bunnies and cream-filled candy eggs are but a faint,
fond memory, the childhood-formed habit of marking special occasions
by making pigs of themselves may encumber their adult efforts to
maintain a healthy weight.
Spring is a wonderful time to turn
over new leaves -- so why not start a new tradition by making this
Easter a healthy one? Here are some ideas.
Try
substituting healthy treats: The idea isn't to banish all candy
-- making it into the forbidden fruit may only set kids up to eat
more of it later. Rather, try a balance of healthier candies (such
as dark chocolate instead of milk, or pastel candy-coated almonds
instead of jelly beans) along with fruit and veggie
snacks.
Easter can be a great time to introduce your children
to bright-colored exotic fruits that fit right in their baskets like
kumquats, star fruit, egg-shaped kiwis and those super-cute
doll-sized pears. Add a mini-pack of carrots and a DOLE® fruit bowl.
Or buy hollow plastic eggs that can be filled with healthy munchies
like peanuts and raisins.
Incorporate more nonfood
treats: What little bunny wouldn't love to wake up to a basket
filled with scratch-and-sniff stickers, stuffed animals,
floppy-eared slippers, a Yoga Kids video, jump rope, crayons, lip gloss or
gardening seeds?
Here's a fabulous site with non-candy basket fillers such as Easter bunny
bubble bottles, spring whimsy kaleidoscopes and plastic duck
whistles.
Celebrate with activity: Easter -- or
Passover -- provides a perfect opportunity to make healthful,
outdoor family fun a big part of what makes holidays "happy."
Prepare an Easter "treasure" hunt that includes some of the prizes
and nutritious items listed above. Go for a long family bike ride,
hike or field trip to pick strawberries. Introduce your children to
a real, live Peter Cottontail by taking them to a petting zoo. Fun,
activity-filled holidays will help raise healthy grandkids too: When
your own children grow up they'll be likely to repeat traditions
that bring back warm memories.
Every year a new theme:
Just because it's Easter doesn't mean you've got to go with the same
old, tired pastel bunny-and-eggs routine. Why not surprise the
little chick in your life with a new theme basket each year.
For toddlers try an alphabet basket or nursery rhyme basket. For little green thumbs give
a gardening basket complete with kid-sized gloves
and small hand tools. Or how about a healthy cooking basket made
from your own hand-picked ingredients, like a child-sized apron and
chef's hat, plus Easter-ish cookbooks, like this Totally Carrots Cookbook.
And speaking of
carrots ...
WHAT'S UP, DOC?
Just one medium 25-calorie
carrot provides all the vitamin A, in the form of beta-carotene,
needed in a day. Generous amounts of carotenes present in carrots
(both alpha- and beta-carotene) provide the orange color and help
fight free radicals. Human research supports the hypothesis that
carotenoid-containing plant products exert a cancer-protective
effect by decreasing damage to DNA. Though raw carrots make a
healthy and tasty snack, their nutritional value actually increases
when they are cooked. Cooking carrots until slightly tender helps
the body absorb the nutrients more effectively and also brings out
their sweetness.
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 DON'T LET THE GOOD BE AN ALLY OF THE BAD
We've
all heard the news about the potential heart-health benefits of
moderate alcohol consumption -- the latest pertaining to hypertensive men. And it's no
wonder such stories grab headlines: Every time research uncovers a
counter-intuitive positive about foods or beverages conventionally
thought of as nutritional no-no's (think of the recent stories about
antioxidants in dark chocolate) the press plays it big. After all,
it's the classic media formula of man-bites-dog. As for the rest of
us, we celebrate: We've just been told a taboo treat is actually
good for us.
But whenever I hear one of these reports, I
wonder whether it actually ends up doing more harm than good. How?
You've heard the old adage about not letting the perfect become the
enemy of the good. Here's a new one for you to think about: Don't
let the good become an ally of the bad. In other words, don't let
your excitement over the modest health benefits of an occasional
ounce of chocolate, or a glass of wine a day, blind you to the much
larger health risk of excessive consumption of these
things.
This is not a case of "if a little is good, then a
lot will be better." And in fact, when we're talking about foods and
beverages that can often be triggers for those prone to compulsive
eating or drinking, we might do better to remember that "a lot is
far, far worse than none at all." It seems to me we need to put some
of these news flashes into perspective. Do we have a problem in this
country with people drinking too little alcohol? Or people consuming
too few candy bars?
Given that April is National Alcohol
Awareness Month, let's raise a little awareness about the health
consequences of raising a glass, or two, or three ...
Most of
the research regarding alcohol's effects in raising HDL (good)
cholesterol levels -- like the study cited above -- looks at men and
postmenopausal women. There's not a lot to suggest that alcohol
consumption in women under 40 has any benefit. Worse: Other studies
associate younger women's alcohol consumption with increased disease
risk.
Up to 4% of breast cancers can be attributed to alcohol.
According to a recent study in the British Journal of Cancer, every drink increases a woman's chances of developing
breast cancer. In a recent summary of 63 published studies, 65% found an
association between alcohol consumption and increased breast cancer
risk. You can pooh-pooh these risks by pointing to larger ones: like
being lazy and fat. So let's take a look at whether alcohol may
contribute to excess weight.
Once again, we're well familiar
with the much-ballyhooed benefits of having a glass of red wine a
day. But if you simply added that glass of red wine, making no other
changes in your diet or exercise, you'd gain nearly 15 pounds a
year. In four years you'd be 60 pounds overweight. Hard to see how
that would help you lower your risk of heart disease.
That's
a perfect example of how the "health message" of moderate alcohol
consumption leads to a warped perspective of relative risk vs.
benefits. If those extra 100 to 300 alcohol calories a day are
contributing to the calorie surplus that's keeping you fat, guess
what? They're a health minus, not a health plus.
Counting
calories from alcohol can be doubly difficult -- not only are they
less satisfying than those that come from food, these days they're
liable to come in martini glasses or balloon goblets the size of a
small swimming pool. Alcoholic beverages are subject to the same
super-sizing forces that have inflated portion sizes along with
America's waistline.
Thirty years ago a glass of wine would
cost you 127 calories in a 6-ounce glass -- today you'd be more
likely to be served a 10-ounce glass which would set you back 212
calories. In Jimmy Buffet's day, you'd still have a hard time
wasting away on 4-ounce, 227-calorie margaritas, but today's
Slurpee-sized monstrosities have been known to arrive in 14-ounce
glasses, with a whopping 800 calories!
Alcohol sabotages your
diet in other ways as well. Lowered inhibitions can lead to
overeating: One study compared subjects given an alcoholic vs.
non-alcoholic drink with lunch and found that those who had the hard
stuff ate faster, longer and consumed more calories than those who
didn't. And then there's drinking's dampening effect on your
metabolism: Alcohol not only adds up to more calories consumed, but
also interferes with your body's ability to process excess calories
efficiently. One drink can impair your fat-burning furnace for up to
24 hours.
So when it comes to weighing the pros and cons of
tippling, particularly if you're a woman under 40, make sure you
take into account your consumption level, your weight, as well as
any family history of breast cancer, liver problems and alcohol
abuse. Jurgen Rehm, Ph.D., a substance abuse research specialist and
senior scientist at the Center for Addiction and Mental Health as
well as senior scientist for the World Health Organization, has a
sobering warning: Alcohol may protect against one disease, but it
contributes to the development of 50 others, while also playing a
significant role in accidental injury and highway
fatalities.
Bottom line: Be honest with yourself. If you are
a normal weight man with no difficulty stopping at one or two beers
-- cheers! If the same can be said of you as a woman over 40 --
L'Chaim! But if you're in a woman in your 20s or 30s with a family
history of breast cancer or who is trying to get pregnant, then you
might want to quaff with care. Put health claims about spirits in
the proper perspective -- don't use them as an excuse to justify
excessive drinking, which endangers your life, liver, looks and
limbs.
And frankly, if you're a non-drinker, there are plenty
of other -- much healthier -- ways to raise your HDL (good
cholesterol) levels, thin your blood or increase your antioxidant
activity.
Start by losing weight if you've got pounds to
shed: A 10-pound drop can raise your HDL by as much as 10 points.
Exercise: At least five 30-minute sessions a week. Try oat bran in
the morning to raise your HDL level and lower your LDL (bad
cholesterol). And make sure your diet includes plenty of fruits and
vegetables, whose antioxidants may reduce the risk of heart disease
by reducing the oxidation of cholesterol in your arteries.
Be
aware that while good cholesterol is important, not all scientists agree on its pivotal importance in
heart health. Keep an eye on other risk indicators such as
levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol and C-reactive protein.
Most
of all, remember that less is more. And make sure you've got all the
facts before you go looking for your health at the bottom of a beer
glass.
Click here to find out whether your cholesterol
level's where it ought to be.
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Individual Broccoli Quiche
from The Enlightened
Kitchen, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., ©Marie Oser 2002
A
delicious choice for Easter brunch, Individual Broccoli
Quiche is a dairy-free alternative with rich flavor and
texture.
6 Servings
For The Crust:
1 cup
rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon sea
salt
1/3 cup lite silken tofu, firm
1 tablespoon olive
oil
1 tablespoon brown rice syrup
1/4 cup ice
water
For The Filling:
1 teaspoon olive oil
3
cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup
chopped green bell pepper
2 cups broccoli florettes, cut to bite
size pieces
1 (12.3 ounce package) lite silken tofu
1/3 cup
dry sherry
3 tablespoons mellow white miso
1/3 cup mashed
potato flakes
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 teaspoon
turmeric
1/2 cup enriched soymilk
1 tablespoon lemon
juice
Preheat oven to 400° (Six 4" tartlet pans with
removable bottoms). Place oats, flour and salt in food processor;
pulse to mix. Add tofu and process. Add oil and rice syrup and
blend. With the machine running, drizzle ice water through feeding
tube. Process just until the dough begins to form a ball. Turn onto
a lightly floured board and knead the dough for two minutes. Divide
pastry into 6 equal pieces and roll out to between 1/8 and 1/4 inch
thick. Press into each tart pan and set aside.
Warm oil over
medium high heat in a 10" frying pan for 1 minute. Add garlic,
onions and bell pepper and saute 3 minutes. Add broccoli, cook 4
minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside. Place tofu in food
processor and blend until smooth. Place sherry in a small bowl, add
miso and blend with a fork until smooth. Add to the tofu with potato
flakes, yeast, turmeric, soymilk and lemon juice. Process
thoroughly. Fold tofu mixture into broccoli mixture and spoon into
each pastry lined pan. Place the quiche on a baking sheet and bake
on center rack of the oven 30 minutes. Serve
warm.
Enlightened Broccoli Quiche
Nutrition
Analysis: per individual quiche
Protein: 17 g
Carbohydrate: 40
g
Fiber: 6 g
Fat: 6 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Calcium: 62
mg
Sodium: 481 mg
Calories: 280 (Calories from Protein: 24%,
Calores from Carbohydrate 56%, Calories from Fat:
20%)
Traditional Broccoli Quiche
Nutrition
Analysis: per individual quiche
Protein: 14 g
Carbohydrate: 22
g
Fiber: 1 g
Fat: 21 g
Cholesterol: 56 mg
Calcium: 47
mg
Sodium: 455 mg
Calories: 341 (Calories from Protein: 17%,
Calories from Carbohydrate: 27%, Calories from Fat: 56%)
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GET EGG ON YOUR FACE!
Wondering what to do
with that big bowl of egg yolks left over after this year's Easter
egg painting project? Don't let all that cholesterol end up on your
plate (and potentially inside your arterial walls). Put it where it
can do some good: on your face. Why?
Egg yolks contain
phospholipids and cholesterol -- two fatty substances that can help
bind the two other ingredients in this recipe. Jojoba oil is very
similar in composition to human skin oils, thus speeding absorption
while healing inflammation and moisturizing mature skin.
Water-soluble honey is a natural humectant that contains phenolic
antioxidants as well as antibacterial organic acids that have an
emollient effect, softening hardened oils and wax buildup under the
skin.
Directions: Mix one egg yolk (or more) with two
teaspoons each of honey and jojoba oil. Spread over face and leave
on for 15 minutes. Rinse with tepid water and pat dry.
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