The Weight Loss Corner

You don’t have to spend a lot of money to go to exercise programs or to buy specialty foods in order to lose weight. All you have to do is be a little more conscious of what you are doing and how you are doing it.

There are a variety of ways that you can save money on your food budget and there is exercise you can do that won’t mean spending a lot of money. Here are 10 tips to get you started:

1. Clip coupons — instead of paying high prices for food, clip coupons. They can save you a couple dollars at the store each time.

2. Purchase store brands — usually the store offers a product that is the same as the name brand but at a few dollars cheaper. This can save you $5 or $10 off your regular food purchases.

3. Eat at home — because most people live in a fast paced world, they eat on the run. It is a good idea to have good in the house that you can eat and sit down with so that you can enjoy the food more.

4. Find videos and DVDs for workouts — if you use the public library you can find many DVDs and videos for workouts. You can also find them on the Internet cheaper than you would in the stores. This can save you money on your workouts.

5. Walk more often — if you have an opportunity to walk down the street to go to the store for a short purchase take it. This is a good way to build cardiovascular health and stay fit at the same time.

6. Prepare your own food – instead of using pre-packed foods. If you prepare fresh fruits and vegetables to eat it is healthier and more cost effective than the pre-packed equivalents

7. Instead of a gym try classes — there are a variety of fitness classes that are offered at local community colleges and recreation centers. Usually they are a lot cheaper for a course of 5 or 10 weeks. You can try many different exercise classes and you won’t be bored over time.

8. De-stress your life – we live with a lot of stress in most of our lives but if you take a look around you may be able to find a way do take some of the stress out. This is a major way to cut weight because you won’t have the stress hormones running rampant.

9. Check the Internet – you can find a lot of free exercise programs on the Internet that come with personal trainers as well as specific exercises. This is a great way to workout.

10. Be kind to yourself - the best thing you can do is be kind to yourself in every way possible. Learn to love who you are and what you do.

Now you know that there are a lot of brilliant ways to save money and lose weight at the same time. Just go out and try it!

To Your Health,

Kim Duess
You-Be-Slim.com
Your Natural Weight Loss Solution

For many years people have used diet soda thinking that it is better than regular soda. Advertising boasts that it is better for you than regular soda. However, there are studies that are now showing that diet soda may not be as good for you as once stated.

The soda isn’t the problem actually but it is the sweetener that is used. Research is being done at Harvard Medical School that has shown that diet soda can increase blood pressure and increase an individual’s chances for heart disease, especially if you drink more than one soda a day.

Another study done by Purdue University found that rats that consumed food that contained saccharin gained more weight than other rats that ate other foods with sugar in them. This made them doubt the effectiveness of low calorie sweeteners. They also found that this changed the way your brain chemistry works with your metabolism so your body craves more food than it normally would.

Another study within Purdue University found that those people who drank more than one soda a day were prone to weight gain. So, what we have been told for all these years about diet soda just isn’t true.

The researchers doing these studies think that the artificial sweeteners, whether they are saccharine, aspartame or surralose have the ability overtime to change the body’s chemistry to accept sweetness as healthy instead of seeing it as calories.

Although scientists aren’t sure why this happens, they think it may be due to individual lifestyle. They say that people who drink a lot of soda also have a tendency to watch more TV and be more sedentary. They also say that it could be that there is more sodium in diet soda. Whatever the reason, it is a good idea to stay away from diet soda if you want to lose weight.

Over the years many people have depended on diet drinks and thought that by drinking them they were adding to their weight programs. They thought that they could consume more because it says diet which they associated with fewer calories. So your question may be, “Now what?”

There are many healthier drinks that you can use for weight instead of sodas. Here are some alternative suggestions:

• Water – although many people don’t like the taste of water or find it boring, it is the most natural drink you can find. There are a variety of different kinds of water now so you can experiment with what you like. Also, adding a little lemon or lime juice will make the water taste better.
• Herbal teas — believe it or not there are a variety of herbal teas that taste very good hot or cold. You can make them up in a batch at home and sip them all day or you can buy some of them unsweetened in the store. You can add a little natural honey for sweetener.
• Zevia — although this is a name brand, is a diet soda alternative with Stevia instead of other sweeteners. It currently comes in 3 varieties including Zevia Natural Cola, Natural Orange, and Natural Twist.
• Dry Soda — another name brand, the flavors are very different but it is still a great alternative. The flavors come in Lemongrass, Kumquat, Lavender and Rhubarb and it has fewer calories than other sodas. You can find out more by putting in a search for “dry soda”.

So take heart. You can get rid of your diet soda now and try some of the alternatives to keep losing the weight you want to lose.

To your health,

Kim Duess
www.You-Be-Slim.com
Your Natural Weight Loss Solution