Diets don't work! Change your lifestyle!

It's pretty much a well known fact that the majority of diets simply do not work. They're a quick fix and people pile the pounds back on again as soon as they stop - why? Because they need to make lifestyle choices and changes for life.

I've lost over 6kgs and it's not been through crash dieting, it's been through changing the way I look at food, making healthy choices (you'd be surprised at how many people think they're making a healthy choice, but actually aren't). It's been simple things like cutting down on portions, eating brown rice and pasta instead of white processed varieties. Virtually cutting out bread, reaching for a piece of fruit instead of the chocolate bar or biscuit. To be honest I eat more these days, but it's more good food.

One of the major things I've done, is virtually give up alcohol, which is probably one of the biggest contributors to peoples inability to shift the bulge. I might have one or two glasses of wine or a beer at the weekend, but that's it.

I've upped my water intake by a substantial amount, as I never drank enough water in the first place. Also getting lots of sleep stops snacking and overeating. Did you know that when you're tired your body stops producing appetite supressing chemicals?

Moving more - instead of vegging out, I've been running here there and everywhere at the moment, plus getting in a bit of exercise, but not much I have to admit, apart from the mammouth wakeboarding sessions at the weekends. But that's all about to change as I've just joined a gym, so it's back to regular workouts to tone up, now the weight is shifting.

But these are changes I'm making for me and they're long-term. I do feel so much better these days as healthy living really does suit me. I've never been a huge person, far from it, but carrying a few extra kilos makes me feel bad. If you're going to shed some weight and get into shape, then the one person you have to do it for is you.

Social networking - is it destroying communication?

Is social networking destroying peoples ability to communicate properly? Very possibly. In a world where communication and clear communication is key, many people see to be dumbing themselves down through the use of social networking sites.

It's been happening with mobile phone text messaging for quite a few years and now it's creeping into the likes of Face Book and most noticeably Twitter. Where users have only limited characters to get their message across, languages are being destroyed and replaced with short-hand sms speak, mad abbreviations - that I honestly don't understand half the time.

Yes, languages naturally evolve and change over time, but to what extent is this going to change today's languages and the way we interact with one another. We already see examples of youngsters filling out exam papers using text abbreviations, adults who can't fill in job applications or other forms correctly - where will it end? Plus people don't 'talk' anymore. It's too easy to send a BBM, text or whatsapp message, or even have a full blown conversation between several people on social networking sites. Has all our interaction gone virtual?

I have thoughts of the world ending up like that of the movie Idiocracy, where instead of Darwinism ruling and the stupid cleansing the gene pool by taking themselves out of it (hence the Darwin awards every year), we're all going to end up as mindless morons who are incapable of any form of intellectual interaction.

Just food for thought :-)

Respect during Ramadan

I have to say that I always enjoy the Holy month of Ramadan. Even though it's pretty much business as usual for me, it's nice to see others getting a bit of a break from the long hard slog and life slowing down just a little.

But what should be a time of reflection, forgiveness, tolerance and kindness towards one another, very often turns people into more selfish human beings.

There's enough information well in advance to the start of Ramadan, so I cannot fathom why you still see people wearing skimpy clothes in shopping malls, sneaking food and drinks in public and other disrespectful behaviour. People crying because they can't go and have a sundowner drink - what you can't give your liver a break for just a month? You know it'll thank you in the end.

Being on the roads, you take your life into your own hands even more than usual, as people drive like maniacs once they've finished work and the 45 or so minutes before Iftar are the most deadly - I can't count how many accidents I've seen so far. Wouldn't it be better to make it home safe and sound, rather than not at all? Plus queuing traffic goes much faster when others don't push in - patience is a virtue, or so I've been told.

Then there's the lavish Iftar buffets all the hotels put on, trying to out-do one another. Sadly people tend to eat with their eyes and even more so when they've been fasting all day, so the sheer amount of food that goes to waste is pretty disgraceful. Aren't we supposed to be feeling solidarity for those less fortunate? Who don't even get one daily meal? Yet I've seen people piling their plates high, then leaving half of what they've taken - it's such a shame.

This is a time for reflection, to be thankful for what you have and to think of those less fortunate. I do hope well all remember that at some point.

GM Diet - Day 5

Today was beef and tomatoes day. Hmmm can't say I was too impressed, had a couple of lean burgers and a lean steak with grilled tomatoes. I'm now throwing in the towl - I'm bored. I'm a total foodie and I need variety, plus I'm tired of this headache that I've had all day.

It's been a good experience and has definitely helped to cleanse the system and kick start a healthy eating habit, but I need other foods now.

It might be something I'll tackle again in the future, but not right now.

GM Diet - Day 4

Ok, I hold my hands in the air and admit that I cheated on my diet last night. I was feeling so horrific and the fruits and veggies just weren't hitting the spot, so I stop and stuffed my face with a burger on the way home - and boy did it taste good! Sadly I've been given hell by my other half and his mates all day for that one, I get the feeling I should have kept it to myself.

Today thought, I was back on the wagon and bananas and milk and soup have been alright actually. It's a good thing that I like bananas and milk as I'm not sure what you could find as a decent substitute.

The one thing I've noticed as this diet has progressed, is the tiredness. I've got very lethargic the last couple of days and felt a definite weakness in my muscles, although the headaches seem to have gone now.

Tomorrow I'm looking forward to finally being ablt to chow down on some meat :-)

GM Diet - Day 3

Today was fruit and veggie day, so for breakfast I had some sweet melon and a couple of Kiwi fruits. Lunch was a bowl of the special soup and I've picked at some fruit for dinner, but to be honest at this point I feel quite sick. I've been drinking lots of water, but I think my sugar levels have just crashed, so I've been forced to make myself a mug of black sweet tea. My muscles also feel pretty weak.

The cravings for normal food are almost getting the better of me at this point and if the tea doesn't do the trick, I'll be forced to eat something away from the plan to get my sugar levels back up again.

I don't think it helps, that I was up all night going to the loo either :-( lack of sleep, lack of sugar and I think my body might give in quite soon.

GM Diet - Day 2

Today was vegetable day. I was allowed a baked potato with a pat of butter for breakfast, then allowed to eat any veggies or salad stuffs I wanted for the rest of the day. I got bored of munching raw carrots, celery and the like and feeling a bit like a rabbit, pretty early on, so I decided to make the GM Wonder Soup. I hasten to add, that I have never made a soup in my life, but it seemed pretty easy.

I had all my ingredients as per the recipe on the plan. I couldn't however, find the Lipton Onion soup mix, so I swapped that for Knorr French Onion soup mix. I also decided to add some chopped leaks as I love them and my favourite seasonings of some mixed herbs, Thyme and Garlic. This was all mixed with the other ingredients of onions, cabbage, red and green peppers, tomatoes and celery. The end result was super yummy, even if I do say so myself. My other half came home and virtually dived into the pot.

I'm not a huge veggie fan, but this, I could happily eat to my hearts content and so I did :-)

About mid afternoon I had the headache again, but that has now been replaced with a bucket load of energy, so I'm feeling pretty good. I just kept forgetting to keep drinking water. The other thing is the cravings for meat and something sweet.

For now this is going pretty well and it's onto fruits and veggies tomorrow.