It never ceases to amaze me that the people in our lives we think would be the most supportive of our health and fitness goals sometimes are the ones that sabotage us the most.

You know who I’m talking about. Those family members and friends that tell you:

“Oh, just have one piece.”

“Oh come on, you only live once.”

“Are you really not going to eat any of this?”

We all have these “bad food” villains in our lives and if losing weight wasn’t hard enough, this does not make the situation any easier. (I know you can agree with me on that one.)
Trust me, I’ve heard it all. In all the years that I have been eating healthy, I don’t care to repeat some of the ridiculous statements that have been said to me by my family and friends (Love you guys).

Here are some ways you can deal with these “bad food” villains, I mean loving family and friends while still maintaining your cool and achieving all of your health goals.

1.) Remember most of the people who are trying to sabotage your new healthy eating plan are just jealous or upset that they do not have enough determination, will power and commitment to do it themselves. Please be compassionate. If we want people to be compassionate with us, we must show compassion towards them (yup, now we’re back in kindergarten). Respond to them with statements that only describe you, not them. You do not want to offend anyone or hurt anyone’s feelings (or at least I hope you don’t). Try statements like:

“I really feel great eating this way. It’s made such a difference in my life already.”

Or

“I know I am doing something great for my health and I feel awesome about it.”

Or

“I really want to be a good role model for my family and my children. I want to show them all healthy habits.”

Who can say anything negative to that? (I know, I’m sure you’ve got at least one person). What you have done however, is not attacked them at all and you have kept it positive. No sense in resorting to childish antics like “Nani Nani Poopoo, I’m healthy and you’re not.” Come on, nobody wants to hear that.

2.) Next are those situations where you are in someone’s home and you do not want to offend them. If this is a dinner party, just do the best you can. I promise you, you will not be sabotaging all of your good efforts by eating one meal that is not part of your plan. It might actually be a good break from your routine. Here’s where most people go wrong. They think if they had one bad thing now need to throw in the towel all together. One meal is NOT enough reason to give up on your health goals. Make your grandma happy by eating her lasagna (or whatever the meal may be) and don’t go overboard. One piece is enough and you have not offended anyone. Wake up the next day and move forward with your healthy food, like nothing ever happened (Lasagna? What Lasagna? I didn’t see any Lasagna.) Don’t torture yourself, or reflect on the meal. Telling yourself you have failed and then harping about it is actually worse than eating the bad food. No more beating yourself up!

3.) If you find that there are just some people who are super negative about what you are doing no matter what you try, don’t talk to them about your eating. I would love to tell you to avoid these people, but sometimes they are people who are the closest to us. Show them the wonderful side effects of healthy eating just by your actions alone. Your results will speak for themselves. I gave up on trying to convince certain people of the true benefits of healthy nutrition a long time ago. It was just too exhausting and I’m pretty sure they are now well aware of all the wonderful benefits just by my own results and actions.

Don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t do anything, especially reach the health and weight goals that you want. Show them what you’ve got by your amazing results and that will be enough to keep most people from trying to knock you down.

In health and happiness,

Isabel De Los Rios
http://www.TheDietSolutionProgram.com

  

Today in Jersey we are experiencing a bit of a snow storm. With the weather man freaking out telling us we will all be locked in for days (they are such drama queens, aren’t they?), me and just about half of my town were all at the local grocery store yesterday getting our “emergency” food items. I just needed some extra fruits and vegetables and some organic eggs but it seems that my fellow shoppers thought that the world was coming to an end and had to purchase several gallons of milk, loads of bread, and boxes upon boxes of cereal (I must have missed the memo).

Here I am waiting in the checkout line and I hear an announcement over the loud speaker :

“Hi Shop Rite Customers. Make sure to pick up your freshly baked bread at the bakery department. There would be nothing worse than getting stranded inside in a snow storm without enough bread.”

Geez, people should be so lucky. They should get stranded on a deserted island where there is no bread for miles and then maybe many people would finally reach their health and weight loss goals.

That’s right. I am not a big fan of bread or bread type products. Actually, I think most people could feel a thousand times better if they stopped eating so much bread every single day. Toast for breakfast, sandwich for lunch, bread basket at dinner…we could feed a small village with the amount of bread I see some people consuming in one day (or several villages depending on who you’re talking about).

No, I am not saying to never have bread ever again (Hey, its life, you gotta enjoy it, right?). What I am saying is that 4-5 servings of some kind of bread type product every day is making thousands of people gain weight, preventing them from losing their unwanted weight and worst of all, bringing about diseases like Type 2 Diabetes and Heart Disease.

I don’t eat very much bread at all and I really don’t even miss it. I guess I have just come to enjoy all the other delicious food I eat each day that I don’t even feel bread is missing from my meal plans.

Here are my “bread free” strategies and exactly how you can lower your own bread intake each day:

1. When you think of breakfast, don’t automatically think toast, bagels, or a roll. A couple of hard boiled eggs over sliced tomatoes is delicious. You can also make a quick batch of oatmeal and add walnuts and berries. How about cottage cheese and pineapple? The breakfast options are endless.

2. Pack snack foods and take them with you to work. In less than 2 minutes, I can throw natural peanut butter, raw almonds, dried fruit (no sugar added), an apple or banana and baby carrots all in a bag and be out the door. Taking these food items to work with you will help you stay away from the employee room bagels or donuts. (Don’t even get me started on how evil donuts are). Slap some peanut butter on an apple and munch away at that, all while making fun of the people eating donuts (Just Kidding, that’s not nice.)

3. Don’t depend on sandwiches as lunch every day. How about some salmon, broccoli and brown rice? Leftover chicken from last night and a sweet potato? Imagine that lunch is another version of dinner and not just a mid day sandwich inhaling contest.

4. Make “the bread basket” a once-in-while experience. You really do not need to be serving a bread basket for dinner at home if you are offering healthy carbohydrate choices like salad, cooked vegetables, brown rice, millet, or quinoa.

5. Oh, and how could I forget? Don’t think that eating “100% Whole Wheat” is any better. It is still refined flour (maybe just not bleached) and a huge contributor to weight gain. I could go on and on about this but I have covered all the details about how detrimental wheat products are to your weight loss efforts in Chapter 9 of The Diet Solution Program.

Start to think outside the “bread box” today for healthy alternatives to your daily bread intake. What one thing can you do today to get started? I look forward to reading your comments below.

In health and happiness,

Isabel De Los Rios
www.TheDietSolutionProgram.com

There is a word in the English language that induces more fear in people than the words Monday morning, Taxes and Shark combined.

What is this terrifying word? CARBS! (I know. You nearly ran in the opposite direction screaming.)

Your fears may have some merit (but no need to scream) as many carbs in our supermarkets today are really just doing us more harm than good. Most breads, pastas, cereals, cookies and crackers are overloaded with refined flour and happen to be one of the leading causes our country’s obesity rate is on the rise.

Here’s the dilemma. You really do need carbs to function properly. Your brain can not function without carbs (hmmm…does this explain anything about some people you may know?) and you will lack energy and be unmotivated to do anything (even fun things) without them.

Where is the happy balance? How can we get enough carbs for a healthy body and prevent weight gain? Or even better, lose weight?

Do carbs make you fat and how can you incorporate them into a healthy meal plan? The answer is here:

In health and happiness,

Isabel De Los Rios
www.thedietsolutionprogram.com

  

Ever wake up in the morning and wish you could sleep just a bit more? (This girl is kidding me right?)

I hear ya. I’m totally sleep deprived today, and I know you can relate.

This past weekend I was in Wichita Kansas at a friend’s wedding. If you have ever attended an “out of town” wedding you know it’s jam packed with events: lunches, dinners, late night celebrations. Don’t get me wrong, I had a great time but I am SO tired and SO sleep deprived and it actually hurts. It really hurts.

The worst part of all, is after just 1 day of sleep deprivation I started reaching for chocolate and sweets for a quick pick me up. (Oh yeah, now you can relate.)

How does sleep (or sleep deprivation) affect your weight loss efforts? Believe it or not, the impact is huge!

Here are just a few reasons why sleeping may be the missing link to your weight loss efforts:

1. When you’re tired, it is so much harder to make healthy choices.
I’m not sure if this is more about psychology or physiology or a
combination of both. However, I know I have experienced it
firsthand. When I get a good night’s sleep, sticking to my regular
exercise and healthy eating routine is a cinch. But when I’m sleep
deprived, I somehow think that chocolate and sugar will make me
feel better. The truth is, it never does! It actually makes me feel
worse. Much worse, because the blood sugar highs and lows makes me
more tired and cranky than before I ate the sweets. (Nothing is
worse than a cranky Isabel. Well, maybe cranky {!firstname} is
worse, but who am I to say?).

2. Now for some science. Researchers from several separate studies
have found a link between sleep and the hormones that influence our
eating behavior. Two specific hormones are involved. Ghrelin is
responsible for feelings of hunger. Leptin tells the brain when
it’s time to stop. When you’re sleep deprived, your ghrelin levels
increase at the same time that your leptin levels decrease. The
result is an increased craving for food and not feeling full (a
hormone disaster as far as staying on track with a healthy eating
plan). Nothing is worse than craving food and being hungry at the
same time.

3. Many people don’t know this, but your body adjusts itself based
on your circadian rhythms and the amount of sunlight outside.
Without getting too deep into the science, these rhythms and light
tell your body to physically recover approximately between the
hours of 10pm-2am and to mentally recover approximately between
2am-6am. If you aren’t getting to bed until 12am, you are missing
out on 2 crucial hours of physical repair. This can result in all
sorts of aches and pains that do not get better, no matter what you
try. I have seen clients relieve bad backs and aching joints by
just getting to bed by 10pm. I have even seen people get smarter by
sleeping til 6am (ok, I made this last statement up but wouldn’t
that be great?). All kidding aside, I have seen people act
consistently sharper when they are well rested.

How are you going to get a good night’s sleep to ensure you are not
sabotaging your weight loss efforts?

Here are a few tips for getting a good night’s sleep:

1. Don’t watch TV before bed. You may not realize how fired up the
news or your favorite TV show gets you before bed time. Instead
grab a book or your favorite magazine and read in bed. This works
wonders, especially a good fiction book that will help you forget
the day’s events.

2. Cut your caffeine intake early in the day. An afternoon coffee
or tea can still be racing through your blood stream at 10pm. Cut
out your last caffeinated beverage by noon. This includes all
coffee and teas (except herbal teas). Once you catch up on your
sleep, you won’t be so dependent on your afternoon java kick.

3. Avoid Sugar before bed. (You were avoiding sugar anyway right?)
Consuming sugar right before bed leads to a blood sugar roller
coaster ride, potentially waking you up in the middle of the night
due to a blood sugar low.

4. Put your work away before bed. There is nothing worse than a
racing mind before bed. Crunching numbers and reading work
documents right before bed may lead to dreams about work (or
nightmares). End all work at least 2 hours before bed. If this is
not possible for you, you may need to reassess your work schedule a
bit.

Whatever the adjustments are for you, remember, sleep may just be
the missing link in your nutrition, exercise and health regimen.
Stick to your Diet Solution Meal Plans and tuck yourself in at 10pm
each night.

Night, night!

In health and happiness,

Isabel De Los Rios
www.TheDietSolutionProgram.com

I keep running into people who ask me, “What happened to Stewart? He is really looking great these days.”
Two weeks ago I shared with you my boyfriend Stewart’s, much needed Kick in the Butt. If you missed it you can read it below: Do You Need a Kick in the Butt?

He was, shall I say, slacking a bit when it came to his weight and fitness goals. Not living totally unhealthy, just not where he wanted to be. Can you relate?

So, instead of nagging him (like any good girlfriend would), I got a bit smarter and handed him a copy of Vince Delmonte’s www.YourSixPackQuestforABS.com

  

We’re now 2 weeks in and what are the results so far?

Stewart has taken Kick Butt Action and, with Vince’s permission, here is exactly what Stewart has done…..

Step #1. Stewart took these motivating messages from Vince’s book, printed them out and hung them next to his computer where he could see them several times a day:

*Everyone has the ability to be GREAT. But if this is so, what has happened to most of us? Whether it is your jaded beliefs about life’s limitations, cultural perceptions of what is possible or a circle of friends who share negativity about life, I believe that YOU have the decision to accept or reject these limiting beliefs and to embrace your full ability.

Isn’t that the truth? Most times the limits we set on ourselves are really just excuses and WE have the power to do something about them.

*”Where and when in your life have you had the greatest success because of your commitment?” Think about it. Perhaps you have a very healthy marriage? Maybe you have a tremendous relationship with your children? Perhaps you have a booming business or career? Maybe you have a killer social life? Maybe you have an extremely strong spiritual relationship with God? Maybe you’re a straight A student? Now ask yourself how and why you are committed to those goals. Can you transfer the same characteristics and qualities from your family, business, spiritual or social life into your physical world?

I don’t know about you but all the great things I have in my life, took a bit of hard work. Sometimes, a lot of work. If it was really that easy, wouldn’t everyone be walking around in a rock hard body?

Step #2. He took the workouts in Vince’s book that were the most realistic for him. Don’t set yourself up for failure right off the bat and tell yourself you’re going to follow a program that requires you to get to the gym more times a week than your schedule can handle. Set yourself up for SUCCESS. Stewart took the “home workouts” in Vince’s book and set himself up in the spare bedroom at home with a couple of dumbbells and an exercise ball. After just the first week of workouts, he was able to keep up with my brutal “Sunday Outside Bootcamp”, something that would have left him begging for mercy prior to his new regimen.

Step #3. Here’s the best part. Vince suggests doing a 3-10 day cleanse before you even start the program to cleanse your body of unhealthy, unwanted toxins. You know what? Stewart actually did it! I thought he was going to skip this part but he proved me wrong. Not only did he rid himself of unhealthy toxins (like one too many Diet Dr. Peppers. Shame on you, Stewart), he dropped 5 pounds in the first 3 days and saw increased definition in his body that quickly. Now, I’m not saying this cleanse is the miracle answer but I am saying that Stewart was committed, don’t you think?

Take the above suggestions and remember, you have the ability to be GREAT! What is stopping you from getting there? And, more importantly, what steps do you need to take to get there?

Take a look here at the program that got Stewart into high gear: www.YourSixPackQuestforABS.com

And I look forward to hearing all about your Kick In The Butt Experience!

P.S. – Here was Stewart’s workout this morning straight out of Vince’s 3 Day Metabolic Boost Program.

Combo #1

Incline DB Chest Press, Bodyweight Speed Squats
Combo#2

Standard Push Up, Bodyweight Reverse Lunge
Combo #3

Standing DB Shoulder Press, DB Bulgarian Split Squat
Combo #4

Bench Dips, Wall Sit
Combo #5

Push Up Bridge, Side Bridge, Plank, Side Plank

In health and happiness,

Isabel De Los Rios
www.TheDietSolutionProgram.com

Do you remember Tio?

Some weeks ago, I told you all about my uncle and how the extra 60 pounds he was carrying around was killing his knees. (If you missed it, you can read it below: BBQ Hot Dogs and Knee Pain).

I gave him 3 basic guidelines to follow which I thought were pretty easy. But after just 4 days, I got a phone call from frustrated Tio: “Isabel, I have so many questions. I’m so confused about so many foods, and I just don’t know what to eat. Forget this whole thing. I give up!”(Are you kidding me Tio?)

Have you ever just wanted somebody to tell you exactly what to do without all the explanations behind it? Kind of like…Just give it to me straight and save the details for another time.
This is how a lot of people feel about every weight loss plan and diet out on the market today. This doctor said this, that nutritionist said that, the TV commercial told me microwavable cardboard was the new hot ticket to health?!?!?!

Do you know what Tio wanted (and maybe what you want too)?

“Don’t give me all the scientific mumbo jumbo behind the meal plan. Just tell me exactly what to put in my mouth, exactly when and I will follow it word for word… And it better work!!!!!”

I have to be honest. I used to frown upon this way of “dieting” because I felt that my clients were not learning anything about nutrition and how to create their own weight loss plans. How else were they realistically going to be able to maintain their great results for the long term?

But you know what? WRONGO!

What really happened? After one of my clients followed a detailed meal plan word for word for 21 days, it subconsciously became a habit. It became such a habit that they just naturally maintained their new way of eating. Let’s not forget that they are now walking around in their new hot body getting compliments left and right. Who wants to mess with that?

Here’s what I did for Tio and I highly recommend you do the same if you are having a hard time reaching your own weight loss goals: I handed him a copy of The Diet Solution Program Quick Start Guide and told him to follow it to the letter for exactly 6 weeks. I don’t want to hear excuses, whining, or all the reasons why you can’t do it. I want you to reach your goals and finally feel absolutely INCREDIBLE every day!

I wrote out a plan that has yet to fail for anyone (who has followed it of course). It is not some unhealthy crash diet that’s going to jeopardize your health. It may actually transform your health to a level you never thought was possible.

If you have already gone full force into the Diet Solution Program and have created and followed your own great new meal plans: Good for You! Keep it going!

Well, what are you waiting for? If Tio can follow the Quick Start Guide (remember he was the one chowing down on hot dogs and soda), I know you can too!

P.S. – Stay tuned for a bonus newsletter this week, with Stewart’s Kick in the Butt experience. You are not going to believe the transformation he’s made in his workouts in the past 2 weeks.

In health and happiness,

Isabel De Los Rios
www.TheDietSolutionProgram.com

  

Better smelling? Better tasting? Better for you? There are so many ways to ask this question and so many ways to answer it.

No matter how you ask it, which one do you think most people would honestly prefer? You guessed it. Unless you are some sort of alien, I think you would agree that chocolate tastes better than broccoli. Yes, I am human, so I would have to agree too. I could probably dip my dirty gym sock in chocolate and enjoy its chocolaty goodness!

I bet that if I gave you a nutrition test right now, you would most likely score a B+. Did you really not know that broccoli was good for you? So, if we all know what the right answers are, the question really is: why are so many people still overweight?

The challenge is when you have to make the decision between chocolate and broccoli (I suppose you could just dip your veggies in chocolate and resolve the whole problem, as seen above). All kidding aside, how about you stop making your nutrition choices an EITHER/OR experience and stop telling yourself there are things you CAN’T
eat? How about knowing that you can eat just about everything! (Except McDonald’s. I can’t make peace with that).

Here’s the honest truth. I eat chocolate and I drink wine. I love
them both (I know what you are thinking… even chocolate?) and there
is no reason I should give them up forever. However, I will tell
you how I pull this off and still stay lean year round and feeling
great. Most of my meals are made with healthy delicious foods and
we all know there are plenty to choose from. Then, when the time is
right I can have things like freshly baked peach cobbler with
vanilla ice-cream (as I did on Saturday night).

I am now at my ideal weight and I stay this way through smart meal
planning, an effective workout program and periodic indulgences.

I know you want to look and feel great and also treat yourself to
the foods you love without “giving” anything up. The following
steps are exactly how you can get to your ideal weight and keep it
off permanently:

1. Follow the meal plans in The Diet Solution Program to a T for
the first 6 weeks. Really get your metabolic engine going and feed
yourself the foods that are going to burn unwanted fat off your
body.

2. During these 6 weeks, establish an exercise program that is
realistic for you. Realistic does not mean “wimpy”. Come on, push
yourself beyond your limits and really show yourself (and everyone
else) what you’re made of. Follow any one of the exercise bonuses
included in your Diet Solution Package. They will all prove great
results.

3. Once you get yourself into a consistent routine of healthy
eating and “non-wimpy” exercise, (usually around the 6 week mark)
start to include 1-2 of your favorite foods each week. Once your
metabolism has been cranked up by healthy eating and exercise, a
piece of chocolate or dessert won’t make or break you. You know
what else? You’ll feel so great, you probably won’t even care about
certain foods that you once thought you “couldn’t live without”.

So the next time someone gives you the choice between chocolate and
broccoli, tell them you’ll have both, just not together. …Now that
I think of it, that’s kind of gross.

In health and happiness,

Isabel De Los Rios
www.TheDietSolutionProgram.com

  

Another great weekend in Jersey. Lots of sun and Saturday was a gorgeous day (I love the summer!).

My family and I spent Saturday afternoon at my cousin’s house barbequing and having a great time. There are 2 things guaranteed at my family functions: lots of laughter and LOTS OF FOOD!

So, just as we’re chowing down on steaks, chicken legs, hamburgers and hot dogs, (I swear, I was not the one eating the hot dogs) my uncle came up to me and said “Hey Isabel. Your mom says her knees don’t hurt anymore like they did last year. My knees are killing me. What do you think is wrong with them?” (All the while he’s still chomping down on his second hot dog and cola).

“Well Tio (I speak Spanish to all of my relatives) let me give it to you straight. (Look of fear in his eyes). This past year my mom, your sis, lost 40 lbs. That’s 40 lbs less weight that her knees have to carry around. Of course they feel better. I guarantee if you lost a few lbs. yourself, your knees would stop hurting.”

At this point Tio looks like he wishes he had just asked me about the weather, the upcoming election or even quantum physics, ANYTHING but be told that he needs to lose weight.

“Isabel, I’m 60 years old and I have been this fat forever. I wouldn’t even know where to start.”

So I gave him 3 super easy rules to follow.

“Tio, follow these three rules and I guarantee you, better yet, I promise you, you will lose a minimum of 10 lbs. in 14 days.”

1. Don’t eat anything that is white. Name every single food that is white and chances are you shouldn’t be eating it (healthy foods like cauliflower, chicken, turkey, fish are all exceptions to this rule). Based on Tio’s current eating habits, I didn’t think he was all too worried about cauliflower anyway.

2. Only drink water, NOTHING else! How about coffee? Just to keep any possible withdrawal headaches at bay, one small cup of organic black coffee. Can you add half and half?…Well is it white?

3. Don’t eat anything with the word wheat in the ingredients list. What if it’s whole wheat? Look, if the word starts with W and ends in T and has the letters h e a in between, you can’t eat it.

Tio agreed that he was up for the challenge. Anything to make the knee pain go away and make his niece stop lecturing.

In 2 weeks, I’ll tell you exactly how much he lost and how he felt during his 2 week challenge. In the meantime, where do you need to begin to finally lose the weight and achieve the health you’ve been wanting? Is it to follow rules 1, 2 and 3 above? Or are you ready to take your life to the next level?

Don’t let one more day go by without feeling and looking as great as I know you can!

In health and happiness,

Isabel De Los Rios
www.TheDietSolutionProgram.com