Are  all Calories Created Equal? A  Four year Study says, No Way!

Dr OZ, the Emmy winning heart surgeon, reports in the September, 2011 issue of Time Magazine that there is new research showing that all calories are not created equal. He shares a visual chart of a comparison of nuts versus French fried potatoes, all part of a large four year study that compares foods of equal calories looking at weight loss and weight gain. 

The results of eating fries versus nuts, in portions that equal in caloric content, were verydifferent in regards to how the body breaks each food down, how they were usedin the body, and the outcome of weight gained or weight lost by eating the twodifferent food groups. DR. Oz noted the following in his
chart.

Nuts take much longer to chew.
Nuts are loaded with good fats and fiber that need more time to break down in the body (more time means more calories burned). Because of the fat in the nuts your stomach stays full much longer, allowing you to go longer before your next meal and eat less.

 French Fries are basically cooked starch. 
 The fries are close to being totally broke down when you put them in your mouth. Once in the mount the starch causes a blood sugar boost, the insulin is called in to take care of the excess sugar which in turn causes hunger signals. You feel hungry so you eat your next meal early and more of it.


When the pounds were tallied, the group eating nuts lost 0.57 pounds. The group  eating the same number of calories in French Fries gained 3.35 pounds.

If you would like to receive a Free News Letter please request it on the contact page. Click for Free, initial, 15 minute wellness coaching consult.

 Oz,  Mehmet, the Oz Diet.” Time Magazine Special Nutrition Issue 12 September,  2011: 48-58.

By Nancy Merrifield RN, URMP, CCP
Life Solutions Coaching &  Reiki Training Center
Mill Creek, Washingtion
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I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward."-Thomas A. Edison

If you are on a dream seeking excursion, but you haven’t figured out how awesome you are yet, you haven’t found that place of absolute faith that assures you that you will achieve the life you seek; start an all about me journal. Write down all of your past successes and what you see for your future. Write down everything you have done that you are proud of. Things like taking something back to the store that you accidently walked out  with. Helping grandma clean her house on Fridays or getting a promotion at work. Write down things that other people think are cool about you like you are well read, you are a great dancer or you are just plain fun to hang out with. How about failing a test, only to study harder and ace it the next time. How about the time you lost five pounds. You may have only kept it off for the summer, but you lost it, and that is a success worth journaling about. If you have an idea why you did not keep off the weight, add that to your entry as well.

The all about me journal should be written in the now or as though it has already happened. For example, “I have raised two healthy, happy children. I have true friends who care about  me. Everyone compliments me on how carefully I pack groceries; I nurture my garden every day and it grows beautifully. I helped the neighbor with her  children when she was sick.  I am happy, I am positive and I persevere,” and so on. Make a lengthy list, one that reminds of your greatness and successes.

If  all you see are negatives about yourself, even though you have searched for the  positive, it is time to seek help. You cannot reach your goals or live your dreams without assist in seeing who you really are. Wellness coaches, as well as other professionals, are trained to help you learn the process of seeing life and yourself with an optimistic perspective.

Read, Who Are You Really, and What Do You Want, By Shad  Helmstetter Ph.D.  But most importantly, understand that you are an awesome successful person and  with help, you will totally see that this is true. Consider Janine’s story.

Janine came to me with over one-hundred pounds to lose .She felt people staring at her and judging her based on her weight. They did not understand how hard she had worked trying to lose weight. They did not understand how much she wanted to comfortably fit into a coach seat on an airplane, how much she wanted to look good so that her spouse and her children would be proud of her, or how much she wanted to have more energy and be healthy.

Janine rarely went out to restaurants because she could feel people watching her, judging her while she ate. She attended her daughter Jessie’s kindergarten orientation; Jessie was excited for her mom to meet her teachers and friends at school. But what Janine felt was stares and surprise when the teachers and other parents saw how overweight she was. Her husband always said he loved her but he also avoided taking her to any work related gatherings.

Janine saw nothing wonderful about herself. She cooked, cleaned, made sure that her children finished their homework and she watched TV.She  avoided being active with her children. It was just too difficult. Janine could not find anything good about herself to write about in her journal. After
working with her, she began to see a little bit of her greatness. Here is her initial journal entry, formed with the help of her coach.

• I have provided a warm, loving environment for my family.
• I am raising two very loving, happy children
• My children love me and are excited to share me with their friends
• I know My husband loves me
• I am a great cook
• Extended family love coming to our house for holidays
• I Love having family over because they are always impressed with my creative ideas and hospitality
• When it comes to losing weight, I persevere, having tried every new program out there. I am persistent

Finding the positive was difficult for Janine. But she began progressively seeing her own attributes, possibilities and successes. Within the first few months of the coaching process, as we were developing her plan, she stumbled upon her life purpose. It was something she had dismissed long before. She also recognized a multitude of strengths she could build on. Her journal entry after three months  of Wellness coaching looked like this:

• I am evolving my home into a bed and breakfast
• I am changing my recipes to be more heart healthy yet still offering lots of flavor
• I am learning to read food labels
• Every saturday is family adventure day. We are trying out all of the interesting things to do in the area so that when our bed and breakfast opens we will be a good resource for our guests.
• We go to the farmers market each week using locally fresh produce to create seasonal meals
• I go for an after dinner walk with my family three evenings a week
• I play music a lot and love to clean my house to songs like staying alive and we are family
• People look at me now because I am happy and joyful.
• I feel healthy and strong
• I have goals and I am taking action to achieve them
• Because of the new changes in my lifestyle I am slowly and progressively losing weight
• I am a success story

Janine  now believes in herself. She knows she is successful in many things and has a lot of potential for starting her own business. The only thing that has changed is the way she thinks about herself.She always has and always will be exactly what she thinks she is. Only we can impose limits on ourselves. No one else has the power… unless we give it to them. 

Nothing can stop the person with the right attitude from achieving their goals in this world. Nothing on earth can help the person with the wrong attitude.~Thomas Jefferson 
  
Part of what Janine had to do to achieve such marked change in her life is learn to  see life with an optimistic perspective. She also had to learn and practice Positive self-talk. Without a positive attitude and outlook on life you will not attract the life you want to live. 

Consider Wellness Coaching for the best chance of achieving your goals. If you have not found your greatness. Please accept this Free Consult

The Buddha said "What we think, we  become."

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By Nancy Merrifield RN, URMP, CCP
Life Solutions Coaching & Reiki Training Center
Mill Creek, Washingtion
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Wellness is best achievied when all the parts of our selves are ready to take on the task of lifestyle change.  Just because we are fifty pounds overweight does not mean that we are emotionally, physically and mentally ready to do what it takes to lose weight. So how do we get to that place for successfull lifestyle change? It takes small steps, goal setting, positive self- talk, support and for some... Reiki.  What does Reiki have to do with losing weight, lowering cholestertol, managing stress, abundance, exercise, positive self-talk or working towards a better outlook on life? The answer is everything, depending on your flow of life energy.

Life energy is what some call Chi, Prana, Ki and what scientists call Biofield Energy. When your life energy flow is great the physical, mental, emotional and even the spiritual parts of you work better, including your immune system, metabolism and your ability and willingness to organize. Your perception of life is more positive. Reiki increases your life energy.  If you receive Reiki regularly, your possibilities for positive results in making lifestyle changes are endless. You are better able to achieve goals and maintain them. Using Reiki to make healthy lifestyle change is what I call Reiki  Wellness.

Reiki is offered in over 800 hospitals throughout the United States and is gaining in popularity. A recent comprehensive review of all Reiki Research from studies published in peer review journals, since 1985, shows strong anecdotal evidence of Reiki lowering stress, decreasing pain and nausea and decreasing mild cognitive impairment and there is more research on the horizen. Reiki is now becoming so integrated into medical facilities that the medical profession is now more willing to participate in studies having to do with the effectiveness of Reiki. Nurses report  profound relaxation, decrease in anxiety and better sleep patterns in their patients who receive Reiki. Granted, we need to see research showing shorter hospital stays and less depression in people receiving Reiki, but the studies just have not been done.  Given the evidence we do have, there is a strong probablility that Reiki lowers stress, increases relaxation and enhances one's ability to achieve positive life change.

Reiki wellness can be achieved in private Reiki sessions and Distant Reiki sessions. It can also be achieved by learning to give self-Reiki.  Level I & II Reiki can be learned in a weekend and the ability to give yourself and others Reiki will stay with you for a lifetime. Learning Reiki allows you to naturally experience the energy first hand as it comes to you  directly from the universe.

As a Wellness Coach and Reiki Master I help people create a plan of  action with goals and action steps to achieve those goals. Reiki Wellness is a  personal choice and is threaded into the plan upon request. Free Wellness Consult

If you are interested in our Free Wellness Newsletter place your request on the contact page.
 You might be interested in the following articles:

What  is Wellness Coaching?  

The  benefits of Reiki

 What  is Distant Reiki?

Reiki Class listing  North West, WA. See resource list for classes offered in other areas of U.S.
 
See Prices Coaching and Reiki Nationwide

Contact Page email me, I would like to hear from you!

Author: Nancy Merrifield RN, URMP, CCP
Life Solutions Wellness Coach.
See free consult at end of article
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Tradition has encouraged us to engorge ourselves on holiday foods, decrease our exercise and  herald in the  New Year with lists of resolutions in an attempt to make up for our lack of self-control throughout the holiday season.   Ninety-five percent of those  resolutions are never accomplished and in
the end they go on the following year’s list. They become permanent fixtures on a perpetual New Year’s Resolution list that only gets longer.

I propose new  tactics. Suppose we veer from the flock and resolve to lose a few pounds in the  fall, prior to the holidays. If we can lose a few pounds in the fall months and  then maintain our weight through December, we would feel pretty good about our abilities of personal control, setting and achieving goals, and our capacity to keep a New Year’s resolution.

The holidays would require strategy. We would need to turn our focus toward making wise choices, a little easier to do knowing we have already lost a few autumn pounds.   As the holidays arrive, assess
your holiday traditions. Weed out the ones that are flat out, no getting  around it, unhealthy choices.  Alter others to where they are still  enjoyable but not solely focused on food and gaining weight. Begin by choosing to have only one or at least less than what your typical indulgence might be. If  you typically take five of your favorite cookies to eat in one sitting, take only two or choose not to make them this year, which is an even better idea. Forget the cookie swaps. Instead, make decorations, have gift wrapping or tree decorating parties. Take the family Christmas Caroling. Continue  with daily exercise, drink lots of water, be positive and perhaps in the end, even if all we accomplish is avoiding the holiday weight gain we will meet 2012 knowing we have accomplished something big  and that our goals are very achievable.

Wellness coaching is perfect  to get you through the holidays and  get you started on your 2012 goals. A  wellness coach helps you put a comfortable plan in place and then encourages you as you proceed towards goals of being fit and healthy. The pace is yours the coach is there for direction, support and 
accountability.

 The right kind of support, as reported by the American Psychology association, is vital to successful
achievement of lifestyle goals.

 A coach creates movement and forward momentum. Coaching establishes priorities and clarifies goals. Life Solutions Coaching brings out  the optimal you. Click for a Free Consult.

If you are interested in a Free Wellness Newsletter, online, place your request on the contact page.

 Healthy diets include healthy fats. Adding 3-4 ounces of Fatty
fish like salmon, tuna and mackerel to your diet twice a week can save your life, it’s the heart healthy thing to do. But what if you don’t like fish? Those fatty fish are also very strong in flavor.

Well, don’t write off Omega-3s so easily. There are many plant sources of this good fat—particularly flaxseed. You can purchase flaxseed as whole seeds, ground  seeds or oil. Ground flaxseed is the best choice because it contains 3 grams of  fiber per tablespoon and it can be mixed into cereals, pancakes, waffles and breads.

Other good sources  of omega-3s are cantaloupe, avacado, kidney beans, spinach, grape leaves, cauliflower and nuts. In fact a handful of walnuts provide the same amount of omega-3 as  a 3.5 ounce piece of salmon. 

Sign up for Free Wellness Newsletter place your request on the contact page.

A study funded by Weight Watchers but run by an independent research group within the UK, Australia and Germany  compared overweight patients who went through a one year Weight Watchers program to those who were treated by their physicians.

In the study 61% of those in the Weight Watchers group completed at least 12 months of the program as did 54% of those assigned to the care of their physician

 The Weight Watchers group lost significantly more weight than the physician cared for group. In fact they lost more than twice as much weight, 15 pounds versus  only 7 pounds, respectively.

What is it about Weight Watchers that works? The researchers praised their program
for regular weigh-ins, diet and exercise advice, and the motivation and group
support they provide.

So what is the best weight loss plan for you?  Well, the researcher who directed this study, Susan Jebb PhD, mentions there are many commercial weight loss programs that, in clinical studies, have shown successful weight loss in their cliental and she suggests that other commercial providers working with physicians offer very effective treatment options as well. But  further research is warranted in respect to commercial and clinical teams working together to help clients lose weight.

 Polls, surveys and research have different outcomes, especially when it comes to
dieting. So how do you choose the best diet for you? Choose the one you are willing to follow.
 
If you are interested in a Wellness Newsletter, online and free, Place request on the contact page.

The Jebb study, appear in the Sept. 8 online issue of The
Lancet.
http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20110907/study-weight-watchers-better-than-doctors-advice 

Be sure to click on your free Consult at the end of this article.

When I first heard about  this particular weight loss secret, I was surprised, because it was so simple. How did I not know this already? After all, I had been in the wellness business my whole life. I should have known. This is the fifth secret I have shared with you and by far, it has been the most elusive.

Anyone who has  journeyed through the hurdles of weight loss understands that it is not just about losing the weight. It is also about keeping the weight off.  In fact, maintaining weight loss has tormented us throughout history. Many now feel it is simply their destiny to be overweight. 

The mere sound of the word diet has become torturous to some and feels restricting and confining to most. When you see it in writing you have an immediate sense that your free will and your breath is being taken away. 

But as much as we do understand the complexities of managing our  weight,  we can finally overlook the words diet and obesity when assessing the problem. Because we now know, it is not the weight that is the problem. It is our lifestyle. It is a flaw in those habits formed, ideals collected, perspectives we have shaped from the physical, emotional and social stumbling blocks life has thrown our way. 

Some of our habits were formed from the overwhelming influx of weight control advice. We have tried all the newest diets, listened to the newest research and then through trial and error, we have experienced the yo-yo diet syndrome.

It is our lifestyle that is causing us to be at risk for morbid diseases and yes it is our lifestyle that causes us to carry excess weight. But did you notice? You did not cringe when I said lifestyle. Lifestyle is our way of life. And it is something we can whittle some change into without inflicting suffering upon ourselves. It is understandable. It makes sense. But It also makes us accountable.

 We are all in this together. We have created, as a group, acceptable lifestyles. Now as a group we need to talk about how we can evolve into acceptable lifestyles that are healthy. I have a few ideas to hep you get started. 

• Lifestyle change has a greater impact on lowering your risk factors
  and  improving wellness than the process of losing weight. So focus on lifestyle change. Find the things you are willing to change within your life, right now and see this adventure as an evolution into a healthy lifestyle rather than a revolution, adding new goals as you achieve the first.
• Make a pact with family and friends to give up 1-3 bad habits and
  adopt 1-3 new habits, each doing only what they are ready to do. One might choose to add one glass of water at dinner or to stretch while watching TV. Perhaps another will be doing interval training. We are all ready for different
  things. 
• Support everyone participating in this healthy life change while  keeping your own focus on your personal goal.
• Understand that we all slip and that is okay. It is the continuation of our pressing forward that counts. The forward momentum of knowing where we
  need to go.
•  Write your personal goal down in a journal and read it often. It
  should be written and read as though it was already achieved. 
  You might want to lose two pounds this week but it will be written
  something like “I am walking for 10-15 minutes twice daily with my dog and we love it. My cloths feel roomy and I feel healthy. Be sure to read it several times daily, celebrate your success and add to the goal when ready.
• If  lifestyle change is a serious issue for you, if you have tried to make changes and failed, you owe it to yourself and to your family to work with a wellness coach; because a wellness coach will help you visualize your unlimited possibilities. Because a Wellness coach will help you create reasonable, timed, achievable goals and set your plan into action. And because the wellness coach will help you see your goals achieved successfully and abundantly. Because working with a wellness coach you will feel your infinite potential.  You’ll know that you can do anything!   Others may doubt you, but you won’t.  
  
  That is how dreams and goals manifest themselves. Your determination  and motivation will see you further then you’ve ever dreamed. And I know, that with my help, you can do this! Some say they cannot afford a wellness coach. But I say  “you can’t afford  not to have a wellness coach.”  I hope you will take advantage of your FREE  CONSULT.  I would love to  talk with you. If you would like a copy of our Free Online Wellness Newsletter please request it on the contact page.
  
                          <CLICK TO CONTACT ME FOR A FREE CONSULT>
• Check the box for the free consult and then leave your email address. Thank you!
  
   Be Well, Nancy Merrifield RN, URMP, CCP
  
  Nancy is a Registered Nurse, Certified Wellness Coach, and Reiki  Master, Center for Reiki Research Team Member and has a strong background in Exercise Science and Lifestyle change.
  
  

Life Solutions will be offering a combined Reiki I & II cllass October 22nd & 23rd. The Reiki class schedule page is currently under construction and should be live by 9/10.

We will also be sending out a quarterly newsletter. The first should be out before the holidays. Our sign up page is also currently underconstruction.
If you would like to sign up for a copy of the newsletter now or if you are interested in our Reiki classes,  please put your name and email address in a note to me on the contact page. And I will see that you get the requested information.

Thanks for bearing with our dust. Be Well, Nancy

 Thanks for the guest post by  Jonathan Curtis

I feel truly blessed to have such a wonderful husband and family.  My  husband’s business has grown over the last couple of years, despite the recent  economic difficulties of many.  We own a home in Dallas and a home in Houston.  One of our daughters lives in Houston, and she used to live in the house until she got married.  We have kept the home because my husband has to travel to  Houston often for work, and he likes to stay in the comfort of his own home  instead of in a hotel, especially on long business trips.  We are planning on  selling the house eventually, but the market is so bad right now, we decided it  would make more sense to hold onto the house for now.  Plus, we can visit our daughter and grandkids in Houston without having to stay in a hotel or put them  out by staying with them.  We decided that in our Houston home we are going to  try a fixed-rate energy bill to see if it is something we might try in our home  in Dallas.  I went to txu energy south houston and found some very useful information.  It is truly a blessing to be in our situation, especially with what has happened lately in the business world.