I Think Summer Is Here...

Not that I can tell here in Cheyenne, Wyoming, where the wind is blowing gusts up to 70 mph outside my windows... no hitting golf balls for me today...

But I know summer is here because the subscriptions to this blog have gone up considerably in the last two weeks - people want to lose weight in time for July!

Losing 2 pounds a week is the only safe goal to have, so in 3 months, just in time for July, it's possible to have dropped about 20 pounds (but then comes the work to keep it off).

It's always a LOT easier to lose weight during spring and summer, than during fall and winter. The skies are typically bright and sunny, and the weather (except, I fear, in Cheyenne) is so nice, that it's easy to go out and about, jogging and biking, and one's mood is just generally lifted because of the bright sunshine and the warmth it gives.

For my new readers, I want to emphasize that before you start trying to change your eating habits and increase your exercise, you keep a journal for at least one week, delineating everything you eat and drink in a day, the times you do so, and why you do so. (Do you snack when you're bored or depressed, or happy?)

You are going to take your time in losing weight - the longer it takes you to lose weight, the easier it will be for you to keep it off. THat may sound like a contradiction in terms, but it's not.

If you try to starve yourself into losing weight, your body goes into hibernation mode and will burn calories more slowly as it attempts to save its life. You'll lose muscle before you lose fat, never a good idea.

So eat normally, but cut out a portion here and there each day. No snacks except fruit or veggies after 8 pm. If you drink sodapop, that's the easiest thing to cut out that will help you to lose weight - drink one a day instead of five or six, and you problaby won't need to do anything else!

And, of course, get out and walk, bike, play tennis, anything to enjoy life and the sunshine!