Sugar makes you stupid. Rats who ate an omega-3 deficient diet were slower at completing a maze, and those who drank a fructose solution, instead of water, were the most stupid of all.

Strangely, omega-3s seem to have a pretty impactful role in the metabolizing of sugar. The rats who had a diet without omega-3s had higher triglycerides, glucose, and insulin levels, and showed a decrease in synaptic activity, which is critical for learning and memory. Unfortunately, it is difficult to get omega-3s naturally and the American diet does not provide much. This is why The Skinny Coach Solution recommends omega-3s as part of the program. The research shows that omega-3s protect our brains from the harmful effects of fructose.

No one will tell you not to eat sugar more quickly than the Skinny Coach, but did you know that I also highly recommend omega-3s? New research has shown that rats who have eaten a diet high in omega-3s were faster in solving a maze; in fact, without omega-3s a decrease was shown in synaptic activity. Bottom line, the mice were slower.

Did you know that women underestimate their daily consumption of calories by a lot? Considering that most women on a diet should eat between 1200-1500 calories, stop and guess by how many calories women underestimate? Women underestimate their daily consumption by 700 calories! If you are on the Skinny Coach diet you do not need to do this, but if you are not, then track your calories for 28 days and see what you are really eating.

Done with not wearing a bathing suit because you are too fat? Fill out the Sugar Addiction Quiz and find out which foods are shutting down your fat burning cells, making it impossible to lose weight.

Fat has 9 calories per gram, compared to 4 calories per gram for protein or carbohydrates. But all fat isn’t the same. AGAIN – it is not calories in calories out. Saturated fat that is found in whole milk, butter, full-fat cheese, and fatty cuts of red meat makes your body produce less leptin and more ghrelin. Leptin is a hormone that quells appetite and gherlin stimulates appetite. But unsaturated fats, like that in olive oil and avocados, helps regulate your appetite by producing more appetite-suppressing leptin and LESS appetite stimulating ghrelin. UGGG

“A poor man with nothing in his belly needs hope, illusion, more than bread.” – Georges Bernanos

Belly fat is highly associated with type-2 diabetes and heart disease. If you are reading this article, you are on your Skinny Paths and doing everything you need to do. What is great is that the SCS incorporates the best ways to reduce your waistline. This is important because central fat has been linked with dementia risk and cardiovascular disease risk.

“Listen, the best advice on aging is this: What’s the alternative? The alternative, of course, is death. And that’s a lot of shit to deal with. So I’m happy to deal with menopause. I’ll take it.” — Whoopi Goldberg

The harder you work for something, the greater you’ll feel when you achieve it. – Unknown

We have heard a million times, moderation is key. Baloney! If we could moderate, 66% of the nation wouldn’t be fat. The food industry has designed the foods we eat to make it impossible to moderate. Processed foods react with opiate receptors in the brain, mimicking the effects of opiate drugs like heroin and morphine. You can’t moderate sugar and flour any more than you can moderate a heroin addiction.

Not to mention, moderation ignores the serious damage those foods do to your body. High blood pressure, obesity, high blood sugar, damage to the lining of your gut, build-up of toxins in your body – this happens with just a little bit a day.

In addition, it’s easier to make 100% commitment versus 98% commitment because until you decide with 100%, it’s actually not decided.

Don’t make excuses; make improvements. – Tyra Banks

Bloating and weight gain are very common in midlife, but they do not have to be. There are solutions to help you.

It can be challenging to beat the bloat and lose weight during this time of our lives. What we did in our 20s and 30s is not going to work in our 40s, 50s, and beyond. Our bodies are changing, so we need to change our approach to weight loss.

Here are a few good tips:

1. Remove flour and processed sugar from your diet.
2. Drink at least 8 cups of water per day
3. Move your body for a minimum of 30 minutes per day
4. Add in weight training, if possible
5. Improve sleep habits by practicing a bedtime routine each night
6. Practice deep breathing exercises each day. Deep breathing exercises have been shown to help with bloating, gas, overall digestion and even reduce anxiety.
7. Peppermint Tea or Ginger Tea can help with bloating.
8. Making your health a priority and not making excuses as to why you can’t do it. This is the most important tip because, if you do not do this, then you can’t get all the other tips done.

If you’re tired of starting over, stop giving up. – Unknown

Below are things you may have experienced while on a ‘traditional’ diet:

• Weight is typically lost quickly in a set period of time
• Foods are categorized as “good” or “bad”
• Entire food groups are left out (i.e., dairy, carbs, etc.)
• Calorie consumption is greatly restricted
• Progress is dependent on a number on the scale
• “Calories in; Calories out”
• Once the diet ends, the weight comes back on…and then some

Here are some things you will experience with a lifestyle change:

• Eating healthy, nutritious and whole foods, knowing they will nourish and sustain you
• Slower, more permanent weight loss because it’s done at a healthy pace
• Second nature (actions of restriction vs. feelings of restriction)
• Less likely to experience extreme hunger, food deprivation, and mental stress
• Measuring your progress beyond what the scale says
• Something that you can stick with for the long haul

Remember…
This is not a short-term diet.
It’s a long-term lifestyle change.

Freedom from the control food has over you. Freedom from medications you may be on due to excess weight you’re carrying around. Freedom from feeling tired all the time. Freedom from having to worry about what you’re going to eat. Freedom from feeling sick after eating too much.

Freedom! Freedom! Freedom! Oh, how good it feels!

2 C. green beans
1 C. garbanzo beans/chickpeas
1 C. kidney beans
1 large red onion
1/2 C. of vinegar

Steam green beans until tender, and then cool. Combine all ingredients and let sit in fridge overnight.

From The Skinny Coach Solution Recipe book
You can get your own here