The YOU Diet and Activity Plan
Who Woulda Thunk It Strategies for YOU
Get seven to eight hours of sleep a night. Lack of sleep promotes hedonistic eating as you search for something to boost chemicals in your brain. Your brain needs sleep to regenerate these chemicals, and sugary foods help release the diminished supply of chemicals you have, to make up for the lack of sleep.
Play video games. Keeping your hands full keeps them off the coconut muffins.
Have healthy, safe, monogamous sex. Satisfying one appetite center of your brain can help satisfy another.
Measurement Strategies for YOU
Measure your waist. Ideal is 32 1/2 inches or less for women, and 35 inches or less for men.
Ask your family what your parents and grandparents looked like when they were eighteen, to give you a sense of what your ideal body should look like.
Get tested: blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and C-reactive protein (a marker of inflammation), and certain hormone levels, depending on your weight situation.
Medicine Cabinet Strategies for YOU
Take two aspirin (162 milligrams) every day to decrease arterial inflammation and health risks associated with obesity. Consult your doctor first.
See your doctor about prescription drugs associated with weight loss if you hit a waist plateau on the plan (see appendix).
The following supplements have been shown to have effectiveness in some aspect of waist management:
chromium picolinate, grapefruit oil, Garcinia, Hoodia, 5-HTP, L-carnitine, coenzyme Q10, turmeric, jojoba beans, simmondsin. Consult your doctor about which ones may be appropriate for you.
