What Luck?

I used to own several of these "good luck" charms as a kid. They came in a variety of colors. Don't remember receiving any luck but it was fun to pat. Do you know people with bad luck? You hear people say, “Oh! they are down on their luck,” or “If something bad is going to happen it will happen to him!” or “They are always in the wrong place at the wrong time.” I have been guilty myself. At times I think if I were walking in a field with 100 people I will be the one that finds the hole. That is bad luck.
This leads me to think… is it really bad luck or is it bad habits?" Or is it bad choices?"
You see, there is a difference. What we many times call bad luck is merely bad choices.
Let me explain: If you work hard, buy a new car, keep it up with regular maintenance and blow a tire driving down the road, that is bad luck.
However, if you drive on your tires until they are almost bald and drive at speeds higher than they are recommended for, and keep them at the wrong inflation level, and then the tire blows, that is not bad luck but bad choices. The tire blew because you chose not to buy new ones. The tire blew because you chose not to take the time to check your tire inflation level the last time you filled up the tank.
It is bad luck to leave your house on vacation and while you are away the gas line breaks and the house blows up. It is bad habits to not tend to taking care of your house, replacing the roof, painting, etc until it is a junk pile.
It is bad luck to be let go from a company that goes into meltdown because the CEO acted unethically and the stock tanks, forcing layoffs.
It is both bad choices and bad habits to be late to work everyday, display shoddy workmanship and have a bad attitude to the point that the boss fires you.
If you choose to frequent shady parts of town or risky establishments, and you get mugged, is that bad luck or bad choices?
You get the point. How often do we call something bad luck when it is really the result of bad habits or bad choices?
This really boils down to a matter of ownership of our lives and actions. Do we take full responsibility for our lives or not?
What about you? Do you experience bad luck? Or bad habits? Or bad choices?
The next time you hear someone say, "He's down on his luck," perhaps you ought to ask, "Or is he down on his choices?"
I have found that those who have good habits and make good choices tend to experience the better luck. So, if you want a little good luck, make some good choices and develop some good habits.
I read this quote in "some" magazine, "Luck is a dividend of sweat. The more you sweat, the luckier you get." Well, I am not so sure about that because I sweat everyday and I question “my luck.” Guess I need to focus on my choices.

What’s Your Relationship with Food?

Food comes up in conversation every day. People ask, "What do you eat? or what are your gonna order?" When I am grocery shopping and see friends, my cart gets the once over. Just the other day I met a lady at the health food store wanting to buy everything I had because she thought I might know something she didn't. I hated to break it to her, there are no magic pills. If there were then obesity would be a thing of the past, we would all be pain free, and none of us would need concealed hand guns!

I found some information from the American Institute of Cancer Research that I fouind interesting.

Eating in response to emotions and stress has been linked to being overweight for decades. The implication: People who haven’t learned traditional coping skills are more likely to engage in emotional eating, which then leads to overweight or obesity. Some experts now suggest this link may not be so clear-cut. Regardless of how emotional eating begins, recognizing the signs and developing a new approach to eating are essential skills that are necessary to build a healthier relationship with food and with yourself.

Much of the research on emotional eating focuses on poor coping skills. In a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association in 2008, participants who said they were most likely to eat in response to their emotions (and least confident about being able to control their eating) were over 13 times more likely to be overweight or obese than those participants who reported the least emotional eating. In the study, the participants’ perceptions of their ability to cope with emotions and stress were strongly linked to excess weight. The inadequate coping skills included lack of strategies to change stressful situations and manage emotions.

Although people who engage in emotional eating may not face more stressful events than others, they often perceive situations as more stressful. While some researchers ascribe this to their poor coping skills, others note that the perception of stress depends on how much someone thinks is at stake. For example, people who feel a greater need to please people or to do things perfectly might find obstacles more stressful than those who do not have perfectionist tendencies.

Yet some researchers and therapists contest the very idea that emotional eating causes becoming overweight. For many overweight people, they argue, emotional eating results from the hunger and sense of deprivation that is caused by chronic dieting. According to the theory, when a dieter’s tight self-restraint breaks down as a result of stress, she often makes food choices that offer short-term gratification and relief from emotions, despite negative long-term physical and emotional results. Accordingly, supporters of this hypothesis note, overweight people who are not chronic dieters and do not practice unyielding self-restraint, do not respond to stress by eating.

Avoiding or ending emotional eating may require developing adaptive coping skills and creating stable eating habits to meet nutritional and hunger needs without fostering a sense of deprivation. Taking a class or reading a self-help book on problem-solving or stress-avoidance may work for some people, while others may find meeting face-to-face with a registered dietitian more helpful. Some emotional eaters may also wish to seek help from a mental health professional to develop effective solutions for dealing with stress and eating.

A review of studies that looked at factors affecting successful weight loss and weight maintenance found that success was not only affected by an individual’s social supports and stress-coping strategies, but was also impacted by establishing a physically active lifestyle and a regular meal rhythm that included breakfast.

In the end, key factors in helping people establish a more healthful relationship with food include: Eating regularly throughout the day when hungry and stopping when hunger ends; choosing healthful foods that promote sustained energy most of the time, while allowing an occasional treat to avoid feeling deprived; enjoying some kind of physical activity for at least an hour each day.

High-fat Fast-Foods

Too bad fast foods don't make us fast. The good news is that fast-food restaurants have all made great strides toward adding healthier choices to their menus. The bad news is that the majority of fast food offerings are still loaded with excess calories and fat. Those so-called 'value meals' may give you more for your money, but that means more for your waistline too.

According to the American Heart Association recommendations, your daily fat intake should not be more than 30 percent of your total calories, with saturated fat contributing no more than 7 percent. For someone eating 2,000 calories a day, that means fewer than 600 calories from fat, or less than 66 grams. And within that total, saturated fat should be limited to fewer than 15 grams (if you are worried about high cholesterol or heart disease, that number should be even lower).

You can get nutrition information for most fast food restaurants on each company's Web site (for example, McDonald’s, Burger King and Subway). You can also check out chowbaby.com for a round up of nutritional information from a variety of eateries. (Note: All of these numbers came from each restaurant's site except for the information on Cinnabon and Boston Market, which came from chowbaby.com because those restaurants don't list nutritional info on their sites.)

Top 10 choices to Avoid—each of which contains obscene amounts of artery-clogging fats and, in some cases, nearly an entire day's worth of calories!

McDonald's Deluxe Breakfast is a smorgasbord of bad-for-you foods—including eggs, sausage, pancakes smothered in syrup and margarine, hash browns and a biscuit. In moderation, any of these items could be an OK (if occasional) breakfast, but add them together and you're looking at a grand total of 1,220 calories, 550 of them from fat, including 17 grams of saturated fat.

Burger King's Triple Whopper with Cheese is a perfect example of why more is not better. A regular Whopper with cheese already delivers 760 calories, with 47 grams of total fat including 16 grams of saturated fat. But when you triple it up, this meal tips the scales at 1,230 calories and 82 grams of fat including 32 grams of saturated fat. (And that's before you order a side of fries!)

Taco Bell Fiesta Taco Salad. You might think you're doing a good thing but don't let the word "salad" delude you into believing that this meal is healthy. This bowlful of goodies packs 860 calories and 46 grams of total fat, 14 grams of which are saturated fat.

If you dive into a Pizza Hut Stuffed Crust Meat Lover's Pie, you'd better warn your arteries in advance. Two slices of this will stuff you with 1,000 calories and 82 grams of total fat, 22 grams of them saturated.

Popping into Cinnabon for a Caramel Pecanbon isn't exactly a breakfast of champions. This gooey pastry packs 1,100 calories and 56 grams of fat, while providing virtually no worthwhile nutrients.

Boston Market is one of the better stops for quick, healthy bites, but you still have to watch what you order. For example, the menu includes a chicken pot pie that contains 750 calories and 46 grams of fat, including 14 grams of the saturated sort.

Subway may have several healthy sandwiches (the ones that helped poster-boy Jared slim down), but that doesn’t mean there aren't a few bad choices. Avoid the 6-inch Double Meat Classic Tuna, which, thanks to lots of artery-clogging cheese and mayonnaise, packs 790 calories and 55 grams of fat, including 16 grams of saturated fat.

Domino's ExtravaganZZa Feast deep-dish pizza is a feast indeed. The pie comes topped with pepperoni, ham, green pepper, onion, black olives, mushrooms, sausage, beef and extra cheese. That might help explain why it also comes with 860 calories, 46 grams of fat and 17 grams of saturated fat in just two slices.

At KFC, the fried chicken seems like an obviously unhealthy choice but it's actually not the fattiest item on the menu. The Mashed Potato Bowl with Gravy contains 690 calories and 31 grams of fat, nine of them saturated.

On a hot summer day, a stop at Dairy Queen seems like the perfect treat. But watch out that you're not treating yourself to more than you bargained for. A large serving of its Caramel CheeseQuake Blizzard means spooning up a whopping 1,290 calories, with 500 of those calories coming from fat, including 39 grams of saturated fat.

If you are trying to trim your waistline down check out some of your fast food favorites before you put them down the hatch. Better yet, stay away.

September - Insights & Adventures from you!

What's happening in your world?

What is a Workout?

I received the following from a friend, don't know where it originated. Not that I believe "every" word is completely true but, I like it.

A workout is 25 percent perspiration and 75 percent determination.
Stated another way, it’s one-part physical exertion and three-parts self-discipline.
Doing it is easy, once you get started.

A workout makes you better today than you were yesterday.
It strengthens the body, relaxes the mind and toughens the spirit.
When you workout regularly, your problems seem to diminish and your confidence grows.

A workout is a personal triumph over laziness and procrastination.
It’s the badge of a winner,
the mark of an organized, goal-oriented person
who has taken charge of their destiny.

A workout is a wise use of time and an investment in excellence.
It’s a way of preparing for life’s challenges
and proving to yourself that you have what it takes to do what is necessary.

A workout is a form of rebirth.
When you finish a good workout,
you don’t simply feel better, you feel better about yourself!