A new year, a new diet? Like most people this time of year, one of my New Year’s resolution is to lose weight. The only difference is that I am planning to start in May after the birth of my baby and some recovery time rather than start in January like everyone else. But that does not mean I am not interested in the new diet books on the shelves this month.

I am not interested in fad diets that promise you will lose 10 pounds in a week. Since it took me several months to put on the baby weight, I’m giving myself a few months to lose the baby weight.

This post is a book review on The Flex Diet by Dr. James Beckerman. The Flex Diet book caught my eye because it promises to help me design my own weight loss plan rather than just present a one-size-fits-all weight loss plan. The "200 solutions" are basically 200 tips on how to eat healthier, squeeze in more exercise throughout the day, and how to change your environment to avoid overeating. Here is a break down of the chapters in The Flex Diet.

Chapter 1: Start with a single pound

The first chapter gave a brief overview of The Flex Diet. In the Today section (chapter 2) you will spend weeks one and two trying to lose 5 pounds. Then, you will spend weeks three, four, and five trying to lose 10 pounds in the Every Day section (chapter 3). Lastly, you will spend weeks six, seven, eight, and beyond personalizing the rest of your weight loss plan in the Your Way section (chapter 4).

Chapter 2: Today

The "solutions" in this chapter emphasize the concept of mindfulness. The idea is that if you are conscious about the hundreds of lifestyle choices you make throughout the day, then you are more likely to make healthier lifestyle choices. There are 31 "solutions" in this chapter. The theory is that if you implement all 31 solutions during the first two weeks of The Flex Diet plan, you automatically lose 5 pounds.

The "solutions" in this chapter are pretty basic weight loss tips that you will find in blogs and magazines. For example, the first solution is to document the starting point of your weight loss journey by taking a photo of yourself. The second solution is to join a support group such as Weight Watchers.

However, the three most interesting "solutions" are the recommendations to take a daily multivitamin,a fish oil (omega-3), and a probiotic. For the last four years, those are the three supplements I take on a daily basis. Even during my pregnancy now I exchange the daily multivitamin for a daily prenatal vitamin.

Though there are people out there who would argue with me regularly about wasting my money on supplements, I know for a fact that the food I eat do not supply me with the recommended vitamins and minerals I need. If you eat a typical modern diet, there’s no way you’re getting enough vegetables, fruits, and healthy omega-3.

Chapter 3: Every day

Chapter 3 offers another 80 "solutions" to help you lose the next 10 pounds during the next three weeks of your Flex Diet Plan. The solutions emphasize small changes you can make when you eat, drink, exercise, daily activity level, and lifestyle choices.

The solutions under the eating category are pretty good. For example, The Flex Diet recommends you "substitute a vegetable for French fries.” I rarely eat French fries. If you look at the calorie count on a box of French fries then you’ll know that they always have just as much calories as the burger. Just by not eating French fries, you cut half your calories when eating a hamburger meal. I know the price difference between ordering a burger and a drink versus a value meal (which includes a burger, a drink, and a side of fries) is less than a dollar sometimes. And I know we are all bargain hunters. But is it really a bargain to eat another 400 to 500 calories?

The solutions under the drink category basically empathize cutting out the sugary and energy drinks.

The solution under the exercise category emphasize exercises such push-up, chest flies, lateral raises, bent over rows, dips, curls, squats, calf raises, etc. These are basic exercises that you should in an exercise routine.

The solutions under the act category (daily activity level) include taking the stairs and walking as much as possible (i.e. during breaks, after dinner, with your dog).

The solution under the live category (lifestyle choices) include better grocery shopping tips, reading food labels, splitting your meals in half when eating at a restaurant, etc.

Chapter 4: Your way

This chapter offers another 80+ solution to help personalize your Flex Diet plan. The solutions are also divided into the five categories mentioned in chapter 3. Once again these weight loss solutions are not earth shattering, but practical advice that we all forget when living our busy lives. In this chapter, The Flex Diet recommends that you develop at least 10 new lifestyle habits based on the 80+ solutions.

The one solution that I have a problem with in this chapter is "use hand weights while you walk." When walking, hand weights and ankle weights can throw off your stride and lead to walking injuries. If you want to add more intensity to your walk, you’re better off walking faster, walking up an incline, or using a weighted vest.

The most amusing solution in this chapter is "turn off the food channel." I have a friend who watches the food channel every day. She’s not much of a cook. But she is overweight. I believe that watching all this yummy food preparation and the commercials making her snack more often between meals.

Chapter 5: If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem

This chapter in The Flex Diet discusses healthy weight ranges and some of the medical complications associated with obesity.

Chapter 6: When solutions are not enough

This brief chapter in The Flex Diet offers a brief discussion on using medical treatment and surgical treatment for obesity.

Chapter 7: What’s your solution?

This chapter on The Flex Diet returns to the idea of your mindset. Before you can lose weight, the idea of trying to get healthier has to come from you first. Remember when I talked about the secret ingredient to exercise motivation? The motivation has to come from you. External forces such as a nagging spouse or a dreaded diagnosis from your doctor are not going to make you put in the effort to lose weight unless you really want to.

Should you read The Flex Diet?

The Flex Diet offers some really practical advice on how to start your own weight loss journey. There are no gimmicks or extreme cutting of calories, carbs, fat, etc. I highly recommend this book for anyone trying to find small steps in changing their lifestyle.

Will you actually lose 5 pounds during the first two weeks and 10 pounds during next three weeks when following the "solutions" in The Flex Diet? Depending on how much weight you need to lose and how sedentary you are, it is possible to lose the weight since the "solutions" ask you to cut out sugary drinks, include some physical activity, and small lifestyle changes. For someone who regularly exercise, eat sensibly, and only have a small amount of weight to lose, I would not see this kind of weight loss from just following the weight loss tips in The Flex Diet.

The only thing I find disappointing about The Flex Diet is the bare minimum coverage of exercise. For the majority of people, making changes to your diet will have the greatest impact on your weight. However, I believe that once you start exercising regularly you will notice a positive paradigm shift in how view your health and weight loss. If you want to include exercise into your Flex Diet weight-loss plan, I recommend you read the New Rules of the Lifting for Women.

Ready to buy The Flex Diet?

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This post is a review of the voice to text software called Dragon Naturally Speaking.

I’m sure that my regular readers notice a decrease in my blogging frequency in the last couple of months.  One of the symptoms that I developed early on from my pregnancy is mild carpal tunnel on my right wrist.  Since I make my living from my day job, it was easier (though less satisfying) to reduce the amount of typing I do by decreasing the posting frequency on this blog.

Recently I purchase a copy of the voice to text software called Dragon Naturally Speaking.  I’ve used Dragon Naturally Speaking before (it was probably version 4.0 or something like that) years ago.  I was not impressed with the voice to text software then.  A few people had positive mentions of the new version of Dragon Naturally Speaking in a forum that I frequented, so I decided it wouldn’t hurt to take this new version for a test drive.  I didn’t want to lose the growth momentum on my site since Google upgraded my site to a PR4 because I couldn’t type from an aching wrist.

What is Dragon Naturally Speaking?

Dragon Naturally Speaking is a voice to text software.  Basically I talk into a microphone headset and the software converts my voice to text on whatever program I want.  For blogging, I usually use Microsoft Word.  The voice to text software works on WordPad, Notepad, or even on a web browser (anywhere you can write text).

When the software is loaded, it adds a menu bar to your desktop screen (in my case, the menu bar is on the top of my screen).  Once the microphone headset is activated, I can tell the software to “open Microsoft Word.” Once Microsoft Word is loaded, then I just start talking.

The voice to text software converts my speech to text on the screen.  I just need to remember to tell Dragon Naturally Speaking to add punctuation marks in my sentences such as “add comma” or “add period” after a pause in my sentence.  If I do not pause, the Dragon software assumes the “add comma” phase is part of the text for my sentence and will actually type those two words.

I purchased Dragon Naturally Speaking Home edition. Though it is not have all the fancy bells and whistles of the other editions, it is sufficient for my needs (i.e. blogging) and it is also the cheapest edition.

How accurate is the voice to text software at voice recognition?

The packaging claims that the Dragon software is 90% accurate out of the box.  When I tried using the voice to text software out of the box, it was not as accurate as it claims to be (probably about 60%).  However, after two training sessions with the Dragon software, the accuracy rate went up to about 80%.  You “train” Dragon Naturally Speaking by reading text in training mode so that the software can learn to recognize your voice and speech patterns.

In addition, as I use the Dragon software more often (my last few posts are written using Dragon Naturally Speaking), the voice recognition accuracy rate improves.  After writing three 1000 word postings and four training sessions, the software is close to giving me a 90% accuracy rate.

Factors that probably contributed to my initial low accuracy rate with the Dragon software are:

English is my second language.

Thought I do not have a noticeable accent, there are a few words that I have difficulty pronouncing.  In this situation, I use the “spell” command and spell out the word.  After a few attempts at spelling the same word, Dragon “magically” learns to recognize that is how I pronounce that particular problem word. And from then on, I usually do not have problems with the word.

I talk too fast.

When I slow down my speech pattern and pronounce each word concisely, the voice to text software has no problems.  But when I talk too fast, which I tend to do when excited, Dragon has some difficulty with figuring out when one word ends and the next word begins.  You need to be able to talk in a calm and normal voice in order to improve your voice recognition accuracy.

I am using the cheap microphone headset included with the software.

From what I could find on the Internet, higher quality microphone headsets are better at distinguishing speech and background noises. If I really want to improve the voice recognition accuracy, I could spend a little bit more money to purchase a higher quality microphone headset. However, the included cheap microphone headset is sufficient for my needs and I don’t want to spend any more money.

Who should buy Dragon Naturally Speaking?

Obviously, if you are someone like me with some carpal tunnel symptoms, you would find this voice to text software helpful with your writing.  The Dragon software is also beneficial if you are generating a lot of writing (ie. writer, blogger, etc).  I notice that I “write” faster since using the software.

However, if you do not spend a lot of time writing, Dragon Naturally Speaking might be something nice to have, but not something that significantly improve your productivity.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.

Ready to buy Dragon Naturally Speaking?

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This post is a review of the Melt it Off program by Olympic gold medalist Mitch Gaylord.  I received a free copy of the exercise program for this review.

What is included in the exercise program?

The package I received included a 2 pound G-ball (exercise ball about 8 inches in diameter), 1 CD case with 2 dvds (CD 1 includes the workouts and CD 2 is a motivational CD), a measuring tape, and some booklets about the exercise program.

Burn and Sculpt is approximately 45 minutes long.  The only equipment you need is the G-ball.  The exercises focus mainly on body weight exercises such as squats, lunges, pushups while holding the G-ball.

High Calorie Melt is approximately 60 minutes long with alternating intervals of higher and lower intensity.  Sizzling Abs is 23 minutes long.

There are two 7-day meal plans included with the exercise program – one for women and one for men.  It appears that the plan is exactly the same, except for the higher protein listed in the men’s meal plan.  The difference is approximately 1 or 2 oz of extra protein each day for the men.  Not being a nutritionist, but this in inline with some of the other nutritional stuff I read.

The exercise program schedule

Please note that I did not follow the schedule for the 1 month period for this review.  I only used the exercise dvds for one week.

What I like about the Melt if Off program

Melt it Off gets your heart rate up for both the strength and cardio portions.  It is more of an aerobic weight training style of exercise program where you use light weights to do many reps in a set.  It mostly uses a 1-2 count for each rep which helps keep your heart rate up.

Aerobic weight training will generally work well for people trying to lose weight because you are burning a lot more calories during the strength training when you are using lighter weights for 16-20 reps for 2-3 sets compare to using heavier weight for 8-10 reps for 1-2 sets.

The exercises are very interesting, different from your typical exercise dvd program.  You are still doing lunges, but you are passing the G-ball between your legs (think basketball drills).  It is a little challenging for me because I am still trying to master the hand-eye spatial coordination thing (I have a tendency to trip over my own feet and bump into walls and furniture.  It is embarrassing.  But I am a natural klutz).

What I dislike about the exercise program

There are not enough modifications for the true beginner in this exercise program.  It does not show low impact options for jumping jacks or doing pushups on the floor while the instructor is doing pushups on the G-ball.  The instructor talked about modifications, but without an actual exerciser doing the modifications, it would be hard for a beginner to understand what to do.

Another thing that I dislike is that some of the exercise require more than the basic hand, feet, and eye coordination.  In one exercise, you are supposed to jump over the G-ball with the inner leg tapping the ball when you land.  The instructor did warn the audience to pay attention to the ball when jumping.  Well, the ball started rolling and I landed flat on my butt.  After the second attempt and a throbbing ankle, I just jump over an “invincible ball.”  And of course, the exercise dvd does not show any modifications for this.

Who should buy the Melt it Off exercise program

Melt it Off is not a beginner exercise program.  It is more of a beginner/intermediate exercise program.  If you have exercised in the past, this might be a fun program to get back into the swing of things again.  It has some really interesting sport drills that my husband likes, but does not appeal to me (it’s the klutz thing).  So this is a mix review – yes I like it, but it is not my cup of tea.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.

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I want to spend some time on this post talking about serotonin and its impact on your hunger before starting with the Serotonin Power Diet book review. 

Your body is an amazing machine.  There are so many checks and balances regulating your hunger from hormones like leptin to brain chemicals like serotonin.  But it is also a slow bloated bureaucratic machine that takes months, if not years, to bring itself back into balance.

What is Serotonin?

Serotonin is a brain chemical that suppresses your appetite and makes you happy (it is your body’s natural Prozac).  There is a reason why happy people tend to have fewer problems with addiction.  In a previous post about sugar addiction, I mentioned that children or grandchildren of alcoholics tend to have lower levels of serotonin.  People on anti –depressants tend to have extreme low serotonin levels.

Serotonin Power Diet

This diet is based upon the idea that if you eat more serotonin boosting foods, then you can naturally increase your serotonin level.  Unlike the Atkins diet (which I absolutely hate!), this diet tells us to bring carbs back.

What does carbs have to do with serotonin?  I notice that when I eat a potato or a muffin, I tend to feel a little happier than if I have eaten a steak.  I always thought this correlation is because of my Asian decent (I love rice!).  According to the Serotonin Power Diet book, eating carbs allow more tryptophan (an amino acid) to pass through the membrane of your brain.  And tryptophan is a key building block of serotonin.

Not to say that tryptophan is not available when you eat protein.  Protein has much more amino acids than carbs.  Imagine a door way.  When you eat protein, there are approximately 20 amino acids shoving each other trying to squeeze through the doorway at the same time to get to the brain.  With this kind of crowd, less tryptophan gets through when you eat a protein.  But when you eat a carbohydrate, there are less amino acids available so it is easier for tryptophan to stroll through the doorway to increase your serotonin.

Chapters in the Serotonin Power Diet

Here is a quick summary of the chapters in the book.  I did not comment on the chapters that have self explanatory titles.

Chapter 1:  Solving the carbohydrate riddle

A more detailed explanation of the serotonin and carbohydrate connection that what I mentioned above.

Chapter 2:  Appetite, Hunger, and Eating Triggers

3 short quizzes to see if you are eating due to hunger or due to low serotonin

Chapter 3:  If you want to change your weight, you have to change your mind, too

Some strategies to help with overeating and the importance of changing your mindset about weight loss. 

Chapter 4:  Before you begin

Some planning tips to make sure you succeed with the serotonin diet.  Ideas include lining up your cheerleading squad and getting rid of temptations in the home.

Chapter 5:  Snack your way to serotonin power

A whole chapter on types of snacks, when to eat the snacks, and the amount of snacking you do in each phase of the serotonin diet.  In phase 1, you get to eat 3 carb snacks per day.  In phase 2, you get to eat 2 carb snacks per day.  In phase 3, you get to eat 1 carb snack per day.

Chapter 6:  The Serotonin Power Diet

The serotonin diet consists of 3 phases.  Phase 1 (Serotonin Surge) is 2 weeks long.  The goal is to load your body with more carbs than you have been eating to get you off the low serotonin wagon.  Phase 2 (Serotonin Balance) is 6 weeks long.  Phase 3 (Serotonin Control) starts on the 9^th week.

You eat the same breakfast for all 3 phases.  Here is a quick summary of the diet plan:

Phase 1:  3 snack/day.  Lunch is the main protein meal.  Dinner is a mix of complex carbs and vegetables.

Phase 2:  2 snack/day.  Lunch is the same as Phase 1.  Add some protein for dinner, no more than 80-100 calories (about 2 ounces for women).

Phase 3:  1 snack/day.  Lunch and dinner are the same.  Add 2 cups of vegetables to lunch and dinner.

If you are lifting weights, I think you might need more protein than the amount the diet is telling you to eat.

Chapter 7:  Change your body

This chapter discusses the importance of exercise and the different types you would need (strength, aerobic, and flexibility).

Chapter 8:  Now what do I do?

This chapter offers some guidelines on how to follow the serotonin diet while eating out at restaurants (includes some suggestions for eating ethnic food that I think are good).

Chapter 9:  The 12-week guide

Chapter 10:  Troubleshooting

Chapter 11:  Maintaining your weight loss

Chapter12:  The kitchen list for a meal in minutes

Chapter 13:  Basic meals and quick kitchen tricks

Chapter 14:  Recipes

Is the Serotonin Power Diet worth reading?

I think this book might be worth reading, especially if you are a fan of Atkins.  One of my bowling teammate has been on and off Atkins for the last two years.  He keeps gaining and losing the same 12 pounds (probably from his low serotonin level from eating mostly protein).  In his mind, he thinks Atkins is the solution.  I don’t think eliminating an entire food group is a solution to permanent weight loss. 

The eating plan is not too outrageous; it is not advocating that you eat only carbs and eliminate protein.  I am not sure I agree with the idea of eating most of your protein for breakfast and lunch and going more carb heavy for dinner.  And the idea of picking snacks that have less than 4 grams of protein to boost your serotonin level contradicts the idea of eating a snack with protein to stay satisfied longer.  But the Serotonin Power Diet does provide some interesting arguments on why carbs are an important component of a balanced diet.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by.

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This post is a review of Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred exercise dvd.

I am not a fan of Jillian Michaels.  She is probably a nice person in real life, but her celebrity persona on The Biggest Loser is a big turn off for me.  However, after reading a few positive posts on the Video Fitness Forums before the holidays about her 30 Day Shred exercise dvd, I finally decided to give to add it to my Netflix queue.

Jillian Michaels workout

There are 3 27-minute workouts in the exercise dvd – Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3.  Each level gets progressively harder.  The idea of each workout is that you do three circuits of strength and cardio.  In each circuit you do 3 minutes of strength training, 2 minutes of cardio, and 1 minute of abs.

You will need some dumbbells (I recommend a light set and a heavier set) and a mat.  I was lifting 15 pounds for my heaviest set in the Push phase in ChaLean Extreme, but my heaviest set for 30 Day Shred is 5 pounds. You are doing more reps in each set at a faster pace (aerobic weight training philosophy), so you will need a lighter set of dumbbells

The strength training exercises are mostly a combination of lower body (usually a squat, lunge, or plie) and upper body at the same time.  The 2 minutes of cardio are high impact like jumping jacks, jogging in place, jump rope, etc.  These two segments push your heart rate up while the 1 minute of abs gives you a chance to lower your heart rate.

Jillian Michaels workout delivers its promise of losing 20 pounds in 30 days?

30 Day Shred claims that you can lose 20 pounds in 30 days if you use the exercise dvd everyday and eat a healthy diet.  I have been using 30 Day Shred 3-4 times a week for the last three weeks.  I usually do Level 1 on Monday, Level 2 on Wednesday, and Level 3 on Friday.  I used ChaLean Extreme cardio dvds for Tuesday and Thursday.  Saturday I go walking with my husband when the weather is good.  Sorry readers, I don’t have any before and after photos of myself.

But here are some before and after pictures of other bloggers using the exercise dvd:  Kristen after 10 days and Christina after 22 days.  The results from the other bloggers are pretty amazing.

My results?  They are a little short on the amazing side.  I still feel mildly sore the next day after using 30 Day Shred, but I have not seen the shrinking inches other bloggers are raving about.  I think the reason is that I lift weights regularly before using this exercise dvd.  I believe the extreme muscle soreness some bloggers experience with 30 Day Shred is because they do not lift weights regularly.  Their painful descriptions are on par with how I was feeling when I first started exercising 5 years ago.

What I dislike about Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred

I think the cool down is a little short, but you can easily remedy that by stretching a little more on your own.  I personally do not think it is a good idea to workout every day using 30 Day Shred.  If you are sedentary, there might be chances that you can injury yourself (repetitive motion injury).

In addition, all the cardio are high impact with lots of jumping.  With my lower back issues and torn hip labrum, I find that I have to modify some of the cardio.  The exercisers on the exercise dvd do not show how you can modify the cardio at home.

Who should buy 30 Day Shred?

I think 30 Day Shred is a challenging exercise dvd for everyone.  As a beginner, you always have the option of doing all the strength exercises with dumbbells or using very light dumbbells (1 pound or less).  You can always hold a bottle of water or a can of soup in each hand to start if you cannot find dumbbells light enough.  However, if I have to put this exercise dvd in a category, I would say it is a beginner/immediate level.

Advance exercisers will like the challenge of upper and lower body moves.  Since the exercise dvd alternates between strength and cardio, it keeps the workout interesting.  The time passes by pretty fast.  I am surprise that I like this exercise dvd since I generally do not like Jillian Michaels workouts.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.

Ready to try Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred?

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