Red's Health Tips

It was a busy day today at Myron Golden’s Six Figure Business School.  Later this afternoon I spoke for approximately an hour on weight loss and improving your health to over two dozen new entrepreneurs.  I believe things went well – lots of questions after the presentation and during the subsequent break.

On the road I must tackle the restaurant food option for daily sustenance.  I like fast foods, most burgers and chicken.  I had some seafood gumbo today for lunch with a small slice of garlic bread and iced tea.  Normally this would have been my first meal of the day.  I am not usually hungry when I awaken.  I drink lots of water and iced tea through out the morning hours and then transition to lunch with something substantial. 

However, this morning I had a breakfast (fast food – eggs and bacon) with iced tea.  I didn’t expect to be hungry for lunch, but I was.  So, I ate.  The seminar broke up around 1900 and I packed up the car and headed back to Houston.  I stopped in Baton Rouge for a fast burger and got back on the road again.  It was after 0200 when I got home.

I was not able to hydrate the way I normally would at home.  I sit in a seminar and take notes.  Most of the sessions are an hour and a half followed by a ten to fifteen minute break.  I don’t have access to iced tea in the hotel and the other options (other than water) are not appealing.  So, I suffered a little from my normal routine.

The foods were adequate to stem my hunger, but not what I would call nutritionally balanced.  I had my nutritional supplements and fiber with me and took them after each meal.  Other than hydration issues, the trip was a success lifestyle-wise.  I had little carbohydrates, a modicum of fats and a reasonable amount of protein.

On the return trip, my friend, Vince Vecchioni discussed a myriad of subjects.  We are both Toastmasters and we began with a critique (evaluation) of my speech.  I got some really good feedback from him.  During the seminar I got an invitation to speak on diets at a seminar in Houston next weekend.  I will incorporate some of those critiques suggested by Vince in my next speech.

One of the topics we discussed was the Atkins Diet.  I was on the Atkins Diet for nearly five years.  I lost fifty plus pounds in five months and kept it off for over six years.  I mentioned in my book that low carbohydrate meals can lead to calcium being leached from your bones if you don’t supplement calcium on a daily basis.  Vince asked me if I were on the Atkins Diet as part of my 28-day program.  I told him that I plan to eat around 50 grams of carbohydrates daily.  Some days I eat more and some days I eat less, but the average is around 50.

Is 50 grams a good number for you?  I don’t know.  I picked 50 grams because I can eat a lot of foods and enjoy my food options without having sugar spikes at any one meal.  I am trying to burn fat.  Therefore, I need to eat fewer carbohydrates and get into the fat-burning mode as often as I can.  I lost two inches in my waist in the first two weeks and want to continue that trend.

I told Vince that I will continue my present eating pattern to see where it takes me.  I am aiming for 165-175 lb-range.  Will the 50 grams of carbohydrates allow me to get to that range?  We’ll see in the future.  If I plateau out before arriving there, then I will reduce my caloric intake a bit more.  If I blast through it, I will add a few more carbs to my daily intake.  I know that less than twenty grams of carbohydrates a day kept me in the 150’s without any effort.

Carbohydrates are key to burning fat.  The less carbohydrates that you eat; the less insulin will be secreted.  You will enter the fat burning phase earlier and stay there longer.  You must ensure that you maintain your nutrition (vitamins and minerals) every day.  If you have insulin resistance, then it is even more critical.  Many of those nutrients can help you counter the effects of insulin resistance.

If I had another out of town seminar to go to in the near future, what would I do differently?  I have given than some thought.  On trips to Florida we usually bring a small ice chest with foods that we enjoy eating.  I think I would consider bringing a small ice chest and stocking it with foods to supplement an out of town lifestyle.  I brought the bare minimum vitamins and minerals because I was only gone for two days.  I would have to consider bringing just a few more on the next trip.  I brought two kinds of soluble fiber with me.  I would bring my other fiber with me to have better choices.

Fiber is critical on any kind of low carbohydrate diet or lifestyle.  I learned the hard way – no pun intended – that fiber is my friend when I eat of lot of protein and little carbohydrates.  When I have the time, I take my fiber a half-hour before I eat.  However, eating out of town doesn’t always give you that option.  Invest in two or three types of soluble fiber without any artificial colorings or artificial flavors.  Part of your new lifestyle is to minimize the toxins associated with the food industry.

Red O’Laughlin

Your Prosperity Professor

281-437-8114 H/W  281-687-1188 C