My Blog Has Moved…

Hi Everyone! Just wanted to let you know I have moved my blog. Please go to this link and subscribe to my re-designed (still “under construction”) blog: Healthy Life With Max

Thanks for your support and for reading my blog!

To Your Health…

Debbie James
www.HealthyLifeWithMaxBlog.com
850-450-2000

Do You Want to be Healthier?

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a wonderful celebration. 2009 is going to be a prosperous year for us all!

Have you set your goals for 2009? What will you do to become healthier? What if you only made 1 small change per month? (It takes 21 days to make something a habit). Would that help you to reach your dream size and achieve better health ?

This Monday, Jan. 5, I will start my 2nd “90-day program”. As you can see from my results in my last post, my 1st 90-day program was a success for me. It’s been so good to be so “bad” with some of my eating. Cheesecake, potato chips & chocolate. Since these are not everyday foods for me, my body reacts very negatively. I know the consequences, and ate them anyway :-)Find what works for you and stick with it.

One of my goals for 2009 is to provide you with great information on how you can become healthier. Yes, it will require some changes from you, however, I promise they won’t be drastic. Are you willing to make a commitment to yourself? What are your goals for 2009? I’d love to hear from you!

To Your Health…

Debbie James

www.HealthyLifeWithMax.com
850.450.2000

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90-Day Update

Time sure flies. Hard to believe the holidays are upon us! Have you been pondering your 2009 goals? At the top of my list is to lose another 9 lbs. so when my Mom visits in March, my pants are to big! 🙂

That said, here is my promised 90-day update. I took about a week off in between and started my 2nd 90-day plan on December 1.

These numbers represent the total inches lost in a particular area from day 1 to day 90.

Total lbs lost – 8.4
Left upper arm – 1/4″
Right upper arm – no change
Chest – 2 1/2″
Waist – 1 1/2″
Belly – 1 3/4″
Hips – 1 3/8″
Left Thigh – 1 1/4″
Right Thigh – 1 1/4″
Left Knee – 1/4″
Right Knee – no change
Left Calf – no change
Right Calf – 1/4″

As you can imagine, I have been very excited with my results. I know there will be people out there commenting and saying they lost 20 lbs in a month, or “How I lost 20 lbs in 6 weeks”. I’m going to tell you, I don’t care…that is not a safe way to lose weight and I bet they don’t keep it off.

It has been proven if you lose weight slowly, chances are you will keep it off. So, please don’t spam me with your offers. Here’s the best part…I have NOT been hungry, I have not starved myself, I eat 5-6 times a day, I snack on healthy foods, I have a lot more energy and most importantly, I found something that works for me…the low-glycemic diet. Find what works for you and stick with it.

I am reading a book written by Dr. Ron Rosedale called “The Leptin Connection”, The key to long-term healthy weight loss”. Dr. Rosedale is an internationally renowned expert in nutritional and metabolic medicine and is a specialist in the biology of aging. He also wrote the book “The Rosedale Diet”…which is a very strict low-glycemic diet. Click HERE, and scroll half way down the page and watch an interview with Dr. Rosedale.

Listen to the expert talk about becoming healthier and not only losing weight, but losing fat.

To Your Health…

Debbie James

www.HealthyLifeWithMax.com
850.450.2000

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It’s OK If You Ate To Much…

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We all have so much to be thankful for, even in these most challenging times.

Did you overeat on Thanksgiving? I did! 🙂 I didn’t eat so much that I was uncomfortable, just more than normal at 1 sitting. And boy was it yummy! It’s the one day I don’t feel guilty. (Mom, I miss your baked spaghetti). The pecan pie was just incredible.

It’s OK to indulge every so often. If you starve yourself you won’t have energy to exercise, function and be healthy…the opposite being you over eat at every meal. This will stretch your stomach and you will need to eat more and more to feel full. When you have had enough, stop eating. No more thinking you have to eat everything on your plate. Here’s a trick…use a smaller plate. (except on Thanksgiving! lol)

We all get off track, or “fall off the wagon” and it’s OK. Don’t beat yourself up. Just don’t let it linger. With the new year around the corner (yes hard to believe), start thinking about your goals for 2009. What will you do to be healthier?

To Your Health…

Debbie James

www.HealthyLifeWithMax.com

850.450.2000

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What’s Your Excuse for Not Exercising?

You know you need to exercise more, or even you need to start exercising, but you don’t. If not, why not? We all get down and out, especially with what’s going on in the world. I really don’t watch the news very often as it’s too depressing. Anything that is so important, someone will tell me. Why watch all the negative…just makes you more negative. That’s a whole different topic (being positive, the Law of Attraction, etc., and really not for this blog. (Check out my Abundant Wealth blog for that). Sorry, back on topic…my point is this, exercise is a great way to relieve stress. It will also make you feel better, then you will start to eat better, then you will continue feel better and your attitude will change. Just get started. Go to this website and watch the short video on the right. Then come back and tell me what your excuse is for not exercising.

To Your Health…

Debbie James
www.HealthyLifeWithMax.com
850.450.2000

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Don’t Eat Fruit? You Might Want to Reconsider…

I just love eating fruit! Of course, one of my favorites is melon which is high glycemic…Have to avoid that, for now, along with bananas, while losing weight.

Fruits provide an abundance of nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, essential oils, antioxidants, fiber, and anti-inflammatory substances. Many are alkaline-forming, so they help counteract our strongly acidic diet that eats away at our bones. High levels of potassium in fruit, balance high salt diets to help prevent high blood pressure. (Remember, no bananas if you want to lose weight)! They also help manage blood sugar, regulate bowel function, and strengthen blood vessels, bones, nails, teeth, skin and hair. Humans could not survive long without healthy fruit.

Antioxidant content may be the most compelling reason for loading up on these wonderful foods. Oxidative stress from eating, illness or injury, (even the air we breathe), produces excess free radicals that damage cells and tissues. It is said that skipping antioxidants, over time, may ultimately lead to heart disease, cancer, allergies, and other inflammatory diseases. (Listen to this interview with Dr. Robert Keller, why Glutathione is our body’s MASTER ANTIOXIDANT). However, not all fruits are created equal. Fruits like blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries, grapefruit and fresh cranberry have the best antioxidant content, followed by apples, peaches, pears, plums, oranges and dates. Whole fruit is best, and some juices are acceptable, especially if they are not concentrated and NO sugar is added. Unfortunately, people are attracted to the super sweet juices and fruits like bananas, grapes and orange juice. Yet, even these are superior to most of the sweetened junk that kids are eating. (More about this in another post).

Good food means good health. So, when it comes to food, we must take health into our own hands!

Debbie James
www.HealthyLifeWithMax.com
850.450.2000

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How to Prevent or Delay Diabetes

In my last post you saw a video about people who changed their diet and their blood sugar levels came down. If that wasn’t enough evidence, the American Diabetes Association talks about how to prevent or delay diabetes.

Why would you want to be insulin dependent for the rest of your life? While a lot of “our makeup” is genetic, so much can be changed thru diet, exercise and supplements…all natural of course!

To Your Health…

Debbie James
www.HealthyLifeWithMax.com
850.450.2000

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Change Your Diet, Change Your Health

Tomorrow’s an exciting day! I’m going to be featured on SoWalScene’s website! Yippee!!! Check it out and let me know what you think.

This is truly amazing and is just additional proof about the foods you eat. I found this video on YouTube and felt it is worth sharing. Consult with a doctor before doing anything…A Natural Doctor, of course 🙂

Did you ever see the documentary Super Size Me? Director Morgan Spurlock takes a hilarious and often terrifying look at the effects of fast food on the human body. For one month, Spurlock eats nothing but McDonald’s food, ordering everything on the menu at least once and “super-sizing” his order if asked. With 2 out of 3 American’s overweight, Spurlock’s film begs the question: Where does personal responsibility end and corporate responsibility begin?

Why won’t people take their own responsibility for becoming healthier?

What are your thoughts?

To Your Health…

Debbie James
www.HealthyLifeWithMax.com
850.450.2000

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Not Just Weight Loss – Only A Name Change

It occurred to me the other day, after speaking with my mentor and good friend Tricia, that I don’t want my readers thinking all my blog is about is weight loss. I want it to be so much more….about your health. Of course, being over weight is a major health issue in today’s society…2 out of 3 Americans are over weight!

What about… Raising your energy level? Improving your focus? Strengthening your immune system? Lowering your leptin levels? Increasing your body’s production of it’s master anti-oxidant, Glutathione? Improve heart and lung function? Diet and exercise? And even slowing down the aging process!!! There is so much that is tied to your ultimate health, besides just weight loss.

In today’s society, too many doctors look at the symptoms and prescribe medication based on that. What they don’t look at, is what is causing those symptoms. I believe in doctors, and believe they are very important to us. From my own recent experience, I learned my lesson not to just listen and do what the doctor says. Get a 2nd opinion.

Here’s an example my husband, Michael, went thru: Back in 2004 Michael, got so tired after eating a meal, he had to take a nap. Obviously, something was not right. We went to a doctor, who we thought was a natural doctor, to come away with the doctor hinting Michael had diabetes. We had a cat that was on and off diabetic for years and knew just enough to know Michael did NOT have diabetes. A good friend of ours referred us to a true natural doctor in Atlanta (she has severe food allergies and this doctor helped her). After many tests, it was discovered Michael is allergic to yeast!!! He immediately changed his diet and instantly felt better. Today, if he eats something with yeast, it makes him tired. At least he knows what the cause and effect is if he eats food with yeast as one of the ingredients. Could you imagine if we went down the first path???? Did you also know that just about every American has a food allergy? (More about that in another post).

The medical industry has come so far as natural supplements go. Look at Chinese medicine…they have been successful for thousands of years. All I’m asking is to take a hard look at what is causing your symptoms vs. just treating them.

With all that said, I have decided to change the name of my blog from: Your Dream Size TO: Healthy Life With Max.

It’s about your mind, body and spirit. My good friend, Lance, says “A strong mind, makes a strong body“.

To Your Health…

Debbie James
www.HealthyLifeWithMax.com
850.450.2000

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What is Leptin?

And Why Am I Still Fat?

Fat cells produce the powerful hormone leptin, a primary force instructing metabolism, weight loss, and hormone balance. Leptin communicates directly to your brain, telling the brain how much fat is in storage. It controls appetite, energy, and metabolic rate. Leptin problems are the primary reason for food cravings, overeating, faulty metabolism, the obsession with food, and heart disease. Yikes!

So, is your brain listening to your body talking? If you’re like me, I never lose an argument with myself…except this time. My brain was NOT listening. And neither is yours…until now. It is so important to understand how all the “pieces” fit together in order to lose weight. Kind of like when all the stars are in alignment 🙂 The same is true for weight loss. Don’t expect to take a supplement(s), and eat McDonalds and chocolate sundaes everyday and lose weight. I’m sorry, it’s just not going to happen. Good food doesn’t have to taste bad! More about some of that in another post.

Check this out: The University of Minnesota picked up on a major scientific discovery back in 1994 by Jeffrey Friedman at Rockefeller University regarding a fat hormone called Leptin.

“It was discovered that leptin sends messages to the brain related to appetite and fat storage. Excessive leptin levels create a resistance so the brain sends the erroneous message to eat more food, store fat in the cells, and not release stored fat from the cells.”

The more fat we have the more Leptin we have, creating an unending cycle.

You’re probably asking yourself “so, how do I lower my Leptin levels”? Well, funny you should ask that question! I just happen to have the solution. (You just knew that was coming). All I ask is for you go to my website, www.YourDreamSize.com and listen and learn! If you have been struggling to lose weight, like me, you owe it to yourself to watch and listen. (The video at the top of the page is only 5 min 24 sec.). Then click on the link that says “MaxWLX Introduction”, watch that video, which is about 14 minutes…Just watch, listen and learn.

To Your Health…

Debbie James
www.YourDreamSize.com
850.450.2000

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