Most of my blogs are based off of current research or are responses to questions asked by people in and outside of the Kindred Community.   For today, though, let’s change it up a bit and discuss constraints or obstacles I see in my current practice. My clients are very motivated and for the most part are very successful but when analyzing each client there are specific culprits that challenge every client’s success.   I figured if it’s happening within the Kindred Community it's most likely happening outside of it. Let's discuss the white elephant in the room, shall we? 1.          Foregoing the food diary : Let’s face it.   Keeping a food diary is a complete drag.   It’s time consuming and it holds you accountable to all those little morsels you drank or ate that are easily forgotten.   Unfortunately, this is exactly why I recommend keeping a food diary.   You can’t get to where you want to go without knowing where ...

A study published in Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism this week concluded that obese people who are otherwise considered healthy, live as long as their “skinny” peers.    The study also suggests that healthy obese individuals are less likely to die from cardiovascular complications than their lean counterparts. I silently laughed as the media got a hold of this study with titles such as, “Fat and Healthy? Study finds Slim isn’t always Superior ”, or “Being fat isn’t a death sentence at all”, or my favorite “Obesity Police busted? Study says fat people can be healthy.” The study monitored 6,000 obese Americans over 16 years and compared them to the death rate of lean individuals.   Once compared, the conclusion was found that the mortality rate of obese individuals who had none or minor co-morbidities were no higher than that of lean people. CBS interviewed Dr. Kulk who stated "I think this is a common notion, that if you are overweight you are unh...

As Sarah continues to make her way to progress to recovery from Anorexia, she has found it helpful to express her thoughts and feelings by writing guest blog posts.  If you've ever known anyone who struggles with Anorexia, have struggled with eating disorders in the past, or just want to educate yourself some more read below.  We are all cheering for Sarah as she works her way to recovery. One of the hardest things for me to do is to come out of hiding. To stop hiding what I do not eat, stop hiding behind clothing, to not hide my emotions, and most of all to not hide the fact that yes I do indeed have an eating disorder. The biggest step for anyone with an eating disorder to take is to admit they have a problem and to seek help.   For me, it took almost 22 years.   There are days when I wish I would never have opened my mouth as it was so much easier to hide. Coming out of hiding means confiding in friends and family and let me tell you, in my situation...

I just love when I get questions or blog ideas from my Kindred Community and have to give my husband kudos for forwarding this study to me and asking me what I think.   Today a study was mentioned on Yahoo titled “Healthy Eating Privilege of the Rich?”   The study focuses on the food pyramid changes in 2010 recommending an increase in consumption of potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin D, and calcium rich foods.   Two thousand individuals in the state of Washington participated in a telephone survey which then led to the request for a printed survey to be completed.   Only 1300 of the printed surveys were returned.   The information provided in this article states that the printed survey focused on food eaten.   Nutrients were then analyzed and estimated in cost.   Conclusions from this study state that the more money spent on food, the closer the people were to meeting the food pyramid guidelines of potassium, dietary fiber, vitamin D, and calcium ...

I was wondering what we’d start seeing as the National Calorie Labeling Law comes into effect and I have to say I’ve been quite impressed with multiple restaurants attempting reformulations or portion size changes.   For instance, this week I read that the Cheesecake Factory is going to create a Skinnylicious menu where entrees would be less than 590 calories.   Of course I love this idea, the name not so much.   Of all the changes I’ve seen so far, McDonalds seems to have the most in depth plan to date.   On July 26, 2011, the President of McDonalds announced the following commitment to offer improved nutrition choices.   1)         To automatically include produce or low fat dairy products in happy meals by the end of Q1 2012.   This will provide a 20% reduction in calories. 2)         To reduce added sugars, saturated fat and calories by 2020 and reduce sodium by 15% by the year 2015...