Fast Food Lovers Diet

If you've seen the movie Supersize Me, where Morgan Spurlock follows a 30 day diet of eating only McDonald's food, you watched as he gained 24 and 1/2 pounds, a dangerous cholesterol level of 230 and fat accumulation in his liver.  It was fascinating to watch, but only offered a one sided view.  Obviously, if you just eat junk food every day, no matter what fast food establishment you choose, your body will react. He also didn't exercise  the entire time which contributed to his weight gain.  That being said, no amount of exercise in the world can protect your body from a constant diet of saturated fats.  To remain functionally fit we need to practice good diet and  get out there and move.  So what do you do when you find yourself at McDonalds?  Here's a healthy choice menu to make it easier for you to decide.  I wonder what would have happened if Spurlock ate the healthy options and exercised 6 days a week.  Now that would be interesting to see.

McDonalds Fast Food Healthy Choices Menu

 

Premium Grilled   8 oz

Chicken Classic   (226 g) 420 calories

Sandwich              10 Grams of Fat

Snack  Wrap ®      4.3 oz  (With no dressing)

 (Grilled)               270 Calories

                              10 grams of Fat

Premium                  12.3 oz

Southwest Salad      320 Calories

with Grilled             9 Grams of Fat

Chicken

Premium Caesar      11 oz

Salad with Grilled   220 Calories

Chicken                   6 Grams of Fat

Snack Size Fruit   1 Package

& Walnut Salad    210 Calories

                               8 grams of fat

Newman's Own®  1.5 oz

Low Fat Balsamic  40 Calories

Vinaigrette              3 grams of Fat

Live Longer Through Cardiovascular Health

Aching muscles, heavy breathing, sweat poring off you. You ask yourself, "how will I get through this"? It's the sacrifice needed to stay healthy, strong and functional. When you really think about it, it's no different than any other kind of work. Getting up early, into the office, meetings at 8AM, paperwork to complete, staff to discipline, inventory to check, budgets to keep. How will I get through this? You did it and you did it well. You might be retired now and all the effort paid off. Your life is more secure because you decided to sacrifice and achieve goals. 

This weeks Motivational Moment

Life can be pulled by goals just as surely as it can be pushed by drives.
Viktor Frankl

If you are fit enough to run or jog, continue to do so but make sure you have supportive shoes. If not, get up and go for a walk. Now, I don't mean a gentle stroll to take in the evening air. I mean a power walk. Get your breathing up, take big steps at a brisk pace and swing your arms. Some controllable hand weights would be a good idea too. Wear good fitting shoes with shock absorbing soles.  Start around the block, then around the neighborhood and then just keep walking around. Your body loves oxygen. The more you take in the healthier you get. Your heart is a muscle. When you put it to work it gets larger and stronger just like a bicep when lifting weights. This makes it pump more blood that's full of oxygen through your body even when you are at rest. Sweat releases toxins from the body and acts as a natural coolant.  A big glass of cool water before and after a walk helps to keep you properly hydrated.

Why walk? Every person over 90 is always asked, "How'd you do it"? And every person over 90 responds, "I kept moving, kept working and didn't smoke and drink myself into oblivion. That's it". Your body is a biological machine. If you let it sit around for years unused and neglected, then try to start it up it's going to cough, wheeze, sputter and come to grinding halt. But if you work it, maintain it, nourish it with premium fuels, it will stand the test of time. 

Healthiest blessings,

Suzanne Andrews 

Secrets to Affordable Aging Revealed

With sky-rising healthcare costs, the cost of aging is steadily climbing .  It seems the more we make, the cost of everything continues to increase.   As a result, medical bills have the power to eliminate most of the money we put away for other things, like vacations or gifts for the grandkids. So, what do you do?

According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute a man who retires at 65 can expect to live until 83. He will need to have around $65k to $109k in those years to cover insurance premiums and out of pocket expenses. That works out to $270 to $450 a month.

For women, the EBRI says retiring at 65 and living until 85 will mean she’ll need $88k to $146k for insurance premiums and out of pocket expenses which works out to $366 to $608 a month.  Both men and women will need these amounts on hand to provide a 50% chance of having enough to cover these expenses. If you’re getting $1000 a month from Social Security these costs will eat up about 25% to 60% of those payments alone.

If you have managed to secure a considerable nest egg, good for you. If you haven’t, it might be time get some part time work. Besides, retirement is boring. You know, all that rest and relaxation gets old pretty quick.

Here’s a novel idea that can save you money on healthcare costs.   Stay out of the health care merry-go-round as best you can.  And just how do you do that? Start an exercise program geared towards your needs, abilities or limitations. That means if you’re in a wheelchair seek seated exercise programs. If your knees are gone, ride a bike or do some gentle exercise programs.  If you have asthma, don’t take up hiking in the mountains.  Start slow and take walks around the neighborhood. It’s important to find something you enjoy because you’re more likely to do it. The more you do it the healthier you get. If you have arthritis, do an exercise program especially for arthritis and limber up your joints and muscles.

You needn’t strive to be an athlete.  If you are just getting started, exercise will make you healthier.  You’ll have stronger muscles to lift things, denser bones to absorb shock from falls and a stronger heart to pump more blood and oxygen to all the organs in your body which makes them all work better. Pills, sometimes necessary, are not always an easy fix and can cause many undesirable side effects and mask the symptoms.   Exercise can eliminate the cause. There are countless examples of people who were taking a dozen pills a day that went down to 2, 3 or none a day because of regular exercise.

The healthier you are, the less likely it is you will have to employ the skills and costs of doctors, nurses, therapists and pharmacists for whatever ails you. They worked long and hard to acquire those skills and they can’t afford to work cheap.  Plan for your health now instead of being a patient for your health care plan.