Sunday, October 31, 2021

8 Fun and Healthy Ideas to Celebrate Halloween Season

Halloween doesn’t have to be all about candy. In fact, if you’re trying to slim down, it shouldn’t be about candy at all. This year, let it be about family fun. Here are eight healthy Halloween ideas to boost the holiday fun factor, most of which have zero calories!

1. Up your jack-o’-lantern game.

Pumpkin carving jack o’lanterns into faces from spooky to goofy

While triangle eyes and nose and fanged grin are the classic pumpkin carving go-to, keep your hands a little busier this year (and less likely to dip into the candy) with something a little more, well, spooktacular. Head to the internet to get some fun pumpkin carving Halloween ideas. Buy or download free pumpkin stencils that will make your jack-o’-lanterns the talk of the neighborhood. You’ll be surprised how easy it is to create a spooky zombie face, a witch on a broomstick, a hooting owl or a Day of the Dead Mexican skull, even if you have zero artistic talent. Invest in a pumpkin carving kit that contains tools to make it easier. It’s so satisfying and fun, you may not stop!

2. Make a scary entrance.

Get creative decorating your front door or porch for Halloween

There are some easy peasy ways to decorate your front porch or walkway to make Halloween an extra supernatural experience for trick-or-treaters. If you have a cast iron Dutch oven, add some dry ice to water which will turn it into a bubbling cauldron. Invest in some fake spider webs and spiders to cover shrubs or trees to greet visitors as they walk up to your door. You can even make spiders out of black balloons—small one for the head, larger one for the body, tied together, with black pipe cleaners for legs. Dangle them from your porch. Use a couple of bales of hay as an outdoor table if you want your trick or treaters to serve themselves. Use faux spider webbing as your “tablecloth,” and group your pumpkins, carved and otherwise, around the base. Don’t forget a few white plastic bag “ghosts” for good measure.

20 Easy and Healthy Homemade Halloween Candy Recipes

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3. Plan a bonfire.

Gather round the bonfire for a classic fall favorite

With the arrival of chilly fall air, now may be the perfect time to invest in a little backyard firepit to cozy up next to on weekend evenings. You, your family and friends can gather to roast marshmallows (less than 100 calories for four regular sized marshmallows!) and tell your best scary ghost stories. It could become a family or neighborhood tradition.

4. Bob for apples.

Bob for apples with your family for a goofy good time

This used to be the funniest party game before designers Chuck Foley and Neil Rabens invented Twister. Contestants would kneel in front of a large container of water filled with floating apples. The object of the game? Grab an apple . . . with your teeth! Try to do it without laughing (not possible) or getting wet (sooo not possible). Given the pandemic, it’s probably not appropriate for a general Halloween party, but it can be a hilarious family activity for those in your household. Don’t forget to eat the apples!

5. Talk to the hands.

Find crafty ways to make spooky illusions for Halloween

A great (and delicious) activity to do with kids is to make spooky Halloween Popcorn Hands. All you need are four cups of air-popped or light popcorn, three disposable gloves (food contact gloves which contain no powder and are Latex free) and 15 candy corn pieces. Drop the candy corn into each finger of the gloves (yep, those are finger nails). Then stuff the popcorn into each finger and also fill up the glove. Tie the end of the gloves. These decorative treats count as two Extras on the Nutrisystem plan.

Your Ultimate Halloween Survival Guide

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6. Make some diet-friendly chocolate apples.

Chocolate apples are a treat that can be made healthy

Everyone in the family will love these sweet treats. You’ll love the fact that you can easily make them Nutrisystem-friendly! Prepare regular chocolate apples for the fam and whip up a lightened-up version for yourself. Instead of using regular chocolate or caramel, swap in a bag of Nutrisystem NutriChocolaty Wafers. These bite-sized morsels have the delicious flavor of chocolate and rich cocoa with just a hint of caramel. With this hack, your apple “indulgence” counts as only one Nutrisystem Snack, one PowerFuel and one SmartCarb.

For each chocolate apple, simply melt a bag of NutriChocolaty Wafers, insert a popsicle stick into the core of a medium apple, dip the apple in the melted chocolate, then roll in two Tablespoons of crushed peanuts. Set on parchment paper until the chocolate hardens. To download a free printable recipe books with this recipe and 11 other healthy Halloween ideas, click here! >

7. Plan a scary movie night.

Curl up together for a scary movie night at home

If you have an all-adult household, you can have a movie night and hold a “Halloween” marathon—the movie series, “Halloween” that is. Other top horror flicks according to Rotten Tomatoes, the movie rating site, include “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” “The Ring,” “Candyman,” “Scream” and “House on Haunted Hill.” If you like a little humor with your scary, consider “Shaun of the Dead,” “Black Sheep” or “Tremors.” Some class acting? “Rosemary’s Baby” and “The Shining” are standouts. Anything Stephen King. Kiddies on board? Think about “Frankenweenie,” “The Little Vampire,” “The Addams Family,” “The House with a Clock in Its Walls” or “Coraline.” The whole family will enjoy “Beetlejuice.”

8. Go on a hay ride.

Get outside at a local farm for a fall hayride

Many farms and nature centers have Halloween hayrides. Some are “haunted” by human and animatronic ghosts and zombies for those who love a good fright. Others are mellow and simply take you for a ride through the fields balanced on a hay bale. Some farms also have corn mazes that can keep you twisting and turning for close to an hour, plus farm animals to pet, pumpkins to pick and apple cider to drink. You can even take a trip to a local sunflower field for plenty of photo ops!

Looking for more healthy and fun ideas to celebrate Halloween? Click the link below!:

5 Fun Fall Activities to Burn Major Calories

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The post 8 Fun and Healthy Ideas to Celebrate Halloween Season appeared first on The Leaf.



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Saturday, October 30, 2021

Discussion: When do weight loss behaviors become disordered eating?

For context, I started counting calories in 2010 or 2011 and I've been in "maintenance" for a while, but I'm trying to crack down on 10 lbs I gained back. For that to be successful for me, I know I have to be really strict about calorie counting and weighing myself every day. I feel fine about that most days, but sometimes I'll hear about a person who has an eating disorder, and their disordered behaviors sound a lot like my own.

An example: yesterday, I found myself still a bit hungry late in the evening, but had no calories left. I knew I was going to a birthday party today where there would be cake and probably other junk food, so I decided to just push through the hunger and enjoy the party today instead. For me, that choice felth very healthy and like good self control, but if I told someone like my mom that I let myself go to bed hungry so that I could enjoy cake the next day, she'd be worried that I have an eating disorder.

I guess what I'm wondering is: where is the line? When does strict calorie counting (or other weight loss techniques) become disordered eating? It seems like it's when a person continues to lose weight past the point of it being healthy, or if someone becomes so obsessed with it that it causes distress to their life. Maybe there isn't a line, and what works for some people doesn't work for others, but I'm curious if anybody else has thoughts or experiences regarding the topic.

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Day 1? Starting your weight loss journey on Sunday, 31 October 2021? Start here!

Today is your Day 1?

Welcome to r/Loseit!

So you aren’t sure of how to start? Don’t worry! “How do I get started?” is our most asked question. r/Loseit has helped our users lose over 1,000,000 recorded pounds and these are the steps that we’ve found most useful for getting started.

Why you’re overweight

Our bodies are amazing (yes, yours too!). In order to survive before supermarkets, we had to be able to store energy to get us through lean times, we store this energy as adipose fat tissue. If you put more energy into your body than it needs, it stores it, for (potential) later use. When you put in less than it needs, it uses the stored energy. The more energy you have stored, the more overweight you are. The trick is to get your body to use the stored energy, which can only be done if you give it less energy than it needs, consistently.

Before You Start

The very first step is calculating your calorie needs. You can do that HERE. This will give you an approximation of your calorie needs for the day. The next step is to figure how quickly you want to lose the fat. One pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories. So to lose 1 pound of fat per week you will need to consume 500 calories less than your TDEE (daily calorie needs from the link above). 750 calories less will result in 1.5 pounds and 1000 calories is an aggressive 2 pounds per week.

Tracking

Here is where it begins to resemble work. The most efficient way to lose the weight you desire is to track your calorie intake. This has gotten much simpler over the years and today it can be done right from your smartphone or computer. r/loseit recommends an app like MyFitnessPal, Loseit! (unaffiliated), or Cronometer. Create an account and be honest with it about your current stats, activities, and goals. This is your tracker and no one else needs to see it so don’t cheat the numbers. You’ll find large user created databases that make logging and tracking your food and drinks easy with just the tap of the screen or the push of a button. We also highly recommend the use of a digital kitchen scale for accuracy. Knowing how much of what you're eating is more important than what you're eating. Why? This may explain it.

Creating Your Deficit

How do you create a deficit? This is up to you. r/loseit has a few recommendations but ultimately that decision is yours. There is no perfect diet for everyone. There is a perfect diet for you and you can create it. You can eat less of exactly what you eat now. If you like pizza you can have pizza. Have 2 slices instead of 4. You can try lower calorie replacements for calorie dense foods. Some of the communities favorites are cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles, spaghetti squash in place of their more calorie rich cousins. If it appeals to you an entire dietary change like Keto, Paleo, Vegetarian.

The most important thing to remember is that this selection of foods works for you. Sustainability is the key to long term weight management success. If you hate what you’re eating you won’t stick to it.

Exercise

Is NOT mandatory. You can lose fat and create a deficit through diet alone. There is no requirement of exercise to lose weight.

It has it’s own benefits though. You will burn extra calories. Exercise is shown to be beneficial to mental health and creates an endorphin rush as well. It makes people feel *awesome* and has been linked to higher rates of long term success when physical activity is included in lifestyle changes.

Crawl, Walk, Run

It can seem like one needs to make a 180 degree course correction to find success. That isn’t necessarily true. Many of our users find that creating small initial changes that build a foundation allows them to progress forward in even, sustained, increments.

Acceptance

You will struggle. We have all struggled. This is natural. There is no tip or trick to get through this though. We encourage you to recognize why you are struggling and forgive yourself for whatever reason that may be. If you overindulged at your last meal that is ok. You can resolve to make the next meal better.

Do not let the pursuit of perfect get in the way of progress. We don’t need perfect. We just want better.

Additional resources

Now you’re ready to do this. Here are more details, that may help you refine your plan.

* Lose It Compendium - Frame it out!

* FAQ - Answers to our most Frequently Asked Questions!

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I need advice I’m gaining weight at a rapid speed

So to start i went to the doctor today and i got weighed my weight loss goal is 134 pounds it feels so far away from where i am now which is a 530 pound 5 ft 4 woman. I feel that I’m gaining weight at a rapid speed because 3 months ago i was 496 pounds and i gained 24 pounds in only 3 months! I just know i need to change I’m so tired of my back hurting and running out of breath easily even my desk job is getting affected by it! I can just say I’m happy with being this size but it would be lying. One of the worst parts is that all my weight transfers to my belly which is super difficult to lug around a almost 2 foot long tummy around. I know what to do but i need guidance and i hope this community can help me. Thank you 🙏

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i’m scared of “phantom calories”

m21, 185 pounds, 6’0 for reference

i didn’t know how else to describe them, so i went with “phantom calories” to get us in the spooky mood. ive been dieting and losing weight since january this year and have lost about 110 pounds, but i’m still scared that ill log my food wrong and overeat accidentally.

i even use a food scale and measure everything by gram (unless i eat the whole container, like those pre-packaged protein drinks or a whole can of fish, then i just log the whole container).

despite weighing everything, i’m worried that i’m going to mess up and weigh something wrong. or, more frighteningly, ive heard that calorie amounts can be off by more than you’d think. i have no reason to worry that this is happening. ive been consistently losing weight this entire time, but im still worried that my weight loss might stall because i chronically eat something that has a mislabeled calorie amount.

i kinda wrote this to vent about what’s going on inside my head, but if anyone has some advice or reassurance or info about how nutrition facts are labeled in the us, i’d appreciate it.

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30 Day Accountability Challenge - November Sign Ups

Hello lovely losers! It's almost November, which means it's time for a new DAC!

For the newbies to the sub reddit, please start here, so much good info!

https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/wiki/quick_start_guide

https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/wiki/faq

And hey, maybe it’s not a bad idea to review them anyway to you returning conquerors. I do occasionally to remind myself of the basics.

Here’s what we do in the DAC my friends!

This is the sign up post (and day 1) to outline your goals, weight loss, self care, creative, whatever keeps your motor going.

There will be a daily update post for you to chime in about how day whatever is going!

At the end of the month, there is a wrap up post to reflect on the progress you made or didn’t make & what you learned. Learning is progress my friends!

We try to foster a supportive, caring place to discuss the actual day to day of deficits & counting & caring so much about how we fuel our bodies & lives. So be kind, interact if you like & hopefully you feel supported and cared for. Leading by example, here I go!

Weigh in daily, enter in Libra & remove moral judgement/stigma/shame directed at yourself about it:

Maintain weight for the holiday season:

Exercise 5 days a week (strength work 3 days a week): X/X days.

Nanowrimo (replacing the journal goal for this month): X/X days.

Todays gratitude list: Today I’m grateful for

Express gratitude to today me for good choices: Thanks, I hate it. Today I'm glad I choose to

Your turn everyone! What do you want for the month ahead?

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Positive Approach to losing weight

Hey everyone, I hope you all are doing well. So recently I've wanted to get back on the weight loss goal that I set, but couldn't do because of two waves of the pandemic in my country and various other reasons. I wanted to start a healthy habit that continues in 2022 and not make it a new year's resolution that I end up failing

The first time I lost weight at 19, I didn't really make sustainable habits and lost 30kg, but I would constantly beat myself up for eating so much, be happy for starving myself and got into self harm and in short depression and the need to be judged on the on my weight really caused me to drastic steps to lose weight.

I'm currently 23 years old and at 110Kg (242 Pounds) and would like to go down to 100-102 Kg (220-224 pounds) by the year end. I'm currently in a better place mentally, but this time I want to lose weight sustainably and would need your help in doing so. I've associated weight loss with a negative mindset because of my past experience and would like to know some positive approaches I can take when I fall off track with my diet plan.

PS. My body image of myself is positive and my health is one area I'm looking at improving to bring changes to my life.

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