In a normal functioning body, the intake of food triggers the release of the hormone Insulin. Insulin regulates the blood sugar in your body and tells your body when, how and, where it should store the energy you consume.

In today's society, an average American diet has more than twice the recommended daily allowance of sugar. Currently, the recommended allotment is eight teaspoons of sugar a day. However, a 12 oz can of soda delivers that amount alone.

YOU AND YOUR BLOOD SUGAR

LEVELING MY BLOOD SUGAR

Inside this issue:

Symptoms of High Blood

Sugar

1

You and Your Blood Sugar 1

Leveling My Blood Sugar 1

Planning Ahead 2

It’s All How You Look At It 2

Getting Started 2

Starting Expectations 3

SYMPTOMS OF HIGH BLOOD SUGAR

STEP 1: STOP! Gaining Fat

LETHARGY

POOR SLEEP QUALITY

HEADACHES

WEIGHT GAIN

MOOD SWINGS

HIGH/LOW ENERGY CYCLES

CONSTANT CRAVINGS FOR SWEETS

INABILITY TO FOCUS

Getting control of

your blood sugar

level is the first step

to living a healthier,

happier, and longer

life.

What can I do to level my blood sugar? Just doing two simple steps will go a long way in reducing your sugar intake. Eat fewer carbohydrates. When you hear the word carbohydrate, think sugar. Your body cannot tell the difference between a piece of bread and a tablespoon

of sugar, therefore you should not make the distinction yourself. PRACTICAL STEPS I CAN TAKE:

Eat your hamburger with only half a bun or no bun at all.

When eating pasta, reduce the portion of pasta and increase the amount of meaty sauce you can eat.

Eliminate Diet Coke (or other sodas), sports drinks, and fruit juice/drinks and drink more water! If you miss your carbonated

beverages, try drinking sparkling water. Eat fat and protein with every meal. Eating fat and protein first will slow digestion of carbohydrates and send the message to your brain that you are full before you have the opportunity to eat too much.

So, What Can I Eat? 3

Seeds of Change 3

What Can I Do This

Week?

3

Kale Chip Recipe 4

PLANNING AHEAD

Reduce Stress. Stress sends a signal to the body to store fat. Make it a prac-tice to incorporate stress reducing techniques into your daily schedule.

Ditch the bathroom scale. Your body naturally fluctuates in weight throughout the day. In-stead, use how you feel

Tips to help you get started:

Get plenty of sleep. Get-ting a good night sleep is just as important in weight loss as is eating healthy. Aim for 7-8 hours each night. The best hours of sleeping happen before midnight...so get to bed early.

each day as your guide to success.

GETTING STARTED

Don't be discouraged! This is not a reality weight loss show. If you are not shedding weight like you see on those shows, it is ok. Healthy weight loss at a moderate pace of 1-3 lbs per week is better than to get faster results by starving and overexertion.

Look at your eating in percentages. If you strive to eat 80% - 90% healthy you will

begin to see something happening. And if you do eat that cake in the office birthday party, you can quickly get back on track by eating a healthy dinner.

A positive attitude is vital to your success! We all fall off the wagon sometimes. So when you make a mistake, don't be too hard on your-self.

A healthy lifestyle is a lifelong pur-suit. It is important to remember you are in this for the long haul. If you are patient and persistent, the results will come.

Page 2

Life gets busy...we KNOW that. And when it does, we tend to think of con-

venience rather than quality when it comes to the food we eat. A little planning ahead can make all the difference in eating junk versus eating healthy when that blood sugar drops.

Here are some great ideas when the hunger growls:

Pre-make snacks to take to work or on the go. Get a box of Ziploc bags and bag the following items: nuts (Macadamia nuts, almonds, hazelnuts), deli meat, raw veggies like carrots and celery sticks, beef jerky.

Go to the grocery store, instead of the drive-thru fast food window! It is just as quick.

Cook extra portions of your dinner to place in storage containers for lunch the next day. Avoid making your lunch in the morning rush.

Stock up on water bottles fruit, and nuts. Store in your desk at work or in your car you would be less likely to hit the vending machines or the convenient store.

IT ’S ALL IN HOW YOU LOOK AT IT !

When you begin to cut back on the amount of carbohydrates [sugar] you are consuming, your body will go through a natu-ral adjustment period.

Common symptoms that you may experience include: headaches, fatigue, or dizziness. To help lessen the symptoms, moderate the amount of carbohydrates that you eat throughout the day. You are addicted to sugar and just like

someone who is quitting smoking, taking gradual steps is key.

Whatever you do, don't give up! Trust your body and the results will come. In a week's time you will notice a difference. You have more energy throughout the day, you will be more alert, and you will wake feeling more rested. It is then that you realize that you are on your way to achieving a healthier, happier, and longer life.

STARTING EXPECTAT IONS

make a huge difference fairly quickly.

Part of changing is knowing what needs to change. Take a good hard look at your eating habits. Sometimes we just eat and don't really know what we are putting in our bodies. Either take a day and track what you normally eat, or think back over yesterday. Isn't it amazing what we actually eat?

Change happens as we begin to move forward. It doesn't have to be drastic. Small changes can

SEEDS OF CHANGE

SO, WHAT CAN I EAT?

What can I eat and what can't I eat? Think of it this way:

Nothing proc-essed, as close to nature as you can get. So, what does that mean

practically?

Shop the perimeter of the grocery store. This is where the

fresh meats, veggies, fruits, etc are lo-cated. Anything in the middle is most likely proc-essed.

Read your labels. If the food you are about to buy looks the same way in nature, it is good to eat.

That is the million dollar question for most folks.

Never, never,

never, never give

up!

Winston Churchill

Page 3

The following are some suggestions that can go a long way in helping you to feel better, even in a few short days.

Drink only water, coffee or tea with-out any sweeteners of any kind.

Plan your meals each week. Include snacks in the planning. If you plan, you will be less likely to get off track.

Add a vegetable to every meal of the day. Make sure to read the label- no more than two ingredients shown on the pack-age.

Transform your snacking. Avoid chips, ice cream, candy, cookies, etc. Snack on nuts, beef jerky, deli meats, raw veggies, and hard boiled eggs, .

Work to eliminate starchy carbohydrates from your diet. This includes breads, pastries, pasta, etc. Either cut down or remove.

At each meal make sure you are eat-ing protein and fat before any carbohy-drates. Good sources of protein are found in meats and nuts. Good sources of fats are found in olive oil, avocados, and coconut oil.

Average about 7-8 hours a sleep per night.

Incorporate stress reduction into your daily schedule. Try some yoga, take a hot bath, or go for a walk.

WHAT CAN I CHANGE TH IS WEEK?

Here's a great way to get a veggie into your day!

BAKED KALE CHIPS

1 bunch Kale 1 TBSP olive oil 1 tsp each seasoned salt & garlic salt

Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. With a knife, remove

thick stems from the middle of the kale. Tear into bite size pieces. Wash kale and dry thor-

oughly. Brush olive oil onto kale leaves and sprinkle with seasoned salt. Bake until edges are

brown, but not burnt. Watch carefully. Bake about 7-9 minutes.

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