The SoberLady's Diet and Exercise pages will be broken out separately wherever possible. In sobriety, the SoberLady has discovered that either through not knowing how to eat or exercise properly, having forgotten how, or through ill-health, maintaining a healthy weight is often difficult for us, once we get sober. The purpose of the Diet and Exercise pages will be to present to you some of the information, problem solver's and tricks which she has discovered over the years to help you to better maintain a healthy body, in sobriety.

AVOID SKIPPING MEALS, ESPECIALLY BREAKFAST

It's common for people to skip meals thinking they're doing themselves a big favor by cutting back on calories. This usually doesn't work. Not only does it make you very susceptible to binging on fatty and sugary foods later in the day but it also slows your metabolism.

It's revealing that one factor common to overweight people is that they seldom eat breakfast. This can be for many reasons. ranging from a simple lack of time or not feeling hungry, to thinking that they're saving themselves calories by skipping breakfast.

Breakfast is an essential part of your diet and crucial for limiting your total daily calories. Eating breakfast, especially one high in fiber, helps control your calorie intake for the reset of the day, by preventing you from finding yourself famished later.

Take a few minutes to plan your breakfast the night before. This way, you'll have your breakfast ready to eat when you wake up. Your breakfast can either be a breakfast-to-go, such as fruit and low-fat cheese, or one that will require some additional preparation in the morning, such as a fresh-blended frozen fruit drink.

FIVE IDEAS TO HELP MAKE SURE YOU EAT BREAKFAST DAILY

One factor common to overweight people is that they usually skip this important meal. Here are five ideas to help you make sure that you eat breakfast daily:

* Focus on simple breakfasts when you're in a hurry. Breakfast doesn't have to be complicated. Just eat foods such as fresh fruit, whole-grain toast, English muffins, instant breakfast mixes, yogurt, bagels or ready-to-eat breakfast cereals. If you opt for the ready-to-eat cereal, choose one that is low in salt and sugar and high in fiber.

* Try waking up 10 to 15 minutes earlier, to make more time for breakfast. You probably won't miss the sleep - and this will give you plenty of time to consume cereal, fruit and a glass of juice.

* If you're not hungry, drink some natural fruit juice and take something to eat on the way to work, such as a bagel or English muffin.

* List five to seven low-fat breakfasts on 3 x 5 cards and refer to them when you're rushed in the morning. This tactic makes your breakfasts easier to prepare and adds variety to your breakfasts.

* Involve others. Get your family or friends to eat breakfast with you and to help with the planning and preparation. It's usually very nice to eat with other people, who can help to ensure that you don't skip this important meal.

THE SEVEN SECRETS OF "NATURALLY" SLIM PEOPLE

Most diets and diet books say that WEIGHT is the PROBLEM that needs to be solved. In fact, weight is the SYMPTOM, rather than the problem. If weight alone were the problem, you would have to lose it only one time - and your problem would be solved forever.

The "Seven Secrets" approach is radically different in these ways:

* It treats the CAUSES of overeating.
* It is extremely SIMPLE.
* It gives you total FREEDOM.

Here is a summary of the seven secrets:

1. Listen to Your BODY, Not Your MIND

2. Eat With AWARENESS and Without JUDGMENT

3. Eat Only When You Are PHYSICALLY Hungry

4. Stop Eating When You Are SATISFIED, Not Full

5. Eat What You Want Most

6. Notice How Your Body Feels AFTER Eating

7. HONOR Your Feelings - Don't Bury Them Under Food

TEN WAYS TO LOSE A POUND A WEEK

Did you ever wonder what it takes to lose a pound (or gain one)? Answer: 3,500 calories, to be exact. That means that to lose one pound, you must burn 3,500 calories more than you take in. That might sound difficult but it doesn't have to be.

If you cut a few calories here and a few calories there, during the course of a week, those saved calories can quickly add up and take a pound off your frame. Here are ten simple techniques from which to choose:

1. Drink water or fruit juice without added sugar, instead of soda or other sweetened beverages.

2. Substitute skim milk for whole milk, thereby saving 60 calories per cup.

3. Choose meat cuts carefully. Those graded "select" tend to be the lowest in fat.

4. Trim excess fat from meat and remove skin from chicken before cooking.

5. Buy canned tuna packed in water instead of oil. You'll save 60 calories per three-ounce serving.

6. Make smart snack choices. Two chocolate chip cookies have about 90 calories, whereas ten pretzel sticks only have about ten calories. Read labels carefully.

7. Consider reduced-calorie mayonnaise. It has only about 35 calories per tablespoon, while real mayonnaise has 100.

8. Use low-fat cooking methods, such as broiling, poaching, grilling and baking, instead of frying.

9. Eat a variety of healthy foods, to get proper nutrition and avoid cravings.

10. Cut the fat. All fats contain nine calories per gram. All carbohydrates contain four calories per gram. Cutting fats in favor of more carbohydrates will soon help eliminate those excess pounds.

ALL CALORIES ARE NOT CREATED EQUAL

Dieter's myth: A calorie is a calorie is a calorie.

Reality: Fat calories are more fattening than carbohydrate calories. A single fat calorie has a greater chance of being converted into body fat than a single carbohydrate calorie.

Reason: The body burns up 25 of every 100 carbohydrate calories, converting them into fat - net gain, 75 calories. But it burns up only three calories of every 100 fat calories - net gain, 97 calories.

The moral of the story is that you would be well-advised to not just count calories but the TYPE of calories as well.

Source: University of Massachusetts Medical School (adapted)

HOW TO KEEP WEIGHT OFF, AFTER YOU'VE LOST IT (1)

"Weight management is a journey rather than a destination," says Joyce Nash, PhD, a clinical psychologist with a specialty in weight loss.

Positive thinking patterns are crucial to successful, long-term weight management, Nash stresses. Successful individuals tend to regularly remind themselves of their long-range goals, notice even small successes in weight management and use positive self-talk to keep themselves on track.

In her book, "Now that You've Lost It," Nash offers seven specific strategies for weight maintenance:

1. Make exercise a regular part of your life.
2. Reduce fat calories to 30 percent of your daily intake.
3. Control binges.
4. Eat moderately.
5. Think smart.
6. Handle lapses.
7. Create a lifestyle that is satisfying to you.

Source: Joyce Nash, PhD, "Now That You've Lost It" (adapted)

NINE WAYS TO REDUCE THE FAT IN YOUR FOOD, PAINLESSLY!

Here are just some of the many options available to you if you wish to reduce the fat in your food:

* Saute vegetables in a few tablespoonfuls of soup stock, rather than in fat.

* Saute and fry foods less often: steam, broil, bake and poach instead.

* For salads and cooking, use corn, safflower or olive oil - sparingly.

* Substitute egg whites or tofu for egg yolks.

* Use low-fat yogurt instead of sour cream or mayonnaise.

* Try low-fat cheeses, such as part-skim mozzarella, in recipes.

* Use ground turkey or crumbled tofu in place of ground beef.

* Thicken cream-style corn with a mashed potato or uncooked oatmeal.

* Replace nut butters with bean spread, for sandwiches and snack dips.

Source: "Medical Self-Care" (adapted)