Small Changes Make a Big Difference1Company Confidential © 2012 Abbott The Health Coach Experience...

Small Changes Make a Big Difference 1 Company Confidential© 2012 Abbott

The Health Coach Experience January 2010

1Company Confidential© 2010 Abbott

Losing Weight: Small Changes Make a Big Difference

Alissa Pludeman

LiveLifeWell Health Coach


Meet LiveLifeWell Health Coach, Alissa Pludeman

• Onsite Health Coach in Lake County, IL

• B.S. Health Promotion and B.A. Dance from the University of Iowa

• Certified Health Coach, Pilates instructor and Personal Trainer


Points Covered Today

• Steps to Creating a Plan

– Find Motivation

– Set Goals

– Take Action

• Simple Changes to Losing Weight

– Be Physical Activity

– Journal Eating Habits

– Make Healthier Foods Choices

– Manage Stress


Did You Know?

• Nearly two-thirds of Americans are either overweight or obese

• According to the CDC, about two-thirds of American adults at any given time are on a diet to either lose weight or prevent weight gain

– Of those Americans, 44 percent are women and 29 percent are men

• U.S. Surgeon General reports that obesity and overweight is the second leading cause of preventable death and results in about 300,000 deaths per year

• The Federal Trade Commission estimates that each day Americans spend about $109 million on dieting or diet-related products which amounts to more than $34 billion per year


Create a Plan – Find Your Motivation

• Weight loss can be difficult, so it’s important to begin the journey with identifying what your true motivation is for losing the weight

• Write down what will motivate you to stick to your plan

– Fitting into a certain size

– Having more energy

– Limiting joint or back pain

– Being a good role model

– Eliminating or reducing your medications

– Simply becoming healthier

• Make a pros and cons list

– What will you gain by losing weight and becoming healthier?

– What will you lose?



• Losing weight helps with:

– Lowering cholesterol by decreasing LDL and increasing HDL

– Lowering triglycerides

– Lowering blood sugar

– Decreasing chances of diabetes or if you are diabetic, it can help you get off medications or at least lower the dose

– Increasing resilience to life’s stressors

– Preventing joint pain and back pain

– Decreasing your chance of heart disease, stroke and some cancers

– Losing as little as 10 pounds can help lower blood pressure



• Write down what motivates you and keep the list visible

– If you have a set back look at your motivators and remind yourself why you want to lose the weight and make positive lifestyle changes

• Take pictures along the way

– Your body might be changing even if you don’t see the scale move. Taking pictures will help you see a difference after the first few months


8

Create a Plan – Set Your Goals

• Once you have decided you are ready to start making changes to your lifestyle, and are motivated to do so, you’ll need to set your goals

• Goals keep you organized and on track

– They help maintain the changes you’ve currently made and help you continue your journey

• Once you make a goal, it becomes a priority

• Your goals give you something tangible to work toward

• They help measure your progress



Make SMART Goals

• Specific – Goals should be well-defined

• Measurable – Be very clear about what exactly you want to accomplish

• Attainable – Your goals should be within successful reach

• Realistic – Challenge yourself, but be realistic

• Timely – Set a deadline that is not too far off



• Set a long-term and short-term goals to keep you on the right path

– This will supply a roadmap for your journey

• Example of long term goal: I will lose 30 pounds in 6 months

• Example of short term goal: I will lose 15 pounds in three months

• Example of smaller goal: I will exercise 3 times this week for 30 minutes on the elliptical

• Write down your goal and tell people about it

– This turns your idea into reality


Create a Plan – Take Action

• Put your goals to work

• Make simple changes to support your goals

• Focus on one change at a time. You don’t have to change all at once

• What is your first step?

– Keep a food journal?

– Watch portion sizes?

– Make healthier choices?

– Exercise more?


It Works! What Your Co-Workers Have Experienced

• Sharon, an employee in Lake County, attended an on-site health screening last year and found out she had a few numbers out of range

• She decided it was time to do something about her health and returned a call she received from a LiveLifeWell health coach

• Sharon slowly changed her eating habits and worked her way up to consistently including exercise in her life

• By taking small steps over time, Sharon has lost 20 pounds and is still continuing her weight loss journey.

• Examples of small steps and goals that lead to her success include:

– Tracking her eating with a food journal

– Using a smaller plate to decrease portion sizes

– Increasing fruits and vegetables and staying away from junk food

– Eating a healthy breakfast every day

– Switching to skim milk from 2% and limiting butter use


Small Steps for SuccessJanuary 2010


Simple Changes You Can Make Today


Get Moving

• Exercise will help burn excess calories, increase self confidence, decrease stress response, and boost your mood

• Simple changes:

– Find something that you like doing that doesn’t feel like a chore

– Not much time right now to add exercise? Count your steps and add walking into your day

– Be active with your entire family. Bike riding, doing yard work, playing at the park, or taking a family walk are all great things to keep your family active and burn calories

– Schedule your workouts! Just like any other appointment put your workouts in your calendar


Keep a Food Journal

• Journaling is a key component to losing weight

– When you journal it’s like having a health coach keeping you on track and reminding you of the foods you are eating

– Journaling is a solution to mindless eating. Writing it down makes you more mindful of what you are consuming

• Tips for successful journaling

– Find a method that works for you (journal, notepad, phone application)

– Write down what you ate (and how much) right after you eat it to allow for more accurate reporting

– Don’t under report what you are eating. Write everything down, even if it’s not so healthy. This is not to make you feel guilty, just more aware

– Keep track of the time you ate and how you felt afterwards. This can help pin point stress eating or eating out of boredom


Keep a Food Journal

• Visit iLiveLifeWell.com

– Click ‘Resources’

– Click ‘LiveLifeWell Food Journal’


Foods Choices – Increase Fiber

• Diets rich in dietary fiber have been shown to have a number of beneficialeffects including keeping you satisfied longer and a decreased risk of coronary artery disease

• Simple changes:

– Use whole grain breads, pastas, brown rice or quinoa

– Add kidney beans, black beans, soybeans, artichokes or lentils to salads, soups or stews

– Enjoy hummus or a black bean dip with some veggie sticks as a snack


Food Choices – Watch Portion Sizes

• Portion sizes have been growing since the 70’s. Most of us can decrease our calorie intake by being more mindful of our portions

• Simple changes:

– Use a smaller plate

– Increase vegetables on your plate and limit meat and starches

– When eating out limit portion sizes by putting half of your food in a to-go box before you start your meal

– When determining portion size use your hand

• Tip of the thumb to first knuckle = 1 teaspoon

• Whole thumb = 1 tablespoon

• Palm of your hand for females = 3 oz., males = 4-5 oz.

• A bar of soap or deck of cards = 3 oz.

• Tight fist = ½ cup+


Focus on Your Plate


Food Choices – Increase Fruits and Vegetables

• Vegetables are nutrient dense and low in calories

• Helps prevent a number of diseases including cardiovascular disease and some cancers

• Simple changes:

– Make sure you have at least one serving at each meal and snack

– Add fruit to cereal or as a snack

– Fruit is great replacement if you are craving something sweet

– Increase vegetables by adding a green leafy salad with a variety of sliced veggies to your meals

– Veggies with hummus or reduced fat peanut butter is a great snack full of protein and fiber

– Use help from the store. Veggies in steamer bags or pre-sliced makes it quick and easy to add vegetables or fruit to every meal


Food Choices – Choose Lean Meats and Protein

• One portion of meat should be 3-4 ounces or the size of the palm of your hand without your fingers

• Choosing leaner meat options will help lower your daily fat content and in turn add to a healthier lifestyle

• Simple changes:

– Use lean ground turkey breast instead of ground beef for burgers, tacos, and pasta dishes. Your family won’t even know the difference!

– Add fish to your weekly rotation. This is a low fat option and high in protein

– Choose vegetarian sources for protein such as beans, nuts, and soy products

– When choosing dairy products choose low fat or fat free options


Food Choices – Limit Sugary and High Fat Drinks

• What we drink adds a lot of excess calories and fat

• How can you save some calories?

– One 12 oz. can of Pepsi has 150 calories

– One 16 oz. Mocha Frappuccino 370 calories and 15 grams of fat

• Simple changes:

– Drink at least 64 ounces of water daily

– If you drink soda, choose diet options

– When ordering coffee drinks ask for low fat and low calorie options:

• Skim milk instead of whole

• Hold the whip

• Order sugar free syrup and ask for one or two less pumps

– 16 ounce light mocha Frappuccino is 140 calories and 1 gram of fat


Food Choices – Limit Alcohol

• Limit alcohol intake to two drinks per day for men and one for women, if you drink at all

• Alcohol adds empty calories to your diet which can sabotage your weight loss goals

• Research shows that if you drink before or during a meal, both your inhibitions and willpower are reduced. In this state, you are more likely to overeat — especially greasy or fried foods

• Simple changes:

– Eat first, then have a cocktail

– Choose low carb beers and use diet soda for mixers

– Drink sparkling cider instead of wine


Be Aware of What’s in Your Cocktail

Drink Serving Size Calories

Red Wine 5 oz. 100

White Wine 5 oz. 100

Champagne 5 oz. 130

Light Beer 12oz. 105

Regular Beer 12oz. 140

Dark Beer 12oz. 170

Cosmopolitan 3oz. 165

Martini 3oz. 205

Long Island Ice Tea 8oz. 400

Gin and Tonic 8oz. 175

Rum & Soda 8oz. 180

Margarita 8oz. 200

Whisky Sour 4oz. 200


Food Choices – Have 3 Balanced Meals

• Eating at least 3 meals a day is a key to weight loss

• Skipping meals will lower your metabolism and can cause binging later

• Simple changes:

– If you don’t eat breakfast, starting adding it to your morning routine

– Add mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks to your day to help with hunger

• You will find that you consume less calories throughout the day

– Balance your meals with lean proteins, healthy carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables.

• Adding fiber and lean protein choices will help you feel fuller longer


Manage Stress

• As we become more stressed, new changes to your daily routine (like walking 15 minutes each day) may become difficult to keep up. Exercise and healthy eating tend to fall to the wayside when stress takes over. Many of us cope by eating quick, easy comfort food

• Simple changes:

– Manage stress eating with journaling and finding low fat/calorie options

– Keep exercising! Exercise combats stress and releases mood boosting endorphins that provide relief to stress

– Find stress management techniques that works for you

Contact LifeWorks at 800-626-0738 or www.LifeWorks.com (User ID: abbott; password: 1020)


Final Thoughts

• Establish motivation and commit to your goals

• Keep a food journal

• Pick a few simple changes to start with. Once you’ve been consistently successful, add a few more

• Add movement to your day

• Increase your resilience to personal stressors

• Reward your successes

• Find ways to encourage yourself during relapses


Live Well, Stress Less – Healthy DietMay 12, 2010


Small Steps for SuccessJanuary 2010


Please visit iLiveLifeWell.comfor more information

Thank you!

Small Changes Make a Big Difference1Company Confidential © 2012 Abbott The Health Coach Experience...

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