Musings of a Health Coach

Hey to the best women's networking group in Southwest Florida!
I was looking over my other blogs and got to thinking about how much my life has changed since I became a health coach. I thought I knew a lot about nutrition and exercise. I felt like I 'knew' how to eat right. But a funny thing happened the other day. I was cleaning out some papers and came across an old food journal from one of the countless times I had tried to lose weight. Some of the entries made me laugh.

It seems that the more you learn about nutrition, the more you learn that you had no clue as to what was proper nutrition. I was obviously trying to live my life on on all the "diet" foods, the low-fat frozen entrees, the low-fat cookies, mini-cakes, brownies, etc. What was I thinking? Now that I've learned about the dangers of sodium, I was aghast to see the sodium levels of these so called "healthy alternatives"! You may be asking yourselves, why is salt such a problem? The bad news is that high sodium is silently damaging your insides, namely your heart and your kidneys. I don't know about you, but I want my heart and kidneys to function and function well for a good long time to come. So, educate yourselves, read the labels, and try for about 1500 mgs. of sodium a day. The easiest way to do this is by eating fresh, whole foods that are not processed. A tip I read said to try and balance the calorie content of food with the sodium level, for instance something with 150 calories really shouldn't have more than 150 mgs. of sodium. This won't always work but can be a helpful guideline.

Where did I learn all of this? As a health coach for a nationwide weight-loss company that uses portion-controlled meal replacements, how can I sit here and tell you to eat all fresh, unprocessed foods? The portion-controlled meal replacements that my company offers are the highest quality, pharmaceutical grade meal replacements that can be purchased. If you follow the "5and1" plan from my program, you will only be getting about 1200 mgs. of sodium a day. And our whole program is about education, education, education, so that after you have reached your initial health goals, you will be able to maintain that good health for the rest of your life!

So, whether you are educating women in business, going to womens' networking groups, or are a "stay-at-home mom", I hope you will be mindful of your sodium intake and keep those beautiful hearts beating strong!

Lynda Waldron, Health Coach
takecontrolnow.tsfl.com
LDWaldron@yahoo.com