How. To. Lose. Weight.

Out by sweat, bathroom, metabolism, anxiety. In, you all know about.

To my surprise, a speaker at a conference once started by totally changing his topic. Instead of addressing a legal subject, he told us to watch our weight. "You're all smart, you know what to do," he told us by not telling us. He credited us with being able to figure out how to do this.

Then he gave us a five-second exercise to calm down. You can do this. Sit straight, look straight ahead. Take a deep breath, to a slow count of five. Hold it five seconds. Let it out slowly, to a count of five. Repeat five times. It's easy. He said you have to keep your eyes open, and can do it when you're driving. I use this whenever needed. Try it, it works!

Along with adding Oprah, Weightwatchers got a new system for eating. They threw out the old system (they do this every year or two). This one, they based on the latest scientific research on weight loss and said it works. Guess what - it does! It's simple, but it's strict. You can eat whatever food you want, you just need to account for it.

I had a phone call with Oprah; well, me and a few thousand others. Oprah said bread is her weakness. She has to have bread. She does - every day, on Weightwatchers. She's lost 26 pounds so far.

What makes that work? Science shows the Biggies: unsaturated fats and sugars. Check labels. Keep unsaturated fats and sugars low. When you eat something high in unsaturated fats, keep an eye on how you feel.

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MITCH - PLEASE PUT THIS NEXT QUOTE IN A TEXT BOX.

THANK YOU!

Of all the accomplishments that I've made in the world,

the Red Carpets and the awards, the fact that I could

close the bag and not take another chip -

it was major for me. Major!

Oprah Winfrey

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My secret? It's like learning a foreign language: A lot of people want to learn French. But no one wanted to learn it as much as I did. The key is motivation.

Do you really want to lose weight? How badly do you want it? If you really want to, you can do it.

You have to want it more than that pint of ice cream, more than those margaritas.

You have to not live in the moment. Live in your future. Ditch the shame and blame; keeping control gives you power. Picture how you would like to be. You can do this!

Confused about the sugar in fruit? Join the club. Turns out it's all sugar when we process it, that's true. But something happens when fruit becomes juice: the cell walls break down, losing fruit's best parts. Fiber in fruit hides in the walls of each cell; if you get the cell fiber, you absorb the sugars more slowly. That's the magic of eating whole fruit instead of fruit juice.

No time to (diet) (check sugars and fats) (cook)? How much time do you spend feeling, "I wish I could lose weight" or blaming yourself?

Will losing weight make you happy? I'd say it will make you happier, or put another way, it will be one less thing to feel stressed about. Plus it's empowering.

________________

MITCH - PLEASE PUT THIS NEXT QUOTEE IN A TEXT BOX.

THANK YOU!

Being overweight is a direct path

to diabetes and high blood pressure.

Oprah Winfrey

________________

Today you lose a pound; tomorrow you feel you can take on the world. It will have a good effect not only on your weight, but on your relationships. You feel good when you're in control of yourself.

A joke: What would happen if there were no men in the world?

There'd be a lot of fat, happy women.

You're smart; you'll figure it out. You just have to want it enough to change what you eat. Start small. Do it in small steps. You can do this.

If you'd like some tips, write me. I've learned so much, I'm thinking of starting a safe place for people to meet to talk about feelings about diet issues. Write me; my email address is at the end of this column.

This just in from a British newspaper: eating chocolate improves brain function! It's the cocoa flavanols in chocolate that lead to positive cognitive ability. Take one and call me in the morning.

Weightwatchers isn't the only way - there are lots of other systems to use. Find one you like. Go for it!

Challenge yourself! Go for two days without eating anything in a box or can or plastic. Or...processed. Don't eat anything your great-grandmother couldn't eat. Eat real food, clean, unprocessed. Nothing with a long list of chemical ingredients. Try two days, or three. Monitor how you feel. You don't need expensive books or diet plans.

Hoping to see less of you next week!

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©Carole Bell 2016 Carole Bell is a writer interested in everything.

You can write to her at: [email protected]