Sometimes I choose not to organize my Thoughts,
and just write about them in a random manner
Today is one of those days.

This is my first morning weighing in without any cast.
I am pleased about this.
However, even a slight use of my wrist, arm and hand is painful.
I am unable to grasp anything; can’t curl my hand into a fist,
or position my wrist above the keyboard in a typing position.
So recovery appears to be more distant than I anticipated,
and I am working to readjust my expectations
about being able to quickly resume my normal activities.

Today my weight is only one pound higher
than it was on Good Friday morning,
which is the day I broke my wrist.
During this period, I’ve managed to keep my calories
lower than is normal for me, but I’ve had to spend
a great deal of time at rest, which reduced my energy burn.
I am both grateful for, and dissatisfied by, my weight results,
and I believe that is a fairly normal reaction.
 One of my sisters-in-law died this week, 
which reminds me that life is short and precious.
Looking at the Big Picture shows me that
my temporary disability and discomfort is actually
only a minor inconvenience.

Sorrow comes to us all, and there are times we feel sad.
But even during times of sadness, I believe that each of us has the ability
to work on adjusting our mental attitudes toward Acceptance and Gratitude,
and that by placing our focus on the things that are positive
we can make life far more pleasant, both for ourselves and for others.

                             

Many people appear to be confused about
the amount of protein that is actually needed by the body,
and eat far more than their daily requirement.

Protein eaten beyond the amount needed by the body
triggers the process of gluconeogeneses,
which means one’s body turns that extra protein into glucose.
This glucose triggers insulin release and the body handles that glucose
the same way it handles the glucose generated from eating carbohydrates.

 So how much protein do we really need?

To find out the body’s protein requirement,
first we need to fix upon a number that we call our ideal weight
because our extra weight from fat doesn’t create a need for additional protein.

The simple formula for an active person is to take one’s
Ideal Weight number and divide it by 2.2 (lbs to kilos).
Next, take that resulting sum and multiply it by 1.2.
This result is the approximate amount of protein grams required.
If one is Sedentary, the multiplication number is 1 instead of 1.2.

Using this simple formula, and setting my ideal weight as 115 lbs,
with my activity status as Sedentary, results in a protein requirement
of about 52 grams daily. Increasing this to active results in a protein
requirement of 62. This shows my ideal daily protein intake
to be between 52-62 grams daily.

Protein has a role in everyone's nutrition plan,
and is an essential nutrient that is important for building and repairing muscles.

For the purpose of building muscle mass many respected bodybuilding experts think the goal should be a general recommendation of 70-120 grams of protein per day, and this should be an average intake. As long as one averages around 70-120 grams per day (number depending on individual ideal weight) one could be lower on some days and slightly higher on others, but muscle growth will still occur.

Even if one isn’t interested in bodybuilding. It probably makes sense to try and consume SLIGHTLY ABOVE the recommended amounts, with the general population aiming for around 70-120 grams of protein per day, depending on one’s body weight and current calorie intake. Women to aim for the lower end of this scale, and bigger men to aim for the upper end of this scale.

Below are some detailed formulas:

One of these detailed formulas is:

A standard method used by nutritionists to estimate our minimum daily protein requirement is to multiply the ideal body weight in kilograms by .8, or weight in pounds by .37. This is the number of grams of protein that should be the daily minimum. According to this method, a person weighing 150 lbs. should eat 55 grams of protein per day, a 200-pound person should get 74 grams, and a 250-pound person, 92 grams.

Another detailed formula is as follows:
Step 1  One way is to find out what percentage of your body weight is fat. 
The rest of it is lean body mass.

So if you weigh 122 lbs, and your body fat percentage is 19%, that is 23 lbs.
That means your lean body mass is 122 minus 23, which is 99 lbs.

Lean Body Weight Formula,

After determining lean body mass one can use Sears’ formula, in which the pounds
of lean body mass are to be multiplied by the following, depending on activity level,
to get the daily protein requirement in grams:

• Sedentary - multiply lbs of lean body mass by .5
• Light activity (e.g. walking) - multiply by .6
• Moderate (30 minutes of vigorous activity 3 days per week) .7
• Active (1 hour per day 5 days per week) - .8
• Very Active (10 hours of vigorous activity per week - .9
• Athlete - multiply by 1.0

OR we can use simply use

Woman's ideal body weight:
US measure: 100 pounds for 60 inches in height
+ 5 pounds for each additional inch over 60 inches
Metric: 45 kilograms for 150 centimeters in height
+ 0.85 kilograms for each additional centimeter in height

Men's ideal body weight:
US measure: 106 pounds for 60 inches in height
+ 6 pounds for each additional inch over 60 inches
Metric: 48 kilograms for 150 centimeters in height
+ 1 kilogram for each additional centimeter in height

Step 2 - Use your ideal weight to determine your daily protein requirement.

The World Health Organization established a daily protein requirement less than the
UK Department of Health and Social Security, and the United States RDA.
Using the high and low recommendations together provides an acceptable range
for daily protein requirement.

Men and women protein intake range based on ideal body weight:

Minimum Daily Protein Requirement: W.H.O. recommends 0.45 grams of protein
per kilogram of ideal body weight per day.

Maximum Daily Protein Requirement: US RDA recommends 0.8 grams of protein
per kilogram of ideal body weight per day. The UK Department of Health and Social
Security is approximately the same. 

  Applying the above formula on myself using:

Calculations for Ideal Weight :
US – 100 lbs + 5 lbs per inch,
Metric – 45 kilograms + 0.85 k per centimeter

Phyllis Collins : Female: 5 ft 0 in, or 152 centimeters 

Ideal Weight: 100 lbs (US) or 45 kilograms (Metric).
Protein Requirement (World Health Organization):
         weight 45 kilograms x 0.45 = 20 grams
Protein Requirement (United States RDA):
         weight 45 kilograms x 0.8 = 36 grams

Therefore based on this formula,
my Protein daily requirement is between 20 and 36 grams.

So, depending on what my ideal weight actually is,
all of these formulas place my daily protein requirement
between 20 grams and 62 grams. 

1 protein gram = 4 calories.
Therefore the calories of my body’s daily protein requirement is:
somewhere between 80 and 248 calories of pure protein.

Like the majority of people who look into this subject,
I am often am very surprised to see how little protein
that my body actually requires for ongoing good health.

Note, that there are only two other nutrients used by the body.
These are fat and carbohydrates, and major research studies show
that the only one of the three nutrients that are NOT ESSENTIAL
for the body’s health is carbohydrates, and.
this is one of the major reasons that the body processes
prioritize burning carbs for energy before using the other two nutrients.

Please don’t misunderstand me here.
I’m not saying we shouldn’t eat carbohydrates.
  I do eat them.
I’m saying they aren’t an essential requirement. 

I have a specific goal in my mind,
and I'm continually working toward it.

My goal is to maintain my weight-loss for the rest of my life.
That's my destination, and during my journey 
sometimes I take different routes.

Some diet plans work for me and some don't.
So far, I haven't found one specific diet that I feel I can follow forever,
and sometimes think that my own permanent Way of Eating
will be to continually experiment with new diets,
which I, personally, don't see as a bad thing.
I do believe the best diet plan is the one you can live with,
and I agree with the following quoted article:

"I really don’t care which diet plan you choose to follow.
Nor should I care which diet plan you choose to follow.

All I want is what’s best for you, and chances are,
what’s best for you is to lose some excess body fat (just guessing)
So if you find a comfortable way to accomplish this, who am I to judge?

Now, I have a big issue when it comes to false statements about a diet program
.. or false statements about physiology and health in general
(especially when these false statements are being sold for a profit)
But your personal choices? Those are none of my business.

Here’s an analogy (keep in mind, I’m known for really bad analogies)

4 employees drive into work.
One drives a 2001 Celica.

The other drives a leased Ford Escape.

The other drives a brand new Audi A6
that her daddy bought her for her 21st birthday.

The last employee drives a fully loaded Escalade
that he absolutely can not afford.

Now, regardless of the car they drive,
the important thing is that they all get to work on time.
That’s it.

Now, the Guy who drives the decade old Celica may think the guy driving
the Escalade is crazy for spending 2/3’s of his income on a car each month.

The person driving the Escape may spend every day
loathing the girl driving the Audi.

The person driving the Audi may be self conscious
of what people think of her car.

And the person driving the Escalade may
be perfectly happy with his financial decisions.

But again, none of this really matters if they all make it to work on time.

Focus on what’s important.
And what is important is what works for you,
in your current life situation.

In our car example, each person may have their own perfectly logical reasons
for the vehicle they drive. Or they may not. But in the end, it doesn’t matter.

Leaving our analogy and returning to diets, it’s all about the end goal.
The end goal is overall Health & happiness.
Being lean and muscular is the means to this end,
and your diet is just the process.

The process you choose can be super complicated or dead simple,
but no matter what any one else thinks,
if you are using a process that you enjoy
and that gets you results, then you are using the right process.

While everyone will have an opinion on how you decide to reach this goal,
remember it’s no more important then their opinion on what you drive
or what clothes you wear.

Besides, chances are their opinions are formed on anecdotes,
sleazy marketing and quickly made assumptions.

Do what works for you and remember the diet isn’t the end goal,
the health and weight loss is."

.   .    .  .January 2011 Article by Brad Pilon, author of Eat Stop Eat,

I’ve learned through my lifetime of relationships
that some things are best left unsaid.
Every Thought doesn’t need to be expressed.

Consistent courtesy and kindness are invaluable,
both verbal and nonverbal,
and this is true whether they are given or received

Just like words, facial expressions can be hurtful.
I feel better about life, myself and others
when the facial expressions of the people around me are positive.

Smiling tends to produce positive responses from others,
and the act of smiling also makes me feel a bit better.
Sour, angry, bitter or hateful facial expressions
tend to bring me down, even when these are on my own face.

It takes work to develop a consistently positive mental attitude.
It is also necessary to work on how we express our thoughts to others.
While our facial expressions sometimes tend to be reflections of our thoughts,
one part of our ability to control our own Behavior includes the way we choose
to express our thoughts to others...both verbally, and non-verbally. 

                   
Over the past seven years
I’ve spent quite a bit of time online
at various weight-loss sites and forums.

I developed my special favorites,
and I’ve posted links to a few of them
here at DietHobby under RESOURCES, Links.

Participating in an ongoing Blog or Forum can be enlightening,
As I read the comments of others, I learn about myself.

I become aware of the ways I am similar and different
from the person posting, and gain insight about my own behavior.

I find that my own attitude greatly determines whether or not
I find pleasure in ANY of the things I choose to do,
and I feel grateful for the ability to influence it,
by purposely directing my thoughts toward the positives.

 I like watching people succeed,
and I enjoy sharing in their happiness.

Sometimes I also learn a great deal from watching people
whose behavior and manner of thinking actually feels annoying to me.
I find something admirable in a person who consistently shares
by posting their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors,
even when this allows an outside eye to clearly identify
their failures, denial, and unusual ways of thinking.

I find great value in the work of changing myself.
I need to adapt and learn to adjust to the circumstances surrounding me
in order to accept the frequent changes which are necessarily involved in living.

There is so much information now at my fingertips.
Most of my life was spent before individual computers existed.
Books have always been my friends.
but computers and online communication add a great deal to my life.
I feel grateful that this opportunity exists in the dawn of my old age.