Staff Articles The world is changing; you are changing. Have you made the necessary adjustments to be healthy? We now have every modern convenience at our finger tips, which gives them a lot of exercise, but unfortunately finger exercises don't burn many calories or tone our body. Our new world - Just look at how things have changed over the last 50 years or so. Activity Levels: Now Then Drive everywhere Walk many places Automatic transmittions Manual transmission Automatic car windows Hand crank window Send E-Mail Walk to mail box Wireless phone in your pocket Walk to answer a corded phone Change TV channel by remote control Get up and down from couch Riding or self powered lawn mower Hands push lawn mower Stay inside because of air conditioning No air-conditioning get outside and swim Spend hours sitting in front of a video screen Play or work outdoors be more active. Turn up the thermostat Chop wood for the wood stove and fireplace Take elevator Walk up stairs Food: Now Then 12-inch plates and platters 9-inch plates Pasta Entree - 3 cups (600 calories) Pasta Entree -1.5 cups (300 calories) Vanilla Ice Cream - 3 scoops (810 calories) Vanilla Ice Cream - 1 scoop (270 calories) McDonald's Burger - up to 8 oz (582 calories) McDonald's Burger 2 oz (145 calories) Movie Theater Popcorn -large (1160 calories) Movie Theater Popcorn small -(400 calories) Movie Theater Soda - 44 oz (550 calories) Movie Theater Soda - 8oz (100 calories) Muffin 4-7 ounces (400-700 calories) Muffin - 2 oz (200 calories) 12-20 oz beverage size 6 oz beverage serving size 12-16 inch pizza with extra cheese/meat 10-12 inch pizza Much food highly processed Most food fresh Our new world - of modern conveniences stacks the fat gain deck against us. However you can take steps to counteract this. Simply including more physical activity each and every day can make a big difference over a year's time. Walk everywhere you can, park farther away from driving destinations, take the stairs instead of the elevator. You are changing - you are constantly aging which slows metabolism over time. This means you do not burn as many calories as you once did. However you can make small changes with exercise and diet to maintain or reduce your weight. Consistent weight training exercise keeps muscle mass high and slows down metabolism losses. Small changes in diet can add up over a year's time. Reduce or eliminate soda and sugary coffee and juice drinks. When you do drink 100% juice drinks limit them to 6 ounces per day. Split a restaurant portion with someone - most are double or triple in size already! Skip the bread and start with a vegetable soup or small salad with lite dressing. Slow down your eating pace. Practice putting down your fork for 1-2 munities at least three times each meal. Be mindful of food quantity and level of fullness. Stop just before you are full. Eat less food out of a box or can - most are highly processed, high in fat and sodium. Fresh, unprocessed foods are always a better choice. The Triple whammy: 1. Modern conveniences are removing many calorie burning activities. 2. Bigger Portions of food - add up to excess calories. 3. The natural aging process - slows metabolism over time. Many people are recognizing this and making lifestyle changes. They have learned that small changes do really add up in the long run. You too can succeed - all it takes is building a system that works for you and staying with it 90 percent of the time! Why 90 percent of the time? Because we all need a break once in a while. Why not 60-80 percent of the time? Because our body stores fat much easier than we can take it off. So even following a program 60-80 percent of the time will not work over time! As little as 3 or 4 visits with a registered dietitian can make a world of difference in getting you on the right track in our modern world. Paul M., Owner, Fitness Unlimited, Milton, MA