Keeping off the weight you lost

You have tried hard and worked hard to lose 10 pounds over several weeks or maybe months. And then you go on a vacation or get into the holiday eating frenzy. One morning you step on the weighing scale and you realize that the weight you lost has come back on.

It happened to me. I went on a great exercise program - lifting 3 days a week and doing intense cardio the other 3 days a week. However, I noticed that after the first week, the weight loss was slow, but I lost 10 pounds or so. And then I went overseas on a month's vacation and ate to my heart's content. The weight came back on.

I could not get into the gym as often as before due to several reasons. Then one day my wife and I resolved to get back in shape. The two of us decided to try the master cleanse and then follow up with a good diet and exercise program.

The master cleanse is a 10-day fasting program where you drink a special lemonade made of 3 specific ingredients - lemons, grade-B maple syrup and cayenne pepper mixed in filtered water. We read a lot about it and researched it. We talked to friends who had fasted for 10 days on just water or on just juices. We decided to do it. It was tough, but we made it. Here is a link to my blog about my observations on the master cleanse:
http://facttalk.blogspot.com/2009/03/observations-on-master-cleanse.html

After the cleanse we carefully eased back into the normal diet. We started eating more vegetables, fruits, nuts, fish and fiber rich foods. We preferred foods that had whole grains or multi grains. We also introduced this to our children. We started eating healthy snacks like fruits or nuts. and preferred foods that had whole grains or multi grains. We started making a healthy muffin using whole wheat floor, wheat bran, oatmeal, apple sauce, buttermilk, raisins, etc. We carefully added more fiber in our diets by using spinach, legumes, etc. We drank lots of water.

On the other hand, we consciously reduced or avoided sugar in our food - hence the oat meal recipe in this post http://facttalk.blogspot.com/2009/03/my-first-blog.html . We also reduced carbo-hydrate rich foods. We avoided processed food as much as possible. Chips, donuts, chocolates, sweetened yogurt was consumed very little.

My wife and I are following this regimen for over a month after the master cleanse and we have not gained any weight. My wife is working out 5 to 6 days a week on the tread mill, while I have not had the time to hit the gym. Our weight has been constant.

I believe the secret is the amount of fluids we eat, the reduction in sugar, the healthy foods with high fiber that we consume and also the increased intake of fruits and vegetables.

We plan to start a new exercise program combining intervals with targeted strength training. This will be the chest, shoulder, stomach, lower back, and legs. This is based on my experience and research and talking to a lot of my friends that work out. I believe we have found the right balance of diet, exercise and foods that will help us get fit and healthy.