Dumb Little Man | Tips for Life

David A. Kessler, the author of “The End of Overeating”, explains very well how people become addicted to foods that are high in sugar, fat and salt. Like addiction does, this causes people to crave so they eat more and more foods that are loaded with unhealthy ingredients and many times, completely devoid of any nutrients.

So, as the process goes, people are instructed to stop eating sugar, fat, and salt. However, many times, those instructions are not supplemented with healthy replacements and it's left to you to do the research, which is no simple task. As Michael Pollan says in “In Defense of Food”, scientists and the food media keep things much too complicated for the average person and this confusion keeps people trapped in a fat body.

So let's boil this down. There are nutrient-filled foods that will keep you full for a long time and quite easy to find at any local grocery store. If you eat these better quality foods, you won’t need to overeat and frankly, you may not be as tempted by the glazed donuts that Marcy brought into the office.

Here are a handful of the foods that we are talking about. Where are these in your diet today? Are any of them included? Is anyone snacking on all of these each week?

1. Banana
   What a great fruit! Not only are bananas available year-round, they are fairly inexpensive. If you reach out for a banana when you feel hungry instead of an empty calorie snack, you’ll nourish your body and you’ll be ingesting way less fat and sugar than many snacks.
   
   Elsewhere: 6 Awesome Health Benefits Of Bananas, Whole Foods' Lowdown on Bananas


2. Eggs
   As long as you’re not eating 12 of them in one week, eggs are good for you. Eggs are an excellent source of protein and protein is the “real diet secret” because foods high in protein will keep you full longer. In fact, Prevention Magazine recently revealed the finding of a study that showed that eating two eggs for breakfast helped women lose 65% more weight and decreased their waistlines 83% more than women who didn't!


3. Almonds
   Dr. Mehmet Oz might be the one responsible for popularizing the idea that nuts and almonds are such an important snack foods. Almonds are rich in monounsaturated fatty acids and protein. Just one handful of almonds will keep you full for a long time because they are great at suppressing appetite.


4. Avocados
   Avocados are so misunderstood. So many people avoid them because they think they are fattening. I’ve been following The Biggest Loser Season 8 and I’ve rejoiced many times when trainer Bob or Jillian advise the participants to include ½ avocado at lunch time because it contains good fats (monounsaturated fatty acids) and it contains protein that will fill you up nicely. Not only can you add avocados to salads, but they are great as a spread on sandwiches and you can even add them to a smoothie!


5. Peanut butter
   You can easily find peanut butter that contains only 100% roasted peanuts (you can buy the organic and non-organic kinds). In other words there are no hydrogenated oils, sugar or salt added to the peanut butter. This is a healthy option compared to conventional peanut butter and the price is not much different.
   
   Peanut butter is full of protein and honestly it’s such a convenient food. You can spread some peanut on toast or crackers and you know that you’ll be full for many hours to come! It’s true that peanuts are high in fat, but they contain mono-unsaturated fats, which are good fats!


6. Oatmeal
   Oatmeal is under-appreciated in my opinion. I like hot oatmeal during the colder months of the year and I’ll always grind a few tablespoons of oatmeal to include in my morning breakfast smoothie. Oatmeal is a great super food because it's low in sugar, high in fiber and it’s so quick to prepare. It’s only takes 5-10 minutes to prepare your oatmeal and you’ll be full for hours after eating a bowl. Here’s another great thing about a bowl of oatmeal: you can let your creativity run wild and you can top your oatmeal with pretty much anything!


7. Apples
   Apples are full of fiber. There is a reason why your mother told you repeatedly that “one apple a day keeps the doctor away”. It might sound clichéd, but packing an apple for your daily snack will not only add one fruit/vegetable portion to your daily recommended intake (it’s recommend that you consume 5-10 fruits and vegetables a day), but the fiber will fill up your stomach and you won’t be so obsessed with food.

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Living in San Francisco, one of the most expensive places in the country, I have learned a lot about budgets. First lesson: I need a budget. Recently, I kept track of my monthly expenditures and was shocked by the number in my “entertainment” column; no wonder my paychecks disappear so quickly.

There are obvious alternatives to nights on the town, like socializing at home. However, sometimes we’re obligated to go out—a friend’s birthday, for example, or the need to leave the house and indulge ourselves a little. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to cut corners and still have a good time without entertaining ourselves into debt.

1. The credit card—leave home without it!
   It’s easy to go out with every intention of scrimping and saving, but it’s much harder to put those intentions into practice. If you have sufficient funds in the bank, the best thing to do is to withdraw a set amount of cash before you go out and leave the credit card at home. That way, you only spend what you can truly afford. (It feels pretty silly asking to borrow money for dessert or an extra drink.)


2. They call it happy hour for a reason.
   People tend to go out to dinner or meet up later in the evening, especially on the weekends. Unfortunately, they’re missing some great deals courtesy of local bars and restaurants. Many places offer happy hours (which usually last at least two or three hours, despite the singular name) with food and drink deals like half-priced cocktails, 2-for-1 appetizers, cheap beer, etc. There’s no reason why the party can’t get started a little earlier. Just try to get there early to snag a seat as happy hour is becoming increasingly popular (and crowded) in these penny-pinching times.


3. Dinner and drinks without loosening the purse strings.
   Dining out can be a difficult obstacle to staying within budget. Food and beverages are often overpriced and even if you order minimally, there’s a chance the rest of the group (who didn’t exercise such restraint) will want to split the bill. There are ways to get around this, though. First, consider ordering off the appetizer menu. It’s cheaper and the portions are much more reasonable. Another option is splitting an entrée with a friend—most main courses are enough for two people, or you can save half for tomorrow’s lunch. Keep an eye out for restaurant specials and coupons in the local paper, or go to Restaurant.com and buy gift certificates to restaurants in your area for significantly reduced prices. (A $25 gift certificate for $10 is a frequent deal on their Web site.)
   
   Beverages have a high markup so choose your poison wisely. Water is the best bet, but if you’re craving something with more flavor (or alcohol), just know you may have to cut back on something else during the night. Speaking of alcoholic beverages, ever notice how some mixed drinks are more expensive than others? That’s because patrons pay for the alcohol content, not whatever mixers are included. Stick to drinks with only one kind of alcohol or pick a stronger drink that you can sip on through the night. (Long Island Iced Tea is a popular choice among frugal drinkers. It’s pricier, but one or two should do the trick.) Sticking to domestic beers and ordering “well drinks” (read: not top-shelf liquor) are two more ways to keep the spending to a minimum.


4. Why pay for entertainment?
   Since moving to this pricey city, I’ve discovered the beauty of art show openings. They’re free, they happen at night, and there is usually a table of snacks and beverages to enjoy. (Hello, free dinner!) Plus, you’re introduced to new artists and their work. Check online or browse the local paper to see if any gallery shows or art walks are happening in your area.
   
   The Internet and newspaper are great sources for other events—concerts, book readings, community theater productions, shows at the local college, movie screenings—that are discounted or free. In fact, there are numerous Web sites and blogs dedicated to finding frugal forms of fun in various cities. Do a search online or read the calendar section of your city’s newspaper for updates on free or budget entertainment.


5. Have fun without spending a dime (or spending just a few of them).
   Having fun with friends doesn’t necessitate a restaurant or club setting. There are lots of ways to spend time together and enjoy a night out without dipping into grocery funds. Creativity is the key. One night, my friends and I created and participated in a scavenger hunt downtown. It was fun and we met new people as a result—all with zero impact on our finances.
   
   If weather permits, try a nighttime neighborhood tour or take a hike and go stargazing. There’s no reason why being active should be relegated to daytime, as long as you travel in a big group and are mindful of your surroundings. Stick to the safer parts of the city and use your best judgment.
   
   Bowling, though not free, is another affordable alternative to a night out. You split the cost of lanes, the brew is cheap, and you spend a night perfecting your game (or if you’re me, perfecting just how skillfully the ball goes straight into the gutter).

Wallets may be lean, but that doesn’t mean we can’t occasionally enjoy ourselves. In fact, escaping the house to socialize with friends is what makes tough times bearable. It lends a sense of normalcy to our financially unstable realities. And, there are benefits to frugal entertainment, such as discovering activities in our cities that we might not have explored before. It requires a little effort—well, if you consider going online or opening a newspaper an effort—but the results can be surprisingly rewarding and not just for our bank accounts. Remember, it’s not being cheap—it’s being creative.

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Most of us work and play at our computers. We might abuse them from time to time, but we try to take good care of them. We install virus-protection software, we carry our laptops in a special case, we reboot the computer when it’s getting slow, and so on. If something goes wrong – an odd error message, or the blue screen of death – we take action to fix it.

Do you take such good care of yourself? Or do you end up working yourself into the ground, ignoring the first symptoms of problems? Here are some dos and don’ts which are probably part of your computer’s regime: how about making them part of yours too?

Don’t ... Run Lots of Programs At Once
You know what happens if you try to run a game, a bunch of chat applications, a web browser and your graphics-editing software at once: your computer grinds to a halt.

The same can happen to you. There’s been a backlash against multi-tasking recently: experts have shown that our IQ drops when we’re distracted by doing lots of things at once, and I’m sure that all of us have experienced that feeling of jumping between too many things and leaving all of them half-done or badly done.

In some cases, you need to literally close some programs on your computer. Having your email and Twitter open while working on a report isn’t generally helpful. In the offline world, stopping multi-tasking might mean that you don’t take phone calls while cooking dinner: either the conversation or the meal will suffer!

Like a computer, you switch quickly from one task to another

Do ... Prevent Viruses Ever Taking Hold
It’s a safe bet that your computer’s running anti-virus software. (If it isn’t, you can get free software from AVG.) This prevents viruses from ever getting into your computer.

Do you take similar preventive measures about your own health? A nasty cold can knock you out of action just as effectively as a nasty virus can render your computer inoperable. Ways to prevent yourself from getting sick include:

• Getting enough sleep


• Eating healthily: plenty of fruit and vegetables


• Taking regular exercise


• Possibly taking supplements such as vitamins (ask your doctor about this)


• Avoiding excessive amounts of stress, which leave you susceptible to illness

Don’t Wait Until The Battery’s Dead to Recharge
If you’ve got a laptop, you’ll know that it’s never a good idea to wait until that “low battery” warning appears before you recharge. In a worst-case scenario, you might actually lose what you’re working on. You’ll almost certainly be inconvenienced if your power fails when you’re in the middle of something.

We often push ourselves too hard, and ignore our own “low battery” signals. Take a break before you run out of energy. Go to bed before your head is drooping at your desk. Give yourself a quiet weekend before you have a nervous breakdown...

Do ... Implement Efficiency Tips
There are tons of hacks to speed up your computer and to make it run more efficiently.

There are also lots of tips which will help you work more efficiently. You can find plenty here on Dumb Little Man. Whatever area you want to improve in your life – whether it’s waking up energised each morning or simplifying and eliminating waste – you can find a guide to help you to do it.

Of course, you can read all the tips in the world, but it’s doing them which counts. You wouldn’t expect your computer to improve just because you read a copy of PC Magazine, would you? So take the same approach with yourself, and put the advice you read into action.

Don’t ... Try to Fix It All Yourself
Finally, while tips are all well and good, you wouldn’t rely on them if your computer had a serious problem. If the hard drive failed or the computer wouldn’t boot reliably, or there was a worrying metal clunking grinding sound every time you put a DVD in the drive ... you’d get an expert to look at it.

With our own lives, though, we often struggle on without seeking any help. Perhaps we think we should do it all alone, or we’re not sure who to approach, or we’re worried we might be making a fuss about nothing.

The reality is, there is nothing wrong or weak about seeking help when you need it. If you’ve got unexplained symptoms, see your doctor. If you’re suffering a lot of stress, unhappiness or anxiety, consider counseling or therapy. If you’re struggling to make changes in your life, hire a life coach. There are plenty of experts in all aspects of your body and mind who can help you when things go wrong: don’t be afraid to consult them.

Is your computer getting a better deal than you are? How can you change things around to make sure that you’re taking good care of yourself?

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