lifestyle changes Archives

Diabetes Awareness Month: 15 Fun Facts About John

December 1, 2019 By Angie Lamberson Leave a Comment

15 Fun Facts about John (as told by his wife, Angie) in honor of Diabetes Awareness Month:

Besides having B.S. & M.S. degrees in Nutrition, he also has a B.S. degree in Political Science.
He takes diabetes very seriously. When he was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes 28 years ago, he decided to return to college & study Nutrition. He wanted to help as many people as possible.
He met his wife Angie (also a Dietitian) in Nutrition Assessment class at James Madison University.
He is the father of two teenagers, Jonathan & Bayleigh. Jonathan (the oldest) is a Freshman at the University of Florida & is studying Sports Journalism.
He once played the Leader of the Lollypop Guild in The Wizard of Oz. 🍭
He is a baller! 🏀 He played point guard on his high school basketball team & many years for our local Rec League (just got a call to return! Will he? Stay tuned!).
He has been in the presence of a Saint (Pope John Paul II in Mile High Stadium).
His favorite pastime is attending college football games. 🏈
His second favorite pastime is tailgating!
He eats 2 apples EVERYDAY. 🍎🍎
His favorite food is pizza. 🍕
He exercises each day of the week. This includes running, weight lifting, Angie’s spin class & biking.
He rides his bike to the office when he can.
He has 3 alpacas (“V.E.G.” – “Vision, Ella and Giselle”). 🦙🦙🦙
One Halloween, he dressed up as a cheerleader and cheered for his patients as they were receiving dialysis (encouraging them to take their Phosphate binders!).

And a Bonus Fact!

He is an awesome cake decorator 🎂 and has even decorated a wedding cake!

It’s Your Health. It’s Your Life. Make That Change!

Get on Track for Successful Health Change in the New Year!

January 8, 2016 By John Lamberson Leave a Comment

Hopefully, Achieve Your Goals- St Francis you’ve been able to keep those resolutions! Many times we start to falter as we move deeper into January and February. We often have a tough time making and maintaining change. Why? It doesn’t have to be that way! Things change every day. We are just not always aware of the changes going on around us. The sun rises in the East and sets in the West day after day. What’s different about the rising and setting of the sun? The time is different. It never rises and sets at exactly the same each day! We just don’t perceive the difference until it hits us how dark it is at 4:30 pm on the Winter Solstice. The gradual change makes it more difficult to distinguish the changes. (Take heart, the sun shines a little longer each day now!)

Think about the changes you’ve been wanting to make in your life. Do you expect the change to happen immediately or are you prepared to slowly evolve into a newer version of yourself? We tend to start our change process with a New Years Resolution. But why do we wait until the New Year to make changes? It was Buddha that said, “Every morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.” Every day we are given a opportunity to make a change in our lives. The change can be big or small but every change we make will impact us some how. To get the most out of the changes you want to make, be sure to have a plan to help you make and maintain those changes fro the long term. Resolutions don’t have to be all or nothing. It’s not a pass-fail game. If you start with the end in mind, this can help figure out what actions steps you’ll need to complete to reach your goal. It’s important to have a goal BUT, it’s more important to to break that goal down into manageable steps. We like to use the SMART Step System to help clients find change success. You may have heard about the SMART System:

S: Specific ~ Be specific about what you are going to do. It’s not enough to say you are going to eat healthier or ex If you always do what you always did 1.2016 ercise more. Specify what that means to you. How do you define eating healthier or exercising more?

M: Measurable ~ You want to see how often you are doing or not doing something. If part of your healthier eating plan was to include more fruit, how many pieces a day did you want to eat?

A: Achievable or Action-Oriented ~ This is getting you to take the steps necessary to meet your overall goal. Break the bigger goal down into smaller components that you can work on each day. You can also use the “A” to represent Accountability. Being accountable to someone can help drive you when you feel like giving up. Find a person that will have a positive impact on your drive towards your goal and, if you’re comfortable, share your goal and your action step you plan to use to reach them.

R: Realistic ~ Important area here! We are not saying choose an easy task that won’t cause you much stress. What we are saying is that we need to be able to meet and exceed our action step and keep moving forward. You want to stretch yourself outside of your comfort zone. We often work with clients that want to lose weight. They would like to lose 20 pounds in a month. While that is possible, it is typically not probable, nor is it healthy! You can lose that 20 pounds but it may take a little longer than 30 days!

T: Time Driven or Target Date: Set a date to accomplish your action step. If your
goal is to workout more often, say 4 times a week, choose an exercise, choose the time of day and the days of the week. Doing so will help you better visualize how and when you will accomplish your step. This can also help you overcome potential barriers that may keep you from finishing that action step.

So take control of each and every day! Use it to help you move forward with your plan. It may be of help to write down what it is you want to change and why that change will be helpful to you. Think about what it is that motivates you to make that change. Make that motivation a personal priority for you. And if you have a hard time staying on track, remember, there is no failure but opportunities to find out what doesn’t work for us. So try something new or different! Each new day gives us a new beginning! Here’s to a Happy & Healthy New Year!

“It’s Your Health. It’s Your Life. Make That Change!”

~John

Diabetes Awareness Month!

November 4, 2015 By John Lamberson Leave a Comment

Welcome November and Diabetes Awareness Month! We’ve gotten through October and Halloween and are looking forward to Thanksgiving, Christmas and the New Year. But first, we need to stop and recognize a potential health crisis. Diabetes continues to play a huge role in the health of our nation and around the world. The good news is that this is a condition you can control! The key to control is Knowing Your Numbers. Have a simple blood glucose check performed and you can quickly assess your diabetes risk or diabetes control. Remember, being overweight, obese or having a family member with diabetes can increase your risk for developing diabetes. Get checked if you:

Have a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than 25
Lead a sedentary lifestyle
Have a history of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
Have a history of Gestational Diabetes
Gave birth to a child weighing more than 9 pounds
Have a history of Heart Disease, High Cholesterol or High Blood Pressure
Have a family member with Diabetes
Are 45 years or older

A quick look at what the numbers mean can give you an idea of where you stand. Most often, a Fasting Blood Glucose value will be used. This is preformed after an overnight fast and before any food or beverage in the morning. A one-time test may not always tell you everything you need to know but at least it can help to move you in the right direction!

	Blood Glucose	Results
	Normal:	Pre-Diabetes:	Diabetes:
Fasting Glucose: (No food or drink previous 8 hours)	< 99 mg/dL	100-125 mg/dL	>126 mg/dL on two separate draws.
Random Glucose:			>200 mg/dL

As the table shows, the numbers tell the story. A blood glucose check is a quick and easy way to get more information. If you’re not sure what the numbers mean or what you can do to take control, talk with your doctor or health care provider to get more answers and referrals to an education program. Being diagnosed with Pre-Diabetes or Diabetes is not a bad thing, it might just save your life! Don’t wait. The time is now to take action to change your life.

“It’s Your Health. It’s Your Life. Make That Change!”

~John

And the Winner is…..

January 19, 2015 By John Lamberson Leave a Comment

I know it may be a little late to weigh in on the diet debate since we’ve already made it half-way through the “Diet Month” of January! However, US News and World Report once again tabbed the DASH Diet as the Best Overall Diet in their 2015 Review. Keep in mind, the DASH Plan was originally designed to help lower blood pressure. DASH actually stands for Dietary Approaches for Stopping Hypertension. The main emphasis with the DASH Plan is to increase intakes of fruits and vegetables while choosing lean protein sources, such as fish, chicken breast or the leanest cuts of beef or pork. Although it was not developed for weight loss, it has shown that weight loss is a side effect of following this plan. What is reassuring is that this Meal Plan is a healthy alternative that does not require any exotic foods or recipes. It is a safe way to eat that will help you meet your daily nutritional needs and help you achieve better health. We believe in the DASH Plan and often work with our clients to adopt this meal plan as part of their daily intake. Many of the foods included in this plan can also be beneficial in helping to reduce chronic inflammation associated with eating higher sodium and higher fat meals. Chronic inflammation has been identified as a risk factor in developing heart disease and diabetes. You can find out more about the DASH Plan and start making the changes that can help you get healthier and feel better! Remember, you hold the keys to better health in your hands!

It’s Your Health. It’s Your Life. Make That Change!

~John

Make 2013 Your Year to Shine!

January 1, 2013 By John Lamberson Leave a Comment

It is here! Time to ring in the New Year. Our kids have been asking us why there are so many TV commercials and radio ads touting the latest diet plans. Because, it’s here! Time to lose the holiday weight! Members of our local Y have been discussing how busy it will be for the next 2 months as everybody tries to restart their New Year Resolutions. It’s here!

Make this year your year! If you plan to start a new exercise program or meal plan, truly set up a plan. You must plan for success. The problem that’s universally noted with our resolutions to start each year is that they are short-lived. This year, launch your resolution with a contingency plan. Plan for barriers and for methods on how you will overcome those barriers. You know life will throw you a curve that could sabotage your plans. You may have already experienced this in the past. So get ready for it. How do we do that?

1. Make yourself accountable. Write down your goals and how you will go after them. Simply saying you want to lose weight by exercising more may not get it done. Instead, pick the days of the week and times that will fit your schedule. Set up an exercise routine. Schedule it on your calendar just as you would any other important task or appointment. AND, set up a back up plan just in case your first choices don’t work or life happens and you can’t exercise that day or time.

2. Set goals that you can reach but will also challenge you. Setting goals too difficult to reach may set you up for failure. Setting goals too easy to reach will not force you to change. If you have never cooked before, are you going to be able to set a cooking goal to improve your diet? Evaluate your diet, or schedule an appointment with a Registered Dietitian to get some ideas on what you may need to change to better meet those meal planning goals. For instance, you may only need to add a piece of fruit to your meals everyday. Sounds easy but if you are not into eating fruit, you may find it difficult. Pick a fruit, make sure you have enough on hand and plan the meals to which it will be added.

3. Regularly evaluate your progress. If something’s not working the way you want it to, change it up and try a new approach. Don’t give up on it. Businesses follow this model routinely. The Plan-Do-Check-Act set allows them to evaluate their goals and see how it is moving along. It’s not an all or nothing approach. Remember, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you always got!” . Change is about trying new things. In effect, we are experimenting with ourselves. We have the rest of our lives to integrate changes. It doesn’t have to be today!

4. Stay Positive! Our wish for each of you is to be able to experience what successful change is all about. One of the best ways to do that is to keep an upbeat approach. We know that we are not living in an overly optimistic time period right now. With the problems we face on a day to day basis, it can make it hard to find the good that life has to offer. One of our favorite quotes, which is credited to Patricia Neal, addresses this: “A strong positive mental attitude will create more miracles than any wonder drug.” Life will bring us good days and bad, sunshine and rain, laughter and tears. We can’t always control the happenings in life but we can control how we react to them. Smile often and make that part of your daily routine! No matter how bad off we feel or think we have it, there is always somebody else out there worse off than us. We all need to extend our hands and our hearts to help others!

We want to wish you all a very Happy and Healthy New Year! This is your year to shine. Don’t let anything stand in your way!

~It’s Your Health. It’s Your Life. Make That Change!

~Angie & John

Diabetes Awareness Month: 15 Fun Facts About John

Get on Track for Successful Health Change in the New Year!

Diabetes Awareness Month!

And the Winner is…..

Make 2013 Your Year to Shine!

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