Here's a plan you can live with!

For any of you who know me at all, you knew it was coming sooner or later. . . It's time to talk about health and fitness. Now don't jump off my blog just yet - hear me out!

Here are some GRADUAL changes you can make in your lifestyle and diet that will really pay off - plus, this is a plan you can stick to! Try to add one of these steps a month, and at the end of the year you will look and feel like you are 10 years younger. On top of that, you'll be adding years onto your life. (I got this off of MSN health if you want to see the entire article, without my commentary)

Step 1: Walk, Man
Since exercise doesn't have to be intense to be beneficial, brisk walking is an ideal choice for beginners. It's inexpensive, it's enjoyable, anyone can do it and it works!

Step 2: Laugh More Often
Did you know that 100 hearty, good laughs burn the same amount of calories as ten minutes of rowing? Looks like more giggling leads to less jiggling!

Step 3: Learn Label Lingo
A healthy eating plan begins at the grocery store. Nowadays, food labels contain all the information we need to make smarter choices. More on this later . . .

Step 4: Follow the 80/20 Rule
Eighty percent of the time, choose foods that are nutritious, low in fat, and high in fiber. Twenty percent of the time, allow yourself an indulgence. This way, you'll never feel deprived, and no foods will be off limits or taboo.

Step 5: Think Fitness, Not Thinness
Throw unrealistic notions of becoming pencil thin or perfectly chiseled out the window. Anyone, of any body type, of any age, of any height, can become fit through regular exercise and a healthy diet. It's fitness that matters most in the long run.

Step 6: You Booze, You Lose
If you drink regularly, say, two beers or two glasses of wine each day, that's over 1,400 calories per week, or over 73,000 calories per year -- enough to create 20 pounds of excess flab! Have you ever carried around a 20 lb bag of potatoes? Not fun!

Step 7: Kick the Habit
It's second nature to add butter to toast, mayonnaise to sandwiches, and fat-laden dressings to salads. Try replacing these high-fat habits with new low-fat ones, like putting jam on toast, low-fat mayonnaise or honey mustard on sandwiches, and low-fat dressings on salads. My favorite is honey on toast or bread for getting rid of my sweet tooth.

Step 8: Don't Be a Frequent Fryer
Choose cooking methods that don't add fat to your foods: baking, broiling, grilling, roasting, poaching and steaming. Use nonstick cooking spray in place of oil and save 14 grams of fat.

Step 9: Give Your Spuds Some New Duds
Forget the butter when mashing potatoes. Every tablespoon has 11 grams of fat. Instead, use low-fat sour cream or buttermilk to get the creamy taste and texture you're after. Try salsa on baked potatoes—it's fat-free.

Step 10: Plan Menus in Advance
When you know what you're going to eat ahead of time, you avoid impulsive high-fat, high-calorie food selections. Try to plan weekly menus on the weekend and shop for the ingredients you'll need. This will make weekday mealtimes a lot less hectic.

Step 11: Kill Two Birds With One Stone
Doing two things at once may be just the way to fit exercise into a hectic schedule. When you take your kids to soccer practice, walk around the field instead of just sitting for an hour. Catch up on the latest gossip with your best friend while hiking, biking or golfing. Walk from the Creative Arts Center at GCC up to the youth offices a couple of times - that'll get your heart going!

Step 12: Prepare Yourself for a Snack Attack
Keep healthy snacks on hand, like skim milk puddings, baked tortilla chips, low-fat cereal bars, pretzels, fresh fruit, veggies with low-fat dip, and frozen yogurt. Leave the high-fat snacks at the supermarket. Out of sight, out of mind.