If you know me at all, you are probably aware that I'm always busy! Being a father, husband, business owner, and Christian speaker, I understand the art of getting things done. I also understand that many of my clients, workshop participants and colleagues put their health second, or third, or tenth on their list of priorities just because they think they don't have enough time to make the necessary changes to transform their health. I've got good news for you! First, I'm still busy! In fact, I'm right in the middle of writing a book, and guess what? It's created with you in mind, --the super busy person who just can't add another thing to their plate I was actually going to call my book that, but I figured it was kind of wordy. So instead, I'm calling it, 25 Quick & Easy Things You Can Do Right Now To Transform Your Health!

I'm not quite finished with it yet, but I can't wait to share some of the awesome "quickies" that I have for you! I guarantee you haven't thought of many of these and every single tip is heavy on the rewards while being light on the effort! What could be better than that? Here's the first two for you!

Slow it Down!

There are some amazing health benefits you'll enjoy just by slowing down your eating and I think you’ll agree that this is a pretty easy tip to implement, right away, --right now in fact!  Here are some quick tricks to help you: First, put your utensils down between each bite. This also helps you enjoy your food more so you'll feel more satisfied by the meal experience. Another tip is to chew your food at least 20 times before swallowing. Studies have shown that watching television, eating at the computer, or even texting throughout your meal will increase eating speeds, so turn off the TV, get rid of distractions and truly enjoy your meal! Bottom line, --simplify! There’s also a study presented at the Joint International Congress of Endocrinology and European Congress of Endocrinology where researchers identified eating speed, or rather eating too fast, as a risk factor for type 2 diabetes. According to the study, fast eaters are 2.5 times more likely to suffer from type 2 diabetes than slow eaters. The reason? Fast eating is connected to increased insulin resistance, which is the major contributing factor to type 2 diabetes. You can lose up to 20 pounds a year without doing anything differently! How's that for tip number one? Eat slower and lose 20 pounds! How is this possible? There’s a lag between our stomach being full and our brain registering the feeling of fullness so, during that lag, we continue to eat because we don’t realize we’re full. When you slow things down, you don’t eat as much! The second benefit of eating more slowly is the fact that it enhances digestion. Digestion actually begins in your mouth, so the more work you can do up there, the less work you’re going to have to do in your stomach, intestine, colon and bowels. This can help lead to fewer digestive difficulties. Slowing down also counteracts bloating, which can occur when excess air enters your digestive tract. Eating too quickly introduces this excess air, which in turn, makes you feel bloated and uncomfortable. Nobody wants that! Eating more slowly counteracts acid reflux as well , and is especially important for those who have been diagnosed with GERD. Finally, eating slowly releases your "happy" neurotransmitter, serotonin while eating fast can actually block the communication between that neurotransmitter and your body. So, if you slow it down, you'll end up more happy and satisfied!

Make it a Big Deal!

Part of overeating involves the habits we've formed over time. In tip number one we talked about avoiding distractions, such as TV, cell phones, and iPads. But what about the way we serve and enjoy our meal? The eating process we've adopted can help us or hurt us. Do you live a fast paced, go, go, go lifestyle? Have you ever eaten at your desk, over the sink, or while driving in your car? Break these habits immediately! The more places and activities we give mental permission to involve eating (such as driving or working), the easier it is to overeat. Make every possible effort to eat at the dinner table, at a scheduled time, and don't connect eating to any other activity. When you're walking, --walk. Don't walk and eat. When you're driving, --drive. Don't drive and eat. You get the picture! Also, purchasing smaller dishes is a great trick to help you take smaller portions! Arrange the food attractively on your plate, --make it a big deal! Then take a seat and slowly savor every bite! Just like tip number one, making a ritual out of eating and disconnecting from other activities will help you to eat less, and less often. Over the course of time this will equal more pounds shed, not to mention the fact that you'll enjoy eating so much more just because you're not constantly snacking! Small portions of fruit, nuts, or vegetables as scheduled snacks between meals are absolutely fine, and can help keep you from those uncomfortable hunger pangs, but mindlessly reaching into a bag of chips while working on the computer, --that's a habit you need to squash! Making each meal special, even if you're eating alone, will definitely help in this area.