My computer lost my first message, so I’m trying again. It’s been a hard week. I’m not really too into anything right now. I’m heading out of town for the evening.

Armand, I only got one cardio session in. I took a walk, also. I’ve been Christmas shopping so I’ve got even more walking in also. I’ll try and get three in next week. But I did at least get one in.

Sharon, the fajitas aren’t as bad as they look. I only ate maybe 1/3 or 1/4 of the steak of an ordinary fajita platter. Lots of rice, beans and chips. Today was our potluck – bad, bad today — lots of cookies, but as for the other stuff, a little of a lot of stuff. So I did alright this week. I forgot to mention I am at 202 pounds as of this morning. We’ll see how the rest of the weekend goes.

Question for Sharon: I read that you can have 30 percent of your calories from Fat. How many calories should I be eating? Am I trying for less fat since I’m trying to lose weight? Also, what weight is average for someone who is 5 feet 10 inches tall and of medium build? I’m aiming for 155 to 160 pounds right now. Is that in range? Should I aim for lower?

That’s all for now.

You are steadily approaching that big landmark — you’ll be under 200 soon!

If you remember from early on, I instructed you to count your fat grams and limit them to about 35 fat gams a day. I planned this amount on the basis of a 1,500 calorie diet — with about 20 percent fat: a little lower than the Heart Association recommendations since you are trying to lose weight. It is easier to count fat grams than calories and if you lower your fat intake, you lower your calories. However, some people get around this by eating lots of nonfat foods, such as soda, pretzels, pasta, rice, fat-free cookies and frozen yogurt. Therefore, calories are not saved and weight loss does not happen. I am on watch to see that you don’t do that.

You have not been counting fat grams, but I didn’t want to give you too much homework lately. By the look of your food diaries, you have been getting a hefty dose of fat. Macaroni and cheese with hot dogs! Yikes! And remember, although the salsa is fine, each chip easily has 1 to 2 fat grams. Look up chocolate cake in your reference book.

Your goal of 155 to 160 pounds sounds appropriate. Just take your homework one more step — count the fat grams daily. This will help you make food decisions that are healthier for you. Try to eat two fruits, two vegetables and two dairy a day.

By the way, what is Gardettos?

With the holidays upon us, it is very important for you to stay focused on your exercise program despite the distractions, temptations and excuses that arise. You will be challenged now more than ever to get fit — the average American gains between seven and 10 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year’s!

Exercising on a regular basis can significantly help minimize the damage. For this week, I want you to get in three lengthy cardio sessions of at least 40 minutes each BEFORE THANKSGIVING. Get another session in the day after Thanksgiving, as well. Be sure to take a walk after the turkey dinner, too, to ward off the heavy feeling that follows a major meal. It will also get you away from the table where it’s easy to keep picking at leftovers.

Stay active, Erin! And have a great holiday.

# Chromium helps the action of insulin in glucose and protein use by the body
# Chromium is an mineral element which means that our bodies can acquire it only with foods
# The estimated safe and adequate daily dietary intake for Chromium is 50 – 200 micrograms for adults
# US women consume 25 micrograms and men consume 33 micrograms of Chromium a day
# Intakes of fewer than 50 micrograms/day have been reported for adults living in the United Kingdom, Finland, Canada, and New Zealand

Food having a high concentration of Chromium:

Meats, whole-grain products, ready-to-eat bran cereals, green beans, broccoli, and spices have a high concentration of Chromium (5).

Foods that rob our bodies of Chromium:

Foods high in sugars, which is found in soft drinks, and suChromiumose, or table sugar, are not only low in Chromium content, they also promote Chromium losses.

Factors that influence absorption:

Amino acids chelated with Chromium enhance its absorption. Oxalate, which is found in vegetables and grains, significantly inChromiumeases Chromium uptake as do nicotinic acid and vitamin C. Phytate also forms chelates with Chromium, but these complexes inhibit transport of Chromium aChromiumoss the intestine. Absorption is also reduced by zinc supplementation. Chromium deficiency may be promoted by inChromiumeasing Chromium losses in response to physiologic stressors such as physical trauma, exercise for the sedentary persons, nursing, and consumption of a diet high in simple sugars.

Dietary factor:

Low dietary protein diet and high dietary fat diet in when administered along with restricted Chromium intake have each induced Chromium deficiency.

What about GTF?

GTF or glucose tolerance factor is a hypothetical organic complex that presumably may enhance Chromium absorption. GTF, which was proposed to include Chromium, nicotinic acid, and possibly the amino acids glycine, cysteine, and glutamic acid, has neither been isolated nor synthesized. Thus, the defined structure of GTF and whether it is the most biologically active form of Chromium remain controversial as are clinical findings some of which support the hypothesis and some fail to confirm it.

Body Functions

Chromium deficiency have been reported to be linked to insulin insensitivity. The symptoms of chromium deficiency are as follows:

# glucose intolerance
# increased insulin concentration
# hyperglycemia or hypoglycemia
# impaired growth
# elevated cholesterol concentration
# neuropathy
# encephalopathy
# increased intraocular pressure
# decreased insulin receptor number
# impaired immune fynction

Studies have confirmed marked improvement in glucose tolerance with Chromium supplements, primarily with brewer’s yeast. Drs. Glinsmann and Mertz found that three out of six diabetics showed improved glucose tolerance after long-term (weeks) but not after short-term (1 – 7 days) supplementation with Chromium. Sixty days of supplementation with 500 micrograms of Chromium/day resulted in significantly lowered glucose and insulin. Supplemental brewer’s yeast decreased the need for insulin injections in insulin-dependent diabetics. 200 mcg of Chromium improved glucose control in diabetic patients. Other studies, however, found no significant and consistent improvements in glucose tolerance.