Hormonal Issues
Why do women usually have a more difficult time losing weight? Part of the reason is due to hormones. Before we explain the hormone phenomenon, you must first realize that this is NOT an excuse for being overweight! As we all know, eating too much, eating the wrong foods, and not exercising all contribute significantly to weight gain. But for now let’s take a look at the hormone connection:
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Losing Weight on the Otter Diet
We receive many comments from patients via email, as well as during our consultations with patients here in the office. One of the hardest things for people to realize is that the key to weight loss is to follow your specific Hauser Diet. Many of our patients’ Hauser Diet Type results reveal Otter physiology. As you know, the Hauser Otters require primarily protein and fat to best fuel their bodies. But even knowing this, many of our Otter Diet patients revert back to what the media is teaching people about weight loss and forget their Hauser Diet principles. We hear things like this:

"If I want to lose weight couldn’t I just eat Lean Cuisines and drink Slim Fast?"

“Shouldn’t I be eating low fat, sugar-free diet foods if I want to lose weight?”

“Fruit is a low fat food item – shouldn’t I just eat a lot of fruit to lose weight?”

Interestingly enough, when patients turn in their food diaries after having been instructed on their Hauser Otter Diet, inevitably, one patient per week will list foods such as these:
• Fat free cookies
• Fat free ice cream
• Sugar free soda
• Sugar free candy
• Apples/pears/bananas/grapes/oranges/watermelon at every meal and snacks

What’s wrong with this picture? No matter what you’re trying to do – lose weight or just have more energy and improve your health, you must stick to the Otter Diet principles. All day, every day! Don’t get bogged down with calorie counting, because even if your calorie intake is low, if you’re eating the wrong foods for your Diet Type, you’re not eating healthy-for you!

Let’s take a look at what you are putting on your plate: Each time you eat, envision a plate - even if you’re not using one. The biggest portion of your plate should contain your choice of protein foods. Remember protein foods are things such as chicken, fish, beef, eggs, tofu, lamb, and pork.

Eat your veggies! Use the rest of the plate to get in your servings of vegetables. Have a lettuce-based salad, along with some veggies. For example, make a salad with some dark greens, sliced cucumber, fresh tomatoes, onion slices, and drizzle with a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Roast some veggies in the oven for something different – we love to drizzle a little olive oil and sprinkle with a little Kosher salt on our asparagus, Brussels sprouts, red peppers, or even green beans. You’ll be surprised at how great they taste!

It is not that you can never have any grains during the day, but if you are eating them at every meal, you are eating too many. If you are trying to lose weight, then these need to go! Otters best metabolize proteins and fats. They do not do well with carbohydrates in large quantities. So why continue to feed your body the fuel that makes it run inefficiently?

What are you snacking on? Many of our Hauser Otter patients just LOVE fruit. They also love trail mix that contains dried fruit. They also love yogurt that is laced with fruit. Fruit is not the Hauser Otter’s friend! Contrary to popular belief, fruit is not a healthy food for Otters. Limit your fruit intake to one small serving per day (about 1/2 cup) – and this includes snacks and trail mixes and other fruit-containing foods. Reach for the nuts, beef jerky, hard boiled eggs, and sun flower seeds instead.

Bring some relatively “free foods” that will fill you up – celery sticks, cucumber slices, radishes, and the like.

How much are you eating?
When trying to lose weight, we do need to reduce portions. However, if you are eating according to your Hauser Otter Diet, you may actually be able to eat more than you think you could, and still lose weight.

Here are some additional weight loss tips:
• Eat until you just start to feel full. If you eat past that point, even on the foods that are good for your Diet Type, you are overeating. The idea is to eat for necessity, not just because you want to eat. Depending on the case, it could mean only eating when you are hungry.

• Eat regularly. Many of our Hauser Otter patients are dealing with issues such as hypoglycemia. If you do not eat every four hours, then you may find yourself eating to prevent a crash which often involves “chowing down” because you feel starved!

• Eat at the table. Eating while preoccupied in front of the TV or computer causes you to eat more because you are not cognoscente of what you are putting in your mouth.

• Avoid diet soda. Diet sodas actually make you feel more hunger. This is not what you are trying to accomplish. Experiment with some fresh teas and make your own iced tea. Or try some sparkling water with a lime. It can be quite refreshing.

• Cut out the coffee and eliminate the creamer/sugar added to your coffee. Hauser Otters should not be drinking much coffee anyway, but if you still drink some, you should cut it down to just one cup in the morning because caffeinated beverages can worsen hypoglycemia symptoms. If you are a coffee creamer lover, you need to learn to drink it black! And the lattes, frappucinos, mochas – those are OUT!

• Dump the desserts, and the other carbs! Since Otters do not metabolize sugars/sweets well, especially if you are looking to lose weight, then cookies, sweets, and ice cream should be avoided, as well as jams/jellies, and fruits. Every little bit helps!

• Exercise regularly. Exercise stimulates your metabolism and allows you to burn more fat once you have gained muscle mass. It is not too late to start. Begin with walking if you have not yet started.

Otters! You can lose weight if you stick to your Hauser Otter Diet! Do not be swayed back into mainstream “weight reduction” mania! Stick with your Otter Diet, follow the above suggestions, and you’ll be surprised at what the outcome is! If you have never gotten Diet Typing and want to know how you should eat, give us a call!

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708-848-7789