Expert: Dianne M. Buxton - 7/18/2007

Question
Dianne. do yoou know any good websites for ballet? I'd like to know them. Also,How do I lose weight? I want to exercise but I can't get myself to. How can I do that. I'd like to run everyday.when's the best time in the day? Best exercise plan? And also, how do I lose my extra belly fat? I weight about 100 pounds and I'm only 11!I hate eating
healthy foods but if it'll make me skinnier, what good foods should I eat? Thank you for answering these questions!!"


Answer
Firstly, some web sites: http://www.theballetstore.com has articles, books, DVDs, a store, a full ballet glossary and more; http://www.thebodyseries.com is another good site with many technical articles, books about ballet and anatomy, and DVDs; http://www.balletshoesandpointeshoes.blogspot.com has extensive articles, and many are about pointe work.

Since you say you don't like to exercise, but that you would like to run, I assume you are not a dance student. Do you know why you don't really want to exercise? You may be nutritionally deficient, especially as you feel you are overweight. Since I don't know how tall you are, or what kind of skeletal frame you have, I don't know how much you should weigh right now.

However, for most growing people fresh, unprocessed foods are the only foods you should be eating! Is that bad news? That doesn't mean you can't have some treats on the weekend or something, like when you're with friends, but every day you need some good lean proteins, (soft cooked eggs, meats, chicken, fish, tofu if you like it --) fresh vegetables and salads, at least 50% raw, which is great if you can get into making some yummy dips. Healthy dips are  made from lemon juice and olive oil, grated cheese or sour cream, maybe with some ranch flavoring.

Walnuts, celery, other nuts, and yogurt are great snacks. If you have strong sweet cravings, you will have to avoid sweets for a couple of weeks altogether to make that go away. You may have headaches and energy highs and lows during that time, but it's kind of like drug withdrawal, because sugar acts like drug in our bodies. Our system has to get used to running on real food again, with minimal sugar.

Packaged diet foods and artificial sweeteners are not good. They are full of chemicals that are bad for you. Do you know that when medical researchers want to quickly fatten mice up for an experiment they give them artificial sweeteners? Like the kind of food chemicals that are in diet sodas. Those additives make you crave carbs!

Here's a great book for you if you are interested in running: "Slow Burn" by Stu Mittelman. He is a champion runner. He talks about the right shoes, the right diet, the right training routines, in a lot of detail.

If you have true energy problems, ask your parents to take you to your doctor. It's good to know that all the routine body systems that a doctor will check are running properly. Most medical doctors would say I'm too strict on the diet part, but I am a dancer and that's what works. I do not think you should ever be hungry or feel deprived - but what you choose to snack on makes all the difference in the world.  Any carbs like chips, crackers, and breads are almost useless calories. They do not build your bones and muscles, or brain cells.

"Protein Power" by the doctors Eades and Eades, is another great book. It explains how the body metabolizes efficiently - that is, creates energy for you. The body can do this without any sugar at all! In fact, meats and vegetables have carb content, and that is enough for us.

Oils and fats are extremely important to eat - but again, choosing the healthy ones is what counts. Flax seed oil and olive oil are the most common oils to make salad dressings from. Most store bought salad dressings have heavier oils in them, and nearly always sugar. (And chemicals).  Butter is good for you, and so is the fat in eggs, but keep the yolks soft. Not eating any fat is BAD for you. You just don't eat too much, and how much is not too much,  is relative to how often and how hard you exercise.

This is just the overview, you need to read about health and diet and explore what will work for you. It is wonderful that you are interested in being healthy and strong - thin will happen if you eat well and exercise well.

I hope this is helpful Serena.

Dianne

A brief follow up - I've recommended to almost everyone to read my articles and blog entries at http://www.theballetstore.com You have to create a user name to log in to see all the blog entries - your privacy is safe! I really apologize that I didn't tell you this - I'm not a technical person!