Love your Body

Too often women don't like their body so that is their drive for weight loss.   "I'll like myself when I lose 10 pounds" or "I would like myself if I was a size....." or  "I would like myself if I looked like...." I am going to tell you a secret.  You can like your self/body no matter what shape or size you are.  We are all special and amazing and beautiful.  We all have great things about us and we should all love ourselves.  That is easier said than done for some.  So, today I want you to write another list of 5 things you like about yourself.  You might have found some new things as you have gone on this healthy journey. Post it next to your goal chart or on the minor or somewhere you will see it everyday. You don't have to over think it, just write the first 5 things that come to your mind.   I will check in with you on this and we will talk more about this soon.

Improve your mood with out food

I know we have talked about this before but I am thinking we need to talk about it again.  When my life gets crazy this is what goes out the window first.  I know it has been something I need to be reminded of and work on.  I don't know about you but I eat to deal with stress, boredom and anger and I am ready to STOP IT!.... Again :)  I really liked the section at the end of the article that is titled "One thought at a time".  You really can choose to change your attitude and have happy thoughts instead of anger or stress. Give this article a read and remember you can do this.

http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/wellness_articles.asp?id=1047

Quote

What you do TODAY can improve all your tomorrows

what you eat makes a difference

http://www.dailyspark.com/blog.asp?post=how_your_food_choices_affect_your_health

Healthy?!?!?!

Don't be fooled. A muffin is essentially a cupcake wearing a "healthy" halo.

It is really easy to think you are eating something healthy when you really aren't.  Check the labels.  I have already told you about my "healthy granola" incident.  Just because it is in a box, wrapper, or shelf that looks like it has healthy food doesn't always mean it is.

Weekend and spring break!!!!!

It is time for spring break for alot of us! YAY!!!! For me this means more time to get my workouts in. For others it might mean driving in a car or busy busy go go go. What ever your plans are remember to get a workout in everyday even if it is a family walk. Even more important keep your eating under control. It is easy to just eat what everyone else is eating or give in to the pizza and cake and ice cream. What I want you to remember is not to deprive yourself of everything you have ever enjoyed in your life but to make good choices. This is a life change so live life, just do it in a healthy way. You can give yourself room in your calories for a little treat here or there. Just don't over do it or make it a everyday thing. Remember your goals for the month of March.  Make this week fit that goal!! Have a great weekend and spring break!

Body Shapes

We all know there are different body shapes. Banana, Apple, Pear and Hourglass. As women, most of us know what shape we are. There are alot of myths that go along with these shapes as well. The most important reason for knowing your shape is to know your risks:

Significance
"Where you store excess fat determines the extent of your risk for illness and injury. Apple shapes are more at risk for diabetes and heart disease. Fat is stored deeper in the waist and abdomen, which will affect internal organs and insulin levels. Alternately, in the pear shape, fat stored in the hips and thighs is closer to the skin and increases the risk for movement issues. For the triangle, ruler or hourglass figure, excess fat is a health risk if the fat percentage is high enough to be clinically diagnosed as obese."
http://www.livestrong.com/article/250846-body-shape-weight-loss/ for more on that article

Along with knowing your shape comes all the "fix it quick" garbage. You always hear and read about ways to "loss belly fat" or "trim your hips". The truth of the matter is that there is no way to loss weight from one singled out area of the body. Your body loses weight more or less evenly. You can't take 10 lbs just off your belly or hips alone but it will come off evenly over your whole body. Where ever you store your fat for your body shape will always be where the majority of your fat is stored. Now, the GREAT thing is you can be a healthy apple, pear, hourglass, or banana! That is what we are going for! We have to learn to accept our bodies for the great gifts they are and make them the best we can. This can be hard for some of us to hear but the sooner we understand this the sooner we can stop being disappointed and stop trying to change something we can't. Everyone of us have good qualities. We need to concentrate on these good qualities and focus on being the best ME we can be!

I'm ready! Are you?

Well, with quote from yesterday fresh in my mind I will get honest with you :)  I hadn't been doing as well as I should in the eating healthy of portion control department the last few months.  I hadn't been able to workout and that has added to my poor attitude and excuses of over eating and just plain rebellion when it comes to weigh loss.    I know I'm not the only one that ever feels like this so....... I'm just going to be honest.  I had let the stress of life and inability to workout like I want to drag me down.  Sometimes I feel like "Oh, who cares anyway" or "Well you ate a cup cake, you better just eat 20 of them." and "Everyone else is ordering a blizzard!".   I had not been losing weight and in fact had gained because I had given up.  We all have times when we feel like giving up and when we feel like the sacrifice of eating healthy isn't worth it.  So, how do we address these feeling?  How do we get back on track?  How do we get past the excuses and keep moving forward?
Well honestly there is no secret fix all but it is a personal choice . YOU can do ANYTHING you put your mind to.  I promise you that.  Sometimes it might not be in the exact way you wanted things to go but you CAN do it.  You WILL have ups and downs.  You WILL have hard days or weeks or months.  You will have times of doubt.  BUT, you can do it.  You just have to decide it is THAT important to you.  So I ask you,  How important is it to you to be healthier?  How bad do you want to be able to play and run with your kids?  How bad do you want to feel as good as you can?  How bad do you want to look in the minor and be proud of what you see? 
If you are feeling an excitement or burning or emotional about those question are you are ready to really do what it takes to set and meet your goals?

I am ready! 

 

Are you?

 





I think most of you are.  So lets go over this again.  If you haven't already, let's set a realistic goal for the next 4 weeks.  A good realistic goal is -1 to -2 lbs a week.  Some of you might need to make goals that are measurable in different ways like inches lost, the way cloths fit, days kept on track with eating or workouts done .  Some will be getting stronger and fitter but not see such a huge change on the scale and that is ok too.  Some of you are just getting started and might be able to loss more and some, like me, had over eaten for 2 weeks and might see a huge drop just from getting back on track.  So write down your goal. If you need help let me know.

4 weeks  -8 lbs is mine.

Now, what are we going to do to get there?  Workout plan, eating plan.

Let's start with workout first.  EVERYDAY you need at least 20 min of a workout that gets your heart going.  The more you do the faster you will see results but we don't want o over do and hurt ourselves.  Set a time each day and make it a priority.  Write down what you will do or what you did and keep track.  I want to see your list :). 

Next is eating.  Recommit to your calorie count and eating whole foods.  THIS IS KEY!!!!!  Write down everything you eat and really be strict on your self for right now. 

I could go on all day with this but I leave some for the next few days to come.  Let's do this!!!

Perspective

"A change of perspective can change everything."

Some times it takes looking at things in a different way to get things going.

Heading in the right direction

As far as weight loss goes all weeks are not created equal. Even if you put your best efforts out every week there are other factors that can effect your weight loss along the way. Hormones, illness, traveling, stress, drinking alot of water before you weight in :) and on and on, BUT if you are putting your BEST EFFORTS out every week you will keep heading in the right direction. You might have a big loss one week and not lose any the next. You also might gain 1 lb one week then head into the biggest loss you have ever had(-4 lbs), just to jump back up a pound the next week. If you think about the long run you are headed in the right direction. Ideally we want to have consistent losses but sometimes your body takes some time to adjust to the changes despite your hours and hours of hard work. That is called a plateau. That can be a clue you need to up your efforts. The most important thing is to stay on track. Don't fall in to old habits of nibbling here or there. Push your self harder on your workouts. Make sure you are counting those calories. See your progress and Know you are doing well. Slow and steady not only win the race but in the long run is healthier and gives you a better chance of really making a life long change for the better. You are all going well! KEEP IT UP!!!

mmmmmmmmmm

"You don't have to eat alot of something for it to taste good".
Sometimes when something tastes good we think we need to eat ALOT of it.  Most the time it tends to be unhealthy food but not always.  Too much of anything is not a good thing.  So what should you do when something is just SOOOO good?  Here are a few steps to try.

Take 1 helping; put it on your plate.
Eat that helping SLOWLY.
Wait 30 seconds between each bit to really enjoy the flavors.
When you are done with your 1 serving put your plate away and walk away :)
If you are at your house put the food away so you aren’t tempted to keep eating.

So often when something tastes good we eat it fast and then go back for seconds.  One of the things I always seem to get trapped into is just eating 1 bit out of the serving dish, you know to save calories.  Just a little taste. . . then another.  . .then another.  The "just a taste” turns into me eating more than if I would have just got a plate and taken a serving.  So slow down, taste and enjoy your food and walk away knowing you stayed within your calories.

How to use a scale for weght loss

I know I have said this all before but why not have a refresher :)
http://www.popsugar.com/fitness/How-Use-Scale-Weight-34720675

Fruits and Veggies

It has been a while since we have talked about our food habits. We want it to be a great weight lose month so I thought I would remind you of a few things. Today we are talking about fruits and veggies. You should be eating them with EVERY meal and most snacks. Do you remember the half plate rule? Half of the plate should be fruits and/or veggies at every meal. Another important part of this rule is to get a variety. A great way to get this variety is to look at the colors. Does your plate look green or does it look like a rainbow? (We are going for the rainbow look) :).
You should have some fruit and some veggies everyday. Most of us have no problem eating the fruit but we leave out the vitamin packed veggies. The first step is buying them at the store so they are in your home to eat. Think about what is in season then think about what variety you might want for the next few days and only buy an appropriate amount so they don't go bad. The produce will taste better if it is ripe, in season and fresh. If you need help knowing what is in season or how to know if something is ripe just ask the produce manager that is stocking the displays.
Although you get the most nutrients eating them raw you can also add veggies into stews, casseroles, or eat them steamed or grilled. Just remember to leave out the fats that we so often use to cover up the fact we are eating healthy foods. :)
So this coming up month of March focus on getting those healthy, vitamin packed fruits and veggies into your meals. Your body will thank you!
If you have a great recipe with fruits and veggies let us know! Soups, salad, casserole, grilled, what ever let's have them.

Mental Attitude

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude. - Thomas Jefferson
I found this quote today and it is so true. With the right mental attitude you CAN achieve your goals! There are some things that you do not have much control over but weight lose is 100% in your control. Now, I'm not saying it is easy but what I am saying is if you keep up the hard work you will reach your goal. Now is the time to remember why you are doing this and push yourself to keep it up. Make the time for your workouts. Put the effort into eating right. Put yourself where you need to be mentally. See yourself where you want to be and know that you are making the changes you need to get there.
You can do this! You can do this!
You can do this!
Nothing can stop you!!!

Motivation

Watch this. 
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151990858913159

YOU GOT THIS!!!!!  YOU CAN DO THIS!!!!

What does sugar do to you?

Watch this!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B56Gpf1f5_A