From Spark People for January 31^st

“Congratulations!  You have worked hard for an entire month to help make your dreams a reality.  By now, you are well on the way to achieving all of your goals.  Use what you’ve learned here to keep going and set new goals in the future.”

What I have learned this month:

1.  I did not give up when the only weight loss on the scale the entire month was .2 pounds.

2.  I learned I can increase my exercise a lot and still not lose weight as quickly as I would like.

3.  I learned it is ok to take my time and do it right and be proud of myself every day.

4.  I learned I can walk up the stairs at Carlsbad State Beach (4 times.)

5.  I learned I can eat healthy and clean while camping and sleeping in a tent.

6.  I learned there are so many wonderful people for me to be inspired by just by looking for them and asking for their support

7.  I learned it is really not a good idea to do the treadmill barefooted.

8.  I learned from Power 90 I really like doing weights.  Did I really just say that?

9.  I learned I can work through pain, not die and be glad I did.

10.  I learned there is so much more for me to learn.

What did you learn about yourself and your weight loss journey in January?

From Spark People for January 20^th

“Visualize.  Sit comfortably, breathing deeply with your eyes closed. Envision yourself reaching that goal.  How has your life changed?  How does it feel to accomplish it?  Picture all the steps you took to reach that point and believe in yourself.”

In September of 2008 we spent a week with our best friends at June Lake in the Eastern Sierras.  It was beautiful and every morning when we woke we would see deer walking by our trailer and the stars at night were amazing.  Nothing like you see here in San Diego, CA.  Loved our trip, but….

I was not at a healthy weight, about 50 pounds heavier than I am right now and was not able to do all of the activities everyone else did.  The one I missed the most was a hike everyone else took on the Ansel Adams Wilderness Trail up a mountain to Parker Lake.  I heard it was breath taking since I would not know personally.

This September, we are spending another week at the same place.  I am down 50 pounds and know I will have lost even more by then and be in better shape from regular exercise.  There is another hike to The Pie Lady (don’t ask me) and I intend on being there every step of the way this time.

Pick something you will do when you are at your healthy weight and imagine every piece of it right now.  Make it real.

This from Suicide by Sugar by Nancy Appleton, PhD

The two most important things to remember when choosing wisely are to eat whole foods and choose the carbohydrates which have the least amount of sugar.

From Spark People for January 16^th

“Avoid saboteurs.  People will try to persuade you to go against your plan, whether they feel guilty themselves or just jealous of you.  Ignore them.  Share your goals with positive people and stay away from these topics around the negative ones.”

You become the average of the 5 people you hang around with is what I always told my kids as they were growing up.  Your environment, including the friends you spend time with DOES have an impact on your success!

Someone who I know that has been very successful in losing weight was expressing to her friend how good she was feeling about her weight loss.  The ‘friend’ replied, “Don’t kid yourself, you are still fat.”  I suggested this person might not be quite the friend they thought they were.  Comments like that do nothing to move us forward in our journey to achieve and maintain your ideal weight.

If you have people in your life that are not supportive and excited about what you are doing, either limit your time with them if possible.  If they are someone in your immediate family or work space where avoidance is not possible, keep your conversations away from hot spots.

We all recognize how important our self thoughts are and what we might not know is how important what others say affect us!!!

Choose your friends wisely, know who they are and appreciate them for all they do to support you.

“If you want to reclaim your life and if you want to the leaner version of yourself that is currently hidden from view beneath an insulating layer of fat, then you’re going to have to break out of your comfort zone.  You cannot change anything by sticking to your current habits.”  ~Tosca Reno

What is a habit?  I would describe it as something we do automatically and mindlessly.  We have done it so often, we really don’t have to think about it.  A great example I have heard is driving a car.  I remember when I first learned to drive (3 speed on the wheel) there was a lot of jerky starts and stops.  However the more I drove, the smoother the ride became.  On one of those beginning tries I was driving around a park in our neighborhood with my dad coaching me and I saw a group of my friends and totally could not drive.  I am surprised the transmission in my dad’s car lived through it.  And yet before I knew it shifting became smooth and later automatic.  I could shift gears without even thinking about it.

All habits are like that.  Nothing starts as a habit and it only becomes one when we do it repeatedly over and over.  Focus today on creating a healthy new habit instead of removing an unhealthy one.  It is better to add to what we are doing than focus on always taking away.  Here are a couple of examples just to get your ideas flowing.

1. Put the fork down between each bite.

2. Have a glass of water first thing every morning.

3. Choose to have one or more dark, leafy green veggies a day.

4. Move you body at least five minutes out of every 60.

And I am sure you have lots of ideas.  What healthy (soon to be habit) can you introduce to your healthy lifestyle today?

From Spark People for January 12^th

“Develop a Plan B.  Work, travel or kids will disrupt your routine, so create alternatives.  Walk during lunch, choose healthy fast foods or wake up earlier.  Doing something is always better than doing nothing.”

This weekend we are going camping for two nights at Carlsbad State Beach and I am going prepared.  Have packed some foods to have on hand including:

1.  Single serving Shakeology packets

2.  Bananas

3.  Individual serving size packages of tuna

4.  My stevia packets

5.  Raspberry Royale Tea Bags

6. Plenty of water

By showing up prepared to be successful, there is a very high likelihood I will be.  How are you showing up in your life?

Nothing can keep you quite as honest and out of denial in losing weight as tracking your food daily.  Writing down what you ate, the quantity and the relevant information like calories, fat content and protein grams to name a few paints a very clear picture of your eating day.  Especially when we are trying to get a handle on how we have been eating so we will know where to make changes once we decide to lose weight.  If you are resistant to this; ask your self how committed are you to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight.  Everything important requires an investment on your part.  Are you willing to make the time to become educated on what you are eating???

While the number of calories you take in each day is not the only determining factor of your success, it is one of the most important.  To lose one pound of fat, you need to burn 3500 calories and that is the math.  While not all calories are created equally, knowing what and how much you are eating is a must for long term success, at least until you learn what a healthy meal is and what are considered “normal portion” sizes.  Your calories consumed each day are individual to you based on your weight, activity level, amount of body fat versus lean muscle etc.  Invest the time to determine what is right for you and make that you calorie target each day.  And yes, things eaten while standing and on holidays do count!

From Spark People : January 4

“Develop an action plan for every goal. For example, a healthy eating resolution may involve: learning more about good nutrition, visiting a dietitian, finding ways to adapt your recipes, buying containers to pack lunches, learning how to prepare new foods, and planning extra time for shopping and cooking. Don’t overwhelm yourself with every action step at once, but focus on a few things each day.”

In the past I have set goals for weight loss in certain time frames and sometimes I made it and sometimes I didn’t.  And each time, although I was doing the right things I still felt like it was somewhat random.

With a goal to lose 140.7 pounds this year, I knew I had to develop a specific action plan or that type of loss would not happen.  I determined exactly how many calories I need to burn over the entire year (1,095,000) and that broke down to 3000 daily.  According to my GoWear Fit my basic metabolic rate is 2250 per day which meant I had to add a minimum of 750 additional calories burned per day.

Once I did the math, the light went off and for the first time I realized I could have control over my body.  If I was burning 500 extra calories of day, I would be in denial thinking I could still reach my weight loss goal.  This made it very black and white for me; either I do it or I don’t and the results are completely up to me!

When we were walking at Harbor Island yesterday,  I know I pushed myself harder, walked longer and burned more calories simply because I had the knowledge.  And from the knowledge I took action.  And my focus now is on those 750 calories and what I can do to burn them.

What weight loss goal do you have you can create an action plan for?  If you need help crafting one, let me know!

Happily Burning Calories on my way toward goal!

Judi

You are so excited about your new healthy commitment, to eat right, move more and take better care of yourself.  A big component of success is being prepared (and yes I was a Brownie and a Girl Scout.)  Have you gone through your kitchen and removed all of the items which would not be part of your plan?  Some examples could be:

1.  Products containing partially hydrogenated oil

2.  Canned soups high in sodium

3.  Cookie dough ice cream

4.  Extra butter microwave popcorn

You get the idea.  Having these things around creates an atmosphere which in not congruent with your attitude.  And in-congruency creates friction.  So grab a big bad and see how much you can get rid of and that is only part one .

Creating a healthy lifestyle is different than going on a diet.  Remember diets are about deprivation.  We don’t like to feel deprived.  So after you have removed those things which aren’t are your healthy choice list, restock with things which support you.  Examples could include:

1.  Raw Almonds

2. Organic  Peanut Butter

3.  Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4.  Fresh fruit and vegetables

If your spices are old, throw them out and replace them with fresh spices and arrange them so they are easily found.  Re-arrange your pantry and your refrigerator so when you open the doors, it looks inviting and healthy choices abound!

Get started on your kitchen kleen-up today!