I am re-gifting this to you

If I was to start at square one, what would that square look like?

I would have you start with a simple yet, I believe, the most important exercise you can do.  Everyday have some time where you repeat aloud or quietly but totally conscientiously a few positive statements 25 times.  It will take all but about 25 seconds but it will do you soooo good.  When we, out here, are thinking about you or looking at you we see... you.  You with the red hair or you with the big smile.  We do not have the perfect picture of you in our minds whatsoever.  You are who we love and adore "just the way you are" (I think that is a song from Mister Rogers.  He was so wise...I miss him.)  If you could learn to see yourself the way we all see you then your worries would be over!

I know this sounds corny and a little weird but it works.  Test me on it.  Start today and see how you feel in two weeks.  Remember do it at least once a day.  You can do it while you brush your teeth or while you are driving or whatever, just DO IT!

Here are some ideas.  (your sub conscience will delete the negative so don't use won't or things like that. ex. "I won't eat bad foods" becomes "I eat bad foods")  Choose two or three statements at a time to repeat. 

I feel healthy
I feel happy
I feel terrific
I look great
I feel great
I am strong
I am wonderful
My body is strong
I am healthy
I feel sexy :o

Do yourself a favor and give yourself the best gift this Christmas and DO THIS!!!

Delight on people!

The other day I was talking to a friend and she is trying out some peer pressure to lose a few pounds.  Several women have put money in a pot and whoever "scores"  the most points wins the pot.  You can win points by eating certain foods and exercising and so on.  However, you lose points when you eat, so called, bad foods.  I hate that expression.  There are no bad foods just food choices.  Sometimes a brownie for breakfast serves it's purpose.  Sure, I might be hungry sooner and will have to add some willpower to my day but today a brownie and a small cup of root-beer was just the ticket.  Today, the payoff outweighed the payment!

Now, back to this conversation.  She was grateful for this "peer pressure" because it would stop her from grabbing that handful of chips that we all grab because it is just there.  We have all done this right?

This picture haunted me for a day until I formulated this picture in my mind.  Let's say that we are watching a movie of this friend and we paused the movie just as the chips are touching her lips - she hasn't tasted the salty goodness yet.  In that moment what are her emotions?  I would bet if a bubble appeared above her head it would say "I'm going to eat these chips wha wha whaaaa (sad music)".  All I am suggesting is that if we can change the attitude to "I am going to eat some chips now!!! (happy music)", I am telling you, it would make all the difference.

This is why the losing points part bothers me.  No food should ever make you feel guilty or sad.  If that is happening then you have created negative thoughts associated with food.  In that paused moment any number of things are creating those wha wha whaaaas before she has even tasted the food.

Pausing and recognizing these emotions is hard work at first but then it becomes like a sixth sense and your life will open up to all sorts of new possibilities - related to weight or not.  Failure on any diet is related to those negative feelings toward food "I've cheated so what is the point"  wha wha whaaaaa... munch munch munch.  If those chips were dirty socks then would it all be ok because there are very little calories in dirty socks? (would that make clean socks light ...or low cal ...or diet socks?)  No,  those emotions are there and they need to be recognized.  It doesn't mean you are suppressing childhood memories or something like that.  It just means we have trained ourselves to relate to food negatively instead of the delight it should be. I would much rather be an authentically happy lady with curves than an unhappy starved size 2.

Enjoying the Experience

I was chatting with my nutrition-coach-partner friend (what do we call ourselves Rach?) last night and she made a good point that I want to expand on a little.  She was saying that when she really thought about Thanksgiving the food was secondary to so many other things.  There is quite a spirit to the day that is different from any other day or feast.  We both liked dressing up a little that day, being with family and the whole feel of the day more than just tasting the food.  Being alone in a room with all that food would not be nearly as appetizing!  Yet, many times we focus so much on the food and the guilt about it that we belittle what really matters to us....the experience.   

I thought about this further and thought about what foods would look appetizing all alone and although the idea of a hot bath and a warm brownie sundae sounds like pure heaven, I would never define myself as happy if that is all I ever ate. And, if all my meals were served to me all alone in some room (even in the bathtub) I doubt I would enjoy food as much. At best it would just medicate me but I really see overtime losing the excitement for it.  The experience plays a major part in my satisfaction of the meal. 

So, homework for tonight.  Look at all your "sinful" eats and imagine eating them.  But instead of just stopping there,  look around your little fantasy and see what else is there.  Maybe it is more a memory and that food is what triggers those experiences.  Really think about the experience of the food and do some little self psychology.  With a little time you can learn that when food is involved to take in the whole scene and let it ALL feed you.   

Tricks and Treats

Happy Halloween

Here are some simple ideas to make your journey more successful.


When you are doing sets (3 sets of 15 for example) position yourself in the room with something as a middle point.  Start just left of the point for the first set then move to the middle and then to the right.  It helps you to know what set you are on and also tricks your mind and makes the 45 push-ups or whatever seem not so daunting.

Use fiber to trick your brain into thinking it has eaten more than it really has and for a treat try South Beach diet chocolate chunk cookies.

When you are feeling that emotional need to have something.  Stop and make a little different choice.  If you need ice cream try frozen yogurt.   If you need a candy bar grab a snack size.  Try to fulfill the need for a treat creatively.

Count downward when doing your reps to trick yourself into thinking you are changing things up.

For a movie treat try a small package of Jelly Belly's.  It goes a long way.

Here is a trick for make logging a little quicker in  MFP , type in only key words instead of the whole thing.  

Remember, treats are not evil and by making them so increases the desire for them.

Keep on  keeping on...

Happy Trick-R-Treating!!

What are some of your tricks and treats?

Who wants a smaller pants size for Christmas?

So, I have this great opportunity that I thought I would share with you all.  Starting November 5th I will be teaching a class with my good friend at the PiNK! gym for women.  It will be the nutrician/motivation kind of class verses an exercise class.  I am so excited!
Each Thursday at 6:30pm for six weeks we will focus on a new topic to help you lose pounds and gain the mindset I am always talking about.  The classes are $5 each  (free if you belong to PiNK!) and you can come to one or all of them.  This Saturday  is an open house located at PiNK! and you will get a prize if you sign up for the class.  Fun fun fun!!!

Iluvmfp

Today I went to lunch with my first grader.  We ate chicken rings, mashed potatoes and gravy, salad, a wheat dinner roll and a carton of chocolate milk (the little skinny straw...remember?) .  Not the greatest meal I have ever eaten but the memory of simpler times warmed my tummy.
When it was time to account for my little walk down memory lane, I searched for school lunch on My Fitness Pal and poof like magic there it was.  Thank you whoever you are that added those entries!

Creating Your Own Path

I was talking to physiologist one time and he explained to me how our minds work.  Just like water takes the route of least resistance, our minds will do the same.  We face a situation, we react to the situation all without much thought or effort.  When that same scenario presents itself again the path has been carved previously and we generally follow it.  Creating new paths can be difficult.  Many times the first time these paths were carved they were done automatically.   An understanding of this information can help as we are losing weight. 
Here is an example. 
You are making school lunch for the kids and you pop a grape, then a chip and then a half of a cookie in  your mouth without even thinking.  This scenario plays itself out every morning until a habit forms.  The problem with this habit is not the extra calories consumed but when you decide to try to be healthy and that habit pops up and you feel guilty about losing control.  Little by little these moments kick you in the pants until you give up.   Guilt is the first red flag that your efforts are not lifestyle changes but rather changes that are good for the moment.  These moments are not bad in fact they are good.  They are good practice and give you a lot of thoughts to process and analyze. 
When we can identify these kinds of scenarios we can have a plan of action to create a new path.  In my example you could put a pack of gum right next to the sack lunch bags and stick one in right before you start the packing.  After a while you will see that the desire to put something in your mouth will be gone - even without the gum.  You have created a new path!  
 

In my humble opinion

Thoughts are produced in mere micro seconds.  Try to not have a thought and you can't.  Ninety-nine percent of our thoughts would be categorized as opinion.  Just because candy is generally accepted as yummy doesn't make it a fact.  This is good news because when facts are not involved we have opinion and our opinions can be changed.  Changing to a healthy lifestyle is only the result of a bunch of smaller changed opinions.

  By far the biggest opinion that changed for me was that I believed I could actually be skinny.  I thought my weight and size was a  fact as a result of having babies and heritage.  I now know those thoughts were just my opinion.   It was when I truly believed I could look and feel better (thanks Jennie) that things really changed.  My opinion of myself and my possibilities changed.  Without this mind switch you can go through the motions and in the short term lose a few pounds but for long term success you need to know it.  This is the "hardest part" I am always talking about.  Women especially are not trained to have this kind of confidence in themselves and their abilities.           

Another opinion that changed was that I thought I would have to give up my favorite foods to be "skinny".  I would say "I can eat anything I want and I am not obese. I should be happy".  (Luckily "anything I wanted" had not evolved into 6 cheeseburger midnight snacks...yet) Once I had the knowledge about food, other opinions changed all by themselves.   A lot of my favorite foods changed as well as my relationship with food.

My opinion about exercise did a total about face.  Instead of it being work and a dread and punishment for eating, it became my time to sort my feelings and emotions.  A time to plan my what-ifs that were bound to come up because of my lifestyle change - to strategize. 

Opinions are always evolving and we can take advantage.  You may think that a brownie is the total bomb but maybe you can change that opinion to make a box of Jr mints to die for. Start with small changes and they will all add up to big changes.  Other peoples' opinions don't matter.  This blog is just opinion.  Doctors relate opinion most of the time.  Morning television is all just opinion.  You have got to have, and believe in, your own opinions about your health.  It is the only opinion that counts. 
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"Working" Out

I have been thinking a lot about this lately and more and more evidence supports my claim.  I have always hated exercise and sweating.  I lost 40+ pounds without a whole lot of sweat and I think you can too.

I think of the body working a whole lot like Osmosis Jones.  Remember that movie?  Each part of the body has a job to do and uses the materials available to get the job done.  If a few extra pounds are available our body gets a little lazy and is less efficient with it's energy - it figures there is always more available.  When we cut back calories our body starts to use the energy a little more carefully (remember when gas prices were high and you drove a little less often and conserved as much as possible?) However, when we add high intense exercise the body starts to panic a little.  In the gas scenario it is like we speed up and stop and start fast - we are going the same places but we are not getting the same efficiency because we are burning too much too fast.  Our bodies have a job to do and all of the sudden there is a possibility of shortage.  Our bodies are so amazing that they will not allow us to burn through our energy too fast.  It will use what it's got more efficiently.  This is called slowing down our metabolism.  It will also send messages to send more energy - hunger.  We want to boost our metabolism to burn through our incoming energy as well as the stored energy sitting on our hips and we want it to do it without a lot of anguish.

If you are just starting out then start slow and work up to a workout of mostly using your muscles.  For those that are already exercisers and you are at a good place then keep it up.  But, if you are hitting a plateau then try this.  If you like the sweat then let your sweat come from the resistance instead of the fast movements.  Weights are not the only way to gain muscle either.  Get on the treadmill and go the same distance but at an incline.  Don't push it.  If you are sore the next day you are overdoing it.  You will feel like you have not worked out but your body will reward you.  Give it three weeks and you will see a change.

There are a few articles that I have ran across lately that say it much better than I can.  One is in Woman's World Magazine.  They don't have a website but it talks about how muscle can boost your metabolism and if you take time to add the muscle you will burn energy 50% more efficiently.  The other article my friend Jana referred me to. It is from TIME and it is way bold about it's message on exercise.       

What "all in your head" really means

Many of you are thinking "but I didn't get kidnapped at age 4 and held captive for years without seeing the light of day" or "my parents were good people that fed me and read me bedtime stories" or "I don't hide in layers of fat to hide my guilt and frustrations".  All in your mind is not always about eating away the bad nor is it that your problem is just all in your mind and you are crazy insane.  My hubby has never once found me passed out in the closet with chocolate donuts smash to my face.  I would have loved for the problem to be so easy to recognize.   However, I did emotional eat that is for dang sure.  Through life's challenges and baby making weight was added and added and added.   Our bodies are built with an amazing way of keeping our bodies regular but little by little our "regular" really isn't what it should be.  Our froggies are boiled and we didn't even break a sweat.  Whether easily seen emotional eating got us there or not, it will take an emotional change to get us back.   We are smart creatures and can manually change our behavior and our thinking but to have real long term change we need those things to become automatic.  That is the real hill to climb.
The last few months I have really struggled with life.  I was down a lot and my definitions of things seem to always be in question, mostly by me.  All of the sudden I have been so unsure of myself.  Then on a particular hard day it hit me - the old me would have made chocolate chip cookies today.  Again, it wasn't like I would binge in a sort of shooting up kind of way but making and eating delicious warm chocolate chip cookies would have taken my mind away from the problem just long enough to see that life was not ending.  It was a huge moment for me to realize both that I have changed from manual to automatic and that I haven't found the right thing to replace that need for a distraction in my life yet.  I still eat chocolate chip cookies (what, you think I am crazy?) but the difference in my mindset makes all the difference on the scale.