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Do you want it fast, or do you want it forever?

18 July 2011, 7:31 pm

I’ve been struggling with this very question lately.  There is no doubt that it is easier to stay motivated when you are seeing results.  Ask anybody who has ever plateaued on  diet.  It is extremely difficult to walk the line when it appears that nothing is happening.  On the other hand, when pounds are falling off, it is relatively easy to maintain higher levels of dedication–especially if you’ve only committed to a time-limited proposition.

As I’ve shared before, I’m a walking poster-child for lose-it-fast diet plans.  Can you lose weight on them? Yes.  Is it fast? Yes.  Does it last?  That depends on the decisions you make once you’ve met your goal.  Sadly though, for most of us the answer is no, it doesn’t last, because we are operating from a mindset that sounds something something like this.  “I am willing to suffer for a while to get the results I want faster.  I can’t wait until I’m done so I don’t have to suffer any more.”

There are so many things wrong with that kind of thinking that I hardly know where to start.  First of all, the idea that suffrage is necessarily a part of reaching your health goal is a problem.  Rather than seeing the lifestyle changes as a negative experience to be endured, it would be more productive to focus on the joys of living a healthy, vibrant, balanced life, and then making the decisions to achieve the desired state.  This does not have to be a life of deprivation, rather it is a life of plenty.  It is not a life without flavor or pleasure, but rather a life in which you get to select savory, nutritional, vitamin-dense selections.

Secondly, the whole idea of ‘getting done’ is ‘diet’ thinking and part of the problem.  It implies that no real changes are being implemented; Rather, short term alterations may be tolerated and practiced, but there is no intent to make the changes necessary for sustainability.  Of course, with the idea of ‘done’ is the unwritten understanding that at some point, “I’ll get to return to the patterns of behavior that put me here in the first place.”

So the choice is yours.  Have you decided to live in the body of your choosing?  Are you committed for the short term or forever?  You can have it either way, but it may be difficult to have both.

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Power of Choice

8 June 2011, 12:46 pm

Last week, I wrote about the ‘Gift of Choice.’ This week, I’d like to focus on the ‘Power of Choice.’  Think about the language you regularly use in your everyday life.  Are you a victim or are you in control of your destiny?  Do you have a lot of “have to’s,” “gotta’s,” “must’s?”   If you do, I hope you know, they are only live in your mind.  The reality is, you have very few things you ‘have to do.’

Let’s take going to work for example.  You may argue, that you HAVE to go to work.  Really????  You mean to tell me that working where you are currently working has no choice involved?  Is it possible you “CHOOSE” to work where you are currently employed because the job pays what you need to live the lifestyle you “CHOOSE” to live.  Or do you “CHOOSE” to maintain employment where you work because you “CHOOSE” to live in an area where your spouse can maintain employment.

Hopefully you get the point.  The reality is, if you really wanted to, you could CHOOSE to make a different choice.  Oh sure, there might be some consequences, but you still have free will, and you got to CHOOSE.

Making ChoicesLet’s move to your healthstyle CHOICES.  When you think about exercise, do you find yourself saying, “I HAVE to work out 20-30 minutes every day,”  or do you instead tell yourself (the truth), “I CHOOSE to work out 20-30 minutes every day?”  Do you say, “I can’t have a chocolate brownie, or do you say, “I CHOOSE not to eat a chocolate brownie?”

Say both options out loud.  Do you feel the difference?  To recognize you are making a CHOICE is empowering and allows you to operate from a position of control.  On the other hand, to feel options are forced upon you (which just isn’t true) is to operate from a position of powerlessness and puts you in the role of a victim.

From which perspective do you CHOOSE to live?  (CHOOSE carefully.)

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Gift of Choice

31 May 2011, 6:23 pm

As I listened to the message during a Memorial Day Service, I was reminded not only the sacrifices of our many veterans but also the gifts Americans enjoy as a result of those sacrifices.  Obviously freedom in its’ many forms is at the forefront of this list.  As an American I enjoy not only the freedom of speech but also the freedom to choose many things in my world. Today, I want to remind you about your ability to make choices too.

Everyday you get to choose:

  • Your attitude
  • What you eat
  • How much you eat
  • If you exercise
  • When you eat

Here’s to making wise choices and living the life you choose to live.

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Deciding to ‘Be’

23 May 2011, 8:00 am

Did you know that everyday, you get to choose?  From the moment you open your eyes in the morning, you get to decide.

  • What will I eat today?
  • How much water will I drink?
  • Will I exercise?
  • Will I choose to stop eating when my physical needs are met?
  • How will I treat others today?
  • Will I let unexpected events derail me?

In short you get to decide if you will be a victim or exercise control.  The choice is yours as are the results you create.

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Living your Dream Life

16 May 2011, 8:00 am

You can ‘want’ or you can ‘be’, but if you are going to ‘be’ you must first decide. Have you decided yet?

  • Do you ‘want’ to feel in control of  food, or have you decided to be in control of food?
  • Do you ‘want’ to be thin or have you decided be the person who makes decisions like a thin person?
  • Do you ‘want’ to be healthy or have you decided to be the person who makes decisions like a person who respects their body?
  • Do you ‘want’ to have energy or have you decided to make life decisions that lead to higher levels of energy?

What are your waiting for?  Tomorrow?  It will never come.

DECIDE TODAY to BECOME…

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Hunger–Physical versus Emotional

12 May 2011, 1:05 pm

There are many kinds of hunger in our lives, but the only hunger that should be fed with food is physical hunger.  Are you in tune with your body?  Do you know the difference between what it feels like to be physically hungry and emotionally hungry?  Perhaps you are wondering what in the world I mean by emotional hunger.

Emotional hunger can be triggered by a variety of emotions, especially if the emotions are intense–sad, anxious, lonely, angry, nervous….  Regardless of the emotion at hand, the person experiencing such intense emotion(s) may be looking for a way to ‘tame’ the feeling.  Because eating certain food releases ‘feel good’ hormones such as endorphins, you may feel drawn to them–perhaps chocolate, greasy or salty foods are your vise.  Regardless of the food of choice, it is important to know it is NOT possible to eat enough food to fill an emotional hunger.Hands reaching for food.

How can you decide if the hunger is physical or emotional? Emotional hunger usually crops up suddenly and is often in response to events in your life.  Physical hunger on the other hand gradually builds.  It is not marked by a sudden impulse to eat.

The key take away is this—It is not possible to ‘EAT’ away hunger that is not physical in nature.

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What are your waiting for?

4 May 2011, 1:32 pm

Have you decided to do what you know you need to do to achieve the results you desire?  If not, what’s holding you back?

  • Are you waiting for a magic pill to become available that will magically shrink you and require no effort on your part?  It’s not coming.
  • Are you waiting for a compelling reason to get started?–Like a serious health problem to present itself forcing you to do what you need to do?  Why would you be willing to compromise your quality of life?
  • Are you waiting for inspiration?  What’s not inspiring about living in a trim, healthy and vibrant body?
  • Do you not believe it is possible for you?  I can provide you a mound of evidence that it is possible.  However, what you believe will determine your results so be careful what you tell yourself.

If you want it and you are willing to do what it takes to get it, you can have it.

What are you waiting for?

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Diet Soda Cupcakes

11 April 2011, 8:15 am

Cupcakes made from a boxed cake mix and diet soda

Yep, you read the title of this post correctly.  A friend shared an idea for making cupcakes out of a boxed cake mix using diet soda.  It was fast, simple, and actually quite tasty.  Simply use  a full can of diet soda in place of all liquids (oil, eggs, water) called for on the directions of a boxed cake mix.  Beat and bake according to directions.

I’ll admit that the cupcakes didn’t rise quite as much as they might have if I had used the ingredients listed on the box.  Also, I used a yellow mix and I could detect a slight flavor of the diet soda, but I’ve been assured if you use something like the double chocolate cake mix, you can’t taste the soda at all.  All the same, the cupcakes were quite tasty and really didn’t even need frosting.

As for your savings in fat and calories, check the nutrition label on the package.  Essentially, you would be looking at the column depicting only the dry cake mix.

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Replacing Faulty Beliefs-Part II

2 April 2011, 8:00 am

Like my last post, the strategy that I’ll share with you this week for replacing faulty beliefs is based on three powerful premises.

  1. What you see is what you get.
  2. What you belief is what you create.
  3. You can create whatever your mind can imagine.

Those of you who enjoy artsy, crafty kinds of things will probably really enjoy this strategy.  It requires you to create a ‘vision board.‘  What’s a vision board, you ask. Essentially, it is a collage of images, pictures and affirmations of your dreams and desires.

You can use any resources available to you but most often vision boards include pictures and/or drawings that depict what you want to be or have in your life.  In fact, with the multi-media capabilities of computers these days, you can create some amazing images. (I had a friend of mine photoshop my head onto the body I’m creating.)

As you might imagine, the items on your board should be emotionally charged.  I personally, think pictures and images are more powerful than words because we think in pictures not alphabet letters. If you don’t believe me, pick any word–car, run, bus, dog….  When you hear the word, you probably conjure up an image that signifies the meaning of that word.  You don’t see the letters used to spell the word.   However, I have to admit that my vision board also has some words that trigger strong emotion for me, but they are related to images on my board.

A vision board not only helps you keep focus, it causes you to become more clear about your goals as you create it. But the most important role for your vision board is to imprint in your subconscious mind what you are bringing into your life.  With this in mind, you should place your vision board, in a place that allows you to regularly view it. However, if you are worried that others may poke fun about your board or your dreams, keep it in a less public area.

What are you waiting for?  Get out those old magazines, scissors, foam core board or poster board, glue sticks, markers, photos–whatever you have available to help you create your future– first on your vision board and then in your life.

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One Powerful Strategy for Replacing Faulty Beliefs

26 March 2011, 8:00 am

This post is based on three powerful premises.

  1. What you see is what you get.
  2. What you belief is what you create.
  3. You can create whatever your mind can imagine.

In the post titled, ‘Being Thin” I promised to share some powerful strategies for replacing faulty beliefs with more supportive beliefs.  I’ll cover one for you this week.

This strategy requires you to become ‘consciously aware’ of non-supportive beliefs. Secondly,  you need to find real evidence in your world that contradicts the faulty belief.  Finally, you need to articulate, embrace and practice new behaviors based on the new truth.

For example, perhaps you believe that food is scarce, and if you don’t eat your share now, it won’t be there when you want or need more.  For me, I can offer a mound of evidence to the contrary.  Examples in my world that would dispute this belief  would include things like:

  • I have an over-sized pantry that is fully stocked with canned goods, baking supplies etc.  (In fact, it is crammed full.)
  • I have a deep-freeze that is full of beef-pork-vegetables-fruits etc.
  • We regularly order beef and pork from the meat packing plant to keep our freezer well-stocked.
  • When I buy groceries, I am not constrained by budgetary issues.  I can buy whatever I decide to put in my cart.
  • I have reliable transportation, and can get to the store any time I need.
  • There are no budget issues which limit eating out if I choose to do so.
  • We have left-overs at nearly every meal. etc. etc. etc.

You get the idea.  For me to falsely believe that food is in short supply is ridiculous.  There is virtually no reasonable chance that I will go hungry due to a lack of food.  Therefore, I would replace this belief, with something to the effect of, “Food is abundant and readily available when I need it.”  Changes in my actions as a result of these new beliefs might include things like:

  • Leaving food on my plate when my physical hunger has been satisfied.
  • Slowing down when I eat, because I no longer feel the need to get  more before the food is gone.
  • Cooking smaller portions.
  • Serving smaller portions knowing I can have more if I am still physically hungry.
  • Eating only when I am really hungry–not just because something tastes good, or I’m afraid it will be gone later. etc. etc. etc.

What beliefs do you need to replace and what evidence already exists in your world to dispute these non-supportive beliefs?

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