Stressing It!!

I just read where a friend has "thrown in the towel" on her six week challenge to lose 10 lbs.  But, I understand completely and don't blame her one bit!  Here she is with a little boy with growning pains of his own and a household to manage.  And then she decided to thorw even more stress in the mix of worrying about every little thing she was eating and making sure she threw in the 30 minutes to an hour of sweating it out while her little one got his zzzz's.  Keep in mind that when your body comes in contact with too much stress then it starts it's own self defense mechanisms.  Your body will start to put up protective barriers and hold on to more fat or whatever to make it feel safe.  Instead of stressing and feeling like a failure, take a step back and re-evaluate your method and options.  Instead of reading every box for the caloric info, just pay attention to how big your serving is.  Don't freak out about forcing your self to squeeze in that 30 minute workout dvd.  Instead, just make a few more trips throughout your house during your day.  If you have an office job, just use the elevator one or two times less.  If you are a SAHM, then when you take your son/daughter outside to play, figure out something more interactive to do with them.  Instead of sitting on the bench while your child plays on the playground, go around the station stations with them and push their swing, push them down the slide, or at least help them build a sand castle in the sandbox.  You get just a little more activity without the stress and your little angel with get more quality time with mommy outside from the potty training, bath time, and bedtime stories he/she already enjoys  (making you SUPER MOM!!!!)  The biggest thing is not to worry about it.

You will still be able to lose weight with a new view on it.  Do things that you enjoy!!  Understand that not everyone is a marathon runner and can just get up and go.  As long as you make an effort to remain active, then your overall health will improve (or at least benefit).  Here are some tips to keep in mind:



1. Focus on gradual loss.Too many people focus on trying to lose weight fast — 10 pounds in 4 weeks, 20 pounds in 2 months, etc. It’s not healthy, and it doesn’t work, because even if you are able to lose that much weight that fast, you haven’t learned sustainable eating habits that will last you a lifetime. The key is to figure out an eating pattern than will work for you for the rest of your life. Again, if you focus on losing 1-2 pounds per week, you will lose between 50-100 pounds per year.


2. Focus on nutrition. Exercise is important. You have to do it. It has wonderful benefits. But if your focus is on weight loss, the most important factor is what you eat. Don’t ignore exercise, by any means, but if you focus on exercise and think you can eat whatever you want, you’re wrong. You have to focus on nutrition (what you eat) and use exercise as a way to supplement the calorie burn and to get your body looking how you want it to look (not to mention as a key way to get healthy and feel great).

The reason: you can change how many calories you take in to a much greater degree than you can change how many calories you burn. Thirty minutes of exercise, for example, can burn less than a medium McDonald’s fries. Lose the fries, and you’ve done in a few seconds what would take 30 minutes of exercise to accomplish.


3. Become aware of your hunger. This is one of the key things I’ve been learning. Many times we are not conscious of how hungry we are. We ignore our bodies because we’re too busy thinking about other things. As a result, we only eat when we’re famished, and that’s not a good time to eat, because you don’t make healthy eating decisions when you’re super hungry. Your blood-sugar level is too low, and your body just wants a quick sugar fix — a donut or some cookies or white bread or a Coke will be much more appealing than a salad or healthy sandwich on whole grain bread.

Learn to listen to your body, and be aware of your hunger when it’s in its early stages. This is a key skill to weight loss, something the other plans don’t tell you about. They tell you what to eat and when, but don’t teach you how to use your body’s signals to learn to eat healthier.

4. Eat when you’re hungry, not famished. When you first feel the hunger, that’s when to eat. Don’t put it off until the hunger builds into an insatiable monster. When you start to get a little hungry, eat a snack. You don’t need to eat a full-on meal … just some fruit, some crackers, oatmeal, some nuts, dried fruit, etc. Just something to tide you over until you feel hungry again, or until you can eat a bigger meal. Keep healthy snacks at your desk or in your car or wherever you go.  Make it accessible.  If it is easy then it will be more effective.

Also listen to your cravings.  If you are seriously craving some chocolate.  Then treat yourself a little bit of chocolate.  It will give you endorphins the satisifaction they crave, and keeps your brain from obsessing over it and driving you crazy, and from running the risk of completely devouring the entire pack of Oreo cookies.


5. Learn to eat until satisfied. Again, pay attention to your body as you eat. If you eat mindlessly, you will most likely overeat. You’ll just keep cramming food into yourself until you’ve eaten too much. We’ve all felt the pain of being overstuffed. Don’t allow that to happen — be mindful of your eating, and of your hunger.

A good habit to build is to eat slowly … and take pauses, so you can think about whether you’re really still hungry … and drink lots of water during those pauses. This style of eating will allow you to stop eating when you’re satiated (when your hunger is satisfied, not when you’re stuffed) and allow you to be satiated by eating less. It’s not easy at first, but once you’ve practiced it for a week or two, it will make a huge difference in the amount you eat.

Another thing: before you go back for seconds, stop and take a break for a few minutes. Drink some water, talk to somebody, read, go do something, clean the kitchen a little. Whatever it takes. Often you’ll find that you really didn’t need the seconds. And then you’ve saved yourself a few hundred calories.

6. Drink lots of water. Drinking water throughout the day helps you to eat less. Water takes the place of food in your stomach. You’ll still need to eat, but if you stay hydrated you’ll get hungry less. Keep a bottle of water with you at all times.  If you have it with you, then you will sip more often remain satisfied longer.


7. Keep healthy options available. A good trick is to clear your fridge and cabinets of all unhealthy snacks and foods. Just dump them. Then plan some healthy breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks, and go shopping. Bring healthy foods to work and wherever you go. Always have some fruits and nuts and other healthy options by your side. If you do this, and eat when you’re hungry, you’ll eat the unhealthy stuff much, much less.


8. Find a workout partner. This is accountability done right. A good workout partner is someone who wants to workout at the same time as you and do a similar workout, and someone whose company you enjoy. Why it works: if you set an appointment with a workout partner, you won’t want to miss it. You’ll make sure you’re there, unlike when you work out by yourself — many people are very tempted just to cancel their workouts if they’re a little tired or busy. Also, a workout partner makes the workout a little more fun, and that’s always a good thing. If you get a workout partner, you will have a stress-free exercise plan that will compliment your healthy eating perfectly. Try for 3-5 workouts per week, giving yourself plenty of rest time after hard workouts.


9. Allow yourself to cheat. A strict diet plan is a bad one. If you are severely restricting yourself, and you feel deprived of good foods, you won’t last long. Instead, relax a little bit, giving yourself a cheat meal or two each week, and allowing yourself to cheat a little on special occasions. It’s still best if you can go for the healthier foods on special occasions, but don’t be too strict.


10.. Forgive, and move on. If you make a mistake, or cheat more than you should, don’t just give up or beat yourself up. This kind of negative thinking is why people don’t stay on diets for long. They binge and then go back to their unhealthy habits. Instead, just forgive yourself for any indulgences, and get back on your healthy eating plan. Look forward, not backward.

11.. Get inspired. Motivation is important … maybe the most important thing. Accountability (mentioned above) is the best motivator … but I’d put inspiration at a close second. Find others who are doing what you want to do, read success stories, read magazines and blogs and books, put up a motivational poster … whatever it takes to get inspired.

12.  Do not give yourself  an unrealistic results image.


Not everyone is Jillian Michaels (even though she is an awesome role model in the weight loss community).  Yes, we all know that she was a chubby teen, but realize that she makes your livelihood staying this fit and keeping this image.  Do not make yourself believe that you are expected to look like this.  Also, please realize, (especially if you have become a mother) that not everyone remains at their high school weight.  It is called growing up and maturing.

I know that these tips that I found online  (I tweaked them.) seem to be opposite of what I am trying to tell you.  Listen.  The main thing that I trying to tell you is instead of being on a "diet" or "losing weight" plan, try going for something less stressful like an overall health check.  No you won't be counting those calories, but you will be more accountable for that entire row of Oreo's you may be getting ready to devour.  Focus on a long term goal with out a time limit.  Sometimes when you say, "I need to lose 10 lbs before November.", then it will become much more stressful and you will feel like you HAVE to lose that weight or else you are a failure.  Instead, here is a goal for you:  "Let's walk to the park that is a block away instead of driving.  It's a really nice day."  Maybe even trick yourself.  Say, like maybe you would rather not waste the gas to take the car a block down the street. 

I hope this helps...  Just keep in mind that you didn't get out of shape overnight, and you won't get back in shape overnight either.