I don’t have time to do a full workout, so I’m just going to skip it. Does this sound familiar? I know that there was a time in my exercising life that I had this mindset: “Well, I can’t do the workout that I’m supposed to do, so why do it at all?” And so I get it. You want to be all in. If you don’t have the time to dedicate to doing it, it’s not worth doing. But here’s the thing: This mindset is holding you back. Because exercise doesn’t work that way. Health doesn’t work that way. Consistency is the true contributor to progress when it comes to exercise, eating, and your goals. I posted this on FaceBook the other day: Many folks feel that they need to be ‘on’ all the time, or follow their plan perfectly to get results. Yes, you do need to be ‘on’, Read More . . .
Your Health isn’t a Priority? That’s OK.
You’ve seen the memes on the Internet, or heard the phrases: “What’s your excuse?” Or heard the phrase, “if it’s important to you, you’ll find a way. If not, you’ll find an excuse.” I actually like this second quote – and not because of the judgement that’s implied with it, but rather the truth that it conveys. We all have priorities. A list from 1-100. And we can’t do everything. On our list of priorities, we all have the same things: family, partner relationship, travel, money, career, health, and self-care, to name a few. They’re just in different orders. My list is in a different order than your list. Only one thing can occupy that top spot. Only one thing can occupy the second, and so on. As a health coach, I would love for everyone’s list to have ‘health’ as their #1 priority. But the truth is that it Read More . . .
Why the rules are bullsh*t
Do you have rules around your eating habits? They might be something like, “I can only eat sugar on the weekend.” Or “Bananas are loaded with calories and starch. So, I can’t eat bananas.” Whatever they are, do they help you? Or do they hinder you? I think most people create these rules because the grey area of our food can become so… GREY. H*ll! I don’t even know if there IS any black or white when it comes to food anymore! With all the media hype, and misinterpreted studies, something that you would think should be intuitive is now confusing. There’s so much fear and uncertainty when it comes to our food. What’s good for us? What’s not? And once we’re in that grey zone of ‘Eat these foods in moderation’, how do we know where we are in that moderation scale? How do we know when we’re slipping? If Read More . . .
What do elephants and cancer have to do with my fat-loss journey?
In thinking about how the cancer had destroyed my mom’s body, it occurred to me that in order to avoid this disease, I needed to prepare my body so that it would be able to fight off any disease that it might encounter. Not only did I need to get down to a healthy weight, but I also needed to eat better quality of foods, become active, and well, become a responsible adult. Read More . . .
How to dump crappy habits
Anyone who says that the issue of obesity, weight management and fitness is all about knowing what is/is not good for you, or about willpower is over-simplifying the problem, and hasn’t fully grasped the gravity of the issue. It is a hugely complex issue because it all starts in the brain, and the brain is a hugely complex organism. We all do things that we know don’t serve us in our goals, and yet, we often find ourselves powerless to change. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about eating habits, spending money, smoking, or some other habit that we want to change. In Kelly McGonigal’s audio program, The Neuroscience of Change, she talks about our destructive habits. Destructive habits are things that we do that either don’t serve us any longer, or are getting in the way of things we do want in our lives. It could be smoking, eating Read More . . .
Why diet plans give me anxiety
Me: “So, are you making any changes with your diet?” Her: “Well, I don’t know. I was thinking about that last night. I’ve been walking, but I don’t know if I should do Paleo, or cut out carbs, or what. What do you think?” Whenever I hear someone mention a certain ‘plan’, whether it’s The Paleo Diet, The Zone Diet, or even The Eat Clean Diet, or even make drastic, sudden changes, I always cringe. Yes, I know it’s easier when you have a list of ‘rules’. This is what you can and cannot eat. There’s no grey area; that grey area where you’re unsure, “Am I on plan? or off?” It’s definitely easier to say yes or no to food if you know where the line of on and off are. We understand the rules. I basically have rules for my diet. But I’ve created those rules myself. And they’re not rules. They’re barely guidelines. And Read More . . .
Can I do that?
I’ve been through a lot of fitness phases in my journey. There’s one phase that I’ve been thinking a lot lately: that time that I was doing Bikram Yoga. Bikram Yoga is a yoga practice done in an ungodly hot and humid room. The class is a series of 26 poses, done in the same order, held for the same amount of time. You could go to a Birkam Yoga class in California, Brazil, Germany, or Japan, and each instructor is taught to cue the poses the same way. Some will look at this form of a class and think that it sounds boring: Doing the same exercises in the same order every single time? Ugh! I need some variety! Yes, you could look at it that way, but here’s the thing. Doing yoga this way taught me something about my body. Well, to be truthful, about bodies in general. Read More . . .
Am I NOT setting a good example?
Everyone has a “thing”. Right? Gary & my “thing” is pizza and red wine. It all started 15 years ago, this Valentines Day. I was still living in Chicago, but I was already planning on moving to Austin, and we were house hunting. His mom had given him a bread maker for Christmas, I think we had attempted making pizza on a sheet pan, but I recall, it was that Valentines Day that I bought him the pizza stone set. At the time, I was still working in high tech. I was about three years into my own fitness journey, but no where near thinking that it might become part of my future. I think it was at that time that we started having pizza on Saturday nights – or at least, it became a tradition to have pizza on Valentines Day, for sure. Our pizza making journey is almost as winding Read More . . .
What you know about dieting is bullsh*t
Have you ever looked at a picture of yourself from another time, and think, “What the hell was I so hard on myself for? My body was adorable! And I remember hating my body when that picture was taken!” For years I was looking for the magic pill. You know the one. The one that you find in magazines, diet books, following health gurus online. The one that is going to make you instantly the size and shape that you desire to be. I read everything. I scoured every magazine: 10 Days to a Bikini Body? I’m in. 5 Secret Fat Loss Foods? I need it! How to eat until you’re stuffed and still lose weight! Hey – Right on. I would look at what foods women were buying in the grocery store. Nope! Same foods (or junkier) that I was buying. I would see women at the gym, and think to Read More . . .
Just Show Up
Happy New Year! As with every change in the calendar, folks start to look at the blank canvas of a new year, and get inspired with ideas of what this year can look like. What new opportunities will present itself? WIll I have more wealth at the end? Will my business grow? What steps can I take to make my life better? Is my personal health part of that equation? Will I be moving the needle (in a positive way) for my personal health? There are lots of ways to improve your personal health. Yes, you can go to the gym. Yes, you can eat less junk. You could try incorporating some better sleep habits into your routine, or maybe practice deep breathing when you feel stressed out.I know those last two ideas are not what typically come to mind when we think about healthy habits, but stress management and Read More . . .
#GSD – Inspirational Totem
“My mother always told me I wouldn’t amount to anything because I procrastinate. I said, ‘Just wait.” ― Judy Tenuta I’m really kind of over New Years resolutions. I find that if I dislike where my life is headed, I can change directions any time I want. I don’t need a new calendar year to start a new habit. And yet, I like the concept of having a focus, or something to drive towards. Last year I was introduced to the concept of an “inspirational totem“. The concept is a word or phrase that guides you through the year. Not unlike New Years resolutions, but without the ‘resolution’ part. It’s more of a mindset shift. Just a word or a phrase, that you connect with, that keeps you focused on where you want to go. I love it that we have the opportunity to change our mindset. We can change Read More . . .
Live Better, Not Longer
As a fitness professional, when I get a new client, one of the first questions I ask is, “What are your goals?” After I understand my client’s goals, I then want to understand why s/he has decided to hire me now? What event happened that caused him/her to seek help? What I’ve noticed about these two questions, is that motivation and adherence change based on a persons age. When we’re in our 20’s, we want to look good. Our appearance is very important. Although there is nothing wrong with wanting to look good, oftentimes it’s not a strong enough goal to make us want to stick to the initial goal. In our 30’s & 40’s we want to be able to keep up with our children, maybe getting our clothes to fit a little looser. In our 50’s, we realize that for the past few decades, our children and careers have placed higher on Read More . . .
Tips for not breaking your diet on Halloween Candy
Halloween is over a month away & if you’ve stepped foot in your local grocery store, you’ve already seen the aisles filled with brightly colored Halloween candy. It seems hard to resist. I’ve written before about non-candy treats that you can give out for Halloween, but what if you still want to give candy? What are some techniques that you can use so that you don’t eat it all before your trick-or-treaters arrive? Buy your candy as close to Halloween as possible – Don’t buy candy now thinking that it will stay until Halloween untouched. It won’t. If it’s not in the house, you won’t be tempted to eat it. So don’t buy it, and don’t tempt yourself. Buy candy that you don’t like – I know! Is that even possible? probably. If you love chocolate, buy treats that are not chocolate based (candy corn, gum, jelly beans, Nerds, Sweet tarts, etc.). Read More . . .
New School Year – New You!
I have often thought of the beginning of the school year as my new year, versus the calendar year – January 1. I don’t know if it’s because I have a fall birthday, but since I was young, I always felt like the school year was a year to start fresh: I had a new teacher, and could really reinvent myself and start new. So, it’s typically around this time of year that I start to think about what goals I want to accomplish for the upcoming year, where I want to be in the next year and reflect on the past year’s events. Starting new habits when the school year starts is actually a really good strategy when you want to start a good habit, like exercising, or even drop a bad habit, like going out for your morning coffee. Its easier to start a new habit in the Read More . . .
Get something. Fill me.
It was about a year ago. We were at a party. I remember there being a large chocolate sheet cake with chocolate frosting. I wanted it. Throughout the night I could barely concentrate on anything that I was engaged in. I don’t remember any conversations because in the back of my head I kept thinking about that cake. I wanted the cake. It was all I could think about. At one point, I broke off & went to the bathroom, seeking the cake, but couldn’t find it. I think it was all gone & although I was disappointed, felt relief that I didn’t have to think about it any longer. Shortly after that party, I read James Frey’s A Million Little Pieces. It was the first time that I looked at my eating habits as an addiction: I smell the food, it is breakfast food. Eggs and bacon and sausage Read More . . .
Do it like it’s your job!
I understand that changing our health habits can be challenging at times. One of the pet peeves of my job is when clients cancel their appointments – and it’s probably not for the reason that you’re thinking. Its not because I’m not getting paid for that time that I’ve scheduled; it’s because when clients cancel their appointments, it means that they’re not following through with the plan. When clients don’t follow the plan, they don’t see results. When they don’t see results, they wonder why they’re spending so much money on my services and not seeing results. When they don’t see results, they figure that I’m just another ‘diet’ or workout that didn’t work for them. And then they quit. I’ve recently had a string of cancellations from several clients, and so I started thinking about my own health habits. I started thinking about ‘when was the last time I Read More . . .
The Four Pillars of Health
My [ever supportive] husband pointed out that this graphic does not represent pillars, but rather are arrows. If I had to draw “Pillars”, they wouldn’t look like this. touche. So, I thought I would write a little something about why I use this graphic & what it represents to me. First, as a wellness coach, these are the areas I work with my clients. These areas of health are my boundary. I don’t help clients with organizational, financial or relationship skills. I work with them on areas of health: their nutrition, activity, sleep management and stress management. The way I see it, these areas are so tightly connected that if one fails, they all tend to fail. I’m sure you’ve noticed that during times of high stress, that if you don’t take proper care of yourself, your nutrition starts to falter. When we stray from those foods that are good Read More . . .
This is why I do what I do
Last week, I had a really bad night's sleep, but had set my alarm to wake me early to go running. As I lay in the dark, I had contemplated blowing my run off, but really, I was already awake & decided to use that time productively. Before I headed out, I checked my email & overnight had received an email from my sister letting me know that she had been diagnosed with Lobular Carcinoma In Situ (LCIS). LCIS is defined as: "Lobular carcinoma in situ is a condition caused by unusual cells in the lobules of the breast.It is usually not considered cancer, but it can indicate an increased risk of future cancer. Unlike Ductal Carcinoma in Situ (DCIS), LCIS is not associated with calcification, and is typically an incidental finding in a biopsy performed for another reason." There were two lumps close together, which her surgeon removed. Her Read More . . .
Feel Better About Yourself: Stop Reading Magazines
Last month, Gary & I went on a short road-trip vacation. Because there wasn’t a lot to do in the town (and I wasn’t currently reading a book), I decided to buy a magazine – I think it was Redbook. It was a guilty pleasure because I used to read a LOT of magazines, but over the years have slowly weaned myself off of them. Yes, I used to read a lot of magazines! It all started with Seventeen, and then I moved on to Glamour & Cosmopolitan. Then, when I started taking better care of myself, losing weight, and started bodybuilding, I couldn’t get enough: Fitness, Health, Self, Oxygen, Women’s Health, Fitness Rx. OMG! I think the list goes on & on. I was always looking for that little nugget of information that was going to flip the switch; make my life different, make me lose the weight I Read More . . .
What Statement Do You Make With Your Diet?
It’s not a question we really think about. What does my diet say about me? When I go to the grocery store, what are my priorities? When I counsel my clients in their nutritional choices though, it’s something that I need to know in order to help them in making the right choice. Example: My client asks me "Should I be eating soy?" Well, the answer to that is much more complicated than a straight yes or no. What are the reasons behind you asking this question? Some questions that would determine the answer are: Are you trying to reduce your carbon footprint? Are you concerned about the amount of protein you’re getting in your diet? Are you vegetarian or vegan? Are you trying to reduce the amount of animal products in your diet? Do you like soy? What are your thoughts on processed foods? Yeah – I know. That Read More . . .