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Many of you have heard me speak about Healthy Weight
Loss in terms of goals. This time I am going to talk
about Healthy Weight in terms of lifelong habits. It
doesn't mean you don't want to have goals... goals are
essential. What I want to emphasize this time is the
bigger picture - beyond your personal, short-term goals.
I want you to think about your weight loss as if it
has already been achieved. What will it feel like? How
will you have changed as a person? What will you want
to do next? The real win is not in the numbers, but
in establishing habits of healthy weight maintenance.
A totally new life!
For most people a diet is something
they do once or twice a year to lose a certain number
of pounds or inches. Once that's done, they go right
back to their old routines. Maintaining a healthy weight
should not be an on-again, off-again activity and it
should not be torture. A question often asked by weight
loss patients is: "Since I have all this weight
to lose, how can I stay motivated to stick to any diet
long enough to lose it all?" The answer is that
you are not going on a diet of predetermined length;
you are adopting a new way of eating for the rest of
your life. It requires you to want to make a real change.
It is not an insurmountable task. There
is secret weapon. The secret is repetition, which leads
to adaption and then habituated patterns. Just three
steps.
Step one is REPETITION. As most athletes
know, hundreds of repetitions (energy expenditures)
are required for a complex motor skill to hold up under
the pressure of competition. Old bad habits suddenly
reappear when motor skills are newly formed or insufficiently
practiced. Mental skills operate in exactly the same
way. Converting bad habits of thinking to good habits-and
turning good habits into strong beliefs-takes time and
lots of targeted energy expenditure. Weak thoughts,
images, or emotions constantly break down under intense
pressure. The common term we use is will power. But
you must remember, you are not born with a certain level
of will power, you have to develop it over time until
it becomes automatic. Repetition helps your body to
adapt.
Step two it ADAPTION. Powerful thoughts,
images, and emotions are analogous to heavy weight.
They require more energy and are therefore more stressful.
Repetitiously triggering the same thoughts, images,
or emotions is not unlike the repetition of lifting
a barbell. Both require repeated energy expenditure.
In the case as such sports as weight lifting, running,
cycling, and climbing, growth occurs primarily in the
form of muscle adaptions. In the case of thinking, imagery,
and emotions, growth occurs primarily in the form of
neurological adaptions. The adaptation process is also
influenced by the intensity of the mental or emotional
event. Making thought and images come alive-with emotion,
sounds, colors, and sensations of all kinds-increases
energy expenditure and neurological stimulation.
Step three is HABITUATION. You don't
have to remember to do things that are habits. Good
or bad, there are certain routines that you can think
of in your day that you do automatically and often without
even thinking. When was the last time you arrived somewhere
and you could not remember the details of your drive?
Or the last weekend you spent running around and then
on Monday when asked what you did, you just couldn't
remember? It's because most of the time we are on auto
pilot, performing the same old patterns. Imagine how
your life would be different if your habits were different.
Good habits lead to optimal health.
OPTIMAL HEALTH creates the wonderful
results of healthy weight loss. The results of this
new way of eating becomes the motivation. So take heart:
no matter how much you have to lose, every pound lost
takes you closer to your ultimate goal- becoming leaner,
fitter, healthier person. You've got the rest of your
life to live healthy and fit. Don't get caught up in
the trap of deadlines.
Those three steps aren't little ones
so let's start simple. Set reasonable goals for yourself.
Start by moving more in your day and choosing one or
two dietary changes at at time. Get unreasonable by
throwing out your old story of why you can't do it,
but be reasonable about what you can do right now. Here
are a few ideas you can use:
GENERAL RULES:
1) Eat only when you are hungry!
If you have a poor appetite, reduce sugars and starches
and your appetite will improve.
2) Eat foods in whole form as much as possible- whole
foods, as provided by nature (either cooked or raw).
3) Eat animal source foods in moderation.
4) Eat raw foods with every meal. The best raw foods
are salads.
5) Eat small meals, but eat as often as you are hungry.
Many people overeat at one particular meal and overload
their digestion; the same amount of food eaten in smaller
quantities, several times per day, would not impose
a burden.
SUGGESTIONS:
* No hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats.
* No preservatives.
* No sugar or refined carbohydrates.
*Best between-meal-snacks = raw vegetables, low-glycemic
fruit, raw nuts.
NEED HELP? Ask me on your next visit
about some questions to get you moving forward. OR ask
someone else that has done it already.
For example, Judianne, ask her to sit down with you
and share some of her strategies. OR ask a trainer at
your gym. OR ask us for other experts you can talk to
in your geographical area. We can help!
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