Let's Get Physical, Physical, I wanna get....

PHYS-I-CAL!!! 'Little Olivia Newton-John for ya. One of the tapes I used to listen to in my basement while dancing around with my sister.

Everyone knows they should exercise. I'm sure you know why, but I still feel compelled to list them: Disease prevention, Stress Management, WEIGHT LOSS, Strong Bones, Improved Quality of Life, on and on.

There is so much information out there, and so many ways to be physically active. Any time you move your body you are burning calories: Sit instead of laying down. Stand instead of sitting. When you do strength training (lift weights) you make your muscles better calorie burners so you can burn even more calories by moving your body.

Find little ways to be more active. Sneak it in: Ditch the TV remote, Leave your phone on the charger....in the basement, then pace while talking on it, use the bathroom on a different floor; and everyone knows about taking the stairs instead of the elevator and parking in the furthest spot from the door!

Research has shown the best method for losing weight is a caloric defecit. Expending more calories than you consume. Combining diet and increased physical activity is the most effective way to create a defecit.

There are some technical ways of figuring out the exact numbers, but I hate math. Here is the bottom line. You are already losing weight by changing what and how you eat. Lets add the physical activity in for even more weight loss. This will be especially important for weight maintenance, when you start adding some of those calories back in.

Here's the good news: Every little bit counts.

Here's the bad news: To be most effective you need to accumulate 280 minutes a week at moderate intensity.

Now that I freaked you out. (Yes that's 45 minutes on 6 days a week!)

There's more good news. Modest weight loss can be achieved with only 150 minutes. (30 minutes on 5 days a week.) But more importantly significant health benefits can be achieved.

So remember, every little bit counts. Start by doing those little things, and just moving your body more. This is physical activity. Add them all up. Then there is everyone's friend, exercise. Exercise is done continuously, it involves large muscle groups, it gets your heart rate going. When you're ready to step it up. Add in some exercise. Walking, biking, swiming, jumping rope, rollerblading, playing sports, pick one.

What can you commit to? One day? Two days? Three 10 minute segments? Two 15 minute segments?

Start slow and build up. Your body will adjust. It may be hard, tiring, sweaty, painful, (not if you do it right, blame Jane Fonda for that one) but little by little it will become easier and you might even (gasp!) like it! (I'm still waiting for that one.) Pick a starting point and add on. Add time, increase your intensity. Experiment. If you go too far, pull back. Slow down, cut back til you find a comfortable level and then try again.

So how 'bout a little dance....

Sing with me - "Let's get physical, physical....

Can't believe my Mom let me listen to that song. I was so naive!

Goals Suck

I know.... writing goals is like a trip to the dentist. Even if you don't write them, atleast think about the questions.

Stages of Change

Research has shown changes in our behavior follows a set path. There are 5 stages of readiness.
Precontemplation (I won't or I can't in the next 6 months.)
Contemplation (I may in the next 6 months)
Preparation (I will in the next month)
Action (I am doing it now)
Maintenance (I've been doing it for the last 6 months)

The following is a short quiz used by WellCoaches to determine how ready you are to change a behavior. With regards to eating you are most likely in the action phase, but be as specific as possible. Our up-coming topic will be physical activity. Think about your answers for both topics, or any other changes you'd like to make.

1. The goal or behavior I want to work on is:
(Goals should be S.M.A.R.T. = Specific, Measurable, Active, Reasonable and Tangible.)
Lets start with 3 month goals. In 3 months I will....

2. My reason for wanting to accomplish this goal/change this behavior are:

3. The obstacles standing in the way of my goal/changing this behavior are:

4. The efforts I made toward my goal/changing this behavior in the last week are:

5. My goal for next week with respect to this goal/behavior is:
(The big picture is scoring a run, each week we get closer to first, second, third and home base)

6. My readiness to change to reach this goal/behavior is, I won't do it, I can't do it, I may do it, I will do it, I am doing it, I am still doing it.

Take some time to think about these. Only do it if you want to. I know its a lot to ask. I will be gone until next Tuesday, if you want to do it, have your answers by then. Also let me know if you would rather e-mail me. I do feel the comments can be helpful to everyone, but if you feel inhibited it's not worth it.

Four Letter Word

"D-I-E-T is a four letter word."

That being said. I don't care what method you choose to lose the weight. So far we have the South Beach Diet (SBD) and Weight Watchers (WW) Any other takers for another method?
(SBD reminds me of Beavis and Butt Head - "Pull my finger, Heh Heh!" MTV's site has some clips, I couldn't find one of them saying "Silent But Deadly", but this show still makes me laugh, such twisted humor.)

I am personally all for this natural supplement called FucoThin. My hubby took it for two months and did lose weight. He travels for work and we didn't address the other issues, but only taking this and doing nothing else he lost 8lbs.

I haven't tried this, but did the research on their website. (As long as you can over look the fact that they used the same people with different names and locations. ) IntelliTrim They will pay you $10 for every lb. you lose. The product is $40/month plus shipping. Cheaper for a 6 month supply up front. So essentially you pay them then they pay you back. One of their other supplements was recommended by a Cardiologist (browse his blog sometime) I have worked with and really respect, and all their products are pharmaceutical grade, which means what they say is in there is in there. The main ingredient is CLA which is also beneficial for Heart Disease prevention. (Ahem, Homecky).

There are many ways to lose weight. You might agree it's actually quite easy. Keeping it off is the hard part. What ever you do, be sure you can make changes that are permanent. This takes time. I hope through all this we will find those things that need changing and change them for good. Who's with me?!

Visualize....

When I say LIVE YOUR BEST LIFE NOW. What does that mean to you?

How do you determine if you are living your best life? By people, places or things? Being at your best does not mean that all your dreams have come true and you have a "perfect life." If you attach being perfect to living your best life…you will be waiting a long time.

What moments are making life hard, easy, mad, sad, glad and/or all the above?

What does being at your best mean, feel like, or look like?

How will you know when you're living your best life?

You get to choose the moments in your day. Maybe you can’t choose your circumstances but you choose what is put into your every day.

My challenge to you this week: With regards to your weightloss, picture yourself living your best life. What size clothes are you wearing? What are you eating? How often are you exercising, what are you doing for your exercise? How are you rewarding yourself for your successes? How are you dealing with difficulties in your life?

Lean on Me

With in a week two friends expressed interest in weight loss. Both from opposite sides of my life. I am by no means an expert in weight management.
~I have a bachelors degree in Exercise Science.
~I am an American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist.
~I've taught a weight management class along with a dietitian and Behavorial Health Specialist.
~I've taken a Well Coaches certification class
~I maintain a healthy weight and live a healthy, active lifestyle.
But most of all,
~I genuinely like helping people.

This blog is to provide encouragement, motivation, information and what ever else it becomes.
I've always been creative with names. Since I could only pick one name for the blog, the others will have to make their way into post titles.
I think this title gives a little comic relief to the whole idea. If it were only that simple!