I just got back from a long overdue vacation in Maui, Hawaii. It’s crazy to me that I didn’t do something like this sooner. I go out of town frequently for biz conferences or to visit my family in Ohio, but I haven’t taken time for myself and just really gotten away since mid- 2010. Sometimes it’s tough to make yourself do it, but I finally took the plunge, and I did it.

Jeeping around Maui

 It really stressed the importance of taking a recovery for your mind…your soul.

If you think about it, we are constantly running in overdrive….going from one commitment to the next– never stopping to just sit back and breathe, decompress, and just plain shut your mind off. You’ve heard me talk about the importance of rest and recovery in terms of your workouts, but it’s so important to do that for your mind too.

Me and the gang at our waterfall destination after an amazing hike through the rainforest and bamboo forest

 Okay, enough of my little rant– I’ll talk about that subject matter in more detail in another blog post. In the meantime, I’m gonna give you what you all came here to see. Here’s a video I put together with three of my five roommates from the Maui extravaganza that just uses your own body weight and an open area. And if you are curious, check out a few more pics I’ve posted below the video.

Our home for the entire week

One of our stops along the way to check out great views...and get a piggy back ride!

More Jeeping down the mean streets of Maui

Oh you know, just doing my thing in the (totally unexpected) bamboo forest

Pushups in style...

Well, there’s something that the diet industry doesn’t want you to know. There is more involved than just the diet product, and it’s the same across the board.

Look into the eyes of any person in their “before” picture and you’ll see that they are deeply disturbed. The body they have is no longer in sync with the body they are able to accept.

They changed the body that they accept, and became disturbed.

Now look into their eyes in the “after” picture – see the sweet satisfaction? They now live in the body that they decided they could accept. What an amazing feeling that is.

Why are you still living life in your “before” body?

Sure, you have obstacles that get in your way – your schedule, your job, your kids, the weather, your knee injury from college…but ultimately you have the body that you accept.

I’m going to repeat that so it will really sink in.
You have the body that you accept.

Transform from “Before” to “After”
You may not realize it, but you already posses everything you need to transform your body, and it all starts with taking responsibility for the body that you have today.

You are in your current shape because, until this moment, you’ve been OK with it.

Oh I know you aren’t thrilled with it, and you even talk about losing weight and getting fit – but you haven’t changed what you’ll accept.

Here’s how to transform your body in 3 steps:

Step One: Feel Disturbed
It has been said that emotion creates motion. This is essential when it comes to personal transformation. Just like those folks in the “before” pictures, to transform your body you must first decide that you can’t live another day in the body you currently have.

Get your emotions stirred up. Make a list of all the reasons that you’re ready to lose weight and get fit. Get disturbed.
Step Two: Decide What You Want
Without clarity you’ll never get where you want to go. Now that you’re disturbed with the body you have, decide what the body you can accept looks like.

Think in concrete and specific terms. Just like the captions under ‘before” and “after” pictures – “Shannon lost 50 lbs,” “Hanna lost 8 inches from her waist,” “Catherine went from a size 20 to a size 4.”

Get a clear picture in your mind of what you’ll look like in your “after” picture and decide what the caption will read.

Step Three: Take Action
The time spent between your inspiration (now) and taking action determines whether you will succeed or fail. Don’t allow yourself to get stuck between inspiration and action – there is always something that you can do immediately.

Take action by not just talking about doing it– but actually doing it! I am here to give you the tools and resources to take you from your “before” picture to your “after” picture. What will your “after” caption read?

If you are ready to take action, come check out a class at the one and only NYABC headquarters, and see what all the fuss is about. You won’t regret it. You can sign up for your risk-free trial right here….

I don’t know why, but I completely got my mind blown. I mean it wasn’t rocket science. It wasn’t the most out-of-the-box concept in the world. In truth, it’s a pretty simple concept — but simply being aware of the difference between a goal and a mission– it can make or break your success when it comes to going out and tackling whatever you are set out to do this coming year.

One of the reasons I personally think resolutions are weak is because they are usually these meaningless dedications that we make because we feel compelled to make them–  based on the day that falls on the calendar or because all of our friends are making them – not because we feel moved  to do so.

That’s the main difference between a goal and a mission.

A goal has no heart. It has no emotional ties. It has no true deep meaning. It can be another way of stating an item on your to-do list.

• I will drink at least 8 glasses of water a day for 30 days
• I will practice mandarin chinese for twenty minutes, 3 times per week
• I will go to sleep ½ earlier and wake up ½ hour earlier everyday for 30 days.

Sure those are goals, and to some people they might seem like challenging or will-power-draining tasks, but they don’t have any emotional attachments, associations, or drivers. They lack heart. More importantly, they lack heart-strings.

A mission on the other hand comes from deep down inside. It’s ignited from within and fueled by heart, soul, a can’t-stop-won’t-stop attitude, and the utmost concrete decision to get there. It encompasses so many heart-strung goals that even when times are tough or seemingly impossible, the drive and determination of the mission shine through. It’s got heart. It’s got soul.

So why in our right minds if we are supposedly doing everything we can to be the best version of ourselves that we can this coming year (and beyond)  are we STILL setting these meaningless resolutions…these meaningless tasks and goals? Why wouldn’t we do ourselves one better?

We should be climbing mountains. We should be warriors conquering battles…and wars. We should constantly be on missions– not checking off  meaningless check marks on a list.

So ask yourself right now: What’s your mission this year?

Who do you wanna be? What do you want to truly face and conquer once and for all? How many people do you want to help or affect or inspire this coming year? What kind of friend, mom, sister, mentor, wife, (insert any role here), or PERSON do you want to be?

Then instead of setting these meaningless goals or resolutions for yourself this year, go get on a hellbent mission to become that person you want to be. Go get the body, the job, the happiness, the fulfillment –whatever you want in life– and don’t deem the mission completed until you get there.

I know what I’ll be thinking about come January 1st.

Can you image how you would look 3 sizes smaller? You’d look like a whole new, younger person.

It’s actually much easier than you think. I’m not talking about invasive, costly surgery, dangerous pills or potions, or grueling routines. All it takes is losing one pound each week. One measly pound.

Hang with me for a minute and I will break it down mathematically. A pound is 3,500 calories— spread that over 7 days and you need a 500 calorie deficit each day to lose 1 pound in a week.

Your 500 calorie deficit can be done by a combination of increased calorie exertion (exercise) as well as a decrease in calories consumed (eating less).

Follow these steps:

• First, record your normal weekly exercise – look at everything from walking to participating in sports to exercising in the gym. This is your starting point. From here you’ll need to burn an additional 3500 calories on top of your normal weekly exercise. If you don’t currently exercise, then any new activity will count towards your 3500 calorie weekly goal.

• Second, record your normal weekly food intake – this may be an eye-opener when you see how many calories you eat in a day. Record everything honestly, since you are only cheating yourself by not recording everything. Calculate the total number of calories that you eat in an average day.

• Now divide the 3500 calories between your activity list and your food list. You could choose to eliminate 1000 calories each week and burn off an additional 2500. Or you may decide to burn 3000 calories and eat 500 fewer calories.

Here are 7 simple ways to cut 250 calories:

• Drink plain coffee instead of a sweetened holiday coffee drink. Flavored coffee drinks are delicious but filled with way too much sugar. Drop 250 calories (or more) when you stick with plain coffee or tea instead of sugar-filled holiday coffee drinks.
• Just say NO! to the holiday treats. A single slice of fruitcake may seem innocent enough, besides everyone is eating them at the office meeting, why shouldn’t you? You know that all those holiday treats are packed with fat and calories. For each tempting treat that you refuse to eat, imagine the 250 calories falling off of your waistline, and smile to yourself.
• Jog for 30 minutes. Want in on a little secret? The hardest part about a simple 30 minute jog is the act of getting your shoes on and walking out the door. It’s true.
• Exchange 20 oz of regular soda for water. You know that soda is filled with tons of sugar, so why are you still drinking it? Every time you crave an ice cold cola picture swallowing spoonfuls of white sugar. That’s probably the easiest way to weight gain. Stick with water and kiss those extra calories goodbye.
• Swim laps for 30 minutes. If your response to my jogging suggestion was ‘I have bad joints’, then you are in luck. Swimming is one of the best aerobic activities you can do, and it is impact-free. When you swim you recruit your entire body, a process which requires lots of energy—AKA calories.
• Eat an apple instead of a cookie. Do you always go for something sweet after dinner? While your first instinct may be to reach for a cookie or a bowl of ice cream, why not consider what nature has to offer? Fruit is sweet, natural and lower in calories than traditional desserts.
• Come give my Orlando Boot Camp a try. I have the whole calorie-burning equation down to a science, and I’d love nothing more than to help you achieve your fitness goal. My workouts have been known to burn up to 500 calories at a time (not to mention we have a ton of fun!)

Losing 50 pounds in 12 months is very possible. Simply use the tips above to create your daily 500 calorie deficit and you’ll be shedding the weight in no time. And if you have less than 50 pounds to lose? Well I’m no mathemetician, but it would guess it wouldn’t take as much time =)

P.S. This time of year I tend to get in “mad scientist” mode when it comes to figuring out how to get my clients and blog subscribers the best results possible. Stay tuned next week because one of you is going to win their very own New Year’s Makeover. I’ll give you all the details next week. In the meantime, Happy Holidays!

If you know me, you know that I am a big advocate of a balanced lifestyle. I preach moderation NOT restriction. So without further ado, let talk a bit about our friend “alcohol”

Alcohol And Fat Loss – What You Need To Know

One question that often presents itself to many dieters who are trying to shed the excess weight that has accumulated over time is whether or not alcohol can be included in their diet plan.

Alcohol is something that most adults do like to indulge in from time to time – some more often than others.

So what’s the real deal about alcohol and your progress? Is this something that you can make room for in your diet or is it something that you need to give the boot?

Alcohol And Calories

The very first thing that you need to take note of is how many calories are found in alcohol. Alcohol itself contains seven calories per gram, whereas both proteins and carbs contain just four. Fat comes in at the highest calorie value per gram at nine, which places alcohol right in the middle.

But what’s often worse is what the alcohol is mixed with. If you’re drinking your alcohol with high calorie or fat mixers such as cream, sodas, or sugary mixers you could easily end up with a drink that packs in well over 300 calories per serving.

If you take in three or four of these over the course of the night, it’s really going to add up.

Alcohol And Fat Metabolism

The second important thing that you need to note is the impact that alcohol consumption will have on your fat metabolism. The minute that you put alcohol into your body, all fat burning is going to come to a halt.

Your body views alcohol as a toxin and as such, as soon as it comes in, it’s going to do everything it can to rid itself of this alcohol. No further fat will be burned off until it’s out of your system.

Only then will you start burning up body fat again. So if you consume quite a bit of alcohol one night, you can expect to see your rate of fat loss drop off for a more significant period of time.

Alcohol And Your Recovery

Finally, the last important thing to note about alcohol consumption is the impact it will have on your recovery rates.

In addition to putting the breaks on all fat burning taking place in the body, the second thing that alcohol is going to put the breaks on is protein synthesis.This means that no further lean muscle tissue will be built up as long as that alcohol is in the body. Again, you can imagine what this is going to do to your workout goals.

So as you can see, if you want to be truly successful with your fat loss and workout program, it’s best if you can forgo alcohol for the time being. One drink every now and then may not hurt all that much, but if you’re taking in any more than this, it will definitely hinder the progress that you see.

Like I said before, I’m all about moderation, so I definitely have been able to indulge in some adult beverages while still working towards my fat loss goals.

Do you have any personal tricks you use to still indulge without the hindered progress? Would love to hear it!

Well here is your solution: A total body workout that you can do with just your own bodyweight in a two foot square in your living room. Plus you can accomplish the entire thing in under 20 minutes. How’s that for an option that you can’t refuse.

Make sure to warm up before you start and stretch at the end. Enjoy the workout!

By now, you probably read my last blog post where I confessed my past “holiday” ways and gave you a few clues on how to not only avoid holiday weight gain, but actually LOSE body fat—without suffering or feeling deprived during the holidays. . If not, you can check that out right here…

Alright, do you remember what those clues were? Let me refresh your memory….

1. Fireplace

2. Trident

3. Pre-Party

4. Let Loose!

By the way, I loved all of your guesses in the comment section of the previous post. You guys got really creative! But now it’s time to actually share my “sneaky” tactics that helped me and hundreds of my clients reshape their bodies during the holidays—despite all the distractions and temptations.

Clue #1: Fireplace.

Most people get the whole weight loss thing backwards– especially around the holiday season when we are eating more “naughty” things than usual. Our gut reaction is to just move more or burn more calories.

If you are anything like I was, you might have thoughts like, “Hmm, if I eat three cookies, then all I have to do is park my car far away, walk an extra lap around the block tonight, and jump on the treadmill for another twenty minutes.”

Sounds pretty logical right? It did to me too. In actuality though, this is the type of thinking that will actually SABOTAGE your efforts. You might as well eat 5 cookies.

Instead of just focusing on burning extra calories through exercise (cardio specifically), you need to take action that will make your body turn into a Fat-Burning FIREPLACE.

Okay, picture these two scenarios:

Scenario 1: Those extra cookies cause you to exercise more. You start doing jumping jacks while your kid is taking a bath, taking the stairs at work, or going for extra runs or jogs on the treadmill.

Result: You do in fact burn extra calories from this extra activity. High five! Unfortunately though, your metabolism is either unchanged or is now slower than it was before you “worked off that cookie”.

Scenario 2: You are doing the things to ensure that your body is in full fat-burning mode 24 hours a day. Meaning, you are doing some sort of resistance training (any weight-bearing activity) combined with interval training.

Result: Now, not only is your base metabolism higher from your workouts, but that extra activity that you just did is now WAY more potent because your body is already in fat-burning fireplace mode. Not only did that cookie not do nearly as much damage, but despite that slip in willpower, your metabolism is ready for what’s about to come.

**Side note: Either way you cut the cake, eating those extra cookies in an unplanned way will surely not help you lose body fat, but you can see how the effect is lessened dramatically in scenario 2. Now just imagine if your eating was on target. Catch my drift? More on that in another clue…

Clue #2: Trident.

Okay this one is so simple that I have to giggle just a little bit. Doesn’t it always seem to go that way though? We can hear the same information over and over again, and it might not impact us much. Then we hear that same something in a different light, and it’s like a lightbulb goes off.

My sneaky tactic is simply to always have a piece of gum or sugarfree mint handy. This priceless piece of refreshment will come in handy in several ways during those holiday weeks. Pop a piece of gum or mint in your mouth when you come across these situations:

• You are cooking or baking and the “taste-testing” temptations are endless.
• Someone else is cooking or baking and the “taste-testing” temptations are endless.
• You are out to eat, and you know very well that you don’t need to finish your meal—you could easily take 1/3 or ½ of it home with you. Eat what you need to be satisfied, and then pop in a mint or gum. It’s like magic =)
• You are at work and your co-worker has the omnipresent bowl of candy or chocolates at an arm’s reach
• You have an inevitable craving or food desire, but you know it’s not hunger—it’s simply Holiday-mode creeping in.

And the list could go on….

Clue #3: Pre-Party.

Alright, I’m not gonna lie, losing weight isn’t always easy. It takes determination, willpower, and a reasonable and solid plan-of-action . But you know what else it takes? It takes planning!

I remember back in elementary school when we had those writing tests to see how well we could write a narrative or persuasive paper. Hated them all. But you know what perturbed me even more than the actual test? The fact that they mandated that you take a 10 minute chunk at the beginning and outline your essay. I remember specifically that this infuriated me (even as kid). I just wanted to jump right into it—to put it all down on paper NOW.

Now that I’m older and wiser… and have transformed my body and helped 100’s of local women do the same thing, I know that if you don’t have a plan, and you don’t stick to that plan, that it just aint gonna happen! It’s that simple. (And yes, you are allowed to chuckle at the fact that a 28 year-old just used the term “older and wiser”. But ya know what? I am older and wiser, and you get to reap the rewards).

So back to Pre-Party…

A big part of the “planning” component is simply thinking ahead when making decisions. If I know that I have a meeting on Tuesday night, I’m not gonna schedule a dinner date with my BFF.

So how do I equate this to holiday eating? Here’s my trick: If I know that I am gonna be in a situation where there are gonna be a ton of tempting treats…. Or that my choices might be limited… or that I will have no idea how to account for the food, measure, etc….ya know what I do? I simply eat something before I go. It’s that simple.

Now when I get there, I’m not hungry, I won’t have that next-day guilt or “why did I eat that?”feeling. I can nosh on something small if I want to or not eat at all.

Ya see, I think that’s what we tend to forget about the holidays. We feel like if something is put in front of us, then we have to eat it. I mean you don’t want to feel rude for denying food right? But think about it for a second: Is it really that rude to tell someone, “No, thanks, I’m not hungry.” No it’s not. You’re good.

So now, not only has planning ahead and “pre-partying” by eating before you go somewhere saved you a ton of calories—but now you feel empowered with willpower and are still in that incredible I’m-on-fire mental state. It’s a win/win.

This trick works for going out to dinner (eat a snack at home, and order something low-calorie)….at the work pot-luck party… anywhere!

Clue #4: Let Loose!.

This is my favorite one by far. Call me a splurger or someone that likes to go against the grain and live on the edge sometimes, but I love this one!

We immediately associate losing weight and dieting with things like eating as little as we possibly can or forgoing all of our favorite foods until we can’t possibly stand it anymore. But this is gonna just make us feel deprived—inevitably reaching for anything with butter or sugar (or both) that we can find.

The good news? It doesn’t have to be like this. Did you know that if you systematically throw in a cheat meal every week or so, the fat loss potential is even greater than if you drastically reduced your calories or “dieted”? Not to mention the fact that you gotta let loose every once in a while!

How inclined are you to stick to a program if you feel like garbage all the time… hungry and miserable. Not very inclined—that’s for sure.

Now, don’t go haphazardly throwing in cheat meals without knowing what you are doing. Notice I said there is a systematic approach to cheating and getting an excess of calories in your body, but if you mess it up, it could definitely send your body down the wrong path….weight gain!

Alright, there you have it—4 of my “Sneaky Tactics” to stay slim and trim over the holidays.

Looking for a way to drop 15 pounds of body fat and up to 8 inches off your mid-section is just 4 short weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas? I’ll let you know how you can do just that in a few days =)

Enjoy your week!

We talked about it last week—how that downward spiral of holiday weight-gain actually starts around Halloween time- not just Thanksgiving to New Year’s. Phew! We made it over the first hump, and now the next one is coming up pretty quickly…

Being in the fitness industry, I am reminded every single year that most people gain a bunch of extra pounds during the holidays—about 7-12 pounds of ugly, unwanted body fat to be exact.

Pretty crazy considering it’s only about a 30 day window, huh?

But you know how it can be– you get invited to an extra party here… or an after-work gathering there.

Everyone seems to be in holiday mode (even when it’s 80 degrees outside here) and is either cooking up a storm of confectionaries or bringing you the leftovers they got from friends and family cooking up a storm.

One extra “treat” turns into three or four, and it’s not usually just a one day occurrence. Once you fall off the proverbial “wagon”, the spiral tends to continue.

Then on top of it, we get a couple Orlando cold fronts here and there that bring us 40 or 50 degree weather.

Well, then what happens?

We Floridians break out our big bulky sweatshirts and knitted scarves in hopes that we don’t catch a cold in these “frigid” temperatures. Okay, and it’s because (and come on ladies, admit it) that we don’t want to miss out on any of that two-month window where we actually get to sport some cute winter clothes.

To me, baggier shirts used to just mean that my excess pounds wouldn’t be showing as much—and those bulkier clothes could surely hide my extra belly until after New Year’s—the extra belly that wasn’t there a few short weeks ago.

Then when I really bunkered down and committed to my goals after the new year, I was even further behind in my goals than I was a short time ago.

Then the guilt starts to set in…

“Why did I eat all those cookies at the company Christmas party?”

“Why didn’t I just work out more these past few weeks?”

“How did I get here?”

Does any of that sound familiar? I used to go through this cycle every single year for most of my life!

I remember it very clearly…heck, it pretty much repeated itself every single January 1^st: Pants too tight. No energy. Depressed at my back-tracking. Feelings of hopelessness because I was now even further from my goal.

I’m not gonna beat around the bush… it just plain sucked! I felt awful. Now let me ask you, how motivated do you think I was to go set the world on fire and reach my weight loss goals when my mind was filled with feelings of defeat, depression, and no hope?

Correct. I wasn’t. In fact, I was the opposite of motivated.

So how do you break this vicious cycle? How do you stop it in its tracks without feeling like you are suffering or missing out on the holiday season?

I mean come on let’s face it. Food is a big part of the holidays. Pigging out on Thanksgiving (and Christmas as I’m told) is part of our pastime—it’s just simply what we do on these festive occasions. We shouldn’t have to forgo that altogether—life’s too short.

And the good news is…you don’t!

What if there was a way for you to not only avoid that holiday weight gain, BUT also drop a ton of extra pounds and inches in the meantime? Imagine dropping 10 pounds of fat while everyone else was gaining it. Imagine going after your New Year’s Resolutions with a vengeance…so pumped up and motivated that nothing could tear you down.

Oh yea, and imagine doing all of that WITHOUT forgoing that delicious, endless Thanksgiving dinner, Christmas feast, or any other mealtime challenge you may face over those unpredictable holiday weeks. I mean literally being able to eat whatever you want at those meals… and actually having that splurge HELP your fat loss efforts.

How amazing would you be feeling January 1^st? Mmmm hmmm, that’s what I thought =)

So how do you do all this? How can you make one major change in your life for a short few weeks that could positively impact you for the entire year to come?

I’m glad you asked.

I’ve put together my Top 4 “Sneaky Tricks” for not only avoiding the holiday weight gain—but actually systematically losing body fat. These are those underground secrets from your favorite former chubby chick that Santa Clause and Hanukkah Harry definitely don’t want you know!

Now what fun would it be if I just came right out and told em’ to you? I’ll tell you what, keep your eyes peeled in your email inbox, because tomorrow I am going to come right out and tell you all 4 of my “Sneaky Tricks”, and trust me—they are unconventional methods that you most likely haven’t thought of —but they are potent and they work like a charm!

In the meantime, I know you must be drooling a little bit, so I’ll leave you with 4 clues–1 clue for each of my 4 “Sneaky Tactics”. Then come back tomorrow as I reveal all 4 tactics and how you can implement them to melt the fat off your hips, tummy, and thighs—even during the holidays.

Okay, you ready? Here they are…

1. Fireplace

2. Trident

3. Pre-Party

4. Let Loose!

I would be very interested to see if you have any good guess as to what these clues mean… Feel free to leave your guesses in the comment section below, and come back tomorrow to find out!

Until then….

In fact, come to think of it, my “off the wagon” ways started every year about this time….right around Halloween.

I mean just think about it. Candy dishes wrapped in orange and black wrappers are everywhere! Then on top of it, everything is mini or bite-sized and your guilt goes out the window when you can justify to yourself that it’s only a quarter of the size of a whole one. (I swear those chocolate companies came out with mini-sizes for chocoholics just like me.)

Fortunately for you though, Halloween isn’t quite upon us, and you still have time to make some wise decisions. Cause let’s face it, one bad decision usually leads to another bad decision. And then before you know it, your attitude becomes , “well I already blew it, I’ll just make up for it after the new year”.

Don’t go down that road!

Here’s some tips to make sure that you keep yourself in check tonight….

• Make up your mind to begin with. I’m a big believer in simply making decisions. If you decide beforehand that you aren’t going to eat those little mini-Snickers or bags of M&M’s, then you have already made up your mind. Just make the concious decision and stick with it. Then when you are tempted by those little sugary balls of goodness, just say to yourself, “Self, I made a decision—and I made the decision when I wasn’t feeling tempted and vulnerable to candy—and this is not gonna be yet another time that I say I’m gonna do something and not do it!”  We should always make a habit of doing the things that we say we are gonna do. Who wants to be the girl that cried wolf? I sure don’t.
• Don’t open up that bag of Halloween Treats that you are giving out until the very last minute. I used to do it all the time. I would stock up with candy to hand out to the trick-or-treaters, and then I would always make up some excuse why it was okay to open up the bag early and have “just one”. But who does that? Who actually has just one? So do yourself a favor and don’t open up the bag and dump it in that big bowl until the first trick-or-treater arrives. Your waistline will be so much better for it—trust me!
• I know I have mentioned this before, but gum is a food-lovers best friend. Whenever I’m feeling “snacky”, I pop a piece of gum in my mouth, and Halloween is the perfect time to do the same thing. Trust me, even if you are in the middle of the biggest craving of your life, and you pop a piece of gum in your mouth, the craving seriously does go away. And trust me, I’m the biggest skeptic. You give me a so-called fix to anything, and I’m gonna be the first person to ask for proof. Trust me, gum is the bee’s knees =)

Now that we have Halloween taken care of, how are you going to make sure that you don’t gain weight over the holidays? Do you have a plan? Do you have a goal?

Trust me—take it from someone who has been down that road so many times—there is nothing worse than starting the beginning of the new year feeling like absolute crap about yourself. I hate to be so blatant and blunt about it—but it’s so true.

So what’s are you gonna do to make sure you don’t go down that road?

Don’t worry, I have you covered. I’ll be giving you a ton of tips, resources, workouts, meal plans, and recipes to keep you in tip-top shape over the holidays. But in the meantime, Happy Halloween!

My nephew as Captain America =)

]]> http://notyouraveragebootcamp.com/fatloss/halloween-can-be-a-downward-spiral-for-your-fat-loss-goals/feed/ 4 http://notyouraveragebootcamp.com/fatloss/the-end-of-food-temptation/ http://notyouraveragebootcamp.com/fatloss/the-end-of-food-temptation/#comments Mon, 24 Oct 2011 13:42:31 +0000 Leanne http://notyouraveragebootcamp.com/?p=4385

You start each morning with the promise to be “good” today.

You’ll refuse the baked goods at the office. You’ll speed past that fast food place at lunch. You’ll turn a blind eye to the vending machine in the mid-afternoon. And you’ll pass on the ice cream after dinner.

But… you hadn’t counted on the fact that a box of your favorite donuts would be sitting in the break room. Or that co-workers would invite you to join them for fast food place at lunch. Or that Girl Scouts would come through the office after school with boxes of thin mints. Or that your special someone would come home with a pint of Coffee Heath Bar Crunch.

And as you get into bed each night you tell yourself that tomorrow will be different.

Tomorrow you will conquer temptation.

But tomorrow comes with its own set of special circumstances and temptation gets the best of you once again.

Why Does Temptation Always Win?

We live in society where food temptations are everywhere.

• Walk through a store and you’ll see the unhealthy food items displayed front and center.
• Turn on the TV and you’ll be assaulted with commercials for fattening foods.
• Open a magazine and you’ll notice glossy pin-ups of sugary snacks.
• Go down the street and you’ll have restaurant signs clamoring for your attention.

In addition to the abundance of tempting edibles, you also have deeply ingrained positive associations with indulging.

• You treat tempting food as a reward.
• You turn to tempting food for comfort.
• You rely on tempting food as stress relief.
• You allow tempting food to become a habit.

It’s Your Turn to Win

Temptation doesn’t need to have the upper hand on you anymore. It’s time to fight back using your most powerful asset: your brain.

Your mind is an amazing thing. Once it is made up about something it is nearly impossible to change it.

A Matter of Perspective

Imagine for a moment that you’re peacefully floating down a river in an inner tube. The sun is out, the birds are chirping, and you are having a wonderful time. You feel great about the river because it is making you feel good.

Now imagine that you are in a plane flying over the river. Your eye is immediately drawn to an enormous rocky waterfall. You look up the river and just around the bend is a person floating in an inner tube, having a wonderful time, headed straight for the treacherous falls.

Do you think that after your plane ride you’d be happy to get an inner tube and float down the river? Of course you wouldn’t. You’ve seen that the river spells disaster.

You now have a negative association (watery death) with the river rather than your initial positive association (relaxing fun).

Overcoming temptation is all about building negative associations in place of existing positive ones. Use the 2 steps below to harness the power of your mind to become stronger than any temptation.

Step One: Create a Strong Negative Association with all the BAD STUFF

• If cookies and chips and burgers are put on a pedestal in your mind as your favorite things to eat, then you will always eat unhealthy and will continue to gain weight.
• What do you dislike about tempting food?
  • It makes you unhealthy.
  • It causes weight gain.
  • It drains your energy.
  • It kills your confidence.
  • It degrades your quality of life.
  • It hurts your love life.
• Every time that you encounter tempting food items focus on your list of negatives. It’s time to kick those cookies off the pedestal and to put something healthy in its place.

Step Two: Create a Strong Positive Association with all the GOOD STUFF

• Now that your mental pedestal has been cleared, put healthy food items on it. Juicy fresh fruit, crispy vegetables and savory lean meats are a great place to start.
• What do you love about healthy food?
  • It makes you healthy.
  • It causes weight loss.
  • It boosts your energy.
  • It builds your confidence.
  • It improves your quality of life.
  • It enhances your love life.
• Immerse yourself into the world of healthy food. Browse the aisles of a natural food store. Walk through a farmer’s market. Bring healthy snacks to work. Clear your kitchen of anything unhealthy.

Using the technique above, you will soon find that healthy food is your favorite food, and temptation will become a thing of your past.

Don’t get me wrong, it won’t go away forever, but those moments of willpower will become less and less frequent,and you will enjoy those cheats more when you do allow yourself to indulge.