What About Those Days You Just Don't Want to Exercise?

I know you've been there.....
You've scheduled your workout time,
You got your backside out of bed, brushed your teeth and your workout gear on.
You are headed out the door, or plugging the exercise DVD in,
but you just do NOT want to exercise today.

Ugh!  What to do?

Hey!  It happens to all of us. 

Here's what I tell myself "I will just get through the warmup.  If at that point I still don't feel like exercising, I can quit with no guilt."

And you know what happens, don't you?

Yep.

I stay and finish the workout.

Every time.

By then my blood is flowing and I'm in a better place. And, heck!  I might as well, since I've come this far.

And often these wind up being some of my best workouts, full of energy and strength.

Some days it's harder to get going, but that doesn't mean that you are doomed to a rotten workout or a downer day.  Give yourself the opportunity to try, first!

Don't Jack With Your Program!

You know what I think is one of the biggest reasons people don't lose weight on a program?  Because they don't follow the program in it's entirity.  They do part of it, but not all of it.  They hire a coach and do the exercises he says but don't follow the eating plan.  Or do a pretty good job of following the eating plan 5 days out of the week, but go off the rails and eat whatever they darned well please two.  Or follow the eating plan perfectly but don't exercise the way he tells you to.  Or decide they're going to have rice with dinner even though the coach told them to just have asparagus and fish.  You get the idea.

Here's the thing: With most programs, whether they are a company-owned plan like Jenny Craig or a pricey one made by a coach personally for you, your best success is dependent on doing ALL of said program.  It's made to work as a whole.  You take one part of it out, and like the gears in a watch, either the whole mechanism stops working or it isn't nearly as effective as if you did the program in it's entirety.

If you are working with a coach, I would advise to put blinders on and just DO it.  Don't read Weight Watchers material if you are following Julie Lohre's program.  (But if you are doing Weight Watchers, read ALL of the material.) Don't decide it's time to brush up on the Paleo diet or read "The New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women" when you are paying Mike Davies to make a program for you.  Why?  Because in there somewhere is going to be something that isn't going to be what your coach or program has lined up for you.  You will start to doubt the effectiveness of what they have you doing.  And with doubt comes lack of enthusiasm. And with lack of enthusiasm comes lack of adherence.  And with lack of adherence comes lack of results.

Commit to whatever plan you are doing in it's entirety.  Focus like a laser beam, block everything else out, and just GO!  Pick a plan, follow the WHOLE plan, and stick with it.  You'll be the one getting the results while others are saying "This plan just doesn't work for me."

From Diet Soda To Water

This is a tough one, isn't it?  Learning to make your main beverage (or your only beverage) water.  Seems we all get hooked on diet soda at some point.  I'm even going to venture a guess that a majority of the people I know struggling to lose weight are diet-soda-aholics. And since there is no 12-step program for this addiction, I thought it might be handy to share how I managed to kick my own heavy diet soda habit.

I think most of us begin drinking diet soda because it has a sweet taste and no calories.  We like sweet.  And we figure without calories it can't derail our weight loss efforts.  No harm in a diet soda once a day, is there?  Then we start drinking two. At home.  And then make it our regular beverage when we drink out.  And then we have it "only after noon"  EVERY SINGLE DAY!  And next thing you know, breakfast is over and your seeking out that sweet fizzy taste fix that only a diet soda would give you.

Of course, you wouldn't dream of drinking a regular soda with sugar in it because that.... THAT would make you fat. But this diet stuff?  "Hey", you reason "It's got water in it and my body needs water.  And it's not giving me any calories, and my body certainly doesn't need any of THOSE!  And lookie here- It doesn't have sodium, or caffeine, either!  I'm doing something good for my body by making this diet soda choice!".  Yeppers- I've been there too, and said all of these things to myself, and more.  (My favorite line I told myself when ordering a bacon cheeseburger and fries with a diet soda was "If they made a diet burger and fries, I'd order those, too." I was the champion of excuses!)

Then a little lightbulb went off; "If there is no sugar, little sodium, and often no caffeine in diet soda, what IS in there?  There has to be something, or else it would be.... well...... water."  And the answer to that question?  In a word- Chemicals.  What good were chemicals going to do me?  Because here I was, being careful with my diet (I was drinking diet soda even after I'd made significant progress in my weight loss), and still bathing my insides with chemicals via diet soda.  Not exactly the healthiest thing I could do for a body I was trying to make healthier by every other means.

Sadly, it was time to start the very painful process of breaking up with Mr. Fizzy. 

The first thing I did was move from diet soda to those fizzy flavored waters they sell.  (The peach was my favorite!)  This went on for probably a year or more. Then I started reading that carbonation (which makes the fizz) can cause calcium to leach from the bones, which in turn causes the bones to be weaker and more prone to breakage as I age.

Since being 80 and incapacitated with a broken hip didn't sound appealing to me, I ditched the carbonation and went with the flavored waters, no fizz.  These stood in for a while.  But then I started taking a look at the artificial sweeteners and some of the purported side effects from them (my aunt, who has Parkinsons disease, often wonders if her copious drinking of diet sodas didn't help her condition along), and figured it wasn't worth the risk to have those coursing through my body all the time,either.

So then I started drinking iced tea with artificial sweetener in it, but watered it down. A lot.

Eventually I managed to get it so watered down that the tea wasn't really tea anymore- it was just dirty water.  At that point I let go entirely and went to strait water.

This doesn't mean I don't ever have a diet soda anymore, because I do.  On occasion I'll have one as a treat,  usually when I go to the movies with my family, who are all munching on candy. It gives my mouth something do to, and I don't feel completely left out.  (Please don't ask me how I can feel left out when we are all starting strait ahead at a screen in the dark- This concept alludes me to this day. But the fact is that it happens.)

And when I go to restaurants I will often get a glass of unsweetened tea and sweeten it with Stevia packets I carry in a baggie in my purse. Stevia is the ground leaf of the Stevia plant, which is sweet.  Much preferable to saccharine, sucralose, or any other artificial sweeteners, since Stevia is ground directly from a plant.  Depending on the brand you buy (I use Stevia In The Raw), it can taste a tad bitter, but I can't stand unsweetened tea, so Stevia it is.  And yes, I have turned into a baggie-carrying, chemicaly-paranoid fanatic.

Paying homage to my "if they made diet burgers" excuse (above), I'm using the "If I could hand them organic chicken to make my salad I would" excuse for the sweetener.

Anyhow, that's my story of how I kicked diet sodas and my reasons why.  Maybe you are inspired.  Maybe you are (I hope) thinking of artificial chemicals in a different way.  And maybe you are rolling your eyes.  But regardless, I hope you tell me what you think!

Stop The Blame Game!

If you are one of these people who is always blaming someone else for your current less-than-satisfactory physical condition, it's time to give it a rest.

The fact is that I've never seen one person successfully reach their weight loss goals blaming someone else for them being overweight and out of shape.  I suspect this has something to do with the fact that when you start pointing the finger at yourself, all your excuses go out the window.

Look, I know I sound harsh.  But I have the right to say these things because I know of which I speak:  I used to be a blamer. 

My favorite person to blame was my husband.  I'll still say to this day that the man is hard on a diet.  He's not trying to be.  Truly.  But focusing on eating as a prime source of entertainment and bringing goodies into the house "for the kids" does NOT help keep me in a mindset to maintain my goals.  However, it is ME who allowed myself to eat garbage once I was tempted with the yummy foods he exposed me to.  I had options:  Ask to go to restaurants that have guilt-free foods I can eat; Saying no to junk at the movie (even if he IS holding that delicious-smelling popcorn right next to me); Telling him to please take the kids away from the house to eat the goodies RIGHT NOW;  Removing myself from the house until the tempting foods were eaten..... I'm sure there were other solutions, but the fact is that it's me who was to blame, not him.  After all, I am the one who lives in my body.

I know people who are so busy blaming others as an excuse for their current condition that they are almost obsessed with it...... Mired down in the depressed state of victim,....... looking for sympathy from anyone who will listen as to their woeful tale of why being so fat and out of shape is not their fault.........

I think they feel like if enough people say "It's Okay- You can't help the way you are", they will suddenly feel accepted and the world will be Okay with them being overweight and out of shape, and somehow that will make them happy.

If this is you........, Guess what?  Even if everyone were to pat you on the head and tell you what you want so desperately to hear, you would still look in the mirror and see exactly what you saw five minutes before they told you that. And would that image make you happy?

Didn't think so.

A lot of folks like to blame their upbringing.  Okay, so I will give it to many of you that you were brought up in homes with very few good food choices and forced to clean your plate.  I see a lot of kids whose overweight condition I do indeed blame on the parents.  How can kids eat right if they aren't given right food choices?  If you are feeding your kids garbage, it's time to accept the blame for where they are and start feeding them healthy foods, even if you don't like healthy foods yourself.  Suck it up and set the example.

HOWEVER, if you are an adult who is out of shape and still blaming your parents, it's time to grow up and assume the responsibility for the way you look. Even if they locked you in a closet and fed you nothing but Twinkies your entire upbringing, NOW you are able to make you own choices.  NOW you can reverse what they have done.  NOW is the time to change your habits.  Besides, how long is it that you have you been out from under your parents jurisdiction?

Sorry- The Mommy Excuse just doesn't hold water.

The fact is that in order to maintain a body that is too big, you have to eat too much food.  I don't care how you got that body: To maintain it you have to be eating enough food to sustain it.  Make every excuse you want, but that's a fact no one can dispute.  Well, you could.... but you'd look pretty stupid to the rest of the world if you did.

Unless you lay claim to your own health, you will never own a healthy body.  That's just the way it is.  As long as you are deflecting the responsibility for your current state on someone besides you, you are nowhere near obtaining the healthy body you deserve to have.  YOU have all of the power in this.  YOU made choices that got you where you are today, whether you became unhealthy on your own or entered into adulthood that way.  And only YOU can get yourself out of it.

How?  Start with accepting.  Phrases like "I am the one who is responsible for being here."  "My dissatisfaction with my body is because of me, not anyone else." "Sure, other people may not have been supportive, but I make the choices that keep me here."

Believe it. Let it sink in.  Feel it.

And then?  Cast it away.  Forgive yourself.  Move forward, making better choices.  (I blogged about that here: http://itallmakesadifference.blogspot.com/2010/04/love-yourself-in-your-current-condition.html)

And enjoy life.  You have gone way too far being miserable. It's time to forgive everyone, including yourself (read the above blog link), and live life out from under the cloud of blame.  When you do that, you are ready to take care of yourself the way you deserve.

Dealing With the Inevitable Naysayers

I haven't blogged in quite a while- I allowed someone to take the wind out of my sails for a bit, and I am sorry about that.......

Recently I had several inconsiderat things said to my about my choice to live a fit lifestyle.  It cut me to the quick, so I reached out to other fit people I know and was surprised to find out that every single one of them had been through similar things, usually many times over. I thought a blog about this might be prudent because the fact is that if you are going to choose to lead an improved lifestyle, the odds are that you are going to be met with similar comments and situations, as well.

First of all, take into consideration the physical state of the person making the comments.  If they are someone who is not in ideal shape, themselves. give that consideration before taking their comments to heart.

In light of this it stands to reason that, as my husband says, your success is probably making what they feel are their own shortcomings glaringly apparant to them.  So it's more than likely a feeling of inadequacy with themselves that leads them to say cruel or unreasonable things to you, not a true criticism of you.  So in a way they are acknowledging that they recognize your success.  For this reason, it can be taken as an off-handed compliment, if you can muster the inner strength to view it that way.

Also, bear in mind that it is NEVER your fault that someone else is not doing well in the weight loss and fitness game.  Your success cannot possibly be the reason for their non-success, regardless of how someone tries to justify it.  It is human nature to want to blame others for our own problems, so please keep that in mind when your share of criticism hits you.

Keeping all of this in mind, it's a delicate thing to know how to handle these situations.  We certainly don't want to drive people further away from changing their lives for the healthier, but on the other hand we shouldn't be targets for their frustrations, either.  I asked my friends who have also dealt with this how they handle these situations and the best suggestion yet came from my friend Tia.  She said that when critical things are said to her, she simply asks them "Why do you say that?"  This is, in my humble opinion, a brilliant strategy because it does the multiple purpose of getting the spotlight off of you, finding out where they are coming from on the off chance you might be able to help them, and getting them to reflect on their own motives.  And when done kindly, it lets them see you care about their feelings.  People can't grow when they feel attacked.  Quite frankly, I wish I'd of handled the criticisms that came my way in this manner.

Another perfectly acceptable strategy (this works particularly well when the criticism comes in a written form) is to say nothing at all.  You are under no obligation to answer a question just because someone asked it or reply to a statement just because someone said it.  And often silence says far more  than words ever could.

Also, if I had it to do all over again I wouldn't handle ANYthing by Email, letter, or text.  This is a good way to get all parties extremely upset, since your tone of voice can't be factored into the words and they can be taken in a way they were never meant.  I'd suggest, if you feel the need to communicate with someone who has written you in some way that you send them your phone number and tell them you'd much rather speak to them about it personally.  Chances are they will never call and the issue will die down, but if they do your meaning and caring will come across in your voice.  Also, people on both sides of the equation will usually type things they would never say with their voices, so for issues where it could get emotional actual talking really is the best way to go.

I hope this helps. If you are changing your health for the better and have not run into this issue yet trust me, it's coming.  Often from the least expected people.  Sometimes you will find that those you thought would be your biggest allies in your transformation will wind up being your biggest adversaries, and vice verse.  It's painful when it happens and you can't know who will say what when, but it will almost always surprise you.  If you are mentally ready for it you will hopefully be able to handle it with more grace and dignity than I did.

The Older You Are, The More You Gotta Move To Lose!

When I was 34 years old I lost 30 pounds without exercise. I followed the Weight Watchers program (materials purchsed on Ebay because I was a broke single mother of four) and occasionally took short walks during my lunch at work. That was it. I lost at the rate of 1-2 pounds a week, just like I was supposed to. Back then it wasn't all that hard.

Fast forward: Now I'm 10 years older and if I were to do that now, my weight would not budge. Not a bit. I think this is typical for most of as as we get older (and for many people in general): If we don't move, we won't lose.

I know they say that diet is 70-80% of the weight loss battle, and to a degree I agree with that. Why? Because when I eat whatever I want while exercising I GAIN weight. But if I eat what I am supposed to and don't exercise, I stay the same or lose very, very slowly. That tells me the diet is more powerful in keeping fat at bay than exercise. But if I, and most other people in mid-life and older, don't exercise we are going to have trouble shedding serious pounds.

Barring a medical condition, the only time I have seen people drop serious weight over the age of about 40 without exercising is when they have tremendous amounts of weight to lose. At first, these folks can just follow a sensible eating plan and weight will come off at a fairly predictable pace. But I've noted that usually when people get to within about 60-70 pounds of their goal weight their loss will either slow down significantly or come to a standstill without exercise.

At this point, something has to change. After close examination of diet (Are they TRULY following the program? Getting enough protein? Too many calories? Too few calories? Eating often enough?), the next thing to look at is the dreaded E word: Exercise.

But here is the beautiful thing: If you have been sedentary, you don't have to spend hours in the gym every day. You can just go for a 20 minute walk. The important thing is that you go higher than your current exercise level most days of the week. Often this little bump in activity is enough to get the metabolism going and the scale moving downward again.

As time goes on, you may hit another plateau. Then it's time to re-examine your diet and exercise levels again. Assuming your eating plan is on target, it's time to bump up the exercise a little more. I know this stinks, but it's just what has to be done to lose weight as we get older.

One thing you need to keep in mind if you are new to exercise, or if it has been a long time (several months) since you have exercised, is that you do NOT want to start off all gang-busters. If you do this, one of two things will more than likely happen: You will either burn out or get hurt. Bodies need time to adjust. At first an easy walk will be enough. When you feel ready (make sure you know the difference between "not ready" and "lazy"), either pick up your speed or increase your time. When you get to where you can walk an hour (if you have that much time), it's time to pick up the pace. There is really not a lot of point in spending more than an hour doing cardio exercise, unless you are a distance athlete.

When you get to where you feel mentally ready, you can also start to add some weight lifting. But I've blogged about that before. The point of today's blog is that if you want to lose weight when you are middle aged and older (and some younger folks with slower metabolisms) you will probably have to exercise past your current activity level to see the scale move. This is a fact a lot of people don't want to face, but if you truly want to climb out from underneath your excess fat, you are going to have to get going!

Exercise is the key that unlocks the nutrition door so that your healthy eating plan can do it's job and move the excess fat off of your body. Just give in, accept it, and start moving. :)

Excuses, Excuses!

Unless a doctor has told you differently, any reason you have for not eating right or exercising is not a reason, it's an excuse.

Sounds extreme, doesn't it? It's not.

Here are a few I've heard:

-"I don't like the way healthy food tastes." You've become accustomed to eating unhealthy foods. Likewise, you can become accustomed to eating healthy foods. The trick is to start. It'll take time, but you'll get there. And you'll believe it was worth it once you do.

-"I don't have time to count calories." First of all, counting calories only takes time in the beginning. After a few days, armed with a good calorie-guide and nutritional information on the side of packaging, you'll be able to find the calorie count in any particular food fairly quickly. It's good for you to know what exactly is in the things you are putting in your mouth. Secondly, you don't have to count calories. Join a sound diet plan (Weight Watchers is my favorite) that has taken most of the work out of calorie counting by supplying you with comprehensive lists of easy-to-look-up foods. Then follow it.

-"I don't have access to good foods." This is usually baloney, but if all you have access to is butter-dripping vegetables, fried chicken, and triple-layer cake, sop as much butter off of the veggies as you can with a napkin, take the breading/batter/skin off the chicken and the frosting off the cake. Then eat a lot less of them. And move more. (Refer to my "Move More" post.) Many times we have to adapt. For help, refer back to my first blog.

-"It's more expensive to eat healthy."  Well, okay....... Most of the time, yes.  I'll give you this one.  But doctors bills and missed work from being in poor health costs more.

Now some I've heard for not exercising:

-"I injured my (insert body part here). I don't want to hurt it again." So did I. Years after rehabbing a torn rotator cuff I still have to be careful about how much weight/how I lift with it. But the fact is that I can lift weights. It's not enough of an excuse to stop exercise entirely. If you have recently injured yourself, ask your doctor what you can do for exercise. Ditto for surgery.

-"It makes me feel uncomfortable". Look, it's called a work out for a reason- It's work! We all feel some degree of discomfort at some point when we exercise. But trust me, muscles adapt very quickly. Pretty soon you'll be feeling better more often and uncomfortable less often. And you could wind up surprising yourself by looking forward to workouts and wanting to make your body a little uncomfortable with challenging it. You can't know until you try.

-"I don't like to sweat." This always elicits a chuckle from me. Do you want to be sweaty a little bit of the time, or look flabby all the time? That's what it comes down to. Your call. The sweat excuse is by and far the weakest one I've ever heard.

And my all time favorite:
-"I don't have time." This one makes me want to pull my hair out! Hey, listen, if you don't have time to exercise now, think of how much less time you'll have in the future when you're sitting in a hospital bed, recovering from open heart surgery. How will THAT fit into your busy schedule? Or the schedules of your equally busy loved ones? I can almost guarantee you will be thinking (besides "Dear God, please don't let me die!"), "I wish I'd have made time to exercise and eat right. This is not worth it."

Do you want to wait and see if I'm right, or do you want to start taking care of yourself?

None of us have time to not take care of ourselves.

Even just a 20-minute walk to clear your head at the end of a busy day is better than nothing and will have a positive accumulative affect on your health.

I'm sure you can come up with more. Throw them at me! Let's see if you can render me answer-less.

Again, unless a doctor has told you that eating right and/or any form of exercise are hazardous to your health, any reason you have isn't a reason, it's an excuse.