A new episode of A Mind For Fitness is available. In this Episode I talk about how much weight I gained during the holiday season and what I’m doing about it. Also, my new motivation for the new year. Hope you enjoy!
Tag Archives: food
Getting Yourself Motivated For the New Year
When it comes to weight loss and working out, different people are motivated by different things. For example, someone can sit and watch a documentary on weight loss (like My 500 Pound Life) and not be motivated to change their life at all. While others, cannot even sit still through such a show. When the documentary ends, the latter group will be motivated to take action and change the condition of their health.
Today’s blog is going to be somewhat autobiographical. While I cannot address what motivates everyone to take steps toward fitness, I can talk about one of the things that motivates me. The truth is there are lots of things that motivate me to strive toward fitness. Today, however, I am going to address just one–workout equipment!
What I Got for Christmas
This is particularly relevant to me because I just got a slue of equipment for Christmas. And none to soon at that. I have let the holidays get the better of me and have gained between 7 to 9 pounds. I am ready to get back to it! And now I am motivated as well.
I love receiving workout equipment and helps. I just get so excited over it. I am one of those people who have to tear into the stuff right away and start using it. This year I received (from my loving family) a ten-pound medicine ball,
lift grips for better push ups,
A DVD set on working out,
and…the mother of all…. a Weider Pro 6900 that does just about everything.
A Consideration For the Reader
I know what it takes to motivate me. One of those things is (as I have mentioned) new workout equipment. Knowing this about myself has helped me keep my weight and fitness in check. There have been several times when been less enthusiastic to work out or stay on a healthy eating plan. Picking up a $4 work out DVD has kicked my butt back into gear on several occasions. So my questions for the reader is this: What motivates you to take action? And how can you use that knowledge to take help yourself action today?
Cheating During the Holidays
A new episode of A Mind For Fitness Podcast is now up. In this episode, Ean Carlin gives you six ways to minimize the effects of all that cheating you are going to do!
Making Time or Making Excuses
Out of work late today.Now I’m rushed. I still have to think of what to get for dinner and a host of other family chores as well. So here is the question: Do I go to the gym or not?
I could feel the weight of the excuses piling up. To blow off working out would be easy and understandable. There is always tomorrow, right? But I had to decide: Was I going to make time or make excuses?
It’s easy to let life run over the top of you. And the truth is there is always an excuse to not do what needs to be done. Whether it’s working out or staying on a healthy eating plan, there is always an excuse to do the wrong thing.
Not letting this happen is a matter of realizing that one must make the time to do the things that keep one healthy. In fact, sometimes you have to fight for the time.
One Belief That is Keeping You Overweight
Recently I have been doing some thinking on the differences in the attitudes, feelings, and beliefs that exist between those who are fat and those who are fit. While there are many beliefs that separate these two groups, I would like to share one of the major ones with you today. In fact, I would dare say that this belief is the main reason why the great majority of people do not reach their weight loss goals. This belief keeps many from starting a diet, and/ or keeps many from successfully maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
By now, the reader is probably asking him or herself, “What is that one belief?” Here it is: You are missing out on something good.
What do I mean by this? Well let me draw on my own life for just a moment. When I was fat, I hated it. So why didn’t I just go on a diet and lose the weight? It’s due to the fact that when I was attempting to eat in a healthy way, I always felt like I was missing out on something good. That something good was the food I loved. So let me break it down: On an internal level, a fit lifestyle did not mean I was getting better. Rather it meant I was missing out on my favorite food. And, of course, if dieting means that I am missing out, then my diet was bound to fail.
I have found that this belief is true for many who are struggling with their weight. They have not changed what a fit lifestyle means. It does not mean that they are gaining health. It does not mean that they are going to have the body they always wanted. It means that they are losing out. As long as the pain of missing out is at the forefront of the dieters mind, he/she will never be successful.
The way to fix this is by changing beliefs. In order to do this a person needs to seriously reflect on what it will cost if he/she does not change. Once a person really internalize what an unhealthy lifestyle will cost, change is natural. The individual will longer think of what he or she is missing out on. Now they will automatically think of how much better their life will be when they do change.
I still believe I am missing out. But instead of believing that I’m missing out on food, I now know that I am missing out on an ugly future. I am missing out on heart burn. I am missing out on hating looking at myself in the mirror. I am missing out on trying to find clothes that fit me. I’m not missing out on my favorite food.
What I’m Looking For In A Low-Carb Meal
The one thing I’m looking for in a low-carb meal is satisfaction. However, there are many elements that go into making a meal, particularly a low-carb meal, satisfactory. Here are the three main factors that create a satisfying low-carb experience.
Food Food Food
The first thing for me is volume. That is to say, I want to eat a lot of food. This may not be the main element for many readers, but for me, it is a big deal.
One of the reasons why I like a low-carb lifestyle is that I do not have to be hungry. I have to admit that there have been times when I have eaten too much. This was particularly true when I first started this lifestyle over two years ago. My tendency to overeat has severely lessened over the past two years. However, I still do not like to be hungry.
Dang That Was Good
Of course a large amount of food on its own does not make a satisfying meal. That leads me to my next important element–flavor! I want a lot of food but it has to taste good. It’s better if it tastes excellent. Flavorful, rich food will often make me forget that I am even eating a low-carb meal. At that point, it is just a meal that tastes great!
Fun
A final touch is to make the meal exciting. One of the things that excites me is trying out new recipes. This makes both the process of cooking the meal and eating it a major blast!
Another aspect that makes a meal fun is the way it looks. One way to help a meal look good is to add color. A colorful meal makes the experience thrilling.
One Last Thought
One of the reasons why people fail on diets is due to the fact that they feel unsatisfied. That is to say they think they are missing out. If an individual is constantly thinking that they are missing out on better food, then of course they are going to eventually fail. This is why satisfaction is the most important element. A person who is satisfied by eating a lot of flavorful and exciting food is going to be satisfied, and, in turn, have no reason to stray from their eating program. So my question for you is: What makes a low-carb meal satisfying for you? Leave your answer in the comment section. And don’t forget to follow and share!
Why Didn’t I Start Sooner
I ran across an old picture of myself. In the picture, I was 26 years old. Today I am 41. That gives you an idea of how many years ago this was. But when I saw the picture, I thought to myself, why did I not start losing weight sooner? I came up with a few answers.
The first was I was severely self deceived and a bit delusional. What I mean by that is I really did not think I was I fat as I actually was. In my mind, wile I was not completely happy with the way I looked, I still did not think I looked that bad. After all there were people much fatter than I.
In conjunction with my delusion, I also made excuses. While I hated looking at pictures of myself, I would think, well the camera adds 10 pounds. I know I was making excuses and delusional because I do not mind looking at pictures of myself now. In fact, I’m a little vain about it.
Another reason, and probably the biggest reason is that I did not really want to lose the weight. Or to put it another way, I did not want to give up those things that were making me fat. Of course, if someone was able to wave a magic wand over me and make me thin, I would not object. But I did not want to give up all that high-carb food!
These issues were not unique to me. They are common to all sorts of people who need to lose weight, and I hear them quite often. I run into people all the time who say things like, “I only have a few pounds to lose,” when they actually have 50 to 100. Self deception and excuse making at work.
I hear people all the time say things like, “I only eat bread at lunch.” This is an indication that they really do not want to give up those things that are keeping them fat.
In order for people to lose weight, they must give up the delusions, stop making excuse, and love being healthy more than they love bad food. I know that it can be difficult because I did it. I only wish I would have done it sooner!
Low Carb Goodness!
Low carb eating in our house is often exciting and fun! This was a dish my wife and step daughter made. It is a cheese burger with a low-carb bun and a side of cauliflower salad.
The actual burger has been cut in the center to make room for an egg.
The bun was made from a mixture of eggs, almond flour, and flax-seed flour.
The cauliflower salad was a heated dish which included cheese and bacon! Two favorites in my house. In my opinion, this tastes way better than any potato salad.
This was truly an amazing meal and ever so satisfying. So my question for the readers is: What is your favorite low-carb meal? Please share in the comments below.
Can He Make You Thin?
Hey everyone. Just wanted to let you know that the book review for November is out early. The book I reviewed is I Can Make You Thin, by Paul McKenna. Check out my review by following the link below.
Too Many Low-Carb Foods!
Have you hit a plateau in your weight-loss journey? If you have not yet, you will. I don’t say this to be negative. It is just that we all hit these walls while we are trying to shed those pounds. But if you have hit that wall, you do not want to quit. Instead, it is best to get to the bottom of the problem and find out what you need to do to get your metabolism burning again.
Possible Cause
As a health and motivation coach, I have seen many reasons why people stop losing weight. One of the most common is too much of a good thing. What I mean by that is too much low-carb food.
Going low-carb is great and there are all sorts of great low-carb recipes. In addition, there are all sorts of recipes to turn your favorite high-carb foods into low-carbohydrate dishes. But what people sometimes overlook is that low-carb food is not no-carb food.
Recently, I was consulting with a client that had stopped losing weight. When I asked him about his diet, I learned that he was regularly consuming low-carb spaghetti. The carb count was around five per serving. However, he was eating about four to six servings per meal. In addition, he was also eating many servings of his favorite low-carb desserts!
Of course the reader can see the problem. Those carbs can add up. And eating too much low-carb foods will spike ones blood sugar leading to the resale of insulin resulting in the storage of fat.
If you have stopped losing weight, it may be the result of too much low-carbohydrate food. Be aware of how many carbs you are consuming and remember–low-carb is not no-carb. 
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