Weight Loss Guru

Hi everyone, here's a great little piece from a friend of mine. Her name is Susan Cass, she's a Personal Fitness Trainer and she really knows what she's talking about... Enjoy :)

I can't have that, I really can't have that - I want it, I want it - oh okay I'll just do an extra hour in the gym tomorrow, donuts aren't that bad after all anyway are they? Especially if I scrape a bit of the sugar off and it after all it has a hole in the middle.....

So tell me, Dust? high in fat, low in fat? Well probably both depending on your mind set that day. Had a great day? - yes? so its okay to reward yourself with "CAKE". Had a bad day? Yes? so it's okay to cheer yourself up with "CAKE"

Do you remember being at school and doing exceptionally well in your spelling test? Well it was more than likely your folks were waiting at the school gates with a huge smile and armed with that finger of fudge for being great. Didn't make the soccer team first squad? Your greeting at the school gates is now open arms, a sympathetic expression and that finger of fudge. So you can see a distinct pattern emerging. From a young age food was generally interpreted as both reward and condolence.

As we have gotten older we've understood that more calories we consume than we actually need leads to carrying additional body weight - so we start trying to balance out our calorie intake/expenditure formula by overtraining or going on bouts of sudden and severe training regimes which overtime can damage our internal body systems. For example in order to have that Krispy Kreme, you HAVE to do an extra hour on the stepper or run an extra 6 miles, or you'll feel guilty for the rest of the day.

So food can quite often resemble an emotional crutch to get us through any situation and battling your conscience on a daily basis could feel like the energy equivalent of fighting 10 rounds head to head with Mohamed Ali (if only the calorie burn were the same!)

The question is, Do I REALLY want to eat that, do I REALLY need it? If the answer is yes - then you will have it. If the answer is no, think about doing something that makes you feel good? Perhaps a long walk in the countryside alongside a babbling brook breathing in the fresh air? A competitive game of 10 pin bowling with friends at the local alley? a game of five aside with your friends after work? shopping with girlfriends and the purchase of those killer Jimmy Choo's, going to see the newest film release at the cinema? - just reading that probably made you smile.

Somewhere deep within us, we have some unique behaviour triggers, the things in life that truly inspire us and make us feel great and want to push on. Write down those thoughts, aspirations and goals that inspire you as well as your measurable goals and how you are going to achieve them. Refer back to them as often as you can as a reminder that will keep you on course. It will act as a motivational tool to make sure you stay focused and on track. Over time your goals and dreams may change, so you may need to try a variety of approaches and change your diet to find that winning formula for you. There is no right or wrong - if it works for you, it works!

If you always do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got - so chuck away those emotional food crutches, think about the consequences of your actions everyday and take a positive stance to change by taking responsibility to break the bad habits. Its truly liberating and you'll step out of bed every morning healthier, happier and more in control of you. No more food rewards and no more Majorie Dawes!

Article by
Susan Cass
Personal Fitness Trainer

Do you have people in your life who are always telling you what to do, happy to dispense opinions whether you want to hear it or not? Do you seek guidance from friends, colleagues, books or magazines and then apply them to your own life? If so, have you ever been so confident in using that advice that you would pass it on to your friends and relations? Indeed, have you drawn upon that advice to form your own belief?

Beliefs form the cornerstone of our lives, they thread through our being, discreetly guiding us through life’s ups and downs allowing us to us to make sense of the world and to function in it.

We learned our beliefs about ourselves and the world in which we live, when we were very young. Our understanding of ourselves and our world derived through whatever versions were presented to us by the most influential adult figures in our lives. Without question we absorbed and believed all the messages which were relayed in our environment. These may have been spoken words which criticized or appreciated us or they may have been more subtle thought and behavior patterns which influenced our home life. Once a belief is formed, we will tend to persevere with that belief and use it secure us to our understanding of the world around us. In fact we will be insistent not simply on believing, but to believing just what we do believe.

Beliefs hold power, they have the potential to divide a nation, and they can create turmoil and unrest. You only have to switch on the TV and give a brief glance at the world news, to see how beliefs divide countries and lead to war. But what are your beliefs, what do you hold be true to you? This is not a question of religion; this is more an enquiry into what makes you tick. In 1951 a radio show entitled, 'This I Believe' by Edward R. Murrow, invited people from all walks of life to present their personal philosophies;

"People of all kinds who have nothing more in common than integrity, a real honesty, will write about the rules they live by, the things they have found to be the basic values in their lives".

The radio show presenter forewarned his audience that this would not provide an answer for the problems of life and help overcome the issues of the time.

"And yet in talking to people, in listening to them, I have come to realize that I don’t have a monopoly on the world’s problems. Others have their share, often far bigger than mine. This has helped me to see my own in truer perspective: and in learning how others have faced their problems - this has given me fresh ideas about how to tackle mine"

All too often people are happy to dispense of advice and more often than not we are happy to accept that guidance at face value. Those more astute amongst us may already be practicing a higher degree of restraint in accepting second hand advice. But what about passing on advice? I’m sure those of you with children, or those who work in education are pretty au fait with dispensing advice, even though it may be directives from above. But what infinite wisdom would you wish to convey to your kith and kin if given the chance.

We all have little nuggets of worthwhile advice from experiences and people we have encountered. They can remain locked away in our psyche for eternity, or they can be used rather like a manual to help us and others navigate our course through our being.

If social pressures to eat have brought you down in the past and you find it hard to say “NO” it doesn’t matter. You’re free to make up a whole new set of rules for dealing with situations in the future. Your circumstances might not change, the people around you might not change. But you can change!

So why do we find it so hard to say NO when we are offered tempting food? There are few reason for this, one being that we don’t want to hurt other peoples feelings when they offer us something. Another reason is the simple fact that these foods taste great and give us a high. In the western world most people eat, not because they are hungry, but because food stimulates their senses and makes them feel good.

We're biologically driven to feel good and our brain seeks out pleasure. Food fits the bill for a lot of people a lot of the time and this is why so many waistlines are expanding.  To help you, the next time someone offers you something and you are not hungry, stop for a moment and ask yourself the question “Do I like this food enough that I want to wear it?” Then picture this food on your thighs or on your backside. I am sure this will make you think twice and make it easier for you to say the magical word “NO”

In my last post, I was discussing the stuff we are made of and how important it is to eat food that helps our minds and bodies work to their optimum.

I know that, for so many people, this is easier said than done because as the pressures of modern day living increase, we can be left feeling squeezed from all directions. Many people respond to these pressures by reaching for food as a means of changing how they feel and a way of gaining an energy high. In a working environment, this may often be sugar or caffeine-laden, which can set in place an energy roller-coaster of highs and dips. If we use the motor car analogy, it is easy to ‘fill up’, but that doesn’t mean that we are nourishing ourselves. In essence, we are storing problems for later life.

Just because these products generate instantaneous energy and people use them, doesn’t mean they’re good for you. Relying on sugar doesn’t move you in the direction of generating energy from within. Sugar takes your power away by making you believe that you can’t do it alone. Before our minds became tainted with ideas of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ foods, we were able to tell what our body needed. I want to share with you a technique that will help you to regain this ability. Like any exercise, this needs to be practised until you naturally make healthy food choices based on your body's needs.

Think Before You Eat

First of all, think of a possible portion of food. Imagine smelling that food, tasting it, feeling it in your mouth and then imagine swallowing it.

• How would this food make you feel half an hour after you’ve eaten it and then an hour afterwards?
• What do you imagine this food looks like inside your body?
• Does it give you energy or take energy away?
• Do you feel tired or bloated?

If you think this is a food choice that your body needs and you think it will give you energy, put the item on to a mental list. However, if you don’t think this food will see you happily through the next few hours, then discard it.

Repeat the process with two or three other portions of food, or until you find something that feels right for you right now.

People who have used this technique over a period of time have found that they have rediscovered a better relationship with food and make better food choices.

You might also want to check out the 'Think Before You Eat' video resource from my weight-loss-program here at YouTube
See you again soon. Pete :)
 

Bit of a treat today, we have a Guest Post from Ali Hale of theofficediet.com - Healthy Living for Busy People. Ali is really inspiring, here she's broken a 'day in the office' down to certain 'trigger-times', I hope you enjoy reading this... If you do, please leave a comment for Ali at the bottom. Thanks

For many of us who work in desk-based jobs, it can be all too easy for our diet to be derailed before we’ve even noticed. Whether it’s those delicious cupcakes that the “birthday boy” in your office brought in, or the buffet lunch laid on for a meeting, working life can undermine even the best of intentions.

There are various times in the day, though, where things seem most prone to going wrong … and if you plan ahead, you can easily cope with them.

8.00am - Skipping breakfast
Have you ever hit “snooze” on the alarm, snuggled back down under the duvet, and drifted back into blissful sleep … only to jolt awake at 8am, needing to be washed, dressed and en route to work by 8.10? Usually, the easiest thing to cut from your morning routine is breakfast.

Skipping eating in the morning, though, means your metabolism gets off to a sluggish start – and being hungry will make that doughnut shop on the way to work much more tempting…

11.00am – Mid-morning snack from the vending machine
By the time you’ve been at work for a couple of hours, stress may have kicked in. That snippy email from a customer, or your boss suddenly dumping a huge project in your in-tray, can make you seek out the nearest vending machine for some chocolate-coated comfort

If you’re feeling the pressure mounting up, take a short break from your desk. Walk to the water cooler, not the nearest snack-source, and get yourself a cold glass of water. Or head over to talk to a colleague who’ll be able to help you gain some perspective.

1.00pm – Buffet lunch at a meeting
Sometimes, you manage the perfect morning: a healthy yet satisfying breakfast, a virtuous apple for a snack … then a buffet table faces you at lunchtime. If you’re anything like me, you’ll find that the siren call of “FREE FOOD, FREE FOOD” overrides more sensible thoughts like “Do I really want to eat that, though?” and “What would be a reasonably low-fat option?”

Through somewhat gluttonous experience, I’ve found that the best ways to deal with free buffet lunches are:

• Fill half of your plate with crudités or fruit.
• Just go for the things you really like the look of. There’s no rule saying you have to try one of everything.
• Stop after a single plateful – no “I’ll just have another of these little things…”
• Eat slowly: take your time over the meal and chat to people.

4.00pm – The afternoon energy slump
Few of us are at our most productive during the last hour of the working day. It can be very tempting to have a yawn, a stretch, a quick check of Facebook … and a sugary snack for an energy boost. If you’re genuinely hungry, try a cereal bar, a couple of pieces of fruit, or a small sandwich. If you’re just tired, a mug of tea or coffee will perk you up – if you want to cut your caffeine intake, there are lots of tasty herbal teas around.

7.00pm – Too tired to cook
When the last thing you want to do after work is cook an elaborate meal, it can be tempting to phone for a pizza or Chinese. Most of us have busy lives and don’t want to spend hours in the evenings preparing food. I’ve found that it helps immensely to plan ahead: agree with your flatmates or partner who’ll cook on which weeknights, working around your schedules. Decide what you’ll make in advance, and ensure you pop to the shops at the weekend or on the way home to work for any ingredients needed.

If you have plenty of time at the weekend, cook double portions and freeze half -- you’ll have a quick weekday supper that just needs heating up, at much lower cost and higher quality than pre-packaged ready meals.

Hi there all.

Some members on my weight loss programme publish some of their journal entries; I read this one and wanted to share it with you all:

“I was thinking I should prepare a cake to eat, so I entered in the kitchen. But there was a beautiful apple in my way, already cleaned. As I ate it, my wishing of a delicious cake simply disappeared! That's the way it works. The apple was delicious!” - SIlvia, Brazil

This is a great example of someone breaking a habit and doing something different. I challenge all of you to get into the habit of breaking the habits that hold you back. How about YOU get into the habit of eating more fruit. Check out the blog entries on apples and bananas.

Take care,
Pete