The misunderstood psychology of weight loss — how to lose 30 pounds PART 7

Mental Toughness

What causes 99% of people to stay overweight? It’s a lack of mental toughness. When it comes to losing weight, gaining muscle and generally staying healthy, it’s all about habit and routine. You need to get very, very good at doing the same thing over and over and over and over again. That’s the secret to success at anything.

Here are some tips that have helped me stay on track over the years.

If you don’t feel like working out:

·         Build a gym at your house or put a gym in your office (my gym is 5 feet behind me as I type this from my office. When I need a break from working, I spin my chair around and hit the weights).

·         Don’t think about the actual workout — just get in your car and start driving to the gym. When you get there, read your “why” statement on your phone and put on some music to get you in the mood.

·         Take your shirt off and look at yourself in the mirror. Visualize the body you want and then get in the car and go straight to the gym.

·         Change your workout. You should change it every 6–8 weeks anyway. Mix it up if you get bored. Swap exercises, switch between free weights and barbells, machines and body weight exercises, etc.

·         Ask your partner for a reward that will be waiting for you as soon as you get back from the gym. You know what I mean.

If you don’t feel like eating well:

·         Eat what you crave, but log the calories in MyFitnessPal and make sure you keep under your calorie count for the day. If it’s chocolate, eat a few squares, not an entire bar. Get just enough to satisfy you then stop.

·         Go out and eat at a restaurant. Mexican food in particular (beans, rice, chicken and vegetables) has a great macro-nutrient profile (high protein, moderate carbs) if you avoid the cheese and fried items.

·         Eat something high in protein first, like a protein shake or tuna. Protein fills you up and will curb your appetite. You might still eat the bad stuff but you’ll eat less of it.

·         If all else fails, just give in. Have an “off meal” and on your “off day”, just have 2 bad meals instead of 3. As long as you’re making progress every day, don’t beat yourself up for falling off the wagon every now and then. It happens to everyone.

·         Finally, realize that if you eat poorly now, the “good food” like chicken, tuna, rice, sweet potato, spinach, kale, quinoa, chia, etc will taste horrible because your body is used to (and craves) the taste of salt, fat and all the other processed crap. Over a few weeks your taste buds will adapt and you will start to crave the good food. Sounds crazy but it’s completely true.

Transforming your body will transform every other area of your life too. Your mood will improve, you’ll have more energy and as a result you’ll demand more from life. You’ll stop settling and will have a new self-confidence which will make you a better partner, friend, parent, boss, etc.

Don’t set a New Year’s resolution to lose weight. They never work. Instead, do the work and be a role model for everyone around you. Find your “why”, create a workout program and make it part of your routine. Eat well 80% of the time and don’t be too hard on yourself when you mess up.

After a few weeks you’ll see progress. After a few months you’ll wonder how you lived without the gym and without your new-found energy. You’ll need new clothes and you’ll start to receive compliments from people you haven’t seen in a while. Those positive feelings will push you to work even harder, leading to more positive feelings and more progress.

https://medium.com/personal-growth/the-misunderstood-psychology-of-weight-loss-how-to-lose-30-pounds-in-2016-c26fbd8e16f3

Five Tips to Help You Lose Weight

The obstacles to losing weight, however, are not insurmountable. The National Weight Registry is tracking over 5,000 individuals who have lost an average of 66 pounds and kept the weight off for five years. Insights from their success stories are consistent with these five tips from Dr. Rankin:

1.) Focus on a change of heart, not a change of mind. Losing weight through changing what and how much you eat doesn’t happen because you rationally decide to lose weight. You have to have a change of heart; that is, you must get in touch with your deepest, heartfelt desires.

Your motivation may not be positive. Indeed, it may stem from a fear of loss. For example, you may not want to get sick. Or you may not want to be ostracized. To get in touch with your motivation, think about the negative consequences of not changing as well as the positive ones. Getting fit must become a priority and your life must be organized accordingly. Nobody can change you but you, and once you’ve made the changes, you need to stay focused. Successful individuals keep their motivation in the forefront of their minds all the time.

2.) Practice self-discipline. Self-control is a muscle that, like other muscles, needs exercise and strengthening. Change doesn’t happen because you want it to happen. Each time you resist temptation, you are developing greater self-control. Success breeds success. Facing down temptations builds strength for future decision moments. Some of my clients throw away their favorite food as a symbolic act that shows they have control over the food and not the other way round.

Self-discipline is required for behavior change, but does that mean that the lack of self-discipline causes obesity? No. That would be like saying aspirin helps a headache go away, so headaches are caused by a lack of aspirin — which is nonsense!

3.) Eliminate or reduce sugary, fat-laden foods. Such foods create physical changes at a cellular level that alter how our brains and bodies react. When analyzing your level of addiction, consider both physical dependence (changes at the cellular level) and psychological dependence (the habitual repetition of a behavior in an attempt to satisfy an emotional need). For example, how often do you use a sugary treat to lift your spirits?

What is often misunderstood is that these dependences exist on a continuum. You can be mildly, moderately or severely dependent, and the degree of dependence determines how difficult it will be to change.

4.) Make history your teacher, not your jailer. You can learn from your mistakes. Instead of [beating yourself up] when you fail to keep your promises to yourself, seek to gain self-knowledge so you won’t repeat the error. No one is perfect. Be sure to acknowledge what you are doing right, not just what isn’t working.

5.) Surround yourself with friends, family and colleagues who will support your effort. Getting fit and losing weight absolutely require others. Although you alone can make the changes you need to make, you can’t make the changes alone. Not only in terms of eating, but in all areas of our lives, we are much more influenced by other people than we imagine. One of the most potent forces for positive change is the emotional support of the individuals who surround you.

You must, however, ask for the support you need. Don’t assume that others know what would be most helpful to you. Similarly, you need to avoid those people who aren’t on the same page as you. Social pressure can work for you or against you. Hang out with the right people.

 

Change is difficult, and whoever finds a way to bottle and market motivation and self-discipline will make a fortune. In the absence of such a product, however, the next best thing is helpful insights into the process of changing our behavior.

Dr. Rankin reminds us that, for better or worse, our core, emotional values will ultimately determine our choices. Once we identify our heartfelt desires, we can use them to create a healthy lifestyle that reflects our best self. Our deepest values can be summoned to keep us on track, especially when we are facing temptations and distractions. They can also serve as our compass when we go astray.

If we are willing to remain diligently committed to our emotional values, we can be confident that we will succeed in realizing our health and fitness goals. And when we do, maybe some of us will go one step further and give support to family and friends so that they can join us in becoming healthier and happier.

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/carole-carson/weight-loss-psychology_b_881706.html

The TRUTH About Body Transformations!

10 Things You'll Never Buy Once You Know What They're Made Of!

STOP CALLING YOURSELF GROSS

You know what’s gross? Racism is gross. Homophobia, xenophobia, sexism—gross. Oppression and discrimination are gross. Telling people what they should and shouldn’t do with their bodies? Gross. Convincing people there is something inherently wrong with them in order to turn a profit? Gross.

Ketchup is gross. (Don’t argue.)

But you? Your body? Your body fat, cellulite, and wrinkles? NOT GROSS.

I got into this conversation with my dear friend recently, because she was trying on clothes in front of me and kept calling her body gross. It pained me to hear this coming from someone I love so dearly, someone whom I think is a both a goddess and a queen.

Now, I get it. I get that she’s not thrilled about her body fat or cellulite situations. I get that she’s frustrated and wants to change her body—and all of that is okay.

It’s okay to be displeased with aspects of yourself and want to change them in some way; what’s not okay is the belief that we are obligated to in order to fit into boxes that were created by societal constructs—boxes that very few of us fit into comfortably.

As a body image consultant and fitness coach, I think we do the term “body positivity” a grave disservice when we assume it means that loving ourselves precludes us from ever wanting to change.

We, as leaders, can often do harm by insinuating that self-love means you’re completely in love with the appearance of cellulite or stretch marks.

The truth is, you can love yourself as a whole person without necessarily loving every part of your body.

In fact, during the beginning stages of learning to step into a space of self-love, the idea that you have to love everything can feel really intimidating. It feels too big, too impossible—especially if you’ve spent years hating yourself and feeling never good enough.

But if you can learn to meet your perceived “flaws” without judgment and attached meaning, this will go a long way towards standing in your power.

As we embark on a journey to feel powerful and at home in our bodies, it’s important that we learn to reframe this language and see our features for what they are—without a negative connotation.

The leap from body hatred to body love is pretty far for many of us, especially when those body image issues run deep. Therefore the intention isn’t necessarily to love at first—rather to not hate.

We must affirm that the idea that our body fat, cellulite, wrinkles, and stretch marks are “bad” or “gross” isn’t part of our inherent nature. We didn’t decide that, nor did we create the unattainable standards of perfect with which we’re constantly inundated.

It isn’t our birthright to demean and disrespect ourselves with hurtful language, to strive forever on end to meet an arbitrary standard of beauty that constantly changes and varies.

You weren’t born to regard yourself as gross, to look in the mirror and hate what you see—you were born with radiance and magic.

But the first step towards manifesting that magic and stepping into a space of self-love and worthiness might not actually be love itself; for many of us, the first step is truth—a recognition of reality without added bias and learned labels.

Can we look in the mirror and learn to see ourselves with presence and truth, rather than disgust? I’ll tell you honestly that I don’t love my cellulite. It doesn’t define me or keep me from living in my fulness; I’m not obsessed with getting rid of it and I don’t think that doing so would make me more lovable or desirable.

I don’t look at my cellulite and think, “Gross,” but I also don’t look at it and think, “You are so beautiful, Cellulite; I love you so dearly.”

I accept that it’s a part of my body, and I love myself as a whole person. I love my body as a whole unit—but I don’t gaze upon the dimples in my but with fondness and reverence.

I’m just not there. And that has to be okay.

Rather than beating myself up for not loving my cellulite (hello—another way we make ourselves feel inadequate!), I understand that sometimes love isn’t the goal. Sometimes simply detaching from a narrative that steals from us is all we need to do in order to take back our power and feel alive in our bodies.

So instead of pinching your belly fat and saying “gross,” or looking at your cellulite in the mirror and thinking “gross,” try just calling it what it is. Touch those stretch marks and just say “stretch marks.”

Pinch that fat and literally just say, “fat.” Do this with as much openness, awareness, and curiosity that you can muster.

It doesn’t have to be good or bad—it can just be what it is. If we can do this, we can start to tap into the vibrant aliveness of our bodies; we can begin to see how miraculously interwoven our physical and emotional bodies are, and we can step onto the path of awakening that teaches us to love ourselves as whole, multidimensional beings.

And none of that is gross.

http://www.negharfonooni.com/cellulite-is-not-gross/

Practice Consistency As A Skill

Of all the areas you can focus on in your training, the single one that yields the biggest results is consistency. Whatever your training goals, consistency is important across the board in achieving them. This article focuses specifically on the most common goals of building muscle and burning fat, but the principle applies to all aspects of training. 

To train consistently, you will have to train when you don’t want to, when you’re injured, and when you’re tired. But working around these obstacles with a balanced approach will keep you motivated and moving forward. Too often we all put the brakes on training due to injury or tiredness. Yes, you must take time to rest, and should follow proper injury rehab protocol, but don’t use it as an excuse to opt out of training altogether. Ask yourself, is that voice in your head protecting you, or are you just making excuses?

We are the “Intsa” generation. We want everything now. Our movies, music, news, and even our fitness goals. We’re told to do weights and cardio at the same time, that HIIT workouts will solve everything, and CrossFit is the way. Take the blue pill and you’ll lose 10 pounds! Eat no carbs, eat loads of protein, eat fat, don’t eat fat. 

So much of the advice we get is extreme and only sustainable in the short term, but true gains in fitness take time and consistency. Whether it’s muscle gain, fat loss, or learning a new skill, be prepared to put the work. It will be rewarding, and if you can learn to enjoy the process, there is a much better chance of achieving your goals and maintaining at that level for longer. 

What Does Consistency Do for You?

When you train consistently, you give your body a more gradual curve to adapt to the stress of training, easing its way to higher levels of fitness. The longer period of time you develop a base of fitness, the less effect an interruption of training has. There is a common trend of doing something different all the time, going for the latest training method or exercise. But this hinders building the vital consistent base. Too much variety and variability can result in a reverse of adaptations, rather than greater gains. 

Consistency occurs in the small areas. Focus on the day by day, session by session, and meal by meal. It’s a skill that needs to be worked on and applied daily. Working on it on a daily basis also makes it easier to manage when you mess up. Make a bad food choice? Make a good one the next meal, and you’re back on track. Bad training session? No problem, you have another session tomorrow to do better.

The more infrequently you train, the greater the importance is placed on each session. Your inconsistency leads to too much stress, as you try to make up for the missed sessions by doing extra hard training. These hard sessions will not make up for the missed training, and could potentially lead to overstressing the body, resulting in a decrease in performance, injury, illness, and further missed sessions. 

By contrast, when you train consistently, you don’t need to go all out each session. There is more room and flexibility for variation in intensity. There is even room for outright bad sessions. You have more opportunity to try different set and rep schemes, and different exercises. Your sessions can be shorter, which is less stressful and gives you more time outside the gym to live life. Consistency enables increases in skill and technical proficiency, as you spend more time working on these areas.

Obstacles to Consistency, and Some Solutions

Your kids’ birthdays, work, holidays, and the rest of life will always try to throw you off track. You need to accept that there will always be something that life throws up that will get in the way of your training. Don’t use these as excuses. Have backup workouts to go to if your energy is low or you’re short on time. Go shorter, or just do bodyweight, or a little skill work, but don’t skip the workout. Consistent short, targeted, and intense workouts are far better than irregular 1-2 hour workouts. 

Do your best to get ahead of the curve by planning ahead. Have some pre-made meals in the freezer. Always have a few key ingredients in your cupboard, so you can rustle up a quick meal, and have a few go-to meals you can make with your eyes closed. Cook for two nights instead of one. It’s the same prep, cooking and cleaning time. 

Keep spare workout gear in your place of work or in your car so you don’t get to the gym and realize you forgot it. Get up earlier and train in the morning before your day starts, and you won’t be frazzled from a full day in the office. If you leave the session till the end of the day, all your willpower will have been used up and you won’t train. 

Allow yourself to be human in your training. The perfection mindset breeds failure. When real life happens and things aren’t so perfect, people who think this way throw in the towel fast. Don’t strive for perfection all the time. Stop waiting for the perfect time to train, to start a new program. Focus on the now, start now. You can change in the now. You haven’t got control over achieving perfection, but you do have control of what you do now.

Get out of the mindset that if you don’t have access to a gym, you can’t train. The world is your gym. Do a set of push ups at work. Get a pull up bar at home. You don’t need to be in gym gear and in the gym to train. Train at home first thing in the morning. You can get a lot done in a few minutes. 

Add new movements and challenges to keep things fun. Variety also prevents injury from over-trained muscles. You still need to build that solid base, but once that is in place you can add in some variety. For example, choose handstand push ups instead of military presses. Both are vertical pressing exercises, but handstand push ups are way more fun! 

Consistency creates momentum, and vice versa. Pick a number of training sessions per training block to help build momentum. It’s much easier to build on 10 sessions than 2 sessions. By just adding one more you’ve hit 11 sessions. Keep building! 

Nobody Said It Would Be Easy

Consistency results in adaptability, which you can fall back on physically and mentally during challenging periods or as a result of interruption. If there is no consistency in your training, there will be little or no foundation for an adaptive response. To produce a given training goal or objective, training needs to be consistent and regular. Not being consistent in your training will lead to losses, not gains. 

Life is going to get in the way. Some days, you’re going to be tired, the session will seem too hard, and you’re not going to want to train. Accept these obstacles as a fact of life and training, but don’t use them as an excuse. Consistency matched with quality workouts, good recovery, and a balanced diet equals results.

https://breakingmuscle.com/fitness/practice-consistency-as-a-skill

89 Incredibly Simple Swaps That Could Change Your Life - Part 1

Whole grains for white, quality for quantity, Wii Fit for Mario Kart—just one smart swap can pave the way to a healthier and happier life. We decided to go all out and provide 89 “this for that’s,” so there are no excuses when it comes to making healthier choices!

Fitness

1. Dynamic for Static Stretching

Stretching out cold muscles could lead to injury. So incorporate some active movement into a stretching routine—try lunges and arm swings before working out.

2. Interval Workout for Relaxed Run

Congrats on that 26.2-mile marathon. Now try a 20-minute interval run that involves lots of sprinting with some walking recovery. It may kick up the heat even more.

3. Incline for Flat Treadmill

In a perfect, outdoor world, flat roads rarely exist. (Sorry, midwestern readers!) Add some hills to that treadmill run by cranking up the incline, and feel the muscle-building burn!

4. Zumba for Elliptical

Trash that Cosmo-reading elliptical routine and surprise the body with a fun, calorie-burning cardio session. Sure beats staying stuck to a machine.

5. Planks for Crunches

OK have we said this enough? Crunches may not be the secret to six-pack abs. Give planks a try instead to work that wholecore. Extra points for holding it for a minute straight!

6. Warming up for Rushing Right To It

We know that barbell looks tempting. But before hitting the weight rack, do an active warm-up to loosen up limbs and get the most out of the workout.

7. Standing for Sitting at a Desk

How often does someone complain about having to sit in a cubicle all day? We have a simple solution (no college degree required)… stand. Use a pile of books to prop up the computer, or purchase one of these.

8. Exercise Ball for Office Chair

Okay, we get it. Some people really don’t want to stand at their cubicle. So stay seated but on a Swiss ball! It can help with balance and that six-pack. Fitness at the fingertips!

9. Gym for Napping

Falling asleep at the wheel? Pull over. Tired in front of the TV? Hit the gym. It provides a big boost of energy and burns calories.

10. Free Weights for Machines

Skip the big machines (they’re sweaty anyway) and go for the little guys—free weights are more versatile and allow for a full range of motion in the joints.

11. Pull-Ups for Biceps Curls

Isolating muscles is so 2012. Pull-ups are not only impressive (I can do two, thankyouverymuch) but they work way more than one muscle. Talk about multitasking.

12. Squats for Leg Press

Forget staying seated to work out the legs. Amp up the training sesh and do some squats to strengthen all the leg muscles, with some gluteus maximus work in there too!

13. Personal trainer for Guessing Games

Just when we think we’ve had enough, trainers may help push us through that second set of burpees. Look for a deal online to cut the cost in half!

14. Foam Rolling for Static Stretching

Need to get the knots out? Try using a foam roller instead of sitting and stretching to the toes. It’s almost like a personal massage.

15. Exergames for Mario Kart

Mario may be booking it through the race course, but holding the remote control does next to nothing for our own heart rate. Try out Wii Fit or Just Dance—they’re designed to provide light to moderate exercise.

16. Rowing for Biking

How often can we row, row, row a boat indoors? Take advantage of the rowing machine instead of the good ’ol bike; it’s a super upper and lower body exercise.

17. Stairs for Escalator

We’ve heard the tip a million times, so here it is for the millionth plus one. If the option’s available, go the old-fashion route and climb the stairs to burn some extra calories.

18. Fun Workout for Dreaded Workout

Loathe the elliptical? Try the stair-master. Hate the bench press? Do push-ups instead. We can still challenge ourselves without doing exercises we hate.

19. Active Date for Dinner and a Movie

Save a night at that French restaurant for retirement and go on a fun, active winter date with a special someone. Sledding can be just as intimate as duck confit, and it sneaks in a hill-climbing workout, too.

20. Parking Farther Away for Getting A Spot Up Close

There’s no need to circle the parking lot five times looking for the perfect spot. Just park further away and walk the extra 100 feet to Target. (Doesn’t count as a trip to the gym, though!)

21. Walking Farther for Running Shorter

New to running? It’s okay. Even if a mile is all that’s possible, keep walking for a good cardio workout. Hold some light weights to up the intensity even more!

22. Working Out With a Pal for Exercising Alone

Grab that special someone or just a friend and hit the gym; working out with others may strengthen trust. Plus he or she could help motivate us through that final set of push-ups!

23. Hands-Free Running for Holding Handles

Hands off! On the treadmill, don’t rely on the handlebars. They take some of the stress off the body and make that workout less challenging.

24. Cherry Juice for Muscle Medicine

Feeling sore? Rather than popping some pills, try drinking a glass of cherry juice. The antioxidants could help keep muscle swelling down. (Take that, Aspirin!)

25. Homemade Post-Workout Snack for a Protein Bar

Bring a PB&J or another post-workout snack to the gym rather than buying a protein bar. We need some after-exercise fuel, but don’t get it in the form of excess sugar!

http://greatist.com/health/89-simple-swaps-could-change-your-life