Weight Loss and YOU
Monday, September 21, 2009
I have read many articles that say successful weight loss maintainers do 1 hour of exercise each day, they weigh themselves each day, they plan ahead, they are conscious eaters, many journal AND they also eat breakfast every day. So, I don't journal but I do all of the others except I do work out more than an hour a day but I do that 5 days a week & rest or active rest the other 2 days. BUT we are all not the same & what works for me may not work for you. For example, many people find weighing themselves more a downer than an accountability thing. You can use how your clothes fit instead & in fact I do that as well & it is important to me! BUT, I will say that I have done the no breakfast before & eating breakfast every day did make a huge impact on how I felt, how my mind worked for "work related tasks" and how I ate going forward from breakfast.
Anyway, find "it" and go with "it". Set specific & achievable goals & don't get too crazed at the beginning. Many people burn out fast by doing too much too soon. Take your baby steps & get informed. Clean out the kitchen & stock it with "success" foods for you. Every little thing you do to move forward helps so be sure & tell yourself good things each & every day & tell yourself you can do it!
Have you found the "it" for you? Are you still struggling? Do you want to ask any questions of me or the readers? What works & does not work for you & what do you have to offer to the rest of us in terms of advice based on your experiences?
I have read many articles that say successful weight loss maintainers do 1 hour of exercise each day, they weigh themselves each day, they plan ahead, they are conscious eaters, many journal AND they also eat breakfast every day. So, I don't journal but I do all of the others except I do work out more than an hour a day but I do that 5 days a week & rest or active rest the other 2 days. BUT we are all not the same & what works for me may not work for you. For example, many people find weighing themselves more a downer than an accountability thing. You can use how your clothes fit instead & in fact I do that as well & it is important to me! BUT, I will say that I have done the no breakfast before & eating breakfast every day did make a huge impact on how I felt, how my mind worked for "work related tasks" and how I ate going forward from breakfast.I have posted before about how it is OK to break up your workout time into smaller increments over the day. Maybe you can do three 10-20 minute sessions 2 to 3 times per day like some resistance work before work, a walk at lunch & maybe some more resistance work or abs or jump roping, high knee ups or some other form of cardio while you are watching the news or your fav program at night. Even do things in the commercial breaks. Maybe you pick just two of these times & do 15-20 minutes at each one.
What I will say is that you really have to establish what your goals are FOR YOU not the person next to you or on TV or in the next cubicle over. Do you just want to lose some pounds & feel healthy & better? Do you want to lose a lot of weight & go down 4++ clothes sizes? Do you want to lose weight & look muscular? I like to look leaner & muscular but that is me, not you. Establish what your goal is & work towards that.
When you first start losing weight, it comes off easier. But as we get fitter & "lighter", our body does start to adjust and you will have to work out longer (depending on how long you are working out now) or smarter (higher intensity, upping the cardio speed, intervals, circuit training etc.). You may have to play around with your food program too help push past some plateaus.
If you want to be lean with some muscles, plain & simply, this is hard work.. not that just losing weight is not hard work, it is, BUT, you will have to put in "the time" depending on your goals for how lean or muscular you want to be. AND, more importantly, your food is a HUGE part of this. How many times have I said that!!!
For a regular person, if you are just starting out, do what you can & that is an accomplishment right there!!!! Over time, try to fit in 3-5 exercise sessions a week that include cardio & weight resistance. Try to work up to 30 minutes if you are new & as you improve your health, you may want to add in more time depending on your goals. I think rest days are important & maybe you are just "playing" on those rest days. Frisbee, roller skating, & running after the kids etc. Or maybe you are just resting like me!
Remember, pick things you like to do and can stick with for the duration ... is it classes at the gym, walking, jump roping, videos at home, rollerblading, bike riding, hiking, kick boxing, yoga .. so many choices. Also remember that just moving & playing with the kids is exercise too. You can do lots of things at the play ground. Housework adds up as well. Not that I know that too well! 
Anyway, find "it" and go with "it". Set specific & achievable goals & don't get too crazed at the beginning. Many people burn out fast by doing too much too soon. Take your baby steps & get informed. Clean out the kitchen & stock it with "success" foods for you. Every little thing you do to move forward helps so be sure & tell yourself good things each & every day & tell yourself you can do it!
Have you found the "it" for you? Are you still struggling? Do you want to ask any questions of me or the readers? What works & does not work for you & what do you have to offer to the rest of us in terms of advice based on your experiences?
I love this as it all applies to me right now with running.
Im a newbie there.
just starting.
and follow all these tips even though I may be "fit" in a different (weights) arena.
I was chatting about this over the weekend with Dr Rus and we're talking about it tomorrow on the radio.
are you in my head?
Im bummed yer not in my HOUSE as you could jump on the radio/phone with me!
Reply to this
Carla, I would have loved to chat with you & Dr. Russ tomorrow! I am sure you will be awesome as usual! We were sort of on a similar wavelength today, weren't we! And yes, we both love the weights!!!!
Good luck in the morn!
Reply to this
Ah, that whole "find what works for you" thing! After 5 years of fit-o-cizing, I'm still trying to find that Shangri-La. Someday, my friend!!
Reply to this
Charlotte, I keep finding the right things. It has changed many times over the years but weights is still a true love for me!
Reply to this
Of course I agree with everyone has to find their own way, but the more I think about it, the more I think that the best ways are much fewer than the ways that don't work too good
Reply to this
Excellent points! More than anything, we need to find the program or plan that we will DO. And do consistently. It only took me 15 years to figure that out.
Reply to this
Dr. J, great insight!
Cammy, my "it" has changed many times. Weights, I continue to love no matter what!
Reply to this