Staying Motivated is Tough!

The New Year- New Me Resolutions are fading; Daily life is creeping in and smothering out our good intentions for a happy and healthy new year. We ask ourselves, "what can we do to help keep our motivation going?" Here are a some helpful tips:

·         Make Goals

·         Gain Support

·         Keep a Journal

·         Find a Fitness Friend

·         Keep your Routine Fresh

Goals

In order for us to be successful in health, fitness and life, we must have goals. We need a vision in our mind of where we want to be, how we want to feel, and how we want to look in the future. The only way we get to our desired destination is by making goals. Writing down goals will help keep track of our expectations and they motivate us to keep pushing when things get tough. We need short term and long-term goals. We have to be specific on what it is we want, what we have to do to get it, and when we want to have it by. We have to be very clear on these things, but we also have to be flexible and have a backup plan when things do not go as planned because, as we all know, life happens to the best of us.

Support

When making a drastic change in our lifestyle it is very important to have support. Family members, friends and co-workers help make a great support team. However, in some cases, support may not come that easy and we may have to go out of our social comfort zone to find it. We should not be scared to use social media to find virtual support. Countless websites are out there. It is a great way to find other people with similar fitness goals. It is fun to share exercises, healthy recipes, motivational quotes, and our over-all experience with others. So let's begin searching to find a great support team today!

Fitness Journal

Another fun way to help stay motivated is by keeping a fitness journal. The list is endless of what all we can keep in there. We can use them to plan our goals, keep track of measurements, paste progress photos in it, keep track of personal records in weight lifting or running, track our foods, and it is a great place to keep our favorite healthy recipes. In addition to the ideas above, we may want to write how we feel, mentally and physically, before and after we exercise.

Fitness Friends

Find fitness friend that is committed to this way of life. Having a fitness friend can make this experience more enjoyable and motivating. However, you should be prepared to be flexible when looking for a workout partner, because even though you have at least one "go to" friend for most anything this friend may not like the fitness lifestyle. You can always ask them if they would like to join you, but be prepared to go out of your inner circle to find a great fitness friend. Once you find your 'match made in fitness' friend, you both can challenge one another by making up weekly or monthly challenges and do your best to complete them. In addition, fitness friends are there for us when we are not there for ourselves. They are there to remind us why we started in the first place and they should be able to give us honest feedback about our progress. No one needs a fitness friend that will just sit back and watch you not give your all. A great friend will let you know when they think your slacking and will put a fire under your booty to keep it moving.

Routine

I like changing things up when it comes to exercises and healthy eating on one hand, but on the other hand, my internal mechanism for comfort and convenience tries to kick in and keeps me from changing my routine sometimes. I eventually get bored and tired of doing the same thing on the same day of the week at the same time each week and eating the same foods. That is when it is time to mix things up a bit. We need to keep the things that are empowering about our current routine, and change the things that are exhausting our positive energy. With a little research, we can find new and interesting exercises and recipes to keep that routine fresh. Perhaps, change the routine monthly so boredom will not set in.

Now it is time to put all of these ideas in place.

Are you still sitting there?!?!

Why?!?!

Get up and get to it!!!

Amanda's Journey - My Personal Journal - Starting Reflection

This is a look into my personal weight loss / healthy living journal. 

- Amanda

9/22/2014 – Day 1

Starting Reflection

• I want to become stronger mentally and physically.

• I want to live a more active lifestyle. I want more energy. I am tired of sitting around and always feeling tired. 

• I want to be proud when I look at myself in the mirror. My self-esteem is very low right now.

• I want to feel less stress.

Positive Thinking

• I am focused on learning new things.

• I am open to spending more time on making me a better version of myself.

• I am committed to changing my lifestyle and living healthy.

My First Progress Pictures

( I'm sorry about the smudges on the mirror. This is real life!!) 

I am approximately 215 lbs in these pictures.

Fall In Love With Your Health

                                            


When you fall in love with your health, you have nothing but goodness to gain.

Somehow, the majority of us go through the motions on a daily basis and we forget our health and the importance of making our health a priority. Our bodies go through the wringer everyday; the least we could do is give it proper fuel and proper exercise to keep it healthy.

Three Reasons to Fall In Love with Your Health 

1. Your Health is Vital- The status of your health is what determines the quality of your life. A healthy life style increases your ability to do the things you love.

2. You Deserve It- You deserve health! Sometimes, we feel like we are being selfish when we take time out for ourselves; the truth is, when we take a little time to work on ourselves we will be able to take care of our loved ones better. 

3. Being Healthy Feels Great- Great nutrition and regular exercise help your mind and body feel great! Mentally you build self-confidence and physically you build strength. Therefore, on most days, you feel on top of the world.

 Take time daily to work on yourself.

 Your mental and physical health depends on you taking action. 

YOU, and ONLY YOU, have the power to keep your body and mind performing at an optimum level.

Today I ask you to take a few minutes and ponder whether  you are in love with your health and ask yourself these questions:

Am I able to do the things I love?

 Is my health holding me back from living a full active life?

Is my health one of my top priorities?

Do I feel great?

If you answered "yes" to these questions then you are on the right track!

 If you answered "no" consider changing things up a bit and begin to focus on your health more and you will discover that being healthy is a wonderful way to live!

Amanda's Journey

I am so ecstatic to have this

 opportunity to share my story with you. I will be posting about different aspects of my healthy lifestyle journey.

I can tell you now, I haven’t gotten everything down to a “T” just yet.

 This journey is one of the hardest things I have ever done!

This is not something you put little thought into and expect everything to ‘fall into place’.

 It has been very challenging, however the results are worth all of the challenges that have been involved! 

Hang on tight because I know this is going to be a bumpy ride!

Be Happy! Be Healthy!

-Amanda

Thanksgiving Healthy Makeover

It is hard to imagine Thanksgiving dinner and "healthy" to be in the same sentence, but it can be done.  Of course some suggestions are obvious such as skipping heavy gravy, buttery mashed potatoes, or taking a slice of every pie on the table, but you also don't want to feel like you missed out on some of the traditional goodies.  Here are a few simple ideas to help cut calories.

For a twist to traditional mashed potatoes, substitute 1/2 of potatoes with cauliflower.  Just add it with the potatoes while boiling.  Season with low fat sour cream or cream cheese instead of butter.  Mash with green onions.

Gravy doesn't have to be full of fat.  Use turkey or chicken stock, flour, apple cider. salt and pepper.

Green bean casserole can be made healthier by replacing canned soup with reduced fat sour cream, low fat milk and chopped mushrooms.

Instead of sweet potato casserole with marshmallows, chunk cut the potatoes and roast with real maple syrup drizzled over, and add pecans.

For the desserts you don't want to feel deprived.  There are many lower calorie desert recipes, however if you replace sugar with a substitute, please do not use one with aspartame such as "Sweet & Low".  Aspartame is never a healthy option.  Read the ingredients before buying a sugar substitute.  

Don’t Fall Back Run Forward

As we head into fall, the weather gets a bit colder and the holidays bring lots of food. People tend to slow down in this season of the year; it stays darker later in the morning and gets darker early in the night. The colder weather brings a sense of dropping back in our physical activity. We tend to fall into a sedentary way of living. I know firsthand as we enter into this season of the year motivation levels decrease, the likelihood that I will workout is low because all I want to do is watch tv on my couch or stay inside and be lazy. The loss of daylight is the big contributor to losing the desire to workout. I am here to tell you, this fall do not let yourself fall away from all the progress you may have recently made this past spring and summer. Being active is a lifestyle and lifestyle should mean daily; in the heat, in the cold, in the daylight, and in the dark. So how can you prevent yourself from falling back and how can you continue to run forward in the midst of winter?

●      Schedule your workouts: By putting your workout down on paper with a date and time you will more likely follow through with it. Keep it in your calendar and hold yourself to sticking with that. Do not bail on yourself

●      Find a workout buddy: You are more likely to be motivated and to follow through if you have someone to workout with. I know for me knowing that there is a partner waiting for me at the gym pushes me to be accountable and show up regardless of my mood or how I feel.

●      Workout inside: Some people do not like working out when it’s cold. Find a gym like Guiding Fitness and take your workouts indoors if you have been working outside all summer. You could even work out inside of your home.

●      Buy winter workout clothes: If you want to bear the cold like me, keep working out outside-get yourself some warm clothes made for winter (buying the clothes might actually push you to follow through with exercising because you just spent some money). Also, buy a headlamp if you plan on working out in the dark hours that way you can still see.

These are just a few tips for sticking with it this fall/winter season. Don’t let yourself fall, keep pushing forward with this lifestyle. It’s never too early to start on those New Year goals.

Mikenna Kossow

Guiding Fitness
mikenna@guidingfitness.com

Be Proud Of Your Hard Work

All the hard work you put in to preparing your meals and making all the right choices over the last week, month or even years needs to be realized. Often times the goals seem out of reach or on the far side of a never ending tunnel. Reaching the end of the tunnel rarely ever truly happens. The reason for this is that your Goal should be ever changing and evolving. It’s at the time of these changes you get to celebrate and rejoice over the great accomplishments you have already completed. They may not be the end of your tunnel or rather they are the beginning of a new trip to be taken. A new tunnels end to reach. 

Having a cheat day at the end of a great week is an easy pat on the back. Why should we limit ourselves to just a little extra carbs on Sunday? How about setting aside a separate goal of having a Hawaiian vacation as soon as you can sport your new found confidence along the beach? However you decide to treat yourself is up to you; just remember you deserve it for all your hard work a dedication.

Your hard work shows both outside as well as inside. The people around you see the new glow, the continuing aspiration of greatness you pursue each day. Share your story proudly with others. Enjoy the feeling of telling them how great you feel now and inspire them further to embark on a journey of their own. When you pass that feeling of greatness and accomplishment onto a person willing to take up the challenge you can be proud of that as well. Share with them you healthy tips on eating and sleeping well at night. Guide them to the person or team that helped you along your way so that they can have the same opportunities you have.

Every day I help people work toward goals of all kinds. I’ll tell you from my personal experience that not many things can compare to the way it makes you feel when somebody you have helped and worked with so closely Reaches the milestone of one or more of their tunnel goals. This by far is the most proud you can experience. It’s those days to celebrate the most. When all your hard work becomes a day combined with the greatness of another who work so exponentially to achieve something so dear you have to soak it up and share it again.

Ryan Canon
CFT, SFN, USC

WE Learn. We Grow. We Conquer.