Goals

This is a refrain we hear often. First off we must define ‘weight’. Is it just the number on the scale, or are you losing body fat and your shape is changing? This is a good thing, even if the scale does not move much. However, if it is true lack of progress, then we have to look at many factors. Most often, we are eating more than we think. There is often a disconnect between what we think we are eating, and the amounts of extra cream in our coffee or snacks that we tend to forget. Often, even [...]

This was a quote from a website I was looking at, and the words rang true in my mind. When we embark on a weight loss journey everything seems an effort; from writing our food down to planning meals, to the worry of failing, and how we will handle unexpected events. Many times I have been told "it’s easy for you;" I'm never sure how anyone could even imagine that. Although one person may be a different size than another, it doesn't mean they don't think of food, or stop documenting their intake or have supposedly high metabolism to allow [...]

What aspect of self-improvement should we focus on? In point of fact, are they really separate entities or are they tightly intertwined, so much so that we cannot let any of these become less than another? Week by week, we tend to focus almost solely on the physical. What do I weigh? How did I eat? I didn’t exercise enough. How was my sleep? Everything becomes linear; we become only our physical selves rather than balancing other aspects of who we are. We cannot let our learning skills slide; it’s important that we continue to grow in knowledge, whether that [...]

I was reflecting on a number of people I’ve seen recently and over the years, who gave up exercise because ‘they didn’t see much weight loss.’ This baffles me. Exercise provides so many health benefits, yet because a person didn’t perceive weight loss, they stopped. Eating well provides so many health benefits, yet people only focus on the number on the scale, not the improved glucose levels, or improved mobility, and hopefully improved energy. As an extreme example, I saw a wonderful woman who has gone from 250 pounds down to 135 pounds over a few years, yet is frustrated [...]

I was at swim practice the other day, and not swimming at the level I should be at. I was struggling to keep up and frustrated with my lack of aerobic and anaerobic power. I know I have not been training anywhere near what I need to be doing, nevertheless, my inner self expected more than I was capable of at that time. As I kept swimming I relaxed, realizing, like everything else we all do in life, it’s a process. If I would show up more regularly for practice, and train more frequently my expectations should manifest. This is [...]

We put many barriers in front of ourselves. This often leads to us being stagnant and not doing what we should be doing to become healthier. Exercise: We need more! The most common excuse is fatigue at the end of the day. At a time when we most need to move to de-stress, we prefer to sit and do nothing. Even going downstairs to the treadmill feels like a chore. Simplify! Do a little bit. If weather permits, just do a 10 minute walk. If you don’t have equipment, do 10 squats and 10 push-ups (off a table if you [...]

Sometimes we get overwhelmed by the lifestyle changes that we are trying to make. We are trying to change our eating habits and exercise routines, our sleep and deal with stress, and we get stuck. We are trying to accomplish so much change, that it becomes overwhelming, and so we do nothing. Every one of us is in this life together. Separate, but in so many ways, together, and we wish for the same things. Happiness, good health, excitement. Often we find it difficult to define and achieve good health as our lives seem to get so busy. We are [...]

Two weekends ago I had to travel a couple of hours to my cottage and back.  These trips are enjoyable, simply because I can choose any podcast to further my knowledge about health.   The podcast I chose to listen to on that day was over two hours long.  It was an interview by Dr. Rhonda Patrick (her web site is www.foundmyfitness.com) talking to Matthew Walker, a sleep neuroscientist.  It was about his discoveries on how our brain works when we sleep and the detrimental effects when we don’t.  His research is powerful, and to me who has poor sleep [...]

It feels like a long winter; I am hearing this from just about everyone. The extreme cold, then rain, wind and unpredictable weather has a lot of people off track, and they do not seem to be able to get back on track. As the expression goes, ‘I’m stuck in a rut’. Snacks seem to be more permissible; the idea of going for a walk seems impossible. Once home, getting on a bus or in a car to go to a gym just isn’t in the cards. So we sit, watch TV, read a book and nibble. This isn’t something [...]