This series is a day late this week. Let’s blame the Holidays and my embarrassment of my recent weight gain, for the delay. One month down and 11 to go. Motivation is the much needed topic for this week’s experts.
I will spare you pictures that look exactly like last week, ;0(. I have actually gained weight this week. Though my waist size is still at 44 inches. I have noticed that my weight is fluctuating 6-7 pounds on my digital scale from day to day. I actually have seen a five pound difference from my morning reading to my evening reading. EXPERTS? is this a hydration thing? Is my scale broken?
Hopefully I am gaining some muscle now that we have begun weight training with the surgical tubing bands and have increased the level and resistance of my cardio workouts. That is my story and I am sticking to it!
Here is a little known fact. Guys that think their waist is what their pants size say…. you are wrong for two reasons and you need to break out the measuring type.
1. If you wear your pants somewhere other than your actual, natural waist (under or over) the first number of your pants size becomes another measurement. Lower chest or upper pelvis but not your waist.
2. There is a new measuring conspiracy in the garment industry. Actual waist sizes on jeans and dress slacks for men are 2-4 inches less than actual. This is so you will buy them thinking how comfortable these pants are compared to your real size. Also, you will instantly become happier thinking you miraculously got skinnier and this influences the buying mechanism in the brain.
Measure your pants and see. A waist size for guys over 40 “REAL” inches is a health danger.
Week 5’s question for the experts is:
What are some of the best ways to hold yourself accountable to your fitness pledge or promise?
Teryl Worster
Owner/ Fitness Director
678.450.1570
1. Make sure to leave your workout clothes beside your bed, you would have to step over your shoes in order to break your commitment.
2. Give yourself a mini treat for keeping your weekly goals- facial, thai yoga massage, new nail polish etc….
onephitmama@gmail.com
1st, make realistic short term attainable goals, in addition to your long term plan. Schedule your workout in your organizer or add an “appointment” to your cellphone. Schedule your workout first thing in the AM, that way it is over and done! Weekly Closet Therepy – Try on your old (smaller and bigger) clothes each week to monitor progress when the scale isn’t your friend. Before/After Pics of someone that inspires you on Fridge, Pantry Door, Cell Phone wallpaper etc. (You get my point here!) If all else fails and YOU JUST CAN’T do it on your own, enlist help from a QUALIFIED Trainer to help you reach your goals and stay accountable.
Fit Talk News
For me, this is a way of life. I don’t have to think twice about the foods I eat or doing my workouts and I make it my number one priority. Going grocery shopping every week and pre-cooking all my meals for the week is a priority. I know if I didn’t do that, I wouldn’t be feeding my body with natural, nutrient-rich foods on a daily basis. I know how horrible I would feel if I ate foods that didn’t contribute to my health. Not only that, it actually is much more cost efficient to prepare my meals rather than constantly buying inferior foods on the go all the time.
When you get to the point where it is a lifestyle, and it becomes second nature, you don’t think of it as a personal fitness pledge or promise. For those who are new to this, it’s a different story.
Here’s a suggestion I have in an article I’m about to publish:
A lot of people say they want to have great abs and look great in a swimsuit. A great way to keep you accountable to that goal would be to schedule an appointment for a swimsuit photo shoot with a photographer, and pay the photographer 1/2 the money up front. Give yourself 3 months. That would give you a goal and an incentive to act on getting those great abs and be accountable.
Yogini Valerie Devi
Hamsa YogaShala
Motivation and determination are not so easily switched on. They must be cultivated by a clear understanding of what your goal is. Too often, the goal is vague, like, “lose weight”, or “get fit”. But what does that really mean? Only the person asking the question can truly delve into that answer. And to find it, it means being realistic.
Do you want to ‘lose weight’ to look like a celebrity, or a fashion model, or have a runner’s body? Do you want to ‘get fit’ like a cyclist, like your best friend, or like those people in magazines?
Keeping a fitness pledge means knowing what one is pledging to, because it’s more than weight loss and general fitness. So ask yourself, ‘What am I trying to accomplish?’
If you want to walk up a flight of stairs without being winded, then start walking flights of stairs. If you admire a runner’s physique, then start running. If you want a ‘yoga butt’, then do Yoga. Or if you want to simply fit in your old jeans, take an honest look at what you are eating and how much exercise you actually do.
When we break it down like this, we not only refrain from making unrealistic goals for ourselves, but are better able to keep them once determined.
Next week’s question for the experts is: What kind of weight training do you suggest when weight-loss is your goal? (High repetitions with low weight?, 2, 3, 5 times a week?)
-Damon
Check back next week for Hometown Fitness Hero #2.
PS, check out our new SparkPeople TEAM BOLD SPICY group page to share fitness and tips.
