12 Reasons Women Think They’re Overweight (Which One Have You Used?)

 

It sometimes takes a little detective work to uncover the root cause...
It sometimes takes a little detective work to uncover the root cause…

The other day I asked my Facebook followers a very personal question. “For those of you who feel you are overweight, what do you honestly think the reason is for you being overweight? No judgment here, I’m just interested in the answers.”

The comments that came in were surprisingly varied and honest.

Of the many answers given, the following list of twelve reasons is a culmination of common themes and answers given.

See if any of them hit a nerve with you personally.

  1. A lack of control and willpower. I make excuses for myself and lack balance when it comes to health.
  2. I am stressed. Stressed with the kids, overwhelmed with life, and not getting enough sleep either.
  3. I’m overly busy at work and home. Often that leads to not planning meals or packing healthy food for the day, or not eating enough. I’m pretty sure that’s affecting my weight.
  4. I hate exercise (or can’t exercise due to medical issues)
  5. Emotional eating and other bad eating habits have plagued me for years. Maybe since childhood. And I struggle to believe I can change it
  6. I’m a sucker for junk food. Sweet, salty, bring it on. I can’t resist.
  7. I just plain love food. Lots of it. Pass the potatoes. And the gravy too.
  8. I think my biggest problem is laziness. It’s too much work to cook. Or exercise. And especially to be consistent with it. Sometimes I can do it well for a while, but then I fall off again, which makes me feel like giving up.
  9. I don’t care. There are more important things than health and fitness. I’m fine the way I am.
  10. My physical and mental limitations make me overweight. (depression, hypothyroidism, boredom, hormonal issues, PMS, digestive issues)
  11. I’m going through a major lifestyle change – there’s not time!! (Just had a baby, changing jobs or schedules, new marriage, moving to a new home, death in family…)
  12. I try and try, but keep falling off the wagon. Why BOTHER?! It’s depressing and embarrassing to fail at this all the time. Hard to get motivated with that going on…

 

That’s not all. Many women also said they didn’t like the feeling of being overweight. Which makes sense.

As these varied answers show, there is no one reason for why we’re overweight. It should be obvious then that there is also no one solution. Still, we think there is, don’t we? Exercise and eat right. That’s the magic fix for everyone. But that’s just behavior. Behavior is always driven by something deeper.

Ultimately, to fix the problem, to actually make a lasting change, we need to understand the root cause.

Once we glimpse what’s driving our behavior, we have a chance. Then we can change our beliefs or behavior to lead to transformative change.

Which of the 12 reasons did you most identify with? Mention them in the comments, or feel free to add your own reason.

 

CONTACT ME here, if you would like help to dig deeper, identify and resolve your own ROOT cause (many times, its not obvious and we are not even aware of it!)  to make longer term success easier and more possible for you.

 

7 Weight Loss Tips for Long Term Success

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It’s no secret that there’s a direct connection between nutrition and health. Not only does your body run on the fuel you give it, to a large degree your body is the fuel you give it. But these facts don’t make it any easier to eat well and maintain a healthy weight…people across North America spend billions on diet plans and quick fixes in health and wellness industry!

So here are 7 quick tips for long term health success.

1. Keep a record and monitor weekly progress

Keep a record of what you eat and drink each day as well as what exercise you do!  When you are logging what you eat and drink, you are more likely to eat less calories and to lose weight!! You can track your food and exercise on paper like I do, or you can use an app on your phone and even make pretty graphs using those apps to share with your friends on social media to reinforce your ongoing success.  Every week, review how your week went and plan for changes and updates to your plan for the following week!  Keeping on top of this makes a HUGE difference!

2. Set goals that excite you

So even though we have to be somewhat realistic when setting our goals, we need to set goals that are outside our comfort zone and that fire you up and get you excited!  Set exciting and achievable goals and be sure to give yourself a big high-five when you achieve it. Once you achieve the first step, then set a second goal and keep moving forward!

I set goals to complete specific professional workout programs (Beachbody) and reward myself after completing them.  I then set my goal to complete the next program and visualize the results I will get.  This way, I never get bored and am always achieving something new which keeps it exciting!

3. Don’t hesitate to start with a nutrition and exercise plan at the same time and recruit some help!

Don’t listen to that voice in your head that will be telling you not to take on too much at one time. There is some truth to the fact that starting both nutrition and exercise plans at the same time will work in your favor for the long term with each supporting the other.

I have found that adding Superfood nutrition increases energy, has antioxidants and micro nutrients giving it preventative power, kills cravings and helping to accelerate weight loss.  Having a coach really made a difference for me by boosting results, motivation, accountability and support.   Contact me for more detailed information on Superfood and coach support!

4. Make the healthy choice the EASY choice!

If you are hungry, you will eat whatever food is most convenient!   Make the healthy choice the easiest choices! Whatever you do, do NOT have junk food in your pantry!  If your family or roommates want that kind of food, have them keep it out of sight or locked up!

Be sure you take your healthy foods on the road when you have to be away from home, at the office, visiting, at dance classes, or at the rink! So, yeah, keep the junk food away, and keep the healthy stuff close by!  If I don’t have my cooler full of healthy food with me, you can bet if my hunger gets the best of me, then a drive thru will be the answer!  To learn how to get started with clean eating, enter your email for a free PDF download!

5. Start your day RIGHT!

Start your day off with a high protein breakfast that contains a few different food groups. This will fire up your metabolism, get your body ready for the day, feed your mind for optimal focus, and you will be less likely to overindulge during the day because your body will already be well-fed. Eggs are a great example…they are a complete protein and are quick and easy to make into an omelet with veggies!

I get up early and do a workout, have a post-workout recovery superfood shake and then put on some eggs and a slice of ancient grain toast…now THIS combination gives great energy and a kickstart to my day!

6. Consider adding extra supplement to your plan to speed up your results

When combined with a healthy diet and exercise there are several natural supplements that can speed up fat burning by helping your body more efficiently use your natural fat burning hormone.

The better and more efficiently that this fat-burner hormone works in your body, the less appetite you will have and the more fat you will burn! KEY TIP: Don’t be conned into believing that taking a supplement alone such as Garcinia will magically burn fat, because it doesn’t work this way.

The Superfood shake I use every single day contains many ingredients that suppress appetite and promote fat burning,  so contact me for more information!

6. Make it a long term plan that you love

Your friend may be telling you about some kind of plan that involves liquid meals and capsules and a swimming routine that helped her lose 15 pounds. Sounds good but do you like liquid meals, capsules and swimming? If you don’t like these things, then perhaps her system is not one for you.

It is very important that we find something we absolutely LOVE so that it will be sustainable for the long term. Quick fix and crash diets do NOT work for the long term because they are not sustainable!   In order to maintain your results, the plan needs to keep going for long term!  If you find a plan you LOVE it will be much easier to keep it up!

In summary, nutrition and exercise with exciting goals and a sustainable plan you LOVE is the key to long term success with losing weight and maintaining fitness.  If you would like some help to set up a plan you LOVE that will work for you in the long term, please contact me and I will be happy to help you out.

Make use of a free coach (like me) to help you find a program you LOVE, for Support, Accountability, Motivation and even earn Rewards!   I have many various exercise programs from yoga to tai cheng to body building programs and Insanity!  There is a program to suit everyone!  To join a support and accountability group with me or to get some help to set up your goals using a free coach, please fill out the application HERE.

 

CLICK HERE to receive a FREE PDF re: getting started NOW with Clean Eating!

Sleep? Who Needs Sleep?

 

Sleep is essential for so many things!
Sleep is essential for so many things

After 3 nights in a row without proper sleep, I am beginning to wonder how I am going to function if this continues.

Not sure why my brain doesn’t seem to want to go to sleep, perhaps it is part of my abuse recovery… I am on what I am calling my “emotional fitness journey” especially intensive over the last month.  It has been a challenging path to take and honestly, some days, I feel like quitting the journey and just going back to my “tough” self that never had any problems.

Sleep is one of those things that is important for brain function and we don’t realize just how much.   Yesterday, at clinic, by half way through the shift, my thinking felt slowed, cloudy, eyes were burning, ears were ringing and felt some serious fatigue.  Ate a few mint chocolate squares to liven me up, which seemed to work for a few minutes, then subsequently I felt worse instead of better.  Challenging to get through the last part of the shift this way!

I did some research on sleep recently and founds some interesting facts about what the brain does while we are sleeping!  There were 5 that I found most interesting!

Firstly, while we are sleeping, our brain helps to process complex data, to aid with decision making when we are awake!  Its amazing how much our brain processes while unconscious!

Secondly, While we are sleeping, the brain creates and consolidates memories.  For this reason, sleep is VERY important for learning and retaining information.  Also, having good sleep PRIOR to learning, prepares the brain better for initial formation of memory.  Hmm, maybe pulling those all-nighters to study for exams and write papers were not such a good idea!

Thirdly, sleep helps to boost our ability to have creative connections.  In an unconcious state, the mind can make surprising creative connections that it won’t make while awake!  Have you ever waken up in the morning after a good sleep with new “aha” moments?

Fourthly, a very important function of sleep is for the brain to do a little housekeeping.  This process allows the brain to flush out toxic materials that build up while we are awake!  Apparently, without enough sleep, these toxins can build up and lead to cognitive diseases.

Fifth, while sleeping, our brain learns and remembers the process of how to perform physical tasks.  These things could include dance moves, new golf swing techniques, running form, etc.  During REM sleep, our body transfers these to a longer term memory area, so that they become more permanent in our minds.

Given the significant processes that occur during sleep, its no wonder my brain didn’t want to work properly after no sleep.  I have learned that no amount of caffeine, chocolate or sugar in the day will fix that!  In fact, having these substances, can affect the quality of your sleep the upcoming night again!

With all of the research, and looking at just how important sleep is, I have come up with 5 ways to improve my sleep:

  1.  Minimize caffeine intake (chocolate, coffee, iced tea, other drinks and more).  Caffeine can take up to 18 hours to completely clear from the body, so even the morning coffee can interfere with sleep quality!  (this issue can get worse at we get older too!)
  2. Avoid bright screens/computer for at least an hour prior to sleep.  Bright light can interfere with our natural melatonin and sleep cycles!  Also, what we are reading on those screens may be too stimulating instead of relaxing!
  3. Meditate or think deeply about things that are stressing me or bothering me prior to going to bed and write them down on a piece of paper beside the bed and give myself permission “not to worry about them until tomorrow”.
  4. Exercise and eat healthy (at least 85% clean) every day.
  5. Have no screens or TV in bedroom.  Bedroom to be used ONLY for sleep.

What other suggestions do you have for me about how to improve sleep?  Have you had issues sleeping and found a solution that works for you?  Please share your suggestions in the comment box below!

 

 

CLICK HERE to receive a FREE PDF re: getting started NOW with Clean Eating!

9 Ways to keep Weight Off Over the Holidays

How to resist indulging during the holiday feast?
How to resist indulging during the holiday feast?

The holiday season and gathering time is upon us! It is a great time for celebration with co-workers, family and friends. The down side is that it also tends to become a time for over-indulgence and weight gain!

Why is this important, you ask?

Some statistics show that people gain an average of 8-12 pounds the last 3 months of the year between Thanksgiving, Halloween and Christmas Celebrations. If something isn’t done about this, this can lead to a LOT of extra weight and health issues. Who wants that!?

Just because we are in the holiday season, doesn’t mean we have the open ticket to gorge ourselves! The holidays do not have to cause weight gain if you think differently about it, have a different focus than food and follow a few tips to stay healthy.

By implementing a few simple tips you can stay healthy through the holiday season and change your focus to the activities, the fun and the true meaning behind the holiday celebrations.

9 TIPS to Help you out:

Avoid Focusing on Food…

Take focus off the food part of the celebrations. Focus on the true reasons you are getting together with others you care about such as catching up with people you have not seen in awhile, focusing on the Christmas Season and its true meaning, and participating in some fun activities such as cards, skating, making decorations, walks to check out locally decorated homes or just to enjoy the fresh air.

Have Realistic Expectations…

Be realistic. Don’t make your main focus about losing weight during the holidays. Just focus on maintaining the best health possible while avoiding gains.

Exercise Daily…

Make time for exercise every day. Exercise reduces stress levels during holidays and certainly contributes to your efforts of preventing weight gains! Consider adding extra exercise to your regular routine due to the potential increase of calorie intake during this season. An example could be an extra 30 min cardio session or even a brisk walk each day.

Avoid Skipping Meals…

Avoiding skipping meals. Be sure to have healthy snacks such as fruits, veggies, raw unsalted nuts, and/or fat free plain yogurt prior to going to a celebration or party to avoid being too hungry! This way there will be far less temptations!

Watch those Unhealthy Fluids…

Be sure to be careful about the amount of unhealthy fluids you drink. Many beverages are packed with fat and sugar (especially some egg nog and cocktails). Alcohol is a dangerous one to be drinking if you want to stay healthy since it reduces our inhibitions generally, can lead to increase snacking and over-indulgence. Also, alcohol tends to be full of calories and sugar!

Scan for Healthy Options…

When you go to an event or party, have a look at what foods are there before you start filling your plate. Choose the foods you like in small amounts and try to balance your plate to be lighter on the calories with salad and vegetables (and avoid heavy sauces). If you know there will not be any healthy options available, consider bringing your own healthy food with you or bring a healthy meal to share with others!

Cook Healthier at Home…

When doing your own holiday cooking, try to cook with the healthier, lower fat, lower sugar and lower salt alternatives. For example, you can put the gravy in the fridge and skim the fat off the top once it hardens. Use more vegetables in your stuffing instead of breads and use low-sodium broth to cook with. Remove the skin off your meats and trim any visible fat. When you make mashed potatoes, try using skim milk, garlic, low sodium broth, and Parmesan cheese instead of whole milk and butter.

Eat Slow and Stop when Full…

Eat slowly and stop once you are satisfied. Don’t keep eating until you feel over stuffed. Enjoy your favourite foods in small portions. Take in the surroundings, enjoy the people you are with and have fun without over indulging on foods or drink. You will feel much better afterwards!

Enjoy and Find a Way to Burn off the Extra Calories…

If you happen to overeat at a celebration, don’t be down on yourself. Just exercise more and eat lighter the following few days. We can make up for the small indulgences by having a plan! So if you really want a butter tart, have one, but consciously have a way to make up for it.

In summary,

Be sure to enjoy all of the holiday festivities, plan to be healthy and focus on enjoying the real reasons for the holiday celebrations and avoid over-focusing on food.

Be sure to make time for physical activity and cook as healthy as possible for your holiday meals.

Don’t restrict yourself from enjoying your favorite holiday foods (find a good way to make up for the extra calories!).

Once the holiday season is over, your mind and body will thank you!

 

Please comment  below with your thoughts on keeping weight off over the holidays!  Any other tips you might suggest?

BONUSES FOR YOU

Learn how to eat Clean:  To get a free PDF download about the basics to get started with a clean eating lifestyle, CLICK HERE

Have me as your Coach:  To read more about me and why I would like to be your coach and help you get healthy and fit….see it here!  To join my next fitness, fat burning and nutrition challenge, message me HERE.

Is your Stress Causing Weight Gain?

Stress leads to unwanted gains or difficulty losing
Stress leads to unwanted gains or difficulty losing


We women struggle with weight.

Especially if we’re over thirty or forty.

Without our permission, weight begins to add itself to our waistline.
Even if we’re eating well and exercising! It’s so unfair.

What’s worse, and what adds to the injustice, is the advice of some medical professionals to “get used to it” because it’s “just how it is”. “This is aging, sorry.” “Nothing you can do about it.”

That, my friend, is bunk. Baloney. Boohockey. Bull.

There is absolutely something we can do about pre-menopausal weight gain.
I know this not only as a medical professional. I know not only as a fitness coach whose clients experience success. I know because I LIVED it. I was middle-aged, over-weight, and desperate for a solution. And I beat it.

Middle-aged, pre-menopausal, unbalanced-hormone induced weight gain is absolutely something we can influence and even conquer.

There are a few factors that worsen or improve premenopausal symptoms (like weight gain). We’ve talked about a few of them. Today I want to address one of the big ones.

It may surprise you to learn that stress impacts both our hormones and fat storage.

Medically Speaking

Cortisol is a hormone that regulates both hunger and fat storage. The more stress you have, the more Cortisol is released. This hormone causes fat storage, particularly around the mid-section.

At the same time, this flooding of hormones also suppresses the thyroid which is in charge of our metabolism. So, chronic stress lowers thyroid function which slows metabolism – another cause for fat storage.

Translation: Stress tells our hormones to store fat.

This is meant to fuel the fight or flight response stress historically required. If you were a cavewoman, stressed out by the cougar stalking your family, your body would fuel you for the fight. Today, in our culture, we need not flee or fight to battle the stressor. Demanding children, insufficient finances, high demands at work, or difficult relationships are our stressors. These modern stressors are dealt with more internally. So all the fuel gets stored instead of used.
That storage warehouse is located on our midsection. Aren’t we lucky?

What To Do About It

Despite this process being knitted right into our DNA, we actually can regulate how our body works. We’ve talked about balancing hormones with food and exercise, but let’s address stress.  How can we combat stress?

Let’s start with how not to combat stress: hiding in any unhealthy behaviour or substance will actually do the opposite – it will cause more stress. Over-eating, over-shopping, alcohol and drug use, and over-use of media and screens can all be tempting as a way to unwind or relax, but they actually do us harm.

Food, drugs, and alcohol fiddle with our hormones (and internal organs), over-shopping can pinch the wallet, adding more stress, and over-use of media and screens leaves us feeling empty, lethargic, and sedentary.

I started with how not to reduce stress because reducing stress is actually highly personal. There’s no ‘one list’ of specific things to do that will, guaranteed, reduce stress for everyone. One person will be energized by being with a group of friends, and another will be exhausted by it for example.

I can offer ideas though. People have found the following to be energizing, relaxing, and refreshing. Try them out. Experiment. See what lowers your stress level. Then keep it up. Add it to your regular weekly (or daily) schedule. This is not about a quick fix, it’s about maintenance. Health is a long-game, not a fast food.

Ideas to De-Stress:

  • Meditation and/or prayer
  • Hang out with friends
  • Play with your kids
  • Do something active (skiing, tennis, snowmobiling, quadding, walk, jog, bike, hike, swim…)
  • Read a book (one you enjoy, not one that feels like homework)
  • Take a day off – do no work. No house work, no yard work, no thinking about work.
  • Do something creative (knitting, woodworking, painting, writing, scrapbooking, pottery, singing, dancing class…)
  • Go for a long drive
  • Check out open houses, window shop in a store you love,
  • Get a spa treatment – massage, manicure, or a nice long hair treatment
  • Go on a retreat, spend some time reflecting.

Even when we eat well and exercise, a high-stress lifestyle can stall any fat-burning success we seek.

Health isn’t a tactical approach. (as Westerners, we hate this, I know. We want results and we want them now!) But health is holistic. It’s a process of maintaining health on all fronts, not just one. We need to focus on clean eating as much as we focus on exercise, as much as we focus on minimizing stress. This is what it takes to thrive in health.

If you’re tempted to feel overwhelmed by this, thinking, “well, I’m not getting them all right, so I may as well do none of them”, don’t give up!!

New habits are hard to establish, and old ones are hard to break. Keep trying. Then try some more. Change one small thing at a time. Think progress, not perfection. It’s the long game, not fast food.

Don’t give up.

You can do this.

 

Please take a minute to COMMENT on this article! I would love to hear from you!

CLICK HERE to receive a FREE PDF re: getting started NOW with Clean Eating!

Is Your Stress Level Triggering Pre-Menopausal Symptoms? How to Tell and What to Do About It

 

Stress can totally work against our body's healthy function.
Stress can totally work against our body’s healthy function.

We women often demand much of our bodies.

Too much sometimes.

We have demanding and stressful careers. Family responsibilities. Our spousal relationship may not be the best. Aging parents can add to the burden. It all adds up to a lot of stress, which takes its toll on the body.

What we find out too late though, is that stress can actually trigger early menopausal symptoms. 

If your body is under even a moderate level of stress and over the age of thirty, it’s possible your stress is to blame for pre-menopause. Check out this list of symptoms to find out if it might be happening to you:

Do You Have These Pre-Menopausal Symptoms? 

• Irregular menstrual cycles
• Light or heavy menstrual flow
• Lumpy or tender breasts
• Fibroid tumors
• Endometriosis
• Mood swings
• Water retention and bloating
• Sleep problems
• “Foggy, fuzzy” thinking and memory lapses
• Anxiety and depression
• Inability to handle stress
• PMS
• Hot flashes and night sweats
• Vaginal dryness
• Weight gain

If so, you may be on the long (often more than ten years!) path to menopause.

(Quick pause here – menopause is the body’s cessation of the menstrual cycle. But it doesn’t happen overnight. Pre-menopause is the body’s long process of preparing. It slowly reduces the degree and frequency of ovulation until finally it does not happen anymore. The process results in hormonal imbalance, which produces many of the above symptoms.)

What most women don’t know is that we have the power to change it.

We can influence our hormonal balance. 

But it’s going to take a bit of work. Because we’ve been wrecking our hormones for a while. Incrementally, every day, our habits actually work against us, pulling our hormones in directions they shouldn’t go.

Other ways we women ravage our hormonal balance include obesity, lack of exercise, poor nutrition, and excess caffeine and alcohol. These add to the problem instead of helping the body cope with what is demanded of it.

Effects of Hormone Imbalance: 

  • Low sex drive
  • Bloating
  • Weight gain
  • Headaches before menstrual period
  • Mood swings
  • Irregular periods / excessive bleeding

When hormones are balanced, we tend to feel more alert, energetic, and ready to take on the challenges of life!

So how can we tell if the pre-menopausal symptoms are, in fact, happening because of hormone imbalance?

That’s an important question. Because stress, age, and lifestyle choices are not the only consideration. Some of the symptoms listed can be signs of other conditions. That’s why it’s important to consult a physician or nurse practitioner with knowledge and experience in the area of hormonal balance. (I’m one.)

How To Help Re-Balance Your Hormones: 

Like I said, there is something you can do.

But I kind of don’t want to tell you. Because I’m afraid you’ll roll your eyes and say, “Pfft. I knew that.” But sometimes the most powerful truths are the ones you’ve heard a thousand times from a hundred different places … but you may have just preferred to keep your head in the sand.

Trust me, I know. I’ve been there, done that.

Okay, here’s the deal.

Rebalancing your hormones can be simple, but takes the work of doing these things: 

  • Reduce caffeine (did I lose you already? Come back! You can do it!!)
  • Reduce alcohol (yes, you can do it.)
  • Exercise regularly (If you hate exercise, you probably haven’t tried these fun programs)
  • Eat clean. (If you’re really new at this, just start with eating some kind of vegetables every day. Or add one superfood shake a day….perhaps join a clean eating challenge to learn more)
  • Reduce stress (Meditate, schedule some quiet time every day and every week, using that time to do something that recharges you.)

I’ve been where you are.

I’ve been fatigued, unbalanced, and unaware – and I’m a Nurse Practitioner!! So don’t feel bad. It happens to us all. At least you’re not stuck, right? There IS something you can do.
And I can help you through it.

Need a health or menopause coach, or some advice on which exercise  program to try out? I’m your woman.

Have some questions you’d rather not post in the comment section? Contact me here.

Or, if you are having the pre-menopause symptoms above, some hot flashes and night sweats and are looking for some natural solutions,  download this free PDF!

My Patient’s Emotional Pain Nudged Me to Heal From My Own

Emotional eating can feel like the answer
Emotional eating can feel like the answer

I caught myself doing it again.

There I was in front of the opened fridge, searching for peace.

It had been the kind of long, frustrating day no commute could erase. Maybe it was the two patients I’d seen whose troubling stories broke my heart. Maybe their struggles with depression and emotional trauma had hit a little too close to home. Now, an unstoppable string of painful memories threaded its way through my mind.

“I thought I dealt with this already. Why am I rehashing this again?” I sighed and closed the fridge.

Nothing in there would fix this ache in my heart. And it certainly wouldn’t stop the rerun of disturbing images through my mind. I’d have to deal another way. Without snapping at people. Without rolling my eyes and sighing at them. Without withdrawing or stuffing my face.

It’s crazy, isn’t it, how things that happened decades ago can trigger negative behavior in the present. Even stuff we’ve dealt with. Forgiven. Accepted and learned from. Or thought we had.

Many coaches say that forgiveness (and, I’d add, dealing with trauma) is like peeling an onion: it has a lot of layers, and each one makes you cry. I’ve certainly found this to be true as I worked through each painful layer of my past.

The weird thing was that I couldn’t force it. I couldn’t hurry up and heal, or race to the next level. Each layer of healing seemed to come when I was ready, and it would always surprise me when it came.

Like this week. I never saw it coming. But suddenly something like a patient’s suffering can stir up a mess of memories I didn’t realize I still needed healing from.

When that happens, my behavior can get weird. I can suddenly find myself in the fridge, or any other number of bad habits I once had, to help me deal with the pain. Overeating (some kind of carb with peanut butter and jam), staring at TV, grumping at my family, and ignoring my friends.

Has that ever happened to you? Has something triggered old painful memories and sent you headlong back into rotten old habits you thought you’d kicked?

It’s not a bad thing.

I mean, we definitely need to find a way to avoid those negative behaviours. But here’s the thing. Once we become aware of what is triggering our behaviour – once we realize the connection between our past experiences and our current behaviour – we can short-circuit the effects of those old wounds.

We don’t have to continue to be hurt by our past.
We don’t have to let past pain hurt our present.

Practically, what this looks like for me (once I recognize what’s triggering my behaviour) is to close that fridge door and walk in the opposite direction of that loaf of bread. I’ll try to find a quiet place to sit down and let the memories come. I will, once again, (again!!) decide to forgive and let it go, just as I had before. Then I’ll fix my mind back on the present – on my current goals – and choose a behaviour that fits with that.

Instead of going to the fridge to feed my feelings, I resolutely choose to engage with my daughter and grandson. We’ll play a game, talk, go outside for a walk, read a book or sit and play with toys – whatever it takes to engage in healthy activities.

We can break free from our past, from hurt. 
But it takes some self-awareness and the willingness to choose a new path, one scary, difficult layer at a time.

How to you shake free from past hurts when they come knocking?

Please comment on this post.  I would love to hear your ideas!
Click Here to download FREE 6 tips to help Emotional Eating issues

What Toddlers Can Teach Us About Health, Fitness, and Falling Off the Wagon

Just fell, but that's not going to stop me!
Just fell, but that’s not going to stop me!

My  two-year-old grandson inspires me.

I adore watching him plod through tall grass. It’s up to his knees in places and he pushes through every step to get where he wants to go. If there’s a mud puddle in his way, he marches right through it. Thick mud tries to hold him fast, but he tugs and yanks without stopping, until his feet are finally free, and continues right on wherever he was determined to go.

Watching him made me think of all the times I’ve had to plod through tall grass in my life – abuse, divorce, relentless weight gain, rejection, working out at 4:00am – sometimes I pushed through, and sometimes I gave up, turned around, and went back the way I came.

Toddlers, I discovered, know the secret to health, fitness, and falling off the wagon.

They don’t hold themselves up to impossible standards like we do. To them, life is one big experiment. Some things they try work, and other times they fall down and get a big ugly bump on their face. They don’t seem embarrassed by it though, and it doesn’t keep them from trying again.

I love that. We can definitely learn from their example.

Time and again, clients will start a fitness program or a clean-eating plan, and within a few weeks, they’ll stop. Give up. Quit. The reasons are many – scheduling issues, the cost, or a lack of planning or time.
Then they beat themselves up for failing, and feel even worse than when they began.

But toddlers know something we need to know. Life is not perfect, and neither are we.

The bumps, bruises, and hang-ups they constantly, continuously, endlessly encounter do not beat them.
To them, life is an experiment. Some things will work, some won’t.

It’s about progress, not perfection.

This is the lesson we need to learn.

Progress requires experimentation, and experimentation will result in fails.
We need to allow ourselves to fail.

Maybe the Plyo workout isn’t for you. Maybe it’s too intense or your wrists can’t handle it. Don’t give up, just try something else. There are loads of choices. Maybe weights, kickboxing or jogging. Try swimming or sports. Just don’t stop!

If counting calories stresses you out, don’t stop managing your diet, just try another method. Try portion control. Or introduce shakes. Or focus on making one small, positive change and holding to it every day. There are lots of ways to make progress.

Remember, it’s about progress, not perfection.

The amazing thing about allowing yourself to fail is that your expectations change.

Now you’re not holding yourself up to some impossible standard. Suddenly it becomes about one thing – the smoothie. Didn’t work? Try different recipes, different times of day, or have juice or a salad instead. It’s okay. We’re experimenting to see what sticks and what doesn’t. The great thing about fitness is that there’s no one way to health.

Progress, not perfection.

Sometimes we need to just take a cue from the inspiring little people around us.
They’re smarter than we think.

What is one thing you do to get back on the wagon after a fail?

Click here to get a FREE PDF download re: 5 WAYS to Awaken your Inner Child today!

Over 40 and Tired of Being Tired? How Patients Win their Energy Back

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“I’m so sick of this.” Her eyes moistened, and she lowered her head and raised a tissue to her face.

“I hate feeling so fat and tired all the time.”

At only forty-one, she was exhausted daily, experiencing regular weight gain, and it was dragging her down. Now she’d come to the medical clinic hoping I could fix it.

It was a common complaint, but my heart still hurt for her.

I knew how powerless it feels to not know what’s going on with your body.

Luckily, I’d come out of it myself, so knew firsthand how she could too.

But would she be the kind to take the advice I was about to give?
Time would tell.

“I’m sorry. That’s hard.” I said, offering her another tissue. “Thankfully, this is totally fixable.”

She looked up at me with a mix of curiosity and doubt. “How?”

This is where I wonder what they’re hoping for. A pill? Homework? A promise that the problem would fix itself?

“Your body is not made for exhaustion. It’s a finely tuned machine, capable of running excellently even into your eighties. It’s just… well, it’s kind of like a car. If you put the right fuel in the tank, you can expect it to work. If you pour cat food or dish soap in the tank, you’re going to have big problems.”

She snickered, then sighed, realizing I would not prescribe a magic pill.

I took the time at that point to stop and educate her about clean nutrition principles.. “It will blow your mind how clean eating will change your life.”

She absorbed the information and dabbed her eyes with a tissue again.

“Did you know the processed or chemical-laden foods we eat actually can lead to adrenal fatigue, diabetes, increased fat deposits? It’s because they affect our hormones, which affect metabolism, thyroid, and other hormonal functions.”

She nodded. I guessed she’d heard it before.

“Did you know poor hydration can raise blood pressure?”

“Really. Huh…”

I couldn’t tell if she was overwhelmed, disappointed, or just plain tired.

“Seriously, clean nutrition habits will change your life.”

She left my office with an exhausted, half-hearted, “We’ll see. I guess I could try it.”

I thought for sure she’d be among the majority who change nothing and return again and again with worsened symptoms. To my surprise, she jumped in with both feet and started using the clean eating principles I had so carefully explained.

To her surprise, she experienced exactly the results I talked about.

Her blood pressure decreased, emotions stabilized, and her energy sky-rocketed! She didn’t need naps every day anymore. After a few weeks, she even lost a few inches from her waistline.

Our expectation for a quick fix is only making us sicker.

The truth is, our bodies need maintenance.

Just like a car.

Sure, you can ignore it for a while, and even treat it like junk. But after a while, the bolts will loosen, the hinges will stiffen, and rust will start to eat holes in the body.

Prevention isn’t just about avoiding a wheelchair when you’re eighty.

It’s about feeling awesome and energetic on your way to eighty.

If you’re like many of the patients I meet in my job as a Nurse Practitioner, and you’re sick and tired of feeling sick and tired, trust me – clean eating and increased physical activity will be the answer you’ve been looking for.

Try it. The simplicity and results will blow your mind. (and change your life)

Get started with clean eating and fitness NOW with the 21 day Slimdown!

3 Myths That Keep us Fat and Tired (and What to do Instead)

 

sigh....
sigh….

Millions of books, articles, coaches, and programs tell us how to slim down and get healthy, yet most of us still struggle. We’ll try diets and we might even workout really hard for a while, only to return to the same, tired problem.

We’re fat. We’re tired. And we don’t know why.

A big reason is because some of the advice out there is just plain wrong. Believing these lies, we continue to struggle with weight and fatigue.

I’ll look at three of the biggest myths we believe, and then show you the truth

Myth #1: Eating Less Helps Us Lose Fat

Sorry, no. Eating less does not help us lose fat. Some people who try calorie cutting may experience a loss in weight, but it’s not fat they’re losing. Without adequate sustenance, the body will fuel itself by burning muscles, not fat.

What’s worse, when regular eating resumes, the body will pack the pounds back on, and in the form of fat. I know, it’s unfair. But this is how it is.

The truth is, it’s not how much we eat, but what kind of food we eat that dictates fat loss or gain. But we’ll get to that in a minute.

Myth #2: Exercising More Burns Fat

What a weird thing for a fitness coach to say, right? But it’s true – exercising won’t burn fat. It builds muscle. It sends endorphins coursing through you, making you feel awesome. It has loads of health benefits and I obviously recommend exercise. But don’t expect it to be just this that burns the fat. You’ll be very frustrated if you do.

Exercise doesn’t tell our bodies whether or not to store or burn fat either, hormones do, as I’ll soon explain.

Myth #3: Ab Workouts Give You Abs

I know this goes along with Myth #2, but it’s such a common belief, it needs its own point.

We’ve been misled – perhaps by our own desperation – to believe that if we just do enough crunches, if we really hit those sit-ups hard, the fat will melt off our midsection and we’ll finally be slim.

Not so. It is impossible to turn fat into muscle.
No, I’m afraid abs are made in the kitchen.

So How Do We Really Burn Fat Then?? 

The reason none of these things work to burn fat is because they don’t impact the boss. The decision maker. The one who decides whether our body will store fat or burn it.

And that boss is our hormones.

Our hormones – particularly insulin – decide when to store food as fat rather than burning it.
Are you curious what swings insulin to choose fat storage? Are you sure? You won’t like the answer.
Oh, alright.

What triggers insulin to tell our bodies to store our food as fat is the intake of sugars, carbohydrates, and pretty much any processed foods (because they typically contain both carbohydrates and sugars (plus chemicals), and in high amounts too.)

Note: The recommended clean eating for everyone is NOT a carb-free approach. Our bodies need carbs. We just need the right kinds and in the right amounts. The less processed the better too.

Our hormones ultimately decide how much fat to store, and they don’t care about crunches. You can do two hundred sit-ups every day, it won’t matter unless you feed the hormones what they need to choose to burn fat instead.

It’s not just how much we eat or whether we workout, it’s what we eat that determines whether fat is burned or stored.

Clean eating is super, crazy important. It’s critical.
We can’t be healthy or lose fat without it.

This is why I advocate for and lead a Clean Eating Class regularly on Facebook. It’s free to join, and comes with a meal plan, recipes, shopping list, and daily challenges and motivation from me and others in the group. Contact me to join here and I’ll send you registration information.

Stop letting these myths delay your progress.
Kick your hormones into fat-burning mode with clean eating today!

LETS DO THIS!

#1.  Click the button below to receive a PDF about how to get started with a clean eating lifestyle NOW!

#2. THEN, Contact me to learn more about joining a clean eating challenge and burning fat!

CLICK HERE to receive a FREE PDF re: getting started NOW with Clean Eating!