Day #5 Just Ask

"I can do it myself..."  at least that is what I always seem to try to convince myself.  In reality it is not a confidence in my own abilities to act like that, but more my fear of asking for help.  Maybe you are like me and would rather suffer through, struggle, and face defeat rather than suck it up and ask someone for help. It is not even that I don't want help or that I believe that I don't need it...the struggle comes in asking.

Sometimes fear sets in.  What will they think if I ask?  How will they respond?  Will they see me as weak?  These question flood us (or just me) and handicap me from getting the help I need, whether in weight loss or business or finances or just life.  Our character traits spill over into every area of our life.  So if you struggle with asking for help in general, what I know is that you are not going to go to someone and say "help me lose the weight."  How do I know this?  Because I am that guy, who struggled and struggle and refused to ask anyone for help.   I wrote earlier this week about how support creates success.  But you will never get the support you need if you don't ask.  I finally asked.  I went to a friend who had reached out to me about Beachbody and I said I need to help to get to the goals I have.

While I am less than perfect at asking, as matter of fact, still learning to ask for the things I want and need.  I am getting better.  Our first step to reaching the goals we set might be as simple as asking someone to help.  If you have health and weight loss goals, here is an open hand extended.  Just ask for help...

MEALS:
Breakfast: Egg with 2% pepperjack cheese on 10 grain Brownberry toast, medium Red Delicious apple - total cal - 275
Snack #1: Chocolate Shakeology, frozen strawberries, 1/2 cup skim milk w/ ice and water - 270
Lunch: 5oz of tuna with spicy brown mustard and sweet relish, baby carrots, banana, 10 grain Brownberry bread - 378
Snack #2: 6 sourdough pretzel nuggets, Brownberry toast with Wholly Guacamole, baby carrots - 290
Dinner: Lean Turkey sausage link, potato, onion and green pepper pan fried - 335
Total Calories: 1548

EXERCISE: 
Les Mills Combat HIIT Plyo Shock - or in other words 30 minutes of pain and agony!!!

Day #4 Determination and Big Things

*Disclaimer - I told you from the start this was half health and fitness and half emotional well being.  I got a feeling today is a little more emotional well being.

I weighed in this morning was down 3.1 pounds.  Not bad work for three days.  Most of that is shedding the junk I consumed over the week I was home in Illinois.  But as I have dug a little deeper inside what I also realize is I have a satisfaction level for small things in my life.  Don't get me wrong, I absolutely believe in celebrating little wins.  My issues is being settle with little wins.  Settling for little wins and then stopping which is more dangerous.  What this really drives at is belief that I deserve big things.  I deserve a better paying job, I deserve to have the life I want, I deserve to lose the weight and have the body I want, I deserve to have a great Beachbody business.  It is this core belief that triggers determination inside of us to go work like crazy to achieve those things.

I don't believe, just because you believe you deserve something that it is automatic.  Although, our achievement bone is directly connected to our thinking bone.  In short you have to believe that you can achieve and overcome obstacles in order to have the determination to do that.  Here are my goals:

1) Weigh 170 pounds by April 1st

2) Reach Diamond Status Coach with Beachbody by Summit in June

There are some other personal, financial and emotional goals that I have set for myself that I won't bore you with.  Here is the crux of today, I have to believe that I am worth good things and big things.  I am worth the goals I have set.  If I believe then I will keep my eyes on the prize and push through to reaching those.

Thanks for taking this journey with me!

MEALS:

Breakfast - total calories: 315
Snack #1 - total calories: 270
Lunch - total calories: 380
Snack #2 - total calories: 340
Dinner - total calories: 225

Total Calories: 1530

EXERCISE:
Les Mills Combat LIVE 30

Day 3 - The lonliest place

Three years ago, I was OBESE, out of shape and fat.  I wanted to change, I even tried changing.  But failed time and time again.  Truth is getting healthy, losing weight and changing your habits can be a lonely place.  Going to a gym or class by yourself is not much fun.  Choosing to eat your brown bag healthy lunch over eating out with co-workers can be troublesome and lonely.

What I have found is that I succeed in my health and fitness when I don't do it alone.  My wife and I started this journey together three years ago and both have been most successful when we are in FULL SUPPORT of one another.  Full support is not "hey great for you."  Full support is I am going to sweat while you sweat. I am going to eat better and be accountable to bring better food into our house.  Full support is pushing one another off the couch to get a workout in.

Not everyone has a partner in life that gives that support, but that does not mean you are alone.  I would love to be a part of support system for you, if you would do the same for me.  Statistics show you have a great chance of losing weight, getting healthy and staying that way with proper support.  If interested comment below and we will connect.

I need you and whether you want to admit it you might just need me too.


MEALS:
Breakfast - 100% Whole wheat, sugar free toast, 1 egg, 1 pc turkey bacon, 2% sharp cheddar cheese and a banana - 340

Snack #1 - Chocolate Shakeology, frozen strawberries, 1/2 cup of skim milk, ice and water - Total Cals - 270

Lunch - Tuna with spicy brown mustard and sweet relish (my little indulgence), 100% whole wheat sugar free bread, red delicious apple, quaker chocolate chunk granola bar - Total cal - 400

Snack #2 - Red delicious apple, 2 tbsps natural peanut butter - Total Cal - 275

Dinner - 2 eggs, zuchini & squash topped with Ragu Heart Healthy spaghetti sauce - Total Cal 245

Total Cal - 1530 (there may be another snack yet coming)

EXERCISE: 
Les Mills Combat Kata 45 - 45 minutes of boxing, karate, a little muay thai and fat calories burned!!

Day 2 - Don't Call It a Come Back

LL Cool J has the hit lyric "don't call it a come back, I have been here for years" from the track Mama Said Knock You Out.  LL was proclaiming his inner belief in himself despite lacking radio success he had never really gone anywhere.

Even when no one else believes you are making progress, you have to believe.  I know I am not alone when I say for some of us out there the person we aim to please the least is the person in the mirror.  So finding inner strength and belief to drive us to success is possibly the most difficult strength to find.

Inside us lies a 16 year old kid who believed he could do about anything still lies inside of me.  I am just trying to tap into him a little in order to push past the current visual of who I am to reach the me I am trying to become.  Don't call it a comeback...

MEALS:
Breakfast - 100% whole wheat english muffin, 1 egg, 1 pc turkey bacon, 1 pc pepperjack cheese and 1 banana - Total Cal 335

Meal #2 - Chocolate Shakeology, 1 cup frozen strawberries, 1/2 cup skim milk, ice and water - Total Cal 275

Lunch - 5oz can of tuna with mustard, 1 pc 100% whole wheat, sugar free bread, baby carrots, apple Total Cal - 335(ish)

Dinner - Tilapia with worcheshire and lemon pepper, green beans, banana, 1 pc whole wheat bread Total Cal - 365

Snack #2 - Red delicious apple, 2 tbsp natural peanut butter  - Total Cal 270
Daily - 1580 Total Calories

Exercise:
Les Mills Combat HIIT Power - Consider this a Insanity/P90x hybrid style workout.  Lots of legs, lots of upper body, lots of calories!

Personal Challenge(s)

8 months ago I took on the toughest fitness challenge of my life and surpassed even my wildest dreams on Insanity.  I dropped to a weight I had not been since high school and was as physically fit as I had been possibly ever.

But like most of you, I am not immune to life and busyness and distractions that  we all face.  My fitness became inconsistent, my nutrition was good but not great and during the holidays I found my hand inside the cookie jar more often than not.

One of my goals this year is to be more transparent and open.  A lot of times we are open about our success and more reserved about our failures.  For me  being vulnerable is scary.  While  I have shouted from the rooftops where I have won in my fitness health, I have often times tried to save face when I have hit a stretch of inconsistency.  I am human like you.  I have ups and downs.

So here is to 2013 and being open.  Over the next 60 days I am putting myself through a personal challenge - part fitness, part emotional exercise.  My fitness plan is to start and complete Les Mills Combat - a 60 day MMA style workout program.  The second half of this challenge is to be blog daily (or most days) posting my food, all of it, good or bad, my struggles with exercise, with emotions tied to exercise and nutrition, and posting pictures of my journey.

Goals of this whole thing:  1) Goal weight of 170 lbs  2) Learn to be more vulnerable and open.

Maybe you are asking why or even who cares.  Quite possibly nobody tunes in and follows my journey and that is okay.  It is more about me pushing myself to healthy both physically and emotionally.  I am challenging myself to be accountable and this is platform I am using

The Thin Line

Let's face it, weight is an emotional thing.  Scale goes up were sad.  Scale goes down were happy.  As much as we would like to reduce it down to just numbers -- number of calories taken in, number of minutes burning those calories off -- what we cannot separate are the emotions of our weight.

With all that in mind, then what we have to strive to overcome is letting our emotions control our behaviors.  In all honesty, if I am having a bad day, there is a mechanism that will pick up any food that is put in front of me and put it in my mouth.  Sometimes this is a conscious decision, other times it is a sub-conscious reflex to my emotions.  I have realized I am not the only one who is an emotional eater.

I have also learned that when I exercise and push my physical limits there is an emotional connection to that as well.  I feel accomplished, satisfied, and actually a sense of happiness.  Exercise is euphoric.  Now I will say this, there are many days at the start of my workout that I don't feel joy or happiness, but that is where choice comes in.  And choice is that thin line that keeps us emotionally attached to the number on the scale.

I have come to a better emotional state when it comes to the scale based on these simple facts:

1) I have eaten in a way that feeds my body what it needs.
2) I have exercised in a way that has push my body to it's physical limits.
3) That I am not defined by that number, but being refined into a healthier person.

Don't let the thin line become a dictator of your behavior.  Overcome those emotions driven by the number you see.  Choose to win.  Win with your food, win with your exercise, win with your attitude.

Rinse, Lather, Repeat...

So I know the title boosts of washing your hair, but in it lies a key piece of wisdom.  As a Beachbody Coach, I realize that we offer some amazing program, but this rule applies universally beyond just the programs.  What so many find during a structured exercise and diet programs is amazing results.  What also tends to happen is the post program let down.  When the program is done, most people don't have a plan what to do after that.

So you wore out 9 weeks of Insanity or 90 days of P90X or you just finished training for the Tough Mudder - what now?  That is the huge question!  Repeat - okay, so maybe not go through the same program or same training.  But what was the why you did the initial program - weight loss, healthier lifestyle, a specific event to complete.  Repeat establishing a new why - build muscle, train for a new event, lose more weight...  By repeating the steps that drove you your why in the first place will move you towards your next why.

If you accomplished something tough like completing a program or training for an event, you have established great habits to reach that goal.  The interesting thing about good habits is that they are just as quickly broken as they were established.  If you get out of the habit of exercising, training, and eating right even for just a week - it breaks that pattern you had established is nearly as difficult as the first time you started.

So rinse, lather, repeat...find a new why.  Pick a plan to accomplish it.  Stay in the habit!

The Most Powerful Word

As you launch out into your journey to a fitter you, one of things you will notice a shift in your language.  You will use expressions like "dig deeper" or "you can do this" and everyone's favorite "NO".  Really, no?  Yes!

You will have to use the word NO in place of "sure", "why not", "but I deserve it".  You will have to say "NO" to seconds or even firsts (of certain things).  No is not word of weakness, "no" is a word of strength.  "No" is powerful.  You see although it is a negative its power is found in the positive results.  When you say no to overeating or sugary sodas or high sodium, high fat foods you are really saying yes to things like health and wellness.  You are saying YES to those goals you are aimed at.

The word "NO" truly empowers you.  Although the first time or two may be difficult you will find it easier with each opportunity.  Use the word "NO" often enough and you will be at your goals quicker than you realize.

My Why...

I remember the first time I watched The Biggest Loser. I know it sounds sappy, but I remember tears welling up in my eyes and a lump in my throat while I watched morbidly obese people begin their journey toward getting healthy.

At the time, I was near 215 pounds myself.  I thought of myself as "slightly overweight" but never obese.  Every year as I set goals for that year was the same goal: lose 15 pounds.  And every year I failed to do anything about it.  But each season I would watch as incredibly overweight people shed pounds and gained years on The Biggest Loser.  I blamed my lack of ability to change my own life on time, on my job, on my inability to do it on my own, on my lack of knowledge, on whatever I could find to blame it on.

Then my mom bought a Wii Fit.  And that is when an insulting anime voice called me "OBESE".  I had never realized it or even considered -- pudgy, chunky, "filled out"...maybe, but never obese.  That is when the journey started for me.  I wanted to prove to myself and a Japanese animated voice that I was no longer obese...as matter of fact as of right now when I weigh in it tells me I am healthy.

My Why I became a Beachbody Coach is because I first hand understand the struggle of gaining and losing weight.  And those tears and that lump in my throat watching people I personally will never meet change their life on a TV show is multiplied even greater when someone I know, someone I love changes their life and health forever.  Do I hope to make money?  Absolutely.  But more than that I hope to make an impact.  I hope to play a role in seeing people change their health, change the health of their families.  I hope I make a small imprint in this overall challenge to "End The Trend" of Obesity.  I do it because I want the join of seeing others change the voice of their life that calls them OBESE to calling them HEALTHY! 

That is why I began the journey to a fitter me...

If you would like to start the journey for yourself or would like to help others start the journey by becoming a BEACHBODY COACH.  I would love to talk more with you.