Good Thursday to you all.
I have a run on my exercise schedule today. It is wet out. It looks like I have a window of time to get my run in between the rain, but I also have other things in my life I need to attend to.
Like many of us, I prefer to be outside on ‘nice’ days. I could go to the club and run on a treadmill. So I can talk myself off the road today, but the words of a long time friend are echoing in my mind, “There is no bad weather. There is only bad gear, and bad motivation.”
We are at the end of “BE SLIM”.
B is for breakfast. A nutritionally balanced one. Not Orange juice and a bagel. Avoid fast carbs, and sugar. Make sure you get at least 10 grams of protein.
E is for Exercise. Do what you can. Do what you like. Life is too short to spend your “me” time doing things you don’t enjoy, so make it fun, but get it done.
S is for, Support. One of my favorite things about going to the club, or jogging around the North end of Buffalo Lake is being around like minded people. With your food choices, it can be harder. Being the only person in your family trying to change their relationship with food is difficult. Search for people who are on your path. Remember the “birds of a feather flock together” saying? Or “its hard to soar with the eagles when you hang with the turkeys. Some health coaches, like me, are free.
L is for Low Fat Meals 6 times a day.
I is for individualized plan. One size doesn’t fit all. Just because one plan worked great for your neighbor, doesn’t mean it will work well for you.
And finally, M is for Measure.
We all do measure ourselves. Whether we pay attention, or not, is the question.
When we think “measure” in a weight management conversation, most of us think about a scale. Sure, a scale is great. My scale also measures % of Body Fat, so “if” I use it, it really keeps me on track. We can get into an avoidance cycle and walk around that little square on the bathroom floor when we haven’t had the best weekend, or week, or month.
May I suggest an equally good measurement device. Pick a favorite piece of clothing. Try it on regularly. You’ll know a lot by how it fits. This also works as a motivator. I know I hate the thought of sliding my favorite pieces aside because I got too big for them.
I know its hard to believe, but we don’t gain 5 pounds from an uncontrolled weekend. We add fat – and muscle slowly. On a solid plan, we lose weight and inches slowly. A belt, a pair of jeans, or any other fitted item in your closet can send you signals just as well as a scale.
Just like with exercise, what you do is much less important than just getting it done. How is secondary. Just get it done. Do it regularly, and be watchful of any tendency you may exhibit toward avoidance. The reason to be mindful about this practice is so that we don’t look in the mirror one day and wonder “what happened”. Its easy to keep your car on the road with frequent minor steering adjustments. Its really hard to stay on the road if you close your eyes. When you find yourself in the ditch that you have real problems.
Happy Thursday.