Help Me, Please

Do you ever wish you could get more help from the people that surround you? Don't you wish they know exactly what you wanted them to say?
To get support instead of criticism from people you love, you may have to train them. Instead of begging. Clarify what you want and be specific. Decide what type of support you truly need. Do you want words of encouragement? Silence? Help with cooking meals?
Instead of being angry and frustrated because people don't do these things, let them know how they can help you.
Speak up about the challenges of leftovers or open pizza boxes. Maybe you wish family members would eat their snacks in another room instead in front of you. If so, then tell them. Set up agreements with your support people by saying, "It will help me if, you.." followed by what you want them to do.
Also be sure to let people now things you don't want them to say or do. Let people know which type of comments feel good to you compared to the ones that make you feel uncomfortable.

Today's Assignment:

• In your journal, write a list of things people are always welcome to say or do in regard to your weight-loss efforts:

1. Offer compliments, offer to exercise with me, encourage me when I hit a goal

• Create another list of things that you don't ever want people to do:

1. Give me lectures on what I shouldn't be eating or should be eating
2. Tell me that I really need to work out
   
3. Tell me, remember when you lost all that weight before, you should be like that

• Read both list to your support people including your spouse, children and best friends.
  

I can it! Day 7

To increase success with your program, skyrocket your self-talk and create a strong belief you can do this. Become your own cheerleader, shouting out words of encouragement that will keep your motivation strong every single day.
Think about why you are so convinced you can be successful in your program. Invent special phrases that reinforce your determination to stay on your plan for at least 100 days. Here a few ideas to get you started:

1. I'm totally determine.
2. I've done it before and I can do it again.
3. I'm using a great weight loss plan.
4. I'm capable of accomplishing anything.
5. Other have done it and so can I!

Recite these phrases every day, using them to reinforce your determination to make this program work.

Have you read any real life stories about people who have lost a lot of weight and also maintained their success? Draw from these examples as well as from friends or colleagues who have accomplished phenomenal goals. Let these people inspire you and help keep you motivated to stick with your efforts. Tell your self, "If they can do it, I can too!"
Practice saying the words, "I can do it!" over and over. Write them on sticky notes and then post them on your mirror, your computer screen, and your car dash. Push them deep into your mid and use them as a powerful affirmation that you will succeed with your plan.

Today's assignment:

• Tell yourself, "I can do it" at least ten times. Use this to cheer lead your self throughout the day.

• In your notebook, write "I can do it because.." and then add a few supportive phrases such as "I'm capable of doing anything."

1. I can do it because I have the willpower to do it and I'm capable of doing anything.
2. I can do it because I have the support of my husband and I'm capable of doing anything.
3. I can do it because I have the means to exercise everyday and I capable of doing anything.
   

• Read your phrases often, using them to reinforce your goals and build your enthusiasm.

Protect Your Program Day 6

Face the truth, no one will really care about your weight loss program as you. So it's your job to protect it from people or events from pulling you off track. For instance, yesterday I attended the Phillies game, and had to get crab fries, but instead of eating a whole container my self, the husband and I split it. I just watched what I ate the rest of the day as well. It was pretty easy!

Instead of depending on others to help you be successful with your diet, make it a commitment that you will protect your program. Watch for ways to see and avoid situations that might cause you to weaken. Rather then assume you'll be all to resist a large blue raspberry gelati at Rita's! (Hey, I got fat-free custard last night!)

When you are around others, try this:
If you feel pressured to eat something, pushing away the food pusher by hinting that you will eat later. If someone offers you food, respond by say, "Not just yet, I'm going to wait a while."
If they ask again, repeat the phrase. Saying not yet, gives you a way to not eat when you don't want to eat. The pushy person will leave you alone because you are telling them you will eat later.

It's always best to avoid getting caught up in conversations about dieting and weight loss. When people ask you how you're losing weight, simply tell them you are following a healthy eating program. This I find hard, because it's something we all talk about and for me it's encouaging to talk about my program with others to to hear theirs.

Finally, protect your program during long, empty times such as evenings or weekends when it's easy to start looking for food. Stay busy by planning activities or pulling out some good books.

Today's assignment:

• Watch for chances to respond to food invitations by using the line, "Not yet, I'm going to wait a little while."

• Identify at least three high risk times or events such as family gathering or weekends. In your notebook write down how you'll protect your diet program during each.

1. Graduation Party I attending yesterday I had a small piece of cake instead of eating the bigger slices that were already cut. I cut my own piece.
2. Weekends-This past weekend we ordered pizza for dinner, instead of eating the heavy crust I ordered a flatbread for my self.
3. Phillies Game-Instead of eating a whole container of crab fries my self, I split it with the husband.

• Do at least one thing today that reinforces your determination to protect your program at all costs.

1. Our A/C is broken(yes, in 90+ degree weather) I could be drinking all the yummy sweet frozen drinks or eating ice cream, but I'm not, I'm drinking nice cold water!

Magic Notebook Day 5

For many people, recording mental thoughts or actions each day provides valuable insight. It also serves as an outlet for emotions and struggles around weight loss efforts. If you enjoy writing, experiment with tracking your daily calorie intake and exercise. Feel free to write one sentence or many pages. If you don't find it helpful to write things down, then don't do it. But do keep something handy to quick jot down ideas for manging your eating plans.

Just because you are thinking about that peanut butter cup, doesn't mean you have to eat it. If you get a craving for a certain type of food, write it in your notebook. By writing it down, it may help you take it out of your head. When a food thought crosses your mind, remind yourself that you don't have to act on it. Instead, write down the name or even a description of the food and then anticipate the pleasure of eating it sometime in the future.

Practice the skill of observing food cues, then letting them go. When you walk into a movie theater, notice the smell of popcorn, and then forget about it(gosh, that is hard!). Tell your self, or record in your notebook, "That popcorn smells good, but I'm not going to eat any right now, I'll simply postpone till another day."

Today's Assignment:

• Whenever you think about a particular food you want, write it in your notebook.
• Plan that you'll eat it at another time, if you wish, add the amount you'll have and how often you'll fill it into your program.
• Stretch the times further apart for eating that food. You may discover that after a while, certain foods, don't seem as important to you as they once did.
  

Boundaries Not Diets, Day 4

The problem with diets is the perfectionist, rigid way we use them. If you are like most people when you are on a diet, you try to follow it perfectly. Each day you strive to take in the correct amount of calories. But if you slip up and eat something delicious, you figure that you've blown the diet, so you minus well eat more. Soon you throw the whole diet out the window. The all or nothing method doesn't work, because when you go off your diet you cancel out all progress you made.

Like it or not, to lose weight you have to follow some type of system. For me personally I just watch my calorie intake. Some have plans that are quite rigid and meticulous. Instead of getting stuck on the word diet, learn to think of it as setting boundaries for your eating plan. Picture your diet as a road or a path. You can define the boundaries of your diet road based on the number of calories, points, or other factors you choose to follow. As you walk on the road each day, your goal is to stay between the sides of the road. Unlike strict or rigid diet plan, boundaries stay flexible. There are still guidelines, but at the same time they allow for common sense and good judgement.

When you are strong and focused on your diet you move boundaries closer together, making the road narrower. When you take a break from your program or work on maintenance, you widen the boundaries and allow more variety in your plan.

Boundaries should give you benefits not punishment! They should provide guidelines for you to live by, but not burden you with rules. Depending on your needs you can simply adjust the edges of your plan to match where you are in life. You will be far more successful than if you punish your self every time you step off the road.

Today's assignment:

• In your notebook, draw line down the middle of the page, creating two columns.
• Label one column, "Narrow road" for your diet plan. Label the other "Wider road" for your maintenance or alternative plan.
• Under the titles define your eating and exercise plans for each of the roads.
  Then decide on ways you can be flexible with them without losing sight of the healthy road you want to follow.
  

My narrow road:

1. Stay with in calorie limits for today.
2. Don't deprive my self of something I really want.
   

My wider road:

1. Work out for at least 30 minutes a day to counter calories I have eaten.
2. Work out for an extra 10 minutes if I eat something that takes me over my calorie limit.
   

Do it Anyway Day 3/100

Wow, if there could be any chapter in a book written totally about me, for me, this would be IT!

This chapter starts off with:

I don't feel like exercising today!

Do you push your self to exercise? Some days, yes, some days, no. What happens when we don't feel like eating healthy, cooking from scratch every night to make sure we get the ingredients that are healthiest for us? If you aren't careful how true is it to fall off(did she hit the nail on the head or what?!?)

You don't usually wait to go to work till you feel like it, do you? Nope, typically when I smell a dirty diaper it's time to change it. Because it's important, we do them however we feel at that moment.
You don't have to feel like working on your plan to stick with your program. Learn to focus your attention, not your feelings. If you aren't in the mood to exercise or eat healthy, tell your self to get up an DO it! If you are TRULY committed to your plan, you'll get up and MOVE. Take small steps each day when you don't feel like it.

Here are some examples of people who are interested in losing weight and those who are committed:

Interested:

• Stick with it till something better comes along.
• Take action only if they feel like doing it.
• Need to see results in order to stay motivated.
• Blame people or circumstances for their struggles.
• Easily give up when a challenge if faced.

Committed:

• Stick with plans no matter what.
• Take action when they feel like doing it or not.
• Assuse that if they stay motivated, results will follow
• Take responsibility for their own actions
• Keep going in spite of challenges and setbacks

So today assignment is:
1. In your diet or exercise plan, identify a task you don't feel like doing and do it anyway-Last night for dinner the husband was working super late, and I almost didn't cook dinner and was going to have something(didn't decide) takeout, but instead I cooked a home made healthy mac and cheese for dinner!
2. Notice how it feels to accomplish a goal by taking a "no matter what" approach-It felt good to cook something that I knew was healthy and was in my calorie count.
3.In your notebook make a list of actions you plan to stick with today, regardless of how you feel at the moment.-Make sure I drink ALL of the water I should be drinking everyday. We are traveling today, so my biggest action is to make sure I'm satisfied so I'm not snacking on snacks mindlessly.

Interested or Committed-Day2/100

If you tend to start and stop eating right and working out, you have to decide if you are just interested in becoming healthier or if you are truly committed to becoming healthier.

If you are interested; you tend to stay with your plans until something better comes along. You maybe eating right, but someone happens to bring doughnuts into your workplace and you quickly go off your diet by eating a few. You depend to see your self looking thinner. As long as that scale is going down, your content. But if you start to plateau, you may get tired of it and give up. You may blame it on your friend, because they ate something yummy in front of you.

When you are committed, you stick with your goals, no matter what. Instead of depending on seeing the scale go lower, you keep your motivation strong, knowing results will come. You don't blame others or life for not meeting you goal.

If you tend to easily fall away from your plan, decide if you are taking an interested approach. If so, strive to be committed.

Adopt a no matter what attitude.

Today's Task:

• Decide that you will always be committed to your weight-loss plan, not interested.
• In your notebook, describe how you will stick with your program, no matter what.
• Do at least one thing today that demonstrates you are truly committed. For example, take a walk or eat your vegetables, no matter what.

I'm going to stick with my program this time, no matter what. I'll keep track of my calories even if it does take more time to write them down, then not to write them down. I'll make sure I get some type of exercise in everyday even if it's as simple as going for a walk.

My one thing for today was having a glass of water, instead of a snack.

I Used To Be That Way-Day 1/100

Day 1 basically says that you are afraid to do this challenge, because you are afraid you will get off track once again. The most important line in this chapter was:

Your past does NOT determine your future!

Starting today, get rid of ALL your previous failures. When those past failures start to come back, say to your self:

" I used to be that way, but now I'm different"

So today's assignment:

• Make a list of any fears or negative behaviors that have hurt your weight-loss success in the past. Read each one out loud, and then say, "I used to be that way, but now I'm different."
• Then write new endings for them by completing this sentence: I used to _______(fill in your old behavior) but now I ___________(write in new ending).
• Read these new outcomes often, and then live in a way that makes them true.

My fears/negative behaviors:

1. Falling off track for a day and letting it continue for days or weeks.
2. Eating something that I know I shouldn't of eaten so much or at all.
3. Eating because I was bored.

New endings:

1. I used to fall off track for a day without exercising or eating right but now I know if I get off track one day it's easy to get one the next or the same day.
2. I used to eat more of something but now I will keep track of my calories so I'm aware of how much is going into my mouth.
3. I used to eat because I was bored, but now I drink a glass of water first before choosing a healthy snack.
   

Feel free to leave your fears or negative behaviors and your new endings in my comments!

100 Days of Weight Loss

My good friend Kim, from Berly's Thoughts, suggested to a message board I frequent that we start a group and read 100 Days of Weight Loss, The Secret To Being Sucessful On Any Diet Plan, by Linda Spangle. She also has a website you can find here.

It's so easy to start a diet/workout regimen and slip off. We've all done it, me personally about one, err 50,000 times. Life gets in the way is typically the excuse. The concept of this book is to read one page daily and complete the exercises that go with that day. It keeps you on track. Honestly it was so easy to read, I wanted to keep reading each page, but I didn't I only read Day 1.

It's pretty easy to use, first choice the best diet plan that works for you, for me it's counting my calories, but not limiting the choices in food, also create your workout plan. Second, follow your plan for 100 days.

So each day for the next 100 days, I'll be sharing what each day's task is and my response to it.