New Direction

I’ve been plotting and planning a new direction for my blog…and decided to start a completely new one, completely dedicated to the concept of finding your food.  It will be my journey from Below-average to Above-average-living.  It all came down to finding my food, and that led to finding life, again! and now I Live!

Please come join me, and know that there will be guest bloggers, there will be “Friday facts” and” Transformation Tuesday” and maybe “Workout Wednesday”…But it will be all about finding your food.  It’s become very clear to me…that I’ve gone from living below-average to living above-average and HOW did that happen….I found my food…

Don’t miss the first installment…

http://www.findyourfood.org

In the absence thereof

The theme has been “how to get back”

when life interrupts?

When life interrupts, as in my case with a terrible head cold/sinus attack.  My annual sickness and usually the only one, so it hangs on for dear life…

In the context of sickness I’ve been forced to abandon exercise.  Restricting myself almost for an entire week to the couch.

What I have come to find true for me is I not only MISS exercise, but I NEED exercise for emotional health.  #Shockeriknow…

When we can’t engage in something… when life interrupts… do you find yourself secretly relieved, or maybe even happy!

What about exercise?

I don’t miss getting up early and making time for exercise.

I don’t miss going out in the cold and pushing myself

I don’t miss running with friends on the treadmill

I don’t miss spinning just as hard as my classmates.

When I put it aside to heal, I missed it true….

but in the absence thereof I’ve come to realize it’s a powerful tool in my life.

I need every POWERFUL TOOL in my life to live

above average…

When life interrupts look at what’s missing and find those things

that really count, they are a gift!

Unexpected interruptions of the highly routine

  The unexpected interruptions of the highly-routined.

So, how do you come back from the flu, the food, the travel, or troubles?  I mean, WHERE did I leave my life?  I know it’s around here somewhere.

As a personal trainer, I’ve watched people disconnect after an event, be it the holiday celebrations, travel, reunions, weddings, even sickness…

How do we get back on track?

Back to the daily routines?

Back to reality?

This head-cold has left me sidelined from my exercise

Swimming, Running outside and even Spin have taken a hit.

I watch from the sidelines, resting my body while my mind goes crazy!

Then I stumbled upon…

Sit/Read/Write

#SIT-Slow down and just sit.  Sit in the stillness, in the quiet.  Be quiet!

#READ-Entertain a subject of interest, take your time, since you have it! (Habits-“Better Than Before” current book of choice)

#WRITE-Write about your connection, free-write, run with your thoughts on paper, and then take a moment and pull a few points together….

like this:

Sit/Read/Write

Build your Case!  Soon you’ll be living it…

This could be the first step to reconnecting…

Then the life and color will return!

Recovery from the disconnect

I’ve lost a week

The most important of weeks!

The week that transitions out of the old

and

into the new.

Sick

That’s ok, I’ll use the time to quietly read, study, and write…

Exciting days ahead, right?

Well being sick was a disconnect…

So often DISCONNECT happens

As a trainer, I’ve seen “the disconnect” completely wipe out  progress.  An event,  a reunion, a wedding, a vacation, or unexpected events like a cold, the flu or injury…disconnect!

Reconnecting to forward progress in your fitness and diet goals is critical!

(Don’t walk away NOW!)

How to do that?

Stop, Drop and Roll

#STOP!

As soon as you recognize your hand is in the cookie jar, REMOVE IT.

#DROP!

Drop it!  Drop the cookie, Drop the sleeping in, Drop the excuses…

#ROLL!

Time to roll on!!!  Get back on the horse!  The diet, the gym…what ever you disconnected from, go back to it.  Take your thoughts and vision and CONTINUE…not starting over, JUST CONTINUE ON…

Still not 100% but back at it.  Back on track.  Back with my vision.  The only way to get there…IS NOT TO QUIT…

#Stop-what your doing wrong

#Drop -the cookie

#Roll-on

Ramping up!

2015 was the year of the Make-Over-Transformation

and I’m digging out the

BEFORE & AFTER photos.

#1Q

“Tell me, how did you do it?”

#1A

“I picked a diet I could comply with and sustained it long term.”

i believe…

i believe a lot of diets will work and there are an abundance to chose from…PICK! 

i believe you have to stick to it a long time…Stick!

i believe at goal weight the REAL work begins…Work!

KEEPING THE CHANGE

2016 is right around the corner.

I will be here sharing

My journey.

My  success

My challenges

My wisdom-earned

“Everyone has a story to tell, this is mine”…

The practice of holiday diet success!

Eat clean

The sugars, treats, dips and chips all draw you into wanting more

Either avoid or establish a clear plan of action. Execute  You will be glad you did.

Enjoy people not food

Is your face down in the food or up enjoying family and friends?

Enjoy the people you have gathered with MORE than the foods that are craving your attention

Exercise more 

Exercise empowers!  It relieves stress and it creates a sense of control and nothing FEELS as good as nailing it!

Execute

Plan strategies and nail them

Plan and Execute the plan

Call ahead to understand the menu!

Take food you can eat and eat it!

Eat before hand (gasp)

Drink loads of water, not wine!

Make an exercise date before or the next morning!

Execute

THE PRACTICE OF SUCCESS

will lead to success

and…

success feels good, much better than full, bloated, queazy, fatter, and craving MORE!

The Truth! 6 steps to Transformation

Reflection and Observation of 1 year on a diet that’s changed my entire life.

6 Tips that I cannot do with out, and neither can You.

#1-Find the diet/way of eating you can SUSTAIN-and sustain it. There is no substitution for compliance…none.

#2- Give it a Year (Yes a year)

   Sept 2014

   Oct 2015

#3-Find movement that you enjoy and move all year (Yes all year)

   

#4- Find Community going in the same direction-follow them!  Spend time with them, engage, reach out, enjoy them! #Community

  

#5- Ignore  (People, Places and Things) that are counter-productive! Step away!  Remove yourself!  Don’t even think of debating…use your energy on sustaining your plans.  It’s nobody’s business.

#6 Create a Lifestyle and live!

I’m coming up on my 1 yr anniversary.  I’ve visualized where I’d be at the end of 1 yr for a long time.  I wanted to feel better, no actually I’ve wanted to feel GOOD. I’m 75lbs down and I do feel good.  I wanted to be active again and I just did my best Triathlon in August!  I wanted to be confident again… and I am almost obnoxious!

How will I start off Year #2?  With the phrase I say to myself almost every day, “I want to be here in a year”

I’ve found these 6 tips to be Truth and we all know about Truth, it’ sets one Free!

Pulled by Vision

I remember right where I was when the idea of mentoring dropped down upon me.

I’d been searching for a new goal, a new direction, the next step in my journey.

Looking high and low and waiting

In the quiet of waiting

Mentoring found it’s way to me

I’m full

Full of ideas

Full of experiences

Full of strategies

Full of heart and soul

Hungry for the next step to keep me going down the path

I feel like I’ve been to the mountain top and am coming back down with something to offer those who have lost hope and direction with weight loss.

The loss of hope and hopelessness are painful things

I know

I’m pulled by the vision I carry.

Up the Mountain

Started out with

#Vision-Seek, Knock, Ask…til you get it

#Early- Rise early, sacrifice for what you chase

#Don’t Travel alone

#Receive the download #Selfie!

Take the selfie, remind yourself WHERE you were and WHAT you got!

#Coming down-It’s always hard coming down from high places. Things come to rob you, distract and discourage. HOLD ON to what you got!

#Return- Over and over return to WHAT you received until it’s yours.  Know WHO you are, WHAT you carry and WHERE you are called.

#Full

Soon the words will come together…

What works!

Doing what I do best.  Preparing to strengthen, encourage and uplift others.

I’ve pulled away for a few days now, to a quiet corner in the local bread shop…Ironic!  It’s been well over a year since I ate bread and experienced the daily downfall it created in my life.

A year away from sugar, bread, potatoes, rice and pasta…Some say it can’t be done.  I’m here to tell ya…It can.

The journey to a new place has been a process.  And you know all about “process” it takes time.  So I took a YEAR…On purpose.

At 13 months in, I’m 80lbs thinner.  In shape, focused and brimming with much to share.

One of the ways I will share this next year is for those seeking a Re-start, you can follow this blog for the

30Notes/30Days/30Seconds

Year 2 promises to hold meaning.  It’s always meaningful to grab hold of others and head off up the mountain…Probably why I’m in the Fitness Industry.

So, I’m tucked away in a corner, smelling bread I no longer eat, visualizing and finding words to give to a group who will walk with me.

#LIVINGLIFE