Whats your excuse?

I absolutely love this entry that Sham wrote a couple of months back, everytime I need motivation, I come back to this and it inspires me to get where I need to be, check it out =)





I am starting tomorrow...This week for sure...Starting next month fresh start...The beginning of the year...

How many of you know those words all too well?? We say them with great intention and mean it most of the time but when that time comes how many of you have actually followed through. Well all of you New Years people its been nearly 4 months how are those goals looking? Monthly, weekly, daily people did we get off the ground or keep up our fitness promises? If yes, then congrats keep up the good work!

But for many people it is very hard. If you look back at the stats only 5% of people who lose 10lbs or more are successful at keeping it off. 2 out of 3 people are overweight, 1 out of 3 are obese, there is a Mcdonalds or Starbucks within at 3 mile radius of nearly everywhere we go. Stats are against us...

So how can we be successful? I think there are 3 things that help
1. Education
2. Motivation
3. Consistency

One is having the proper knowledge to achieve our goals. There is so much garbage out there that we try to follow, its nearly impossible for one without the background to shift through all of the advertising and marketing trash.

Once one can find a reliable source for knowledge (check out www.inspiredwellness.net soon for trusted information on achieving your goal) then they need to make sure they are ready and motivated to make a change.

Motivation comes from various factors both intrinsic and extrinsic. Extrinsic motivation usually fails, that is for more superficial type rewards, such as money, fame, and vanity. We need to find motivation from within. Actually doing things you enjoy. You need to be motivated by the fact that you are doing something you like doing and want to keep it up. Finding foods you enjoy eating that are good for you, finding an exercise routine that is fun and keeps you moving. Going outside and playing with your kids an hour a day, rollerblading, playing sports, or trying a new hybrid style of training. That is the ticket that people neglect.

Most people go on calorie restricted diets, eating nothing but veggies or foods they hate. Or doing extreme exercises or the same boring ones over and over again and to no avail. They get burnt out then they fail.

So we need to make sure we find the right avenue which motivates us, we then need to find the proper tools to educate us on how to properly achieve our goals then the last one which is most important consistency. IF you have been following my blog you know this is a big one. Everything we do in life if we want to achieve, maintain or inspire we need to keep up the good habits on a consistent basis and override the bad ones we have been using for the last few years.

It takes time but before you can achieve a goal, reach that end line and finish...before you get to the end you need to start and you should start right now!

-Sham Sanghera

THIS IS ALL A DREAM!!

WOW! What a great week !! Tuesday I weighed in and I've lost a total of EIGHT, yes EIGHT lbs in 3 weeks!!I'm so happy to see the evidence of the changes I've been feeling--the strength of my thighs, including the newly articulated muscles I'm starting to see. But it wasn't until I met with Sham today and he brought out the tape measure that I felt real pride. I didn't believe him when he told me I lost over EIGHT inches "Impossible," I thought , and he even re-measured to double check. I looked down at my arms--not to check out my biceps, but because the hair on my arms was standing straight up; I had goose bumps, I thought, Is this really happening for me? Could I, Priscilla Corona, who once thought she was destined to occupy more space in the world than she ever cared to, really be shrinking? It still doesn't seem real, and while I'm learning it's actually difficult to accept the thing I've always wanted, I am more motivated than ever to keep on keepin' on! Do you guys agree that seeing progress is the biggest motivation to keep reaching toward your goals?

I think I've gained weight...

Uh-oh. Since attempting to reach my mini goal of losing 5 pounds by May 1st, I must admit seeing results so fast I've celebrated a bit. Gotten kinda lax with staying away from the evil fatty foods. Had an extra small dessert, or two. Skipped my workout Sunday and this morning because I was bone-tired(not to mention I had a sugar coma from Sunday).



I feel puffy. I feel afraid to get on the scale tonight. I feel...like I've gained weight. Then again, it could just be in my head.


Time to get back on track, tonight the truth will be revealed when Sham measures and weighs me eeeeeeeek!

Do you keep a food log?

When I first started training with Sham I wrote down every single thing I put into my body. Like, if I ate a crumb from a cupcake at my office , I'd record it. And I didn't just write "almonds"--I wrote exactly how many, exactly what time of day, and if I happened to be surrendering to my emotional eating habits (munching because I was feeling anxious--not hungry!), I'd note those feelings, too. I can't tell you how much writing it all down made me accountable and aware of what and why I was eating. And it made me face the hard truth: Those cupcake crumbs add up! It also helped me make adjustments to get more of the types of food my diet was missing and also cut back on less of the sugary, late-night snacks I had a tendency to binge on.


I have to admit, in the past couple of weeks(maybe longer eeek), I've been a slacker about keeping a food log (my workout partner Michelle is a Food Log Guru LOL). I've been doing my best to keep a mental tally, and so far I think I'm doing okay, but I'd like to start writing things down again so I don't fall off track.

How 'bout you guys---do you keep a food journal religiously? Has it made all the difference with your weight-loss goals?

What's inspiring you?

So I'm becoming a super tight fitting t-shirt junkie lately! My latest splurge? NOTHING! LOL! I'm waiting to weigh in to buy myself a special "prize".


And I'm totally obsessed with this quote that I saw while browsing online...




Do you guys have any favorite inspirational quotes that help you stay on track with your fitness goals?

Delete the word D-I-E-T from your vocabulary!

People assume, just because I'm "training," that I'm on a diet; they often ask me what "diet" I'm on and wait for me to tell them I'm "on" Atkins or South Beach,Weight Watchers,Jenny Craig or riding some other crazy-fad diet train. So most are surprised when I tell them that I'm not on any diet and, in fact, that I don't like that word at all.

See, I think the real start of the success I've had so far with weight loss was really understanding that I had to permanently change the way I eat. By definition, a diet lasts for a certain time period: You're either on one or you're not. And knowing they're finite makes their terms more restrictive--and actually impossible to stick to for a lifetime. So instead,Sham taught me how to take baby steps (I'm a big believer in those!) to change my bad eating habits (I used to have stock in Sweets; weekly/daily trips to Jamba Juice; ordered my healthy versions of restuarant foods and wondered why I wasn't losing any weight).

Once Sham helped me pinpoint those fat traps, I started to make changes I could live with. The best thing about eating healthfully and being really disciplined about my food choices is that I don't feel deprived. And let's be real: What's the likelihood of sticking to any wellness plan if we feel like we're serving jail time?

What's your take on the whole "diet" thing? Does it help you stick to more disciplined ways of eating when you know you can relax a little once you reach your goals? Or are you trying to make lifetime lifestyle changes too?

Non-scale ways to track your weight loss

Before I started training with Sham a couple of months ago when I would shower I'd bring my beach towel sized towel with me. The regular sized towels hardly fit around my body


Now, the regular towels are fitting around my waist and body perfectly!With the exception of a small gap around my thighs. I decided a while ago that the towel would be one way I'd gauge my progress. Rather than obsessing over what the numbers on the scale will be, I find that keeping other measures, like my towel method, is less punishing and keeps me feeling like I'm successful in my shape-up goals even if it's not quantifiable in pounds.

What non-scale ways do you use to measure your progress?