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I found this fellow low carber on another forum, and looked at her website. I read some things she wrote, and she is a lady after my own heart. Here goes:
BrookJay's No Excuses
NO EXCUSES!!
Like the majority of you, I'd spent my fair share of time trying gimmicks, quick weight loss plans, low fat, low calorie diets and the same thing happened to me that happened to most of you. F. A. T.
Stress? No one here has the corner market on that little fact of life. When I started this way of eating, I was still living part time at the hospital with my daughter, and when she wasn't admitted, I was running an average of 3 specialist appts a week - some of which were 2-3 hours away from our home & included lots of over night stays. That doesn't include the time we spent in OT/PT/Speech/Feeding Therapy/Neuropsychology. Talk about stress?! Egads. I also had older 2 kids in public school and was investing lots of time learning about homeschooling - which I took on in October 2002. I have a husband who's had extensive health issues as well. We have a company that we have invested blood, sweat, and tears in to get off the ground and that's been many things, but unstressful isn't one of them. I have a mom who is a cancer survivor, but has had some major scares in the last couple of years. We've had several deaths in the family, a birth, lots of family functions, holidays, etc etc etc - all since I started this WOE.
Okay- We've removed the myth that I haven't had any life issues to deal with while taking on this WOE.
I spent 2 years having absolutely zero control of the scariest thing that I've ever encountered - the health of my youngest child. Zero control. It didn't matter how hard I concentrated, how hard I tried, how much I fought, how much I read, how much I studied - I had no control over making her more healthy and still don't. It was a realization that impacted, and continues to impact me greatly.
It dawned on me one day how unhealthy I had allowed myself to become. I was smoking 2 packs a day. I weighed 230lbs. I was beyond stressed. I hated where I had landed in my life, but unlike when I looked at my daughter, I figured out I *did* have the power and control to improve my own health.
That's how a No -Excuse-Fanatic was born.
My daughter didn't get to lean on excuses to make it through her days. She had to fight for everything - she's had to fight her own body to be healthy, she's had to fight her body to move like she wants it to, she's had to fight her mouth to speak, she's had to fight her size, and she's even had to fight to learn to eat. She faced/faces things with the most courage of anyone and anything I've ever known. If you have never known a chronically ill child and watched them as they march into the labs of hospitals and bravely stick out their little arms to be stabbed again and again and again, I both envy and pity you. I have hated to have to watch this child go through things no one should ever have to go through and yet she does so with such dignity and grace I can not and will not make miserable excuses in her presence about "how hard it is" or "how long it's going to take". I can not. I will not.
Samantha is the one who taught me all about no excuses and ll about taking advantage of the choices I have.
I've learned that it is ESSENTIAL to plan ahead. I've carried coolers with me all over the damn country side so that I can maintain my WOE and continue to make appropriate choices. I call ahead to family functions to find out what I can help with or bring so that I can do what I need to do too. I leave nothing to chance. Failing to plan is planning to fail - and I *refuse* to fail.
It used to take a *lot* of effort and planning. It doesn't anymore - so yes - this WOE *has* gotten easy. It *is* second nature to me and I have read the research and the literature and the books until I can practically recite them. It has been essential to my success.
Does all this babbling have a point? Not really. But now, hopefully, some of you know and understand where I'm coming from and that this really is all about choices and personal responsibility. We all have the ability to determine our own destiny - and it took a beautiful little girl getting really sick for me to see and learn that.
I try every day to be an example, not only to my family and community, but to this community as well. Success is something that is rarely achieved alone. I've had plenty of people to lean on along the way (thank you!!) I'm as real as they come. I have life struggles. I have stress, and I have great friends and a fantastic support community. It's out there for you too. Use it.
Success, Love, and Light
~Brook
BrookJay's Random Thoughts on Weight Issues
***This page is a work in progress. Check back often!***
I will be using this page to add random thoughts about Atkins, weight loss in general and various programs, exercise, and things that have kept me going. If it's not helpful or thought provoking to or for you, well then... :P~~~~~.
**Warning** Don't come at me with the ever-tired "Atkins is soooo unhealthy" garbage unless you've done more research on it than I have - and that means you've invested some serious amounts of time. I'm not interested in interpretations of what your sister's boyfriend's aunt's half brother's girlfriend's cousin's mechanic had to say or anything that came off Hard Copy. If you haven't read the book you have not educated yourself on the Atkins program. The end. 99% of what we hear about in magazines/on TV/from other people is the Weight Watchers equivalent of someone who spends their entire point allotment on Skinny Cow ice cream and Fat Free potato chips. Technically, you *can* do that within the framework of the program, but it's a blatant abuse of the structure and intention of the program and I will treat it as so.
I spent a lot of time reading several different approaches before I chose the Atkins program. I also did my fair share of half-assed attempts at various other things in the previous years. Weight Watchers? Yeah. Gained weight on it. -Not because the program is bad, but because the program wasn't workable for me and the way I ate. I was hungry all the time and it was a perpetual exercise in self sabotage. I chose a program that was workable for me in the long term.
I don't care what program you choose - almost all of them work if you work the program. I'm forever telling people that Cliff Notes efforts yield Cliff Notes results, and it's true. If you don't invest the time in yourself & your health to learn as much about the program you're choosing, you'll get out of it what you put into it - squat.
Almost all programs eventually lead to essentially the same place. For the most part the maintenance phases of all the various ways of eating lead to whole, natural foods in normal amounts with a strong emphasis on veggies/fruits/healthy fats. They're different paths to the same basic destination and different ways to relearn eating behaviors. Stop judging one over the other and accept that not all plans work for everyone - regardless of the reason.
If you've never been what can be termed as "obese" - Shut up. -And of course I mean that in the nicest way possible
You will never know or understand the issues surrounding food that someone who has 50-350lbs to lose has. If it were as simple as "diet and exercise", we wouldn't have the obesity epidemic we do. Relearning to use food is difficult - doable, but difficult. Minimizing that fact has to be the number one reason heavy people 'turn off' when they hear you talking about it.
Rapid weight loss. Yeah, I know. We all want the weight to magically fall off us with no effort/thought/exercise/nutritional education, but the truth is that it's not going to. Losing weight is no major feat. People lose tons of weight all the time. Keeping it off is where the real magic comes in. If you're taking on the goal of weight loss, you're taking on a project with a 95% failure rate in 5 years. How's that for a depressing reality? If you don't approach this smart, you're going to be the rule and not the exception. I don't know about you, but I absolutely plan to be the exception and will accept nothing less. So far, so good! I was never in this to lose weight fast. Just once.
On most weight loss plans, the initial honeymoon includes rapid weight loss. Don't get too used to it. The honeymoon almost always ends, and that's when the real work begins. I know this may seem like I'm stating the obvious, but you have to STICK WITH IT, even if you're not getting the instant gratification you want. Isn't nurturing the "instant gratification mind set" part of what got you a big butt in the first place?
Stop judging your success or progress or lack there of by the scale alone. Look. Scales lie. They really do. I didn't believe it at first either, and then I learned more about body composition. How many pounds you've lost isn't the point. I have yet to go shopping and buy a pair of pants with a weight requirement on the tag. Remarkably they have a waist size. 5lbs won't get you into the next pair of pants, but an inch off your waist will. Make friends with your tape measure. Write your measurements down and use that as your true guide. The goal is FAT loss, not WEIGHT loss and there is a distinct difference. Muscle is much more dense than fat. A pound of muscle takes up considerably less room than a pound of fat. See?
As you increase your lean muscle mass via exercise (which is a required part of any program worth anything), you may not see big changes on the scale, but your tape measure will catch them.
Take pictures of yourself. Yes. I hated cameras too. My "before" picture was horrible for me to face. I mean truly own where I was, but it provided me tons of motivation. I wanted the next one to look better. I needed the next one to look better. If you look at my pictures you'll see that there are times when not much weight moved at all and yet you can see big changes. There were times when the inches weren't going down either, but you can still see differences in the pictures. You see yourself every day. You're not going to be able to see all the differences that come with time, but the camera will. Take the pictures!
"Can't" and "won't" are two entirely different things. You "CAN'T" kiss your elbow, it's a physical impossibility. You absolutely "CAN" control the hand to mouth reflex and getting off your behind and getting some exercise. Those things are CHOICES. Own it. Stop passing the buck or leaning on the excuse of stress or whatever. Life is stressful and if it's not one thing, it's another. Such is life. Suck it up.
Exercise- A 4 (or is it 8?) letter word? Well, let's look at this for a minute. Increased muscle mass burns more calories at a resting rate. It also looks pretty hot!
Losing weight = look good in clothes.
Losing weight + exercise = Look good nekkid .
Looking like a deflated elephant never sounded all that attractive to me. What about you?
Start our your exercise routine slowly and work up! It seems obvious, but it never ceases to amaze me how many people start off gang-busters, get sore/hurt/discouraged/burned out fast and then quit. You're not supposed to be able to give Olympic athletes a run for their money your first time out. Choose something that's doable for you; something that you can and will do regularly and increase it slowly. Exercise videos? They're fantastic, but I hear people say they get frustrated with them because they can't keep up or complete them.
This is what works for me: I will pop in a new video with the full intention of completing the video start to finish. I will keep up as best I can for as long as I can and when I get tired or if I'm working above my current abilities rather than quit I'll drop back to marching or jogging in place until I get my breath back or recover and I'll jump back in and do as many reps as I can. If I have to drop back to marching in place 2,304,230,420,348 times, then COOL. Next time I pop that workout in, I'll get another rep or two or another sequence or two in there and all of a sudden I'm dropping back 2,304,230,420,347 times instead. -Okay, maybe not that much, but you get my drift.
It comes with time and persistence. And you're getting the full time of the workout in too!
GOAL SET! GOAL SET! GOAL SET! Did I mention that you should GOAL SET? Look. This isn't easy, and it's even harder if you don't create a clear vision of where you want to go and what you want for yourself. Statistically people who goal set are MUCH more effective and successful at achieving their goals. I goal set and re-evaluate every 3 months. I read them before my feet hit the floor in the morning and before my head hits my pillow at night. It keeps me focused and very deliberate. Wishing the weight off certainly didn't work. There are some fantastic books out there to help you learn to goal set. Body For Life by Bill Phillips has a fantastic step by step process for goal setting, which is the one I used and continue to use. My very first goal setting entry can be found here: My May 2002 Goal Setting Journal Entry.
Burn Fat Feed Muscle is another e-book that has a fabulous chapter on goal setting and positive self talk. If you do nothing else, read Chapter 1 of this e-book. It's worth it's weight in goal
Stop being wishy-washy! "I want", "I'll try", "I'd like to", "I think", "I'd might" are ALL wishy washy. "I want to lose weight" isn't a decision, but "I'm going to lose 15lbs." certainly is. "I'll try to start eating better" is limp reasoning at best. Are you going to do it or aren't you? MAKE A DECISION AND THEN DO IT! Own it. Claim it. -And it will be yours.
Keep a journal. Yes. It's time consuming. Yes, it can be painful to have to write down just exactly what you did. And be honest with your journal. Who are do you think you're lying to? As Bill Phillips said in Body For Life, the only thing worse than failure is being successful and not knowing how you did it. Having a journal will help you identify both where you went wrong and patterns of successful behavior! It's invaluable!! A great place to keep a food journal is at Fitday.com It's free and has tons of fantastic features. It's definitely worth checking out!
You have time for exercise and planning. If someone you whose company you enjoy called you right now, would you make time to talk to them? What if you hadn't talked to them in 5 years? Would you find half an hour right now to spend with them? Guess what. You can make/take that same kind of time for you. We're all busy. This is about loving yourself enough to take good care of yourself. ..and refer down farther for a fantastic quote on time.
Feeding a craving doesn't squash it, it perpetuates it. You know it's true. Abstinence is truthfully a beautiful and powerful thing. And this brings us to .....
Bars/shakes/frankenfoods - They are NOT a food group. These things are geared much more towards maintenance than they are for people who are just starting their weight loss journey. Your mission is to learn to eat REAL food. You're not going to foster good habits by eating garbage or exchanging your current high carb (or high fat,depending on your plan) bad habits for bad low carb habits. Low carb (low fat) junk food is still junk food.
"But it's better than eating a Snickers."
And your point is what? The lesser of two evils is still evil. It's justification. If you're willing to settle for that and not expect more from yourself, that's on you.
There's no such thing as mythical magical carbs that don't count. You knew it was too good to be true, didn't you? They absorb slower, yes, but they still absorb. Invest some time reading about how they work, what they are, and labeling laws. There is a reason experienced low carbers tell newbies to avoid them like the plague. -And yes, we know that Atkins Nutritionals says they're okay. But who's dipping into your pocket book? The experienced low carbers or AN?
Quotes & Sayings!
Ability is what you're capable of doing... Motivation determines what you do... Attitude determines how well you do it.
A goal properly set is halfway reached.
A goal without a plan is just a wish.
A journey of a thousand miles always begins with one step.
All the so-called "secrets of success" will not work unless you do.
Always remember you're unique, just like everyone else.
An obstacle is something you see when you take your eyes off the goal.
A 'wish' changes nothing. A 'decision' changes everything!
Before you can break out of prison, you must realize that you are locked up.
Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still. (Chinese proverb)
Can't never did anything but fail (Mr. Eaton)
Challenges can be stepping stones or stumbling blocks. It's just a matter of how you view them.
Conviction is worthless unless it is converted into conduct. (Thomas Carlyle)
Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says...I'll try again tommorrow.
Deciding not to choose is still making a choice.
Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved. (William Jennings Bryan)
Don't learn the tricks of the trade, learn the trade.
Don't limit your challenges - challenge your limits.
Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Louis Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo DaVinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.
"Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "PRESS ON" has solved and will always solve the problems of the human race." - Israel Regardie
"Both tears and sweat are salty, but they render a different result. Tears will get you sympathy; sweat will get you change."-Jesse Jackson<
"If you limit your choices to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want, and all that is left is compromise." - Robert Fritz<
The 7 "P's" - Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance - IrishAngel40
The leading cause of failure is giving up what we want most for what we want at the moment.
"The philosophical side of dieting is really about the philosophy and psychology of CHOICE."- chandlerswife aka Liz
"The dictionary is the only place success comes before work. Hard work is the price we must all pay for success." - Vince Lombardi
"I would say that if you consider whether or not it's difficult as being an obstacle, then it's probably not worth your effort." ~Darnitol
BrookJay's No Excuses
NO EXCUSES!!
Like the majority of you, I'd spent my fair share of time trying gimmicks, quick weight loss plans, low fat, low calorie diets and the same thing happened to me that happened to most of you. F. A. T.
Stress? No one here has the corner market on that little fact of life. When I started this way of eating, I was still living part time at the hospital with my daughter, and when she wasn't admitted, I was running an average of 3 specialist appts a week - some of which were 2-3 hours away from our home & included lots of over night stays. That doesn't include the time we spent in OT/PT/Speech/Feeding Therapy/Neuropsychology. Talk about stress?! Egads. I also had older 2 kids in public school and was investing lots of time learning about homeschooling - which I took on in October 2002. I have a husband who's had extensive health issues as well. We have a company that we have invested blood, sweat, and tears in to get off the ground and that's been many things, but unstressful isn't one of them. I have a mom who is a cancer survivor, but has had some major scares in the last couple of years. We've had several deaths in the family, a birth, lots of family functions, holidays, etc etc etc - all since I started this WOE.
Okay- We've removed the myth that I haven't had any life issues to deal with while taking on this WOE.
I spent 2 years having absolutely zero control of the scariest thing that I've ever encountered - the health of my youngest child. Zero control. It didn't matter how hard I concentrated, how hard I tried, how much I fought, how much I read, how much I studied - I had no control over making her more healthy and still don't. It was a realization that impacted, and continues to impact me greatly.
It dawned on me one day how unhealthy I had allowed myself to become. I was smoking 2 packs a day. I weighed 230lbs. I was beyond stressed. I hated where I had landed in my life, but unlike when I looked at my daughter, I figured out I *did* have the power and control to improve my own health.
That's how a No -Excuse-Fanatic was born.
My daughter didn't get to lean on excuses to make it through her days. She had to fight for everything - she's had to fight her own body to be healthy, she's had to fight her body to move like she wants it to, she's had to fight her mouth to speak, she's had to fight her size, and she's even had to fight to learn to eat. She faced/faces things with the most courage of anyone and anything I've ever known. If you have never known a chronically ill child and watched them as they march into the labs of hospitals and bravely stick out their little arms to be stabbed again and again and again, I both envy and pity you. I have hated to have to watch this child go through things no one should ever have to go through and yet she does so with such dignity and grace I can not and will not make miserable excuses in her presence about "how hard it is" or "how long it's going to take". I can not. I will not.
Samantha is the one who taught me all about no excuses and ll about taking advantage of the choices I have.
I've learned that it is ESSENTIAL to plan ahead. I've carried coolers with me all over the damn country side so that I can maintain my WOE and continue to make appropriate choices. I call ahead to family functions to find out what I can help with or bring so that I can do what I need to do too. I leave nothing to chance. Failing to plan is planning to fail - and I *refuse* to fail.
It used to take a *lot* of effort and planning. It doesn't anymore - so yes - this WOE *has* gotten easy. It *is* second nature to me and I have read the research and the literature and the books until I can practically recite them. It has been essential to my success.
Does all this babbling have a point? Not really. But now, hopefully, some of you know and understand where I'm coming from and that this really is all about choices and personal responsibility. We all have the ability to determine our own destiny - and it took a beautiful little girl getting really sick for me to see and learn that.
I try every day to be an example, not only to my family and community, but to this community as well. Success is something that is rarely achieved alone. I've had plenty of people to lean on along the way (thank you!!) I'm as real as they come. I have life struggles. I have stress, and I have great friends and a fantastic support community. It's out there for you too. Use it.
Success, Love, and Light
~Brook
BrookJay's Random Thoughts on Weight Issues
***This page is a work in progress. Check back often!***
I will be using this page to add random thoughts about Atkins, weight loss in general and various programs, exercise, and things that have kept me going. If it's not helpful or thought provoking to or for you, well then... :P~~~~~.
**Warning** Don't come at me with the ever-tired "Atkins is soooo unhealthy" garbage unless you've done more research on it than I have - and that means you've invested some serious amounts of time. I'm not interested in interpretations of what your sister's boyfriend's aunt's half brother's girlfriend's cousin's mechanic had to say or anything that came off Hard Copy. If you haven't read the book you have not educated yourself on the Atkins program. The end. 99% of what we hear about in magazines/on TV/from other people is the Weight Watchers equivalent of someone who spends their entire point allotment on Skinny Cow ice cream and Fat Free potato chips. Technically, you *can* do that within the framework of the program, but it's a blatant abuse of the structure and intention of the program and I will treat it as so.
I spent a lot of time reading several different approaches before I chose the Atkins program. I also did my fair share of half-assed attempts at various other things in the previous years. Weight Watchers? Yeah. Gained weight on it. -Not because the program is bad, but because the program wasn't workable for me and the way I ate. I was hungry all the time and it was a perpetual exercise in self sabotage. I chose a program that was workable for me in the long term.
I don't care what program you choose - almost all of them work if you work the program. I'm forever telling people that Cliff Notes efforts yield Cliff Notes results, and it's true. If you don't invest the time in yourself & your health to learn as much about the program you're choosing, you'll get out of it what you put into it - squat.
Almost all programs eventually lead to essentially the same place. For the most part the maintenance phases of all the various ways of eating lead to whole, natural foods in normal amounts with a strong emphasis on veggies/fruits/healthy fats. They're different paths to the same basic destination and different ways to relearn eating behaviors. Stop judging one over the other and accept that not all plans work for everyone - regardless of the reason.
If you've never been what can be termed as "obese" - Shut up. -And of course I mean that in the nicest way possible
You will never know or understand the issues surrounding food that someone who has 50-350lbs to lose has. If it were as simple as "diet and exercise", we wouldn't have the obesity epidemic we do. Relearning to use food is difficult - doable, but difficult. Minimizing that fact has to be the number one reason heavy people 'turn off' when they hear you talking about it. Rapid weight loss. Yeah, I know. We all want the weight to magically fall off us with no effort/thought/exercise/nutritional education, but the truth is that it's not going to. Losing weight is no major feat. People lose tons of weight all the time. Keeping it off is where the real magic comes in. If you're taking on the goal of weight loss, you're taking on a project with a 95% failure rate in 5 years. How's that for a depressing reality? If you don't approach this smart, you're going to be the rule and not the exception. I don't know about you, but I absolutely plan to be the exception and will accept nothing less. So far, so good!
I was never in this to lose weight fast. Just once. On most weight loss plans, the initial honeymoon includes rapid weight loss. Don't get too used to it. The honeymoon almost always ends, and that's when the real work begins. I know this may seem like I'm stating the obvious, but you have to STICK WITH IT, even if you're not getting the instant gratification you want. Isn't nurturing the "instant gratification mind set" part of what got you a big butt in the first place?
Stop judging your success or progress or lack there of by the scale alone. Look. Scales lie. They really do. I didn't believe it at first either, and then I learned more about body composition. How many pounds you've lost isn't the point. I have yet to go shopping and buy a pair of pants with a weight requirement on the tag. Remarkably they have a waist size. 5lbs won't get you into the next pair of pants, but an inch off your waist will. Make friends with your tape measure. Write your measurements down and use that as your true guide. The goal is FAT loss, not WEIGHT loss and there is a distinct difference. Muscle is much more dense than fat. A pound of muscle takes up considerably less room than a pound of fat. See?
As you increase your lean muscle mass via exercise (which is a required part of any program worth anything), you may not see big changes on the scale, but your tape measure will catch them.
Take pictures of yourself. Yes. I hated cameras too. My "before" picture was horrible for me to face. I mean truly own where I was, but it provided me tons of motivation. I wanted the next one to look better. I needed the next one to look better. If you look at my pictures you'll see that there are times when not much weight moved at all and yet you can see big changes. There were times when the inches weren't going down either, but you can still see differences in the pictures. You see yourself every day. You're not going to be able to see all the differences that come with time, but the camera will. Take the pictures!
"Can't" and "won't" are two entirely different things. You "CAN'T" kiss your elbow, it's a physical impossibility. You absolutely "CAN" control the hand to mouth reflex and getting off your behind and getting some exercise. Those things are CHOICES. Own it. Stop passing the buck or leaning on the excuse of stress or whatever. Life is stressful and if it's not one thing, it's another. Such is life. Suck it up.
Exercise- A 4 (or is it 8?) letter word? Well, let's look at this for a minute. Increased muscle mass burns more calories at a resting rate. It also looks pretty hot!
Losing weight = look good in clothes.
Losing weight + exercise = Look good nekkid .
Looking like a deflated elephant never sounded all that attractive to me. What about you?
Start our your exercise routine slowly and work up! It seems obvious, but it never ceases to amaze me how many people start off gang-busters, get sore/hurt/discouraged/burned out fast and then quit. You're not supposed to be able to give Olympic athletes a run for their money your first time out. Choose something that's doable for you; something that you can and will do regularly and increase it slowly. Exercise videos? They're fantastic, but I hear people say they get frustrated with them because they can't keep up or complete them.
This is what works for me: I will pop in a new video with the full intention of completing the video start to finish. I will keep up as best I can for as long as I can and when I get tired or if I'm working above my current abilities rather than quit I'll drop back to marching or jogging in place until I get my breath back or recover and I'll jump back in and do as many reps as I can. If I have to drop back to marching in place 2,304,230,420,348 times, then COOL. Next time I pop that workout in, I'll get another rep or two or another sequence or two in there and all of a sudden I'm dropping back 2,304,230,420,347 times instead. -Okay, maybe not that much, but you get my drift.
It comes with time and persistence. And you're getting the full time of the workout in too! GOAL SET! GOAL SET! GOAL SET! Did I mention that you should GOAL SET? Look. This isn't easy, and it's even harder if you don't create a clear vision of where you want to go and what you want for yourself. Statistically people who goal set are MUCH more effective and successful at achieving their goals. I goal set and re-evaluate every 3 months. I read them before my feet hit the floor in the morning and before my head hits my pillow at night. It keeps me focused and very deliberate. Wishing the weight off certainly didn't work. There are some fantastic books out there to help you learn to goal set. Body For Life by Bill Phillips has a fantastic step by step process for goal setting, which is the one I used and continue to use. My very first goal setting entry can be found here: My May 2002 Goal Setting Journal Entry.
Burn Fat Feed Muscle is another e-book that has a fabulous chapter on goal setting and positive self talk. If you do nothing else, read Chapter 1 of this e-book. It's worth it's weight in goal
Stop being wishy-washy! "I want", "I'll try", "I'd like to", "I think", "I'd might" are ALL wishy washy. "I want to lose weight" isn't a decision, but "I'm going to lose 15lbs." certainly is. "I'll try to start eating better" is limp reasoning at best. Are you going to do it or aren't you? MAKE A DECISION AND THEN DO IT! Own it. Claim it. -And it will be yours.
Keep a journal. Yes. It's time consuming. Yes, it can be painful to have to write down just exactly what you did. And be honest with your journal. Who are do you think you're lying to? As Bill Phillips said in Body For Life, the only thing worse than failure is being successful and not knowing how you did it. Having a journal will help you identify both where you went wrong and patterns of successful behavior! It's invaluable!! A great place to keep a food journal is at Fitday.com It's free and has tons of fantastic features. It's definitely worth checking out!
You have time for exercise and planning. If someone you whose company you enjoy called you right now, would you make time to talk to them? What if you hadn't talked to them in 5 years? Would you find half an hour right now to spend with them? Guess what. You can make/take that same kind of time for you. We're all busy. This is about loving yourself enough to take good care of yourself. ..and refer down farther for a fantastic quote on time.
Feeding a craving doesn't squash it, it perpetuates it. You know it's true. Abstinence is truthfully a beautiful and powerful thing. And this brings us to .....
Bars/shakes/frankenfoods - They are NOT a food group. These things are geared much more towards maintenance than they are for people who are just starting their weight loss journey. Your mission is to learn to eat REAL food. You're not going to foster good habits by eating garbage or exchanging your current high carb (or high fat,depending on your plan) bad habits for bad low carb habits. Low carb (low fat) junk food is still junk food.
"But it's better than eating a Snickers."
And your point is what? The lesser of two evils is still evil. It's justification. If you're willing to settle for that and not expect more from yourself, that's on you.
There's no such thing as mythical magical carbs that don't count. You knew it was too good to be true, didn't you? They absorb slower, yes, but they still absorb. Invest some time reading about how they work, what they are, and labeling laws. There is a reason experienced low carbers tell newbies to avoid them like the plague. -And yes, we know that Atkins Nutritionals says they're okay. But who's dipping into your pocket book? The experienced low carbers or AN?
Quotes & Sayings!
Ability is what you're capable of doing... Motivation determines what you do... Attitude determines how well you do it.
A goal properly set is halfway reached.
A goal without a plan is just a wish.
A journey of a thousand miles always begins with one step.
All the so-called "secrets of success" will not work unless you do.
Always remember you're unique, just like everyone else.
An obstacle is something you see when you take your eyes off the goal.
A 'wish' changes nothing. A 'decision' changes everything!
Before you can break out of prison, you must realize that you are locked up.
Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still. (Chinese proverb)
Can't never did anything but fail (Mr. Eaton)
Challenges can be stepping stones or stumbling blocks. It's just a matter of how you view them.
Conviction is worthless unless it is converted into conduct. (Thomas Carlyle)
Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says...I'll try again tommorrow.
Deciding not to choose is still making a choice.
Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved. (William Jennings Bryan)
Don't learn the tricks of the trade, learn the trade.
Don't limit your challenges - challenge your limits.
Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Louis Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo DaVinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.
"Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "PRESS ON" has solved and will always solve the problems of the human race." - Israel Regardie
"Both tears and sweat are salty, but they render a different result. Tears will get you sympathy; sweat will get you change."-Jesse Jackson<
"If you limit your choices to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want, and all that is left is compromise." - Robert Fritz<
The 7 "P's" - Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance - IrishAngel40
The leading cause of failure is giving up what we want most for what we want at the moment.
"The philosophical side of dieting is really about the philosophy and psychology of CHOICE."- chandlerswife aka Liz
"The dictionary is the only place success comes before work. Hard work is the price we must all pay for success." - Vince Lombardi
"I would say that if you consider whether or not it's difficult as being an obstacle, then it's probably not worth your effort." ~Darnitol
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