ON YOUR MARK...GET SET GO!

 This is the time of year everyone puts on their

 “I’m gonna get Healthy and Fit” hat.   

Stick with me and maybe I can help you wear that hat all year!

Remember your motto this year is  “2004 is my BEST YEAR EVER” The following are the most important things you must do before you start any new fitness and health program, especially if you are new to exercise.  First, you should always get the okay from your physician, especially if you have any present or past health concerns.  Start a journal and take a “before picture” of yourself.  Write down your healthy new goals below it and keep it with you all the time...just like you carry your ID. Your goals should be realistic goals,  for example:  If being a size 16 makes you very unhappy, plus that size keeps you from being able to walk up a flight of stairs without feeling like you ran a marathon...your goal might be to lose a dress or pant size a month until you reach a healthier size. Notice, I did not mention pounds.  PUT AWAY YOUR SCALE...IT IS THE MOST DE-MOTIVATING PIECE OF WORTHLESS EQUIPMENT YOU OWN!   Next, buy and use a pedometer.  Wear that pedometer for a week, including weekends,  writing down how many steps you take a day to see how much you are moving around. You should put it on first thing in the morning, (read accompanying directions) and take it off when you go to bed. Record your daily steps in your journal and don’t forget to reset to 0 before you put it on the next morning.  Next, start your food intake part of the journal. Write down everything you put in your mouth for a week, including weekends. Actually write down everything and be honest about it. If you are standing up while you are eating an entire bag of chips, that counts even if no one sees you do it.  If you don’t know the calorie count of the foods you are consuming it is impossible to know how many calories are keeping you at your present weight.  You can buy a calorie count book just about anywhere these days or go to the World Wide Web at caloriecount.com.  You can even find out the food values of fast food restaurants by going to their websites, for example:  wendys.com, or burgerking.com. The calorie count is important initially, later we will discuss the nutritional value of the foods you are consuming. By next Tuesday’s article you should have this important information written down in your journal:  Average number of steps you take every day and how many calories, averaged over a week’s time,  is keeping you at  your present weight.  This is the first exciting chapter of a healthier new you for 2004.  Are you with me?  Next Tuesday, we will discuss what to do with all that info info in chapter one, such as how many steps you should be taking to start losing weight, along with what to do with all those calories.  In chapter 2... On your Mark get Set...GO!  I will help you get on an easy fat loss program that will help you lose as much unhealthy fat as you want to. If you don’t know where to get a good pedometer or need additionally assistance please Email all questions and comments to:  fitnesstogo@hotmail.com or go to my website: www.pamelapainter.net

 

On Your Mark Get Set Go!

Chapter 2

The last week of January is upon us, and many of you may be saying to your selves, "I still have 6 more weeks until I have to wear shorts…why get started on an exercise and healthy eating program now?" "Besides, we still have the Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day not to mention American Idle and Average Joe. It is impossible to watch those TV shows and not down a bag of chips and a box of Chippy Doodles. Did I miss anyone? I love hearing the countless excuses putting off getting healthy, people make, If any of you have other great excuses, please email them to me, I am starting a list.

My last article instructed you to start a journal of not only your food intake for a week, but also your movement during the day by using a pedometer every day for a week, including weekends. By now, you should have a very good idea of how many calories you are taking in for 7 days, plus how many steps you take a day. This is the number of calories and amount of activity that is keeping you at your present weight. This is the first chapter of your journey to a better life.

Second chapter. Have someone that loves you take a full-length picture of you preferably in a bathing suit, or at least something that really shows your body. Take all angles and post the pictures in your journal. No, I am not crazy. A picture will help you reach your goals more than any one way I can tell you. I promise as you go down in sizes and you take more pictures to chart your progress, it will be the most important picture of your life. Trust me, it motivates everyone I have ever worked with to reach his or her goals. Without it you cannot be honest with your self. You can lie to everyone else about why you are unhealthy and over fat but you cannot lie to yourself…cause "your self" knows…Below that picture write your goals and how you feel as you paste those pictures on the first page of Chapter 2.

I have a client right now who has lost 25 pounds and has about 20 more to lose. When I asked her to take her pictures, I was working with her at her home. Her husband was there so she asked me to walk outside with her. By her car she showed me the pictures that she had taken with her delayed shot camera. She started to cry and I cried with her because I have been there and I know how hard it is to finally be honest with yourself about your weight. She will gladly and proudly show you those picture today because the change is so apparent. She will also tell you she did not know she was that over weight until she saw those beginning pictures.

Finally, change what you are eating and increase your activity. You should have already bought a calorie counter book. Plan, plan, plan did I say plan what you will be eating everyday. I usually suggest doing a weeks worth of planning on Sunday. Take an igloo full of healthy low calorie snacks for you and your children in the car. Keep the calories around 1500 a day for you. If you include a lot of fresh fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins while eating lots of little meals you should not be hungry. There is no magic to losing fat except decreasing the energy input (food) and increasing the energy output (activity). Put on that pedometer and start increasing your steps with a goal for each week. Healthy people should be making 10,000 steps a day. If you are way under that start slowly increasing your steps each week. Remember, if you have any health concerns you should always clear any new exercise and eating plan with you doctor first.

Email questions/comments to fitnesstogo@hotmail.com or pamelapainter.net