Getting Fit in 2014 – Part 2

I recently blogged about getting fit and the three tips I felt were important when deciding to take a journey and become a better you. I want to add some additional thoughts to my original blog entry.

Getting fit – First things first

• Motivation
• Fitbit flex or nike fuel band
• Myfitnesspal either on a smartphone or via their website
• Workout program or walking/running program

I’m suggesting these tools as a gateway to begin.

But first you MUST make that mental shift and be willing, ready to say no and have strength to eat the correct things, again these are just tools to aid you. I personally used the Fitbit to set goals for myself on a daily basis, for example 10,000 steps. This gave me the motivation to get up and walk around, I found myself parking at the end of parking lots and taking the stairs instead of elevators, these simple changes add up. Eventually, you will find yourself wanting to beat your previous days metrics, it’s addicting. In 2013 I logged over 1,619 miles on my Fitbit and over 4 million steps, I want to double that for 2014.

Motivation and Goals

• Think positive, you can do this, negative thoughts will only lead you to become frustrated and quit.
• Set reasonable goals, if you set unrealistic goals it will result in ultimate failure because you will give up when the changes plateau. Instead, keep your goals short, perhaps to three months and set the goal to be 10 or 15 pounds.
• Write down your goals, make a 5-10 point bullet list of what you want to achieve over the course of 2014. Post it on your fridge, cork board or put it on your phone. Look at it everyday!
• Don’t become discouraged by the scale. I often fall victim to this and I ensure you if you keep eating clean and exercise the changes will happen.
• I cannot stress enough that this portion of your journey is the most important one, diet and exercise is simply a tool to help you succeed.

Food and Diet

• Once you’ve set your goals, the next change is your eating habits. Eat more fruits, vegetables and meat like salmon, chicken and steak. Remove the breads, cookies, candies, potatoes and rice. Once you get closer to your goals slowly add back in rice, sweet potatoes and potatoes. The idea is to get your carbohydrates from good food sources like fruits and vegetables that are lower in calorie.
• It’s ok to cheat, have that cookie or piece of candy just ensure it fits in your daily allowance of calories and keep it to a minimum, perhaps 1 or 2 times per week. This was a hard thing for me to learn, if you restrict to much it will ultimately lead to failure and old habits will return.
• If you are craving sugar eat something sweet but that contains a more natural sweetener, for example I really enjoy rise bars.
• Don’t drink your calories, cut out the soda (even diet soda) alcohol and other sugar drinks. Just because it says Gatorade or sugar free on the bottle or can doesn’t mean it’s healthy. However, with that said I’m a huge fan of Shakeology as a replacement for breakfast, lunch or a afternoon snack and I often add protein powders that are low in sugar and carbs to help keep my daily protein intake up.

Exercise

• Stick with a simple program, specifically if you are starting out. IT WILL be hard at first, modify the routine and do your best. The goal is to keep moving, it will get easier and don’t become discouraged.
• As you go from a sedentary or low exercise life style to a more active one your body will change, you will have more energy and you’ll start to notice changes happening at a more rapid pace.
• I can’t stress this enough from my own experience, keep your weight loss around 1-4 pounds per week and make sure you are eating enough protein. Why? As you loose you don’t want to loose muscle but simply want to drop the fat percentage. Eating enough protein will help replenish the muscle, I also suggest a weight routine to help build muscle. Even light weights over time will continue to stimulate and help keep the muscles thriving.
• Don’t give up when it gets hard and trust me it will! There will be days you want to quit or skip the workout, don’t do it, stick to your plan and finish even if the workout is subpar you still did it.
• If you burn 300 calories during a workout, you don’t have to eat them back. Weight loss occurs with a calorie deficit.