Cold Hard Tips

As a Sagittarius, I am known for being well, a bit blunt sometimes. So I thought I would dish out some brusque health tips for anyone who needs a little ass-whoopin'. I know I sure could use one once in a while.
*Sensitive peeps might want to stop reading here.

1. STOP MAKING EXCUSES - Nobody cares why you didn't work out or why you ate an entire pizza with a carton of ice cream on the side. The excuses you are making are falling on deaf ears. You are only hurting yourself. Do something about it.

2. FUGGETABOUTIT - Take the following foods out of your mind, away from your reach and out of your mouth. It will suck at first, but you will start to feel so much better in other ways that when you actually do eat it again, you will have a complete shiz-attack (literally, be near a bathroom).

• Chinese Food
• Mexican Food
• Fast Food
• Sugar
• Salad Dressings
• Creamy Sauces
• White Bread/Pasta

3. LEARN IT, LIVE IT, LOVE IT:

• Fruit - apples, oranges, peaches, strawberries, blueberries, grapefruit, watermelon - you get the picture.
• Veggies - Salads, spinach, peppers, artichokes, zucchini, asparagus, green beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, broccoli - once again, you get the picture.
• Cottage Cheese
• Kashi Cereal
• Yogurt
• Egg Whites
• Chicken, Fish & Turkey
• Whole Grains - Quinoa, brown rice, whole wheat

4. COUNT CALORIES - You will freak out when you realize how many calories you have actually been consuming. 1500 is my maintenance range. I dropped down to 1200 when I was in "loss" mode. Yes, you might be hungry at first, but you will shrink up your stomach and train your body to eat less food. (NOTE: It might be different for you based on your size, gender, etc. So find out. It is your responsibility to know how many calories you need on a daily basis.)

5. GET MOVIN' - exercise, walk, run, skip, jump, box, lift weights, hike, have lots of sex, ski, dance, play squash, play tennis, play basketball, do karate, race your kids, play soccer, get movin'. Burn calories any way you want to~there are so many activities out there you are bound to enjoy one of them. (If not, refer to #1). Once again, it may suck at first but once you get in the routine, you will start to crave and need exercise.

6. LEARN TO COOK - or at least how to make healthy dishes. In this modern Internet world, there are millions of recipes for healthy EASY versions of practically anything. One of my favorite sites is Worlds Healthiest Foods.

7. HAVE A PLAN - Sit down and write out your menu, figure out your calories, plan it all out. I recommend to keep it as simple as possible. If that's too hard, then join a group that can teach you how (Weight Watchers, etc.) Just trying to wing it day by day without a plan will set you up for failure.

8. SUPPORT SYSTEM - Hopefully your friends and family will support your decision to get healthy, but they might not. Be prepared for negative comments. (I went through this for a couple months until I actually started to look thinner, then all my friends wanted to know how I did it). If you can't find support at home, then look on the Internet, blog, join forums, join challenges. At some point you will start to feel so good about your success that you won't even need the support anymore. But such a huge life change is so all encompassing that you will want to talk about it ALL the time. That's why we have blogs, right?

9. CHANGE YOUR THINKING - Don't put yourself on a "diet" thinking it is a quick, temporary thing. It is not. You have to change your entire thinking about food and what food means to you. Is food something you use for comfort? Is food something you do when you're bored? Do you use food to cover up emotional feelings? Food is fuel for your body. That is all it is. If this is your main issue, then seek help. There is nothing wrong, embarrassing, or shameful with getting to the root of the matter with a little professional help.

10. MAKE THE TIME - Wake up earlier, stay up later. This is your health. This is your life. Everybody is busy. Everybody has a lot on their plate these days (hopefully not literally). Make yourself a priority. Nobody will do it for you. (Refer to #1).

If you need a friendly competition to get your booty in gear, head over to Viv's page and check out her Independence Weight Loss Challenge! I hear there might be prizes. But honestly, what better prize is there than having a healthy body?

Stay Strong. Peace. Out.
(Notice: I am not a doctor or a professional anything so you really don't have to listen to me. Seek a doctors advice before starting any program, but he will most likely tell you to get your ass in gear.)