Are You Ready to Make a Lifestyle Change?

When it comes to weight loss, the buzzwords you might be hearing lately are: lifestyle and change...as in, you need to make one to be successful at losing weight. It may seem like losing weight is a simple goal--do some exercise, go on a diet and voila! But, if it were that simple, I'd be out of a job and you'd be too busy working out to read this.

While magazines and infomercials make it seem effortless, losing weight takes hard work and that often means changing different aspects of your life like, how you spend your time, how you schedule your day, and how/what you eat. If the way you live doesn't allow for these changes, how far will you get?

Resistance training, also known as weight training or strength training, is for everyone. It is an important tool for achieving a complete healthy life. Resistance training is not just for people who are athletes, want to build or tone muscle, or are using resistance training to achieve a better looking body.

You may also hear the terms weight training (or weight lifting) and strength training used to describe working the muscles with resistance.

Resistance training is the term used to describe using weights, machines, and even your own body weight to effectively work your muscles. It is the umbrella term used to accurately describe all forms of resistance training, whether working with weights or not. Although strength training accurately describes what resistance training does, many people do not use the term because they think it only applies to those trying to become bigger and stronger when, in fact, all resistance training which is correctly done indeed increases strength, but does not necessary visibly increase size.

Resistance training does improve the look and tone of the body but it is now known to be more than just a specialized exercise activity.

The 5 Meals a Day Healthy Eating Plan

Now, you may be asking yourself how eating 5 times a day could possibly be good for you! This eating plan, of course, consists of good, healthy foods along with goods habits- you cannot eat pizza 5 times per day to be a lean, mean working machine. The only thing you would be is a big blob of blubber! Foods high in carbohydrates, like pizza, drag you down, bloat you and deplete your energy. It is time for you to change your habits and start eating light and healthy.

Your first step to change your lifestyle and your eating habits is to start the day with a good healthy breakfast. Your body needs source of protein and carbohydrate at breakfast. (See examples at end of page for recipe ideas). Continue your day eating a good source of protein, carbohydrates and some fats every 3-4 hours. Do not let your body go more than 4 hours without food as you may slow down your metabolism... What we are working towards is to raise your metabolic rate so you can burn calories all day long. Drink plenty of water before and after meals and throughout the day to curb your appetite. You want to flush out any toxins and excess fat in your body.

Try to plan your meals with the foods you enjoy. If you do not like tuna, do not force yourself to eat it. You will never stay consistent if you are dreading what you have to eat. Eat your meals slowly while sitting down. Too many of us eat on the run, standing in the kitchen or in the car. We do not give our bodies the chance to tell our brains we are satisfied and as you know, if you are not satisfied, you might over eat.

There are going to be days that you might "falloff the bandwagon." For example, you might eat a high fat meal or overeat at dinner. If this happens, do not give up- just get right back on your eating plan the next day and your body will not be affected. If you thrown in the towel, that is where you get into trouble. If you make a mistake at work, you don't just quit your job -you correct it and move forward. Remember, quitters never win and winners never quit.

Here is some bps to follow if body fat loss is your goal:

·      Have your food steamed, baked, broiled or roasted.

·      eliminate any rich, thick sauces and soups such as bemaise, hollandaise, alfredos and sauces (marinara is a better choice).

·      Remove skin and fat from chicken.

·      Eliminate butter all together.

·      Eat smaller portions- more often- never stuff yourself.

·      Share dessert- does not eat the whole thing by yourself!

·      Learn to just have a taste- if it is a food you cannot resist, stay away from it all together.

·      Chew gum while baking- especially during the holidays.

·      Ask for your salad dressing on the side- dip your fork in for taste.

·      Do not go out to dinner starved- this will lead you to over eat. Drink water before your meals.