Merry Christmas - Motivational Moment 12-25-07

It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice.

- Church billboard in Kentucky


I used to think that it means more to be important. I would look to do things that would make me important. I would seek out different tasks that would make me important to others. I thought that the more important you were meant the more loved you were, and the more your life was worth. I was sadly wrong!

I was so wrong. While I think it is great to feel important. There are times that it is nice and it is great to be important, there is something that meas so much more! It is important to be nice to everyone. It can be just as easy as smiling at someone who is down. I know if someone smiles at me and I don't want to smile it is so hard not to smile back! It is so easy to send a smile out! It can be as easy as helping someone that is having a hard time. You can let someone else have the close parking spot. You can help someone get something that they can not reach. There is so much you can do to be nice, that does not cost anything, it just is nice to help it out!!!!

Motivational Moment 12-24-07

I love doing these, a great way to start off my day, on a positive note!!! These are great inspiration for me!!

To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.

- Mother Teresa, missionary


We can work out and work out, we can run around, we can do so much for everyone, we can volunteer, but unless we do something that will allow us to continue burning then we will fall flat. What do I mean by that? Simple. If we give of ourselves all the time, but don't take for ourself then we will burn out way before we should. If we work out and work out, and eat right all the time, deny ourself what we want, again we will burn out and stop, fail when we should succeed!

We can give and we should give it is great for our self esteem and for our soul, but sometimes we need to give to ourself! Reward ourself. If you love chocolate, than eat it, in moderation. If you volunteer, do something for yourself like take a bath, or take a break. If you donate your time and money, do something nice for yourself once in a while.

IF you work out all the time, eat well all the time, great for you. If you miss it one day don't get hard on yourself, just know you needed a break and get back on the horse the next day.

I know that I am not the best at this but I need to remember that I can do this!!!!

What happens whne you get stuck?

I have a question - what do you do when you just feel like giving up? When you think to yourself why am I doing this? When you are not seeing the results you feel you should see? When you have yummy cookies and candy staring you in the face? When the scale just seems to be stuck in one place and is not moving anywhere?

I have been feeling this way lately, a lot. It has been very hard to eat right. I enjoy working out so I still do that, but when it comes to eating - forget it! I have been eating the cookies I made for Christmas, the cup cakes, the junk that is easy to get to, that is convenient. I had that I just don't care attitude for about a week now. It is not a good feeling, I just don't like it. I want to loose the weight. I want to feel better, but when you are doing everything right and the scale is not moving, the inches are not moving, and you are stuck it is so hard to care anymore.

How do you get back on track? How do you care anymore? That is what I have been contemplation! I have to do it. I have to figure it out. That is my goal today. To get myself back on track. To forget about what has happened and find the passion again!

Having Bad Days

We all have bad days. Days when we don't want to care, and that is fine, perfectly fine to have days when we throw our hands up in the air and say, I am not going to do this today. I have found that I was there this weekend. For me loosing the weight is like a full time job. I record everything I eat. I use SparkPeople (it is absolutely free- my user name is jennmarie2831 if you sign up please use my name for referral). So I don't anything but points, it is fun to get the points, and keeps me motivated. As I was saying, it is like a full time job. I record everything I eat. I look on the recipe sight for recipes that look good and that are good for me and my family. I do not believe in making 2 or more dinners, I try to make only one, and finding something we all will eat is crazy nuts. I try to blog so that I keep myself motivated and hopefully touch another life out there.

Planning meals is hard to do because it does take so much time. I am trying to work out and do things that is right for myself and my family. It gets so hard sometimes, I just want to sit down and cry. I know that I am taking alot of time away from my boys, but I am hoping that by doing it now I will have much more time to spend with them later.

I just have to keep telling myself that I can do this, that I will do it and that it is all worth it in the end

Motivational Moment 12-15-07

There are two kinds of man: the ones who make history and the ones who endure it.

- Camilo Jose Cela, Spanish novelist

Anyone can just follow a path. Anyone can just play follow the leader. It is easy and can be a satisfying way to live, at least for a while. You don't have to think, you don't have to take chances; you don't have to worry. You can stay safe. There is a great feeling of security when you just stay safe. You know that you do not have anything to worry about. You know that you are doing what others have done before you. But where is that going to get you?

Making history is hard to do. You have to be brave. You have to do things that are out of your comfort zone. You have to take chances, and some of those chances are going to be scary. You have to think out of the box. Why would you want to make history anyways. Why would you want to do something outside of the box. It is so much safer to stay in the box. It is so much easier to be safe. It just is not hard to do when you stay in the box.

When you take a chance, it might be the scariest thing you have ever done. It probably will not be comfortable. It might not pay off for a long time. So why should you do that? Why not. where are you going to be if you don't take the chance? By making history, by stepping outside of the box, by tuning into your creative side, by taking chances you are able to accomplish things you never thought you could. You are able to eventually become comfortable with who you are and what you are doing. You are able to receive a feeling of accomplishment that you could not have felt if you did not do it. You may be turned down, you may be told no, you may feel like why am I doing this, but in the end the reward will pay off.

My advice, step out of the box! Just do it! By stepping out of your comfort zone and making history you will accomplish something that you never could have. Take the chance, think of the great rewards you will receive!!!!!

Motivational Moment 12-14-07

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as if everything is.

- Albert Einstein, physicist


Everything is a miracle, think about it. We are given so many gifts each and every day. And by remembering that everything that happens is a miracle, no matter how small keeps us wondering were the next one will come from. Miracles do not have to be big, they don't have to be out there for everyone to see. They can be as small as seeing a beautiful butterfly fly past your window. Watching your children smile, for no reason at all. Hearing the words for the first time...I Love You. All of these are little miracles. Getting up in the morning, remembering to breath, again miracles.

I feel that it is a miracle that I am able to change the things about me I do not like. That I can loose the weight that I put on. That I have the strength to get up and go work out. Being surrounded bu friends and family that support me is a miracle that not many people have.

When you start thinking that nothing is a miracle, you start to loose hope. You are not willing, wanting to take the next step to gain trust. To keep going! Keep up the good work and stay motivated, and remember that everything is a miracle!

Take A Rest

Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.

- Ovid, Roman poet

This make so much sense to me. How can your body get back to working well if it can't repair its self, and relax. How much better do you feel after you have rested. How much more energy do you have.
Many of us are hooked on coffee, pop and other caffeine to be able to make it through the day, let alone to get up and get moving in the morning. Imagine life with out the pick me ups through caffeine? Getting up feeling refreshed and ready to go. Working out every day is not going to help, you have to rest, give yourself a break to heal.
What do you do when you are sick? You stay at home, get some rest and let your body heal. That is exactly what you should do with working out and the quest to loose the weight.

Giving yourself a break will only help!

How Tupperware has changed my weight loss journey

Yes I am going to start off saying I am a Tupperware consultant, but that is not why I am writing this. Yes I love to make money, but I am a consultant because I love the product and it saves me money. It is much easier to eat well when you have food that is good for you around and easy to get to. If you have to work to get it, you will over look that it is there, and go for the chips, and cookies, they are much easier to get to and to eat, expecially on the run. But if you have good food at easy reach something happens, you go for the good food, the fruits and the vegetables. You are eating better and you will loose the weight.

Tupperware has changed my life. The fridge smart is amazing. I keep fruits and vegetables in the house again. I am the only person who eats them, so before buying them, they would go bad before I had the chance to eat them. But I can keep them fresher longer. I have the baby carrots for 4 - 6 weeks and they are still good. I can eat good portions quickly and easily. I am not worried about them going bad either

Modular Mates - hello. There are so many benefits to have modular mates in your house, from the fact that they are air tight and water tight, they keep your food fresh for long time. I can bake easily because I have everything at my finger tips, easy to see, and it is good. Having an organized kitchen just makes you feel wonderful!

The Heat 'N Serve and Rock 'N Serve lines are great to use. I can easily microwave my left overs, and I can store food that i prepare in bulk easily. Left overs are now welcome in my house, because I know I have a healthy lu

10% at a time

So here is what I have decided to do, take my weight loss goal 10% at a time. It feels great to loose weight, and do it, and see results. The nice part, is once I reach one goal, I can set the next goal, and go from there. I am hoping that 10% at a time will also help me to stay motivated, and continue working as hard as I can to reach my goals! I can do it, I will do it.
There is nothing worse than feeling like you are failing at a goal. And a goal that takes months and months to achieve can make you start to loose sight of where you are going, and why you are trying to get there. So keeping motivated is the key! And the best part, is you can always set another goal once you reach the one you are currently working at! So remember to do this 10% at a time, achieve those goals, set the next goal.... Until you are down to where you want to be!!!

Rewards

They say it is important to reward consistency not results. At first that is a hard thing for me to grasp. How do you do that? How do you reward consistency. How do I do that. I am not sure some times. It is so exciting when you hit a goal, you want to celebrate. But when you are consistent, but you are not hitting your goals, it seems wrong to reward yourself.

So I have subscribed that it is important to reward consistency, so I am now going to do that. I am excited to say that I have been doing my life change for almost 2 months and I have lost 10 lbs. That is great numbers. I am doing what I never though I would do. I know that with time and energy I will be able to continue with my goals and I will achieve them.

So what would make a good reward? That is a great question for me. What will work for me? Should I reward with food? I don't think so. Food is not a great reward, because why throw off everything that you have been working for? Not that one day will throw it off, but if you are working so hard for results why add more empty calories that you are not needing. So after much thought I have decided my rewards. Taking time to do things for myself, such as a hair appointment, reiki, massage. These are my rewards.

So today I rewarded myself by getting my hair done. 2 hours of me time. It was wonderful. I highly suggest that you reward yourself, for keeping with the program. Getting things done and doing it the right way!

Meditation

I have decided to try something new, meditation. It is a great way for me to clear my mind of all of the bad things, the negative energy, of everything that is buzzing through it, making me go crazy. I did it before my class last night and I felt it went wonderfully. I did it before going to bed. I took a 15 min shower, put on lotion, and sat in a dark room and quietly meditated for 15 min before going to bed. I fell asleep so quickly and restfully. I felt great. I woke up relaxed and feeling great. I really believe that it has helped me stay positive today. I am able to deal with Tyler better when I do it. I get frustrated, and take 5 min to meditate. It clears my mind and helps me to feel in control. I highly recommend if your mind is clogged, and you are going crazy to try it. It is a great tool to use to help control your mind.

The thing to remember that in the weight loss battle 90% of keeping up with what you are doing and keeping the scale going down is believing you can do. You need to clear you mind of all of the negative energy. You need to know in your head and your heart you can do it, and do it! Meditation is a great way to clear your mind of all of the clutter that you accumulate through out the day. It will help you focus and know you can do it!

Taking Steps

So I have hit a plateau. I am unable to get past the 234 lbs. I have been going between 234 - 235. So now what do I do? How do you get past the plateau when you hit it? I have no clue. Here is what I am planning on doing. I am going to try something that does not make any sense to me, but I will try it anyways. I am a proud member of Curves. I love working out there. They have a 6 week challenge, so I am doing my own version of that.
The third phase to loosing weight is this
"Overview
Phase III is not really a diet. It is mostly eating. The objective is to raise metabolism back to pre-diet levels without regaining the weight you lost. The first few pounds that you lose when you diet are water weight. Your body dehydrates as it accesses stored energy, and it rehydrates when you begin to eat again.

Establish a low weight and a high weight that allows for a water weight fluctuation and a small amount of body fat.

If you want to raise your metabolism up to 2500 calories, you should begin to eat 2500 calories each day. If 2000 calories is a reasonable goal, then you must begin to eat 2000 calories each day.

After dieting for weeks, your daily metabolic rate may be as low as 1600 calories. You should expect to gain weight when you eat at least 2500 calories per day."

To read more check out Curvescomplete.com

I think that I am willing to try anything to loose the weight. I am going to do this. So here is what I am going to do:

1. For the next 3 days I am going to increase my calories to 25o0 to 2800 a day.
   
2. The next 2 days after that I will be lowering back down to 1800 to 2000 calories.

I hope that this will help to boost my metabolism and help me loose the weight. I am going to eat the right things, and make sure that I loose the weight. I am crossing my fingers that this will work..... I am going to continue with my water and working out. Wish me luck

Stress

So Stress is one of the things that will set you back with your weight loss goals, expecially if you are like me. When I am having a bad day then I eat like crap. I don't pay attention to the water I drink. I don't care. Stress can also cause you to gain the weight. So how do you get rid of the stress, I have no clue. But I do know that I have to manage it so that I can loose the weight. I have to figure that out. I know the days I can get 5 minutes through out the day for myself sure helps. So on top of all of the other things I am trying to do, I am going to work on reducing stress. I will make my goals. I will be positive, and I will have fun!!!!!

Power of Positive Thinking

So being positive is a big thing with keeping yourself on track! I know that the days I am positive are the days I do well. I know that I can do this. I know that by staying positive I have an edge over the fast food places that are calling my name. I have the motivation to go to the gym and work out. I know that being positive helps my whole outlook on life. So my advice is to stay positive. Keep in good spirits and make sure that you believe you can do it. Positive thought and the belief that you can do it, that you will do it is part of the battle! Going into the battle defeated, and feeling that you can not accomplish your goals, will make you do just that. Going into the battle thinking that you are going to loose, guess what you will. Going into the battle thinking that you are going to do it, you are going to loose the weight, is just that. YOU WILL DO IT, if you want to. If you think positive, put your mind to it and DO IT!

Keeping Motivated on the Weekends

I know that weekends are usually people's downfall, at least for me. My husband is home, we are doing different things, my schedule is very different. Things are very hard to keep on track. So how do you do it. What I am finding out is there is a few keys to success that have started to work for me.
1. Plan out your day: I get up to the same schedule every day. I plan out my day. I figure out what I am having for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Figure out if I will be able to go to the gym, or if I need to do something different for that day.
2. Stick to the plan: I do my best to make sure that my food and exercise for the day goes along with the plan I set up. I keep myself motivated by checking things off. I always leave myself some calorie room, for the little things that could come up, like eating at someones house or going out to dinner.
3. Bring water with you everywhere: I know that when I am out and about I am tempted to stop at a drive through and get a caffeinated beverage, but I find that if I have water with me (enough so that I have it for the entire time I am away. I will take more than I think I will need, better safe than sorry) that I am less likely to stop to get something to drink then order the high fat, high calorie food along with it.
4. Allow for some set backs: I allow for myself to have some set backs as I go but I make sure that they are small ones not the big ones!!!
Keeping up the good vibes on the weekend just helps me start off my week to a great start. Keeps me motivated, expecially when I step on that scale on Monday morning and see that I did not gain, I lost!!