Want to get motivated about your fitness? Set new goals!

I’ve been doing Beachbody for 2 years now and it definitely made a tremendous impact on my life, my health and the health of my family. I’ve lost 10 pounds and tons of inches and learned a great many things about fitness, nutrition and myself. I have met a lot of wonderful people and made a lot of friends. But lately I was looking through the progress pictures of the Million Dollar Body winners and the thought occurred to me: I have not made any progress to speak of for a year now. Yes, I ate a healthy balanced diet and exercised regularly. I stayed at the impressive 136 pound mark on the scale and, on most days, fit into size 6 jeans. But these winners went further than that and they looked superb!

What was I missing? When I let myself meditate on the subject the explanation came to me – I achieved my old goal; I achieved it a year ago and since then I have not set a new goal for myself to work towards! I realized that I was not even sure I really wanted or could lose more body fat. I was not sure if I had the energy and a metabolism to achieve that, and was not even sure if I’d look good if I did. Very likely I just used these doubts as an excuse. When I said it all out loud, it was one of those “ah-ha” moments that, unfortunately, do not happen to me often enough. It became clear to me that, hesitation and all, I still wished to look as great as these folks or people in Oxygen magazine, but I was not working toward it. I had a dream, not a goal! Wow!

Admittedly, last year was a turbulent one, with worries about the economy and jobs, but I still was working out, even though it was not clear to me what I was working towards. Of course, retrospective vision is always 20-20, but there is still an important question to consider: had I had a goal, wouldn’t I have done better? I think I would have. Lesson learned.
Right now I am so glad I know where I am and I am glad I know where I want to go. I am grateful for the “ah-ha” moment and what it taught me. And yes - you guessed it - I have a new goal!

Here it is:

I want to be 130 by 8 A.M. on May 14th and I want submit my success story to the Million Dollar Body Game. This is no longer just a nice idea, wishful thinking, or a dream. This is a concrete goal and I am planning to stick to it!
Watch my progress and cheer me on. Or, if you think I am crazy, don’t cheer me on but watch my progress anyway. I am not new to the process but I am new to the goals set in stone, and that makes me exhilarated. I hope it rubs off on you too!

Bring it!

Clean eating diet - is it only for people with tremendous will power?

For someone just starting examining their daily diet a prospect of eating from top two tears of the Mich’s Ladder can look like a daunting task requiring immense will power. Recently I started an on-line clean-eating challenge. One of the participants, a very motivated woman, said : “I can definitely understand why eating from the top 2 tiers(Mich’s Ladder) is working for everyone! I’ve got to say, I have a TON of respect for the will power you people have.“ To which I replied: “It has nothing to do with will power” and I meant it...
In spite of its tremendous health benefits, one cannot switch over to eating clean overnight. The process of cleaning your diet of junk has to be gradual and deliberate. Going “cold turkey” with diet will only make you feel deprived, and all your determination and will power won’t be able to sustain you for a long enough time to achieve any results. So, as with any habit change, you have to give yourself time and not aim for perfection at the start. Gradually find healthy substitutes for the unhealthy daily staples. It can be done by going from BK hamburger to lean chicken patties, from generic white bun to multi-grain one, from eating a bowl of ice cream with sprinkles to eating a cup of yogurt sprinkled with sugar-free all natural multi-grain serial, and enjoying it just as much! Impossible? Believe me, it is very doable for any person who wants to turn their diet around! Here’s why: our taste buds are adaptable! Our body needs basic building blocks: protein, carbs and fats. As long as it gets a reasonable amount of these, it will adjust! Here’s my favorite example: if you are used to drinking whole milk then at first reduced fat or fat free milk will taste watery to you. But give it a few weeks, and the whole milk will taste too rich, while reduced fat milk will be just what doctor ordered (well, mine did, anyway). Finding healthy substitutes will require some creativity on your part, and some things you may not be able to let go completely – so once in a while you can let yourself enjoy a treat – be it an ice-cream cone or a burger or fried onion rings. Let a little steam out and next day back to clean eating again!

To summarize, here are the things you need to do to clean up your daily diet:

- Come up with healthy substitutes for unhealthy food you eat now
- Don’t aim at perfect diet; slip-ups are OK.
- For hard to let go favorites allow a snack once in a while.
- If you fail off the clean-eating due to travel or holiday, get back on track without beating yourself up. Practice makes perfect.
- Remember - you are worth the effort!

Bring it!

FREE Beachbody Rev Abs workout and Q&A

Start your New Year Resolution early this year!

Come and work out with my friends and find out how Beachbody

workouts can get you on track of fitness and health!

When: Saturday, November 28, 2009 1:30 PM

Where:
Chelsea Studios
151 W 26th St
New York, NY 10001
(212) 924-5877

Decide! Commit! Succeed!

How I survived 2 weeks on a road

Do you love traveling? Seeing new places, experiencing new cultures and cuisines?
I do! I wish I was able to spend more time traveling to places I read and heard so much about – France, Italy and Germany, Australia - list goes on and on. Travel requires time, money and some sacrifices. Sacrifices, you ask? Yes.
My husband and I just returned 2 weeks trip in Spain. It was a great experience, driving from one great city to another, exploring architecture, art and just soaking in sights. But moving from place to place, staying in hotel rooms for a night or two left no chance for cooking my own food. I don’t speak Spanish, so ordering food in the restaurants was a hit or miss. Spanish food is amazing in texture, flavor and ….calories!!! Spaniards start their day with croissants and coffee and end it with dinner after 9 pm. The food is not for the timid – portions are generous, cooked well and surrounded by sauces and most often potatoes. All of that was going against Clean Eating rules, of course, so I tried to minimize damage as much as I could. Most often I replaced lunch with a handful of raw nuts I brought with me on a trip and an delicious local apple, tried to negotiate with waiters and exchange fries for salad (I was not always successful, nor was I happy with the state of the salad when I got it). Being a tourist is a hard work, I say!
We were walking on average 6 hours a day and I was not going to let myself starve. I ate fish as often as I could and tried to leave sauce on the plate. I ordered croissant for breakfasts rather than super-greasy sausages with eggs and fries. I did have a taste of all the deserts my husband routinely ordered, but just a teaspoon or two.
I was happy about the trip but was worried about what the scale would say when I returned home. To my relief I did not gain any weight and jumped right back into the usual routine with added enthusiasm. So my little strategies paid off. I guess after 2 years of practicing good choices refined my intuition and helped me minimize the dangers of eating out on this trip. I am looking forward to my future travels and confident that I will do even better!
I want to live my life to the fullest, but eating everything I see is no longer a part of that list! I work too hard on my health and my fitness to make bad food choices!
Decide. Commit. Succeed!

FREE Beachbody workout and Q&A

Accountability and Workout Challenge!

Dear Friends!

No one can be perfect all the time, but if you put an effort and commitment into even a few weeks of exercise and clean eating - you will see results!!!

That's why I decided to start a 10 day Eat Your Calories and Push Play challenge and invite you to join me. Let's take our bodies to the next level!


CHALLENGE DATES: Wed, Oct 7th, 2009 until and including October 17, 2009

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT:

1. You PRESS PLAY Five or Six Times a week, depending on your program. If you miss a workout, you're out of the challenge.

2. You EAT CLEAN six times a week. You have to report how many calories you must eat and how many your ate

3. You MUST report daily for the preceding day on the Challenge thread:

my thread - click here

For example, "Yesterday, I ate ### calories and pressed play."

Please REPORT IN RED LETTERING.

At the end of the challenge, we will put the WARRIORS NAMES IN A HAT TO DETERMINE THE WINNER!

THE PRIZE: Beachbody Video

Will you be the last man/woman standing?!


YOU BE THE JUDGE!!!

These 6 rules will put you on the rigth path for good nutrition to support your new exercise routine

If you are deciding to start on journey to healthier, fitter you, here is something you have to consider: a good nutrition plan.
The thing is - you may drag yourself through your life feeling tired because you don’t eat good food, enough of it and often enough, but you won’t be able to add exercise on top of it!

Here’s the conversation I find myself having over and over with someone close to me:

Her: I am starting to go to the gym.
Me: Excellent! Are you making sure you eating a balanced diet?
Her: No, not yet.

In a little while:

Me: Are you still going to the gym?
Her: I have no energy to go to the gym. I am discouraged and don’t have motivation. Exercise is not for me…
Me: Are you making sure you eating a balanced diet?
Her: No.

People who start a physical program without a sound nutrition plan fail to see results, and a lot of people make a conclusion that exercise is not for them and lose motivation! That is unfortunate, but can be prevented.
Here’s what you need to do when you plan to start an exercise routine:

- Figure out how much you are planning to exercise
For example – if you are planning to run on a treadmill for 30 minutes 3 times a week, and do a toning class 2 a week, try to establish how many calories you burn while doing each type of exercise. Heart rate monitors could be helpful in that respect, or use online to do approximate calories.

- Add 1200 to the calories you burn during the exercise– that is the minimum you need to consume.
1200 calories is how much you body burns while maintaining all normal functions, so going under 1200 is no recommended under any circumstances! The resulting calories is you starting point. This is an approximation, so if you feel that it is too low, adjust accordingly by adding more, mostly in form of protein.

- If you are just starting exercising after years of sedentary life, chances are you won’t be able to sustain high intensity workouts at first. As you get stronger and increase intensity of your workouts (and correspondingly, calories burned) you need to retest yourself and increase the calories you consume in order to sustain the new levels of physical activity. Not eating enough while you metabolism is revving up may lead to food cravings and overeating.

- Make sure you eating quality food. Eating Twinkies won’t nurture you body and won’t get you the results you want. Clean diet is the way to go: incorporate lean meats, Omega-3 rich fish, whole grain cereals, breads and pasta; fresh vegetable and fruits.

- Avoid food that contain artificial additives, preservative, refined flour, sugar and high fructose corn syrup. These slow down metabolism and prevent weight loss.

- Drink lots of water, and avoid sugary drinks. Even sports drinks can be high in sugar, so check labels carefully!

Good nutrition and good exercise go hand in hand. By consistently improving both, you will be able to achieve the best shape of your life!

10 Thoughts You Must Catch to Beat Emotional Eating

"Emotional eating" seems to have entered the vocabulary of the everyday person. We are aware of it in an anecdotal level, same way as we are of other modern over-indulgences - TV, electronic gadgets and Internet. Yesterday at the snack vending machine I heard a coworker say: " I am such an emotional eater!". To which I replied: " Who isn't?"

There is no denying it - food has comforting qualities. We crave food for reasons other than pure energy restoration. We all over-indulge from time to time, but when the degree of emotional eating is very high, it is stops being a clandestine mid-night affair between you and that pint of ice-cream; the results are evident in the plan daylight in spite of artful efforts to cover it with layers of clothes .

Emotional eating is deeply embedded in our psyche, it is not impervious to change. There are ways in which you can train your mind to tell real hunger apart from the emotional eating.
To break away from this dangerous habit we have to learn to recognize when we "eat our emotions".
Pay attention to the way you think when the thoughts of food enter our mind.
When we think like this:

- I have to eat before I tackle this pile of documents on my desk...
- I just worked though a huge pile of documents on my desk and deserve to eat...
- I am bored, I will eat now, since there is nothing better to do...
- I am in pain, if I eat I'll feel better...
- I am happy, I am going to celebrate it with my favorite meal!
- I feel shy, out of place, I better eat all this food....
- I feel dissatisfied with myself, my marriage, my job...eating makes me feel better...
- I feel guilty, eating makes me forget that...
- I really want to please my host/mother/mother-in-law and eat even thought I am not hungry...
- I feel pressure to lose weight and I will eat to show them who's boss...

It is time to stop eating and address the issues at the root of the problem!
The good new is - you can start working on changing this habit right away - all you need to do is carry this list around with you and check it every time your reach out for your refrigerator: am I really hungry or am I eating my emotions again?
I guarantee that combining this approach with other healthy choices will lead you to losing those extra pounds and improving overall outlook on life!

5 Main Reasons Why People Lose Motivation to Lose Weight

As an independent Beachbody coach, I help a lot of clients to overcome multiple obstacles in their efforts to lose weight and increase overall level of fitness. Achieving the body of your dreams is not always easy, and a lot of people give up half-way without realizing the cause, or causes, of their frustration and dissatisfaction. In this article I am trying to outline the main reasons for loss of motivation, and hope it helps you to avoid common mistakes, such as:

1) Inadequate assessment of where you are at the begin of your body make-over process.

To make a successful transition, you need to reasonably assess were you are at the start of your body make-over. If you judge yourself lighter or heavier, or more or less physically fit than you actually are, you won’t be able to set realistic goals and determine the best plan for your transformation. After you achieve your intermediate goals you need to reassess your situation and create a plan for the next stage of transformation.

2) Unrealistic goals

If you set unrealistic goals, let’s say to lose 5 pounds a week, you won’t be able to achieve it and will give up in frustration. The healthy and reasonable goal is to lose no more than 2 pounds a week, and even then weight does not come off at programmed intervals. Weeks can go by until the pounds come off, and then they come off 5-6 pounds all at once. Also, depending on how much weight you are trying to lose, the time it takes to lose weight may vary: if you need to lose 50 pounds, first 30 may come off much faster than last 10-15. The less weight you need to lose, the more time it usually takes. Not knowing this may lead to unrealistic goals, frustration and ultimately loss of motivation. You should approach weight-loss goal setting with much thought and research.

3) Unrealistic expectations.

After achieving of your weight loss goals, you may still be disappointed, because you expected to look like a picture on the program you bought or a body builder in a magazine whose advice you followed. You may be unsatisfied with the size of your biceps or your stomach not yet looking like a washboard. Don’t be discouraged by your reflection and sabotage further progress! For a lot of people who picked up fitness after years of neglect it will take some time to reawaken muscles, turn around metabolism and generally turn back the clock. It can be done, but it takes time, effort and patience.

4) Inadequate progress measurement

You may be making great progress, but due to inaccurate or inappropriate progress evaluation you don’t realize it! When trying to lose weight, the scale is not the best tool – you need to learn to use a tape measure or judge the progress on how loose the clothes are fitting you since you started the makeover process. The great gauge of your progress is body fat indicator, most accurately measured by using caliper or BMI calculators available on line.

5) Insufficient support system

Everything I describe above is hard to juggle on your own. People who achieve the best shape of their lives rarely do so without a support system: a network of fellow fitness enthusiasts and experts. A lot of our perception of our bodies is subjective, and people from your support network are there to give a second opinion when you think your progress is insufficient, dispel disappointments due to incorrect assessments and suggest new approaches when nothing seems to work.

Chalene Extreme - 30 day picture!!!!

I just completed 30 days of Chalene Extreme and I am very excited by the results!
I have 60 more days to go and I can't wait to see what else it will do to my body!
Chalene Extreme principle is to do fewer reps with heavy weights!
I think it works wonders for me - it will work for you as well!
And, last but not least - it build character!
I am just so happy I am doing this!!!!

5 reasons to add quinoa to your diet

I am in love - with a new grain - quinoa!
Actually, it is not new, but quite old, in fact, ancient grain! It dates back over 5,000 years. The ancient Inca once called it "the Mother grain", because it was so important for their diet!

Quinoa is a tiny grain, no bigger than mustard seed, but it once fed the mighty Andes Mountains of South America. The Inca Empire relied on this grain to feed its populating that stretch from coast of Chile to to mountainous regions of Andes.
The modern scientists call quinoa the complete protein grain because it supplies all the essential amino acids in "a balanced pattern". If you are like me and always looking for new ways to introduce another source of protein, quinoa is something you should be definitely consider, and here's why:

- Quinoa is high in Protein. 16.2% of serving of one serving of quinoa is protein. In comparison, the other favorite of mine, outs, provides only 13%.

- Quinoa is great for gluten-free and wheat-free diets

- Quinoa is high in calcium

- Quinoa has a higher iron content than wheat or yellow corn!

- Quinoa is available in a grain and - my favorite- flake forms. Quinoa flakes are easy to prepared and have smooth and creamy consistency similar to farina. Quinoa flakes make a perfect breakfast any time, but I especially enjoy a steaming bowl of quinoa flakes on a chilly morning!

If you want to add a healthy variety to your diet you should absolutely try quinoa!

Yet another New York Beachbody workout!!!

We are bringing it with P90X, Insanity, Turbo Jam and other Beachbody workouts New York style!

Come join us, try the workouts, find out all there is to know about losing weight,

getting fit and making money doing it!

WHEN: September 20th 10 AM
WHERE: Chelsea Studios
151 W 26th St
New York, NY 10001
(212) 924-5877

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions!

20 Days Clean Eating and Pushing Play Challenge

Dear Friends!

No one can be perfect all the time, but if you put an effort and commitment into even a few weeks of exercise and clean eating - you will see results!!!

That's why I decided to start a 20 day Clean Eating and Pushing Play challenge and invite you to join me. Let's take our bodies to the next level!


CHALLENGE DATES: Monday, Sep 14th, 2009 until and including October 3rd, 2009

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT:

1. You PRESS PLAY Five or Six Times a week, depending on your program. If you miss a workout, you're out of the challenge.

2. You EAT CLEAN six times a week. It's up to you if you want to stuff yourselves like a bell pepper on your cheat day. But, I recommend a cheat MEAL and not a cheat day.

3. YOU ARE ALLOWED "ONE ADDITIONAL CHEAT SNACK" in this 20 DAY PERIOD. That means, Out of the 20 days during which you are doing the challenge, you may treat yourself to ONE CHEAT SNACK (like a cookie or a glass of alcohol) in addition to your cheat meal. If you have a second cheat snack, you are out of the challenge.

4. You MUST report daily for the preceding day on the Challenge thread:
http://teambeachbody.com/connect/message-boards/-/message_boards/message/32772682

For example, "Yesterday, I ate clean and pressed play."

Please REPORT IN RED LETTERING.

5. You have until Tuesday morning to take your measurements AND pictures. You don't have to post them.

At the end of the challenge, we will put the WARRIORS NAMES IN A HAT TO DETERMINE THE WINNER!

THE PRIZE: Beachbody Video

Will you be the last man/woman standing?!


YOU BE THE JUDGE!!!

5 things to do to get your motivation back

It happens to all of us - we fall of the wagon with exercise, lose motivation and straggle to get back on. If you were in the groove and had to stop your program, even if the reasons were legitimate - injury, crunch time at work, unexpected travel, illness, you name it, - it is immensely frustrating! But, as the rule goes: what you resist - persists: if you focus on that frustration, you'd only prolong the time you are not working out. Instead, we need to work out tricks of getting over the frustration and getting ourselves back on track and into the groove.
Here are the things that I find helpful to re-acquire motivation for fitness :

- Watching an inspiring movie where hero/heroine saves the day (or the world) by being physically prepared for a challenge. My personal favorite is Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor in Terminator 1, or Ashley Judd in Double Jeopardy (remember how she runs in the prison yard while Queen Latifah looks on? "Sheer hate drives you, girl", Queen Latifah says, or something to that effect. )

- Comparing myself to a celebrity close to me in age, who are known to exercise and look good. Demi Moore is a reliable one, she never yo-yos, always fit as a fiddle. She even does P90X!

- Looking at "before" and "after" pictures of people who successfully lost and kept off weight and went on to build impressive set of muscles. These are plentiful on the web, and very inspiring!

- Scheduling a reunion with old classmates or extended family. When you know you have to impress people, it gets you back on track in anticipation! Make sure you are not trying to get in shape in 10 days, that's not neither practical nor healthy, but give yourself 2-3 months to do it! Peer pressure is good for that!

- Meeting new people who are excited about getting fit and making a commitment to them and yourself to do it! The old ditty "Tell me who your friends are and I tell you who you are" is very true: chances are you perform slightly better than some or slightly worse than others of your closest friends. If you surround yourself with people who exercise regularly and are excited about healthy lifestyle, you will follow their example!

By employing these you can make sure that your down time shrinks to minimum! Happy and healthy works to you!

What even five figure fitness program cannot do for you

Over the weekend I picked up a free magazine Energy Times which featured Arnold Schwarzeneger look-alike Roland Kickinger. On the cover this Austrian body-builder, actor, certified personal trainer and nutritionist is proudly flexes huge guns while smiling angelically.
I could not help but to be impressed with this guy looks and his portfolio – he can, among other things, sword-fight and dance ballet! But when I read about his personal business – a three week fitness emergence for his clients –that’s when my eyes truly glazed over… His guests stay over in his guest house, work out every day under his supervision and eat 5 super-clean low-carb meals a day prepared by this gentle giant! Understand that it is hot and sticky humid in New York, and I feel a little unmotivated to slave over the stove, and am scraping the bottom of the motivation well for my daily workouts. Let’s face it: I am sweating without moving, so... Oh, how wonderful would it be to have a fitness authority figure prodding me on, telling me what to do and when, so I can just blindly follow the instructions and eat perfect meals put in front of me! It is a day dream I want to hold on to for as long as I can, but wait – how much does this experience cost? The article says vaguely: five figures. I have to strain my overheated brain to process that. “Five figure” means… anywhere from $10, 000 to $99,999! What??? The day dream evaporates. No way can I afford either the time or the money! And what is it that he does that I cannot do myself? I am capable of measuring portions, counting calories and following the recipes, of packing my lunches and snacks, and as far as exercise I have all the instructions I need from the best in fitness business: Tony and Debbie, Chalene and Shaun! I have it all now; I am empowered by knowledge, the method and the system! I don’t need to be rich (and idle) to be in the best shape of my life at any age! All I need to do is follow the program! And that even a fitness and nutrition guru like Roland Kickinger cannot do for me. He says as much himself: ”Ultimately, you have to take action; no one can do this for you. You can take all kinds of supplements, you can pay a trainer a lot of money, but you still have to take responsibility and act. They can only give you a key, but you have to go through the door yourself, on your own.” From his lips and into my ears!

Dear friends!

On July 11th at 2 PM we are holding a Beachbody opportunity event and a P90X workout.

I and other coaches are going to talk about why we became Beachbody coaches!

How we do what we love to do - GETTING FIT - and get get paid while doing it!

And how you can to!

It is not all talk though - we love to exercise together and we will bring it with Cardio X workout!

So you'll get to sample one of P90X to see for yourself what the buzz is all about!

DECIDE! COMMIT! SUCCEED!

See you there!!!

Call me if you have any questions (718) 637-1495

Where: Chelsea studios
151 W 26th St
New York, NY 10001

When: July 11 2 PM

Room DBA

http://www.meetup.com/The-New-York-Beachbody/calendar/10700583/

A FREE P90X work out and Q&A session!

You may have seen the P90X infomercial on television and wondered if the program really works.

You may have seen the P90X infomercial on television and wondered if the program really works.

Join us...
meet some P90X graduates and check out a workout

WHEN: Saturday June 20, 2009 @ 1pm.

WHERE: Chelsea Studios
151 west 26th street
Room 601
New York, NY 10001


COST: FREE!!

Everyone is welcome!

7 things to do before starting a weight-loss program

I want to clarify from the start that by weight-loss program I don't mean something you do for a few weeks or even a few months. I mean a change of lifestyle that allows you to lose excess weight in a healthy way, keep it off and in process create a healthier, stronger you. Change is a process, and there are many obstacles that you as a new dieter need to anticipate. I hope my list will help you to avoid the major ones!
1) Do not start a diet you cannot stay on for the rest of your life.

Anything that sounds like a grape-fruit diet, cabbage soup diet, or any other miracle diet that promises speedy weight loss , is not something you can live on longer than a few days without serious damage to your health-it should not even be considered. You are after long term results, not a one-week water-weight loss "miracle".

2) Assure support from your family, friends or roommates

A lot in our routines revolves around the kitchen, so change in this area can upset the balance in your normal routines. Make sure that people around you are aware of and support the changes you are trying to make. They ought to be willing and able to accommodate the necessary changes in quality, quantity and timing of the meals that you will have to make!

3) Assure your environment supports your change of lifestyle - clean up your fridge and cupboard and stock good food to eat!

Staying on track with good food and portions in today's world is hard. Everybody and their third cousin is trying to feed you junk food, and lots of it! Your home should be a safe escape from all temptations. When I come down to my kitchen for a snack, I know I won't find a pint of ice-cream in the freezer, or cookie-jar filled to the brim with sugary stuff. You need to make as sure as possible that your kitchen is "safe" as well!

4) When eating out in a restaurant, prepare in advance.

Once you think you have figured out how to eat at home, you can start experimenting with eating out while staying within your diet. To make sure you do that, call the restaurant ahead of time to find out if they offer food that won't thwart your weight-loss progress, or go on-line to check the menu. Some restaurants even offer calorie information on their menus; I predict they are the ones that will stay in the business for years to come! Whenever you can, influence the choice of restaurant so you don't have to eat house salad all the time!

5) Make sure that the diet you are embarking on is affordable.

You see advertisements for savory and healthy food delivered daily to your door.
Sounds perfect, doesn't it? No mess, no shopping, and seemingly affordable. But over time, all people I know who opted for this kind of arrangement, found it too expensive or too impractical. Moreover, during the time they were using the service they did not learn how to control the portions, how to prepare the food, or even what goes into the food they were eating. Left on their own, they had to struggle again to maintain the weight loss and to learn what to buy, how much and how to cook it. You have to be in charge of your nutrition, you have to be actively involved to achieve results!

6) Get science behind you - talk to a doctor, nutritionist and read a book!

It is always great to consult a medical professional before embarking on a new regimen. Whether you are starting a new exercise program or changing the way you eat, knowing things about your health-such as thyroid function, blood sugar, or food allergies, may have direct impact on your metabolism and taking appropriate medications or actions can greatly improve it!

7) Find a support group to help you stay motivated and learn new ways of eating and exercising

Changing habit is not an easy undertaking. While trying to lose weight, we all go through ups and downs, hit the hidden reefs and stray off the path. Having a support group of positive open-minded fellow-dieter can helps you stay committed, find solutions to roadblocks and keep motivated! Be encouraged by people you trust who had success and encourage others when you succeed! It is immensely rewarding!

Top 5 Reasons Why I Love to Exercise at Home

*********************************************************




The big breakthrough in my personal fitness came through when I stopped trying to go to the gym classes, and started using workouts on DVDs at home. I love it and here are the top five reasons why:
1) Time savings:
I did not have to drive or take public transportation to the gym’s location.
This saves me take and money, not to mention it reduces my carbon footprint!
2) Simplified logistics:
I don’t need to remember to pack a gym back with closes and shoes a night before, and have my workout affected or even missed when you realize you forgot you socks, sports bra or hanging lock (I went through a tons of those in years!), or any other little details that prevents you from exercising.
3) Eliminates wait in shower lines!
The gym classes can take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour and a half. On top of it, you need to account for shower time, plus a wait time for the shower after a popular class. I remember agonizing over that wait many a time! Also many times the gym ran out of towels or towels were too small to wrap myself around, and they smell from a cheap detergent or mold. I am not fidgety but after a while the whole experience of going to the gym was for me associated with the smell of that detergent and …mold! I take my own shower and towel any day over that!
4) Flexible schedule
When I depended on the gym classes’ schedule, making it to the class was sometimes harder than doing the hardest class! As soon as I established a routine, life would interfere and I’d miss my favorite class. With DVDs if I don’t do my workout in the morning, I will complete it after work. This way I don’t miss workouts and I am able to make progress.
5) Consistency
When you work out at home, not only can you make your own flexible schedule, but you don’t depend on your instructor being there for you. There is no lateness, no-shows due to illness or vacation, or because your favorite instructor leaves the gym just as you were starting to get into it! The instructor on the DVD is always there for you, regardless of season, weather or anything else.

In my view working out at home eliminates a lot logistical obstacles and annoyances insuring that you work out regularly, consistently and get the results you want.

Why I exercise - because I LOVE it!

To people who know me, but do not subscribe to my level of commitment to fitness, I probably seem crazy to exercise as much as I do.
They are probably silently professing all kinds of ills that will come out of it. I know my parents periodically do, because they tell me so, being the old school they are. I always try to win people over to my "side", never sparing any time when it comes to explaining why I eat or exercise the way I do. But my dedication to exercising is simple to explain: I love it!
I love it on so many levels, that if I list all the reason, it will be the classic TMI (too much info), so I will limit myself to only a few:

1) I love to exercise because it gives me a sense of accomplishment.

No matter what life throws at me that day, I feel that I've done something good, that I've put the effort and was successful at it. I don't need to do anything special to feel this way. Just do the best I can, and I feel well-prepared for whatever challenges may comes my way that day because I started it right.

2) I love to exercise because I feel energized.

I am not on fire every day. On days when I don't feel especially energetic, I nevertheless feel great after completing the routine. Surprisingly the energy picks up after that!

3) I love to exercise because it gives me confidence.

Amazingly, as the level of physical fitness increases, the level of confidence does as well. It gets funny sometimes - I can be watching an adventure movie where a hero/heroine are running away from bad guys, or holding on to the rope for their life, I catch myself thinking - I guess I could do it to, now that I am strong!

4) I love to exercise because I like the way my food taste after workout.

I don't know the science behind it, but after a workout everything taste better. I am hungry, but in a different way. It is not a boredom-induced or stress-induced hunger. It is as if my muscle tell me: we expanded a lot of energy, you better feed us something good!

5) I love to exercise because I sleep better when I do!

This is very obvious but is still worth listing. I have trouble falling and staying asleep. But if I put the mileage and the reps in, no matter how stressful my day was the physical exhaustion wins over all the distractions of the day and I fall into a blissful slumber. There is nothing better!

I could definitely go on listing other reasons why I like exercising, but I feel I already made my case to prove that there is merit in it. Theoretically we all know that exercise is good for us, but I am here to state that it also feels good. Try it, you are going to love it!

Bring it!

You got to be in it to win it!

Happy mothers’ day, dear people!
This morning my husband and I treated ourselves to a brunch in a restaurant. We were sitting in a warm sunny spot in the outdoor space, basking in the glory of the day and taking stock of the good things in our lives. The most important thing for both of us was that we’re both healthy and we’re committed to staying that way. We are making an effort to eat healthy food and maintain a good exercise routine. I exercise 4 to 6 times a week, mixing cardio, strength and flexibility training. I am constantly refining my diet and exercise, tweaking little things, shaking things up to keep myself excited about it. I am always trying to learn new things from the health experts and coaches who I admire and follow. Joe is not quite there yet, but he runs at least 2 -3 times a week and does stretching routine daily and really enjoys all of it. I am hoping that one day soon we will be able to exercise together - it will be so much fun to challenge each other. Overall, we are in the good place health-wise and I hope it will only improve from here onwards.
It wasn’t always that way. When Joe and I married more than 10 years ago, we put two different routines together and the sum was not equal to its part, not in a good way, anyway, so I started gaining weight, was not feeling good and was not happy about it. But I was not about to give up. For years I’ve tried different things; when one thing failed, I tried another. Finally I’ve found Beachbody and understood what my body needs to stay fit and healthy. The sense of newly acquired control was incredible, and there was no turning back. I cannot imagine where I would be now, had I not tried to improve my lifestyle. I am truly proud of the progress I’ve made and am looking forward to taking my fitness to the next level.
What is the point of my story? Real simple: if I can do it, you can do it too. But you have to try. You and only you can do it! As the old adage goes: you got to be in it to win it!
Bring it!

30 days to go!

30 days until my goal.
How am I doing?
Things are going fine, but lately I’ve noticed that a subtle curious frustration is permeating my life. I know I can lose weight; I have a realistic goal and am doing the same things that brought the desired results in the past.
So why the frustration?
It is a familiar feeling. When I was just starting to run some 10 years ago, I did not run in summer because I felt I could not handle heat and humidity. Then in fall I would regret that decision! I felt bad for falling out of it and having to work so hard just to get back to the place where I left off in spring. After a while I decided to run year round because the pain of catching up was too great! I am going through the same thing with my weight loss, and am learning a similar lesson—don’t fall off the wagon for no reason!
Bring it!

May 9th BEACHBODY COACHING OPPORTUNITY EVENT in NYC

Dear Boys and Girls,
Some coaches on my team and I will be holding a BeachBody Business Opportunity Meeting in my hometown of NYC on May 9th, 2009 at 1pm.
If you're in the NYC area, this is an opportunity you don't want to miss. We will provide a brief 20-25 minute presentation, followed by a Q&A period.
Note: To be successful with coaching, you have to be willing to put in the effort. So, if you're looking for an amazing opportunity to earn a second source of income and are willing to put in the work, then do plan on attending!
Please RSVP to me at jennygetsfitness@gmail.com


Essential Spa Therapy
122 East 25th Street
Between Park & Lexington Ave
New York, NY 10010

TIME: 1pm

AGENDA:
1-2 pm. Presentation and Q&A
2-3 pm. New Coach Training.

New Goal!

Long time no blog!!!

Why was I missing from the blogosphere?
I injured my elbow last fall and decided to run for a while.
There is really not much to write about when you run.
Left, right, left, right!
I am joking of cause – running is a great exercise, and I have great company when I train and spend more time outside, which kept me flu and cold free through the winter! I completed 10 Mile race in Prospect park in February, went skiing in March and all along was eating clean!!!
The down side of long-distance running in my case is that my appetite for carbs gets out of control and I gain flab!
I have not fallen off the wagon completely, and am at 140 right now, but I am not,shell we say, bikini-ready right now!

So, I am going back to what works for me – and that is Beach Body work outs.
I mean, why reinvent the wheel?

So here’s my goal.
I checked and I can safely lose 5 pound by May 31, 09.
I am going to

exercise 6 times a week,
eat clean,
keep up positive attitude

and then, on 8 AM on May 31 I am going to step on the scale and be 5 pounds lighter!!!

If you want to jump on the wagon with me – decide, commit, succeed!

Follow me on the MyFitnessPal Community thread, on Face Book, Tweeter or BeachBody threads!!!

Lets, do it, people!!!