Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Researchers have done it again -- put the scientific stamp on something we all know to be true

Can you build up a tolerance to delicious foods?  That is the question some researchers asked and the answer is exactly the one we all know to be true (honestly, how many times do researchers just validate something we aready know to be true?)

Anyway -- they did their study by feeling people ice cream and using an MRI to watch how the reward center of the brain lights up.  More ice cream = less light up.  More ice cream = less pleasure derived from the ice cream.

One of the struggles many people deal with is the idea that they "love" XYZ food.  They can't say no to it and "must!" eat it when ever it crossed their path (or more likely whenever they have the opportunity to cross it's path).

But I know from my own experience, every food I like has, at times, when I have eaten enough, lost its wonderful flavor.  And I'm not even talking about gallons and gallons of whatever it is.  I am talking about 1 portion that would be only a little embassarsing to share the picture of.

So that leads me to wonder, why, if we claim to LOVE a certain food (or all foods in general) wouldn't we want to do what it takes to maximize the pleasure those foods give us?  The way to do that has been researched -- but we've known it all along (although we might not want to admit it because it blows our excuse for our overeating behavior right out of the water!)

Eat less of what you love.  Eat less of everything.  Pay attention to what you are eating.  Full is not the same thing as satisfied (satisfied happens a lot quicker).

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

What to do when the cake stares you in the face ---a thought from fear.less....

A thought from fear.less(one of my fav blogs!)

Last week I went to see a friend who'd recently lost some weight. The person I was
with saw our friend's smoking new body and said, "Wow! How'd you do it - it never
works for me." I pinched her and thought, "Oof. It's not about you." But then I thought
"Why hasn't it worked for you?"

I'm guilty of the same stinking thinking: No matter how hard I tried, for almost ten
years of my life, eating healthy just didn't seem manageable for me. I'd drive 
myself demented trying to be consistent, but it still came and went just as a phase. 
I'd work out, but didn't get the results I really wanted. "What gives?!" I thought. "I'm 
doing everything but nothing seems to be working." And this thought process 
would have continued had it not been for, ironically, a piece of cake.

Last year I was at the office when one day someone brought in the ultimate chocolate 
cake - fudgy, gooey, firm. I was over the moon. I love sweets and this was the jackpot, 
but dessert was also my biggest nemesis. So as it often happened, when this cake 
from God's Bakery arrived, I was in my "only eating healthy" phase

What's a gal to do?

A little indignant, I ate not only one but two pieces. I didn't want to deny my body
what it naturally craved, right? Meanwhile, a colleague typed away but looked at me 
and smiled. I barely registered. Was she enjoying it too? Did she have a slice?

Whatever, I didn't care. I had cake.

I went home after work and caught up on my blogs, one written by the same friend I 
worked with. As I read the day's post, the details of a particular scene she described
sounded all too familiar - cake, colleagues, healthy eating efforts. My eyes scanned 
wildly and I saw that she had relayed my cake escapade to extrapolate a universal 
lesson on decision making from it! She used the blunder to show the consequences 
of poor decision making; that if you caved when it really mattered, could you ever 
really expect to change? She illustrated how a crazy person did the same thing over 
and over again but expected different results, and supported it with my cake eating! 
I was mortified. To see my actions in the light of day, not to mention on her blog, was
embarrassing! Plus didn't she realize that I also read her blog? 

I kept reading. She said how important it was to redefine our behaviors during the 
moments that felt okay to cheat or give up on, but which really mattered if we wanted
to see results; That despite our hard work, our efforts didn't matter if in a moment 
where cake stared us in the face, cake won. She knew how badly I wanted to remain 
healthy, not just have a health "phase," so she emphasized that results meant 
changing habitual patterns in the right moments, moments that really challenged us, 
like in the office that day.  As I kept reading, I still felt disbelief, but started to see why
she had written the post, the lesson that was actually behind it.

I realized that all the Tim Ferriss exercises in the world wouldn't matter if every chance 
I got, I chose that piece of chocolate cake. Would anything pay off if the one thing I 
consistently did was let bad habits get in my way of progress? Would I fall into the same 
trap that had me stuck for years? It was effective to see my behavior reflected through 
the lens of an honest friend. Right there and then my guilt turned into awareness and 
I saw her point. I saw how I deluded myself to think "it never worked for me" when in 
fact, it did. It 100% worked. I just stopped myself from seeing it. My body responded 
wonderfully well when I ate healthy, danced, remained active, and controlled my stress. 
My challenge was to recognize that the pivotal moments, the space I thought didn't 
matter, was where I actually got the results I wanted. It was that moment that changed 
everything.

I've stopped saying "It doesn't work for me" now. Instead, if I want to indulge, I indulge. 
The big difference is that I know the pumpkin pie contributes to the bottom line just as 
much as the spinach does, and I don't delude myself into thinking it doesn't. That 
nuance makes all the difference. The universal lesson I take from this is that sometimes, 
you just can't have your cake and eat it too.


****if you haven't been to fear.less -- I highly recommend the trip!  Somehow, stories of others dealing with their fears tend to make us feel less alone (and consequently, less afraid.)

Monday, February 27, 2012

Thought for the Day...

We’re so used to responding to our environment that it’s hard to take discomfort even for a few minutes; It doesn’t even have to be uncomfortable, it can simply be what you’re not used to and instantly you want to change the situation. We inextricably link our environments to our bodies so we design them to meet our comfort levels – If we can’t do it, we get angry. If we’re uncomfortable, we want to stop feeling it. But this is exactly what perpetuates discomfort – wanting something to be different than what it is.  Ishta, fear.less

Friday, February 24, 2012

Do you experiment or do you comply?

 The “Experiment” was just that: a chance to test what it felt like to live with a totally different orientation.  It was a commitment to take a door that was too closed for my taste and open it wide.  --Sasha Dichter

How do you look at changing your diet?  Is it something that just needs to get done so you can move on with your "real" life?  Or is it part of an over-all plan to create the next phase of your real life?

Those successful at aging (as marked by how much they look forward to each day, their overall satisfaction with their lives up to this point, etc) are the ones who are constantly evolving (willingly...or at least kind of willingly....definitely not kicking and screaming).  I don't need to explain the concept of experimentation to them -- they live it in small ways each day.

Compliance is something different.  That's just getting the job done without the emotional connection to what it is you're trying to accomplish.  Gutting your way through a strict diet is compliance --  living on will-power is compliance.  You're desperately doing something you don't really want to do (even if you do want the results).

From my point of view, experimentation opens up a whole new world of possibilities.  You're options of how you want to manage your weight are infinite (maybe you're very disciplined during the week and more lax on the weekend -- maybe you limit your eating out to twice a month but when you do, you leave room for desert -- maybe you start with a restrictive eating plan for 2 weeks to break your sugar cravings and then slowly add back the foods you love).

Like the quote says -- experimentation is a chance to live life with a whole new orientation.  Perhaps that orientation of finding out which foods really do taste great and which ones are just habit is an opportunity to change the direction of your life.

This weekend, practice the experimentation mindset.  See if you can observe your behaviors without judging them.  As you make choices, see if there are other choices that might suit the situation and goals a little better.  Experiment and see what works (and what doesn't) -- like the quote from Monday said:

"Progress has little to do with speed but much to do with direction." 

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Personally I'd describe obesity as the natural consequence of placing a collection of truly ancient genes, genes forged over millions of years of incredible and constant dietary insecurity and upheaval, into an insane, calorific, modern day, dietary utopia. In other words? Obesity and overweight are our bodies' normal, natural, responses to the world they finds themselves living in.  --Yoni Freedhoff

You're not going to change your genes.

Odds are very small you're going to move yourself to a plot of land in Montana and start a subsistence farm.  (Sure, you'd probably get to the weight you're working toward but there'd be nobody to see you do it).  So, you may make some changes to your personal environment but chances are you're not going change your extended environment very much.

You can, however, change how you react to your environment.  You have the option to learn to say "not right now".  This is an option our ancestors who experienced "incredible and constant dietary insecurity and upheaval" did not have.  They NEEDED to eat whatever came across their path -- they didn't know when the next food would show up.

YOU do not live in that world.  It is no longer life-sustaining to eat whatever crosses your path.  And yet.....how many time a day do you do just that?

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

One of the problems with striving to eat "healthy"

In recent months, I have added a number of food politics blogs to my reading list.  It's interesting to get some perspective on the highly political world of food packaging decision making.  It makes sense that an industry that generates this much money would run into issues with making claims on their packaging that might not exactly be true (as in proven by science).

Take for instance this article about probiotic sellers (in this case yogurt manufacturers in Europe).  The EU is making changes to what health claims manufacturers are going to be allowed to put on their packaging.  New, tougher standards are going to require increased scientific testing before they can claim their product can positively impact this or that condition.  Obviously, the manufacturers aren't happy because without those claims, you are only going to buy their product based the fact that you actually like yogurt -- not that it is some kind of cure all for every ill.

The interesting thing about this is how under the radar these health claims fly for me (and I assume for many of you).  If Jamie Lee Curtis is telling me Activia with help my digestive system better than some no-name yogurt that isn't "designed" to help my digestive system-- I have assumed that was actually true.  But -- buyer beware!  This very claim is now on the losing end of the EU's new stricter guidelines.

We are all susceptible to food advertising.  Extend the skepticism you associate with used car salesmen, quick-talking mortgage brokers, and diet gurus to "health food" claims.  They are all out to sell you something and are willing to tell you what you want to hear to get you to buy.

Just because something says it's healthy doesn't mean it is.  And when you find yourself eating when you're not hungry, that is the definition of overeating.  Eating when you're not hungry (even if it's a "healthy" choice) is still eating too much.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

What is it that drives people to change?

Why do some people succeed?  I was watching a person train with one of our trainers today.  This client has made dramatic changes in his appearance since he started working with this trainer.  He didn't have a big exercise history to draw on.  His diet choices had lots of room for improvement.

Sounds like a lot of people, right?  Maybe even you.  What made his so special that he could make these changes?

Maybe one day he woke up and said "Enough!  This isn't working."  How many times have you said that yourself?

But I think the really important part of what he did came next -- he actually put his money where his mouth was and DID SOMETHING TO PROPEL (compel?)  HIM TO CHANGE.  In this particular case, he hired a coach.

And the last step (and another one that is critical) -- he hasn't let himself off the hook.  He hasn't let himself decide it's too hard or he's too tired or something else has a long-term priority.  He took the option of quitting off the table. 

If there's no option to quit, there's no arguing with yourself.  It's just who you are and what you do.

That, I think, is the real key -- when there become no other viable options you do what you need to do.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Thought for the Day....

"Progress has little to do with speed but much to do with direction." --author unknown

Friday, February 17, 2012

Do something Friday

Picture from Gretchen Rubin at The Happiness Project
No matter what your plan is for the weekend -- more movement is a good thing.  Movement burns calories, makes you more sensitive to insulin (ie less diabetic), and helps one differentiate physical hunger from boredom.

I don't know where you are but our weather here looks like it should be decent enough to get outside both days this weekend.  (have you noticed how late sunset times are getting!)

This weekend, get yourself outside and move.  Even if it's just for a few minutes, consider it a dose of medicine.  We're well on our way to wrapping this winter up and moving on to spring but until that happens, it's very likely most of us our going to be using the last of our will power to stay out of the kitchen because all we want to do it munch away the boredom of the gloomy, damp, grey weather.

Not for you!  Not this weekend!  Get outside and burn some energy.  I bet when you get back inside, you won't feel quite like you need to eat a sleeve of saltines just to make it through the next boring hour.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Throw away the Maps

I thought this was a fantastic read!  Hopefully, you're in the midst of writing down everything you're eating.  That is a map.  It tells you where you've been.  It give you an idea of the direction you need to go. 

I hope this inspires you as much as it did me!

"People judge us by the path they’ve seen us walk before. They can’t anticipate our future steps. We, ourselves, look to how things have been, what seems to be the lay of the land, without realizing that the maps are not the territory.

Want to succeed at work? Then don’t try to do your job. Instead, work towards something larger, more meaningful, and something that blends your convictions internally with your best ability to help others externally.

Want to create something new? Then throw away the old, or maybe join two disparate old things together into something new. The newest creations often come from two old maps stuck together.

Want to feel confident? Then forgive yourself every footstep you’ve ever taken until the one still attached to the bottom of your foot and start now. Today. Day one. Focus on your next steps, not the ones you missed.

Bravery and courage don’t come from following some guide. Be where you are, truly where you are at this moment, and see the real territory around you and take stock. And with that reality, even if it’s a painful one, throw away your maps and walk your own path. " Chris Brogan

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

What can mindfulness do for you?

Obviously, we've talked  a lot about mindfulness here -- paying attention to the action of what you are putting into your mouth, making choices about whether you actually want to eat whatever's on it's way in, becoming more fluent in recognizing the difference between reacting to a stimulus in your environment and acting on a bodily signal of physical hunger.

I've mentioned how for most of my clients, mindful eating bleeds over into other aspects of their lives -- buying that new shirt because it is truly beautiful and not just reflexively because it's on sale, starting to pay closer attention to how exercise makes you feel as a way to increase your positive associations with that habit, etc.
I just came across this brief write up on how mindfulness, as taught through the practice of yoga, can reduce the pain associated with fibromyalgia.  For those of you who don't know, fibromyalgia is a health condition that isn't well understood but shows itself as pain, muscle soreness, stiffness, fatigue and depression.  According to researchers, those in the study who participated in yoga 75 minutes two times per week for 8 weeks experienced a significant reduction in their stress hormone cortisol.
Neat!  But why's that important here??  Because increased cortisol levels cause the body to gain weight!

And, according to the researchers:
“We saw their levels of mindfulness increase – they were better able to detach from their psychological experience of pain,” Curtis says. Mindfulness is a form of active mental awareness rooted in Buddhist traditions; it is achieved by paying total attention to the present moment with a non-judgmental awareness of inner and outer experiences.

“Yoga promotes this concept – that we are not our bodies, our experiences, or our pain. This is extremely useful in the management of pain,” she says. “Moreover, our findings strongly suggest that psychological changes in turn affect our experience of physical pain.”

This study underscores the body/mind connection.  For centuries, Western medicine has treated one or the other but failed to fully appreciate the integrated nature of both.

The same experiences written about by the researchers are experienced by those trying to lose weight -- the pain may be less physical and more emotional but it shows itself in many of the same ways: fatigue, depression, tension.....

Just another reminder that the mindfulness you are practicing when you eat is an important skill for the more than just weight management.  It's a tool to live better -- and isn't that a worthwhile investment of your time?

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Are your Valetine's Day treats calling your name?

When talking about cravings, one tool is the redirect.  Instead of immediately giving into the craving (mouth hunger -- not physical hunger), if one can redirect one's actions many times, the craving goes away.
As a fitness professional, I think a great way to redirect is, instead of walking to the vending machine at 3p,  head outside and take a quick walk around your building.  Not only does that offer the opportunity to change up your scenery, clear your head, and give you a distraction so you can take your mind off the craving, it give you an extra opportunity to add steps into your day to increase your heart health!

But a new study suggests that if a person proactively walks for 15 minutes a day (BEFORE the cravings start), they may find themselves eating many fewer snack calories throughout the day!

Fewer cravings means you won't have to use as much will-power (and we all know that's something that can be in short supply!) to keep your response to cravings under control!

The study author says, "We often feel that these snacks give us an energy boost, or help us deal with the stress of our jobs, including boredom," Taylor said in a statement. "People often find it difficult to cut down on their daily treats but this study shows that by taking a short walk, they are able to regulate their intake by half."

So, perhaps it's time to add another tool to your mindfulness toolbox!

Monday, February 13, 2012

Thought for the Day.....quicker and cheaper

Let’s work harder on changing what we eat, rather than hoping for designer drugs, to fix the epidemics of obesity and diabetes that are hurting so many Americans.  It’s cheaper and will work a whole lot sooner. --Peter Attia, MD

Friday, February 10, 2012

Do something Friday - putting it all together

Okay -- at this point, hopefully, you have been journalling for a week.

***Although experience tells me many of you think you can do this without actually taking the time to write it down.  And I will tell you, in no uncertain terms, you're wrong.  Writing it down requires discipline -- which is what is required to learn any new skill.  If you're not writing it down, you're dabbling.  Which is fine if that's the kind of results you want.  But if you actually want to manage your weight, learn a new skill, and work with your body the way it is designed -- you HAVE to write this stuff down.***

And that is exactly your "Do something Friday" plan.  Write it down.  Everything you put into your mouth. 
What time are you eating? 

What time are you journalling? (You need to be writing this stuff down in close proximity to the actual eating event -- otherwise, it is unlikely you will remember everything little "just one bite" thing you ate ....  which is the definition of un-mindfulness!

How hungry are you when you start?

How full are you when you finished?

That's it.  Two weeks.  Make the commitment to WRITE IT DOWN and you will be surprised how much easier it gets to be mindful.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

The Middle

Okay -- so you've worked on assessing when how physically hungry you are and how full you get.  What about those times when you're not hungry at all (but you eat anyway).

This isn't bad behavior!  It just needs to be recognized so you can plan accordingly.

So far, we've got all of the numbers on the scale defined except 456.  This is used all as one word not as levels and it signifies trigger eating.

Trigger eating is eating for any reason other than physical hunger.  So -- you're 3 o'clock vending machine trip when you had lunch at noon?  Likely, trigger eating because you're bored, sick of working, or just need a break. 

Eating at noon but not physically hungry?  456.  If you're eating because the clock tells you it's time -- trigger eating.  Eating because you need to take meds with food?  Trigger eating.  Eating the piece of birthday cake because you don't want to be rude?  Trigger eating.

It's not bad.  It's not inappropriate.  It just is.  Learn to understand the difference between trigger eating and physical hunger and it just gives you more option about where you're going to find your nine bites to leave uneaten.

TODAY, notice when you're eating for any other reason than physical hunger.  WRITE IT DOWN!

....and as always....don't judge!  Be nice to yourself and just notice these behaviors -- you're not broken and there's no need to fix yourself.  This is just an exercise to give yourself more opportunities to actively choose working on your long-term satisfaction versus choosing short-term gratification.

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Fullness scale

Yesterday, we talked about the physical sensation of hunger.  Today, we're hitting the fullness side of things.

Be warned:  Fullness assessment is trickier than hunger assessment because we have trouble admitting just how full we let ourselves get.  Remember -- NO JUDGMENT!! This isn't an indicator of what kind of a person you are!!  We're just looking for room to leave some of what we currently eat uneaten.  (That's how we're going to reduce our intake by 9 bites per day and lose .5-1 pound a week....without dieting!!)

7 No Longer Hungry
At this point you are no longer hungry but you have no sensation of anything in your stomach.

***if you think you mostly eat to a 7, I can almost guarantee your being overly optimistic in your assessment.  If you start out at a level 3 hunger, 7 is roughly 150-250 calories away.  Think about the size of a 100 calorie snack pack -- not very much volume! 

Or think of it this way, a bite of food averages 35-50 calories.  When was the last time you sat down at dinner physically hungry and only ate 5 or 6 bites.  That's roughly what it would take to get to a 7.  Most of us are eating beyond this most of the time (otherwise you wouldn't be trying to lose weight!)

8 Full
You feel the first sensations of fullness
Anytime you have any sensation of anything in your stomach you are at least an 8

 9 Very Full
Your stomach is starting to physically stretch

10 Extremely Full
There is a large enough volume to cause the stomach to feel significantly stretched

It's been my experience that when a person first starts working with me (and for myself when I first started working on my own mindfulness) that most are regularly eating to a 9 (stomach is starting to stretch) or 10 (it has actually stretched).

Thanksgiving is a 13 -- way off the scale!!  Don't use the most overeating holiday to anchor your 10 point scale!

So, today, work on figuring out what your fullness level feels like every time you get done eating.  Write it down!  I know you just want to do this exercise in your head because writing it down is such a pain -- too bad!  If you want to increase your skill level at anything, you have to do the work.

Don't be lazy -- write it down.  Once you get the scale mastered, you will have a whole new appreciation for how little you really need to eat to be satisfied (which is different than full or stuffed) and managing your weight will be that much easier.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Hunger scale

As promised last week, we're going to take some time this week to review the hunger/fullness scale.

Today, we're going to focus on the hunger side of things.

Many clients come to me a talk about how they are hungry all the time.  They are concerned that if they use hunger to guide them in when to eat, they will gain a TON of weight -- because they are hunger 24/7.

Here's the thing -- a large percentage of those people actually learn they do not understand what physical hunger really is.  They associate the desire to eat with the physical hunger signal when, in fact, they are two very different feelings.

Physical hunger is felt in your stomach.  It's growling, an emptiness, or a hollowness.  If you feel it and don't eat, it will come back more intensely.  Sometimes, I tell my clients "Hunger is like a light switch -- you either are physically hungry or your not.  You are not "kinda" physically hungry. "

This is because hunger is the physical signal our body sends out when it needs more calories to keep going. 

So, for journal purposes, TODAY, pull out that journal and start assessing every time you put something into your mouth:

How hungry are you?

3 Physically HungryThe first sensations of physical hunger but you are in charge and can start planning what you want to eat.

2 Hungry Sense of emptiness or hollowness in stomach

1 Very Hungry
Need to eat is very strong, may be light headed

0 Extremely Hungry Physically sick, nauseous from not eating

If you're not physically hungry -- just make a note of that in your journal.  And remember:

NO JUDGMENT!  You're just experimenting to figure out what you're feeling.  This isn't an exercise in only eating when you're hunger -- just practice assessing what physical sensations you are feeling before you eat.




 

Monday, February 6, 2012

Thought for the Day....who are you?

Okay -- this is a longer than normal thought for the day but stick with me:

Today, my friend Travis Saunders, co-author of the blog Obesity Panacea, recounts his recent experience going to his doctor's. Brief background. Travis? He's stupid fit. He's the guy that makes you shake your head and wonder what kind of crazy crawled into him that makes him run, bike, and ski through sun, rain and snow, day in and day out. He's also an obesity researcher. A good one.

So what happened with Travis?

The nurse practitioner at his MD's office weighed him, saw that his BMI was nearing 25, and told him he should, "watch his weight" moving forward as he was nearing the "overweight" range.

You see Travis wasn't Travis to the nurse. He was BMI 24.5.

I suspect other folks visiting that nurse weren't Marge, or Bill or Peter, they were BMI 37, BMI 32, and BMI 29.  --
Yoni Freehoff, MD

So...the big question for the day is:  Who are you?  Do you see yourself as a person?  Or a number on the scale? 

Friday, February 3, 2012

Do something Friday

Mindfulness is....

Deliberately paying attention, without judgment, to one's own experiences.

Cultivating an appreciation of all experiences.

Happens in the present moment.

....don't get concerned.  These aren't touchy, feely concepts.  They are the basis of a very practical strategy that will allow you to start understanding why you eat (are you hungry, bored, highly suggestible), how much you eat (do you eat until your stuffed or do you graze all day and never really get physically hungry), and when you eat (all the time, anytime you're with others, any time you get into the car...)

Yesterday, I said we're going to start reviewing the use of the Hunger/Fullness scale.  But first -- let's get you practiced up in the skill of being able to write down EVERYTHING you put into your mouth.

Nothing tricky here except actually getting it done.  You don't need to estimate amounts or anything.  Just write down:

7a coffee with cream
10a Oatmeal
2.30p chips and cheese / cookie

etc.

The time you ate and what you ate.

And don't judge!  Yes...I know what that list looks like!  There's not a veggie to be seen on that list-- nutrition is atrocious!  But...it's what I have eaten so far...I could lie and make myself feel and look better.  But it wouldn't change my actually choices (because I've already made them!) 

If I can do it, so can you! 

Tackle mindfulness for 4 days.  I'll see you back here on Tuesday to review the Hunger/Fullness scale.

Thursday, February 2, 2012

My Blog

I just printed out all of the posts on this blog since I moved it here (June 2009!). I'm getting ready to use it as a jumping off place for another project. It's just under 800 posts long!  The stack of pages (with .3 inch margins) is larger than a ream of paper.  Woo hoo!

But flipping through the stack, I realized this pile of paper is a pretty good metaphor for our diets.

There's some really good stuff in there.  There's also some crap.  And there's a bunch of stuff that seemed pretty good at the time but looking at it now it makes me think I could have made some different choices.

So now comes the task of sorting through all that and finding the high points.  Once I can identify them, I can build on those experiences to become better at what I do.

How 'bout you?  Are you ready to start your own catalogue of high (and not so high) points?  Tomorrow, we're starting the review of how to use the hunger scale.  Grab your pencils, paper, or smart phones and get set!

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Tools vs insight

Knowing about a tool is one thing.......Perhaps we need to spend less time learning new tools and more time using them.

I have a saying -- no knowledge is ever wasted.  To me, it means even if I take the time to learn
something today but have no conceivable way to use that knowledge just yet, I fully expect that at some point in the future, I will be able to use that knowledge -- so learning is never a waste of time.

But what happens if you never use that knowledge?  For me, the process of learning is enjoyable (most of the time) so even if I never use that specific knowledge, if I got joy from the process --viola!  not a waste!

But what about you and managing your weight?

Reading this blog is fantastic.....if:

a. it entertains you (and hopefully it does)
b. you learn something you can integrate into your eating behaviors. (which hopefully you do...at least sometimes)

And if one of those two (or maybe even both) are true for you then the time you spend with me isn't wasted.

But....if you want to make progress with your weight management skills -- you have to start PUTTING INTO PRACTICE those skills that strike you as do-able.

Eat less.

Move more.

Find a few extra way to use both those skills in a week (and in the next and the next) --- now that is a recipe for weight management success!