PLAN FOR SUCCESS

Having a plan is so important in our success in life and health.  I think this quote says it well: “A goal without a plan is just a wish.”  When something is planned out and written down, not only is the motivation kicked up, but also the personal challenge to reach that goal increased.  Besides, it is a written plan right in front of our face, and not something that we are only thinking about and may put into place someday.  See the difference?  If we are good stewards of our money for example, we are budgeting for expenses with our income and successfully paying our mortgages, rents, and overall bills.  Without that budget plan in place, I am sure we can all agree a huge financial mess would be the result of our irresponsibility.  Planning takes responsibility and a commitment to do what is best for our life and health.  Failing to plan sets us up for failure. 

Let’s get back to the plan and what it takes to put a health related goal into place.  I highly recommend an accountability journal to plan out strategies for exercise scheduling and also a healthy food tracking area to record food intake daily.  I also like to keep track of water intake, sleep and my overall mental game.  Tracking your weight on a scale one time per week is also motivational to see your progress and to ensure that the plan is working.  When the plan fails to function, it is never the goal that changes, but the plan or program.  Finding what works for each of us is a trial, error and fine tuning of our plan until we see the results of our investments. Just as it is exciting to pay down debt with a responsible budget plan, it is equally or even more exciting to reduce our waist lines through our commitment to the plan of adopting a healthy lifestyle. 

Everybody understands the need and importance of money to support our lives and my goal is to convey that our health banks are even more important. Imagine not balancing our checkbooks and leaving out transactions each day to the point of not knowing the balance.  Accounts would be overdrawn, additional fees paid, collectors knocking at the door, and stress increased tenfold.  That same analogy can be applied to our daily exercise and food intake.  If we do not balance our food intake, write down what is consumed, or never record our exercise expenditure, we are setting ourselves up for weight gain, increased risk of disease and illness, increased stress, and eventually doctors knocking at the door. Looking at how important a plan is for success in these terms should motivate all of us to implement them today. 

Living a healthy life is not a guessing game or a wish and we are only kidding ourselves when we run around without a plan.  Success comes when daily habits of eating healthy and moving our bodies are made a planned priority. Do we sweep our money responsibilities under the rug?  Well, I suppose some may but the outcome is always an unhealthy consequence in doing so.  How much more important is our health and that so many people do just that, sweep it under the rug.  Let’s turn the goals of obtaining a fit body into more than just a wish by starting today with a plan for adopting a healthy lifestyle. 

GIVEAWAY TIME:

WINNER RECEIVES A FULL SIZE BOTTLE

Want to win a full size bottle of THE Herbal Face Food Facial Serum and have glowing skin like never before? 

Go to my Giveaway Page and enter to win the World’s 1st Organic, RAW, Edible, 100% plants face serum with an ORAC antioxidant rating of over 10 million, making it the most potent and powerful SUPER anti-oxidizing product of any kind. Made from organic plant concentrates, antioxidants and enzymes, which are sourced from all over the world.

Herbal Face Food™ is created by J. Michael Zenn, author of the bestselling book ‘Self Health Revolution’

DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares.

Stay Healthy!

Darla

user of THE Herbal Face Food and proud to show my images without photo shop or airbrushing. I am 50 years young and celebrate Fit at 50!

YOU DON’T NEED TO TELL ME I AM FAT

In my daily walk of being a trainer and consultant, I work with many beautiful people who want to lose weight and get healthy.  Guess what, they not only know and tell me that they are fat, but carry a heavy emotional burden of unhappiness about it.  I or anyone else does no need to verbally slap them across the face by telling them what they already know.  For some reason our society feels the need to point out the obvious as if the person does not know their own condition.  Who am I or you to judge anyone without walking in their shoes physically or emotionally?  I am blessed on a daily basis with gaining insight into the lives and emotions of those who are fat challenged, empathetic to many of the shares and driven to help them adopt a healthy lifestyle.

A fat person does not need to be told their fat just as a skinny or muscular person does not need to be told what their body looks like.  Standing in the truth of our own mirrors tells that story.  There are strong stated “no excuse” and “your fault” labels placed on the fat challenged and even coming from those working in the fitness industry.  Blanket or general statements of blame seem a bit harsh without knowing each individual’s circumstances in life.  Sadly, strong and hurtful terms can be used as publicity gaining ploys but at the emotional expense of those who are in a fat challenged position in life.

I am not saying that it is a healthy state of well-being to be fat and that it should be an accepted way of life.  That is way off the base of this blog.  What I am addressing is the unfair judgments, statements, and ignorant approach to those who are fat challenged.  All people deserve to be treated with respect and honor and we definitely should not be throwing stones when most of us live in glass houses.  There are many people running around unhealthy and simply not wearing it on the outside of their bodies in the form of fat.  Imagine if everything about everyone was exposed automatically for all to see.  In such a state, I guarantee the judgments would quickly come to a halt and all of us would be running with our unhealthy tails tucked between our legs.

Whether the amount of overweight is twenty, forty, or over one-hundred pounds, the person carrying the extra weight knows and feels that burden without me as their trainer or you as an observer saying anything. Those people dealing with obesity need to feel safe to share what has gone on in their life that has brought them to such an unhealthy state of living.  Some are at the point of owning their sabotage and others are still lost in denial and not ready to make healthy changes.  I do not need to blame or fault anyone because those feelings are always shared honestly with me by those who are fat challenged.  Obesity carries a stigma that is negative and can feel painful for those that suffer it daily.  I like that saying that goes “you have fat, you are not fat” because it is not the abundance of fat that should define us as a person. 

All of us in this life want to be healthy, and even supported through the process.  It is our personal responsibility to create that healthy life regardless of our size and shape, and the healthy choices that we make today will form our healthy tomorrows.  I know what needs to be done and what makes me feel great as a healthy person, and what I offer is support, motivation and education to those who desire to get there.  All of us can find reasons to procrastinate and that is probably a good place to start by asking that question.  Why are you waiting?

GIVEAWAY TIME:

WINNER RECEIVES A FULL SIZE BOTTLE

Want to win a full size bottle of THE Herbal Face Food Facial Serum and have glowing skin like never before? 

Go to my Giveaway Page and enter to win the World’s 1st Organic, RAW, Edible, 100% plants face serum with an ORAC antioxidant rating of over 10 million, making it the most potent and powerful SUPER anti-oxidizing product of any kind. Made from organic plant concentrates, antioxidants and enzymes, which are sourced from all over the world.

Herbal Face Food™ is created by J. Michael Zenn, author of the bestselling book ‘Self Health Revolution’

DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares.

Stay Healthy!

Darla

user of THE Herbal Face Food and proud to show my images without photo shop or airbrushing. I am 50 years young and celebrate Fit at 50!

THE LAST TEN POUNDS

The last ten pounds can be a struggle, especially when everything comes to a screeching halt.  The scale is no longer budging, frustration is happening and the stress of it all is putting the adrenal glands on overdrive.  A cortisol rush is the last thing our bodies need when we are trying to lose that last ten pounds as studies have shown that it hampers our ability to lose weight.  The important thing to understand is that plateaus are normal in our journey of health and weight loss.  Also, adjustments with our food intake and exercise program will need to be reviewed several times along the way. 

Keep up the positive and progressing with your program regardless of what the scale says.  Many factors are at play when the body begins to slow down and usually a simple review and change up of the program gets things moving again. Things to consider: are you eating enough? The body is a wonderful machine and knows exactly what to do with the food we consume and knows when it is not getting enough fuel.  If we withhold fuel from our body, it will refuse to give up any reserves.  Our body sees that as energy and we need energy to burn energy.  Are you being true to your program?  Sometimes we fall back into old patterns and re-introduce foods that are not on the healthy menu for weight loss and many can even be in denial about that.  Our body will remain in a maintenance or weight gain pattern if we are not honest with our healthy food intake.  Are you exercising less? With a reduction of exercise there will be a reduction in the amount of weight that is lost per week.  Simple math spells out with the expenditure of energy results in the reduction of weight.  Take some time to review your priorities and determine if exercise has taken a backseat.  Are you burned out?  This can happen to all of us and it is important to add plenty of variety to our workout programs and healthy foods to keep the interest high.

The last ten pounds can be a challenge, but they can also be another tool of learning along our weight loss journey.  We can choose to become frustrated and throw in the towel, or open up our minds to do what it will take to get back on track with the program.  It is also important to take one day and one pound at a time and celebrate everything done to create a healthy body.  The last ten pounds will respond to what you are willing to do to be rid of it, or keep it.  It still comes down to choices and changes, and it is always a good thing to get a refresh on the mental battery to provide the motivation we need to keep going.  

GIVEAWAY TIME:

WINNER RECEIVES A FULL SIZE BOTTLE

Want to win a full size bottle of THE Herbal Face Food Facial Serum and have glowing skin like never before? 

Go to my Giveaway Page and enter to win the World’s 1st Organic, RAW, Edible, 100% plants face serum with an ORAC antioxidant rating of over 10 million, making it the most potent and powerful SUPER anti-oxidizing product of any kind. Made from organic plant concentrates, antioxidants and enzymes, which are sourced from all over the world.

Herbal Face Food™ is created by J. Michael Zenn, author of the bestselling book ‘Self Health Revolution’

DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares.

Stay Healthy!

Darla

user of THE Herbal Face Food and proud to show my images without photo shop or airbrushing. I am 50 years young and celebrate Fit at 50!

YOU HAVE TO CHANGE TO CHANGE

We can all get stuck in a rut, feel funky, or backslide on our health and fitness programs.  Burnout and frustration are top reasons for giving up and falling into old habits and it is at that point where we can dig our heels in complete rebellion turning our noses up at the changes that need to happen to live a healthy lifestyle. The truth within each of us paints a different picture and honestly, we all want to be healthy and look the part but to really be healthy and feel healthy, you have to change to experience a change.  That is the truth with all things in life: change requires change.  If we are unhappy with our health, our body, our jobs, where we are in life, people in our life, our spiritual life, our emotional self and the list does go on and on, a deliberate choice to change to change needs to happen.  

Sometimes it is a difficult process to implement the necessary changes and our rebel self can surface and try to sabotage our attempts to do something great, and for the general populous succeeds unfortunately.  Getting mad about it will not bring about what needs to be done, but taking a personal inventory, making a promise to ourselves to change, and following through with that change is what will make the difference in our lives.  I suppose if the anger was channeled into the positive and motivates the change, then getting mad could be an OK thing.  However, I have seen anger turn into bitterness, which can lead to frustration and giving up all together.  Change takes a choice, takes patience and not perfection.  As we strive to change our health and fitness, it is important to realize that it will be a journey and a challenge.  Remember, that challenges in life are what change us and that becomes the learning tool of becoming a healthy person physically and emotionally.

I like that saying that goes “Do what you have always done and you will get what you have always gotten” because it rings true to what life and being healthy is all about.  If we do not change what we do, we will remain the same in our states of unhappiness, unhealthiness, depression, stressed out situations, and emotional wreckage. It is time to get out that paper and pen and start dissecting our lives and owning the unhealthy parts so that we can figure out what needs to be done to change each area. Are you unhealthy, unhappy, stressed, depressed, anxious, or angry and whatever question you want to add? Why and what needs to be done to change that? The goal for each of us is to implement the changes that will create the healthy changes that will last a lifetime.  I find that once health is made a priority and the body starts feeling better, it is easier to move forward and make other changes as our bodies are better able to deal with stress and emotional situations.  Let’s make the change to change not only a “have to” but a “want to” for a happier you and a healthier life. 

Stay Healthy Fitness Happenings: Want to promote your business through low cost Ad Space or a fun Giveaway with Stay Healthy Fitness? Check out my pages for Ad Space or Host a Giveaway and I look forward to assisting you!

 

DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares!

Darla Leal, Fit at 50
 Orange Photography 2014

IT’S ONLY FIVE POUNDS…

How many times do we justify being unhealthy with the “it’s only” intro.  Whether it’s only five pounds, two cookies, a bag of chips, one alcoholic drink, or one missed workout, it is easy to get hooked into the trap of “it’s only”.  What happens more than not is “it’s only” turns into a daily use of trying to get away with something that leads us in the opposite direction of our goals.  The five pounds turns into ten, the two cookies turns into five, one missed workout turns into several and you get the picture that is painted with two innocent words.

The “it’s only” dilemma can hit at any time, but I find it creeps back into the picture once results from following a great nutrition and fitness program have been achieved.  Further, I have seen it completely snowball into a return back into old unhealthy eating patterns and sedentary lifestyle.  The two words are not as innocent as one might believe and especially if an inner strength to follow through on the one time “it’s only” behavior is not fully obtained.  For example, let’s look at the time it takes to break the cycle of sugar craving which is generally two weeks to twenty one days, and hypothetically use a person that is two days shy of that goal and of all days, the “it’s only” word comes to mind and tongue as a store bought processed cookie is consumed.  Now, I am all about moderation and do not get me wrong on this, however, when it comes to not fully adopting a healthy lifestyle, this time of weakness can derail all the effort put into those days of breaking a sugar craving cycle. 

Personally, why risk the goals for “it’s only” and especially if there is a struggle of inability to resist unhealthy processed food? There is no denying that two innocent words can take a person from success to digress in short order, and within a few weeks, that person stands in shock and asking “how did this happen?”.  It happened because “it’s only” became the tool that was used more consistently than the healthy choices.  Pay attention to that inner voice that is talking and especially as unhealthy food choices and bailing on workouts are happening.  Also, check your friends and family and listen to what they are saying as well…they can be the worst “it’s only” culprits as you strive to reach your health and fitness goals.  The more we are aware of the two words that draw us backward and how we use them to justify unhealthy choices, the better we will be able to stand up against the negative impact “it’s only” can have on our bodies and overall health.    

Want to promote your business through low cost Ad Space or a fun Giveaway with Stay Healthy Fitness? Check out my pages for Ad Space or Host a Giveaway and I look forward to assisting you!

 

I dedicate this Blog to my fabulous husband and celebrating our wedding anniversary over this past weekend.  I "Love You Forever and a Day"! 

Happy Anniversary to my forever friend and husband

DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares!

Stay Healthy!

Darla

FIGHT FRUSTRATION WITH MOTIVATION

I know in the midst of frustration it is hard to be motivated, especially when results are not happening as fast as we may want them to.  Sometimes the feelings move past frustration straight into “pissed off” and angry about not losing the weight, gaining the muscle, losing the inches, or just feeling right out BLAH about it all.  This is the time giving up may enter our brain, “what’s the use” dominates our thought processes, and “I might as well go back to eating the crap anyway” defeatist attitude comes calling with a vengeance.  Before all that mental non-game takes completely over, consider fighting the frustration with motivation.

We are all fighting for our health and best self each and every day.  Health is a process of small steps taken over time that provide big results.  Just know that each positive change to improve our health IS improving our health.  That does not get lost and our bodies know that something good is happening, even when we are unable to see it.  It is during times of the unseen that we must have faith in the process and be motivated by the good being done to become a healthy person. Throwing in the towel and going back to the old habits that created nothing but unhappiness and frustration in the first place does nothing for me or you except rob us of all the effort accomplished so far.  This is not the time to quit, but to stand strong in your efforts, and kick frustration to the curb with motivation.  

Fighting the frustration with motivation will require an inner strength that all of us possess, and it will be a choice to love ourselves at this moment no matter what a scale says.  It will require a celebration of that healthy meal, that one workout, a daily goal achieved, that completed food journal, or whatever has been the most difficult struggle that was finally accomplished today.  Having a positive attitude will fight off the frustration one motivation at a time, and eventually and with patience and a consistent habit of healthy eating and exercise, results will happen.  If we begin to focus not so much on the goal, but what can be achieved daily to be a healthy person the tendency to become frustrated is also minimized, and replaced with feeling motivated.  It is at that point, the stress of trying so hard is superseded by an inner peace of doing our best each day.  When relaxation and motivation take over our thought process of becoming fit and healthy, it all just seems to fall into place, and adopting that healthy lifestyle feels like it just flows as natural as breathing. 

Want to promote your business through low cost Ad Space or a fun Giveaway with Stay Healthy Fitness? Check out my pages for Ad Space or Host a Giveaway and I look forward to assisting you!

 

DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button at the right to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares!

Stay Healthy!

Darla

STAND IN YOUR FITNESS TRUTH

Standing in our fitness truth can be a difficult thing and really something we would rather not face altogether.  Even as we stand in the mirror with our naked truth right in front of us, we can still be in denial of what is looking back at us.  We tell ourselves that we are working out all the time and for heaven’s sake “I have been eating healthy for one week” and still no results.  Therein is the beginning of the end, as the frustration of not accepting the truth behind our closed doors becomes our norm for fitness.

If we truly took responsibility for our fitness truth, there would be a healthier bunch of people running around. We continue to be dishonest with ourselves and not accept that we are not eating as healthy as we should, and the workouts may be minimal at best.  We may talk a good game in front of our friends, family, and even our trainer but within the deepest space of our private life, the truth remains a buried secret.  Lying to ourselves does nothing to make us healthy people, and as we continue to brag about all the healthy meals we are eating, our bodies are telling the true story of what is happening.  Barring a medical condition that is causing weight gain, the general populous is not being impacted by such illness. It is denial of the truth that is happening most of the time and until that is dealt with, obtaining a fit and healthy body just will not happen. 

I find that keeping an accountability fitness and food journal really helps with standing in our fitness truth.  The additional splurge meals, several nights of alcohol, late night snacking, a bite of this and that, and working out two times instead of four times during the week are just a few of the things that we find easy to deny when it comes to our fitness. For some reason those things get forgotten and the only thing remembered is that healthy grilled salmon and vegetables eaten several times during the week.  Further, if we do not write it down, it does not exist and therefore will not negatively impact all the positive efforts.  Who is anyone trying to kid with this type of thinking and behavior.

When we begin to stand in our fitness truth positive results from our efforts will be loud and clear through our bodies changing for the healthy best. This can be a tough subject to swallow and that is alright, because we all need to start somewhere and beginning with the truth in all relationships including the one with ourselves is the basis of all trust.  Do you trust yourself enough to stand in your own fitness truth? 

DON'T MISS MY FREE UPDATES!!!

My Don and Me

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list, or if you want to receive my free updates, use the button above this paragraph to select your feed preference. I look forward to responding to your comments and appreciate your shares!

Stay Healthy

Darla