Start your engines: the Importance of Fuel

When I work with people who have diet-related health issues or other issues with food, I will  compare their body to a car to illustrate what they are doing to their body when they fail to fuel it properly. This is the first in a series of posts on the various ways are bodies are like an car. Today we will look at fuel in general.

How do you get going in the morning? Are you like so many who reluctantly get out of bed, shower, dress, and run out the door stopping only long enough to get grab a cup of coffee (Or stop at the Starbucks on your way to work)? The coffee is your only fuel until you are so hungry mid-morning you grab the easiest thing available, typically from the vending machine. Or do you have a stash of granola bars or candy bars because you know you will need them to get through the day? This begins a never ending spiral into more fatigue, loss of energy and, if the cycle continues long enough, eventual weight gain and health issues including Type II diabetes.

This is insanity! Why do you keep doing the same thing over and over expecting different results? Let's look at your car; imagine you noticed you were really low on gas when you were driving home from work. You plan to fill up the tank but are distracted by a phone call. You are still on the phone when you park and go into the house. The car is no longer on your mind. The next morning, you start your daily routine and dash out the door, running late and start driving to work on fumes. You get halfway there and the car stops; the tank is empty.

What do you think you will do in the future? Do you think you will forget to put fuel in your car again. Probably not. You learned a painful lesson. What we don't realize is though, is that our body is no different than our car when it comes to needing fuel. We leave our homes in the morning running on fumes and wonder why we run out of energy.

To get going in the morning, both you and the car needs fuel, and coffee (just like gas fumes) is not adequate fuel. I know you've heard over and over that breakfast is the most important meal of the day - so eat breakfast! Coffee does not count. Does that mean you can't have coffee? No. I love my morning cup of joe, but that is not what I depend on to get moving. Neither should you.

Next up: Fuel Additives

Behavior Change and Physical Health

The following is an article from Ace Fitness. Feel free to weigh in on this important health issue:

Our Position

Because research shows that instilling sustainable healthy behavior patterns, including regular physical activity and sound nutrition, is key to addressing the obesity epidemic ( 1 ) ( 2 ), ACE seeks public policies that make highly qualified, science-based, interdisciplinary coaching, counseling, and support for sustainable behavioral change a functional, integral component of the nation’s healthcare continuum.

Discussion

Behavioral-change facilitation needs to be integral to the healthcare system, reimbursable by insurers, highly accessible, and culturally appropriate for the communities in which it is provided.Our nation’s traditional approach to healthcare—sick patients visit doctors for medical treatments—will not halt nor even slow the obesity epidemic( 3 ) ( 4 ). Obesity results from a complex mix of physiological, psychological, environmental, cultural and socioeconomic factors. Today, the healthcare system sends individuals at risk for obesity away from the system to manage those risk factors on their own. This approach is simply not working. While treating the consequences of obesity is costing the system billions of dollars annually and compromising quality of life on a grand scale, the system is still investing almost no money in primary prevention of the disease ( 3 ) ( 4 )( 5 ).

Interventions that establish healthy patterns of behavior will help reverse obesity trends ( 5 ) ( 6 ) ( 7 ). The healthcare system must invest in sustainable behavioral change at the individual, family and community levels ( 5 ) ( 6 ). Individuals at risk for obesity need ongoing, engaged support by professionals who are well trained in weight management and who specialize in sustainable behavioral change for the large and growing segment of the population at risk for obesity and its co-morbidities ( 6 ) ( 7 ) ( 8 ). Behavioral-change facilitation needs to be integral to the healthcare system, reimbursable by insurers, highly accessible and culturally appropriate for the communities in which it is provided ( 5 ) ( 6 ) ( 7 ) ( 8 ).

Public Policy Priorities

ACE urges federal and state government officials to advance public policies that effectively move obesity prevention and intervention into the healthcare system, including the payment system. Specifically, ACE calls for policies that:

• Ensure that obesity intervention and prevention is supported and paid for.
• Recognize and utilize NCCA-accredited health coaches , fitness professionals and other weight-management and behavior change experts in communities as part of the healthcare continuum.
• Incentivize medical professionals to utilize behavior-change facilitation by well-qualified health and fitness professionals for the large and growing segment of the population at- risk for obesity and its co-morbidities.
• Increase physical activity among youth at home, at school, and in the early care and education (ECE) setting.

Behavior-Change Facilitation and Addressing the Obesity Epidemic

Fitness for the Soul: Serving is Different From Helping and Fixing

“Serving is Different From Helping and Fixing"

Service…is an experience of mystery, surrender and awe…Service rests on the basic premise that the nature of life is sacred, that life is a holy mystery which has an unknown purpose. When we serve, we know that we belong to life and to that purpose. Fundamentally, helping, fixing, and service are ways of seeing life. When you help, you see life as weak; when you fix, you see life as broken. When you serve, you see life as whole. From the perspective of service, we are all connected. All suffering and all joy is like my joy. The impulse to serve emerges naturally and inevitably from this way of seeing.”

- Rachel Naomi Remen

Perseverance

“The greatest oak was once a little nut who held its ground.”

-Author Unknown

3 Strategies for Sticking to Your Health and Fitness Goals

3 Strategies for Sticking to Your Health and Fitness Goals

Remember that New Year’s resolution you made back in January? If you’re like 35 percent of people, that goal has been broken for well over a month and you’ve returned to your old habits. While it’s natural for this to make you feel discouraged, it’s important to remember that no one is perfect and there’s no reason you can’t start working toward those goals again. To give you the best possible chance at achieving your resolutions, here are three fool-proof strategies that will help you stick to your health and fitness goals.

1. Ditch the “all-or-nothing” attitude.

When you think it’s “all or nothing,” you will surely end up with nothing. You’re waging a war of will power versus habits, which is a recipe for disaster. Will power is a limited resource. Habits require no energy at all. They are effortless, which is bad for bad habits, but great for implementing new positive ones. Focus on making incremental sustainable positive changes. Think better, not perfect, and you are already on your way.

2. Make SMART Goals.

Make sure your goals are: 

Specific: Instead of “I want my fitness to improve,” try, “I want to run a 12-minute mile.”

Measurable: Take note of your starting point (e.g., your energy level, how your clothes fit and feel), so you can celebrate your progress.

Attainable: Aim for your best YOU, not something you saw in a magazine.

Relevant: Choose goals that fit YOUR lifestyle. Focus on sustainable changes, not a hiatus from your everyday life.

Time-bound: Create short-term checkpoints—weekly or monthly, for example—to monitor your progress.

3. Start NOW.

Don’t let one off-goal choice derail your entire path, or a certain day of the week dictate when you’ll “start.” Start this moment with positive perspective. Each hour, each meal, each day is a new opportunity to make on-goal choices. You are not going to be on-point every time, but as long as you are making positive moves MOST of the time you will eventually hit your goal. You deserve to be YOUR personal best and that is 100 percent in YOUR control. Look in the mirror and ask yourself what you want and why you want it. Find that intrinsic motivation to encourage you and get back on track. Bad choices are only minor detours that allow you to learn, refocus, and reinforce your commitment to pursuing your goals. Celebrate that you are in this empowering position to realize your own dreams. 

You are exactly where you are supposed to be, but there is always have room for a little tune-up. Now is the time to bring you’re A game. Just make sure you enjoy the process while we make this New Year your happiest yet. 

https://www.acefitness.org/acefit/healthy-living-article/60/5338/3-strategies-for-sticking-to-your-health-and/

Weight loss = Happiness?

No matter what brings a women into counseling, I have found one consistent issue - the vast majority maintain the belief that if only they could lose weight, they would be happy.

This is true no matter what size a woman is - she can be overweight, underweight or at the so called "ideal weight" put forth by our culture.

Even women who fit the "ideal" still worry about the scale and want to ensure they do not gain weight!

I counsel women that happiness is not found in a dress size, jean size or numbers on the scale. Of course clothing manufacturers tap in to this belief with the use of vanity sizing. (For more on this, see blog post, Vanity Sizing). So many women who believe in the power and magic of a number are disappointed. If they manage to lose the weight, they discover they are still not happy.

Instead of spending money on weight loss tools and products (a billion dollar industry), use the money to take attend seminars or see a counselor to better understand what is really missing in your life. You do not have to have a mental illness to benefit from talking to an person trained to help you uncover what really contributes to your unhappiness.

A study was done that looks at the issue of weight and happiness (link available below). I encourage you to read it.

Weight Loss Doesn't Always Lead to Happiness

Remember happiness is not found on the scale!

Vanity Sizing

I hate shopping for clothes! Not because of body image issues but because I cannot go into a store and buy an article of clothing without trying it on first. Why? Because there does not seem to be a standard any more for sizing. 

To make matters worse, clothing designers and manufacturers are playing into our insecurities with vanity sizing!

So, why do clothing brands do this? It makes shopping for clothes more difficult when manufacturers don’t use the same standards for labeling, and no doubt increases return rates when products don’t fit as expected. The simple answer is that the downsized labels make customers feel good. 1

My first experience with vanity sizing occurred when shopping at a popular women's clothing store. I grabbed the size pants I knew I was typically at in most stores and found the jeans way too big. I had to go down 4 sizes! I asked the clerk what the deal was. She said something about changing the sizing for self esteem reasons. I was angry and told her I did not support that strategy, pointed out it only made the self esteem issue worse and walked out without buying the jeans.

Want to know more about vanity sizing, check out the following articles from Forbes and the Huffington Post.