Why and how health should be a New Year's Resolution!

Want to shape up? Become a new and better you!

How many people do you know that made a New Years Resolution to better their health, go to the gym more, eat more vegetables, or stop eating fast food. How many people have already given up?! I bet more than half, and if they have not given up yet they may be coming close! 

I don't mean to be a nay sayer or a negative Nancy, but it is true! Every year people start declaring resolutions without any plan or actual commitment to these positive changes. I, for one, am a big supported of resolutions, because they are truly a way for people to actively try to improve their lives! That sounds AMAZING! 

Well if losing weight and looking hotter than hell is not enough motivation to get your booty moving, I don't know what is! BUT I do know that research has shown that regular physical activity may be "THE best preventive drug we have" for many health problems. Well that is good news :). Our country is so focused on our health care system, prescription drugs, and fixing our health once it has already gone to shiza! Excuse my language <3 PREVENTIVE medicine is where it is at! Take care of your body now so that you do not have "fix" your body later. 

Studies have shown that consistent exercise can help to control weight (duhhh), but also helps reduce the risk of early death, lowers the risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, anxiety, cognitive decline, and depression! Not only can you help yourself NOT get sick or depressed but if you just workout everyday for as little as 30 minutes you can IMPROVE your sleep, mood, concentration and memory! 

Jordan Metzl, a sports medicine physician at New York city's Hospital for Special Surgery and the author of The Exercise Cure states, that exercise "works from tip to toe, and it prevents and in some cases treats the most common diseases we see in America. […] Exercise is the best preventive drug we have, and everybody needs to take that medicine." Not only exercise, but CLEAN eating is imperative to our healthy futures. 

A physician and director of preventive medicine research at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge agrees! Timothy Church states "Exercise strengthens the entire human machine - the heart, the brain, the blood vessels, the bones, the muscles. The most important thing you can do for your long-term health is lead and active life."

And who would know better about the importance of an active lifestyle than Tony Horton himself! Tony Horton is the creator and star of the P90X DVD series - Power90, P90X, P90X2, P90X3. These 90 day programs have been changing the lives of people all over the world! Physical activity is a mental and emotional game changer, Tony Horton adds "I can't tell you how many people are off their meds because they exercise regularly. Fit, healthier people are more productive, happier folks."

Can you believe that only 21% of adults in America meet the government's recommendations for muscle strengthening and aerobic exercise?! But that is according to recent federal data, who knows how accurate that is! The National Cancer Institute used motion sensors in their studies to find that fewer than 5% of adults in the USA get at least 30 minutes a day of moderate intensity physical activity! No wonder heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States.1

To clarify what the governments recommendations are: at least 2.5 hours a week of moderate intensity aerobic activity such as a brisk walk, one hour and 15 minutes A WEEK of vigorous intensity aerobic activity, such as jogging. << crazy!

Everyone has a different reason to be motivated to exercise, but most people need to jump on a plan or a program that will keep them accountable, something that they can stick to! 

Often people "care too much about the mirror, scale and tape measure, and when they don't change at the speed they anticipate, they quit. They expect tremendous results in an unrealistic amount of time. I talk about consistency, purpose and a plan. If you are consisted with your exercise, you'll thrive. If you want to thrive, you must be consistent, and you have to have a plan. Surround yourself with like-minded people. I am someone who exercises with someone else most of the time. There is someone in the room who challenges me, whose company I enjoy."

 - Tony Horton

Do your best and forget the rest! If each day you try a little harder and stick to your program or plan, it will not become easier, BUT YOU will get BETTER!! 2 weeks into working out (and undoing my workout with a poor diet) I would give up because I didn't have rocking' abs yet!! 3 years later, after quitting time and time again, I have FINALLY found my niche and my groove. 

If your resolution this year is to shape up and get fit, both exercise and diet need to be a part of the equation to success. 

Metzl says his food message is simple. "If it occurs in nature, eat it, and if it doesn't expire until 2020, don't eat it. Try to eat food that is naturally occurring as best you can - vegetables, grains, proteins."

Tony claims "Keep food simple and natural! Food should come from the farm not from the factory. Too many people are reaching into bags and boxes for quick, easy calories. They're addicted to fat, sugar, and chemicals."

SO are you going to take control of your life NOW? Or are you going to wait until you are fat, sick and nearly dead to run to the pharmacists and grab all your prescriptions so that you can barely live? The choice is yours, the POWER is yours. 

"The two things you control are what you eat and whether you decide to exercise. Those two things will change your life."

Original post >> http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/12/29/exercise-health-new-year/4042055/

1. Kochanek KD, Xu JQ, Murphy SL, Miniño AM, Kung HC. Deaths: final data for 2009  [PDF-2M].National vital statistics reports. 2011;60(3).

What to do when you feel like giving up.

We've all been there, sick and tired of not seeing progress or change. You make endless changes just to find that nothing is happening. You are ready to throw in the towel and reach for a hamburger and fries and call it a day! Ever feel like quitting? Hell yes!! A better question is how many time a DAY do I feel like quitting. We have all been there and not wanted to continue on. Whether it is growing your own business, starting a healthy lifestyle, working on a project, etc. we have all wanted to give up and not look back. Even the most successful people have felt like giving up, and have probably done so.

BUT this journey that we call life is not the smoothest road to travel. There will be twists and turns and bumps and probably some accidents! You might have to take a detour or you hit a pothole, whatever road you are on will be hard. Does that mean that you should give up on your dreams, on yourself? NO!

Because we cannot see what is around the next curve, we often unfortunately give up. The unpredictability of life is hard but it is what makes it so exciting!! So when you feel like quitting what can you do to turn on the positivity and look fear in the eye? Here are some ways to face your fears and not give up!

- Reflect back on the reasons you started in the beginning. What was the first thing that really catapulted you towards this goal? For me it was when I looked down at the scale and I was far too close to hitting 200 lbs. I did not want to be there! I had let myself go so far that I knew I needed change. Find that spark that first created the flame of change and rekindled that fire! (so cheesy!!)

- Focus on the positive. Write down 10 reasons why you CAN do it! 10 reasons why you WILL succeed. What are you strengths that will push you forward and get you to where you want to be? My boyfriend Ryan and I are constantly uplifting ourselves and each other so that our hearts know and believe that we are "good enough," "strong enough," and "capable!"

- Move your focus to the solution rather than what is holding you back. Whatever you focus on expands right?! Put into the universe the outcome in which you desire. If you focus on your struggle that will be the biggest thing on your horizon. Mind over matter people!!

- Give yourself permission to quit..... sound weird? If you give yourself permission to quit and then think about what will happen when you do, you can focus more on why you are doing it in the first place. If you tell yourself "I can't quit" then it is almost more enticing to quit! If you do quit will you be happy though?

- The definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results. Maybe what you think is working for you is not! Maybe you need to assess your methodology, your nutrition, or workout program. Set realistic goals for yourself, something that you may have to push hard for but that you can actually achieve! Lose 20 lbs. in 1 month is HARD!!! and for many it is not realistic. But something like "fit back into my favorite jeans comfortably" that is a measurable realistic goal!

- Make a contract with yourself that you must follow. What do you intend to accomplish? How do you intend to accomplish these goals? How long will it take to accomplish your goals? What will happen if you do not accomplish the goals? Sign and date this contract and tape it to your mirror! Look at it everyday and ask yourself, "Am I doing everything I can to accomplish these goals?"

- GET REAL! Success isn't easy, were you tricked by the illusion that you can success doesn't take work? Because it does, plain and simple! If you want to quit something, then you should quit fooling yourself that success is a piece of cake!

- GET OVER IT! Once you realize that it takes more time than 3 weeks for you to see visible results you will realize that these healthy small changes that you are making MUST add up and pay off down the road. It took me 3 years to lose 30 lbs., some people can lose that much in 60 days but I quit SEVERAL times after I didn't see results after 2 weeks. I am so thankful I stuck with it though, I kept pushing play, getting my sweat on, and making healthy decisions! Now I not only have made a physical transformation but an emotional transformation and I am so HAPPY!! :)

There is no difference between successful people and non successful people, there is no secret or magic that you have to obtain! As Darren Hardy states in his personal development book The Compound Effect, "Achievement is not about luck, it is about science! You reap what you sow." When you really focus in on what you want and you make small and smart choices each day consistently, with time you will see RADICAL DIFFERENCE! Just have patience with your body, remember it took years to get to where you are, so change will not come over night.

Good Luck!! Don't quit now, not after all of your hard work!
xoxo
Heally