SMALL steps...

Lisamarie1226

I have the Biggest Loser desk calendar and this was the motivation tip recently:

"For some of us, the most effective way to adapt new eating and exercising habits is by taking small, conservative steps - no abrupt changes in lifestyle or behavior. No grandiose pledges to lose 20 lbs in a month or to exercise super-hard for hours every day or to never eat cheesecake ever again. Small steps, successfully completed, build confidence."

I will tell this to anyone who is struggling (for more than a day), especially if they are in the beginning of their journey or even half way through. Start small. DO NOT overhaul your lifestyle all at once, that is NOTHING more than a recipe for disaster.

Pick ONE new/healthier habit and focus on that for a week or 2. The easiest thing? START with MORE water. Especially if you are a big soda or fancy coffee drinker (fraps, lattes with whip cream anyone?) Ditch the regular soda, switch to diet if you must but limit yourself to ONE a day (and try to cut it out eventually). Once you've successfully mastered the 64 oz daily requirement, try something else.

Aim to be more active. Start small. Don't say "Hey, I completed step 1....Now I'm gonna hit the gym 5-6 days a week for 90 minutes..." Uh, NO! NOT if you are JUST starting out. I'm sorry but you cannot go from couch potato slacker to gym rat in a week. Start by vowing/committing to AT LEAST 30 minutes of exercise 3 days a week. Once you have that down, add another day or another 15 minutes. The point is to MAKE it a HABIT FIRST before you do anything else. If you don't have a gym membership, walk (walk the dog, take your kid on the stroller, walk while your older kid rides a bike, etc .... WALKING IS FREE and you can do it anywhere) or use home videos or exercise TV or YouTube or do calisthenics (pushups, sit ups, squats & lunges)...... YOU HAVE OPTIONS!!!

Once you have that down, focus on something else. Limit fast food or alcohol. Wean yourself off your weaknesses. You will get to a point where either you no longer crave it (or crave it less) or once you have it again, it won't taste the same.

I could go on, but these are just some easy ways to get started.

Hope this helps & good luck!

BunnyDVP

:happy: Great advice. Thanks for sharing.

laurenbausch

I like this!!! This can work for me!!!!

Niveous

This is really good advice and something that worked well for me personally too. Nice post!

NoAdditives

That is great advice and has always been my approach. But, I will say that you can make a gym goal like that, even if you are just starting out. I went from no exercise (besides cleaning and dealing with my little kids) to going to the gym 5 days a week for 45-60 minutes. Granted, I wasn't doing 90 minute sessions, but no one needs that. 30 minutes of intense cardio plus some weights is really all anyone needs in order to start burning fat.

kimmiebear70

I agree wholeheartedly! This time, it is the mentality that I have adopted and it is doing the trick. No more feeling deprived, sore, or exhausted. Making HUGE changes all at once is setting yourself up for disappointment. The biggest journey always starts with 1 step.

MommaFreem

This post speaks to me in volumes! I was raised to think that you never do anything half-assed. If your gonna do it, you do it whole-heartedly or not at all. So growing up with this message, I find that when it comes to exercise I go all out. Go big or go home, right? Isn't that what I am supposed to do?! Well it turns out that isn't working out to much. As I can only "go all out" for about 2-3 months and then I lose all my steam and fizzle. This has been my m.o. for as long as I have been trying to lose weight. Which sadly, has been a long time. So I am glad that you posted this because it made me realize that I need to take small steps and develop the habit of leading an active life style.