The salmon won, but only because you’re watching. I’m on a 3 week trip to launch the 5 Minutes to Fitness+ Club.  I landed in San Francisco last night as the Giants won. Around the block form the hotel is Tyler Florence’s, from the Food Network, Wayfare Tavern. The staff told me the organic fried chicken was the best around.  I swear I was going to choose it, then I thought of you.  I knew I would be checking in and telling you about my trip and I didn’t want to disappoint you.  One of the keys to health success is accountability, and you and I have it here.

No promises that I won’t go back tonight and order the fried chicken It depends what I eat during the day and I already did my band workout. It’s looking good!  See you tomorrow from Silicon Valley.

BTW- The salmon was incredible. Best I’ve had, served with small clams, cannellini beans, roasted tomato and a glass of Pinot Noir. No, Tyler wasn’t there.

The major breakthrough for John was he  realized he wasn’t eating most of the day because he was too busy. Then he would be starved and overeat. He now makes himself eat good food, more often. This is a major mind shift. Most of us try to eat less “bad” foods. That doesn’t work long term. What John is doing will work for him for the rest of his life.

The only thing that can stop him now is self sabotage.  A client recently told me every time she loses weight and someone compliments her, she feels she doesn’t deserve it and to prove it, overeats.  The key to preventing self sabotage is to know what you want (vision) and to stop believing the crappy stories you tell yourself, “It’s too hard, I can’t do it, I don’t deserve it, I’ll try later.” You know those things aren’t true. Don’t let yourself believe it.

Do you try to purposely and mindfully eat? Does it work for you?  Share for thoughts.

One of the segments is about staying motivated and focused. Here are 3 ways borrowed from Tony Robbins that work. Control your body, language, and meaning;

• Body; Sit or stand tall, head up, shoulders back, strong, confident and proud. Smile. Every time you’re not in this posture, get back into it.
• Language; What are you saying to yourself and believing? Is it helpful or harmful?
• Meaning; Master the meaning of everything that happens to you. Ask, “What else can this mean that can benefit me?”

Example: You’re driving down the street, tired and slouched, someone cuts you off and you swear at them and ask yourself, “How can that jerk cut me off like that? See, I don’t get any respect?” You continue driving recalling all the injuries people have caused you throughout the course of the day and feel worse and worse and less motivated. You snap at someone and eat fat and sugar to feel better.

OR

After they cut you off, you say, “Thank you, you may have saved my life by making me slow down or become more alert.”  You think maybe they’re in a hurry because they have to go help a family member or have some real problems. You may feel compassion for them and look for what you can be grateful for in your life. You drive on sitting tall, grateful, thinking about something that excites you and when you get home choose food that will help you be energized and share love with someone.

I know the second scenario is totally ridiculous. I mean, who could ever feel grateful for being cut off and carry the gratitude forward. That would have to be a special person who is in control of their body, language, and meaning.   That’s just plain silly right?  :-)

Be great today.

• Foods to avoid; Sugar laden foods and drinks. The sugar spikes will make us feel worse.
• Foods to consume; turkey, chicken, fish, avocados, nuts, and eggs, which are rich in tryptophan which boosts serotonin in the brain, making you feel better.

Here are some other ways to beat the winter blues;

• Do your workouts; working out will make you feel better as well.
• Wake up smiling thinking of what you love and have to look forward to. (Force yourself to physically smile, it works.)
• Make plans to do something fun, something you can look forward to. (We’re doing a 10K in April. Training starts in February. Stay tuned.)

So stock up on the “good” foods and try whatever works to keep your energy and spirits up. You’ll find many of the foods in the 5 Minutes to Fitness+ Menus here >

What will you choose to eat for lunch today and why?

• Will you choose foods based on taste and a desire to feel better or be comforted?
• Or will you choose foods that will give you energy to accomplish what you want most in 2012?

Answering the latter can make an incredible difference in your life.

Tell me what you choose for lunch. I’m curious

I could do what I used to do many years ago; eat a taylor ham egg and cheese sandwich in the attempt to feel better, skip exercise because was I was too tired, and stay in bed, convincing myself I was not capable.

I then remembered my 3 partners, whom I met many years ago, that have never let me down and always make sure I am strong, supported, and healthy.  You already know them but let me reintroduce you. They are:

• Food
• Fitness
• Thoughts

Yes, they can be our best allies, constant companions and the pillars of our success.  2012 can be our best year yet. Especially when we remember:

• Food is for energy & vitality, not emotional eating
• Fitness is for stamina & strength, not punishment
• Thoughts are for success & happiness, not self-loathing & sabotaging

Let’s use these 3 secret weapons to make 2012 great for ourselves and those we love most.

Coming Tomorrow!- The complete 5 Minutes to Fitness+ Menus are here. Stay tuned…

• How strong (both physically and emotionally) I AM and WILL become
• My form
• How GREAT (both physically and emotionally) I’ll feel after I’m done
• It’s so early (5AM) and I am barely awake and haven’t had coffee yet. I go on automatic pilot and know deep in my my mind that “this is good for me”. After about 5 minutes or so, I start to feel the benefits of working out and tell myself “good job! Proud of you for getting up and doing this!”
• I have a world map and I put pins in all the places I’ve been. Once I become lucid, I start to think about where else in the world would I like to go? And the travel planning begins.
• I used to try to think about how I was training in order to feel a sense of accomplishment (i.e. finishing a long endurance race, etc), but then I realized I wasn’t living in the moment. So, now I really just think about the exercise itself, how it makes me feel doing it (stronger, etc), and that way I really “experience” the exercise.
• I try and think about only positive things (although sometimes that can be hard). I love how I feel after every workout and that really is what motivates me the most! Then I can sit down and plan out my day and decide what needs to get done.

Thanks to everyone for sharing!  Have a great day and make sure you maximize the outcomes of your workouts.

I received several emails in response to yesterdays post about the story we tell ourselves. I could tell what they were doing with their bodies when they wrote the emails. Let me explain;

Today I was reminded about what I already knew. In fact, I was born with this natural ability, and so were you. It’s called “state”.  This happened at the end of a 15 hour day.

We were shown a war scene from the movie Braveheart.  Then, all the men were asked to stand up in a room full of 2000 people and scream as though we were going to battle. As though an army was coming to rape and kill our wives and children. Can you imagine how fast we stood and screamed with a determined might. Every man in that room, at that moment, was ready to die for what he loved and wanted most. I entered a state of absolute power and certainty, that no one would take from me what I valued and wanted most. I felt alive and powerful like I haven’t felt in forever.  Do you think at that state of body power I could resist a f***ing cookie?

Can you imagine the state your body would be in if you summoned that power from your body on a daily basis, especially when you were deciding what and why you were eating? I don’t mean the next time someone asks you to share a brownie you body check them into the refrigerator .

Manage your state by managing your body and you will never need will-power again. The sheer force and strength of your body will drive your behaviors, stop you from overeating and make sure you exercise to make your  body even more powerful.  You don’t have to be a man to experience this. As a woman you can summon your masculine energy when you need it to serve you.

Think about the last time you  thought someone you loved was in danger, your child, your lover.  Were you sitting slouched, head down, looking at the floor, your muscles sagging on your body, thinking, why does this always happen to me?  No, you were probably standing, muscles clenched, eyes focused, mind locked in and determined to do what you had to.

Again, what the hell does this have to do with health and losing weight?  I know you get it.  Start using your body power now and manage your “state”. Here’s how:

• The next time you do my band workout, play a powerful song, then direct your mind to think about who you love most.
• Now, imagine you must become your most powerful to protect that person.
• As you pull on the bands, breath deep, contract your muscles, engage your mind and build your body power.

Every workout is an opportunity to strengthen not only your muscles, but your body. I created my 5 Minutes to Fitness+ workout using primitive human movement patterns. You’re body and mind will respond when you summon this power you have that lies dormant. Use it everyday to stay focused, determined.

The answer is yes.

You know you need to get between 6-8 hours of sleep per night as an adult and most kids and teens need 8 to 12 hours per night.  But why is sleep important? There are so many reasons but lets focus on weight loss.  When we sleep our bodies regenerate and replenish from the day. Also, when we don’t get enough sleep we can be irritable, tired, moody, unable to focus and physically in pain. The result; we may eat more to try and feel better.  This is documented by research.

Case study: I met with my health coaching client, Susan, recently, who tracks all of her food, workouts and sleep patterns.  She noticed when she doesn’t get enough sleep, she doesn’t lose weight.  It happened twice in one week. That’s an eye opener. So, she can be doing everything else right, but if she’s not sleeping enough she is sabotaging yourself. She’s lost over 70lbs and she will make sure she gets enough sleep to continue her journey.

Start by trying to get just 1 hour more per night, don’t watch TV in bed and avoid caffeine after 2pm.  Nighty Night

I have 3 clients who wanted to lose  weight. They all had the same problem.  They were not eating enough.  I realize it may sound crazy, but eating too little will slow down your metabolism and cannibalize your muscle.

All 3 clients, one in her 40’s and the other 2 in their 80’s, all lost weight when they did the following:

• Found out their BMR using the tracker
• Ate the amount of calories the tracker told them by following menus > (dinner menus coming soon)
• Did 20 minutes of my band workout, 5 times per week
• Kept a food and workout diary
• Reported in to their coach, me, via health coaching sessions

Want to master your weight and take control of your health? Start with the tracker >

Send me your tracker food and workout log this week.  I’ll take a look and give you insightful  feedback.

Not a club member? Join here and get your tracker > or sign up for Health Coaching with Peter K.