I received an email from one of my mentors
last week. He was using the problem I’m
referring to in a different light. But
immediately I realized it’s the biggest problem
mother’s face. Here’s what he said…

“Author and motivational/self actualization guru,
Larry Winget, has a book out that I recommend to
you. It’s called “No Time For Tact.” Great title.

In the book he shares 365 daily nuggets of wisdom.
It’s good stuff. His July 2nd nugget says:

“I believe in selfishness. The best way for me to
serve others is to selfishly serve myself well.

When I take the time to feel good physically, I do
a better job. That requires some selfishness.

When I do what I want to do, I am better at it,
and the better I am at what I do, the better
others are served by what I do.

It is possible to give so much of yourself away
that you compromise the quality of what you have
to give.”

Sean (his business partner) uses the airplane
oxygen mask analogy to describe this, and it’s an
accurate way to think about it.

“If you’re traveling with small children, put your
mask on first THEN help your children with
theirs.”

Because if you can’t breathe, you can’t help
anybody.

VERY serious advice that cannot be overlooked for
long or you *will* pay the price.”

I think he’s spot on. But this is THE biggest and
most common problem I hear from mothers.

I firmly believe we’d be lost without our mothers.
They always put themselves on the bottom
of the totem pole and serve others first.

But it shouldn’t be that way. And it doesn’t have to be
either. I just finished meeting with Jennifer Janson. She
trained with us last year and came back in to get get
re-started.

Jennifer runs her own ‘company’ of 6 at home. Plus
her husband. When she went on hiatus from FT, she
realized that going it alone and doing it on her own was
not realistic. Too much distraction. Too much room for
error. Too much time. She was better when she had a
disciplined and structured exercise routine. It was time
for her. No one else to think about. No one else to tend to.

FT helps leverage her health and fitness. And she
knows her family is better served because of it.

This is even more important with your health, your
fitness, and your weight loss. You will serve
others better (spouse, kids, friends, etc…) if
you serve yourself first.

How to be effectively “selfish”:

Plug these into your calendar first:

- Your personal down time
- Your workouts
- Your nutrition
- Your sleep

And then be discplined about
honoring and protecting that time. Will it
be perfect? No. It never will be. But you
can certainly strive for it.

If you are married, have kids, work a lot of
hours, there are always others to tend to. It
takes discipline and commitment or your time can
soon fade away.

Gotta guard against that – at all costs.

Here’s to the Mom’s out there!

P.S. If you think this is only applicable to mothers
you’re sorely mistaken. Make sure you take time
for yourself, your health, your fitness, and watch
your care for others improve!

P.P.S. Would you like help being ‘selfish’? Would you
like a way to leverage your health and fitness? See
how Jennifer does it by clicking here.

Posted under Fitness Tips, Personal, health

I was having dinner last night with some friends
when my buddy’s wife said that he actually did the
grocery shopping this time. And that’s a big deal.
Because Andy hates the grocery store. When they go
shopping together he complains because she takes
such a looooong time. But so do I. In fact, I
like going to the grocery store. But I also know
what I’m doing, what I’m looking for, and what I
should avoid.

Maybe you like it. Maybe you hate it. But unless
you have a loving spouse that does it all the
time, there are a few tips to stick to when
heading out for your food.

1. Shop the perimeter. The aisles have fresh
produce, meat, and dairy. The aisles in the middle
contain boxed, packaged, and wrapped stuff, which
is a lot of times highly processed and not good for you.

2. Keep a list. And stick to it. A list gives you
boundaries to work within. It also prevents you
from grabbing random food items – particularly
ones that are bad for you. Make a list at home
when you have a clear head. This will save you
time and money.

3. Don’t shop when you’re hungry. This is the
BIGGEST mistake of all. What will you do in a
store with food of ANY choice when you’re hungry?
You’ll buy it! And buying Fruity Pebbles or Ding
Dongs may sound good at the moment, but will only
make you feel bad later. Go shopping once you’ve
had your meal. And if you have to go on an empty
stomach make sure you have a list!

4. Take your kids. After a nutrition consultation
with our clients we provide them with a ready-to-
go grocery list. This is a great time to bring the
kids along to teach them and instill good habits.
The earlier you do this the better.

I remember when I went to the grocery store with
my mom and dad I would try to sneak Froot Loops
into the shopping cart. I was always caught and
told to put it back. I didn’t like it at the time,
but I learned what a good breakfast was. And what
a good breakfast was not.

The next time you go grocery shopping keep in mind
these tips. They’ll help you stay on track and
stay healthy.

Now go eat something healthy,

Tim

P.S. If you’d like some help with your meal
planning and grocery shopping send me an email or
request a nutrition consultation here.

P.P.S. Our next Spring Boot Camp for Women
starts next Monday 5/25. We’re now offering
morning and evening classes! Go here for more
info or call 314.863.7799.

Posted under Nutrition Tips, Weight Loss Tips, health

Sleep more.

Ha Ha. I’m kidding of course. We all know getting the right amount of sleep prevents us from getting tired. But if you’re like most of the people I talk to, you can’t always get a solid 8 hours. So how do you keep from getting tired? Even downright exhausted.

Well there are things you can do to increase your energy levels even if you don’t get a lot of sleep. And I’m not talking about a double shot espresso or Red Bull. There are natural steps you can take to help increase your energy levels throughout the day.

And it’s important to mention what kind of tired you are. One of our clients came in the other night for her workout and she was exhausted.

“How are you feeling Kim?”

“Tired. I have a huge proposal tomorrow. I’ve been working all day and I still have a lot to go. But physically I’m ok.”

What Kim knew is that she was mentally fatigued and not physically fatigued. Once she left her work at work and started her workout her energy levels soared! She was smart enough to differentiate between mental and physical energy.

And that’s a BIG secret! Mental fatigue is usually related to stress. Once you acknowledge this you can cope with it through exercise, meditation, or something else that makes you happy. This will help return your energy level while not relying on foods and drinks to ‘pick you up’.

Ok, now that you know there’s a difference between mental and physical fatigue we can talk about the five steps to never getting tired again.

1. Make a schedule and stick to it. We’re creatures of habit. Making a regular schedule for eating and sleeping will have a profound effect on your weight loss.

2. Eat 5 -6 times per day. You’ve been hearing this for years. And I’ll admit it’s hard. Eating helps boost metabolism. And doing it in smaller spurts throughout the day will help keep your metabolism burning and prevent you from crashing mid afternoon. 

3. Don’t use food or drinks to give you needed energy. This only cures the symptom of being tired. Your goal should be to cure the problem. Relying on sugary foods and drinks will only add weight while giving you a temporary fix on your energy.

4. Schedule a power nap for 15 minutes on days you don’t get enough sleep. While naps do not necessarily make up for inadequate or poor quality nighttime sleep, a short nap of 15-30 minutes can help improve mood, alertness and performance. And you’ll be in good company. Winston Churchill, JFK, Ronald Reagan, Napoleon, Einstein, Thomas Edison and George W. Bush are known to have valued an afternoon nap.

5. Make sleeping seven to eight hours per night a priority. No one likes to admit they watch a lot of TV, but studies and surveys tell us we all watch too much. Replacing one hour of TV or internet with sleep will help you turn 6 hours to 7 or 8.

Put one or more of these five steps to use and you’ll increase your energy throughout the day. For my full article on sleep you can visit the Fitness Expert Network here.

Now go eat something healthy,

Tim

P.S. Thinking about a change in your life? You can schedule a FREE health and fintess consultation here.

Posted under health

I read a lot. And a lot of what I read is on fitness and nutrition.
Recently, I read an article in a  lesser known nutrition newsletter called
Environmental Nutrition. It was on the six biggest
eating mistakes people make when trying to lose
weight. I wanted to share these with you as they
can be helpful to be aware of them whether you
fall victim or not. All with my comments of
course;)

Mistake #1: Going too long without food

A lot of the people I consult with will skip
breakfast or lunch. They don’t understand why
skipping meals still causes them to gain weight.
But the fact is, studies have shown that people
who have lost weight and kept it off eat breakfast
everyday.

The problem is two-fold. First a balanced
breakfast is needed first thing in the morning to
stoke your metabolism. Just as throwing logs on
the fire get it going, so too does breakfast. I
once read that eating a Snickers in the morning is
better than nothing at all! Maybe it’s true.

Secondly, skipping meals throughout the day will
lead to an imbalance in blood sugar and insulin,
and thus cause you to make poor food choices later
on. It’s a vicious cycle that prevents any
possible weight loss.

Mistake #2: Banking Calories

We’ve all done this haven’t we? You have a big
party scheduled tomorrow. And you know they’ll
serve the most delicious desserts! So you just eat
a little less today to ‘even it out’.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it
doesn’t work like that. The calories you save
today almost never equal the calories you’ll
consume at the party tomorrow.

The real way to weight loss is to maintain healthy
eating strategies at the party. Eat a high
protein, low calorie snack ahead of time so you
don’t go to the party hungry, alternate a glass of
water with your alcoholic beverage, and stick to
smaller portions.

The difference is that those strategies work!
Skipping meals before hand only confuses your
metabolism and ultimately does NOT work.

Mistake #3: Skimping on protein

It’s essential. And it can be challenging. But I
have vegetarian and vegan clients that can do it.
So can you!

One study showed that people that started the day
with two eggs consumed 300 calories less during
the day than someone who started the day with a
bagel supplying the same calories as the eggs.

Adequate protein also helps build and maintain
muscle mass. A metabolic enhancing certainty! This
is also why we suggest Cinch meal replacements.
They have added leucine which helps preserve
muscle mass on a weight loss plan.

Mistake #4: Cutting Calories

There is no doubt you can lose weight by cutting
calories. You’ve heard it, ‘less in, more out’.

I’ve dubbed this type of diet ‘The Oprah Nutrition
Cycle’. You will inevitably fall into the classic
yo-yo diet. When calories are restricted to a low
level not only is weight lost, but malnutrition
occurs causing you to ‘fall off’ the diet.
Further, you lose muscle weight (also called
atrophy) which inhibits metabolism. And lastly,
your metabolism slows down thinking that the body
is starving to death! So when you finally crack
mentally and/or emotionally you won’t be able to
handle the calories you once could.

This is a vicious cycle!

Mistake #5: Denying yourself treats

In all my time as a fitness and nutrition coach,
I’ve never suggested someone to deny themselves
something they love. Now, depending on your
current situation and your goals, you may have to
deny yourself a little more than normal. But it’s
not wise to set yourself up for failure.

Most Saturday mornings my dad would bring home
donuts for my siblings and I. I loved it!! It was
my favorite day for breakfast. But we didn’t get
donuts Monday through Thursday. We had to eat
eggs, oatmeal, Raisin Bran, and the other stuff my
parents forced down our throats for breakfast.

It’s ok to enjoy your favorite snacks. Just do so
in moderation and make sure it’s in line with your
goals.

Mistake #6: Taking weekends off

This is similar to banking calories for a big
party or occasion. And it’s sabotaging your
results. Sticking to the plan through the week and
splurging through the entire weekend is setting
you up for failure. If you overeat on Saturday and
Sunday, you’re overeating 29% of the time. It’s
nearly impossible to make up for that during the
week.

Posted under Nutrition Tips