5 Reasons Your Workout Ain't Working Out

Every week we get thousands of inquiries explaining why people made efforts to lose fat. Yet, they still haven't seen results. I compiled the five mistakes that are the most common mistakes people make when trying to lose fat. The simple solutions can make the difference between fatness and fitness.

1. I joined the gym. First of all, just paying for a membership doesn't lead to fat loss. You actually have to use the gym regularly and intensely to see results. Secondly, if the only thing you change is going to the gym three times a week, the road to weight loss is going to be a long slow haul.

For example, 45 minutes of strength training burns about 300 calories for a 180 pound person. Do that three times weekly and burn 900 calories. At that rate it would take you almost 4 weeks to burn one pound. Add three 30-minute walking sessions at 3.5 miles per hour and that same person would burn an additional 150 calories a session bringing about a one pound weight loss every two and a half weeks.

If you left the gym and grabbed a sports or meal replacement drink, you may offset any calories you burned leading to no changes on the scale. No matter how hard you train or the amount of hours you dedicate to your program, you will not reach the results you want if you aren't eating correctly.

The solution -- Exercise contributes to a caloric deficit, but needs to be combined with lowering calories. Create a customized meal plan at www.thomasstrong.com to compliment your exercise efforts and ultimately lose the fat.

2. I cut out one meal to reduce calories. Skipping meals starves you to fatness. Your body is designed to store food in case of times of starvation. In fact, the average person has enough stored fat to provide energy for basic body processes for around 60-70 days. Skipping meals causes your body to think it's being deprived from food, so it will begin to store more fat, rather than burn it off.

Solution -- Eat 5-6 nutritionally balanced, low fat, smaller serving meals throughout the day. This makes it easier for your body to burn off your food as fuel for energy. Eating smaller regular meals will fire up your metabolism so you can burn more stored fat.

3. I followed the exercise and meal plan that worked for my buddy. Getting an exercise program from a magazine, book or your buddy may not be provide the right program for you. Your program should be designed depending on your level of fitness, health status, goals and body type.

Having a customized exercise prescription and meal plan that matches your abilities and preferences can make all the difference in getting the results you desire and deserve. All Olympic athletes do not use the same exercise program and diets and neither should you.

Solution -- Hire a personal trainer and nutritionist OR fill out your preferences at www.thomasstrong.com for a personalized comprehensive fitness and meal plan. Let the results speak for themselves by taking a look at the transformation of our clients while on the exercise and meal plans.

4. I’ve been following my workout religiously for 12 weeks. If you are performing the same routine for more than six weeks, your body becomes less challenged and you reach a plateau. Without constant progression you will maintain your current physical status, which is better than losing ground, but it doesn’t move you close to fat loss goals.

Solution -- In order to continually progress, you need to overload your body with new stimulus. Vary your strength routine by trying new exercises, using advanced techniques, split body routines and incorporating machines, free weights and fit balls. For cardio, try interval training, circuit training or something all together new like kick boxing, mountain biking or stair climbing. I promise you that if you challenge yourself, you will feel a difference -- and SEE a difference.

Keeping a record of your workouts helps you see what you have done so that you can do a little more the next time. If you are a member of the Strong(er) exercise program, you won’t have to worry about reaching a plateau since new workouts are generated for you each week and when you check to retrieve your new workout, you have the option to increase your level. We’ve taken all of the guess work out for you.

5. I switched from fast foods to fruit and from soda to sports drinks. A calorie is a calorie is a calorie. If you eat 300 calories of carrots and 300 calories of chocolate, they have the same amount of energy to burn. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a lot easier for your body to digest and use the nutrients from carrots than chocolate and you are always better off making more wholesome and nutritious food choices, but you still need to create a negative caloric deficit to lose weight.

A handful of french fries and a banana may have the same amount of calories, so at the end of 24 hours you did not eat any less calories even though you are making better food choices, have more energy, have improved your digestion and stabilized your blood sugar. Some sports drinks may have as many calories and sugar as soda.

Solution -- Continue to replace processed foods with more natural ones, but also read your labels for calories. At the end of the day if your goal is fat loss, you should strive to create about a 500 calorie deficit to lose a pound a week. For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, your resting metabolic rate is approximately 2,000 calories a day to sustain normal activities of daily living. If you exercise, that number increases by the amount of calories you expend.

For example if you walked on the treadmill and expended 300 calories, your daily caloric expenditure would be 2,300. To lose one pound of fat a week, you should eat approximately 1,800 calories. Once again, if you are a member of the Strong(er) exercise and meal program, everything is spelled out for you step by step. No wondering and experimenting is necessary. Just print out your workouts and your meal plan and you are assured to lose 1–2 pounds of fat per week.

In general, to lose fat you should reduce the amount of fat you eat, eat several small meals of fresh foods daily, read your food labels, exercise most days of the week and challenge yourself physically. It’s also helpful to keep track of your workouts and what you eat by using a journal. To stop playing hit and miss with your fat loss, get a precise plan by going to www.thomasstrong.com

Discrimination Against Fit People

Fitism: The Realities about Discrimination
Against Fit People

Sounds like a joke doesn't it. Discrimination against fit people? Fitism it is no joke; it is the latest form of discrimination that many people suffer from. You have either been a victim or an offender and possibly both. Let me give you an example.

You decide on your own free will to try and lose 10 pounds. You are no longer to eat whatever you want, skip meals, drink socially every weekend and no exercise. Your lifestyle choices are catching up with you.

You start cleaning up your eating, choosing more fruits and vegetables, avoiding unhealthy fats and processed foods and limiting alcohol to one drink a week. You have gotten together with friends over the long weekend. We'll call you Marg Simpson. "Hey Marg, what can I get you to drink? The usual?" You respond, "No thanks, I'm good with water right now. Maybe later." That's when it begins. This is not your usual behaviour so of course your friends ask "What's up with you?" Knowing these are your friends and they will be supportive, you explain to them that you are trying to lose some weight and get healthier. Now you are swarmed by your friends and lots of questions and comments but they are not supportive at all. All weekend you are pestered about your attempt at health and fitness and pressured to come back to the "eat, drink and be lazy" side.

One of two things are likely to happen: You will break down under the peer pressure, which is not unique just to teenagers and go back to your old ways. You will feel terrible about it and try the new regime on Monday when it's a "better time". Or, you will hold your ground and feel totally isolated and abandoned by your friends. This will likely start the slow breakaway from many within your current circle of friends and over time your new friends will have lifestyles and interests more similar to yours.

This example is with friends, which many of you may have experienced. But, it is even harder when the fitism is coming from your family – teasing you about your more muscular frame, giving you a guilt trip for not eating two helpings at Sunday dinner, ridiculing you passing on desserts or trying to talk you out of the new walking program. Sounds hard to believe. But, I have observed this form of discrimination through working with hundreds of clients.

If you are a victim of fitism keep in mind that misery loves company. It makes others feel better about their lack of healthy eating and activity if their friends and family are equally sedentary. Also, your friends or family may fear change – changes that you may undergo physically and personally and the change that may come when you inspire or encourage them to make positive changes themselves.

Don't let it throw you off course. Stick with it through the tough times and, in time, your friends and family will accept the new you. In fact, they will not only support you but they are likely to jump on board after seeing how much happier and healthier you are.

Things I wonder

I Wonder...

by Dr. John Berardi, CSCS

This holiday season a buddy of mine and I decided to make the 1000 mile round-trip drive from my Toronto home to my parent's place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. We originally debated flying to PA, but we've always been fond of road trips. With enough Spike, we usually arrive at our destination having performed several concert's worth of iPod karaoke, written several philosophy dissertations, and solved many of the world's most pressing and difficult problems.

Sure, that one time we combined one too many Spike tablets with one too few rest breaks and ended up performing Tom Green's "Tiny Salmon" for 3 hours straight, but that was an anomaly and with the proper Spike-to-rest ratio, this sort of thing can be avoided and more productive endeavors made possible.

For example, during this most recent road trip, we got on an "I wonder" kick, throwing out all sorts of ideas about health, fitness, nutrition, and success in general. And since many of my best articles have been nothing more than glorified transcripts from casual conversations, I figured I'd share some of our top musings from the trip. Here they are:

I wonder...
Is it holiday overeating that makes 65% of the adult population overweight/obese?
Despite the fact people think of Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners as their biggest food-fests, I wonder if it's really the entire holiday season that does the damage. Think about it, starting around Thanksgiving, folks begin to overeat and this pretty much continues through New Years Day.

Doesn't it go pretty much like this? You've got Thanksgiving dinner in late November. Then it's the leftovers, the stuffing, the mashed potatoes, the candied yams, the pies, and the cranberry sauce till early December. And before folks get back into their normal nutritional groove, here come the Christmas chocolates, cookies, and treats. Then come the Christmas parties. The treats and the parties ramp up till Christmas Eve and then comes a big Christmas Eve dinner.

Of course, the next day is Christmas and it's cookies and snacks all day leading up to a big Christmas dinner. Two big dinners in a row means lots of leftovers, leftovers that'll last till January. Even after Christmas day, the dietary debauchery can continue. No one eats light on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day.

So before you know it, you've been overeating for 5-6 weeks. That's a heck of a lot of overeating isn't it? Yet not only are you overeating calories, you're displacing good foods with nutritionally marginal or questionable ones, the worst form of dietary displacement. With all this overeating and no exercise (everyone is just too busy to exercise during the holidays, aren't they?), it's surprising that most folks only put on a 3-5 pounds of fat during this time. One might expect the average person to pack on more!

So let's say your holiday season packs a mere 3 pounds of fat on you. Three pounds is nothing much to worry about, is it? Well, not if you work those 3 pounds off during the rest of the year. But most people don't. They retain those 3 pounds. Compounded over 10 years, you've got 30 extra pounds of body fat. Continue this pattern from ages 25 to 45 and you're looking at 60 pounds of unwanted baggage.

Must be age-related metabolic decline, right? Or maybe it's just 20 years of seasonal overeating followed by 11 months of inactivity or, at least, inadequate activity. Maybe not. But I wonder...

As for me, I'll keep my holiday treats in moderation, keep my exercise volume high, and avoid the holiday weight gain.

I wonder...
Would success come more easily if people looked for success patterns vs. viewing success as a mystery?
Whether it's relationship success, business success, or fitness success, once in a while, success just seems to "happen" and no one, not even the experts, know how or why. However, this "lucky guy" success story just described is actually quite rare. Far more often success is no more a mystery than is a soluble mathematical equation. Sure, just like math equations, the success equation may be hard to solve at first. But if you study success hard enough and enlist the right guides (coaches, mentors, etc.), I have no doubt you can decipher the code.

In a recent interview with rapper, actor, and producer Will Smith, Will talks about his commitment to seeing patterns in life, a trait passed down from his military-trained father. In this interview he discusses the genesis for the movie Independence Day.

"My business partner and I came to Hollywood to be stars. We wanted to make a blockbuster movie. So we looked for patterns. We observed that of the top ten movies of all time, ten were special effects or animation. And nine were special effects or animation with creatures. And eight were special effects or animation with creatures and a love story. So we came up with the idea to do Independence Day."

Will Smith got it. He looked for the patterns in the movie industry that lead to blockbuster hits. Duplicating them, he in turn created a blockbuster hit himself. This can happen in every industry and in every endeavor. By studying success stories, modeling quality, and plugging in important variables, success can easily be demystified. And with the right amount of work and luck, success can be duplicated.

I often offer similar advice with respect to supplements. From time to time I encounter supplement skeptics, folks who heavily distrust the supplement industry and believe that no supplements are necessary. Once they form this opinion they begin their anti-supplement crusade.

My advice –look for patterns. There are thousands of unbiased real-world examples of supplements making a difference. And even more, if you asked every single person that had a noteworthy physique if they took supplements, you'd find that a huge majority of them (90% or more) do.

It may be a protein supplement, it may be a greens supplement, it may be a multi-vitamin, it may be a fish oil supplement, it may be a creatine supplement, it may be a workout recovery drink, or it may be all of the above. Yet let's not get bogged down with the specific types just yet. The bottom line is this, there's a close correlation between having a great, note-worthy body and having used supplements. Is it directly causal? Not necessarily. But there's an important pattern there and only a fool would ignore it.

Most people believe that success is a mystery and only the "lucky" or "gifted" achieve it. And it's precisely this attitude that ensures that they themselves will remain "unlucky." The success formula is right in front of our eyes and the patterns are there, we just have to look for them. Of course, maybe you'll find them and success will still remain elusive. But I wonder...

As for me, I'm going to keep searching for success patterns and trying to duplicate them.

I wonder...
Would more people overcome "average genetics" if they devoted 1-2 hours to their exercise plan every single day?
A new Canadian television program, The Dragon's Lair, features aspiring entrepreneurs who are given the opportunity to pitch a business idea to 5 successful venture capitalists in the hopes of convincing them to invest in their business ideas. In typical reality TV fashion, the show presents a string of woefully unprepared contestants making a mockery of entrepreneurship.

However, on a recent episode, a woman from London Ontario, home of my Alma Mater, the University of Western Ontario, impressed the "dragons" with her business model and approach. She had started a line of delicious, omega-3 rich, organic salad dressings, She already had distribution and was looking for capital to mass-produce and distribute her dressings. Her presentation was on point, her marketing and advertising was solid, her product was of high quality, etc. And as a result, two of the dragons kicked in a total of over 100K to help her along.

When interviewed, post-show, she confessed that she was a mother of 2, worked full-time during the day, and devoted only 1-2 hours/night during the week to her salad dressing business. "People are always shocked when they hear about how I've grown the business" she stated in the interview. "But you'd be amazed by how much you can accomplish with 1-2 hours of directed effort performed consistently 4-5 nights a week, every week."
This is a great testimony to the power of directed effort. You don't always need a ton of time to get in shape, to grow your business, to pursue a new hobby. This woman spent merely 5-10 hours per week, or 250-520 hours per year (the equivalent of 5-10 50 hour work weeks) on her business. But what you do need is quality, purposeful effort, consistently performed.

The American Time Use Survey recently reported that the average American adult watches 19.8 hours of TV per week (n=50,000). That's nearly 3 hours per day. And I often hear adults complain that they don't have time to exercise, to start new hobbies, or to even read a book. So I'm blown away when I consider what people could accomplish if they were to replace some of that TV time with purposeful, consistent effort. Maybe there's more to big accomplishment than this...But I wonder.

As for me, I'll keep plugging away with purpose and consistency.
I wonder...

How much more dedicated would people be if they entered into challenges listing their advantages instead of their disadvantages?

A good portion of my time is spent consulting with exercisers and athletes wanting to improve their health and body composition. I also spend a lot of time with fitness professionals wanting to improve their professional offerings and make more money. As a result of this experience, I've seen all sorts of different approaches to change. Interestingly, it's much more common for people to enter into change by listing all their disadvantages instead of listing all the things they've got going for them.

Just last week, a well-known strength coach/personal trainer hired me to help him make over his physique, sort of like The Dave Tate Project. Over the years this guy has devoted so much to his clients that he's neglected himself, allowing his body fat to exceed 20%. Finally, sick of his unimpressive body, he reached out for help.

I was impressed as one of the hardest things to do as a professional is admit that you need professional help yourself. Yet I quickly realized that this guy needed an attitude adjustment. He began by stating the following:

"This is long overdue. I seem to be the least genetically gifted guy on the block and seeing as I haven't been "shredded" in about, oh, 20 years, you've got your work cut out for you."

"Further, I've got everything from lots of nagging injuries to big-time muscle imbalances. I'm over 40, have fears of losing muscle size, have to wake at 4am every day, work in a high stress job, and have a family to take care of. And although I'm finally weaning off anxiety meds, that's another challenge."

Now how's that for an attitude designed for defeat?

"Hey John, I want to get in shape but here's my laundry list of difficulties and insurmountable hurdles."

Knowing that with this attitude of defeat, we'd never get anywhere, I flipped things around on him. Here's what I wrote:

"No worries, I'll be easy on ya. Well, as long as you're compliant and focus on your advantages rather than your challenges.

"Dude, you've got lots of experience, more knowledge than 99.9% of the trainers in the world, a wife who knows what it's like getting in shape and has even been on stage herself, lots of muscle memory, access to a gym 24-7, access to the Precision Nutrition team, a flexible schedule that's far from 9-5, a son who will look up to your progress and see a great example set for his own future, a group of trainers around you every day at work supporting you, and so on.

When you look at it that way, you've got it a lot easier than most, don't ya?"

It's amazing to me that this coach, a guy who's trained under the top coaches in the world, has achieved physique success in the past, has coached countless bodybuilding and fitness competitors to success, has published articles and books on body transformation, and works in the field day-in and day-out, believed that he has more working against him than for him. And if he believes this, how much worse must it be for the average trainee, one who's never been in shape in his or her life?

No wonder people fail to stick to their plans. No wonder people give up short of reaching their goals. They're counting disadvantages and ignoring advantages, or even failing to recognize the advantage they possess. I now advise each of my clients to start by listing each and every one of the things they've got going for them. And if they miss a few, I add to the list. Maybe this new exercise will help establish the right mindset for results. Maybe not. But I wonder...

As for me, I'm going to continue emphasizing my advantages when starting new projects. Oh, I like to remain aware of what I'm up against. But I'm unwilling to give it equal or greater power than what I've got going for me.

------------------------------------------------------------------

I wonder other stuff too...stuff like:
Why people will waste a hundred hours per year scouring the web for free information when they could have popped on Amazon, bought a definitive book, read that book, and used the remaining 95 hours to apply what they learned?

How much further ahead would people be if they replaced 2 hours/wk of watching football with 2 hours/wk of goal setting, program organization, and record keeping?

How much would the North American IQ increase if people read 1 book a month, every month?

Would people learn new things more completely if they stopped "I knowing" everything?

Choose discipline

by Ralph Marston
Discipline is a decision you make, over and over again. Discipline is choosing to do what you know must be done, as often and as long as necessary.

With discipline, you can make smart and advantageous use of the time and resources available to you. With discipline, you can create great value for yourself and your world.

The most powerful way to put discipline into your life is to understand and remind yourself of what it can do for you. Once you truly decide to live with it, the power of discipline is yours.

If you do not choose to discipline yourself, you will eventually be subject to the harsh, inescapable discipline imposed upon you by life's realities. It is far more desirable to choose your own discipline and to deal with those realities on your own terms.

Self discipline opens up a world of choices and opportunities which otherwise would not be available to you. Whatever goal you set your sights upon, discipline is the most reliable way to reach it.

Choose, early and often, to use the powerful tool of discipline. And always achieve maximum results from your time and your actions.

You can find more great stuff from Ralph at www.greatday.com

Eat More Food

Eat More Food, Lose More Fat

by Leigh Peele

I was in the grocery store the other day, and in the checkout line in front of me I noticed a guy reading an issue of Men’s Health while chewing on a Double-Stuffed Oreo he took from the box but hadn’t yet paid for.

I found the irony of the visual quite excellent.

I have a habit of browsing other shopping carts out of curiosity, and the Cookie Monster in front of me had all the goods. Chips, cookies, doughnuts… it was a trainer’s worst nightmare! Now, I’m not exactly judging his food choices. What I was struck by was the recurring thought in my head, “Well, at least he is eating.”

He can try to change his ways. But we all know his true instincts.

I actually confused myself! So I took a second and wondered why, when I looked at his bountiful cart of trans-fat and sugar, I didn’t think, “Holy crow, this guy is a heart attack waiting to happen. I hope he’s got a will prepared.”

Could it be because I spend so much of my day trying to convince people to eat? Could it be that I’m hoping for a client who, before they come to me, has actually been stuffing herself with three big meals, daytime snacks, and a nightly dessert?

In a time where obesity is the (not-so) secret killer around the world, why do I find myself eager for a gut-busting, jean-popping client to train?

Stop Dieting. Start Living.

When people come to a trainer to lose fat, it’s usually as a last resort. We usually get a client who has already hit rock bottom with frustration, despair, and an almost-complete loss of hope to lose their fat.

By the time they get to me, they’ve tested Weight Watchers, bought Turbo Jam, tried Atkins (twice… once to learn it, and then once “for real”) and they usually have enough Ab Lounges, mini-steppers, and Gazelle walkers to start their own small gym.

Yeah, baby? How about noooo, baby!

By the time most people finally hire a trainer they’re cynical, untrusting, and about to scream at the world. And why shouldn’t they be mad? They’re hungry, they’re tired, and they’ve been repeatedly lied to by TV commercials and magazine ads.

Why is it then, when I tell my clients, “Guess what? You get to eat more and workout less!” They get mad and argue with me?

I get so perplexed! I sit there completely dumbfounded that they don’t turn to me and say, “Thank you, Leigh, you’re a lifesaver. I’m so hungry and tired, I just don’t think I could have lasted any longer.” Nope, this isn’t the response I get. Instead, I usually hear one of three things:

Excuse #1:

“Well, I’ve already lost weight doing things my way and it seems to work for me, so I don’t think I need to eat more.”

My immediate response is, “Okay then, no problem. Thank you for your time.” They look very confused, until I follow up with “If it’s working, and you’re happy with it, then you don’t need my help.”

Of course, that’s a bit of reverse psychology, but when they hear me say it, they realize that it either isn’t actually working or it won’t continue working for long. They can’t starve themselves or they’ll be stuck at their current weight.

They know, deep down, that something isn’t right about what they’re doing. It’s why they came to me in the first place; they just needed me to point it out.

Excuse #2:

“Honestly, I just couldn’t eat any more than I do. I’m not even losing weight right now.”

The act of dieting triggers a lot of different hormones in the body. Some of these hormones, when they become slowed or when triggered, can blunt appetite stimulation. For some, this is a good thing, and it’s what you want because it makes the dieting easier.

The problem comes when you’ve suppressed hormone function to the point of slowing its overall process, which leads to slower fat loss. Next thing you know, 1,200 calories a day is all you need, and anything more than that will now be seen by the body as a surplus. It’s your body’s natural defense mechanism to a lower caloric input.

Your body’s other defense mechanism… a quick left hook.

You will see some weight loss on such low calories, but it isn’t healthy, and at some point, a change will have to happen. That change can either be you totally giving up and going back to “normal” (non-training, non-dieting) habits, or you can approach your nutrition in a smart and healthy manner. It’s up to you.

Excuse #3:

“I know I should be eating more, but I’ve also heard that when you increase your calories, you just regain the weight quickly. I can’t stand to put any weight back on.”

I get it, really, I do. It’s hard enough going through all this, and then to be told that the only way you’re going to continue losing fat carries a chance of gaining some weight back. However, you don’t have to gain fat while upping your calories.

There really isn’t any kind of argument you can give me for starving yourself and overtraining that I won’t shoot down. The science and experience speaks for itself here. This goes beyond opinion.

It isn’t just fat loss ability or metabolism we are talking about here. It’s nutrient needs, immune system requirements, and bacteria growth, just to name a few. A lot of things come into play with extreme cuts in calories.

Why, then, are people still arguing with me about not wanting to eat?

The Smart Decision… E-A-T

Picture this… in front of you, there are two tables. One table has a big plate of herb-spiced chicken, a side of seasoned brown rice, and a bowl of fresh, mixed green veggies. The other table has a container of store-bought, “healthy,” low-fat (which means high sugar) yogurt, and few carrot sticks.

One’s the smarter choice, the other is what some will choose anyway.

Now, if I tell you that the chicken, rice, and veggie meal will be better for your fat loss and overall health, are you really going to turn to me and say, “No thanks, I’d rather have my cup of sugar-filled yogurt and some carrot sticks?” I know that some of you actually will, and I also know the most common reasons why.

Reason 1: “They” Told You To Do It.

Who are they? “They” are misinformed doctors, old school dietitians, and lousy personal trainers that want results, but care more about getting a paycheck instead of your health and well-being. “They” are your friends who absolutely swear by the results they see from the latest new diet, even though they just finished regaining all the weight they lost from last year’s fad.

It’s a safe bet that ANY diet advice this guy gives, is useless.

“They” are the media, with fast-acting fat loss infomercials, shows about the biggest losing celebrity fat camp, and news channels that keep us informed about which celebs are anorexic and who just got gastric bypass surgery. All of them preach overtraining and undereating to get the most out of their time slots.

Reason 2: You’re the Exception to the Rule.

We like to think that we’re special. That somehow with all of the science and all of the research, we’re just more unique than that and the rules just don’t apply to us. We all like to overlook the problems that put us in the 1% category because, hey, someone has to be that genetically-gifted 1%, right?

Great genes or not, hard work is always rewarded. Although I can't say much for that face :)

I do want you to believe in your gifts. I want you to be encouraged by the things that make you, you. But that still doesn’t mean you defy the laws of science. Sorry, babe.

Reason 3: You’re Afraid.

We all have some fear. We’re afraid we’ll gain the weight right back and we’ll have to start all over. Or we’re afraid to actually lose the weight, and then we’ll have to put our self-esteem issues elsewhere.

Don’t be a wuss. It’s not a monster; it’s just a piece of plastic with some electronics inside.

Maybe it all won’t work, and we’ll lose all the hope that keeps us going. Maybe we’re afraid that we’ll anger those we love by changing ourselves for the better. Or we could be afraid that eating better, and eating more, will just lead to making bad food choices.

We can’t let any of these reasons get in the way of our goals. Every one of us is special - special in our strength, special in our character.

The Final Word: In the end, eating will lead to your goal. Proper nutrition is the key to getting the look you want, and if you are finding yourself stalled over and over again, it may not be that you’re eating too much, it may be that you’re eating too little.

Featured Images

Camouflage boxer: Lisa Marie Bickels - www.LisaMarieBickels.com

Red bikini: Sharon Van Der Horst - www.SharonVanDerHorst.com