Goal setting is a very powerful technique that can improve all areas of your life. The process of setting goals and targets allows you to choose where you want to go in life. By knowing precisely what you want to achieve, you know what you have to concentrate on and improve, and what is merely a distraction. Goal setting gives you long-term vision and short-term motivation. It helps to focus your acquisition of knowledge and helps you to organize your resources. By setting sharp, clearly defined goals, you can measure and take pride in the achievement of those goals. You can see forward progress in what might previously have seemed a long pointless grind.
By setting goals you can:
• Achieve more
• Improve performance
• Increase your motivation to achieve
• Increase your pride and satisfaction in your achievements
• Improve your self-confidence
• Plan to eliminate attitudes that hold you back and cause unhappiness
Goal Setting Helps Self-Confidence
By setting goals, and measuring their achievement, you are able to see what you have done and what you are capable of. The process of achieving goals and seeing their achievement gives you the confidence and self-belief that you need that you will be able to achieve higher and more difficult goals.
Setting Goals Effectively
The way in which you set goal strongly affects their effectiveness. The following broad guidelines apply to setting effective goals:
Positive Statement: express your goals positively:
• Be Precise: if you set a precise goal, putting in dates, times and amounts so that achievement can be measured, then you know the exact goal to be achieved, and can take complete satisfaction from having completely achieved it.
• Set Priorities: where you have several goals, give each a priority. This helps you to avoid feeling overwhelmed by too many goals, and helps to direct your attention to the most important ones.
• Write goals down to avoid confusion and give them more force.
• Keep Operational Goals Small: Keep the goals you are working towards immediately small and achievable. If a goal is too large, then it can seem that you are not making progress towards it.
Set Performance, not Outcome Goals
This is very important. You should take care to set goals over which you have as much control as possible - there is nothing as dispiriting as failing to achieve a personal goal for reasons beyond your control such as bad learning environments, poor judging, bad weather, injury, or just plain bad luck. Goals based on outcomes are extremely vulnerable to failure because of things beyond your control. If you base your goals on personal performance or skills or knowledge to be acquired, then you can keep control over the achievement of your goals and draw satisfaction from them. For example, you might achieve a personal best time in a race, but still be disqualified as a result of a poor judging decision. If you had set an outcome goal of being in the top three, then this will be a defeat. If you set a performance goal of achieving a particular time, then you will have achieved the goal and can draw satisfaction and self-confidence from its achievement. Another flaw is where outcome goals are based on the rewards of achieving something, whether these are financial or are based on the recognition of colleagues. In early stages these will be highly motivating factors, however as they are achieved, the benefits of further achievement at the same level reduce. You will become progressively less motivated.
Set Specific Goals
Set specific measurable goals. If you achieve all conditions of a measurable goal, then you can be confident and comfortable in its achievement. If you consistently fail to meet a measurable goal, then you can adjust it or analyze the reason for failure and take appropriate action to improve skills.
Set Realistic Goals
Goals may be set unrealistically high for the following reasons:
• Other people: Other people (parents, media, society) can set unrealistic goals for you, based on what they want. Often this will be done in ignorance of your goals, desires and ambitions.
• Insufficient information: If you do not have a clear, realistic understanding of what you are trying to achieve and of the skills and knowledge to be mastered, it is difficult to set effective and realistic goals.
• Always expecting your best performance: Many people base their goals on their best performance, however long ago that was. It is better to set goals that raise your average performance and make it more consistent.
• Lack of respect for self: If you do not respect your right to rest, relaxation and pleasure in life then you risk burnout.
Alternatively goals can be set too low because of:
• Fear of failure: If you are frightened of failure you will not take the risks needed for optimum performance. As you apply goal setting and see the achievement of goals, your self- confidence should increase, helping you to take bigger risks. Know that failure is a positive thing: it shows you areas where you can improve your skills and performance.
• Taking it too easy: It is easy to take the reasons for not setting goals unrealistically high as an excuse to set them too low. If you're not prepared to stretch yourself and work hard, then you are extremely unlikely to achieve anything of any real worth.
Setting goals at the correct level is a skill that is acquired by practice. You should set goals so that they are slightly out of your immediate grasp, but not so far that there is no hope of achieving them: no-one will put serious effort into achieving a goal that they believe is unrealistic. However, remember that the belief that a goal is unrealistic may be incorrect. Personal factors such as tiredness, other commitments and the need for rest, etc. should be taken into account when goals are set.
When you are thinking about how to achieve goals, asking the following questions can help you to focus on the sub-goals that lead to their achievement:
• What skills do I need to achieve this?
• What information and knowledge do I need?
• What help, assistance, or collaboration do I need?
• What resources do I need?
• What can block progress?
• Am I making any assumptions?
• Is there a better way of doing things?
Achieving Goals and feedback
When you have achieved a goal, take the time to enjoy the satisfaction of having achieved the goal. Absorb the implications of the goal achievement, and observe the progress you have made towards other goals. If the goal was a significant one, or one that you had worked towards for some time, take the opportunity to reward yourself appropriately.
Feedback: Failure
Where you have failed to reach a goal, ensure that you learn the lessons of the failure.
• that you didn't try hard enough
• that your technique, skills or knowledge were faulty and need to be enhanced
• that the goal you set was unrealistic
Use this information to adjust the goal if it was set too high, or to set goals to acquire new skills or knowledge. Feeding back like this turns everything into a positive learning experience - even failing to meet a goal is a step forward towards perfect performance!
Feedback: Success
Where you have achieved a goal this should feed back into your next goals:
• If the goal was easily achieved, make your next goals harder
• If the goal took a dispiriting length of time to achieve, make the next goals a little easier
• If you learned something that would lead you to change goals still outstanding, do so
• If while achieving the goal you noticed a deficit in your skills, set goals to fix this.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Fat is merely Tissue, Stored Potential Energy
Fat is not a feeling. You cannot be fat. Fat does not reside as an emotion in your psyche. Fat is merely tissue, stored potential energy.
(my comments: That says to me that my fat has the potential to do something useful, like burn off and go away! Yipee!!! )
When you are "feeling fat", you are really feeling something else. Fat is another decoy emotion. Fat is a substitute for what is really going on with you.
Know that your feelings about your weight and the feeling you create from overeating or depriving yourself are engaging you in a decoy struggle. It is a distraction from your real emotional life. It gets you thinking about food and your weight instead of what is really going on under the surface. ... Each time we try to feel, we rebel, playing this rebellion out by overeating. It's good for immediate gratification, but bad for our long term happiness. This great drama can fill our minds and keep us distracted quite well.
Your real work on this planet is not your weight or your fat. The fabric of your emotional journey is not about deprivation and overeating. It is about love and fear and manifesting the magnificent person you already are. It is time to pay attentionto your real life. Stop distracting yourself from your emotional life. Find out what you are feeling, and feel it. It is then that you can find the way to who you really are. I promise you, it is not just fat.
Excerpted from If I'm So Smart Why Can't I Lose Weight, by Brooke Castillo
(my comments: That says to me that my fat has the potential to do something useful, like burn off and go away! Yipee!!! )
When you are "feeling fat", you are really feeling something else. Fat is another decoy emotion. Fat is a substitute for what is really going on with you.
Know that your feelings about your weight and the feeling you create from overeating or depriving yourself are engaging you in a decoy struggle. It is a distraction from your real emotional life. It gets you thinking about food and your weight instead of what is really going on under the surface. ... Each time we try to feel, we rebel, playing this rebellion out by overeating. It's good for immediate gratification, but bad for our long term happiness. This great drama can fill our minds and keep us distracted quite well.
Your real work on this planet is not your weight or your fat. The fabric of your emotional journey is not about deprivation and overeating. It is about love and fear and manifesting the magnificent person you already are. It is time to pay attentionto your real life. Stop distracting yourself from your emotional life. Find out what you are feeling, and feel it. It is then that you can find the way to who you really are. I promise you, it is not just fat.
Excerpted from If I'm So Smart Why Can't I Lose Weight, by Brooke Castillo
Monday, August 27, 2007
Kimkins Inspiration
I found the following post on a blog somewhere out there in low carb land and I'd saved it. It was inspiring, and since I came across it today again and was further inspired I thought I'd share it - and inspire all of us!
After my last entry, I took a hard look at myself, my diet, and my goals to see if I could find the secret of why I was sabotaging myself. While I could not find just one reason to report here, apparently my soul searching paid off. I have now been almost 20 days without cheating on my Kimkins eating plan!
And it's working! I've lost almost 30 pounds!
Of course I knew that it would work, for it was not Kim or her plan that fell short.
On her site, Kimmer says that the diet is simple and easy. She's right -- the diet is very simple, and it is easy as far as buying, cooking, and following the plan are concerned. But it's not "easy" -- at least not for people like me. We have not only the weight to lose, but also our fears, our excuses, our preconceptions, and our need for instant gratification.
Let me be brutally honest: Kimkins is one of the strictest diets that I have tried. There is no cheating on this diet! The minute I cheat the weight loss comes to halt, the cravings return. But the good news is that the Kimkins approach is amazingly successful when one abstains from cheating. And I believe that Kimkins provides the best environment for making a journey toward total commitment to getting a handle of your weight, by providing support for your physical, spiritual and psychological journey. I believe that anyone who honestly takes that journey will eventually find themselves happily eating to the Kimkins plan and losing weight.
For people like me, carbs are an addictive substance, and a mind-altering one. Carbs rob me of my self-discipline and self-respect and keep me self-medicating with food. In this I liken myself to an alcoholic or drug addict. Kimkins has provided a safe place for me to clear my body of mind-fogging carbs so that I CAN look at the psychological, physical, and spiritual reasons for overeating/staying fat. There is no venting you can do on Kimkins that others have not felt or heard about before. The other members graciously share their wisdom, empathy, and encouragement. Kim herself is ever-present. There is no shame in falling short or falling down; you're simply encouraged to get back to your feet and get back on the path.
I stumbled and fell off the diet and scrapped my way back to being what I call "Kimkins Clean" a number of times since October. Each time, I learned something about myself, my body, or my addiction to carbs. Now, when I fall, I'm back on the path in a day instead of wallowing in carbs for three weeks. For the first time, I look ahead and have the courage to make the following commitment: "When 2007 ends, I'm going to be 120 pounds lighter!" For the first time, I really feel that I have a chance of attaining that goal.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
The 5th Element
The 5th element proposes the following…
1. There are 4 elements that must be present for MAXIMUM results in your fat loss and fitness program:
(1) nutrition,
(2) resistance training,
(3) cardio training,
(4) “mental” training.
If you’re missing any element, your results will be less than they would with all four in place. If you’re missing two or three of these elements, you may get little, if any results at all.
2. When someone has all 4 elements in place and they still struggle to get results or stay consistent with those elements over time, it may be because there is another element they’re missing, which most people never think about or take seriously.
3. This 5th element is social support.
4. Social support can come in many forms including friends, family, church, trainers, coaches, support groups and more.
5. Research in scientific peer-reviewed nutrition, obesity, and medical journals, as well as sociology and psychology publications, has provided evidence that programs which include social support have better outcomes than those which don’t.
6. When negative social pressure is dragging you down, especially from people close to you, it’s extremely difficult to get maximum results and reach all your goals.
7. If you’re not getting social support for your fitness endeavors from your family, obviously you can’t change your family, but you can reach out to enlist support from your friends, and you can seek out new friends and social contacts with similar goals as you.
http://www.burnthefatblog.com/thefifthelement.pdf
1. There are 4 elements that must be present for MAXIMUM results in your fat loss and fitness program:
(1) nutrition,
(2) resistance training,
(3) cardio training,
(4) “mental” training.
If you’re missing any element, your results will be less than they would with all four in place. If you’re missing two or three of these elements, you may get little, if any results at all.
2. When someone has all 4 elements in place and they still struggle to get results or stay consistent with those elements over time, it may be because there is another element they’re missing, which most people never think about or take seriously.
3. This 5th element is social support.
4. Social support can come in many forms including friends, family, church, trainers, coaches, support groups and more.
5. Research in scientific peer-reviewed nutrition, obesity, and medical journals, as well as sociology and psychology publications, has provided evidence that programs which include social support have better outcomes than those which don’t.
6. When negative social pressure is dragging you down, especially from people close to you, it’s extremely difficult to get maximum results and reach all your goals.
7. If you’re not getting social support for your fitness endeavors from your family, obviously you can’t change your family, but you can reach out to enlist support from your friends, and you can seek out new friends and social contacts with similar goals as you.
http://www.burnthefatblog.com/thefifthelement.pdf
Friday, August 24, 2007
Have You Lost Your Focus?
We all know how important it is to focus on what we want.
But what happens when we lose focus?
It's easy to do, isn't it?
We get distracted. Something captures our interest and diverts our attention away from our chosen objective.
We suffer setbacks. Things don't work out as planned. Someone lets us down. Circumstances change and good plans go bad.
We get interrupted. An important matter takes precedence -- sometimes for long periods of time.
We, or members of our team, get sick or hurt. We don't have the energy we had before and often find it slow to get back in the game.
These things happen to everyone. And we have to be careful we don't think we're being singled out. The "Why is this happening to me?" question gets us nowhere.
We must first recognize that we've lost focus. And at the earliest opportunity, we must recommit. We have to get back on the horse we fell off from and ride again.
And this is what separates the winners from the losers.
The loser says it's too hard. He says it's not worth the effort. He thinks it's just "not in the cards" and he quits.
But the winner doesn't take the setback personally. She dusts herself off and recommits to the plan. She sees the setback as just that -- a setback -- not a sign that it's not to be.
What do you need to refocus upon? Is it a positive habit? A goal? A toleration you said you'd eliminate?
Revisit your reasons why. Focus on the results you will produce and not on what's not worked well. Because what you focus on expands.
Today's a new day. The past is just as historic as if it had happened a thousand years ago. You can't change what's happened or not happened. But you can recommit. You can refocus.
You can start anew.
So do it today. Remember the power of TNT -- Today, Not Tomorrow.
But what happens when we lose focus?
It's easy to do, isn't it?
We get distracted. Something captures our interest and diverts our attention away from our chosen objective.
We suffer setbacks. Things don't work out as planned. Someone lets us down. Circumstances change and good plans go bad.
We get interrupted. An important matter takes precedence -- sometimes for long periods of time.
We, or members of our team, get sick or hurt. We don't have the energy we had before and often find it slow to get back in the game.
These things happen to everyone. And we have to be careful we don't think we're being singled out. The "Why is this happening to me?" question gets us nowhere.
We must first recognize that we've lost focus. And at the earliest opportunity, we must recommit. We have to get back on the horse we fell off from and ride again.
And this is what separates the winners from the losers.
The loser says it's too hard. He says it's not worth the effort. He thinks it's just "not in the cards" and he quits.
But the winner doesn't take the setback personally. She dusts herself off and recommits to the plan. She sees the setback as just that -- a setback -- not a sign that it's not to be.
What do you need to refocus upon? Is it a positive habit? A goal? A toleration you said you'd eliminate?
Revisit your reasons why. Focus on the results you will produce and not on what's not worked well. Because what you focus on expands.
Today's a new day. The past is just as historic as if it had happened a thousand years ago. You can't change what's happened or not happened. But you can recommit. You can refocus.
You can start anew.
So do it today. Remember the power of TNT -- Today, Not Tomorrow.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Feelings & Beliefs
I am struggling too some days on Kimkins (especialy last night). The struggles are no different to any diet I've been on before. But now I have some tools to teach me to deal with issues that come up.
Yesterday I was spending some time listening to Brooke Castillo's audiobook If I'm so Smart, Why Can't I Lose Weight? I am trying to focus more on feeling my feelings, instead of just eating to cover them up. ('cos if I'm berating myself afterwards about overeating I am certainly not feeling lonely, bored, angry, fearful, you fill in the blank...which is obviously the point, but I'm not dealing with my emotions effectively, I'm just gaining pounds!) Apparently by sitting there and studying the feeling you will uncover eventually the belief that underlies the feeling. The belief is probably wrong and outdated, and so the idea is to change the belief, update it so to speak, and thus change the feeling - all without touching food and beating oneself up. Sounds easy, but it is hard. I do not like some of the feelings and beliefs that doing this so far has brought up for me. And what I am coming across is going to take some working with. But it is a step in the right direction.
Yesterday I was spending some time listening to Brooke Castillo's audiobook If I'm so Smart, Why Can't I Lose Weight? I am trying to focus more on feeling my feelings, instead of just eating to cover them up. ('cos if I'm berating myself afterwards about overeating I am certainly not feeling lonely, bored, angry, fearful, you fill in the blank...which is obviously the point, but I'm not dealing with my emotions effectively, I'm just gaining pounds!) Apparently by sitting there and studying the feeling you will uncover eventually the belief that underlies the feeling. The belief is probably wrong and outdated, and so the idea is to change the belief, update it so to speak, and thus change the feeling - all without touching food and beating oneself up. Sounds easy, but it is hard. I do not like some of the feelings and beliefs that doing this so far has brought up for me. And what I am coming across is going to take some working with. But it is a step in the right direction.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
GG Bran CrispBread
GG Bran CrispBread is a traditionally baked crispbread, which is still produced in Norway by the Gundersen family. Founded in 1935, Mr. Eugen Gundersen, who created the original recipe, began producing bran crispbread as he found that the original Scandinavian crispbread was the most effective and appetizing method of supplementing his diet with fiber.
Ingredients: Unprocessed wheat bran, rye flour, salt.
Nutritional Information: Serving size 1 slice (9g), Servings per container 12, Calories 16, Calories from fat 0, Total Fat 0g, Saturated Fat 0g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 30mg, Total Carbohydrate 3g, Dietary Fiber 3g, Protein 1g.
You can buy single packs @ Netrition and Locarbdiner
In The 160s!!!
I stepped on the scale this morning to the 160's!!! Yea me!!! 169.5
I am very pleased that I lost the water weight gained on carb-binging plus one more pound. I am trying to not think about where I'd be if I'd not fallen off the wagon, because if I'd not fallen then I'd not have learnt that I can get back in less than a week. I've not been this weight since 2002...
I am very pleased that I lost the water weight gained on carb-binging plus one more pound. I am trying to not think about where I'd be if I'd not fallen off the wagon, because if I'd not fallen then I'd not have learnt that I can get back in less than a week. I've not been this weight since 2002...
Excerpt from The Thin Commandments
The Thin Commandments: The Ten No-Fail Strategies for Permanent Weight Loss (Hardcover)
by Stephen Gullo (Author)
"THE SINGLE GREATEST SURPRISE of my professional life has been the discovery that success at weight control is not about willpower..."
I ordered the paperback version (click here) from The Book Depository (3rd one down) Book is brand new, comes from the UK and takes about a week.
I have skimmed through it, and now I'm about 1/3 of the way thru it reading. Great info and tips for now, but also for maintenance. Dr. Gullo has his own "diet plan" but it is not pushed, and actually it might be a good one to add to the list to consider using for maintenance. (I already have the Abs Diet sitting there in reserve) Because when I reach goal I intend to be very active and I am going to need a clean diet to support my toned and healthy body.
The following is an excerpt from the book The Thin Commandments Diet: The 10 No-Fail Strategies for Permanent Weight Loss
by Stephen Gullo, Ph.D.
Published by Rodale; January 2005; $24.95US/$35.95CAN; 978-1-57954-898-8
Click here for full excerpt
Copyright © 2005 Dietech Co.
Tips for Keeping the Weight Off
Here are 9 critical behaviors and 1 additional shift in thinking that make up the 10 most important things to do on maintenance. The first 4 behaviors characterize all my winners. The 6 additional behaviors describe most of my clients. And while I believe that all 10 are important, the first 4 are critical for success.
SPECIAL ALERT: The single most important thing you can do to keep weight off for a lifetime is so important I've changed the format of the text to indelibly etch it into your psyche: Wear form-fitting or tight clothes! When you reach maintenance, you should have one size, and one size only, of clothing. I've found that nothing sounds the warning siren faster or motivates people to act with greater haste than when their clothing gets too tight!
Think about what motivated you to start your diet. If you're like many of my clients, you were uncomfortable with your clothing (or you couldn't fit into it) and appearance. When you have a little extra trouble buttoning a pair of jeans or find it necessary to add an extra notch to your belt, it reawakens the original motivation. When you have only one size, you have no choice but to stay trim. If you save larger sizes, you are making it easy -- too easy -- to just switch to a larger size instead of acting to correct any errors.
Also, if you don't plan to be heavy again, why save the larger sizes? When you reach maintenance, throw out the larger sizes -- immediately!
Knowing that you have only one size of clothing adds another powerful incentive to maintain your weight: economics! How many of us can afford to buy a whole new wardrobe especially one in a larger size? Your wallet gives you extra incentive to guard your weight loss.
Before people ever respond to the clarion call to health, they listen to the cry of their clothing getting too tight. I'd have a nearly empty office if I tried to motivate people to stay on maintenance on the basis of health alone.
Your wardrobe is the most powerful deterrent I know of against sliding once more into out-of-control eating. It signals your commitment never to be heavy again. That's why I insist that all maintenance clients discard all clothes that no longer fit, with one exception: I ask them to save the outfit that's their largest size (preferably one they disliked ever having to wear) as an eternal reminder.
Keep problem foods you have a history of abusing out of your home. Almost all the women and a very large percentage of the men I have worked with who regained weight started the slide in their own homes. The slide often began with a food they had a history of abusing but had avoided while they were losing weight.
Remember the study by researchers at the National Weight Control Registry that found that two out of three people who lose weight and keep it off keep problem foods out of their house? Although that food might not tempt you at this moment, I can't urge you strongly enough to remove it from your home or at least keep it permanently out of your sight. Remember, you're always vulnerable to the foods that have tripped you up in the past -- even on maintenance. Eventually, people tend to return to their old favorites if they are continually available. On maintenance, even more than weight loss, availability stimulates craving -- even if it doesn't happen immediately. Along with keeping only one size of clothes in your house, it's critically important to keep problem foods out of your home.
Set a weight ceiling, and defend it. Pick a number -- typically about 3 pounds for women, 5 pounds for men -- and don't let your weight go above it -- ever. No matter what happens, don't let yourself off the hook. Draw a line in the sand. When the weight is back down, you can return to maintenance eating. Most of my clients expect increases in weight on weekends because of higher-calorie maintenance meals at home and out. Monday is typically the "high number" day of the week, but by Friday, they bring the weight back down to their goal weight, via Phase A and B eating.
Weigh yourself every day. Your bathroom scale can't weigh your behavior. However, it will tell you when you gain a pound or two. If you step on the scale the morning after a big meal at a restaurant or special event, your weight could be up. Don't be alarmed. If it's water weight, it will dissipate in 24 to 48 hours. You should expect slight variations during the week, especially after maintenance meals.
If it's real weight (3 or more pounds that remain over a period of several weeks), that should be a warning to you to take immediate action.
If you find it a bit maddening to follow the daily fluctuations of the scale even though you are eating properly, pick three days of the week on which you will always weigh yourself (for example, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday).
Exercise. It gives you structure and control. It gets you thinking about calorie burn and health consciousness and directs you away from obsessing about food. It's been shown that dieters who exercise regularly succeed the longest at keeping weight off. A study of more than 32,000 dieters by Consumer Reports magazine found that "regular exercise was the number one successful weight-loss maintenance strategy" of more than 81 percent of the long-term maintainers. In second place, at 74 percent, was the related strategy of increasing activity in daily routines. Also, as your body becomes lighter, it burns fewer calories. Exercise helps expand your calorie budget by burning the higher-caloric foods of maintenance.
And remember: Exercise generates endorphins, increases energy, and elevates mood.
Exercise provides you with a healthy outlet for stress. These effects help you follow through on your commitments, especially to control your weight. And as an outlet for stress, exercise shortcuts mood eating. It's the perfect alternative to keep your moods out of your foods.
Keep a photo of yourself at your heaviest weight. For added emphasis, place it next to a picture at your lightest weight. Many of my clients put the photo in a place where they feel most vulnerable -- the refrigerator door or kitchen counter, for example. Others elect to carry the photo in their wallet or purse.
Some of you may find it upsetting to stare constantly at a picture of yourself at your heaviest weight. Instead, carry a picture of what you look like at your lightest weight. You may find it motivates you even more to protect your accomplishments.
When it comes to weight control, a picture is truly worth a thousand words.
Keep a food diary. I'd like you to keep a diary for at least the first 90 days on maintenance. I ask my own clients to keep a diary for a full year. I want them to be certain they can manage the entire cycle of the year, with its holidays, vacations, special events, birthdays, summer versus winter eating, and so on. Since the same events and seasons come up year after year, once you get through the first year, you should be well prepared for the coming ones. After the first year, I frequently ask some clients to continue to keep a food diary or to keep a record of any "error" such as eating problem foods or excessive quantities of caloric foods.
A diary will serve as a daily reminder of the extras and/or negative eating habits. Writing out your meals and snacks a day in advance will help structure your thinking and help you steer clear of potential trip-ups.
Give yourself clear boundaries. Boundaries are a strong structure for your eating behavior. A major study of the winners found that 88 percent limited some type or classes of food. Another 45 percent limited the quantities of the foods they ate. Remember, if you don't have a good history of limiting a particular food, avoid it.
I help my clients establish clear boundaries and control their calorie budget with the lighter menus of Phases A and B of my eating plan from Monday through Friday, saving their maintenance meals or higher-calorie foods for weekends and special events. This clear boundary helps build an infrastructure of positive behaviors and smart eating habits that becomes automatic after a few weeks.
Most of my winners reinforce their boundaries with the techniques of Box It In and Box It Out. Many decide to Box Out a certain category or type of food. For some, it's baked goods, especially breadbaskets. Others avoid sweet baked goods (but may indulge in another type of sweet, such as a chocolate mousse). I want to emphasize again: They don't do this to make their lives difficult or to deprive themselves of something they want. They do it to make it easier to succeed at weight control -- which is something they want more.
Go beyond the food reward system. My winners enjoy the pleasure of fine food. Many of them dine regularly at fine restaurants. However, they've evolved beyond the childhood programming that views food as a reward or a treat.
They understand that no matter how beautiful a food looks or how enticing its aroma, if it's a food they have a history of abusing, it's no reward at all.
Some of my clients reward themselves with new clothes. Others enjoy a trip to a spa, a new necklace, or a weekend getaway with friends.
These are material rewards. A far more meaningful reward occurs each morning when they look in the mirror and see a trim body. There's no greater reward you can give yourself than to live the vision you have for your own life.
Reprinted from: The Thin Commandments Diet: The 10 No -Fail Strategies for Permanent Weight Loss by Stephen Gullo, Ph.D. © 2005 by Dietech Co. Permission granted by Rodale, Inc., Emmaus, PA 18098. Available wherever books are sold or directly from the publisher by calling (800) 848-4735 or visit their website at:
www.rodalestore.com.
By Buzzle Staff and Agencies
Published: 1/26/2005
by Stephen Gullo (Author)
"THE SINGLE GREATEST SURPRISE of my professional life has been the discovery that success at weight control is not about willpower..."
I ordered the paperback version (click here) from The Book Depository (3rd one down) Book is brand new, comes from the UK and takes about a week.
I have skimmed through it, and now I'm about 1/3 of the way thru it reading. Great info and tips for now, but also for maintenance. Dr. Gullo has his own "diet plan" but it is not pushed, and actually it might be a good one to add to the list to consider using for maintenance. (I already have the Abs Diet sitting there in reserve) Because when I reach goal I intend to be very active and I am going to need a clean diet to support my toned and healthy body.
The following is an excerpt from the book The Thin Commandments Diet: The 10 No-Fail Strategies for Permanent Weight Loss
by Stephen Gullo, Ph.D.
Published by Rodale; January 2005; $24.95US/$35.95CAN; 978-1-57954-898-8
Click here for full excerpt
Copyright © 2005 Dietech Co.
Tips for Keeping the Weight Off
Here are 9 critical behaviors and 1 additional shift in thinking that make up the 10 most important things to do on maintenance. The first 4 behaviors characterize all my winners. The 6 additional behaviors describe most of my clients. And while I believe that all 10 are important, the first 4 are critical for success.
SPECIAL ALERT: The single most important thing you can do to keep weight off for a lifetime is so important I've changed the format of the text to indelibly etch it into your psyche: Wear form-fitting or tight clothes! When you reach maintenance, you should have one size, and one size only, of clothing. I've found that nothing sounds the warning siren faster or motivates people to act with greater haste than when their clothing gets too tight!
Think about what motivated you to start your diet. If you're like many of my clients, you were uncomfortable with your clothing (or you couldn't fit into it) and appearance. When you have a little extra trouble buttoning a pair of jeans or find it necessary to add an extra notch to your belt, it reawakens the original motivation. When you have only one size, you have no choice but to stay trim. If you save larger sizes, you are making it easy -- too easy -- to just switch to a larger size instead of acting to correct any errors.
Also, if you don't plan to be heavy again, why save the larger sizes? When you reach maintenance, throw out the larger sizes -- immediately!
Knowing that you have only one size of clothing adds another powerful incentive to maintain your weight: economics! How many of us can afford to buy a whole new wardrobe especially one in a larger size? Your wallet gives you extra incentive to guard your weight loss.
Before people ever respond to the clarion call to health, they listen to the cry of their clothing getting too tight. I'd have a nearly empty office if I tried to motivate people to stay on maintenance on the basis of health alone.
Your wardrobe is the most powerful deterrent I know of against sliding once more into out-of-control eating. It signals your commitment never to be heavy again. That's why I insist that all maintenance clients discard all clothes that no longer fit, with one exception: I ask them to save the outfit that's their largest size (preferably one they disliked ever having to wear) as an eternal reminder.
Keep problem foods you have a history of abusing out of your home. Almost all the women and a very large percentage of the men I have worked with who regained weight started the slide in their own homes. The slide often began with a food they had a history of abusing but had avoided while they were losing weight.
Remember the study by researchers at the National Weight Control Registry that found that two out of three people who lose weight and keep it off keep problem foods out of their house? Although that food might not tempt you at this moment, I can't urge you strongly enough to remove it from your home or at least keep it permanently out of your sight. Remember, you're always vulnerable to the foods that have tripped you up in the past -- even on maintenance. Eventually, people tend to return to their old favorites if they are continually available. On maintenance, even more than weight loss, availability stimulates craving -- even if it doesn't happen immediately. Along with keeping only one size of clothes in your house, it's critically important to keep problem foods out of your home.
Set a weight ceiling, and defend it. Pick a number -- typically about 3 pounds for women, 5 pounds for men -- and don't let your weight go above it -- ever. No matter what happens, don't let yourself off the hook. Draw a line in the sand. When the weight is back down, you can return to maintenance eating. Most of my clients expect increases in weight on weekends because of higher-calorie maintenance meals at home and out. Monday is typically the "high number" day of the week, but by Friday, they bring the weight back down to their goal weight, via Phase A and B eating.
Weigh yourself every day. Your bathroom scale can't weigh your behavior. However, it will tell you when you gain a pound or two. If you step on the scale the morning after a big meal at a restaurant or special event, your weight could be up. Don't be alarmed. If it's water weight, it will dissipate in 24 to 48 hours. You should expect slight variations during the week, especially after maintenance meals.
If it's real weight (3 or more pounds that remain over a period of several weeks), that should be a warning to you to take immediate action.
If you find it a bit maddening to follow the daily fluctuations of the scale even though you are eating properly, pick three days of the week on which you will always weigh yourself (for example, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday).
Exercise. It gives you structure and control. It gets you thinking about calorie burn and health consciousness and directs you away from obsessing about food. It's been shown that dieters who exercise regularly succeed the longest at keeping weight off. A study of more than 32,000 dieters by Consumer Reports magazine found that "regular exercise was the number one successful weight-loss maintenance strategy" of more than 81 percent of the long-term maintainers. In second place, at 74 percent, was the related strategy of increasing activity in daily routines. Also, as your body becomes lighter, it burns fewer calories. Exercise helps expand your calorie budget by burning the higher-caloric foods of maintenance.
And remember: Exercise generates endorphins, increases energy, and elevates mood.
Exercise provides you with a healthy outlet for stress. These effects help you follow through on your commitments, especially to control your weight. And as an outlet for stress, exercise shortcuts mood eating. It's the perfect alternative to keep your moods out of your foods.
Keep a photo of yourself at your heaviest weight. For added emphasis, place it next to a picture at your lightest weight. Many of my clients put the photo in a place where they feel most vulnerable -- the refrigerator door or kitchen counter, for example. Others elect to carry the photo in their wallet or purse.
Some of you may find it upsetting to stare constantly at a picture of yourself at your heaviest weight. Instead, carry a picture of what you look like at your lightest weight. You may find it motivates you even more to protect your accomplishments.
When it comes to weight control, a picture is truly worth a thousand words.
Keep a food diary. I'd like you to keep a diary for at least the first 90 days on maintenance. I ask my own clients to keep a diary for a full year. I want them to be certain they can manage the entire cycle of the year, with its holidays, vacations, special events, birthdays, summer versus winter eating, and so on. Since the same events and seasons come up year after year, once you get through the first year, you should be well prepared for the coming ones. After the first year, I frequently ask some clients to continue to keep a food diary or to keep a record of any "error" such as eating problem foods or excessive quantities of caloric foods.
A diary will serve as a daily reminder of the extras and/or negative eating habits. Writing out your meals and snacks a day in advance will help structure your thinking and help you steer clear of potential trip-ups.
Give yourself clear boundaries. Boundaries are a strong structure for your eating behavior. A major study of the winners found that 88 percent limited some type or classes of food. Another 45 percent limited the quantities of the foods they ate. Remember, if you don't have a good history of limiting a particular food, avoid it.
I help my clients establish clear boundaries and control their calorie budget with the lighter menus of Phases A and B of my eating plan from Monday through Friday, saving their maintenance meals or higher-calorie foods for weekends and special events. This clear boundary helps build an infrastructure of positive behaviors and smart eating habits that becomes automatic after a few weeks.
Most of my winners reinforce their boundaries with the techniques of Box It In and Box It Out. Many decide to Box Out a certain category or type of food. For some, it's baked goods, especially breadbaskets. Others avoid sweet baked goods (but may indulge in another type of sweet, such as a chocolate mousse). I want to emphasize again: They don't do this to make their lives difficult or to deprive themselves of something they want. They do it to make it easier to succeed at weight control -- which is something they want more.
Go beyond the food reward system. My winners enjoy the pleasure of fine food. Many of them dine regularly at fine restaurants. However, they've evolved beyond the childhood programming that views food as a reward or a treat.
They understand that no matter how beautiful a food looks or how enticing its aroma, if it's a food they have a history of abusing, it's no reward at all.
Some of my clients reward themselves with new clothes. Others enjoy a trip to a spa, a new necklace, or a weekend getaway with friends.
These are material rewards. A far more meaningful reward occurs each morning when they look in the mirror and see a trim body. There's no greater reward you can give yourself than to live the vision you have for your own life.
Reprinted from: The Thin Commandments Diet: The 10 No -Fail Strategies for Permanent Weight Loss by Stephen Gullo, Ph.D. © 2005 by Dietech Co. Permission granted by Rodale, Inc., Emmaus, PA 18098. Available wherever books are sold or directly from the publisher by calling (800) 848-4735 or visit their website at:
www.rodalestore.com.
By Buzzle Staff and Agencies
Published: 1/26/2005
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