April 2012 – Page 3 – WAVES for Weight Loss, Inc.

When The Scale Doesn’t Move or Goes Up!

There are days when staying on track with our water, attitude, veggies, and exercise seem easy. On those days, we may not even feel as if we need support. Those are the days when the weight is seemingly falling off, our friends are noticing and giving us compliments and we are grinning from ear to ear.

Yet, there will be days when it seems as if our scale has gotten stuck. It won’t budge, not even a tenth of a pound or maybe it even goes up. All of this in spite of the fact that we have been sweating hard at every workout, turned away from every dessert and drank enough water to float an ark.

Those are the days we really need to seek God. He doesn’t want us to give up or quit. Stay the course and remember God is faithful. He is on our side. Our bodies have to pause from time to time and adjust. So when the scales don’t move and we hit that inevitable plateau, we need to just stay the course and be patient. Our bodies will change and we will start to make progress again. Have you hit a plateau? How did you get through it?

For me, I realized that I had a new body and I was a new person ~ new in Christ. We are putting off the old and becoming a new person from the inside out. I am sure the finish line will be worth the effort!

How Do You Track Your Water Intake?

If we are trying to reach any goal and want to be successful, we have to hold ourselves accountable. So, if when working on getting in our daily water intake, how do we track how much water we have drunk for the day?

Here at WAVES for Weight Loss^SM, we have created a variety of WAVES tracking forms to help you out. We hope that you will find them beneficial. I know of one person who would fill a 1-gallon water container every day and make sure she drank all of it before the end of the day. So, this person’s goal was 128 oz.

Do you have others ways of tracking your water intake? Please share what has worked for you; it may help someone else out!

How Much Are You Worth?

I recently heard “diet” referred to as “that other four letter word”. Many people start looking at what they are giving up and can’t see what they are gaining. Have you ever looked at the journey to weight loss as a sacrifice? If so, you are not alone.

Well, I want you to focus on what you are gaining ~ improved health, better self-esteem, energy and so much more. So, is all of this worth the sacrifice? I know that your health and all that you will gain is worth this journey. You are worth the effort it will take. And just how do I know this if I’ve never met you?

The answer to that is simple. I know Jesus Christ and I know that He thought you were worth the ultimate sacrifice. He thought your salvation was worth giving His life. Do you know Him? If not, please read the Plan of Salvation. Jesus knows just how much you are worth, and He desires to have a place in your heart today. Are you proud to call Jesus your savior? Have you thanked Him for His sacrifice today?

Reminders Everywhere!

So, you want to lose weight, but you have some weaknesses to overcome…. I know that feeling because I have a few of my own. Of course, those weaknesses have changed and, praise God, most of them have been overcome. However, that does not prevent me from falling into temptation from time to time. So, what are we to do?

Well, one thing that I have found to help me is reminders. Let’s say one of your weaknesses is a frozen Snickers Ice Cream Bar. Yeah, I know they are really good and it would be so easy to eat that whole box, but we don’t want to do that, now do we? Ok, so maybe its not your weakness, but it is one of mine.

At 180 calories and only 3g of protein, these frozen treats have to be a very occasional treat in my diet and not a daily staple. So, when they are in the house, I am at a disadvantage. Now, I could simply not buy them, but it is rarely me that puts them in the freezer…..after all, there are 7 other people here, but when they are in the freezer, they are in easy access.

To ward off the temptation, I post reminders on the box. Yep, directly on the box, in the freezer with everything else. In fact, I have reminders posted in lots of places. On the fridge, next to the food cupboards, on any box of treats, in my wallet (so I can remember not to buy something I don’t need) and even in the bathroom, next to the scales. The reminders let me keep my focus on reaching the goal and off of the temptation. Where will you put reminders?

Share Your Goal

For me, it was very difficult for me to share my goal at first. I was so afraid of failure that I just didn’t want to deal with sarcastic remarks from others.

So, I lost over 40 lbs. with only my immediate family knowing what I was trying to accomplish. Then, one day I wrote a post on facebook. The supportive response I received was overwhelming. People I went to church with, friends I hadn’t seen in years and clients I work with began showing me support.

It wasn’t until I started receiving the support I had never known growing up that I realized just how important support from others really is. When I felt like I wasn’t making any progress or that the weight loss wasn’t showing, I would talk with someone I hadn’t seen in a few weeks and one of the first things they would tell me is how much progress I was making.

We see ourselves everyday, so sometimes we can’t see what others can. So, share your goal. Yes, there will be those that won’t support you, but there will be so many more that will! Share your goal with us today.

Make a Plan

Are you saying to yourself that you want to get into shape, you want to be fit, maybe you even want to run a 5k eventually, but you just don’t know where to start? Or perhaps you are ready to try every DVD and fitness program available and lack a clear direction.

Well, the best way to succeed is to make a plan. If you plan out your fitness routine and make it a part of your schedule, then your chances of reaching your goal have gone through the roof as compared to someone who is on the ground with no plan at all.

During the course of my weight loss journey, my plan changed from time to time, but exercise remained a priority in my schedule. For the most part, my routine has stayed strength training on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays with cardio on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and a rest day on Sundays.

You can use the exercise log sheet found in the resources section of this website. There is also a blank form for you to create your own routine. Whatever you do, make a plan and stick to it! Success is sure to come. Share your plans with us and let us know what success the future is holding for you!

First Things First

So, its time to sit down to a meal. I feel starved and all of the high calorie foods look great. I feel as if I could eat it all. Well, I have learned to make a simple change that helps a lot.

I eat the healthy foods first. A salad (veggies only please), with a light or even no dressing or celery, carrots and apples. Yes, there are lots of great choices. By filling up on the healthy foods first, the other foods become less and less appealing. In fact, I now crave the healthy stuff. Once I’ve made the healthy choices and eaten a serving or two, I can then decide if I even want anything else. If I do, I am now sure to not over eat the less healthy choices.

I have saved myself from blowing my diet and falling into gluttony. As an added bonus, I feel better. The better the fuel we eat, the healthier our bodies become. So, how about you, do you eat the healthy foods first?

Sometimes the Grass is Greener!

We have always heard the saying that sometimes the grass is not greener on the other side. However, this may not always be the case.

A friend was recently telling me about seeing three horses in a pasture. Two were in a lush and wonderful looking field together. These horses were healthy and thriving. All the while, the third horse was in a different field that had grass sparsely growing. There was enough there for this horse to survive, but it was not thriving as the others were. This third horse could have went to the other pasture through an area in the fence and made it into the other pasture with only some discomfort.

This is how things are for everyone that is overweight. We will fight and not suffer the discomfort of being hungry part of the time or being out of breath and sweating while we exercise. Yet, if we will only be willing to go through some discomfort, the results are great! And I am here to tell you that the grass really is greener on the other side……

less backaches
less joint pain
more energy
feeling better about yourself
living outside the sin of gluttony
lower cholesterol levels
better overall health
and so much more!

So, are you ready? Are you committed? Make the effort and you too can find out that the grass is greener on the other side.

Are You Really Hungry?

Our bodies have a small set of needs. Those associated with weight loss are rest, hunger and thirst. Now, at first glance, it may seem that those could never be confused.

Who would admit that they can easily confuse the need for rest with hunger? Well, it is completely possible, especially when you are under a lot of stress or tired. Our bodies actually crave sugar and caffeine when we need rest, but we are pushing ourselves to keep going. So, we can easily mistake those signals from our body demanding rest for the need for a cup of coffee or a sugary treat.

In addition, we confuse hunger and thirst. If you feel hungry when you stomach is not growling, try drinking a glass of water first. The result may surprise you because you may have simply been thirsty and your thirst being met, you may find the hunger you believed was there to be gone as well!

Plan to Succeed

It is easy to say we want to weigh a certain number and to be healthy. Many people set New Year’s Resolutions and then, they have the same one for the next year, having failed at reaching those goals. I have experienced this first hand. However, at the end of 2009, a lot of things changed for me.

One of the things that helped lead me to success in weight loss was goal setting. Sure, a resolution should be enough. We set a goal and resolve to reach it, but 99% of the time, we never reach that goal because we don’t have a plan or a path, if you will, to follow.

I started setting small goals in everything for everyday. How much water I would drink, how could I keep a positive attitude, how many veggies and other foods I would eat, how much and what type of exercise would I do and where would I go for support.

I want you to be successful too, so I have created a simple to use goal worksheet to help you out. Don’t worry, you won’t feel like you are back in school. The form is simple.

For example, under the water section, you will find the headers Start, Stop and Continue. Under Start, you may want to put something like drink at least 64 oz. of water each day. While you may need to Stop drinking so many sugary drinks, and you might want to Continue drinking water during meals.

Make the goals small and achievable. If you never drink water, you may simply want to start with 8 oz a day. However, if you already drink 64 oz you may want to increase it to half of your body weight in ounces. As you make progress, your goals will evolve as your body changes.

This is especially true in terms of what/how much you eat and how much/what kind of exercise you can do. In fact, when I started, I could only walk about half of a mile before I was exhausted and out of breath. Now, I am working to run more and for longer distances. I can easily walk 5 miles or more and I only have to stop because I run out of time, not energy!

The point is, by keeping your plan simple, but changing, you can reach goals you never knew you had! Download the Set for Success Sheet from our Resources page and share your goals with us! We’ll be here to cheer you on!