So you want to make a change? I congratulate you for wanting to, but lets look at what it has taken me so far. We will start by setting up some rules for you, and might I add that these are the same rules I set up for myself and that I still follow now.
- Positive thinking
- A want that is more then just a thought
- A visual goal
- Support from others around you
- A plan
Step one, you must find a happy place to put yourself into on a daily basis, if not hourly at times. There will be times when you feel like you can’t do this, I promise you that the urge to give up will go away. Other people will try to discourage you from doing this, and they may be the people closest to you. If you can find your happy place, you will make it through the changes in your life that you want.
Step two, the idea of losing weight or getting healthy is enticing. Let me ask you a serious question, how long do you want to lose weight for or be healthy for? A month, few months, a year, or forever? I like the idea of forever, and that is my goal. This is why I don’t call this a diet, I am making a lifestyle change that I will carry on for the rest of my life. If you work with me you will see and feel results quickly, but why would you not want to keep that going? I want to see you feel amazing for the rest of your life, not just today.
Step three, find yourself a goal to work towards. I’m not talking about the thought, “I want to lose 20lbs”. Find a picture of someone who has the body you want to get to, a dress you want to fit into, a bathing suit that is too small for you right now. A visual goal can be the most motivating element of your journey. For example, the picture that I used as my motivation was one of Brad Pitt. No, not the one from his movie “Fight Club”. He worked very thoroughly for that movie to get down to a body fat count that is very hard to maintain. I’m talking the normal everyday Pitt, he is lean, has a normal muscle mass, and does it with sustainable life choices. You may want a body type that may be more extreme, or less, but it is your choice and it may change as you continue. No matter what you chose, use that as a reminder to keep your focus in place.
Step four, who do you know in your life that wants to change also? Is it your spouse or partner, your best friend, siblings, parents, co-workers? Being accountable to others is fantastic for many reasons. This is going to be tough in the beginning, and you might be enticed in the future to do something you don’t want to do right now. Right now you want to make a change, and having that accountability will help you stay focused and on track. I have an awesome community between my fiancé at home and so many of my co-workers. A lot of these people that I have in my community are doing it because they want similar results as I do, or they just want to try something a bit better or different than what they are doing currently. My goals are big, some say too big, but then my supporters say get out there and do it. They help me keep my focus and fuel my drive. When I need that support they are there, and it is truly remarkable. Find yourself others who like you, want to make a change, and get out there and do it together.
Step five, a plan. While all this sounds good, you need a plan of action to be successful. What I will talk about from here is what I have done so far, and what I will be doing later. You may want to change certain aspects to suit your lifestyle, and thats fine, you only need to follow the core of what I believe is working for me. Food is the battle that need to be won here. If you can’t win the battle with your diet then you will lose the war. I hate to be that blunt, but that is how serious I am here. I lost my first twenty pounds with diet alone. you need to get away from the mindset that food that comes from a box, a can, a bag, of from a drive through are okay. Some absolutely can be, but for the most part they are full of lies that will contribute to the failure of your weight loss. When you look at a label in the grocery store and see a bunch of ingredients you can’t pronounce, or the list is more than ten items, good chance you should just put it back on the shelf. Your food should be as natural as possible, with ingredients that are not chemicals you can’t pronounce. There are plenty of food out there that falls under these guidelines. This type of food will not nourish your body, they will only make you more malnourished. You want to nourish your body with food that helps it repair and grow, not continue to destroy it.
What I would like to see you eat is more fruits and vegetables, beans, seeds, water, and less meat. Your mother always told you to eat your veggies, I’m telling you the same. Fresh vegetables should be the corner stone of your diet, and not a side on your plate. Find a good local market that has a rotation of fresh produce for you to select from. Visit them often, once a week minimum to keep your supply fresh and plentiful. I visit ours twice a week on average, I never buy a weeks worth, or worse two weeks worth, because the second that is picked buy the farmer it starts to break down and lose it ability to heal you. There maybe times when they don’t have particular items, that’s fine because there are plenty of alternatives and you now realize that this stuff is fresh.
Protein, and that does not mean to reach for the animal products. It means you should reach for things like beans, tofu, quinoa, nuts, or lentils. Protein should not be some huge part of your plate, the body DOES NOT NEED IT. Almost everything you eat has protein in it, and if it comes from plants it is much easier for the body to digest. If you still want to eat animal protein, I still do, try to keep it less than 10% of your calories per day, and eat the healthier ones. Beef is the devil if you want to become more healthy. It is incredibly hard for the body to break it down, and the benefits of eating it are almost nothing. Better meats to eat would be organic, grass feed, free range type turkey, fish, or eggs.
Starch should come from brown rice, oats, or quinoa. We tend to eat far to much white rice and potatoes when it comes to the American diet. It should make up less than 20% of your calories per day. When the body is over ridden by starchy foods it turns them into glucose (sugar) and then into fat. If your like me then you are trying to lose fat, not gain it by what we thought was good food. Keeping those tasty and filling starches to a minimum will improve your energy level and keep that Thanksgiving day fullness to a minimum.
Dairy is a touchy subject for most people, and that included me for a long time. I loved my dairy, but it always fought back with me. In the past I ate dairy with almost all of my meals, now I eat almost no dairy at all. For me that includes no cheese, yogurt, or milk. The dairy that does enter my body comes from other foods, and many of the health food that you will eat contain as much if not more calcium then what you would normally get from dairy products. If you cant give it up quite yet then switch to Greek Yogurt, vegan cheese, soy or almond milks.
I will continue to update this page with more information, but I still want you to be able to read what I have so far!
Dave's Health and Wellness 