Exercise Makes Your Heart Stronger

Exercise makes your heart stronger and a healthy heart helps you exercise for longer.

Working Out Doesn’t Just Make You Stronger, It Makes You Smarter

Studies show that exercising doesn't just boost your health, it can also boost your intelligence and mental acuity. Read more...

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Focus On Losing Just 1lb

It is better to take many small steps in the right direction than to make a great leap forward only to stumble backward. -Old Chinese Proverb quotes

30 Minutes A Day To Shed The Pounds

Adults who exercise for shorter bursts of time can lose as much weight as those who work out for up to twice as long, a study has suggested. The University of Copenhagen study concluded that sweating for half the time was “enough to turn the tide” for obesity. The research, published in the American Journal of Physiology, found those who ran, rowed, or cycled for 30 minutes a day lost an average 8lb over a three month period. Read more...

Image Is Powerful - Another Must Watch Video, Especially For Women

 Model Cameron Russell gives the real story behind six of her stunning photos 

 This 10 minute video has a powerful message that I felt compelled to share with you. As we are all trying to lose weight it's important that we evaluate our true reasons. If it's about getting healthier great, but if it is to fit into media driven stereotypes of perfection then we are inevitably headed down a slippery slope of low body image and low self-esteem.

 Excerpt from the video:
 “I always just say I was scouted, but that means nothing,” Russell says in her talk. “The real way I became a model is that I won a genetic lottery, and I am a recipient of a legacy. For the past few centuries, we have defined beauty not just as health and youth and symmetry that we’re biologically programmed to admire, but also as tall, slender figures with femininity and white skin. This is a legacy that was built for me, and that I’ve been cashing in on.”

In this talk, Russell delivers two powerful messages: First, that young girls who dream of being a model should think of it like they would winning Powerball—something to shoot for, but “not a career path.” Second, Russell takes on the tendency to think that life would be better and easier if we were more beautiful. Russell’s response: “If you ever think, ‘If I had thinner thighs and shinier hair, wouldn’t I be happier,” you just need to meet a group of models. They have the thinnest thighs and the shiniest hair and the coolest clothes and they are the most physically insecure women, probably, on the planet.”

But Russell has another point she wants to convey too. While many bemoan the use of Photoshop for making models look thinner and imperfection-free, Russell says that this is just the tip of the iceberg. To hear more about how the image of sex appeal is carefully constructed from the ground up, watch her bold talk. And after the jump, pay attention as Russell shares the reality behind some of her sexy images.

Don't Let Worn Out Beliefs Stop You

"Believe that you can run farther or faster. Believe that you're young enough, old enough, strong enough, and so on to accomplish everything you want to do. Don't let worn-out beliefs stop you from moving beyond yourself." -John Bingham, running speaker and writer

My favorite part of the above quote is 'Don't let worn-out beliefs stop you from moving beyond yourself.' These words meant a lot to me today because I was able to do a yoga pose that I had previously thought was almost impossible for me. I had convinced myself through a worn out belief of something that was just not true. I broke free of this mind cage by first visualizing myself doing the very thing I thought I could not do (visualization is very powerful). I successfully completed the pose and in that moment I realized first-hand the power that old worn out belief patterns have to stop us from doing things we really want to do. What old, worn out beliefs about what you think you cannot do are stopping you from achieving your long-held dreams or goals?

Eating High Water Content Foods Could Be the Answer You've Been Looking For

• Water helps curb your appetite and has zero calories
• Water increases your metabolism
• Vegetables and fruit are around 80% water
• Vegetables and fruit are low in calories but high in nutrients
• Vegetables and fruit are high in fiber which helps you feel fuller for longer

Although I've spoken about the need to drink more water and eat more veggies and fruit in the past, the 'eat more vegetables and fruit' message and the 'drink more water' message cannot ever be overdone on this blog because these are two of the most important tips for losing weight and maintaining weight loss that I've ever come across. Recently I increased my own vegetable and fruit intake massively and it was only then that I realized how little of those foods I was really eating. 

In fact I think I have recently become a serious raw vegan food enthusiast and one of the most important reasons for this is the results I'm getting from this lifestyle. The weight is dropping off easily without much effort; my skin is glowing and looks better than it has done for ages; I'm eating as much of these foods as I like and my favorite result is...I'm never hungry and I never crave the processed 'food' I used to eat in the past. I will talk more about this way of eating in some future posts, but in the meantime I'd urge you to look up 'low fat raw vegan lifestyle' on Google for yourself and start your own research....you might be pleasantly surprised.

Be Careful What You Think and Say

Your thoughts and the words you say about yourself, your weight and your ability to lose weight have a tremendous impact on your motivation....make sure you use positive ones that help you along and not negatives ones that hold you back.

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Imagine The Fat Shrinking

See it, believe it, act on it, achieve it.

Try A Little Bit Harder

A little extra effort than you’d ordinarily take, plus a little more action than you've been satisfied with, will equal a whole lot more success than you’d usually get....so try harder!

Ask Better Questions And You'll Get Better Answers

Here are 10 questions that will empower you on your weight loss and fitness journey:

1. How will my life improve if I exercise 5 days a week?
2. What actions can I take this week to cultivate a healthier lifestyle?
3. What do I find exciting about physical exercise?
4. What should I eat to ensure I reach my 2 lbs weight loss goal this week?
5. How am I going to make today totally awesome?
6. What am I really looking forward to about losing weight this month?
7. What do I love about the way my body is changing?
8. What positive thing can I learn from that mistake today?
9. What are some of my best achievements so far?
10. What is the most important action I can take next to achieve my goal weight?

What empowering questions can you add to this list?

Act As If You're Already The Person You Want To Become

Pretend you are already the person you want to become. If you were already the fitter you with a toned, healthy body and at your goal weight, what would be different about your day? What would your meals look like? How would you feel about exercise and what type of exercise would you do? 

Take these actions NOW.

Walking For The Health Of It

The Health Benefits of Walking

• Walking helps with weight management
• It’s accessible to everyone
• Doesn't require special equipment
• One of the easiest ways to get more active
• It’s a low impact exercise
• Helps maintain strong bones
• Helps maintain lean muscle tissue
• Builds aerobic fitness

My friend Marc made the video from which I created this gif...check out the full video on his blog HERE...you'll love the background music on the video too. 

Weight Loss Is More Than Just a Lower Number On The Scales.

 It dawned on me yesterday that the slimmer, fitter person I will become is really a transformed me in more ways than the scales can measure. I will not only have a new, slimmer body and wear smaller sized clothes that I really want to wear. I will also be transformed mentally. I will feel more confident about my appearance and will interact differently with people as a result of my new found physical confidence. I will feel proud of myself for following through on my fitness goals. I will develop a new mindset around food and eating. I will also develop a new mindset in relation to regular exercise. So weight loss is really much more than just getting the scales to show a smaller number.  Successful weight loss is really a positive and gradual transformation of your body, your mind and your life.

You Can Do It

Make 2013 the year you finally lose all the extra weight, YOU CAN DO IT.

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Visualize Yourself Succeeding At Weight Loss

A recent study at McGill University reports that the best way to improve your eating habits is to not only create an action plan but to visualize yourself following through. Participants were asked to consume more fruit for one week. One group simply set the goal to eat more fruit. The other group set the same goal, wrote it down and also visualized carrying out the specific steps needed to eat more fruit. For example, they visualized themselves purchasing fruit and eating it at particular times. While both groups ate more fruit, the group that used visualization ate twice as much. This study supports the positive effects of visualization known for years by sport psychologists and peak performers. -Caloriecount.about.com

Spoil Your Appetite For Junk Food By Eating Healthy Food Instead

Remember when you were little you were told, "Don't eat that before dinner it will spoil your appetite". Why not try to spoil your appetite for junk food by filling up on nutritious food instead?  Think about it...there is only so much space in your stomach. If you fill up on healthy food there'll be less space in your stomach for the unhealthy stuff you're usually tempted to eat.