The elusive dream that we all chase after, how different it is for each and every one of us….to be happy. What does that really mean and how does one go about to bring real happiness into our lives.

Are You Happy?

Because we are all wired differently, happiness has different meanings for all of us. I’m from Detroit, Michigan, and for so many of us here, happiness would be seeing the Detroit Lions win a Superbowl, that would be real happiness.

To others, happiness would mean meeting that right person to settle down with, getting that big break on American Idol, or landing that big contract that sets you up financially for the rest of your life.

What is happiness to you? I want you to take a couple of minutes right now, and really give that some thought. What would really make you happy? What would really make your life complete?

I want to give you 5 things that you must have to be happy. Five absolutely essential ingredients you must have before your life can ever experience real happiness.

These are five elements that aren’t very easy to find. They are not just out there for anyone to pick up. They are elements that you have to search for, and they are character qualities that you must possess and then give away before you can ever have any real true happiness.

We have it all wrong in our society today. We go out and we try to find people who have these elements, and are willing to give them away to us before we ever even consider anything else.

1. Do You Want to Be Happy?

Be Happy!

Some people are content just doing what they are doing, and if happiness comes, great, but if it doesn’t, that’s alright with them. Happiness is not on the top of their agenda.

I know some people who are miserable, and full of negativity. You could give them a million dollars and they would complain that the bills were to stiff. They seem to enjoy that place that they hold all by their lonesome, because not to many people want to be around them.

You have to find out, if the pursuit of happiness is what you really want in your life, and than go out and make it happen.

2. Truth

Truth must be at the heart and core of any real pursuit of happiness, because without it you will wander aimlessly for the rest of your life, maybe touching the hem of the happiness garment, without ever really getting into it.

Truth is something that is not very easy to find in our world today. Nobody tells the truth anymore and no one really cares. We lie to the police when we get pulled over, we lie on our taxes, we lie to our spouses, bosses, and on and on it goes.

I don’t care if it’s a relationship with your spouse, a relationship with your boss, your kids, your friends, if it’s not based on truth you have nothing. Truth has got to be there. Find a man or women of integrity, and you’ve found a very rare person.

3. Trust

Trust goes along with truth. Without truth, you will never have trust. They go hand in hand. You can’t have one with out the other. It’s so important to build your relationships around these two elements, but be careful, because if you lose one of them, you will lose them both, and they are very hard to get back.

The story goes of a man who, after a year of dating his girlfriend, decided he was going to ask her to marry him at this years Superbowl game. He spent over $8000 for tickets and everything, when he was diagnosed with kidney cancer. When his girlfriend found out…she dumped him. Come to find out, that his cancer was not terminal, and he should have a full recovery.

I guess you could say that his cancer not only saved his life, but also saved him from making the biggest mistake in his pursuit of real happiness. There was certainly no truth or trust, and not very much love either.

4. Give

I hear so many people today that think they are in this relationship for what you can give to me. The, “What Have You Done For Me Lately”, song by Janet Jackson is their favorite song.

I read people on Twitter say, “this is the way I am, and you better take me the way I am. I don’t give a **** what you think”. If you are dating or are friends to a person with this kind of attitude, run as fast and as far away from them as you can.

There are chemicals that are released in our bodies whenever we give or do something good for someone else, without expecting anything in return. This chemical called, endorphins that are released make us feel good, and they are good for us.

Maybe you’ve already experienced this, when you helped someone out, or picked something up for them, or were just there to do good for no reason at all. Didn’t you feel great afterwards? It’s a very special feeling. Learn how to give.

5. Take

This might sound weird being on the list to make you happy, but it has a very important role for us. I don’t mean to take for selfish reasons and with the idea of hurting someone else, what I mean is to learn the humbleness of allowing to receive what someone else is giving.

My wife is a very loving and giving person. She will always go above and beyond what anyone is expecting, and she will never ever, accept anything in return. She is always there to help anyone who is in need.

When her mother passed away a few years ago, it was a very hard time for her. She was very close with her mother, and she was struggling. Well we had friends and family that came along side and were helping out with everything, but as it is with my wife, she just naturally got up and started doing her thing.

One of our friends came alongside her and almost had to nail her to her chair, and told her that this was her time to take. Let her friends have the blessing of giving to her during a time that they knew she really needed it. My wife right then and there, had to learn how to take.

All these elements are not going to be easy to find, but they must be there for you or I to ever find happiness. I’ll give you a hint on where you can start your search. They’re not out there, the first place that you must look is right inside of you. If you don’t find them there, you won’t find them anywhere.

You see the 5 things that you must have to be happy are found in your heart. They must be in you first before you can even start to look for them in others.

Happiness affects every part of your being. When you’re happy, you’re healthy, and when you’re happy and healthy it starts to spill over onto everyone around you.

Start spilling over onto other people around you…they won’t mind.

I know what you’re thinking. You thought I was going to give you some new Martini mix or an alcohol drink that will magically burn fat and get you fit again…not going to happen, because that’s impossible to do. Alcohol is not going to get you fit, but drinking something else will.

Everyone loves a chocolate, strawberry, or vanilla shake, but what if you could drink one everyday and lose weight? What if you could change your life forever, by drinking a shake everyday? Someone pinch me…I must be dreaming. Drink a shake a day, lose weight, and get back that shape that you once had from a long time ago? Yes you can!

Drink One Everyday For Your Health

Last summer, I was in my doctor’s office, and he told me that I was obese. I was at a family reunion, and I had my aunt come up to me and directly tell me to my face, that I was fat.

Now I always prided my self to be athletic and in good shape, so when people come up to you and say your fat and your obese, it made me stop and really think about all this.

I wasn’t working out, and I was not really watching what I was eating so I had put on some weight. I’m 5′ 8″ and I was weighing in at about 210 pounds. That’s not to bad…right? Wrong!

My doctor told me that I was on the road to having some serious health issues if I didn’t seriously consider a change in my lifestyle. He stressed walking everyday, and changing what I was putting into my mouth.

I was ready to get started, but what do I do? There are an endless supply of diets and different ways to go about this, and I was confused.

A friend of mine told me about a new company that he was getting involved in, and he wanted me to take a look at it. He was looking at this for the business side of it, and when I saw it, I saw it as the way that I could lose my weight, and get back that shape, not to mention making some money with it as well.

I got started, and I weighted in at almost 210 pounds. Drinking a delicious shake every morning for breakfast, a light lunch, and a good healthy dinner. This is not work at all, it’s fun, and I’m never hungry, but when I am, I have learned to eat good things. Grab an apple, orange, a handful of nuts, not a cookie, or a cupcake. (which is not always easy to do, because my wife runs her own business, “Lori Jeans Creative Cakes“, and there is always cupcakes that are easily accessible to all.) Willpower is needed!

I walk a little over a mile everyday. I drink lots more water than I ever did before, which I find to be very important and instrumental in me being where I am today.We Americans don’t drink enough water.

I have invented different kinds of shakes, my favorite one is the banana peanut butter shake, that I call, the “Elvis Shake,” because Elvis loved a peanut butter sandwich with a banana on it.

I also love the “Mixed Berry Shake”. I love blueberries, and strawberries, which are also high in antioxidants, and the berry flavor is delicious.

Elvis Shake

1. Two scoops of Body By Vi shake mix
2. Eight ounces of no-fat milk
3. One Tbsp of peanut butter (I like crunchy, but it doesn’t matter)
4. One medium-sized banana
5. One packet of Chocolate Cardia Health Flavor mix-in
6. Three to five ice cubes if you want a thicker shake
7. Mix in a blender for about one minute

Just think that you can drink this everyday, and you can lose weight also. I weighted in at 189.5 pounds this morning. I reached a small milestone for me, and that was to first break the 200 pound barrier, and today I broke the 190 pound barrier. I’ve lost over twenty pounds, and people are starting to notice it, and that makes me feel great.

Drink an awesome tasting shake, lose weight, and if you know of other people who might want to do the same thing, you could make some money with it as well. What else could you possibly need?

Have the best of both worlds and get healthy while you’re at it.

Eat all your vegetables!

I can still remember my mom saying that to me as if it were yesterday, but you know what…she was absolutely right. 83% of all adults don’t eat enough fruit everyday and 72% don’t eat enough vegetables.

Fruits and vegetables provide us with healthy antioxidants and fiber, and they are low in calories. It’s the one thing that you can eat more of, without worrying about putting on anymore weight. As a matter of fact, fruits and vegetables are essential to your health, and mandatory if you are trying to lose weight. Eat fruits and vegetables and lose weight.

Eat More Fruit

I’ve heard the notion, that eating fruit is eating more sugar, because fruit has sugar in it. Sugar feeds every cell in your body. Your body needs glucose, or simple sugar, for energy. Weather you get sugar from fruit or other things, the process of turning that sugar into insulin, is what can be bad for you if too much of it is produced.

If you eat sugar with some protein, some fat, or some fiber, your body won’t produce as much insulin. Eating this with other food helps your body process sugar more slowly, and this means that your body does not overproduce insulin. In short, protein, fat, and fiber help your body process sugar in a more healthful way.

Weather you eat an orange or a chocolate chip cookie, you are going to put sugar into your system, and sugar produces insulin, and insulin feeds the growth of cells, both good and bad. The only difference is that a chocolate chip cookie is going to give you 100% sugar, where as the orange is also going to give you fiber and protein as well. Protein, fat, and fiber, when taken together with even the simplest sugars, these three items help the body to make less insulin in response to simple sugar.

Sugar is a breeding ground for cancer and other bad cells, but you do need it for growing the good cells that are in your body, the big difference is where you get them from and what you mix them with.

Get off the soda pop, chocolate candies, cookies, and donuts, and start to get your sugar from eating more fruits. Remember that integrating protein, fat, and fiber, into your diet, will help balance your body’s production of insulin. You can do all that by enjoying more of the sweet luscious taste of good ripe fruit.

So listen to your mom, and eat fruits and vegetables and lose weight.

70% of the earth’s surface is covered in water, and that isn’t counting the water vapors in the air. We have lots of water around us, but I just wonder, have you caught the water habit?

We all know that water is good for us, but do we really take enough of it into our bodies, to do us any good? If you’re like me, there are a lot of things that we know we should do, but never take any action on. Never applying what we learn, has been the biggest stumbling block to human growth in the world. If I applied just 1% of the things that I know, to my life, I would definitely be a more complete and solid person.

I’m a coffee drinker. I like my coffee, but when they say to drink more liquids, they don’t mean coffee, soda, or tea, they mean water. Good old H2O.

There are a tremendous amount of health benefits to drinking more water. As I began to research for this article post, I was totally taken back by how this simple little change, of drinking more water, can make a major change to your over all health. As a matter of fact, drinking more water is absolutely vital to your over all health.

What does water actually do for the health and preservation of our bodies?

Our bodies are almost 80% water. I mean that our brains and organs, muscle and tissue, and even our bones, all put together, need water to function properly. Water…

• Transports nutrients and oxygen into cells
• Moisturizes the air in our lungs
• Helps with metabolism
• Protects our vital organs
• Helps our organs to absorb nutrients better
• Regulates body temperature
• Detoxifies
• Protects and moisturizes our joints

When I used to work at Ford Motor Company, I worked in the paint department for a few years. I worked near the ovens that baked the paint into the metal bodies of the cars. The temperatures around those ovens would exceed 100 degrees on a daily basis, and we would have to constantly work at keeping ourselves hydrated, or you paid the price. It was not unusual to see a newbie, pass out from the heat, because he was not drinking enough fluids.

You didn’t wait until you were thirsty before you started to drink water, you did it all the time, because by the time you were thirsty, it was too late.

Signs of dehydration;

• Dark yellow or even an orange kind of color, to your urine, and a strong urine odor as well.
• Dry skin is another one. Our skin is the largest organ of the body and it needs lots of water.
• Hunger can be attributed to the need of more water in our system, rather than more food. Drink water before you eat.
• Fatigue can really mean your just thirsty. Water is a great source of energy and can give you a boast after you drink it.
• Thirst means you should have drank some water a long time ago. When your body starts to feels dry, you have already started on the  dehydration road and need to drink some water right now.

How much water should you drink each day?

Most agree that this will depend on your activity level, the climate that you live in, and your body size and frame, but the consensus is, 8, eight ounce glasses of water should be consumed daily. Each one of us is different, so make the adjustments for yourself, but by all means, start drinking more water today.

Sure, you will be running into the bathroom more, but the health benefits well definitely out weigh any inconvenience that you have to go through. Your body will eventually adjust to this as well.

If you are trying to lose weight, or are on the 90 Day Body By Vi Challenge, this is an absolute must for you. You must keep yourself hydrated to help yourself to lose weight.

Have you caught the water habit yet? If you haven’t, you need too. This simple little adjustment to your life today, will pay out its dividends to your health for years to come.

“That’s what I call quality H2O.” Adam Sandler from the movie, “Waterboy”

A word that has dramatically faded in the mist of our society today is the word commitment. You just don’t hear it spoken much anymore, and you definitely don’t see it being played out in the world very much either.

According to the dictionary, the word commit means; “to bind or obligate, as by pledge or assurance; pledge: to commit oneself to a promise; to be committed to a course of action.”

To be committed to a course of action, that’s what commitment means, and that holds true to anything we do in life.

There are many things that we commit ourselves to all the time, but seeing it all the way to the end is another subject.

Are you married? Are you committed to your spouse and your marriage today, as much as you were when you first came into this union with your lifelong partner? I think this is why there are so many divorces today, because we lack commitment to the ones that we pledged our love and devotion too when we said I do.

I think that’s why there are so many people won’t go down the path of “Holy Matrimony” anymore, because they’re so afraid of commitment to only one person. It’s really a very selfish act, when you think about it.

Successful people are committed people, whether it’s in marriage, business, sports, or any other road that you decide to travel. If you are not committed to seeing it all the way to the end, to its completion, you will fail! Not maybe, or if…you will fail! That is 100% true all the time!

Why?

Because non committed people are quitters, and a quitter will never, ever win.

People who don’t want too, or are unable to commit, are really giving themselves a way out, that some day down the road, they may want to end this endeavor, and without a commitment, they leave themselves an open door to exit whenever they want too.

When we are totally lacking commitment in anything, we are setting our selves up for failure. We are really saying that, I’m in this as long as I’m comfortable and things are going my way, but the minute we hit rough waters, and the waves start to splash in over the side, I’m bailing out.

There are countless stories of committed people who overcame tremendous odds to come out a winner in the end. They never gave up on a dream, a person, or a business, and despite being that fish swimming up-stream, they pursued their commitment to a successful end.

1. Thomas Edison tried over ten thousand times before he came up with the incandescent light bulb.
2. The “Chicken Soup for the Soul” book series, by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen, was rejected by 123 publishers. There are now 70 million copies in print today, and in 58 different countries.
3. Dewy Bozella, wrongly convicted and imprisoned for almost 32 years of his life, for a crime he didn’t commit,  earned his freedom, and was the recipient of the 2011 “Arthur Ashe Award for Courage.” Read his incredible story Here.
   These are just three stories of the courage, and perseverance of commitment. The one thread that runs through all three of these stories is exactly the same.  They were all committed till the end, and the end for all of them was victory and success, and they would not stop until this was accomplished and completed…nothing else would do, and nothing else would bring them any kind of satisfaction.I don’t care if it’s in your marriage, your business, or losing weight, you will never accomplish anything until you are truly committed. Committed to a course of action, and stay committed until you reach your goal and win the prize.

   “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.
   Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.
   So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.  But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.” 1 Corinthians 9:24-26

   Think before you commit, but once you commit, stay committed all the way to the end… and you will win the prize.

   You can do it!

    

    

My name is Brian Gosur, and I am an alcoholic. Alcoholism is a disease. It’s a disease that slowly creeps into your life and makes its claim on you. It takes over everything, and becomes the desire, the drive, and the motivation for your life. It kills, not only on a physical level, but on an emotional, and spiritual level as well. It destroys your family, your finances, and your friends. You will die a very slow and agonizing death, while everyone who loves you, can only sit back and watch this horrible tragedy take place.

The real sad thing about this type of decease is you, and only you, hold the key to turning this whole thing around. Your family and your friends can try to encourage you and support you with everything that they have in them, but only you can make the decision to quit, and change the course of your life forever.

So it is with obesity. Obesity is a disease, and 67% of Americans have it. Like alcohol the first thing you do is never admit that you have a problem.

You say, you can stop whenever you want. You say, you just reward yourself for working real hard all week. No big deal…yea you kinda over eat at that holiday party, but it was Christmas…You just couldn’t say no and hurt their feelings…besides, everyone else was doing it…right? You tell yourself that, after the holidays, you’re going to start that diet and do those exercises, and you will get back that shape that you once had.

Is This You?

Any of those excuses sound familiar? They do to me, because as an alcoholic, I used every one of them over and over again. They didn’t mean a thing to me because I knew, and I never had any intention, of ever doing or keeping any of them. They were just empty words that I used all the time, but they had no real meaning for me, and all the people who loved knew that as well.

People will eventually begin to give up on you, and you will find yourself drifting further and further away from your home, and from those that love you and depend on you.

I know that I can never ever have a drink again, and I don’t miss it one single bit. It has been almost twelve years of sobriety for me, and I thank God, and my wonderful wife, for bringing me through this journey. It was not easy. It was hard, but it was worth every step that I took to get to where I am today.

As I contemplated writing this article, I realized that there are a lot of similarities between the decease of alcoholism and the disease of obesity. I wanted to use my experience and my struggle with my disease, to help those of you in your struggle with your disease of obesity, and even those of you who may be just at the start, of your unhealthy life of being over weight and over eating.

Here are five steps that you must come to grips with before you can ever hope of getting healthy again.

1. Houston…We Have a Problem

The first thing, and the hardest thing for me to admit was that I had a drinking problem. This is the hardest step for anyone to take. I thought that if I only drank on the weekend and got drunk on the weekend, I was OK, but my friend told me that it just meant that I was a weekend alcoholic, but an alcoholic none the less.

Is your scale trying to tell you something?

Food will slowly start to creep into your life just like that. It tastes good and you like to eat it, and you never give a thought to what your eating or if it’s good for you. Before you know it your eating more of it all the time, and at all hours of the day and night. You maybe even sneaking it into your house or bedroom, and the pounds start to slowly add-on.

You have to realize the truth and see, that food is no longer just for living, but you are living for your food.

2. Never Walk Alone

The second thing that I came to realize, was that I could not win this battle by myself. That’s a very hard thing to admit when you’re an, “I can do that,” kind of person. You know the kind that never asks for directions when he gets lost…that’s me.

Look for those people who love you and care about, and want to help you win this battle, and then cling to them and learn to lean an them, it will make all those bumps in the road, a lot easier to take.

I do promote the Body By Vi 90 Day Challenge, because it works and you will never walk this road alone. We encourage you to get three people to join you on your challenge, not only because the product works, but because statistics show that when people take on a challenge for anything, their success lies in the encouragement and support of their family and friends. Plus, when you get three people to join you, your product is free. Lose weight, and get healthy for free>

3. Find The Right Plan For You

There are a ton of weight loss products and programs out there. Find the one that works for you. Check them out and see if it’s right for you, because if it’s not, you will not see results and after a couple of weeks of struggling for results… you will quit.

Take the time and do the research and find the right product and plan your road to a new healthy you.

4. Exercise has To Be A Part of The Plan

People still walk the malls.

No if, ands, or buts about it, you must get off the couch and get some physical exercise. That’s part of the reason why you’re in this situation in the first place. Eating too much, eating all the wrong things, and never getting any exercise.

I think that exercise is the first thing to go. You get a little bit older and you get a little bit busier, and then you lose the contact with your friends that you used to play basketball, tennis, and  golf with, and you learn a new activity…how to veg out on the couch with your chips, beer and pizza.

Start to integrate an exercise plan in along with your new eating plan. Take a shake in the morning, a light lunch, and a good healthy dinner, and then a walk or a run to close the day out. You will feel better and best of all, you will see those pounds start to fall off. Believe me…it’s a great feeling.

5. Do It Today – Start Right Now!

As my friend Cedrick Harris always says, “don’t be a member of the biggest nation on the planet, called Procrastination. I use to live there, and I didn’t like it one single bit. Nothing gets moving in that nation, and there are no success stories coming out of that country.

How many times have you said, “you got a point there Brian, I’m going to take a good look at it later,” “I’m pretty busy right now, but I will check it out,” “I know I need to do something, I’m going to get started someday.” Someday becomes next month, and next month becomes next year, and in the mean time you’re getting fatter, and your heart is working harder, and you’re blood pressure is getting higher, and eventually your walking time bomb…EXPLODES…and you die.

My doctor tried to tell me this years ago, until one day he sat me down and just hit me between the eyes with the truth. My alcoholism was going to kill me. He said you are going to die, if you don’t change your life around right now…today!

Obesity is a disease, you and only you can decide whether you’re going to be another statistic, or another success story that will reach out and save someone elses life. But you need to start today…right now.

Have you ever been in a situation or a circumstance, when everybody can see what’s really going on, but you? You’re scratching your head and you’re straining to put it all together, while everyone else is giving you that look that says, “you can’t see that?’

I hate playing cards or board games, because I’m always the last one, to figure out how to play, and by the time I do, I’ve lost the game for me and anyone who’s on my team. When we see clearly and the fog is lifted, then we have that, “Oh, I get it now,” moment.

You’ve been there? You know what I mean? I’ve been there a lot in my life. It takes me a little while, but I will eventually figure it out. I’m a slow learner, but once I get it, I don’t forget it.

You don’t want to be playing this kind of game when it comes to your health though. You don’t want to figure it out when its way to late to make any significant changes.

2012 is here and over half of all Americans are over weight and obese. That maybe you and you’ve thought about taking some steps to lose some weight and get back that shape you once had, but your busy, you’re young and there is time to kill today, and you’ll get to it when the kids are older and you have more time. After all, you play tennis, you golf, go for walks once in a while, that’s exercise… right?

Wrong. If it’s not elevating your heart rate, it’s not exercise. Playing a video golf game is not exercise. Even a WI video game is not real exercise. Not the kind you would be getting if you were playing and walking nine or even eighteen holes on a real course.

I know a couple that’s in their eighties, and they will go out and play thirty-six holes and they walk…now that’s exercise.

My point is this…when we really look at a situation and see what’s really going on, see the real truth of the matter, that’s when we will get serious about doing something to change the results.

We are the worst country on God’s green earth, when it comes to eating healthy. We have a healthcare system that is getting so expensive to run, because of over weight Americans that won’t take their health seriously. We have our children that can’t walk across the street without getting out of breath, because they eat fast food and don’t exercise.

It’s time to look in the mirror America and see things the way they really are. Do you want to die at fifty years old, of a massive heart attack? Do you want to put your children through the stresses of diabetes, hyper-tension, and heart disease? Do you want to watch your grandchildren playing soccer from a wheel chair, with an oxygen tank at your side?

These and more are waiting for you in the path of life that you’re on right now, unless you start taking your health and you’re weight seriously…right now! Not tomorrow and not next week…right now!

I know that I talk about this and promote this on my blog all the time but the reason I do is because it works. I never promote something that I’ve never tried, and I will never promote anything that doesn’t work.

The Body By Vi Challenge has more than 80,000 people a month joining in because it works! Thousands of people with thousands of testimonies of how they are losing weight and getting healthy again is real and it’s out there for all to see.

I have lost fifteen pounds, well on my way to my goal of dropping forty. I feel great, I exercise, and I have more energy now, then I’ve had in years, plus I’m helping others to get back on the road to health, wealth, and prosperity.

Open your eyes to the truth and to what’s really going on in your life. Are you happy where you’re at in your life concerning your health and your weight? If you’re not, then why not check out a meal replacement shake that is changing people’s lives all over the country.

Take the challenge today. You can do it, and I guarantee, and so does Visalus, that you will not regret it.

Remember, when we see clearly the way things really are, it gives you the power and the ability to make a wise decision and the right choice for your health, your family and for you.

Think about it…in just 90 days you can have a new you looking back at you in the mirror! That would be an incredible feeling and an awesome day for you, to reach that goal. I know how that feels because I’m seeing it happen to me right now, along with thousands of others around the country.

Click on the delicious Visalus Shakes below, and see how easy it is to start your challenge today.

Don’t procrastinate! Do it now, and I will show you how you can do it absolutely for free! Lose weight, get that healthy lifestyle going, and do it for free! You can’t get any better than that.

Just one of these delicious shakes every morning to lose weight, and get healthy again!

They are as good as they look and you will look as good as you feel once you start your 90 day challenge today!

See you at the scale.

The time is here for your New Years Resolution. Lots of people don’t bother with New Years Resolutions. I myself usually don’t bother with them either, because we just don’t ever keep them, but I do set goals, and I guess that might be considered a resolution.

Guess what the number one resolution is? ….give up?…it’s spending more time with family and loved ones, and I guess that is always a popular one right after you just spent your Christmas with all of your family and friends.

Guess which one comes in second place?…yes it’s that very familiar…I’m going to lose weight one. That is by far the ultimate, most popular resolution of all time. We’ve all been their, and we can all relate to the ridiculous assumption, that we are actually going to get on the road to a healthy and fit me, by losing some weight. We are all very good at talking about it, but not very good about doing it.

Lets do what Nike says…just do it! Do you want to get really motivated? Click on the picture that says, “Do It”.

Let’s get real serious here for a moment. Are you struggling to get back that shape? Are you always starting out with good intentions, and a strong motivation to succeed, but somehow there is always that something that derails your progress and inhibits your race to the finish-line?

Why is it so hard to… just do it, when it comes to getting healthy and losing weight? Why do we struggle so much when it comes to shedding those unwanted pounds. Why can’t i lose weight?

Accountability

The first reason that most people struggle is accountability. Statistics show, that people who have partners that they are accountable too, are one hundred times more likely to succeed than those that under take their task all by themselves. Never go it alone. We are born to be social creatures, we are not born to roam this earth alone.

I think women are a lot better at this than men are. Men don’t want to stop and ask for directions, and they don’t want everyone to think that they can’t figure out how to do this. Men, it’s not that your ignorant or stupid, it’s just that there is strength in numbers. Don’t buck against what works, just do it!

Get Results

You must have a system or a product that gets you results. There are a million different products and systems out there that promise you will lose weight, but you must find the right one that works for you. If you’re not comfortable with it, and it doesn’t fit into your schedule, it won’t produce the results that you’re looking for, and if it doesn’t produce results, you’re going to quit. It’s just that simple.

That’s why thousands and thousands of people, make resolutions to lose weight, every year, and six weeks down the road they have quit and jumped off the wagon. Don’t follow all the hype, follow the one that gets results and just do it!

If your new years resolution is to lose weight, I’m going to give you the answer to all of what you’re searching for. The solution to your unending quest for something that will get you the results you need, and give you the accountability that will guarantee you the success that you’ve always wanted, but could never attain. Here it is.

• No more measuring and weighing food. That’s so boring and time-consuming.

• No more spending hours and lots of money, in those specialty stores, so you can buy only fruits and vegetables that are grown in some remote parts of the jungle, because they’re good for you. As a matter of fact, my system will save you money each week on your grocery bill. Your grocery bill will start to shrink, and so will your waistline.
• Every month over 50,000 people are joining this system. Talk about accountability? There is a chatline where you can share, encourage, and see the results that others are having, as together you walk toward the goal of a new slimmer and healthier you.
• Every year the company gives out over 10 million dollars in free products, prizes, and vacations, to those people who attain their goals of losing weight.
• This company was featured on the cover of “Success From Home” magazine, twice in the past twelve months.
• On top of saving money on food bills, they have a program called Refer 3, get your product next month for Free! Simply refer three others to the same thing that you’re doing, and they’ll ship your product for free! Maintain 3, and your products are always FREE! Accountability!
• Who do you know right now that may want to lose a few pounds, or maybe just focus on their health with you for 90 days? I bet you know more than 3… so you can earn your product for FREE! Everyone wants to lose weight!

That’s my system, and I’ve lost fifteen pounds already. It works, saves me money on my grocery bill each week, and I have lots of accountability. Lots of people are attaining their goals and discovering that new slimmer and healthy person inside.

Don’t just make another half-hearted, just going through the motions, new years resolution again this year. Let this be the year that you take your health and your life seriously. Get back that vibrant, healthy, active person you once were, and if you never were that person before, you can create that person now. You are never to old to get back that shape.

Get healthy, lose weight, and do it for free!

Watch this very emotional story of Eric Rose. He was 600 pounds and was just giving up on life, until he heard about “The Challenge”. Eric lost 124 pounds in 90 days without exercise or pills. Watch his story right here

For more information on how you can get started on your very own Challenge, click your mouse on the banner below.

The power of the mind. It’s totally incredible the power that lies between our ears. Scientists have studied and researched the awesome power that is in the human mind for centuries, and we’ve just scratched the surface of the immense power that lies deep inside.

I wrote an article awhile back on how the brain can be used to increase your willpower. The human abilities to do a lot of things would just blow you away, but we live in a very negative environment, and those negatives vibes and thought can be detrimental to your health, both physically and mentally.

To show you an example how powerful this is, I want you to go back into your childhood, back when you were growing up. Think of something that happened to you or maybe was said to you that so much effected you that even today, maybe after years and years, you can still vividly remember it.

As my wife was growing up and going through those very tough adolescent years, she remembers her father telling her, that it looked like she was smuggling water melons inside her thighs. It totally devastated her and she can still remember it as if it was only yesterday.

I think most of us, during those very sensitive adolescent years, when we were all so vulnerable and wide open for those kinds of attacks, were hurt the most. It’s during those times, when those negative remarks have scared us and cut us with deep riveting wounds, some that have still never healed completely.

Science has proven that a positive mental way of thinking can aid the human body in healing itself. Our human bodies are very complicated and intricate, but the human minds play an extreme role in not only the healing process, but in athletes excelling in their sports, and for all of us to be innovative and productive in all of the skills that God has gifted us with. Whatever your field of expertise is, engineering, writing, science, business, law enforcement, raising children, all of it can be rewarding and fulfilling with the right positive influences, but beware…because with just one timely accurate negative shot, and the whole thing can come tumbling down…if you let it.

Did you know that just the way you think of your body, your self-image, can determine how healthy you will be? Talk to people who are obese and overweight, and all of them have a very negative view of themselves and the way people perceive them.

Don’t let the body image killers, kill you!

I think that I am more sensitive to this than the average person because I was raised in such a negative home. I was so used to the negative comments growing up that I just never thought of myself as an achiever or someone who could do something with my life. I wouldn’t even try because I had decided, before I even started, that I would fail. This kind of viewpoint haunted me for most of my life, and even today still trys to come back and tell me that I can’t do it.

Negativism and negative people just get under my skin today. I have a real hard time dealing with them, and I know that we all have to at some point here and there, but it’s never an easy thing.

For those of you who are religious and read your bible, see how many times throughout the scriptures, God talks about a good positive mental attitude.

“as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” Proverbs 23:7. “Finally, brothers and sisters,whatever is true, whatever is worthy of respect, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if something is excellent or praiseworthy, think about these things.” Philippians 4:8.

We live in a world that is negative and loves to swim in the ocean of negativism. News media sells news that’s all negative, because that’s what people want to hear.

I love sports and I love my Detroit Lions football team. They started out this season by rolling off five straight wins. Everything was rocking an rolling well with them, but all of a sudden they lost two games, and the negative remarks just  came out. People were turning on them and were talking and accentuating all the mistakes and negative elements of their game. How quickly all those people were jumping on the negative band wagon. Why? Because that’s where most of us live, but you know what…that’s a choice you make. You don’t have to park yourself there.

I’m going to give you three steps to take to change your course right now.

Surround yourself with positive people

Now I don’t mean to go out and divorce your spouse because they said a negative remark toward you, but as best you can, surround yourself with positive people. Your family and friends are your family and friends, don’t run from them but influence them with positive vibes, and don’t let them influence you.

Read and fill your mind with positive things

Stay away from the newspapers and TV. All they talk about is how many people were killed and robbed last night. I like to keep up with what’s happening in the world around me, but learn to filter the information you put into your mind. Remember…junk in…junk out.

Temper negative remarks with a grain of salt

Remember that people who say negative things are swimming in the ocean of negativity, and so they’re not going to be too good at seeing the positive in anything, let alone remarking in a positive way. Be the influence of positivity on them, and you will be surprised at what happens. They may like it, and than you’ve saved them from drowning in the ocean of negativism, or they will hate you and never want to talk to you again, which will be good also.

Get rid of the excuses

You want to lose weight and get on the road to a new healthy you, get rid of the excuses. People can’t make you negative and circumstances can’t keep you from achieving your goals, only you hold that power, not them.

As Dewey Bozella said, “never let fear determine who you are, and never let where you come from determine where you’re going.”

Who are you going to listen to, some stupid remark that was said to you 30, 40, or maybe even 50 years ago? Are you going to let that person control your life and destiny? They probably aren’t even alive anymore, and you’re going to let what a dead person said to you years ago, determine who you are and where you’re going?

Determine today who you are, who you really are… deep down inside, and let that person be the one who stands in the forefront of your life. Let that person guide you and shape you. Don’t let the negative lies from anyone distract you off your course.

Discover the power that lies in you, and let that person come alive, and than you go out, and help others and be that positive influence that the world so desperately needs today.

“Finally, brothers and sisters,  whatever is true, whatever is worthy of respect, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if something is excellent or praiseworthy, think about these things.” Philippians 4:8.

As a man in this society today and from the way that I was raised, men were the strong ones in the home, they were the protectors and the providers for the family. That has changed today as men are viewed in a totally different role in the home and in our society. You can see it almost every where you go in watching the way roles are portrayed in the movies and on television, it’s no secret that the role of a man in our society has changed dramatically. But one way it has not is in the doctor’s office.

Talk to your doctor.

You can try to change the roles of both men and women in the way they are viewed by society but you cannot change they way they really are deep down inside. Human nature is human nature and that will never change.

I remember the day that my dad was in the doctor’s office. My mom had to trick him into believing that they were there because of her, and when the doctor came in she turned and said to him, that my dad had been claiming to her of pains and he was the one who needed to be examined. They set him up for further tests and found out that he had lung cancer, and six months later he was dead.

Had my dad been more honest and truthful with the doctor, not just his wife, maybe the outcome would have been different, because it has been shown that early detection gives you the best chance of survival of cancer or any decease for that matter.

The one thing that your doctor must know to give you the best possible treatment, and the best chance of beating and surviving any illness, is the truth. Tell him what hurts and where it hurts, don’t leave anything out. The doctor is not there to scold you or hold you in shame, he is there to help you and lead you to healing and a long fruitful life.

So many people are afraid to say anything because he might tell me something that I don’t want to hear. Would you rather have him not tell you anything at all or lie to you and you walk out and die of some very curable decease?

I love my doctor because every time I go into his office we talk. He always takes the time to sit and chat with me to see how I’m doing. He has made me feel very comfortable to talk to him about anything and everything. I never feel like he is judging me, he wants only to put me in good health to live a long and good life. He really cares and he makes that very evident to me.

Men still want to be the mucho guy who doesn’t need anyone and can do anything and can whether any storm that comes his way. It starts in high school where the guy excels at sports and can rescue his girl from anyone who bothers her or try’s to take advantage of her, but no one is a mind reader, you have to talk and express what’s wrong before anyone can do anything to help you, and that includes your doctor.

Now on the other hand , you can’t be a drama queen either. Exaggerating the truth can be just as bad as not saying anything at all. This will lead the doctor down the wrong path and maybe away from the real source of your problem. It may lead him to give you tests that you don’t need, or prescriptions that are not what you should have.

Some doctors claim that this is even worse than not saying anything at all or understating the facts. Your doctor can only help you with the information that you give him. Over exaggerating the truth can only lead to the wrong diagnosis or giving you treatments that you don’t need.

Given the choice to deal with someone who exaggerates the truth or just doesn’t say nothing at all, most doctors state that they would rather deal with someone who doesn’t say very much. They are used to dealing with this type of patient and are better at getting information out of this type of individual, rather that reacting to the over emphasis of a patient who believes they are on the stage with one of those doctor Sitcoms.

Sit down and talk with your doctor. Be open and honest about your health issues. Remember, they are there for you, and if you can’t do that with your doctor, or they just never seem to have the time to sit down long enough to talk with you, than maybe you should just find another one.

One of the most important relationships that you will ever have is the one you have between you and your doctor. It could just save your life.