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.
I know that I’ve been harping on this subject for a while, and I will keep harping on it till we all start getting off our butts and do something about it.
Americans are fat and getting fatter, our healthcare system is way out of whack, and we need to do something about it, and do it now before it’s to late. By that time we will all lose and it won’t be weight that we will be losing, it will be our very lives and the lifestyles that we enjoy.
They say if you do something for 21 days in a row in will become a habit. Americans have developed a very bad habit of having what we want and having it right now. We can’t wait for nothing. Everyone is in hurry to get to no where fast, so we stop eating good healthy nutritional foods and we go to the…fast food, because we can’t wait. Fast food is killing us and killing our children.
Poor dietand lack of exercise is responsible for over 300,000 deaths each year. The annual cost to society for obesity is estimated at nearly $100 billion. The bad habit of eating unhealthy diets and the lack of exercise, that we teach our children, is something we can’t afford to give our kids anymore. Watching kids that can’t even walk down the street because they are out of breath is the most troubling thing to observe.
When I was young and in school, we had to go to gym class everyday, and we had to do calisthenics. I can still remember doing those jumping jacks, pushups, squat thrusts, climbing the pegboard, and then running around the gym, sometimes for the whole hour. That physical activity was developing good habits in us, and many of us went on to continue actively playing sports.
Today , kids spend hours sitting on their butts in front of a TV watching or playing video games. My grandson was over and he was sitting on the coach watching TV when all the other kids were outside on a beautiful summer day. I turned the TV off and made him go outside.
My mom had to send my brothers out to find us and make us come home and eat. We didn’t want to come inside, it didn’t matter if it was summer or winter, we were always outside.
Just think if all of us were eating good healthy nutritious diets. What if we were all active from our youth, and even when we got into our older years we were still playing tennis, walking, swimming, how do you think that would enhance your life and mine? Our families wouldn’t be getting as sick as we do today, and we would live longer and more fruitful lives.
Do you think that just might have an effect on our healthcare system, our economy, and the strength of America today?
I saw a man who was in his nineties and he loved to play golf. He’s been doing it since he was a teenager and loves it, and he is still very good. You might want to get him on your foursome the next time you go out.
I have been working at getting my life back to exercise and eating right. I have lost fourteen pounds as I write this article, and lost an inch off my waist. My goal is to lose forty pounds. One of the greatest feelings is to put your pants on and find that they are loose. You find that you have to take that belt up a notch, that you don’t have to hold your breath when you bend down to tie your shoes. That is the greatest feeling in the world…to know that you are moving toward your goal of health, hope, and happiness.
People who are healthy are happier, they work better, have better sex, and they’re wealthier. Wouldn’t it be nice to have America on this road? Might make a world of difference from where we are today in this country. I know one thing…it can’t hurt.
Are you happy where you are with your weight? Are you happy where your health is? Would you like to see, not only yourself, but your family, maybe some friends or neighbors, get their lives back on the road to a healthy lifestyle?
Let it start with you. You be the catalyst and the motivation that they can see and talk too about how you did it. You be the driving force that they need to get started and take them all the way to their goal. Together as a team we all can get there.
Playing on a team took everyone to, encouraging, and motivating each other, even when some of us were struggling and down. The team would rally around them and lift them up. We could never do it alone and neither can you.
Join the team and do it, and be the motivation for your kids, your wife, and your family. Take the challenge. It will be one of the best decisions you will ever make. It will change your life and you will never be the same again.
When people go to weddings, lots of pictures are taken. After the celebrating is all over and we get together to see all the great pictures, but there are two very distinctive views as to how we look at those pictures.
When a picture is shown to a women, most of the time she is looking to see how all the other women looked in comparison to her. What they were wearing, how their hair looked, did that dress make them look fat, etc.
When a man looks at those same pictures, he’s just looking to see if he looked cool. He’s not comparing himself with anyone else, he just wants to see if he looked good. This is the way the two genders think and look at themselves, most of the time. There are always those who don’t fit into this mold, but for the most part, this is how men and women view themselves in our society.
Do you always have the desire to be something more than you are? How many ladies out there are always wishing they had a smaller behind, or they wished they had that women’s hair, or they wished they had that women’s beautiful complexion, and the list goes on and on. It’s almost as if they are totally unhappy with themselves from head top toe. If it were possible to get a body transplant, I think that business would grow into a multimillion dollar industry over night.
Men are just as bad. I wish I didn’t have as much gray hair in my head. I used to have jet black, long and wavy hair when I was in my younger days. The real kicker came when a friend of my wife saw us out at the mall. She remarked to my wife later, when she talked with her, ” I saw you and your father at the mall the other day.” I wanted to find the nearest whole and crawl into it. Now I have a beautiful wife, but I never thought that I looked like I could be her father, from a distance. It’s the gray hair that makes me look older, from a distance. Naturally when I get closer to you, you see that I am this strong and handsome man…don’t you?
Me, my jet black hair, and my beautiful wife back in our dating days.
The fact is that time doesn’t stand still, and age doesn’t either. We are all getting older and we are all aging. Granted some of us are going faster and in different ways from others, but that’s because we are all different, not better, just different. We are all wired differently and we are all unique in our own special way.
It comes down to getting to know the person that is you inside and becoming comfortable with that person. So many of us are so enamored with how we look compared to others instead of learning to be just you.
Take some time to look in the mirror, I don’t mean how your hair looks or how your makeup is, but to look at the person deep down inside. Take some time to learn about your strengths and the good and positive things that make you unique to everyone else, and don’t tell me that there are none, because there are more than you know. Find a close friend or your spouse, someone who really knows you, and ask them to truthfully and lovingly tell you.
It’s funny that others around us, who know us, can see so many more things in us that we can ever see in ourselves. Why, because we have worked our whole lives trying to program ourselves to be what we think others are, or what others want us to be.
I heard this statement a long time ago, and I can’t remember who said it, but it goes like this; “I am not what I think I am. I am not what you think I am. I have become what I think you think I am.” Now that may sound confusing, but repeat it a couple of times to yourself nice and slow, and it will become very clear to you.
We live in a very fast paced world today and it seems like it goes faster all the time. We need to take a health day off. Take some time to reflect on you and the awesome person you are. You’re unique, and there is no one else like you. Don’t compare yourself to no one else because there is no one else like you.
There are always things that we can improve upon in our lives, and we should always be growing as individuals, but there is a quality of character that is all you, and there is a foundation that God has laid down that is all you, and that foundation you cannot change and that is the one thing you don’t want to change, because it is the essence of who you are. Learn about it, study it, and add good things to it, but don’t ever change it, and don’t ever wish that you could exchange it for someone else.
When you do this, you will become comfortable and happy with who you are, and learn to share the real you with others and help them along this same path. Than life will take on a whole new meaning for you and success will always follow.
My wife and I are on the path of eating right, adding more physical activity into our lives and losing weight, but if you’ve ever tried getting on this same path, you may have realized that it isn’t cheap. With gas prices continuing to climb, buying food in general is costing more and certainly buying good food to eat is also putting a bigger dent in your wallet than it did before.
First thing is getting on a weight loss or weight control program. Notice I didn’t say diet, because diets never work. They are a one time event that people jump on to take off some pounds and than when they have achieved there goal, they go back to eating the way they used, and put all that weight right back on. Diets are not bad, it’s just the lack of support and willpower of people that makes them never work.
A health transformation is a better term that I like to use, because that’s exactly what you’re attempting to achieve. You don’t simply want to lose weight, you want to reeducate yourself on health and nutrition. Yes, losing weight will probably be a by-product of this health transformation, but it’s not the goal. We want something that is going to change our health and our lives forever.
Now there are a lot of good programs out there and one of the better ones is Weight Watchers. I know a friend of mine who was on their program and lost the weight, and has kept it off, which is another key element to a successful weight loss program.
The thing she complained about was all the weighing of your food and their is also a monthly fee that is charged for continuing to be on the program. It’s $29.95 to sign up and an $18.95 charge every month. Remember, eating healthy and losing weight is not cheap.
Don't forget to weigh all your food
The next very popular program is Nutrisystem. I’m sure you’ve seen the commercials with Marie Osmund that they use. Nutrisystem sends you frozen meals that you eat and lose weight. For the basic 28 day meal program, it will cost you $321.10 and you can cancel at anytime. They also have a vegetarian one that will cost you $233.28 a month. This will come out of your food budget, but they are frozen meals.
These programs are good programs and there are lots of people who have been on them and lost weight and have kept the weight off, but they are not free. There is a price tag attached to them.
But what if I told you that eating healthy and losing weight doesn’t have to cost you a fortune? What if I told you about a program where you will not only lose weight, but you will also lose a significant portion of your food budget? And what if I told you that you would not only lose weight, lose a good chunk off your food budget, and even get paid for doing it?
That’s exactly what Visalus Sciences can do for you. It’s the shake mix that tastes like a cake mix, and it is very good. It’s a meal replacement shake that gives you all the vitamins and nutrients that your body needs. It’s not an appetite suppressant, it’s a meal replacement. I have a friend of mine who is taking one of those appetite suppressants and he can only take them for so long because of the chemical reaction it could have. Ladies and gentlemen, pills are not good for you. You have to eat to live and taking a a pill because you lack the discipline to eat the right things is not a healthy road to be on.
Delicious Body By Vi Shakes
With Visalus all you have to do is take one or two shakes everyday and get back that shape that you once had. They are healthy for you, and remember because they are a meal replacement, you will save money on your grocery bill. Each shake costs under $2.00 and if you take two a day, that two meals for under $5.00. Where are you going to get two healthy and nutritious meals for under $5.00.
Rather than purchase these nutritious shakes for yourself every month, lose weight and get yourself back on the road to a healthy lifestyle, Visalus will give them to you for free. Yes, I said FREE!
Science shows that every time we undertake a project of this magnitude, we will almost always seal our success by asking others to do it with us. Weather it’s quitting smoking or losing weight, it’s always to our advantage to have other people join us in the task. They are there to encourage and lift us up when we get down, and they will be there to share in the triumphs as we cross over those weight loss barriers.
So if you can find just three people who will come on board with you, join you in the challenge of losing weight and getting back that shape that you once had, they will give you your shakes for free. That’s all you have to do. Help three other people to lose that weight and get healthy again and your products are free.
Depending on how much weight you want to lose, there are four different programs that are available for you. Get the best one that will cover your needs and then find three friends. It’s that easy.
If you enjoy the program as much as I have and see all the success stories, and how easy this is, you might want to help others also, and get paid for it too. Visalus is the fastest growing company according to the “Wall Street Journal” They have been posted on the cover of “Success From Home” magazine twice in the last twelve months.
In the past 60 days my team has produced 57 BMW qualifiers, 2 Ambassadors, 4 Presidential directors, 207 Rising Stars,
and countless success stories. If you are looking for another career, or another source of income, you would be doing yourself a tremendous favor looking into Visalus Sciences.
So remember that eating healthy and losing weight doesn’t have to cost you a fortune, as a matter of fact it can be free to get healthy again, and it can also pay you a very nice income.
It’s not a big deal anymore for us to see and be overweight in America. It’s become old hat to see big over weight, and out of shape people. It’s become rather normal to see fat obese people walking around, or should I say struggling to walk around.
During this past summer, my wife and I went into get an ice cream at a famous ice cream shop, and as we sat down to enjoy one of my favorite summertime treats, it caught my attention that everyone in that place were overweight, including us. We were talking about the coupon that we found, and how proud we were that we got one of our ice cream treats for free. Proud to save money while we think nothing of stuffing ourselves with ice cream. I look back at that now and don’t find anything to be proud of at all.
But the one picture that I will never get used to seeing, is when I see a five or six-year-old child struggling to get in or out of the car because they are not just overweight, they are obese.
Fast Food is killing our kids
Obesity in America is growing into a major health problem, but obesity in our children is growing at an alarming rate. Studies show that children who struggle with obesity in their youth, will grow into adults with major health risks. Heart decease, high cholesterol, hypertension, respiratory ailments, orthopedic problems, depression and type 2 diabetes. The hospital costs alone associated with childhood obesity were estimated at $127 million during 1997–1999, up from $35 million during 1979–1981. In 2000, the total cost of obesity for children and adults in the United States was estimated to be $117 billion. Yes ladies and gentlemen, that’s billion with a B and every year it goes up.
You want to talk about fixing the health care system in this country, you might want to start looking at our children and the almost 80% of all Americans that are obese today.
Think about that word obese for a minute. I’m not just talking about fat or overweight people, I’m talking about being obese…80% of all Americans are obese. A whole society that has a completely nonchalant attitude about food and what they put into their mouths and it’s being passed down to our children. The national debt and our eating habits are going to kill this country if we don’t start doing something very soon.
The two biggest reasons for this growing obesity problem in America is eating to much of the wrong things, and not getting enough exercise. Now It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that one out, but we spend millions of dollars every year to find a solution to this crisis when the answer is simple and right under our noses.
We are eating ourselves to death and there are children on the other side of the globe that are starving to death. It just doesn’t make sense to me. Instead of talking about it, lets start doing something about it.
Now I’m not talking about starting a new diet that everyone needs to get on, God knows we don’t need another one of those, but we do need to educate ourselves on some very simple and basic information, and then get off our butts and just do it.
1. Eating the Right Things
Lets see, french fries, ice cream, and cheeseburgers are not the right things. Jillian Michaels, from the TV hit series, “Biggest Loser”, says that kind of food is poison to your body. Would you eat arsenic…noooo, so why would you eat something that is just as harmful? These foods may not kill you in ten minutes, but it will eventually kill you down the road. Don’t you want to be around to see your grand children and great grand children? Than start giving some thought to what you’re eating.
My wife and I started a health transformation challenge, and no I can’t stop talking about it, because it has forever changed the way I look at eating. I watch what I put into my mouth now. I still love to snack, but I snack now on fruits and things that are nutritionally good for my body.
The chemicals that we put in our foods to preserve the shelf life and make it taste better, are killing us! My grand-mother cooked with real butter and used salt and had her own garden of vegetables that she used in her cooking everyday…NO CHEMICALS, all fresh. She drank coffee, not de-caf, didn’t smoke, and drank alcohol only for medicinal purposes, and she lived to be 98 years old.
Now I love ice cream, and my wife and I will reward our selves with a treat on occasion, but what I’m starting to see happening is our taste for that kind of stuff is diminishing. I never thought I would see the day when I would say, “I can skip the ice cream”. It takes a little discipline, but your body will eventually start to loose its craving for those kinds of things.
I’ve always been active in my life, played sports and was always out doing something, but it doesn’t take long to get used to sitting in front of that TV or video game and just do nothing. If that’s you…BREAK THAT HABIT RIGHT NOW, and a habit is all it is. Habits just start by doing the same thing over and over, again and again, until it becomes something that you do all the time without thinking.
Just like you develop bad habits, start bringing in new ones. Get off the couch and get moving. Start slow at first by taking a little walk. Just get in the habit of moving. Now you may experience some soreness at first, but remember, no pain…no gain. It’s the act of starting that’s the hardest thing to do.
I started walking a little on the treadmill and doing push ups every day. I can do 45 push-ups right now at one sitting, and walk a couple of miles a day. Now when I say push-ups, I don’t mean those girl push-ups. I used to be able to do 100 at a time back in the day, and I would like to get back to that point again, and you know what…I will.
If you have young children, get them outside and away from the TV and computer. Sign them up for Volleyball, baseball, basketball, or track, and go to every game they have. Show them that you’re interested in what they are doing.
Exercise as a family. Ride your bikes together, go for hikes, get out and have a family fun day where you all get outside and do something together. You’ll not only be building strong healthy children, but you’ll be building strong healthy relationships and memories that will last a life time.
3. Plan Your Diet
Last of all take some time to plan your meals for your family. Get some education on good nutritional foods and snacks for your kids. It doesn’t have to be dull and bland to taste good and be good for you.
Lets turn this ………………………………………into this.
You and I can make a big difference on our children, our grand children, their future and the future of America. We can Do it! Lets Start Today…Right Now!
Get Up and Start Moving! Invest in your children and the future of America.
Now I know that I will be dating myself here, but remember the very famous phrase that comedian Flip Wilson brought to light, back in the 70′s; “the devil made me do it.” Maybe some of you have tried to use that one before, trying to get out of some sticky situation that you got yourself into, I know I have, but there is another one that you can use that might not be to far from the truth…my brain made me do it.
If you started to use that one, you might be right on the mark. The brain controls many more actions and reactions that we have to an immense array of didn’t situations that come into our lives, than we give it credit for.
Scientists are just beginning to scratch the surface of the incredible complex computer that is our brains. Our brain is the center of our nervous system. It controls the functions of all the other organs in our bodies. From this elaborate and sophisticated organ, come all of our thoughts, feelings, and actions that we take with us every day.
There are centers in the brain that are responsible for focus, judgment, and impulse control. There is also a pleasure and motivation center which is the main driver for all our behaviors. This is where emotional memory centers store up past experiences that trigger impulses to our behavior.
According to addiction specialist, Mark Laaser, Ph.D., “the arousal template in the emotional memory centers underlies many behaviors that get out of control.
When I was a kid, I had a sweet craving like no one else, and to help me curb these harmful cravings my parents gave me and my brother one day of the week, that we could indulge ourselves. Every Saturday was called, “Candy Day” at our house. That was the day that we were able to go and get some candy to enjoy and fill those cravings that our brains were demanding. Now we were not allowed to eat candy all day long, but we were allowed to get one or two treats to enjoy.
As much as my parents were trying to do the right thing, they only made the situation worse. Candy now became a bigger taste of reward and pleasure to me. Every time I did something that was good, the pleasure and comfort of some nice soothing chocolate melting in my mouth, was something that I always looked forward to.
This can be some of the problem that we see when people over eat, and use food as a comforting response to something that we achieved or didn’t like doing. Food than becomes the reward, comfort, or safety net that we use. It’s a place to hide, or a form of release that takes us away from whatever we don’t want to face or go through.
The first experience gets locked into our brains, and when you get older, you seek to repeat that experience because it was the way you had the first arousal or pleasurable experience. Understanding the triggers for emotional eating can be very helpful to breaking addictions. And this is the same for any type of emotional addictions, such as sex, drugs, drinking, gambling, or smoking etc.
Your brain can be used to increase your willpower
Now I know that there maybe other factors that come into play, and this is a topic that could go on and on, but if you are struggling to lose weight and you’ve tried every kind of diet there is, you might want to take an inventory of your life. Sit down and think if there is something that you can connect the dots too, that maybe triggering the emotional responses that you’re having problems with today. Something that maybe tied to the pleasure of eating.
I know this is not an easy thing to do, but I know for me, the answers were right under my nose, but I just didn’t want to look at them. I thought if I ignored them long enough, they would just go away by themselves, but they never do. They only get bigger and intensify and also will eventually infect others around us. People that we love will get hurt by them.
Sometimes we just need a little bit of help, because we might not be able to see them from all the different in’s and outs that life can bring. Check with your doctor to see if you maybe suffering from some experience in the past that is triggering why you just can’tlose that weight, or why you just can’t stop doing that bad habit that is hurting you and your family.
Our brains are very complex, but just like the old computer saying goes; “garbage in, garbage out.” When was the last time that you took some time for yourself? Take a day or a weekend for you or with your spouse, just relax and reflect on your past. Leave the cell off, and the computer behind, and just spend some time reminiscing.Talk and listen to one another.
If you would like more information on how to use your brain to get and keep the body you’ve always wanted, you may purchase a copy of the book that inspired this article. “Change Your Brain – Change Your Body” by Daniel G. Amen, Clicking on the book to the right of you will take you to the Amazon link. This book was on the New York Times bestseller list. It’s an easy read and very informative.
Your brain can be used to increase your willpower
Hold the mirror up to your face. Who do you see? I bet if you look long enough, you will see a wonderful person who is full of life. I bet there is a person in that mirror that you may not have seen for a long time. Someone that people love to be around because of the positive energy that flows from you.
Get rid of that garbage and start to download to your computer brain, you know the one that’s at the center of your nervous system and controls the rest of your body, the kind of stuff that will bring about the behavior that you want.
Remember, if you don’t take control of yourself, everyone else will.
How many times have you heard that one before, or how many times have you said that before?
Weather we like it or not, or whether we want to admit it or not, food is a huge part of our everyday lives. The people around us and the atmosphere that we live in, will have a very direct effect on what we eat.
I think this goes why back to our ancestors, but because of the space allowed me here in this blog, I will just go back as far as grandma.
Did you used to go to grandma’s house when you were a kid, visit the family, see the aunts and uncles, cousins, and….eat? Yes you ate food and you ate lots of it because, that was the one thing grandma lived for, to see her whole family at her house, happy, talking, laughing, and …yes eating.
I can still remember those days. They were good times with lots of grandma’s home cooked Polish food.
kielbasa, kuposta, and some pierogis. Good Polish food.
My ancestors were from Poland, and like most people, we got around together and we ate. Kielbasa, ham, pierogi, stuffed cabbage, and not to mention the deserts, they were all so good, but the one thing they had in common…they were full of fat, calories, and other stuff that was not good for you.
Food is a gathering point for most Americans today. Before we finish one meal we are already trying to decide what we are going to eat for the next.
There is a difference between how we eat and what we eat today, and that has a lot to do with our very busy schedules. When we went to grandma’s house, we had all day and most of the evening to eat all that food. There was always time for a cup of coffee and another slice of homemade pie, before we hit the road for that long drive home.
Today we don’t have all that much time, so we go to places that can prepare our food fast and cheap…that’s where we get the name fast food. The one thing about fast food is that it’s made cheaply and to be eaten fast, so there is not a lot of thought put in about nutrition or healthy food.
Good old American favorite, cheeseburger
Is it any wonder why 80% of all Americans are obese? Is it any wonder why our children are going into grade school over weight and out of shape?
I hear about, and I have participated in some different kinds of weight loss movements in the past, but as most of us have done, I’ve failed. I think the reason why we’ve failed in this so badly, is because we don’t realize how much of an emotional attachment we have to food.
I just mentioned one, with our trips to grandma’s house, but I know that there are hundreds of others that we could share.
My wife was raised in a verbally abusive home, and part of the reward she would get after being pelted with a barrage of very hurtful words, was food. Some sort of treat or guilt offering was given to her and to this day, when she gets upset over certain things, she will eat. Those same emotions, when stirred today, will draw out the very same responses that they did so many years ago.
We need to change all that. I don’t mean to change our emotional attachment to our food, I don’t think we will ever be able to do that, but we can train ourselves on what kinds of foods we are attached too.
Instead of running to the chocolate peanut butter ice cream, (my personal favorite), when I get upset, try eating an orange, or some other type of food that you like. Make it a pleasurable food, not something that you don’t like but that’s good for you.
Next, work on those emotional triggers that get your chocolate ice cream emotions flowing. 90% of who we are comes from the environment that we are in. Change your environment if you can, and your eating habits will follow.
Now I’m not saying run out and get divorced because you can’t stand your husband, or sell your kids because they are driving you nuts, but get plugged into people and friends that lift you up. Laugh together, get out and join a bowling league, or golf club, play racket ball, do something physical that will get your blood moving. It’s a great way to relieve stress.
Stay strong and don’t get caught up into putting bad things into your mouth. Learn and practice to eat good food, and don’t use food as a stress reliever. Learn to use exercise, and some sort of physical activity, to do that.
Don’t forget to exercise your mind. With the advent of internet and computer games, we have become coach potatoes. Our kids can brag about how far they went on a certain computer game, but they can’t pick up a book and read a sentence without stumbling on a word.
Read and exercise your mind. Books can take you into a totally different world, and you can be someone or do something very special that you always dreamed about. Reading expands your mind and your horizons, and when you come back to earth, you will be better able to handle that stress that leads you to using food in a very unnatural way.
You see, food is given to us so that we can live, not the other way around.
Well, I have to go now. I smell something coming from the kitchen. I wonder what we are having for dinner tonight?
This lesson has been one of the hardest things for me to learn and every time I feel I’ve mastered it, it comes back to bite me.
As human beings, we like our comfort, and we like life to be easy, so we will always take the fastest and easiest route to what we want. This is how we come to most of our decisions in life…fast and easy. If it takes to long and it’s going to take some work, we won’t be on that road, at least I won’t be.
Does this mean you don’t get married? Does this mean you don’t chase your dream of building a business and become financially free? Absolutely not!
I don’t care who you are or where you come from, or what kind of situation you are in, never let your current conditions dictate your future.
Dani Johnson was raised in an abusive home, where her parents lived on welfare and drugs. She had a step dad who constantly told her she was fat, ugly, stupid, and could never do anything right.
She was pregnant at age seventeen. Her family and church condemned her. By age twenty one she was homeless, had $2.03 to her name, desperate, scared, and confused, she had nowhere to go and no one to turn too.
Today she is a multimillionaire, running a couple of successful businesses, and speaks all around the world to organizations and companies. Read her book how her circumstances didn’t keep her from making good decisions based on her goals, visions, dreams, and opportunities.
Another very inspiring story of a man who was falsely accused of a crime he didn’t commit. He never gave up on his dream to be free and the truth of his innocence to be made known. Never did he let his circumstances or the conditions he had to endure, shape the way he looked at things or the dreams and the vision that he wanted to secure. Listen to his story below.
Dewey Bozella was awarded “The Arthur Ashe Award for Courage”, by ESPN for 2011, and is an inspiration to kids that are growing up in very difficult circumstances in the inner city today, and showing them that life is very valuable, and it’s not something that you just throw away because times get tough.
What keeps us from making these decisions based on circumstances rather than on opportunities?
There are a plethora of reasons and it would take so long to go into all of them, but fear is one I would like to bring out, because I think it’s one of the most common reasons we make decisions based on our circumstances and not on our opportunities.
Fear is one that I have always struggled with during my life. Much like Dani Johnson, I was raised in a negative home. I never felt like I could do anything right. I was always told that I was stupid and would never accomplish anything in my life.
I would ask myself often, “what if you fail? What if it doesn’t work? What will everyone think about you?” Fear dominated all my thoughts and actions.
One thing Dewey Bozella talked about in his acceptance speech at ESPN’s awards night, and something that I have learned in my own life is, “never let fear determine who you are, and never let where you come from determine where you’re going.”
Having no vision, no mapped out plan of action, and no real expectation to succeed, can be very detrimental to your success.
Do you play to lose? Do you let a fall or a trip up, keep you from getting back up and walking again? No, when you fall you get back up and start walking again.
The one character builder that runs through both, Dewey Bozella and Dani Johnson, and it grew from the circumstances that they both came from, and that is that they were both humbled by them.
They both talk about how their circumstances and conditions of their lives did not crush them down, or dictate the direction they would go, but it humbled them and they became teachable, and when you become teachable…you will learn, and you will grow, and you will become successful.
Sometimes the worst decision we can ever make in life, is to just stay where we are, and make no decision at all.
Listen to Dewey Bozella at the ESPN awards ceremony, as he accepts “The Arthur Ashe Award for Courage”. May it inspire you to take that step and follow your dreams and never let anyone or anything move you off your path. To your health.
My birthday came this past weekend and yes, there was cake and the pizza was all around me, pop to drink, I was surrounded…Yes I blew it! Now what do I do?
My life is ruined. I’m a complete failure! I’ll never be able to get to the goal of my challenge, which is lose 40 pounds in the next 90 days! Whaaaaaaaa…Whaaaaaa…Whaaaaaa!
(That’s me in the blue coveralls.)
Crying isn't going to help you.
Do you feel sorry for me yet? Did my alligator tears do the trick? I didn’t think so.
OK, so I blew it this weekend. I had every intention to just have a simple little birthday celebration with just my wife and I, and then she had to go and invite all the kids and the grand-kids over, order the pizza, have my favorite carrot cake, and that was it. It’s all her fault. How could she do this to me? How can you look at all those people eating and celebrating your birthday and not join in on the fun?
It’s not the end of the world if you fall off the wagon, and it’s not the end of you getting back on your challenge, and getting back up on the horse to a healthier you. The only way to end it is when you quit and there is not going to be anyone quitting.
You want to get healthy right? You want to lose some weight right? The road is not going to be smooth all the way. It’s going to take work, persistence, and you might hit a couple of bumps along the way, but that’s OK. It’s all part of the ride. If you fall down, you just get right back up.
Getting through these times is what the team is all about. Doing the Challenge with your friends and family members is what gets you through times like these. The encouragement, the push, and the drive to keep going means everything, and you will never get that, traveling the road by yourself.
I put back on one pound…that’s it. I was really surprised It wasn’t more, but that’s not going to be hard to make up.
The whole point that I’m trying to stress here is that you can, and probably will fall back once or twice, but don’t stop and don’t get to down on yourself.
What’s the reason you’re trying to lose some weight? Why do you want to get back on the healthy track again?
Maybe you’ve had some serious health issues and you want to see your kids grow up or your grand-kids get married. Maybe you want to get back into those skinny jeans you used to wear that drove your husband nuts, or maybe you just want to lose a few pounds and get healthy so you can run that marathon in honor of someone who you lost to cancer.
Keep your eyes on that goal and you will cross that finish line
Whatever your reason to be in this challenge, you cannot think about some small slip up, but you have to always remember why you are in this challenge in the first place.
Always keep your eyes on your goal, on what you have waiting for you when you reach the finish line. Always keep that in the forefront of your mind and thoughts and you can never fail.
This is a challenge, not just to lose weight and get healthy, but for a new life, both physical and financial, and not just for you but for others as well.
Keep moving forward and your eyes fixed on the goal in front of you and you can never fail.
Today I broke the 200 pound barrier. When I say 200 pound barrier, I mean that I got on the scale this morning and it said, “199.5″ pounds. I know that it’s only by one half pound, but when you cross over the line, I don’t care by how much you cross over the line, you’ve just scored, and I’m excited about that.
Breaking the 200 Barrier
You see, I haven’t weighed under 200 pounds since…well it’s been over ten years ago.
The 200 pound barrier is like the magic line for me, if I could only reach that point, it will be all down hill from there. I guess it’s a mental line for me. You know that measuring point that you put in your mind for the task at hand. Little points that we put along the road to measure where we are at and how far we’ve come. This is something that we should do in any goal that we have set for ourselves in life. The 200 pound mark is mine.
My goal is to lose forty pounds on my 90 day health challenge, and I am at 199.5 pounds. Just 33.5 pounds to go!
I know that’s just a tip of the iceberg, and it’s only 6.5 pounds, but remember that I just broke the wall of 200 pounds, and conquering that mental hurdle is huge.
Don’t take lightly those little hurdle points you have set for yourself. They are big and once you get through them, the next one is right around the corner, and as the momentum builds, you can see that this goal is attainable and you can do it.
Pat yourself on the back! You did it and then move onto the next one. Dropping that big number two from that scale is huge for me. 6.5 pounds is big for me.
It wasn’t as hard as I thought either. Just getting into the new regiment was the hardest part, and that took about one week, after that it’s just one shake in the morning, with my vi pack. Then I eat a good healthy lunch and dinner, and if I get hunger during the day, I will snack on fruit or drink my Neuro drink to give me a little boast of energy.
I will be starting on my exercise plan in the following week. I took the first week or two to get me acclimated to my new healthy way of eating, and now I want to integrate an exercise plan. I will be walking for thirty minutes every morning, and later I will be bringing in other free weight exercises.
Two things that have been so different with the 90 Day Challenge, as opposed with other systems, is I have seen instant results. The first week I lost 3.5 pounds and that got me excited.
On any system, if you don’t see some kind of results within the first week or two, you will drop off. The other thing with the 90 Day Challenge, is the accountability. I am doing this with other people and we are sharing our results and encouraging one another. That is extremely important to the success of this program.
I will have more installments on my progress, and I hope you will continue to follow me as I move forward to crossing my goal of losing 40 pounds.
If you are interested in joining me on this challenge, or if you have tried and never come all the way over that goal of losing those unwanted pounds and you want to lose, and get back on the road to a healthy lifestyle, click on the “Life, Health, Prosperity”, banner below.
