Has your train derailed? The benefits of getting it back on track...

Everyone has days when their workout mojo (or mojo in general) is depleted. Sometimes this can turn into a couple of days, or a week, or a month, or maybe even a few months. The thought of working out is enough to zap your energy.

So the question is: how can you push your own reset button and get your train back on track? Here are some tips.

1) Make a list of your goals and the way you feel when you work out. Like Chalean says, most people who don't achieve their goals fail because they don't write them down. Or at the very least, say them out loud. Think about all the positive feelings you get from working out - feeling powerful, feeling sexy, feeling skinny...do something with those.

2) Make a promise to yourself that you will work out for the next however many days in a row. It's okay to start small. Don't overwhelm yourself when you're getting back into the swing of things or you might burn out again. Treat yourself to something small - a lunch at your favorite place, a $5 shopping trip at Dollar General, a movie rental - for making it.

3) Set your alarm for half an hour earlier than you want to wake up. This will allow you to push Snooze a lot and feel like you're getting more sleep in. Or you may surprise yourself and get out of bed earlier which means you finish earlier! As soon as you get moving, you will usually have energy to work out. It's the getting out of bed part that's hard.

4) Plan out healthy meal options for the next day in advance. Don't try to wing it. If you're coming off an eating binge, it's probably going to be harder than you think to get back to healthy ways.

5) Look at a before picture of yourself. Or a recent picture if that will induce disgust. Enough disgust to get your butt moving. Tape it to your night table. Somewhere that you'll see it. Maybe if you wake up in the morning and see what you used to look like or what you want to improve, that will be enough to get you out of bed. Or tape a picture of a model instead. Seeing a fit, sculpted, toned bathing suit model is usually enough to do it for me. I think "Dang, I gotta get on it!"

6) Ask yourself if you're worth it. More than likely, the answer is yes. If you say no, we've got more work to do.

7) Look at how far you've come. I know for me personally, I started out in December 2007 with 43 pounds to lose. It felt like it would NEVER come. Now I have surpassed that goal and am looking at less than 10 to reach my goal weight!  Look at your own personal journey. Each step forward is one step closer to the finish line!!! Why throw it all away now for an extra 45 minutes of sleep? Or a slice of pizza?

8) If you really need it, a 2-day juicing or shake fast. Sometimes it's easier to remove yourself from EVERYTHING instead of just bits and pieces and then add healthy food back in. The fast will rejuvenate you and make you feel leaner and smaller. And the discipline will teach you that you CAN eat right and make healthy choices. If I can stay away from all the junk for two or three days, then I know I can be selective when it's over.

So do it today. Make a conscious effort. It's okay to take baby steps, as long as they will eventually grow into leaps and bounds!! Get re-started today!!

Are you looking to lose weight QUICKLY yet SAFELY?

Hey guys,

Lately I have been INUNDATED with messages about weight loss. Yes I have lost 29 pounds in 7 months and you can do it too! If I can do it, you can certainly do it.

Here is my advice. PLEASE TRY SLIM IN 6. This was the first program I ever did. I never had a workout regimen a day in my life. But I needed a long-term solution to my weight problem when I realized I was 173 in Fall of 2007. It came on one of those infomercials late at night and I decided that I needed this. It provided structure, cardio, resistance training, everything I needed in one workout. Not to mention a short 6-week timeframe! So I bought it.

7 weeks later (I skipped a few workouts due to HATING exercise...I look back now and can't believe how far I've come), I had lost 13 pounds. And I hadn't even tried to eat healthier. I have since done another round of Slim in 6 and lost 8 pounds. So it accounts for 20 of my 29 pounds. And I still use Start It Up and Burn It Up (2 of the workouts) in my workout schedule. I SWEAR by this program! PLEASE go to my web site and check it out for yourself! If you order it from me, I will be assigned as your FREE coach and I can track your shipments and help you out with stuff if you need it! :)

A comparison...between who I was then...and who I am now

2007-2009

• Ate whatever I wanted, mostly all processed/packaged/fast foods
  
• Worked out sporadically
• HATED working out
• Didn't know much about nutrition or anything
• Although I had completed Slim in 6 (or for me, Slim in 7 since I took so many days off) and was doing Turbo Jam, I'd have to say I was not what you would call loyal and dedicated to fitness

February 2009 - Present

• Started COOKING! Never cooked a day in my life!...alright. ONE day in my life. One day it just hit me. I read that results are 80% from the kitchen. Having reached a plateau, I thought that my time had come. It was time to not only bring it with my workouts, but bring it in the kitchen as well. I collected recipes that I thought were doable, asked for advice from people who cooked on how long to cook things, went out and bought my first 2 weeks worth of healthy groceries and have not looked back.
  
• I love working out! I feel crappy when I miss my workout
• I wake up at ungodly hours of the morning to work out. I love/crave that feeling of knowing my workout is done and the whole rest of the day is mine!!!
• Learned about nutrition and fitness - currently seeking my Nutrition and Wellness Consultant and Personal Trainer certifications!
• Eliminated white carbs from my diet entirely
• Stopped drinking soda except for once per week if we go out to eat. And its even been a few weeks since I did that! I will grab a few sips of Joe's and order water :)
• Paid attention to my food journaling...not so much to count calories but to see what the sources of my nutrition were and what I could tweak to make food work for me. Found out I was eating about 300g of carbs per day and tweaked it to 170g carbs or less per day...usually take in about 140-150g.
• Introduced a lot of veggies! I love Steamfresh!
• Found smart snacks
• Started experimenting with new foods - cous cous, fish, egg whites, quinoa, kale

It is the difference of a lifetime! I heart fitness and nutrition!

Sacrifice now to reap later!!!!

This is my new official motto. It came to me one day after I realized I had about 200 calories of wiggle room left in my food bank for the day. It was after lunch and I was hungry. I am NOT by any means a pleasure delayer. I am often rather impatient and want everything yesterday. So I thought about having another sandwich. Then this wonderful phrase popped into my head. And I thought to myself...If I don't have another sandwich, I'll be able to have some Smartpop after dinner as a snack.

Once this phrase entered my mind, it didn't leave. And I realized that it applied so well to the overall fitness picture. Sacrifice now - your time, your energy, your cravings, your idealistic images of who you want to be - to reap later! If you put the time and the energy in TODAY, one day when you reach your goals you won't have to work so hard as you'll be in maintenance phase. If you eat healthy TODAY, one day when you reach your goals you can have that treat and won't have to stress so much about it undoing your results. If you put aside the ideal pictures and the pressure TODAY, you can really embrace the present and the process and one day when you reach your goals, you will match or exceed those ideals. Not saying that when you reach your goals, you stop taking care of yourself. But you can enter the sought-after maintenance phase where you can relax a little bit knowing that you've crossed the finish line. I love this phrase so much that it has a place on my workout calendar. I find myself saying it when I go grocery shopping, when I don't want to get out of bed in the morning or I want to watch tv at night.

Say it with me:

SACRIFICE NOW TO REAP LATER!