Staying Healthy When No One Around You Is...

Congrats for making the decision to exercise and eat healthy.  When you first start it is exciting and challenging.  One of the challenges that you might experience is not having support from your friends and family.  This can make it extra challenging to stick to your new healthy habits when you don't have support.  I have experienced this and have learned how it is possible when you are all alone.
Follow these tips and you will be sure to have success.

1.  Be Honest
Tell everyone around you what you are doing.  This way there is no confusion at what you are doing. This also gives people around you the option to either support you or try to tempt you.  Those that support you might come along after a while.  Those that resist don't take it personally.  It is really about them not you.  They may not be ready to give up their bad habits.  Just continue to stick to your plan and be an example.  They may see your success and come along eventually.

2.  It's All About You!!!
You made this decision to be healthy.  It is not fair to except others to want the same thing.  So, don't force those around you to change or get offended when they don't.  It is your decision so you need to own that and stick with it.  There will be haters that can't wait to see you fail so stick with you goals and plan.  Prove them wrong and prove that it is possible.

3.  Guilt
Don't guilt others into changing their behaviors.  Don't be judgmental on their food choices of lack of exercise.  No one likes to be judged and made to feel bad.  This also will not help people change.  They need to make that decision on their own.  So saying things like "Do you know how many calories are in that bagel" or "Do you know what is in that hamburger?"  is hurtful and makes people feel bad.   There are ways of offering advise without being offensive and hurtful.  If someone asks for help or advise give it to them but do it in a supportive and loving way.

4.  Bring Your Own Food
When you go to a potluck or someones house for dinner don't expect everyone to adapt to your new lifestyle.  Bring your own food options for people to share.  This way you have food that you know that you can eat and you can encourage others to eat it.  I would also be upfront with the host and tell them what you can and can't eat.  This way they are not surprised when you don't eat certain foods or bring you own food.

5.  Food Snob
No one likes to be around someone that can't eat anything and they are super picky when you go out to eat.  This approach to food is too consuming.  If your food choices are too extreme, they will most likely be too hard to follow and it won't last.  Following a way of eating that allows for some give and take is the best way.  It also allows for you to choose when you want to indulge a little and you can plan for that.

Looking down on everyone and judging them will not win supporters.  It will turn people away.  Again, this process and choice is YOUR choice not everyone else's.  You can have to be ok with doing it alone and know why you want a healthier life.


6.  Find Support
Finding a support group is key to being successful.  If you surround yourself with others that adopt your lifestyle you will encourage one another and support one another.  It will also making it easier to stick to your healthy new life.  You can follow me on my FB Page or subscribe to my YouTube Channel to get support from me.

7. Eat Before you go
Eat something like an apple and nut butter before you go to an event.  This will make sure that you are not starving and then end up making bad choices.  I would not suggest eating a whole meal but eat some snack that has some protein, fats and carbs.  This will make sure that you feel satisfied and that you aren't going to over do anything.  You want the will power to avoid all those temptations.

8.  Know Your WHY
Know why you want this and why you are doing it.  To loose weight is not a good enough reason.  You have to have a reason that compels you to do this and keep it up day after day.  Some days are harder than others, but when you have a reason that motivates you and keeps you going no matter what, then it will not matter what others say or what others think about your new healthy life.  You will do it anyways.

Changing old habits and starting new healthier ones can be hard.  But doing it without support of family and friends is hard.  Know that your choices are your choices.  Be honest and open with people why you are changing and what you want to accomplish.  Most people will be supportive and encouraging.  Plan and prepare so that you will be successful in social situations.  Life is crazy and unpredictable.  Having a plan and being prepared will help you in your every day life.

Why isn't the Scale Going Down?

Are you exercising and eating healthy yet the scale is not going down?  That can be very frustrating.  You are putting in the hard work and yet you feel as though you are not seeing the results that you are looking for.  Well, I have some reasons why the scale might not be moving in the direction you want. Check them out here...

1.  Over estimating your activity and underestimating your eating

Calories are what our bodies use for energy.  Our bodies break down food (protein, carbs and fats) and breaks it down to sugar so our bodies can use it for energy.  If the amount of calories that you consume is more than the energy that you are exerting then the body will store those extra calories.  So, if you are over estimating your activity and underestimating your eating then this could cause the scale to move up or stay the same.

Getting a Fitbit or Garmin or some sort of device that will track your heart rate and steps during the day will give a good indication of how many calories you are using during the day.  This will give you a good number to aim for as far as eating.  You want to create a 400- 500 calories deficit to cause the scale to go down.

Just because you are exercising does not mean you are using a ton of calories.  You want to aim for 30 - 40 minutes of exercise were your hear rate is elevated.  If you are going on a walk and it is really not that difficult you may want to pick up your pace.

2. Are you Getting Enough Fiber?

Fiber helps you feel full.  It also aids in keeping regular.  If you are backed up the scale can go up a couple pounds.  Not only are you full of all the waste but it can create gas and bloating.  You want to make sure that you are having a bowel movement everyday.

Foods that have fiber are leafy greens, apples, whole grains, lentils, nuts peas and carrots.  The fiber acts as a brush to your insides.  It helps clean your insides.

3.  Cardio
Cardio is when you have an elevated heart rate for over an extended amount of time.  Your heart is pumping and using energy.  Your heart is a muscle and needs to be worked and strengthened just like your other muscles.  When your heart rate is elevated you heart is pumping blood and oxygen.  This uses energy or calories.

Your body also uses different fuel sources when you do over 30 minutes of cardio. Your body can only sustain an elevated heart rate for a certain amount of time.  There is no way you could do a full out high intensity workout for more than a couple minutes.  So, cardio is when you have a heart rate between 65- 85% of your max heart rate.  To calculate your heart rate you can do it here..

                                                            220 - Age =  your max heart rate

The best way to get the most bang for your time and workout is to do intervals within your workout.  So instead of just walking on the treadmill for 30 minutes at a set pace, you want to do moderate and high intensity intervals.  This will make sure that you can really work your heart muscle, sustain the high intensity work and get the after burn.

The after burn or EPOC (Excess post exercise oxygen consumption).  This is when your body is recovering and getting the depleted oxygen throughout your body.  This creates your body to be burning calories after your workout not just during it.  The more intense your workout the longer it takes your body to recover.

4.  Weight Training
Just doing weight training is not enough if you want to loose weight.  But when you do add weight training to your workout routine the muscle that you build uses more energy.  This increases your daily caloric need or metabolism.

That is why is it important to get your body fat percentage checked.  This will give you an indication if you are loosing fat and gaining muscle.  If your body is composed of mostly fat, even if you are thin, it will make it harder to loose weight.  The good news is adding a weight training routine to your workout will take care of this.  I would aim for doing weight 2-3 times a week.  If you need help designing or figure out what weight training program works best for you I would be glad to help.

5.  Are you doing the same thing?
Doing the same workout over and over will stall your results on the scale.  Variety is key.  Our bodies are pretty amazing.  They get efficient at doing our workouts when we do it over and over.  That is why it might seem like when you first started on the treadmill it was very hard but after a couple weeks you increased your time and it didn't feel as challenging.  The bad news is that your body is so efficient that you aren't using the same amount of calories to do that workout as when you started.
Make sure that you are challenging yourself with different forms of workouts and exercises.

6.  How many hours of sleep are you getting?  
Did you know that your body uses calories when you sleep?  Pretty cool huh?  Well, if you are not getting enough sleep then your body is not able to fully recover and feel rested.  This will make you tired the next day and can limit your workout and activities for the day.

The more you are awake the more you have time to eat.  So, if you have a problem with night time snacking the answer may be to go to bed earlier so you are not tempted to eat at night.


7.  Stress
Stress puts our bodies into a state of overload.  It also increases cortisol which holds onto fat.  We are in that flight or fight mode and our bodies are storing fat because we are in crisis mode.

Make sure to deal with your stress in a healthy way or find something your like to do.  Exercise will make you feel happier and can clear your mind or give you time not thinking about your worries.  Try a yoga class or meditation.  If you are not getting any relief you may want to seek some professional help.

8.  Are you hungry or thirsty?
When we are thirsty our bodies may tell us that we are hungry but we are actually thirsty.  Aim for at least 64 oz of water each day.  For each hour of exercise you want to add 12 oz of water.  If you don't drink enough water your body will actually hold onto the water and make you bloated cause it is storing it.  If you drink water regularly your body will eliminate what is not needed and won't store it.

9.  Underlying Medical Issue
Maybe you are doing all of the above and the scale is still not moving.  Maybe there is an underlying medical issue that is causing your to gain the weight.  It could be from medications that you are already as well.  Your thyroid may be slow, this can cause you to gain weight.  If nothing is working then consult with your doctor to get checked out.

I have created an amazing program "Reset Your Metabolism".  We go over all the tricks and tools that you can use to get your metabolism raging.  If you are interested in join my program click on the link below.

https://form.jotform.com/fitnesswithlaurenmorley/resetyourmetabolism