prevents “amnesia”
Keeping a food and exercise journal is a key way to stick with your plan. Writing down an accurate record of your intake of food and beverages daily and recording the calories, protein, fat, carbohydrates, and fibre will help you become more aware of what is in the foods you eat.
Writing it down will also hold you accountable for what you have been eating or drinking. Although you may have good intentions, what you intend and what you actually do may be two different things. I call this “amnesia”. An exercise journal works the same way. You’ll know if you are making progress by keeping records of where you were when you started. In the Appendix, you’ll find a sample form for keeping a food and beverage record (Appendix).
Tips from Past Contest Winners at Gold’s Gym
1. Keep a food and exercise journal. This keeps you accountable and on track.
2. Focus on a specific goal. Visualize your end result. Keep reminding yourself that you are committed to achieving that goal.
3. Plan, prepare, and commit.
Plan what you want to accomplish (goal), how long it will take you (time line), and how you can accomplish your goal (specific program).
Prepare—know what you’ll be eating and when you’ll be exercising daily. Prepare meals ahead of time and plan your workout before you get to the gym.
Commit—make a contract with yourself, spouse, children, or trainer to accomplish your goals. Again, be specific and use this contract to hold yourself accountable.
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. —Nancy Vanhoven, group fitness instructor, Gold’s Gym of Wenatchee, Washington
Don’t kid yourself
A frustrated client e-mailed me saying she had been following the plan but wasn’t making any progress. I asked if she was writing anything down. She wasn’t. I asked her to keep a journal and send it to me after a few days so I could see where she might be struggling. No wonder she hadn’t made progress! Her journal indicated that she ate almost everything out of a box or a container! Except for eating two apples per day, she wasn’t following the plan at all. In addition, she hadn’t changed her exercise program (walking) for over a year. I made some suggestions in order to accommodate her busy schedule (the reason for her dependence on convenience foods) and food preferences. A few weeks later, she e-mailed back to say, happily I might add, that she had finally started seeing some results.
Again, your intentions may be good, but writing it down is the only way to outsmart your biased and forgetful mind!
Breaking barriers and excuses, excuses, excuses!
Why is it that when we start an exercise or food program we often don’t follow through (as in “it seemed like a good idea at the time”)? There are a few legitimate reasons that may be out of your control that can inhibit you from reaching your goals—such as illness or certain disabilities. But mostly, barriers are excuses that keep you in your comfort zone—or rather, out of your discomfort zone! Changing eating and exercise habits may be one of the most difficult challenges you’ll experience. But remember, the rewards you’ll gain far outweigh those initial struggles.
Here are some of the common controllable barriers that factor into changing your lifestyle habits:
• Not enough time to exercise. Exercise needs to be a priority just like brushing your teeth!
• Too intimidated to go to the gym because you’re out of shape. Start walking or working out at home with exercise videos. But remember that a good gym can offer professional help to guide you to your goals.
• The belief that you need a diet very low in calories in order to lose weight. Eating too few calories is a sure way to lose valuable muscle tissue. Women need at least 1,200 calories per day, and men need at least 1,800.
• Environment. You’re surrounded by a feasting society. Fast foods and quick-food markets are loaded with high-fat, high-sugar, nutrient-light temptations. When you plan ahead and prepare your meals yourself, the temptations will become less, and you will not have to rely on willpower.
• No energy or too tired. The first thing many people notice when they start following the 3-Apple-a-Day GI Diet is that they have more energy. Get started, you’ll see!
Beware of emotional triggers—They make you eat!
Have you ever been sad and sat down with a tub of ice cream smothered in chocolate and just kept eating it? Or been stressed out and stuffed a whole bag of crisps (family size!) in your face? Or just felt bored and wandered through your kitchen “searching” for something interesting to eat and discovered (and ate) your kid’s leftover Halloween candy? Or felt the “winding down” of a busy day and needed a little pick-me-up from food?
This is emotional eating. There are several emotional triggers—anger, stress/anxiety, PMS, boredom, and sadness—that cause us to eat. And we usually don’t choose healthy snacks in this state of mind. Instead, we choose “comfort foods” that temporarily fill the void. Often, not only do we consume way too much of these foods but we repeat this type of eating way too often, all of which leads to weight gain and low self-esteem.
How to break the cycle
Breaking the cycle of emotional eating may take some effort. But you can do it! When you feel one or more of the emotional triggers come on, resist the urge for five minutes. Ask yourself if you are truly hungry or are just feeling emotional? Often just waiting a couple of minutes will be sufficient to overcome the urge. If waiting doesn’t work and you are still feeling emotional, try diverting yourself. Go outside for some fresh air, take a walk, turn on some upbeat music, or call a supportive friend.
If you do decide to eat, choose a healthy snack. Dip some unsalted pretzels in yogurt or spread apple slices with peanut butter. Or treat yourself to some low-fat popcorn and a diet beverage. And don’t turn on the television! Huh? That’s right! Watching TV could actually cause you to “unconsciously” eat more.
I definitely have times of emotional overeating—where do you think the examples came from? What I have found to work, besides avoiding unhealthy snacks, is having an established eating plan. If you follow the 3-Apple-a-Day GI Diet, as I do, you should be able to keep your appetite under control and lessen those unhealthy food temptations.
Hunger versus appetite
Blair McHaney, co-owner of Gold’s Gym, Wenatchee, Washington, suggests this visual: “Think of appetite as a sleeping lion. If you keep him fed, he will purr and sleep. If you starve him, he will attack.” The lion is your appetite. If you aren’t prepared with food on hand, your appetite may attack and you’ll be relying on your willpower. That’s doing it the hard way for sure.
It’s a lot easier to shop for healthy foods in the supermarket if you are not hungry as a lion going in. Not only that, if you don’t go in hungry, you’ll be less likely to buy unhealthy items. It’s much easier to decide not to buy junk food than it is to resist it once you’ve taken it home. Keep your home environment “safe” and junk-food free to avoid temptation.
Last but not least, eat breakfast! You’ll be less likely to eat a donut at work if you’ve already eaten at home.
TIP: Take apples with you everywhere you go.
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