You’ve been there before, that moment when you’re sitting in front of a plate of food that is so delicious and good but you know that you shouldn’t be eating it, yet here you sit, and it’s your third serving.  Or you see pictures of yourself from a family gathering or other event and you ask the question, “WHO IS THAT?”  That my friend…is YOU!

Weight loss is something that a vast majority of us struggle with through most of our lives.  You try everything you can to drop the pounds….crash dieting, the juice diet, slim fast, dexatrim, the grapefruit diet, the ab rocker, Richard Simmons Sweatin to the Oldies. (Ok maybe not that last one, because if you are still using that one…well…enough said!)  Nothing seems to ever work for you, you may drop a few pounds but you usually put it back on plus more.  It gets frustrating and almost feels insurmountable, like you will NEVER win the battle of the bulge and you will be overweight your whole life!

I am here to tell you….YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE!!!  Losing weight is easier than you think, and keeping it off is even easier with the proper tools and guidance.  90% of effective weight loss is driven by your own determination and desire, the other 10% is the tools and resources you use to get you on the path and stay on track.  If you have a desire to lose weight, get in better shape, tone up, increase your endurance or overall health, keep reading!  I will help you find the skinny person you ate years ago!

Now the first thing that you need to know is that I am not a doctor, I just play one on TV.  I am not a licensed dietician, therapist, nutritionist, personal trainer, instructor and blah blah blah.  So why do I think I am qualified to help anyone lose weight?  Because I have been struggling with the same problem my whole life and I have taken a stance to do something about it!  I made a committment 3 months ago that I refuse to accept being fat anymore and I was going to stop at nothing to lose weight and get a body that I could be proud of!  I’ve been through the struggles and I’ve tried all the gimmicks and through that experience I hope to share with you what has worked for me and what hasn’t and that TOGETHER we can achieve our goals and be healthy and happy in our own skin again!

The purpose of my blogs will be to introduce you to some new ideas, exercise programs, nutritional guidelines, etc.  But this isn’t just about ME helping YOU, I want YOU to help ME as well and through the process WE will help everyone else!  It’s time to take a stand.  If you’re tired of being out of breath just by walking from your car to the front door, if you’re tired of buying a bigger size in pants every year, if you’re tired of feeling like an outcast at a party because you are overweight, if you are tired of looking in the mirror every day and seeing an unhealthy body in the mirror, if you are tired of being FAT, then join me on my quest to lose weight and get healthy in 2012!  Make this year the year of discovering and uncovering a new YOU!  YOU CAN DO IT and TOGETHER WE WILL!

There are a few resources I wish to share with you in this blog to help you get started in your journey.  The two kind of go hand in hand.

1. www.weightwatchers.com.  Why? Because it works.  Because it is sustainable.  Because it’s manageable.

Weight Watchers now offers an online program that doesn’t require you to go to meetings!  And if you have a smartphone there are apps that you can download to make tracking your progress and keeping you on plan even easier!  And it’s not just for the ladies.  Guys, Weight Watchers has a special program tailored just for men!  No uncomfortable weekly weigh-ins with a group.  Just you and the tools and guides you need to be successful!  Of course if you like the meetings you can go to them as well and take advantage of the online tools when you aren’t in your meetings!  Weight Watchers isn’t a diet, it’s a lifestyle and it allows you to eat all the same foods you eat now but teaches you portion control and how to make smarter choices with your food each day.  And don’t worry they give you a TON of recipes and food ideas to help you get started and now so many food manufacturers are putting the WW points values on their food labels so it makes choosing the right foods even easier!  It’s a low monthly cost, but consider how much you spend at the drive-thru each week for lunch or breakfast, you’ll be able to justify this cost by cutting one or two of those trips each week!

2. www.hungry-girl.com.  Hungry Girl is an AMAZING resource for the girl OR guy who wants to eat great tasting food that is also good for you!  There are several books and even a Supermarket Survival Guide to help you make the right choices when shopping.  The recipes are easy and quick to make and the serving normally yields 1 serving so you aren’t left with a ton of left over food that you may be tempted to gorge on later!  Portion control is the key!  AND, if you decide to get into Weight Watchers, Hungry Girl posts the WW Point Values for EVERY ONE of their recipes from the books online, so you’ll never have to guess what you are eating!

3. www.imgoingtoloseweightifitkillsme.blogspot.com. This is my own personal blog about my journey to lose weight.  I’ve found that blogging about my journey helps keep me accountable for my actions.  I have a decent reader base made up of friends, family and others who share my struggles.  They help support and motivate me to stay on track and help get me back on track if I get off.  If you are serious about losing weight, this is a fantastic way to get started in your committment to yourself!  I highly encourage you to start your own blog or journal and make it public!  Feel free to follow mine, I hope you find it a source of inspiration and motivation!

These resources are a start.  They certainly aren’t the end all answer for everyone and maybe you’ve tried one of them before and felt like it didn’t work for you.  But ask yourself this question…Why didn’t it work?  Was it really the program itself, or did you lose your determination to keep going?

Stay tuned for future blogs with other helpful ideas and guidelines that you may want to try along with exercise tips and programs to help you in your journey to the new you!  Being fit doesn’t have to be something on another list that you never accomplish.  Make this the year of change and make it happen.  I’ll be your biggest fan and advocate of support and will stay with you every step of the way if you want!  Rally your friends and family and build your own support group to help you stay the course and reach and maintain your goals!

Here’s to us!  Now go get started!  What are you waiting for…PUT THE FORK DOWN AND STEP AWAY FROM THE PLATE!!!

 

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