Changing eating habits is hard..

On my 38th birthday, I was diagnosed as being gluten intolerant.

This means no more wheat, rye or barley for me. I am relieved in a way to have a diagnosis.

I have been feeling crushing fatigue, outrageously moody and unreasonable depression for years. I am hoping that this is the light at the end of the tunnel and that I will eventually begin to feel normal again... what ever that might mean. :)

So you would think that given the motivation to change that I would walk away from gluten readily. I found myself eating out a couple of times this week. There I was NOT asking questions about what has gluten in it or contaminated by it. "I am sure it will be fine, I THINK those ingredients are gluten free". Of course there was today at my sushi club luncheon where I just happily popped the tempura rolls in my mouth with out a second thought. I mean.. I thought about it but ate it anyway.

Those of you who cannot tolerate gluten understand that there is no such thing as just a little bit of it. Even a minuscule amount can set off a reaction. I know better. I know I need to be super careful especially for these first few months. And yet....I am not working too hard at changing my behavior.

The other event that motivated this post was me watching the premier of season 10 of the Biggest Loser. It is heart breaking to see all of these obese people on the show and knowing that America is getting larger by the day. Why? We eat all the wrong foods, too much of it and don't move enough. I don't believe people WANT to be obese. It makes people miserable and yet they keep piling the food in.

While I think the obesity epidemic is complicated and change is hard, here are my thoughts on what can help change (as it relates to eating ) take place:

1) What is behind you reaching for food? Are you really hungry? Did you just eat in the past 1-2 hours? Maybe you are thirsty? Maybe you are hurt, tired, angry, bored, happy, sad, jealous, feel unheard, feel ignored, feel too much attention, lonely, overwhelmed, etc?

Learn to know the difference between hunger and something else going on. Then give your body what it is REALLY wanting. If you struggle with emotional eating, PLEASE see a therapist who can help you work through all of these issues. It is very hard to change emotional eating on your own.

2) Make small changes. Not many people can be successful on going from a full junk food to a whole food diet over night. Junk food, processed food is addictive as hell. It takes time and desire to make that switch. Pick small things each week to work on - more water, smaller servings, 8-10 servings of fruit and veggies every day, 25 grams of fiber, etc. You have to transition in a way that you can maintain for THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. No more of this dieting crap until you reach your goal and then I am going back to McDonalds every day and expect my weight to stay off.

Small changes made consistently everyday bring about big life changes.

3) Get support. I am not sure how many people succeed in a vacuum. I know I don't. I believe that most successful people don't. Successful people know that they need mentors and supporters through out their journey. Find people that will support you. Online communities can be great for this. Support can also come from people that you never expected if you give them a chance.

Be prepared however as some times changes make others around you uncomfortable. Give them time and share with them why you are wanting to make these changes. I bet they will come around.

4) Keep trying. Again and again and again. Your health is worth the effort! YOU are worth the effort.

I am going to follow my own advice here and focus on eating completely gluten free! I know I am worth the effort to feel better.

Keep healthy!!

Kara

What If....

Today I saw a post on Facebook by Mike French. Mike is a Beachbody Coach who I can tell through his facebook posts is completely dedicated to his family, his fitness and his business.

His post today was a long list of What Ifs... full of great questions and potential actions that would enrich most peoples lives if acted upon.

His full posting is shared here ( http://bit.ly/9KrJwe ) and on my facebook page.

The first 'what if' drew my attention today: What if.... tomorrow you decide to make your daily nutrition as important as your workout?

Nutrition up until now has been my stumbling block. Nutrition is why I do not have a fabulous transformation story from the hours (and hours and hours) of running, working out in the gym or following the amazing Beachbody programs. I have always justified filling my body with sugar, fat, salt and alcohol because I workout. I have exercise headband that has the phrase "I run to eat" printed on it and for a long time I did! I figure what ever time I put in the gym "should" give me a pass to fill my body with what ever I wanted. I want my cake and eat it too, dammit. I want to hold that delusion that life on TV and movies brings. You know where the people with beautiful bodies drink what they want, eat what they want and still have these fit scuplted bodies? Holding on to this delusion that I workout and there for eat what ever I want at any time and in any quantity has contributed to YEARS of anger and discontent of not having the body that I want and honestly think I am capable of.

What have my results been due to this vicious cycle of working out, over eating, under nourishing and high frustration? I am fit, yes, but currently I am at a 29% body fat!

Recently there has been a shift. I have been listening to myself. I am ready for a change. The change is the realization that my body DESERVES to be filled with good, clean whole fresh foods to fuel it for the day. That is what is going to get me where I want to be. To support myself, I am working with a nutritionist as well as doing lots of reading and talking to people. I am walking away from the delusion that healthy fit people fill their bodies with sugar, fat, alcohol and salt daily and still look amazing. You know what? Super fit people do not do that.

I want to be super fit. My goal is to be 150lbs and under 20% body fat. I am going to take my daily nutrition as important as my daily workout.

Thanks Mike for the clarity.

Kara

Do your Best.....

And forget the Rest!!

You hear Tony Horton saying that all through P90X.

I did not really connect with this phrase until I heard Tony speaking at the 2010 Beachbody Coach Summit. He was talking about his "11 Laws of Health and Fitness". (BTW, great talk from Tony and is available online).

Tony's Law #2 is Consistency. Tony recommended working out at least 21 days a month. Show Up. Be Patient. Follow Through. Do Your Best and Forget the Rest.

Tony said some times just showing on up any given day to work out is success. If you do part of the 90 minute P90X Yoga X workout.. that is better than not pressing play at all and sitting on your couch instead.

Some times I am disappointed that I cannot keep up with the video. Why don't I have that kind of energy? Why can't I do all the moves like the people on the DVD can?

F That!! You know what - I showed up dammit! I am here.. and I am giving my best... even if some days that is 20 minutes of a 60 minute workout. Some days it is doing 2 workouts a day because that is what I want to do and that is the energy I have! Either way I am showing up and doing my best...whatever that might be for the day!

Don't let it get you down if you can't do every thing that the person next to you at the gym can do or the people on video are doing. You are getting in there and trying it!!

Comparison is the death of self development... now go out there and do YOUR best and forget the rest!!

Thanks Tony!!

Some times patience is hard

I am not sure how many of you watch the Biggest Loser on TV. I am fascinated by the show.
This past week featured Michael, who started the show at 520+ lbs and has now lost over 2oo, upset because he is still leaving the show as an obese man at 320+ lbs. He sees how far he still has left in front of him and feels tired and disappointed. He questions if he has the strength and energy to continue or if it would just be better to throw in the towel now. He can't see or appreciate the hard work and progress he has made. All that is in his vision is the long path ahead of him.
I watched his struggle this week and I was crying. I could so sympathize with his pain and frustration.
This frustration comes up in all kinds of struggles in life. Any time you are making a large life changing move - it takes time and patience and in a instant gratification society that is not easy to cope with some times.
For me when I am feeling frustrated, I breathe. Lots and lots of deep breathing. I don't fight the frustration I welcome it. I sit with it and try to learn what it is telling me. I mentally walk through what actions that I am taking that are forwarding my journey. Am I doing the right things? Am I taking care of myself like I know I need to? If yes, then I know I am still on the right path and I need to continue to forward momentum. Marathons are run 1 step at a time. Weight is lost 1 lb at a time. Patience comes one breath at a time.

Enjoy the journey.
Kara

What ever is worth having is worth fighting for.

I love when there are words or phrases that grab my attention and make me stop and think. When I find them I often stop and write them on my white board in my kitchen so I can ponder them further.

This week for me the phrase is "What ever is worth having is worth fighting for." Huh. Yeah, that makes total sense. How this fits for me today is my battle with food. Each year at New years, I vow that THIS year will be the year when I conquer my food demons and body issues. Only to find myself saying the same thing again on January 1 of the following year.

Recently I began seeing my therapist again to help me find some peace. I was tired of wasting precious life time and energy on this battle. After lots of patience and listening, she recommended that I see a nutritionist for additional support. A nutritionist? What on earth could she help me with? I clearly know all there is to know. Despite this huge chip on my shoulder, I went anyway...thankfully.

My nutritionist made me feel like I wasn't crazy, that there were some things I could be doing that would help me get back in control and have a healthy relationship with food and myself. Upon my request, she helped me set up a 3 week cleanse - no red meat, no wheat, no dairy, no peanuts, no oranges, no corn and no SUGAR!!! I needed to get the sugar out of my system. I needed to break that cycle.

I am now 2 weeks in and it has been much easier than I had thought. I love filling my body with healthy foods. I love being in control again of what I am eating. I love hearing the voice inside me expressing the need that I have that I would typically fill with food that I can now fill it with what I am really needing. Thankfully too the scale is starting to move down which it has not done in many months.

I want a healthy body. I want to stop wasting my time kicking the crap out of myself for being lazy and undisciplined. I want to then fill that time being joyful, appreciative and filled with love for myself and others. That for me is worth having and that is worth fighting for.

Coach Summit 2010

Last Thursday I flew to LA for the 2010 Team Beachbody Coach Summit. The weekend was more amazing than I could have imagined. I met an instant friend and now success partner the first morning I was there. I got to work out with the Beachbody trainers which was just amazing. Having just completed Insanity it was fun having Shaun T kick my butt in person! Every one there was so friendly and full of energy. The sessions were so chocked full of great, useful information.

The two big things I walked away with:
1) Beachbody! The more I learned about this company the more I loved it. I got to tour their offices and heard a great deal about the "Dude" culture that they work to create and the mission that keeps them moving forward. They are passionate about helping people lead better lives. They are energetic and driven yet relaxed and authentic. Everything about this company just resonates with me.
2) I can do this! I came into Summit feeling really hung up on this being a direct marketing company. I am no sales person so I was concerned about how successful I would be. What I found I needed to be successful is: to be my self and have a passion for making people's lives better. What?? I can TOTALLY to this. It made me realize that there is a reason I was attracted to this company and at this time in my life. I am so excited about the journey!

Joy and Fitness - the story begins

I am starting my first blog tonight. I had to come up with a name for it. I had not really been planning for that as I have never set up a blog with a real blog site before. In sitting and thinking about it, I knew this blog would be around my experiences with working out, Team Beachbody and my desire to get a strong healthy body. So from that I thought it made sense to use the word "Fitness". I knew the name fitness blog is too boring....I want to fall asleep just typing it.

As a pondered for a few minutes it was clear what I should pair Fitness with for the title of my blog. I love Joy - life needs to be about Joy, I love when Joy bursts forth from me for so many reasons - great friends, food, experiences, the randomness of life, Working out is joyful. Being healthy is joyful. Joy is a great experience and one of my favorite words.

So here is my blog: Joy and Fitness