Join the "Living Smart" Club - September through December

Hello, again! It's still summer, but I'm thinking ahead to how I want to look and feel around the holidays. How about you? What would you like to accomplish for yourself within the next 4 months?

Starting September 1st, I will take the journey with you. Let's decide to Live Smart together! For the next 4 months, I plan to post strategies to help you, along with great recipes!

(If you wish to get ahead of the game, you can purchase our book, Weight Plan For Life at Food Fantasies or directly from me!)

First, let's set our SHORT term and LONG term goals. Whether it's weight loss or weight training, the FUN is in the accomplishment! The steps you need to take to get there are easier than you think. The more you try and persevere, the easier it gets. Research has shown that we are more pro-active in our wellness if we have a plan! And if you have support and encouragement, then the sky's the limit!

Setting your LONG term goal is easy. Just think of a time, maybe around the holidays, to set it. That's 4 months away from now. Decide how many pounds per week you wish to lose (1, 2, or 3 lbs. only) and then multiply this number times the number of weeks it will take for your long term goal to get here. So, if you set your LONG term goal for December 24th and you want to lose 2 lbs. per week, you will lose 17 weeks x 2= 34 lbs!

In the last post, I explained how to set up your SHORT term goals. Here's an example, for clarification:

Say you wish to lose 10 lbs. in 4 weeks. That means you would have to lose just under 3 lbs. per week. If you weigh 250 lbs. Here's how it would look:

Sept 1: current weight - 250, predicted weight - 250
Sept 2: _____________, 250
Sept 3: _____________, 249
Sept 4: _____________, 248
Sept 5: _____________, 248
Sept 6: _____________, 247
Sept 7: _____________, 247
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In one week, you should have lost the 3 lbs. Every day keeps you accountable with this chart. If you did not lose the weight, say you only lost 2 pounds, then adjust the number of pounds to lose. It could look like this:

Sept 8: 248, 248
Sept 9: 248, 248
Sept 10: 248, 247
Sept 11: 248, 247
Sept 12: 247, 247
Sept 13: 246, 246
Sept 14: 245, 246

Notice how, on the third and fourth day, the weight didn't come off. But if, on a daily basis, you check this very "do-able" schedule, which is sound in reasoning, you should be able to stay on track with your weight goals. If you still cannot, it should serve as a wake-up call that something is out-of-whack. Ask yourself, what is happening? Have you done a food diary to see where extra calories have shown up? Are you getting any exercise? Are you binging late at night? Have you been checked out by a physician for any hormonal or thyroid issues? Are you feeling depressed or anxious?

Taking care of these and other questions can help in determining where you need to focus your attention.

I will send out email reminders to my subscribers, starting September 1st! In the meantime, set those goals and start getting fired up for success!

See you next month!
Linda