Secrets of Success

eating

eating smaller meals more frequently

Brushing teeth right after eating

After I have something to eat, I brush my teeth right away. That way after having a minty, clean mouth, I don't want to mess it up with anything like chocolate, or a salty snack. It just won't taste the same. And why brush your teeth if you're just going to eat something else, right? That also gives me time to get over the craving I have right after a meal, for something sweet to... 'top it off'.

get dressed

get up in the mornings and get dressed down to the shoes. it is so easy to just lie around and waste the day if I stay in pj. and harder to get motivated to do anything if I still have to get dressed. get dressed before I leave my bedroom and I am ready to move around that day/

Have a support system

Once I was more involved with Sparkpeople, I picked up on more motivation by reading stories and interacting with other members. Some of my worst days became my best because of my Spark friends!!

Prepare to Start

Start by preparation. Clean out the 'bad' food, read the Getting Started secrets, pinpoint your stumbling blocks and form a strategy to deal with them. Read articles on nutrition, fitness, wellness and motivation. Find common ground teams to join. Don't whine about what you need to do - face it head on and enjoy the journey. It is a wonderful one!

Small steps are still steps forward.

Take it one day, or even one meal at a time. And start small. Maybe you add one additional serving of fruit or veggies per day. Maybe you start exercising in 10 minute increments. I found that once I hit a monthly number of fitness minutes, I want to match that or increase it by say 100 minutes the next month.

Water!

I have a 20 ounce water bottle that goes EVERYWHERE with me! If water is always on hand, it's much easier to remember to drink it. I also will make sure I finish the bottle before a meal/snack so that I'm a little less hungry when I eat something.

Taking off the mask.

Hit the re-start button a month ago. But, this is a different feeling this go around. I dropped the pretentions of being able to conquer these bad habits of poor food choices and why I make the emotional choices. I decided to take the mask off and ask for help. I googled how to stop cravings for sugars and breads, two of my biggest weaknesses. No more sugar drinks and bread for 30 days. And no beef after lunch. Wow ten pounds came off, woohoo! I started exercising by walking.

Tracking Before Rather than After

Tracking meals in advance helps me stay on target. I make better decisions by selecting what to eat BEFORE I am hungry, and am less prone to cravings. The best part is that I don't have to feel guilty about indulging in a glass of wine with dinner since I've already planned ahead for it! I do this with exercise too - the idea of having to log in to reduce miles run from 3 to 2 is enough to keep me on the treadmill a bit longer, and it's a great feeling to log back in and ADD a mile to the run!

Not a secret

Water. I started working out and water is the key. no if ands or buts about it half your bodies weight or more water water water