Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Stagnation and Insanity...together again

I got a great post from girl named Sarah, which I think we can all relate to.

Here's the gist of her problem.

She is working her butt off...

but it is not coming off!


Her fat loss has stalled.

Sound familiar?

If you've tried to lose fat for any significant amount of time,
I'm sure you've run into this roadblock.


You're doing everything right.

Working out hard everyday.

Eating next to nothing.

And still, those numbers on the scale are the same!


Let's preface this topic with a another quote from the prolific self-help guru, Tony Robbins.

"The definition of insanity is...
...doing the same thing everyday and expecting a different result."


This is not meant to be an insult to you.

If you've been doing the same routine for a while
and you haven't been experiencing positive results,
you are in good company.

You may, like Sarah, have even switched your routine
in order to get things moving in the right direction again.

As a general rule,
I feel you should give a routine at least 4 weeks
before you bail out on it and try something new.

Sure, you can make tweeks along the way,
but you've got to commit to a plan of action
once you decide to try something new.


Now here is where Tony's advice comes in.

You may be working hard.
You may be eating well.
You may be giving it you're all.

But...

You may be going in the wrong direction!
If you are trying to get from New York to California,
and you get on a plane going south,
you are never going to get there.
NO MATTER HOW FAST YOU FLY!

You must be flexible in your approach.

What works for one person may not work for another.

It is important to notice what is and is not working
and to try to make adjustments.


Remember,

Ignorance is not stupidity.
Many people use these words interchangeably,
but they are not the same.

Ignorance is not knowing something.
This is no crime.

Stupidity is knowing something useful
and doing the opposite because

you're used to doing it

or

you like doing it...

even if it's not working!



In my next blog,
I'll get into some specific areas to look into to get you're fat burning back on track.

So...

Stay tuned...

We'll be back after these messages...

O.K.

There are no messages.

I lied.

Sorry.

Oh wait!

Maybe you have messages for me.

Woo-Hoo!

Keep those posts coming.

Talk to you soon.


Love,

The FAT KID











Saturday, February 21, 2009

What are you?

"Wait a minute...I thought you said you weren't a guru..."

I know I did. And I'm not. But that doesn't make everything they do and say wrong...does it?
So... back to my question,

"WHAT ARE YOU?"

I know it's a little Zen, but humor me, a little mindfulness can go a long way.
Have you ever asked yourself this question?
Have you ever answered back? (Oooo, that's scary.)


Aside from giving me the scientific definition of a human,
or telling me you're one of God's wonderful creations,
or "you are what you eat",

Did you ever wonder what you are?
What makes you the YOU that you are today?

(By the way, you can make a good argument for any and all of those three answers. At least partially.)


While I believe that we are all created special individuals with unique blessings and burdens, I also strongly believe that we are the masters of our own ship once we have left the port.

You are in control of much of the good that comes your way...
And responsible for much of the bad as well...
In essence...
What you are is... (drum roll please)


'YOU ARE THE SUM OF YOUR ACTIONS'


"Oh no, it's all my fault!"

No, it's not ALL your fault, but you have to take some of the blame.
Everything you do for or against yourself is weighed and calculated and you are the result.
More things done to improve yourself vs. things to harm yourself and you move in a positive direction.
And vice versa.

Let's see how this applies to our condition, specifically, whether we are overweight or not.

You may have a slow metabolism, thyroid problem or whatever.
That means that your body burns less calories than everybody else's.
But YOU ate more food then your body needed to sustain itself.
Your metabolism didn't put the food in you're mouth.
YOU did.

YOU were supposed to do cardio a certain number of days a week to burn off extra calories, and YOU missed your cardio session 2x this week.
Multiply that by 52 weeks and you've missed 104 sessions.
If you burned an average of 500 calories per cardio session
(I don't care what kind you do or how long it takes you to do it),
you would be about 15 lbs. lighter right now.

That's why your fat loss has stalled.

Not your slow metabolism.
Your metabolism is just your personal daily calorie expenditure.
It's how we respond to it that gets us in trouble.
Most of us eat too much and exercise too little.

And you know what? That really sucks!
I know from experience. I have a super-slow metabolism.
I get fatter when I smell food.
Not really, but if you're reading this, you know what I mean.

I know what you're going to say, because I've said it myself...

"But I'm hungry!!!"

Are you?

Really?

REALLY?

The next time you get really hungry and are about to swallow more calories in one meal than your metabolism calls for all day,

I want you to pause,

be mindful,

then ask yourself two questions before you dig in.


One..... "Am I really hungry?"

and Two..... " What am I really hungry for?"


Oh no! I just opened a whole new can of worms...

I hope I don't get so hungry that I eat them (all in one sitting when no one's around).



Until next time, Be Strong


Scott (a.k.a. The Fat Kid)


P.S. If you have constructive comments...
or you think that I'm a big jerk...
I'd love to hear from you

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Welcome!

Hi. My name is Scott and I'm a 'Fat Kid'.

Well... I should say I was a fat kid. I'm 37 years old, so I can't exactly call myself a 'kid' anymore... can I?

For as long as I can remember, I have struggled with my weight.

My 'Battle of the Bulge' has led me on a lifelong journey of discovery encountering many twists and turns along the way. It has led me to my vocation as a personal fitness trainer, as well as to bouts of disordered eating and feelings of self-loathing.

The journey has never been easy, nor has it always been successful.

This journal is dedicated to helping others in the struggle for their health.

In the coming weeks, we will tackle issues involving the physical, emotional, social and spiritual elements of fitness.

All the information contained herein is opinion and personal philosophy based on my experiences with weight loss and those of my many clients. It is not to be misconstrued as scientific or medical fact. After all, I'm not a doctor, psychiatrist or guru. I'm just a trainer who cares.

Enter at your own risk...

Here's a thought to hold you over until next time...

" The past does not equal the future". -Tony Robbins

You are a unique individual with the capacity for change. Just because you did something yesterday, doesn't mean that you'll do it over and over again. You can break free of unhealthy habits.

Tomorrow is going to be a good day. Believe it.