Sunday, July 17, 2011

Get Off Your Ass and Lose Weight

What will it take you to be motivated to lose the weight you keep saying you’re going to lose? Will illness be the motivator? Or how about that high school reunion, or that long dreamed of vacation cruise. It could be that you’re tired of being out of breath while climbing stairs, cleaning house or shopping at the mall. Whatever it takes, there are benefits for losing weight. It doesn’t matter if you’re 20 pounds overweight or 200, you still need to get motivated to get off your keister and lose that weight.


My body hates the “Diet” word. If I even think the word diet, my body goes into starvation mode and stores everything I eat in the fat cells in my thighs. So, I don’t diet, I eat healthy and make good food choices. Am I playing mental tricks? Sure, but it works for me.


Healthy eating of course is the beginning of losing that weight, but you also need to exercise to help it along. Why is getting off your butt and exercising important? There are several reasons.


Exercise or physical activity will help burn the calories you are taking into your body. The more you move the more calories you burn; it’s as simple as that. You are burning calories by doing housework or running after your children. The trick is to get your body moving in different ways.


Exercise can help you get off that plateau you may be on in your weight loss program. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you are stuck at a certain weight. The temptation is to give up at that point. You can breathe through that plateau point by increasing physical activity. Especially recommended is strength training. Working with weights, helps build muscles and muscles burn fat.


Increased physical activity enhances your metabolic rate and that rate stays high for some time even after you’ve stopped exercise.


Sleeping patterns improve when you are getting more exercise. Do not exercise right before bedtime because it can keep you awake. Experts recommend at least three hours between exercise and bedtime. Moving that body and stretching your limbs is also good for both the body and soul. It improves mood and releases endorphins in the brain that increases your feeling of well being. By the way, you get the same rush when you’re in love, or eat chocolate. I’m not recommending eating chocolate!


More importantly, getting the proper physical exercise can reduce the risk of developing heart disease, diabetes, breast cancer, high blood pressure, and osteoporosis. Physical exercise is recommended in treatment of certain mental issues such as depression. How can it not help when it produces those feel-good endorphins?


Here are some hints to get motivated to exercise. Set small goals and be sure they are measurable. Take small steps and once you’ve met that goal, set a new one. Always be sure your goals are practical. It isn’t realistic to make a goal of losing 50 pounds in one month. With that decision you’ve set yourself up for a crushing defeat. So don’t set your expectations too high or you’re likely to be discouraged and quit.


Set up a regular schedule and stick to it. Even if you are only exercising three times a week, be sure to get those three times in every week. You can try marking this schedule down in your calendar which will make sticking to your plan easier. Be sure to make exercise fun. If you used to love to dance, put on an oldie and just move your body. Dancing is wonderful exercise. Include your children, they will love dancing with Mommy or Daddy, and it can be fun for the whole family. Join a water aerobics class or any other class. By planning ahead and sticking to a schedule, you will gain valuable support in your diet and exercise plan.


Get ready for that vacation, reunion, or special event you’re looking forward to. You can do it, set small goals and reward yourself with a new outfit every time you reach your goal. Your body, mind, and spirit will thank you for it.

41 comments:

  1. Good post! Healthy eating is easy once you get used to it, but exercising is really hard work. :O Does swimming in my bathtub count?

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  2. Completely agree with you. People just need to get up and do some exercise and take control of their selves.

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  3. Very good supportive advice- thanks!

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  4. How funny that you should choose now to blog about this. I have recently dropped about 50 pounds from my frame, and am currently agonizing over adding lunges to my daily routine. The thing to make my legs feel better? More lunges. I got myself motivated because this has been the absolute worst year of my life - this is no exaggeration - and my weight was the ONE thing I had control over.

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  5. Thanks for the tips and motivation! Hit me back, alphabetalife.blogspot.com

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  6. I do think that illness would be a good motivator. lol.

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  7. im ready for holidays, but i cant afford :<|

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  8. I've actually lost a lot of weight just because I wanted to be healthier and more attractive. I was just tired of being the chubby 'friend' so I got my ass in gear and did something about it.

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  9. REally insightful, going to follow this blog.

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  10. Great Post! Good tips and advice here. +1 for you, Papa.

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  11. Cool blog. Sound advice in this post too. Will follow.

    Yeah if u wanna lose weight you should check my blog for exercise tips:

    http://awesomeexercisetips.blogspot.com/

    Tips like exercises and diet come in every day!

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  12. thats nice, keep it up
    +followed

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  13. Eeeh! But im not that fat. >.>

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  14. I always say, the first step is the hardest. Just putting on work out gear and taking 10 steps outside to the gym will get me motivated. Great post, mate.

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  15. a great tip to lose weight is to swap out coffee, tea, pop, soda, etc for pure unflavoured water.

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  16. Ive been off the gym for 2 months, but im going back tomorrow, wish me luck!

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  17. My sleeping patterns are all jumbled up. My work just kills my inner clock and my possibilities of good exercise. I'm kind of healthy, but I would want to have my fair share of workouts too.

    I like your blog, informative to describe it in one word. Ill be following you.

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  18. can't afford? You don't need a gym, you've got your own body weight and enough room to lie down. I like these sort of blogs, though I'm terrible at acting on them. I stay fit by just doing a horrendous amount of training, I eat too much and have weird sleeping patterns.

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  19. Thanks for the inspiration, i was needing that.

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  20. It will probably take me going into labor to motivate me to lose weight lol

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  21. Thanks for the motivation. I need to lose like 5 pounds!

    The Truth About Genetics

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  22. I dont think this is relevent to the title

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  23. I firmly believe in preventive measures, great informative blog. thnks.

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  24. Really it's all about the motivation.. it'S the key to success. Without it, you can try anything, it'll never happen!
    Great advice!

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  25. I've definitely noticed better sleep after exercising. Nice post!

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  26. im at school right now and there are soooo many fat people right now in the library

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  27. So true!
    Vigorously nodding my head in agreement!

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  28. People like to make it way more complicated then it needs to be.

    +F

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  29. i think working out is easier than dieting. i've been going to the gym and working out consistently for a while now, but i just can't quite diet properly. I just miss junk food after a day lol

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  30. Nice post, I'd advise going to the gym with a friend so you can keep eachother motivated.

    +followed

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