Diets are Dumb.

There I said it.

Diets.  Are.  DUMB.

To me a "diet" would be defined as a short term deprivation of calories in order to lose weight. 

Diets are short term.

Diets don't work.

They don't. 

I mean you might lose the pounds that you are aiming for.  You might reach a weight goal, but if once you have reached that goal you go back to your old eating habits... guess what???  You will eventually gain it back.

And then go on another dumb diet.

And then lose it.

And then gain it back...

And on, and on and on...  

You get the point.

What I do is different.  I have changed my life.  my nutrition. my mindset.

I don't diet. 

I still eat pizza, and tacos.  And candy.  And whatever the hell I want.  

SOME of the time.

And I STILL get results.  I'm still seeing PROGRESS every month.

Do you want to learn how?  

Join me for my free 5 Day Challenge and BREAK the Yoyo Diet Cycle!!!  

We SMASH the Yoyo starting on Monday, March 20th.

Sign up HERE!! 

Find your tribe!

This is something that I have intentionally set out to do.  If you recall it is actually on my vision board.

Surround myself with people that are supportive, loving, full of light and life and JOY!!

And I'm happy to say I've found it!  

But it wasn't without purpose or intention that I did it.  

I decided that I was ready to get out of my own way.  I was ready to put myself out there.  To invest in myself, in making ME better, in challenging myself and in getting the hell OUT of my own way.

Too many times we are paralyzed by fear.  We think, "wow, she does some really cool stuff and has great friends, I wish I had that,"  but we are too afraid to put ourselves out there and CREATE our own life. 

I'm happy to report I've decided to live out my life to spite my fears.  

I've JUMPED out of my comfort on many occasions in the past 6 months or so and I am going to tell you all one thing.  EVERY. SINGLE. TIME has been 1000% worth it.  

* I signed up as a health and fitness coach and started my own business.

* I have reached out and ENGAGED in my challenge groups and coach groups

* I put myself out there

* I made friends.

* and I WENT out and did the things, I went to coach events alone, I just introduced myself to people and kept on building the relationships..  

Why?  Because this is IMPORTANT.  If you want to be successful in LIFE,  you need to surround yourself with people that push you to be your best.  You need people in your life that encourage to be the LIGHT in the world.. to find JOY in every day.  You need those who will call you out on your own bullshit and PUSH you to better yourself day in and day out.  

FIND THOSE PEOPLE.  

As fast as you can. 

I cannot tell you grateful I am that I have.   

And if you need a push.  If you want to be part of my tribe...  hit me up!!!  As my friend Andrea says #theresalwaysroomformoredopebitches

It's OK to think YOU are Amazing.

I'll be honest you guys.. I think I'm pretty amazing.

No, that doesn't mean I'm cocky, stuck up, or conceited.

It means I'm CONFIDENT.

I love who I am.  What I do.  The PERSON I am.

And that is OK.

It is OK to look in the mirror and think "Damn, I'm hot!!!"

As women, and PEOPLE, we are all too often afraid of truly loving ourselves.  And definitely afraid of putting it out there if we do for all to see.  We are afraid of what others will think of us.  We are afraid to be viewed as someone who thinks they are "better than everyone else" or "needs to be brought down a peg."

I'm here to tell you that that is ridiculous.  It is possible to be confident in who you are and to love YOU.  It doesn't mean you think you are better, it means you recognize your own value, your own gifts, your own talents, and take the time to empower yourself.   It is also OK to see everyone else as just as amazing and awesome as you.  To see everyone as uniquely valuable with their own set of amazing gifts and talents.

For some reason, it is more socially acceptable to put yourself down.  To constantly talk about how busy you are, how tired you are, how much you need to lose weight, how you are "bad" for making an unhealthy food choice.

Again, guys, it's OK to be amazing.  It's OK to feel good.  It's OK to prioritize your life in a way that makes YOU not feel crappy.  It's ok to sparkle the hell out of this life!!

I used to be like this.  Heck, I still tend towards the complainer side of life, but I have consciously decided to change that the best I can. To NOTICE when I am complaining, when I am negative, when I have made choices to do things in life that run me down and deplete my energy.

I have started doing things in my life that make me proud of ME and make me feel good.  I eat healthy, whole foods (MOST of the time), I workout, I play with makeup, I fix my hair, I set goals, I set intentions and I DO the things that make me FEEL good and that will keep me moving toward the girl I want to be.

It's all about choosing who you want to be and doing the things that SHE does.  I'm telling you, once you start working on you and becoming the person you were always destined to be.. the confidence comes, the self-love comes, the sparkle SHOWS!!

It's a process and I'm growing.

Are you?

if you aren't ready to change everything.. just start by changing SOMETHING

If you aren't yet ready to make big changes for your health, why not start small with a goal you find easier this week.

For example you could.. 

✨ Make it a goal to switch out your drink of choice for water at lunch each day.

✨ Swap out your sandwich for a salad just twice this week. 

✨ Make it a goal to eat 2 servings of fruit each day.

✨ Switch ground turkey in for your ground beef this week at the grocery store. 

✨ Take a 15 minute walk each day 

✨ Eat 3 servings of veggies each day for a week

✨ Try one new healthy recipe each week for a month

✨ Pack your lunch this week instead of ordering out

You see, you don't have to make a huge sweeping change to start to get healthy.. 

Don't get me wrong none of these little goals I have listed here will cause you to lose a ton of weight or gain muscle tone, or anything huge. if you have those big goals then you WILL have to make bigger changes.  

But these goals WILL help to make you healthier.  

They WILL set you on the right path. 

AND they will give you something small and attainable, so that you can start to CRUSH goals (no matter how small) and be PROUD of yourself. 

What do you think of these small goals?  Are they things you would try? Are they things you already do?

Are you ready to crush bigger goals?? Let me know!  I'm here to help! (To get started, go on over to my Passionately Happy and Fit Motivation group and get ready to CRUSH those goals! )

How to measure your progress WITHOUT the scale.

The scale is a jerk.

I will be honest with you..  it is a JERK.  And a liar.

Did you know that it can fluctuate by 5 pounds in a DAY depending on how much water you are retaining..  whether you have had a bowel movement.. if you have just eaten..

It doesn't make sense to put so much stock into that numerical readout that we let it determine our feelings of success, happiness, and even self worth.

Break up with it!!

There are other ways to measure your progress and success.

1.  Take pictures.

This is my number one, favorite way to measure progress.

Take them.

Make sure to take various angles.  Side and back views as well.

NOW.  Go.  Take them.

I'm waiting..

Did you do it??

Now you don't have to share them with anyone but you.  But have them.

Now set a date to take new ones..

I usually do mine about a month apart.  It gives my body time to change.   It gives me TIME to make progress.  This is not a fast process.  Not if you are doing it the healthy way.

After you have the new photos, place them side by side with the first ones you took.. (You know, the ones you JUST took when I asked you to.)

And now you can SEE the progress.

Here are some of mine.  There isn't a very big difference in the numbers on the scale that coincide with these pictures.  But you can SEE the differences that I'm making.. you can SEE the progress.

To me that means more.

2. Take measurements

I mean, I get it..  while pictures may be worth a thousand words, we like to see concrete numbers as a way to get it into our heads that we are progressing.  

When I take my measurements I take my both arms, both thighs, my hips, my chest and around my waist at my belly button and 2 inches below it.  

I put my measurements in a note in my phone so I always know where I have them and I'm not searching for the paper I wrote them down on.  

Again, I suggest doing this and taking them again in a month.  A month is generally enough time to give yourself the chance to make some real progress.

3. Strength

This one is not so cut and dry.  For this one you need to pay attention..   

Answer the following questions.

• Where do I need to stop this exercise?  Is there a part in the video, or routine, or class or whatever it is you are doing that you need to stop?  Where you are winded or tired?
• How many push ups/ sit ups/ crunches can I do?
• How do I feel at the middle of this workout?  
• How do I feel towards the end?

Basically, pay attention to what you can do and how you feel during a workout.  And take note of that.  

Notice the differences in how you are getting through workouts. Are you doing more repetitions?  Are you able to do the harder versions of an exercise?

Take note of your victories and celebrate each one as your strength improves.

Finding different ways to celebrate and measure your fitness progress will help to get you through the times that the scale isn't being your friend.  It will help you to SEE the differences you are making and help you to feel PROUD of you for the work you are doing.