Inspiration from Gratitude

I was only half way through my workout this morning and feeling quite sick from the exertion so I lay down with my feet raised as I do between sets when I'm that way.

As I lay there thinking about the pain I felt in my muscles when I was doing the last reps I suddenly had a big smile on my face and felt really grateful.

I realised how lucky I was to be able to do what I was doing. Firstly I could choose to do it or not and how much to do. (Not like in the army when I had to do it when they told me.) And secondly I was able to do it.

I saw Stephen Hawking on TV the other day when it was broadcast that he went on a Zero Gravity flight and experienced weightlessness. He would have to be one of the most remarkable men in history and he cannot even move! I reckon he'd love to be able to do a workout.

So even though I was pooped and felt like stopping I kept going. At least I had arms and legs and they worked so thanks Stephen for your inspiration.

Eating at the right time

The inescapable truth is that we can only achieve and sustain optimum metabolism when we eat, exercise, and live under an optimum emotional state. Our frame of mind directly impacts metabolism to such a degree that what we think and feel profoundly influences how we digest a meal. Metabolic power is not only about what you eat, but who you are when you’re eating.

— Marc David: visionary health and nutrition consultant, author.

So don’t eat when you’re in the lowest valley on your emotional roller-coaster. While I don’t advocate starvation as a means to weight loss, if there’s a best time not to eat it’s when you’re feeling down. It won’t do any great harm to starve for a couple of days. In fact I think it’ll do you good (just don’t go for any longer to cause your metabolic set-point to drop.

In fact, going without food has a special name… fasting. I’m sure you’ve heard of it. It gives your digestive system a rest and time to catch up the workload in the in tray (which is all the (excess?) food we stuff into ourselves).

Food doesn’t digest well when emotional upsets are affecting our gastric juices. It’s best to eat food when feeling relaxed rather than rushed and happy rather than depressed.

Yet look at how many eat for comfort – at the very time it’s best NOT to. Add to that the fact that most ‘comfort’ foods are generally low quality (high fat, high sugar, high salt, nutrient poor, highly refined) and what have you got… obesity on the rise.

So instead of finding comfort through emotional eating (which is very short-lived) find new ways to gain comfort during your lows. They’re there and you’ll find them if you try. In fact that very act of seeking them is activity which will help lift your spirits higher. Emotional eating is the lazy way out because it doesn’t take much effort to eat especially if you have a dishwasher.

Do we create our holdups?

My wife once got very inspired after typing up some articles I had written. As a result she started walking in the mornings.

I thought this was great as she had made many false starts on the health and fitness road. I thought maybe this time she'd keep it up.

But then, just after starting, she came down with some flu. On other occasions some other pain or problem arose to prevent her following through.

This type of thing often happens when something new is started. I think she has some subconscious resistance to exercise that brings on some affliction to put a halt to the new exercise plan. We often have a subconscious resistance to change, particularly if it’s a bit uncomfortable.

A good way to help overcome this resistance is to use the EFT tapping method. Remember to bear with it and not be impatient. I'm sure you'll find it helps.

Cream puffs or Celery?

I love those scones and cream they often have for morning tea at seminars. But if I had a choice from a selection of food including healthier options, I'd choose the fruit, nuts and carrot sticks every time. But others I know simply can't resist the temptation.

On past occasions I have had the choice and I know what I do. I've found that picking up and eating the healthy option is actually quite easy once you develop the health mindset and habits. In fact the more you do it the easier it gets. If you want to develop these mindsets the really easy way then have a serious look at this incredible piece of simple mind sculpting software. It will enable you to reprogram your mind so that making the right choice is the natural thing to do.

Using this in conjunction with EFT to reduce the cravings make it much easier to make the right choices. You’ll make the right choices about food today won’t you?

Get out of bed

Sometimes I just don't feel like getting out of bed... it's dark, it's cold, I'm so comfy... I have little debate in my head going on about the merits of staying in bed.

Most times I end up getting up. The argument that generally pursuades me goes something like... Winners do the things that progress them forward even if they don't want to do them. And even if getting up early that morning doesn't make much difference, I'm building a good habit and my own self discipline - two more things winners have.

So it's worthwhile getting up early. Interestingly, once I'm up I'm happy to stay up and I feel glad that I got up. I can always reward myself later with a 20 minute power nap or relaxation session where I plug myself into some subliminal or brain entrainment or whatever.

Making yourself do something you don't feel like but which is to your benefit is strangely empowering. Try it. Then on the morning when it is raining and you want to lie in and listen to the rain you can allow yourself that luxury with a clear conscience because you know you've earned it.

Peace, contentment and safety

It's Anzac Day in Australia. A public holiday when the patriots remember lost servicemen and women who gave their lives in the name of their country and freedom.

While we remember all wars, this day commemorates the bravery and sacrifice of the thousands who, during world war 1, stormed the beaches of Gallipoli in Turkey. It reminds us of the senseless slaughter of scrambling up out of the trenches to run across a few yards of shell-torn ground directly into the face of enemy machine guns.

What an incredible waste of life.

The war to end all wars certainly wasn't the last nor will the current ones be. Politically, service personnel are cannon fodder with an 'acceptable expendability' factor. Along with that goes an 'acceptable' level of collateral damage to civilian life and property.

What a sad state of affairs. But then it has always been the case. I've been a serviceman myself. For the most part our military personnel should be honoured for what they do rather than condemned. We and they might not agree with the political maneuvres which put their lives at risk but they are still individuals worthy of our moral support on an individual level.

Our outrage, disagreement and condemnation should be directed at the politicians and leaders who play out the battles from behind their desks. I think all people basically want peace, contentment and safety in their life. While sometimes there does come a time when one does have to stand and fight, it's a shame that some think the best way to get that peace, contentment and safety is by doing the opposite.

Maybe our world leaders need to tap on their international issues before making decisions. After all, EFT works very well in relationships.

Have a peaceful day.

Ideomotor training

Ever heard of ideomotor training? This is a fancy name for mental rehearsal. Soviet gymnasts found this training to be of use in learning and executing exercises and have been using it for years.

The Soviet Sports Review reported some research that showed an ideomatic training group reduced heart rates from 135bpm to 89bpm on average after 4 weeks of training. A central group which trained normally had heart rates decreased from 125bpm to 111bpm.

So it would appear mental training not only helps your physical performance but also your physiological performance. Here is an interesting way to do an ideomotor type of training but with your computer and your eyes open. This would be great for people who use the computer a lot. Any spare moments could be used to reprogram your subconscious with these visual and auditory stimuli. Click Here!

Try it and see if it works for you. It's a lot easier than jogging another couple of miles. (Mind you, I'm not for a moment suggesting you stop jogging, doing other cardio and exercises... oh no. You don't get off that easy.)

I don’t feel like it

Sometimes it’s a bit hard to get up in the morning and feel enthusiastic isn’t it. Your motivation is about zero. Especially when you feel like you’re not making the progress you’d like or there seems to be so much to do you’re overwhelmed. Especially too when winter comes on and it’s colder and darker.

So what can you do? Succumb to these feelings? That’s all they are… feelings. Other mornings have been exactly the same and you’ve felt quite the opposite I’m sure. So the only thing that’s different generally are the thoughts and feelings you harbor when you wake up.

Well it’s certain that if you do succumb to those thoughts and feelings and hang on to them, you won’t be helping yourself. It might feel good for a little while to lie in your warm bed in slumberland but you’ll feel even worse and less motivated when you finally get up. You’ll have guilt to contend with as well.

So be strong. Get up and get into it. Action activates and you’ll soon leave those feelings way behind. Up you get. Go for your dreams.

The diet that works

Thanks Sheena. I appreciate the feedback.

Last night I saw a segment on one of those current affairs shows about Oprah and how she is the "weight loss queen" of daytime TV. God I nearly threw up.

It makes me sick that they make such a fuss about and hang on every word of a person who has done (when it comes to dieting) the same as millions of others. Now she's found "the diet that works".

Now she's certainly done a lot of good in the world with her money and she's pretty courageous but there are many lesser known mortals like Jesse Cannone and Tom Venuto and (humbly) me who have been spreading the real truth, the simple truth, the whole truth so help me God, about weight for ages.

It really is simple... maybe not that easy to pull off because of the mental aspects that people struggle with, but there is no real mystery to it. Fewer calories in than out and the best way to get the deficit is through exercise, both cardio and weights, because there are other benefits as well. There's the truth in one sentence.

With consistency, persistence and determination, and the application of good nutrition information and a few simple rules, just about anyone can get off the weight loss yo-yo program and achieve the body they want. It's no different really than going for any poal. With EFT the mental emotional aspects are made easier to deal with too.

The main thing people need then is someone to keep them at it and that's what I like to do. I love being encouraged. I commit more, I work harder and achieve more. I think everyone likes some positive encouragement. You can't get too much of it.

So to you who encourage me I say thanks. Make it a great day.

Fat cells – Your body’s fuel tank

Your fat cells are like little balloons. As they fill up with fat they expand accordingly (along with your waistline). Since the body is focused primarily on survival and storing as much away as possible in case of famine later on, if it fills up all its fat cells it just creates a few more. (It’s like it fills up the storeroom it’s born with so then it creates new storerooms to store the extra food).

Interestingly, once created, these fat cells are never destroyed. You can empty them but they are still there, ever ready to be filled up again whenever you have excess blood sugar. This excess energy in the blood stream will be stored in these fat cells.

So these fat cells become the body’s reserve of energy. A reserve is just that – held in reserve and used last after all other fuel sources have been used up.

In other words body fat is the last thing your body wants to use for energy, especially if your blood sugar levels fluctuate constantly because of poor eating habits.

And look at the foods we eat today... a lot of sugary, high fat, high GI refined carbohydrates. At least there’s a lot of foods like that clamoring for our attention in the advertising world and on the supermarket shelves.

This is an important point because your body has a kind of intelligence whereby it registers long periods without food and irregular eating patterns as a potential threat to survival. It doesn’t know when the next feed will be so the instability and uncertainty of the food supply is countered by it storing fat whenever it can.

So if you give it too much by overeating, it stores it as fat.

Conversely, if you don’t give it enough it goes into survival mode, slows your metabolism and stores fat as easily as possible.

If you create both those situations by infrequently eating and then having large meals sporadically the problem is compounded as the body interprets the situation as needing even greater fat storage. Talk about being between a rock and a hard place eh!

With the body predisposed to storing fat and conserving it, it’s no wonder obesity is on the increase. When we couple this body design feature with the facts that lifestyles are so sedentary and the food supply is diminished in quality as well as plentiful compared to only a few generations ago, it’s not likely to change either.

Unless of course you are aware of how and why your body gets fat, which you do now. Knowing this puts you in a position of power so you can maximize your energy, minimize your fat storage and avoid the weight loss battle altogether. Good luck with it.

Why your body stores fat

Studies around the world are clearly showing that obesity rates continue to climb despite the weight–loss industry being worth billions of dollars. With all the aids to weight loss why is it that people continue to get fatter?

It’s pretty obvious there are powerful commercial forces at work to keep people fat. There’s big money to be made if more and more people want to lose weight.

More on that later but physiologically, the answer lies in how the body was designed to survive.

The body is all about survival. In a psychological sense the subconscious creates beliefs that are formed, initially at least, for safety and psychological survival.

Such a mechanism could be in place when an abused child grows up obese as a way of protecting herself from the advances of men, or as a way of proving that she has control, for instance. There could be many possible events and beliefs that provide the reasons behind the obesity. They may not even be significant. It could be started from a careless remark that was interpreted in a way that made the person feel threatened in some way.

In a physiological sense though the body maximizes its chances of survival by ensuring it has maximum energy reserves available to meet its needs. Those needs, of course vary according to the level of activity being engaged in.

Now most people tend to fall into habit patterns of eating on a regular schedule and generally eating until they are feeling full. They do this without thought to what activities they will be engaging in next. So any food intake (calories) in excess of what the body needs at that moment or the next couple of hours will be stored away for later.

And how will it be stored? As fat.

To the body, it’s like hoarding up supplies for a rainy day.

More on this tomorrow.

The high road or the low road

On our journey through life we are constantly presented with forks in the road, decisions to be made as to which direction to take.

While it's tempting to take the easy road, there is generally more eventual satisfaction and reward to be gained from following the more difficult option.

Not what most people want to hear is it?

No Cardio Weight Loss

A recent interview of another 'expert' author has raised the question of weight loss without cardio exercise. My short answer to the question, 'should we forget about cardio?' the answer is a resounding NO. I've just published an article elaborating on this if you'd like to read it. It's here.

In short, While you can lose weight without it, that knowledge is nothing new. You could just as easily write a book 'Lose weight without weights', or 'Lose weight without diets', or 'Lose weight without whatever. Anything radical is going to attract attention. In the book world that means sales.

The benefits of keeping the cardio far outweigh any benefits of not doing it. Just because it's not needed to lose weight doesn't mean we should leave it out. We don't need sex either (in order to survive) but who wants to cut that out?

Check out the article now.

Try EFT

As a personal performance coach I work with all sorts of people in all different areas of their life.

I mostly use an energy technique called EFT which has proven amazingly powerful across an incredibly wide range of ailments and issues.

I heartily endorse EFT for emotional freedom, physical freedom and performance freedom. Based on impressive new discoveries regarding the body's subtle energies, EFT has proven successful in thousands of clinical cases.

It applies to just about every problem you can name and it often works where nothing else will. You can learn all the basics for free by downloading the EFT Manual. If you wish to save time and dive right in then explore the affordable EFT DVD Library at The EFT DVD Library.]

I use it sometimes to help me get through my workout, especially squats. When enthusiasm is lacking because I'm fatigued and squats are very taxing, the technique gets me more enthusiastic and focused. Sometimes it actually makes me feel stronger.

Check it out now and power through your workout.

The Mustard Seed

Here's a wonderful story...

Once there was a woman whose only son had died. In her sorrow she went to ask a wise holy man is there a way to bring her son back to life. “Fetch me a mustard seed from a home that has never known sorrow. We will use it to bring your son back to life.” He said to her instead of sending her away or try reasoning with her.

At once she quickly set off looking for that elusive mustard seed. The first place she came to was is a huge mansion. Knocking on the door, she asked "I am looking for a house that has never known suffering. Is this the place? It is very important to me."

"You have come to the wrong place," they told her. They begin to pour out all the tragic things that have befallen upon them.

"Who is better to be able to help these poor unfortunate souls than I who has experience sadness and can understand them?" she thought. Therefore she stayed behind and consoled and comforted them before going to another house that has never known sorrow before.

However, wherever she goes, from huts to palaces, there is never one without tales of sadness and misfortunes. In time to come, she became so involved in listening to other people's sad stories that she forgot about her quest for that elusive mustard seed. By listening to other people, she had actually driven the grieving out of her life.

Author Unknown

I hope it helps make you stronger.

Sweat it out

During an hour of vigorous exercise, how much do you reckon the average person sweats?

A tablespoon, a cupful, a pint, a litre, a quart, a gallon?

Actually it’s about 1.2 litres or a quart of sweat, some people more, some less. It’s the body’s natural cooling mechanism because we don't have big ears like elephants.

The efficiency of muscle movement depends on how well hydrated you are, so if you are dehydrated, your muscles won’t work as well. As a result, your workout will not be as productive as you would like.

Even though the body is over 70% water and you might not even notice the sweat you’re excreting, you need to keep replenishing your water. Yes even if it means going to the toilet more often.

Drink a cup of water every 15-20 minutes. No not flavoured water or juice, plain water. Personally I am in the habit of taking a sip after every set when I’m working out with weights. This makes it easy to get the water you need when working out. It’s recommended you drink another 2-3 cups within two hours after you have finished.

Apart from survival, there are many other benefits to staying well hydrated as well.

Mind transforming tools

I am always on the lookout for innovative tools and techniques that can be used to help us change the way we think. The way we think and subsequently feel affects every aspect of our life. They go hand in hand to create our life. They come from the deep seated beliefs we have written on the inner walls of our mind.

You can't change them with willpower alone. Why not check out some of the mind blowing tools I've discovered so far. No one tool is the fix all for everyone. Different tools and techniques work differently for different people. You've just got to give them a go to find what's right for you.

Emotional eating

Diet experts in the current age are realising that most weight loss efforts fail because people reach for 'forbidden foods' when certain emotions strike... Emotions like tension, anxiety, boredom or virtually any feeling they would rather NOT have. Hence we call it emotional eating.
The food is a comfort mechanism and the secret to losing weight is to soothe the troubling emotions that cause overeating in the first place. The absolute best thing I have found for settling any sort of emotional upset is EFT. Check it out and try it for yourself as it is as easy to learn and apply as eating, itself.

Beat your cravings

I read about a review by Dr Adrian H. Taylor and colleagues of the University of Exeter in the UK, of 14 studies which examined the benefits of exercise on the cessation of smoking. The review reported that 12 of the 14 studies found that exercise reduced cigarette cravings and withdrawal symptoms compared to staying inactive.

In several studies physical exercise cut cravings as much, or even more than, chewing nicotine gum. Exercise also as much as tripled the time it took for people to reach for the next cigarette.

Effects were seen for vigorous bouts of exercise lasting up to 40 minutes, but even less intense 15 minute sessions, and even 5 minutes of isometrics, had a significant effect.

Part of the reason could be because of the stress reducing and mood boosting effects of exercise. So if smoking is an addiction you’d like to get rid of, get into the exercise, and whiole you’re at it why not give EFT a go. It's marvelous for beating cravings and addictions.

Progressive overload

The last post, even though it was a joke, exemplifies one of the essential principles of building muscle. That is, progressive overload. In other words you have to progressively increase the resistance to the muscle effort if the muscle is to get stronger.

Building up slowly is also the best way to avoid soreness. Eventually you get to the point where you can take your muscle to the point of failure, where it cannot take the load any more. The muscle actually experiences microscopic injury from the exercise so over the ensuing few days as it recovers it repairs itself to a stronger state than it was.

Anyway, happy Easter whatever your religious persuasion. Stay safe and don't eat too much chocolate (unless of course it's the dark variety which is supposed to be good for you).

More on Intervals

Thanks Sheena. The beauty about intervals is that you can build up the intensity at your own pace to whatever level you like, depending on your fitness aspirations. Take walking for instance, nearly everyone can walk, although some really obese people can’t walk much so swimming might be a better exercise to start with for them.

Anyway, you might start out with the warm up then do just 5 seconds of high intensity work by sprinting flat out. After the 5 second sprint, walk at your normal medium to brisk pace.

Now if you’re not used to sprinting be ready for some soreness if you do too much. Build up slowly otherwise the soreness will stop and you might not keep going at all. Do it on alternate days or just 3 days a week. Maybe on the first day you might only do two sprints and walk the rest of the time. If you don’t experience any soreness after a workout, increase the number of sprints by one or two each successive workout.

Once you are up to a total exercise time of 15 to 30 minutes, then you can look at increasing the length of the actual sprint part itself.

You can increase the sprint time and keep the walk interval the same (say 90 seconds or 1 minute or even two) until the sprint is 30 seconds, then start reducing the walk interval. Or you could reduce the walk time as the sprint increases. E.g., 50 sec walk 10 sec sprint, 45 sec walk 15 sec sprint, 40 sec walk 20 sec sprint, etc. After a 30 second sprint you will be spent!

Go according to your level of fitness and take your time. In exercise, haste makes waste. Stay un-sore and stay enthusiastic. Now go for it.

Try this easy exercise

Occasionally I switch my exercise routine to a one rep maximum contraction where I get the weight into the position where the muscle is fully contracted and hold it for 45 to 60 seconds.

So when a friend sent me an email about an exercise suggested to build muscle strength in the arms and shoulders that seemed so easy she thought she’d pass it on to friends and family I was curious to read on. The article suggested doing it three days a week. I think you’ll find it useful too.

Begin by standing on a comfortable surface, where you have plenty of room at each side.

With a 5-lb potato sack in each hand, extend your arms straight out from your sides and hold them there as long as you can. Try to reach a full minute, then relax.

Each day, you'll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer.
After a couple of weeks, move up to 10-lb potato sacks.

Then 50-lb potato sacks and then eventually try to get to where you can lift a 100-lb potato sack in each hand and hold your arms straight for more than a full minute. (When she said, ”I'm at this level” I thought “No way”.)

After you feel confident at that level, put a potato in each of the sacks.

Then I realised, like you, I’d been had.

Intervals

When it comes to exercise I know most people are not to keen on cardio exercise. That’s the type that get your heart rate up. Cardio workouts are important because they can, if done correctly, increase your metabolism for 4-24 hours or more after the exercise!

This means you are not as likely to store excess calories as body fat because they are more likely to be burnt up because of your elevated metabolism. Plus, you are also more likely to burn off some excess body fat that you already have.

It’s not good enough to just go for a brisk walk every day however. The best form of cardio exercise workouts are short, hard cardio workouts. The best for increasing your metabolism are intervals.
, body
An example interval workout that can be done with just about any activity, walking, bicycling, swimming, stair climbing, etc., might go like this:

Warm up at easy pace 2-5 minutes then perform 30 seconds of hard work (almost as hard as possible). Then ease off and perform 1 minute of moderate work (recovery time and catch your breath).

Repeat this process 6-10 times. Cool down at an easy pace for 2-5 minutes. While it is intense, you sweat and breathe hard, it goes by pretty quickly and you feel great afterwards. Try it 2-3 times a week.

The war against weight

Last night I finished up a ten week support group on weight loss. It was gratifying that all (but one) lost body fat. More important though were the mental shifts. The emotional aspects that underlie weight problems are far more important than even dietary and exercise considerations.
Unless you get on top of the emotional drivers behind weight problems, any weight loss will require considerable effort of will and the results will be shortlived. Once the emotional reasons are dealt with the excess weight will no longer have any reason to be there and it will disappear.

EFT is your most powerful weapon in the war against weight.

Get uncomfortable

A mentor of mine says “Your Success Stops At The Level Of Your Comfortability”.

This applies to success in any area of life, money, social success, weight loss, career or whatever. If you aren’t feeling very comfortable because whatever you’re doing is relatively new and you feel a bit out of your depth then it’s probably a good sign. It means you’re growing.

The danger in life is getting so comfortable with it that even if it’s unpleasant, painful, dissatisfying or boring, you’ll stay in that position. That is, you’re stuck in your comfort zone.

If you don’t take uncomfortable steps to get out of it you’ll still be there in years to come.

It’s great to feel comfortable. It’s okay to be that way if you like being there. But if some aspect of your life is not the way you want it because you are stuck in a comfort rut and you don’t like being there, get out of it.

Get uncomfortable and get out of it. Once you’re out and you’ve expanded your comfort zone you can feel comfortable again but this time in a more desirable place. You’ll be glad you did.

Remember the discomfort is only temporary.

Are you stable?

Stable blood sugar is a major the key to fat loss.

Stabilizing your blood sugar is by far the most important factor when
it comes to burning away excess body fat and keeping it off!

To effectively stabilize your blood sugar you must feed your body frequently; like every 2-3 hours. Now I don't mean pig out whenever you like on whatever you like! The Main thing is to give your body only what it needs at the time to meet your energy requirements for the next few hours.

Your body burns calories 24 hours a day, so, why would you only feed it once or twice a day? A steady trickle of nutrients into your body is way more efficient than going without food till you feel really hungry then having a big meal which leaves you feeling full. Give your body the fuel it needs and no more… food such as vegetables, fruits, nuts, berries, whole grains, and lean proteins (chicken, fish, lean beef, eggs, etc.). Always have some protein with your meal.