Changes

Getting closer to the start of fat burning and time to kick things into a higher gear!

I've decided to make changes during the next ten or so months not only to my body but also to my mind and lifestyle. How's that for an ambitious goal? I realized (yet again) that I've been spinning my wheels and idling my engine over the past year (sheesh, mix metaphors much?) If I'm going to make progress I need to make some major changes to become someone living life as healthy as possible. So here's the deal. I've identified ten bad habits I have that I want to turn into good habits. So let's call this the Bad to Good Transformation Challenge. Whatever...

Here's the bad, the good but fortunately no ugly.

1. Bad: Slacking off on the soft tissue rehab.
    Good: 10 minutes of foam rolling and mobility for the most ouchy areas every morning on non-gym days.
2. Bad: Not stretching after weight training.
    Good: Add 10 minutes of stretching for the tightest areas after every workout.
3. Bad: Eating too fast.
    Good: Extend meals to 20 minutes by chewing more, putting fork or spoon down between bites and savoring food between bites.
4. Bad: Unrealistic goal setting.
    Good: Be honest about what I want and what I can truly achieve. Be humble enough to admit my shortcomings. Set goals that are truly realistic even if it means slow progress.
5. Bad: Getting too much nervous system stimulation before bed.
    Good: No computer after dinner, turn off the TV earlier. Do something else that relaxes the nervous system for bedtime.
6. Bad: Not consistently weighing and measuring food, especially meat.
    Good: Weigh and measure all foods at least every other day to get better at eyeballing real portion sizes.
7. Bad: Negative self-talk.
    Good: Say something positive about myself every day when looking in mirrors or looking at pictures.
8. Bad: Too much blog reading and other time wasters.
    Good: Limit or eliminate blog reading in the morning and evening. Do something else like taking a walk or other healthy activity.
9. Bad: Comparing myself to others.
    Good: Similar to #7, say something positive about myself when looking at other women's bodies (real women or in magazines or TV).
10. Bad: Viewing junk food as a reward.
      Good: View junk food as a neutral food by only indulging in planned non-reward situations.

I will tackle each one of these for one month, starting with #1 in October. Actually, I've started doing that this week to get a head start. I'll blog about my progress as I go along and we'll see how much healthier my life is at the other end.