Book author gives fitness tips for those trying to lose weight
Everyone loves to eat and drink during the holiday season, but as soon as the New Year rolls around we scramble to get healthy and lose weight. “To ensure weight loss success, you must do things differently in 2006,” said Laurie Bell, an internationally recognized weight loss and health expert, and the author of the new book, “Lose the Lies, Lose the Weight: The Ultimate Guide to Permanent Weight Loss.” (Back to Basics Publishing, LLC 2005) The statistics aren't optimistic. Of the 45 percent of Americans who make New Year's diet and health resolutions, most give up after the first month. Many of these attempts are from lifelong yo-yo dieters who have been unsuccessful with other previous weight-loss attempts. The good news? It doesn't matter how many times you've failed at weight loss or lost weight only to regain it back. In her new book, Bell teaches people how to change their thinking so they will lose those pounds and keep them off. Here are Bell's Top 10 Weight Loss Tips for 2006 1. Visualize your ideal self. Cut pictures out of health and fitness magazines. Add your face to the fit person's body. Visualize yourself as a healthy, fit and energetic weight-loss success story. 2. Keep a food journal. You may think you don't eat that much, but you probably consume more than you think. The truth is, even healthy food can make you fat. An extra 100 calories a day adds up to 12 pounds per year. That 100 extra calories can be found in a small glass of juice, one banana or eight unshelled peanuts. 3. Eat like a champion. Do you think champions begin their day with donuts, pastries or sugary cereals? Of course not. Athletes eat lots of fruits, vegetables, rice and whole-grain foods to maintain their energy level. When you begin to eat like a champion, you'll have the energy necessary to achieve your goals without feeling deprived or hungry. 4. Reverse your thinking about “goodies.” You want to get fit, yet you continue fantasizing about high-calorie, low-quality foods. That doesn't work. To get fit, you must drastically change the way you think about food. Instead of seeing certain foods as “goodies” or “treats,” think logically about food. How does junk food really make you feel? Instead of “treating” yourself to cake, cookies and ice cream, decide that you will “treat” yourself to feel-good foods like frozen yogurt, fruit or sorbet. 5. Give yourself the gift of health. Join a health club. Buy a treadmill. Pamper yourself by purchasing sessions with a personal trainer. Feel no guilt about spending money on yourself by resolving that nothing is more important than your health. 6. Develop the mindset of a pro. How do elite athletes train for competitions? Do you think they skip workouts when they don't feel like exercising? No. Think like a pro by setting specific goals. Saying you want to lose weight is too vague. Everyone wants to lose weight. Decide exactly how much weight you will lose. Then develop a realistic plan to achieve your goal such as: I will exercise X minutes per day. 7. Brown bag it. Weight loss success at work requires planning. Prepare your lunch the night before so it's ready when you're rushing off to work. Having healthy food readily available means you won't be as tempted to grab unhealthy, convenience food as you've always done. 8. Choose your company carefully. Getting fit is hard enough without friends and family members trying to sabotage you. People who truly care about you will support your desire to get in shape. Avoid anyone who encourages you to overeat or skip your workouts. The company you keep will make a drastic impact on your fitness success. 9. Reward yourself along the way. Don't wait until you get to your ideal weight to reward yourself. Set small goals along the way to your ideal weight. For example, every time you lose five pounds, do something special for yourself. Ideas include: massages, new shoes, rounds of golf, a night out or a weekend getaway. Every pound lost is a personal victory. 10. Get focused. Life is quickly passing you by. It doesn't stop and wait for anyone. Resolve that 2006 will be different. This year you will finally choose a fabulous physique over a few moments of food. Instead of focusing on how great your food tastes, focus on how incredible you will look and feel. Remember - dessert only tastes good for a minute, but living in a healthy body feels tremendous all year long. For more info and great weight loss tips, read “Lose the Lies, Lose the Weight” or visit www.losethelieslosetheweight.com.