Reset Button

I think we have been there at some point or another. Your weight loss is stagnant for a period of a couple weeks. You point a finger at the scale and curse it for surely it is lying! Or perhaps, you step on it a couple times JUST to make sure, or you find yourself weighing in 3 times a day or every time you use the restroom. You might try stepping on it lightly, sucking in, stepping on it with one foot, etc... I've already posted about how the scale lies. However, I would be highly hypocritical if I were to say you must avoid it altogether as I weigh myself every day. It has become habit for me, and I simply use the scale as a guide and not as an absolute. When I gain a pound, I no longer go into a frenzy and cut my calories down to malnourished food intake amounts. So, like previously mentioned-- water retention, muscle building, ladie's TOM, sodium intake, exercise, stress, and probably more affects your weight but does not reflect your progress. So what are you supposed to do?

Let me set the stage for a very typical scenario for someone on a weight loss journey. Let's say Belinda, a 220 pound woman is 60 pounds overweight. The first week into her journey she drops 5-7 pounds. This is water weight but nevertheless Belinda is super stoked. Weight loss isn't hard at all!!! She's super motivated and strong willed at this point, making healthy food choices and exercising. She starts running 3-4 times a week and is staying within her caloric intake range for weight loss of 1.5-2 pounds a week. Belinda is feeling fit and fabulous and has already lost 20 pounds. YAY!!! But two weeks go by and Belinda's weight loss progress has come to an abrupt stop. Ahhhh! How horrible! She gets into a frenzy and decides to drop her caloric intake down to the lowest level recommended of 1200 calories per day. Belinda's weight loss keeps going for another 10 pounds then stalls out again. She decides to up her exercise even more, but notices she is feeling dizzy and fatigued throughout the day. She might turn to caffeine or weight loss pills and either ends up in the hospital because her heart feels like its going 100 mph like roadrunner, set the stage of eating disorder by eating too little and exercising too much, or just giving up.

So what did she do wrong? Essentially she had right idea of changing things up when her first weight loss plateau occurred. However, she went about it the wrong way. Our bodies are highly adaptable. When we start a weight loss journey and create a calorie deficit, we lose weight because our body isn't used to the decreased intake. Over time though, our body gets used to operating at that lower calorie amount then weight loss stalls. The same concept applies to our workouts. We need to keep our body guessing and not get used to the same old thing. That is why cross training is necessary. So what do we do? Temporarily increase your caloric intake for a few days. Now I'm not saying you should rush to the Golden Arches and down a couple Big Macs. What I am saying is to temporary increase your intake by a couple hundred calories for a week to change it up. For example, if you are trying to lose 2 pounds per week, that means you have a calorie reduction of 1000 calories a day less than your BMR (3500 calories in a pound times 2= 7000 calories). Try increasing your calories by 500. You should not experience weight gain.  Like previously stated, your body gets used to the same workout routine. I noticed this on my own weight loss journey and incorporated swimming 2-3 days a week into my routine and that broke my plateau. Right now I am currently switching things up by incorporating Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred. I have read numerous success stories from friends on myfitnesspal.com . There are 3 levels that you can do to mix things up. 30 day shred helps build muscle and more muscle = less fat. Muscle also burns more calories at rest than fat. Since I am a runner and a swimmer, I figured this workout DVD would have little effect on me, and that it'd be a walk in the park. And I was very wrong. I was sweating and huffing and puffing. It was absolutely wonderful.

So in conclusion, hitting the reset button can be done a couple ways to keep you on your weight loss journey. Temporarily increasing caloric intake or changing workout routine are both options you can experiment with for your success. Also keep in mind, if you are trying to lose a larger amount of weight, that the more you lose the less calories you'll need. Why? Because since your BMR is based on your weight and the more weight you have the higher the BMR, the amount of calories you need will decrease as the number decreases.

Poison

Poison
1. To contaminate or pollute, prove harmful or destructive 
2. Reduce the activity of a catalyst


I am talking about poison in a metaphorical sense and how it can be harmful physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Since we are not talking about poison itself, what am I referring to? 


I volunteer for nursery through our church once a month. I am always assigned the Snails room, which is essentially all infants. There was a shortage of infants so I ended up in the next step up with the 12-18 month kids. I introduced myself to the other ladies and took to the task at hand by playing with the kids. These ladies were apart of some clique at the church, and spent the whole time talking poorly of other members. I walked away from what usually is a pleasant time for me with a sour disposition. My husband asked me what happened and I explained it to him. And as I was explaining how I felt somehow dirtier for even being in the same room with them, I checked myself and realized how often I do this too, and felt ashamed. Have you ever walked away from a conversation and felt worse about yourself for having taken part in it? That is what I'm talking about. I realize I do this all the time with my husband and I spent time reflecting to myself why I do it. I think a lot of it comes from self esteem, as a subconscious way of bringing myself up by comparing (like saying I would never do that if I were a parent makes me superior), bringing that person down by pointing out flaws in their behavior. I also think that when you feel you've been wronged in someway, talking poorly about that person is sort of like serving justice to them, or because negativity is generally more entertaining. Have you ever gone to an outing with your peers from work or school, and noticed the conversation is usually only about complaining about management? I sure have! At my last job I was very close to my co workers, and now I never talk to any of them. I seriously think it is because the only thing we had in common was a bad boss. 


So what do my shortcomings have to do with health? Well this blog isn't just about physical fitness but about emotional and spiritual too. And emotional and spiritual negativity or poison affects you physically. There have been many studies (references below as always) that have linked optimistic behaviors and tendencies enjoy the following benefits:

• Increased life span
• Lower rates of depression
• Lower levels of distress
• Greater resistance to the common cold
• Better psychological and physical well-being
• Reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease
• Better coping skills during hardships and times of stress

Why do researchers and psychologists think this is? "One theory is that having a positive outlook enables you to cope better with stressful situations, which reduces the harmful health effects of stress on your body. It's also thought that positive and optimistic people tend to live healthier lifestyles — they get more physical activity, follow a healthier diet, and don't smoke or drink alcohol in excess," states Dr. Creagan from the Mayo Clinic (May 21,2011). Oh and get this! Researchers from the National Institute on Aging found that people who were cynical, impulsive, or aggressive tended to be more overweight. 

So does this mean we have to don a Mary Poppins outfit and sing about sunshine and rainbows all the time? Of course not. But keep in mind from my previous article about what stress does to us. Try to exercise if negativity is deriving from stress. In my case, gossip or being negative can be a changed behavior too. I think it is important to identify the bad stuff, figure out the origin, and change your focus. And if you find yourself hanging around negative people, try thinking of ways to change the subject. In my revelation about myself, I realized that my self esteem drove me to participate in negative conversation. I plan to try and change by writing down a list of goals that aren't related to the scale. This is called practicing positive self talk. Sometimes the person we are the hardest on is ourselves. A negative person could look at their weight loss goals and say "ugh, I'm so ugly and hideous. I still have 30 freakin pounds to go. So much work." How about instead "Wow, I've already lost 30 pounds! I'm halfway there! Look at what I have achieved that is so hard to do. This is going to be so rewarding once I reach my goal." I have done this a lot lately, and focusing on my running goals has helped a lot. 

At one of my previous jobs, I always dreaded working with one person. He was always a constant rain cloud. I could have had the BEST day ever and there he'd be, raining on my sunshiney parade. I could have sworn if he won the lottery, he'd just complain about the hassle it would cause. I don't want to be that person.

So maybe you should ask yourself, are you a rain cloud or are you sunshine? 


"Great people talk about ideas, average people talk about things, and small people talk about people."

"Wise men talk because they have something to say fools talk because they have to say something."

References:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_114489.html
Brummett BH, et al. Prediction of all-cause mortality by the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory Optimism-Pessimism Scale scores: Study of a college sample during a 40-year follow-up period. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 2006;81:1541.
Brydon L, et al. Dispositional optimism and stress-induced changes in immunity and negative mood. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. 2009;23:810
Seaward BL. Managing Stress: Principles and Strategies for Health and Well-Being. 6th ed. Sudbury, Mass.: Jones & Bartlett Publishers; 2009:445