Finally!

After much badgering and persuasion, Jeff Kapusta has finally started going to the gym…well…for this week anyway. Hopefully he will continue his new found streak, and encourage Daryl to rejoin us. Perry Noble posted some of his healthy lifestyle tips a few weeks ago, so I thought I would add a few of my own that have helped me.

1. Losing weight is 80% diet, and 20% exercise. Many people think it’s the other way around.
2. When choosing what to eat, you have to consistently make good choices. If you decided to eat a chicken sandwich to be healthy, but super size the fries, that defeats the purpose. Besides, most people don’t just splurge once in a while, they splurge every day.
3. Don’t put yourself in positions to fail. Just sticking your head in Coldstone to smell the waffle cones always leads to a “Gotta Love It” of cake batter ice cream.
4. Put down your sandwich/pizza/fork after every bight. This gives your stomach more time to send the “I’m full” signal to your brain.
5. Give it a month. Regardless of what happens to your weight, commit to going to the gym an entire month. I did this when I decided I was tired of being the “chubby guy” in college. I saw absolutely no results the first 2 weeks, but by the end of the month, I noticed muscle definition and I had lost weight. The greatest part is when people would come up and ask, “Have you been working out?” When that starts happening, you become hooked to working out.
6. Make exercising a priority. Adjust your daily activities around that time. Your health is just as (if not more) important as any activity you’ll do during any given day. If not, you won’t be around long to worry about those activities anyway.
7. Home gyms generally don’t work. If you had the option of sitting on the couch or working out, which would you choose! Besides, most workout equipment eventually becomes a really expensive clothes hanger.
8. Beware of the food that you buy that you think is healthy! Most food that is reduced or low fat has added sugar, hydrogenated oils, and sodium; which all make it less healthy than the regular item. Also, all companies will use healthy looking colors, such as greens and browns, to make you think the item is healthy. Make sure to take a few extra seconds and read the label!
9. South Beach Diet: I’ll be the first to say this diet isn’t for everyone, but it worked well for me! I tried it right before I got married, and I lost about 35 pounds in 2 months, and kept it off! The secret: STICK TO THE DIET!!! People try to “adapt” diets or cheat on them, but that never works. To get the full benefit, you have to stick to the program.