Calories are not a bad thing  in fact calories are the way we get our energy from food. Your body has an insatiable appetite for energy and uses the calories from food to keep functioning. Energy from calories fuels all of your body’s actions; much like gasoline powers your car.{+}

Foods that contain calories are the main sources of energy for your body. Carbohydrates, fats and proteins are the types of nutrients that your body needs for energy. Proteins and carbohydrates have about four calories per gram, and fats have about nine calories per gram. Alcohol is high in calories too, with about seven calories per gram.

The calories you eat are either converted to physical energy or stored within your body as fat. It all depends on how active you are and how many calories that you burn versus the number of calories that you eat. If you eat more calories than you burn, you gain weight. Because 3,500 calories equals about one pound of fat, you need to burn 3,500 calories more than you take in to lose one pound.

Cutting calories doesn’t have to be difficult. In fact, it might be as simple as forgoing one extra item a day, swapping foods or trimming the size of your serving. You would be surprised at how much weight can be lost by cutting out those soft drinks or swapping the giant latte for a regular size coffee.

Now, unlike many of the other diets, my Fitness4Her diet is not primarily about calorie counting, but more what you eat and how much you consume. I believe portion control is a major factor in controlling your weight.

There are two problems with basing your diet on strict calorie-counting: 1) some find it difficult or dull, and dieters with the best of intentions often give up on calorie-counting after a few days; 2) it’s almost impossible to do with any great degree of accuracy.

For example, let’s say you decide to have a bowl of cold cereal for breakfast. The box of cereal says that it contains 110 calories per serving. But how much is a serving? You check the box and find that three quarters of a cup equals a serving. How many of you pour your cereal into a measuring cup before pouring it into the bowl?

You would need to go through the same procedure with the milk that you pour over the cereal, in order to calculate how many calories the milk is adding. If you decide to add a handful of raisins or a few strawberries or a banana to the cereal, you would need to get the calorie count on them, too. So in order to calculate our calories adequately, you would need to bring a calculator, measuring cups and spoons to the table along with your food.

You can see how this could get frustrating to say the least. By the time you come to an accurate, definitive calculation on your caloric intake for breakfast, it may be lunchtime. Then you’ll be doing it all over again.

For most of us, there isn’t enough time in the day to go through all these calculations. The only way we can do it is to make fairly broad estimates.

What we need to concentrate on is the type of foods that we eat. So much of what we put into our body is just junk food. Very little nutritional value and many times way too high in fat, sugar and salt.

• Replace high calorie foods with ones that are lower in calories. For example, drink fat-free milk instead of whole milk and water with a twist of lemon rather than high calorie, high sugar content, soft drinks. Eat an extra spoonful of vegetables at dinner instead of another slice of meat. Choose sliced fresh fruit for snacks instead of chips. Little changes like these make a big difference in your caloric intake.

• Serve smaller portions. Resist the urge to fill your plate from rim to rim. Serve up slightly less than what you think you’ll eat. You can always have seconds, if you are still hungry.

• Never eat from a container or bag. You need to see what you are eating in order to get a sense of how much you’re eating. Seeing food on a plate or in a bowl is much more appetizing and easier for you to realize when you’re full and satisfied.

• Be sure to check food labels for the serving size and number of calories per serving.

• Stop eating as soon as you feel full. Don’t take another bit past that full feeling. Remember, your next meal is only a few hours away.
If you prefer to count calories, your journal is a great place to calculate the number of calories that you eat at each meal. Be sure to include all the condiments, snacks and drinks that you have throughout the day, too.

Since you are tracking your calories, you might find it beneficial to count the grams of fat and carbohydrates that you’re eating too. These high calorie nutrients can sometimes be the hidden problem in an otherwise balanced diet. Make sure you eat protein at every meal, but strive for low fat varieties since fat has more calories per gram.

Your fitness journal makes it easy to stay on top of everything you eat and drink. But just as important as your diet, an active lifestyle is crucial to your health. Record all of your activity including cardio and strength training. You’ll be able to assess how much exercise is needed each day versus the calories that you eat.

Keeping a fitness journal makes my life easier. I hope you will find it helpful in counting calories, writing down your daily meals and tracking your activities, too. It can be one of the best ways to keep an eye on your progress as you work towards your goal.

Avid journalists: Give your comments below.

In order to set goals, you have to think about what you really want and how you will achieve it.
Goal setting differs from just daydreaming about something you would like to change about yourself or your life.{+} When you set goals for yourself, your brain believes this is a possibility and begins to make plans on ways to achieve the objective.

Goal setting works remarkably well when you want to change your fitness level. It starts with an idea and then is followed by plans for to attain your desired point of fitness. No one purposely changes their size or shape without first thinking about it and formulating a strategy.

So, you might just say in order to change your size or shape you will need to Think to Shrink your dress size, waistline or any other part of your body you wish to reduce. Using your brain-power to reach your fitness goals will ensure your success.

Once you start losing weight and inches you will want to know the ultimate question, “How much have I lost?”

That’s why before you get started you’ll need to know your present weight and measurements. Use your fitness journal to write down your starting weight, your measurements, your current size and your weight loss and fitness goals. Don’t forget to measure those ankles and wrists!

Write these starting numbers in a separate area that you deem as the goal pages. Goals give your brain something to work towards; so don’t skip this crucial step.

Faithfully maintaining your journal will demonstrate commitment to your fitness program and keep you motivated to succeed. This daily act of devotion to your health will convince your brain of the importance of staying focused on your goal.

In my post Your Brain and How It Functions, I discuss how the parts of the brain work to stimulate and send signals to other parts of the brain and body. Food cravings, hunger, chewing, swallowing, digesting and exercising are all functions controlled by the brain.

The brain also dominates emotional responses like sadness and depression, as well as happiness and contentment. Although the brain has no eyes to see or ears to hear, it is responsible for how we interpret every bit of stimuli in our lives.

It is because of this that we can control our minds. Yes, it is possible. Take for instance when you feel frightened by a loud noise. At first, you might jump in fear because of the noise, but within seconds your brain jumps to the rescue and starts to assimilate the facts. In this mode, the brain is trying to ascertain the need to fight or flight. If it determines that the panic is unfounded, it diminishes the fear and replaces those feelings with ones of relief and calmness.

You can do the same thing with your mind the next time you find yourself upset or frightened. Just replace the dismay or fear you are feeling with emotions like happiness and confidence. Within seconds, your breathing will relax, your heartbeat will return to normal and you will have a clearer vision of your current state and where you wish to go from here.

Your brain is the caveat of success. No matter what your goal, if you want to increase your wealth or shrink your waist, the brain is the power source to get the job done.

But sometimes the brain needs to be convinced that this is truly what you want. You’ve heard the old saying, “Old habits die hard.” That’s because once the brain has familiarized itself with a certain behavior it paves a pathway so that it no longer has to think about doing that particular deed. Your brain forms the habit so that the action can be performed with very little brainpower involved.

Talk about an “Ah Ha!” moment, once you understand how the brain works, it becomes easier to trick that gray matter into working toward the goals that you select. The secret of course is staying in constant contact with your mind.

Much like the way an office of people work, where communication is key to understanding what everyone else is doing and thereby effectively getting the job done, the brain must receive constant commands in order to break the habit that it so perfectly formed.

So, how do you instruct your brain to think about what you want and keep it from concentrating on things you would rather forget?

Daily prayer and meditation can help redirect your mind. Once your spirit has been lifted, take your commitment one step further. Begin writing down your affirmations and follow those with your goals. Now your brain has something new and positive to dwell on.

But you might find that you still slip up and resort to old habits. The brain is tough, so you’ve got to step up your game in order to win the battle. When your goal is to get in shape through healthy eating and exercising, your fitness journal must be accurate and thorough in order to succeed. That’s why it is essential to write down everything you eat and drink and all the activity that you participate in each day.

You see, by writing down everything you eat and drink, you become accountable for all the foods that you are feeding your body. It’s important that you record everything because this way you will be able to decide which foods you can keep in your diet and what changes you need to make.

Remember, it takes at least thirty days to make or break a habit. Do you have some habits that you would like to leave behind? This can be day one as you re-train your brain to take on healthy habits and begin a new routine.

Goal setting with my fitness journal is one of the best habits that I ever formed. At Fitness4Her, journaling is pretty much a tradition. Don’t deprive yourself of this wonderful way to break free of old practices and embrace the joy of journaling.

Tell us about your journaling experiences!  Leave a comment below:

From the time we learn to write, usually around Kindergarten or first grade, we use the skill of writing nearly everyday for the rest of our lives. As a matter of fact many of our personality traits are revealed in our own handwriting. {+}

Through the ages, people have used writing to convey messages. Hieroglyphics, used by the Egyptians thousands of years ago, prove that mankind has depended on writing throughout history.

Childhood romances might never get started if not for the familiar love note. When words escape us, we choose greeting cards to send our message. Writing is our way of communicating with one another when we can’t or choose not to use the spoken word.

I have always enjoyed writing. Each day I write my affirmations and repeat them aloud. This begins my day on a most positive note. When I start my morning with thoughts and words of gratitude and celebration, it helps me to realize just how lucky I am.

For me, writing my feelings down on paper is a great stress reliever, too. Many times, writing down an event helps to put everything in perspective. Instead of my brain playing back the episode like a series of repeated television shows, this act of writing helps to free my mind of the guilt and contemplation that accompany this scenario.

Writing helps me sleep better at night. By writing everything down, I have nothing left to worry about when I go to bed. Once I say my prayers, I’m ready for sleep.

I keep a journal that I use daily. I record everything that I eat and drink at every meal. In addition, I write down the exercises and activities that I do each day, including how long I spent on each and the muscle groups that were worked. These journal records make it easy for me to maintain my weight and fitness or to take it to the next level.

My body is my temple and I believe it’s important that I take care of myself. I’m in my forties now, and I want to stay healthy and physically fit. Maintaining this journal makes it easy to see what works for me and what doesn’t.

I enjoy five meals instead of the traditional three meals in a typical day. Eating healthy is part of my plan and that includes snacks too. Writing it all down in my journal helps to inspire creative twists on ho-hum meals. I make a weekly meal plan and then add all the ingredients that I’ll need to my weekly grocery list. Even though I’ll probably return to the store during the week, this planned method works well to keep my family eating wholesome, healthy foods.

To save money, I pay close attention to what fruits and vegetables are in season. When produce can be obtained locally, it is generally less expensive than if it is shipped or flown in from another country. Best of all, local produce will be fresher and that means it usually has a much better taste.
I mention these helpful hints about weekly planning and buying in-season produce to help you save money as often as possible. I hear many times, that women avoid purchasing fresh fruits and veggies because they are so expensive and they have a very short shelf life. If this is a problem for you, try purchasing only the amount of produce that will be eaten in a few days, then return to the store later in the week. Don’t compromise your health; there are ways to eat wholesome foods without breaking the bank.

Another use for writing is organizing your life with lists. Some people make lists for everything. I find them very helpful when I am planning my weekly meals or when we are preparing for a family vacation. Boy, the list can get really long when I’m including all the things that the boys want to bring along.

When my boys were younger, I had lists for everything. When your mind is going in five different directions, it’s helpful to have some form of organization to unburden your brain. Lists help prevent you from leaving the diapers behind or forgetting to pack healthy snacks.

If you are familiar with making lists, you are just steps away from journaling. A great way to organize your thoughts and plans, a journal will allow you to free your mind and unleash your creativity.

Those of you concerned about fitness will soon find that a journal can be the secret to your success. Whether you are looking to gain weight, lose weight or take your workouts to the next level, your journal can be the guiding light to help you reach your goal.

The best thing about this use of the journal is that people, who maintain a fitness journal and record their eating and exercise habits, have a far greater chance of success than those who do not. This has been proven time after time. So if you are looking for a sure-proof way to make your fitness routine work for you, begin your journal today.

Start out by recording your present weight and measurements. Now that you know your starting point, where do you want to go from here? Write down your desired weight and measurements, too. If there is a big difference in your present size and where you want to be, make another entry for a short-term as well as a long-term goal.

Having short-term and long-term goals are helpful when you have big changes to make. Each week, you can compare your strategies and achievements and make plans for the upcoming week. Be sure to write down all the wonderful changes that are happening to your body. Try not to overlook these affirmations of your hard work.

I hope that you can discover the joy of writing every day as I do. You don’t have to be a novelist or a poet, just be truthful with yourself and allow the inner you to shine through. Use your journal as a sounding board when you need to vent. Life has its ups and downs and sometimes just being able to vent your anger does a soul good.

Share your experiences with us and our readers by posting a comment.

In my member post Think to Shrink, I talked about the power of the brain and how to effectively use its force to bring about change in your life. In this post, I want to focus on the brain and how incredibly hard this organ works to keep the body functioning.{+}

The brain depends on five key players to assimilate and process all the messages and tasks coming from the rest of the body. The cerebrum, cerebellum, brain stem, pituitary gland, and the hypothalamus make up the five main parts of the brain. Memory, involuntary movements and dreams all stem from these top performers.

The Cerebrum
The biggest part of the brain is the cerebrum, which encompasses 85% of the brain’s weight. The cerebrum is the thinking part of the brain and it controls your voluntary muscles — the ones that move when you want them to. This part of your brain allows you to dance, exercise or ride a bike.
When you have to concentrate, you’re using your cerebrum. You need it to solve financial problems, figure out a recipe, and paint a picture. Your memory lives in the cerebrum — both short-term memory (what you ate for dinner last night) and long-term memory (the name of that handsome guy you dated two summers ago). The cerebrum also helps you reason, like whether or not to have that piece of chocolate cake.
The cerebrum has two halves, with one on either side of the head. Some scientists think that the right half helps you think about abstract things like music, art and romance. The left half is said to be more analytical, helping you with math, logic, and speech. Scientists do agree that the right half of the cerebrum controls the left side of your body, and the left half controls the right side.

The Cerebellum
Next in line is the cerebellum. The cerebellum is at the back of the brain, located below the cerebrum. It’s a lot smaller than the cerebrum at only an eighth of its size. But that shouldn’t diminish its importance. This part of the brain controls balance, movement, and coordination (how your muscles work together). Your cerebellum allows you to stand upright, keep your balance, and move around.

The Brain Stem
Another brain part that’s small but mighty is the brain stem. The brain stem sits beneath the cerebrum and in front of the cerebellum. It connects the rest of the brain to the spinal cord, which runs down your neck and back. The brain stem is in charge of all the functions your body needs to stay alive, like breathing, digestion, and circulation.
Controlling your involuntary muscles like telling your heart to pump more blood when you’re biking or signaling your stomach to start digesting your lunch, is just part of the job of the brain stem. It is also responsible for sorting through the millions of messages that the brain and the rest of the body send back and forth. The brain stem works like a secretary for the brain.

Pituitary Gland Controls Growth
The pituitary gland is very small — only about the size of a pea. Its job is to produce and release hormones into your body. Growth hormone (GH), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), and prolactin are the six main hormones released by the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland. The posterior lobe produces only two hormones: antidiuretic and oxytocin.
These hormones can play a major role in a woman’s health. The luteinizing hormone stimulates the ovaries to produce eggs and the sex organs to produce sex estrogen. Prolactin stimulates the mammary glands of the breasts to produce milk. This is the hormone responsible when a nursing mother finds herself lactating at the sound of a baby’s cry. The pituitary gland commands the milk production because of a signal it received from the hypothalamus!

Hypothalamus
The main function of the hypothalamus is to maintain the body’s status quo. Blood pressure, body temperature, fluid and electrolyte balance, appetite and body weight are all part of the hypothalamus domain.

It is responsible for signaling the pituitary gland to take action by producing certain hormones required to keep the body healthy. Ultimately the hypothalamus can control every endocrine gland in the body and alter blood pressure (through vasopressin and vasoconstriction), body temperature, metabolism (through TSH), and adrenaline levels (through ACTH).

Your Nervous System
The brain is the ring-leader, but it takes a lot of nerves to run the show. This big job requires the spinal cord, a long bundle of nerves inside your spinal column known as the nervous system. These nerves allow messages to flow back and forth between the brain and body.
The nervous system is made up of millions and millions of neurons, which are microscopic cells. Each neuron has tiny branches coming off it that let it connect to many other neurons.
Think back to the first time you drove a car. Your brain had to think about pressing the gas, steering the car, watching the road, and maybe even hitting the brakes — all at once. It was pretty hard work at first. But eventually, as you got more practice, the neurons sent messages back and forth until a pathway was created in your brain. Now you can drive nearly any vehicle without thinking much about it because the neurons have successfully created this pathway for your brain.

Emotions
Your brain has a small group of cells on each side of it called the amygdala. The word amygdala is Latin for almond, and that’s what this area looks like.
The amygdala is responsible for emotions such as fear, anger, happiness or sadness. It can make you feel wonderful or turn your day upside down. Learning to control your amygdala is the key to keeping life’s little ups and downs in perspective.
When you Think to Shrink, you have to take control of your mind to focus only on your goal and how you will achieve it.
Be Brain Healthy
• Eat healthy foods. Be sure to get plenty of potassium and calcium, two minerals that are important for the nervous system.
• Get regular exercise.
• Wear a helmet when you ride a motorcycle.
• If you drink alcohol, use it moderately.
• Don’t take drugs or use tobacco.
• Challenge your brain with complex activities, such as puzzles, writing, reading, playing music, crafts, or anything else that works your brain.

Start a discussion by leaving a comment.

Your mind is the main catalyst for bringing about change in your life. Your brain is so powerful that it can alter your mental and physical health. Have you ever worried about something so intensely that you made yourself sick? That is the power of the brain. {+}

Many people sit around worrying or feeling depressed because they wish they could lose weight or they wish they were in better shape. This is not a good way to use that brain-power. In fact, worrying can make you feel worse and possibly cause you to overeat and gain weight rather than lose it.

Your own mind can work for you or it can work against you. It does not differentiate between bad and good; it just reacts to the stimuli. By controlling what you think about most of the time, you can bring about positive change in your life.

Anytime you set goals, you have to think about what you really want and how you will achieve it. You’ve really got to Think to Shrink your dress size, waistline or any other part of your body.

Think about your fitness goals and achievements. What changes would you like to see in your body? How will you bring these goals to reality?

Writing your goals on paper will transform them from a thought into something you can really work with. The brain feeds on this validation and begins to work hard thinking of ways to bring those goals to fruition.

For best results, start each week by writing down your goals. Now you have set the stage for your brain to react. Since the brain is wired to achieve, it will want to master the goals that you write down.

By keeping a journal for 90 days and monitoring your exercise and weight, you can get a good idea of how the Fitness4Her program is working for you.

Throughout the day, write down everything that you eat. By doing this, you are taking responsibility for the food that you put in your body. You can even track the calories, fat and carbohydrates that you consume, if you desire.

There are two problems with basing your diet on strict calorie-counting: 1) some find it difficult or dull, and dieters with the best of intentions often give up on calorie-counting after a few days; 2) it’s almost impossible to do with any great degree of accuracy.

Diet and exercise are equally important in this program. Just as calorie counting is difficult, it is not always easy to track how many calories are expended by exercise. Most treadmill and other aerobic machines will do this for you, but if you take a walk around the neighborhood, engage in a set of tennis, or play nine holes of golf, you can only guess how many calories you’ve expended.

Remember, it’s not so much the exact amount of calories burned that you need to track, but the trends in your exercise. Is exercise becoming easier and more enjoyable? How do you look, how do you feel?

To keep your exercise and activity plan working for you, record what you do each day and the amount of time that you spend. As you become accustomed to the exercise routines, you may want to step them up. Setting weekly goals is a great way to challenge yourself to take it to the next level.

At the end of the day, write down how you feel. If you feel fantastic, stressed, overworked, happy, disappointed or ecstatic, write down your feelings. Record your progress for that day. Did you meet your goal today, if not, what stood in your way of success?

If it turns out that you didn’t reach your goal, don’t let feelings of discouragement cause you to give up. Begin the following day by writing down your goals and setting out to achieve them. Identify the obstacles that you need to overcome and make a plan to succeed.

This act of writing down your goals and accomplishments will train your brain to Think to Shrink. Your brain will become so committed to bringing about your success that you will wonder why it took you so long to get started.

Brainpower and exercise go together. A dwindling memory and decreased concentration are usually caused by a decreased blood flow to the brain.
Regular exercises, like brisk walking, slow jogging, biking, or swimming, improve circulation to the brain and can help improve memory 20 to 30 percent. Exercise is good for the brain and the brain is good for exercise.

You are an entire person, not just a waistline or a firm behind. I want you to utilize all of your resources, including your brain to empower the beauty that lies within you.

Think to Shrink…imagine how you will look after 90 days of following the Fitness4Her Diet and my 30 Minutes To A New You Exercise Program.

Think it, believe it, you will achieve it. You’ll feel empowered once you see how you can Think to Shrink.