Fitness4Her

Women's Fitness

How To Stick To Your Diet

By

Dieting doesn’t have to be hard. It’s actually pretty simple when you think about it. If you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. The ideal way to manage your weight is to gradually make changes in your diet and your physical activities.

Diet is a must if you want to lose weight. A good fitness plan is a combination of diet and exercise, but if you want to lose weight, you will have to make changes to the foods that you eat. Not only the types of foods, but the ways that you prepare them, too. That doesn’t mean you have to give up all the foods you love and replace them with bland tasting foods that you hate, either. Successful dieting is about weight management and that means finding the best ways to enjoy the foods you love in a healthier way.

Dieting is all about making healthy changes in your diet. Eating healthy isn’t just a great way to lose weight, it’s a great way to stay fit and healthy and feel good about yourself. Your body depends on a nutritious diet and making a few changes can ensure you eat healthy and lose weight, too.

Most of the time, the hardest thing about dieting is actually finding the right time to start. So what’s stopping you from starting?

Each day that you put off dieting makes it more difficult to get started. Excuses won’t burn calories and they won’t change the fact that you need to lose weight. The only thing that excuses do is make you feel guilty for not getting started. Guilt is unproductive and causes a great deal of stress. As often as possible push guilt away and replace those feelings with positive words of encouragement that empower you rather than cause you defeat. Daily affirmations will transform a negative attitude into a positive one. I like to say my affirmations first thing every morning to set my mind, body and soul on the right path.

Make short and long term goals when you begin your diet. Reward yourself along the way with little gifts such as workout gear, new clothes, a trip to the spa or even a tool for the yard. Refrain from food or alcohol rewards when you reach your goals. These little acts of appreciation work just as good on yourself as they do when you reward others for their exceptional work. Just stick to your diet and you will be able to enjoy the rewards of your labor for the rest of your life.

The Miracle of Motivation

By

If you have ever dreaded a task or had difficulty getting started, you know how hard it is to achieve success. There is simply no way to succeed if you don’t start somewhere. The simple truth is, sometimes you need motivation. You need a reason to succeed, something to ignite your imagination and give you the wind beneath your wings.
Many women need to get motivated to begin exercising. If you need help getting motivated, you may need a friend to workout with or you may decide to hire a personal trainer to help you get started. These people can help to motivate and inspire you but to stay motivated, but it’s important to become accountable for your own motivation.
Mentally engaging in your workout will help motivate you to strive harder, go longer and achieve better results. After working out for a while you may become comfortable with the same old routine or worse, you may become bored with your routine. Make regular changes to your exercises, the repetitions, the amount of weight you use and the intervals you mix in.
Get involved with activities such as tennis or racquet ball at the gym or club. These sports give you the opportunity to socialize while getting a great amount of good physical exercise. The engagement of like-minded friends and acquaintances provides a great amount of motivation.
Take long walks and give your mind a quiet time to refresh and reboot. Your mind is the catalyst for motivation. It needs time to rejuvenate in order to focus on the task ahead. Walks are beneficial to your physical health, as well. If you have a dog, a daily walk is good for both you and your pet.
A nice bike ride by yourself or with family or friends is a nice way to unwind in the evening. Getting out in the neighborhood or nearby bike paths and parks can keep you familiar with the community while giving you a great physical activity that everyone can enjoy.
Keeping a journal is a great way to motivate yourself every day. Writing down your goals, focusing on your efforts and going over your achievements at the end of each day will provide you with the motivation to reach all of your goals.

Motivate Your Mind For Life

By

Finding motivation is sometimes difficult but harnessing that motivation to keep you sustained for the long run is even harder. This is especially true when you don’t see results as quickly as you like. One of the hardest things to sustain motivation is in dieting and exercising for life. It all begins in the mind and learning to motivate your mind will keep you motivated for life.

Motivation is the psychological trigger that causes us to spring into action. Therefore it begins in the mind and becomes so important and vital to us that it causes us to do something dramatic to make this idea a reality.

Motivation acts as a driving force. It takes over our thought process and becomes an overwhelming desire that requires attention. When this takes place, we feel inclined to take advantage of this compelling energy and work to make positive changes in our lives.

For example, when you want to lose weight through either diet and or exercise, motivation can be the underlying factor that determines whether or not you succeed with your efforts. If you can’t stay motivated to stick to a diet and exercise program, then chances are you will give up and return to your former lifestyle.

You can control motivation to work for you. If your desire for weight loss is something that you are ready to achieve, then all it takes is a commitment on your part that you will not stop until you have reached your goal. Further establish this declaration by writing down your goals and writing a plan of action. This act of writing down your goal and reading it again will help to motivate your mind to follow through.

A fitness journal is a great way to train your mind to stay motivated. When you write, you stimulate your mind and encourage new ideas and plans of action. Reading your goals and your motivating words helps to inspire and motivate your mind to keep moving towards your goal.

It takes mind, body and soul to live a truly healthy lifestyle. Motivate your mind daily with positive affirmations. Keep your weight loss and fitness goals firmly planted in your mind and keep it focused. When you motivate your mind, visualizing your goals will simply become a way of life. Losing weight, exercising, and achieving the next level, will all be easy when you learn to motivate your mind.

Adopt An I Can Attitude

By

Positive people have an “I Can” attitude. They don’t fear challenges and they don’t allow defeat, at least not before they have a chance to compete. Positive people believe they can and they are right. They set goals because they are committed to working towards those goals. They make plans to succeed and they focus on executing those plans. They remain positive no matter how hard they struggle. They believe in themselves and their abilities.

Having an “I Can” attitude doesn’t mean a person has to be pompous or overly proud. When you have a positive attitude you want to get things done. You truly believe that your goals are attainable and that with enough practice and focus, you can overcome even the most difficult challenges.

Power-up each day with positive energy. If you have ever been chained down by the ill-effects of negativity you know how it can suck the life out of you. If you think you can’t win, then it is almost impossible to succeed. On the contrary, adopting a positive attitude will keep you always believing that success is possible and you can make it happen.

Keeping a fitness journal will help to instill a positive attitude and make it easier for you to succeed in your weight loss and fitness goals. Writing down everything you eat and drink and all of the exercise you do will help you to see what is working for you and what is not. Journaling keeps you accountable and gives you written proof that you can accomplish what you set out to do.

Replacing a negative attitude of “I Can’t” with a positive attitude of “I Can” will improve your chances of success. Maintaining a positive attitude lowers blood pressure, and improves overall health. It also makes those around you much happier, too. Studies indicate that positive people encourage others and keep them motivated even when hope is in short supply.

Start each day with positive affirmations. These powerful words and phrases will guide your mind and your body. Embrace the words and their meanings as you repeat them to yourself each day. Affirmations are evidence of an “I Can” attitude.

Adopt an “I Can” attitude and believe in yourself. This powerful outlook will help you to succeed all throughout life. There will always be challenges and disappointments but your positive attitude will always see you through.

Stay Motivated Even While You Work

By

Sticking to a diet and fitness program is not always an easy thing to do. Especially if you work a full-time job, the workload and the amount of time you spend away from home, may be keeping you from a healthy, exercise workout plan.

Even if you spend 40 plus hours sitting behind a desk, staring at a computer, there are exercises that you can do to help you stay fit and keep your muscles working.

Of course, I urge you to get outside as often as you can. Visit the gym regularly or set up your own special exercise place at home. Aside from sharing meals and praying together, exercise and physical activity is one of the greatest ways to spend quality time with your family.

Below are some exercises and diet tips you can try away from home. These easy-to-do exercises and diet suggestions will keep you motivated, even while you work.

1. Sit in your chair. Extend one leg out straight in front of you. Hold for two seconds. Then raise it up as high as you can, and hold it again for two seconds. Repeat with each leg 15 times.

2. Stand facing a wall and press the toes of one foot against the wall as if you are tip toeing on the wall. Continue to press your toes, feeling the stretch in your arch all the way up your leg. Switch feet and repeat 10 to 12 times.

3. Consider keeping some lightweight dumbbells at your desk. You can do multiple exercises without leaving your work area. Stand facing with dumbbells in each hand, elbows bent at the waist. Bend your knees and lower your body to a squatting position and hold for eight counts. Stand back up and lower weights to your sides. Repeat 10 to12 times.

4. Each time you go to the restroom, do large and small arm circles with both arms. Standing with legs apart and arms stretched out on each side, make large circles with both arms to the count of 20. Put arms down by side and shrug shoulders to the count of 10. Stretch arms out to sides again and do 20 small circles with both arms. Bring arms back down by your side and shrug to the count of 10.

5. Take the stairs not the elevator as often as possible. Before starting work or especially at the end of the day, try to make a point of walking as much as possible. Park as far as possible. If you can, bring a pair of sneakers to make it more comfortable to walk.

6. Get up from your desk and go talk to your co-workers instead of e-mailing them. This will give you a chance to move your body and also, allow the opportunity to have a one on one with your co-workers or subordinates. If you are the boss, run some of your own errands rather than always sending your assistant.

7. Rather than eating out every day, consider bringing a homemade lunch with lots of vegetables, fruits and whole grains. Foods like these will keep you satisfied and help you to slim down quicker.