By nature, I am disgusting. I just need to internet to know.
Grooming, to me, is the ultimate Sisyphean struggle. In the instant one stray hair is removed, another 6 pop up. My latest pedicure was consistently three months ago.
Grey hair? I call them my “wisdom strands.”
Werewolf legs? Just part of my “January Coat” (a term coined, btw, by the same Laura who brought us the Pretty Purple Smoothie ala Laura).
Whatever. I’m gross. Because entropy always wins
But here is what I find.
When I take more pride in grooming habits unrelated to weight loss, I also tend to eat better. In fact, I treat myself better in general.
When I feel fresh to death, so to speak, I feel unstoppable. My freshness has no limit. I’m like a human breath mint.
And when I’m feeling good, I’m doing good for myself. And this makes sense. Studies have shown that the way you dress affects not only your behavior, but even your hormone levels.
Studies?
Have you ever experienced a day where you just feel “on”?
When you’re feeling that way, you’re living a fuller life. You’re less likely to turn to food for comfort or out of boredom or anxiety. You’re feeling sexy and you know it.
So could taking steps to feel “on” more often be beneficial to your mental and physical health? Could a regular routine of manicures increase your general sassiness factor so as to promote weight loss ?
I also wonder – could one facial per month multiply your hotness factor by 15, thereby turning you into a sex god?
I spent about 45 seconds on Google searching for studies that look for correlations between grooming efforts and weight loss. I came up empty. But I will continue my search.
In the meantime, what do you think?
Do you feel that putting more effort into your appearance has any relation to the choices you make throughout the day?
I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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In yesterday’s post, I posed a challenge for those who struggle to find gym motivation.
I love psychology. And I believe that pairing gym visits with a particularly engaging story can help you not only find the motivation you need to show up, but also cause you to associate more positive feelings with the gym in the future.
The challenge is a form of “Temptation Bundling.”
Willpower is Half Motivation
Willpower isn’t just willpower. Really, it’s a combined term for two aspects of a human trait:
1. The strength of a desire; and
2. The willingness and ability to actually perform a concrete action in furtherance of that desire
If you know absolutely nothing about math, but know that you’ll get $500 if you learn Trig by next year, you might learn it.
But if you know absolutely nothing about math, but you know that your first born will be killed if you can’t figure it out in the same time frame, the odds of you learning it are much higher.
It’s an oversimplification to chalk this all up to dopamine, but certainly it plays a role. Motivation is related to attention. And attention is related to things that matter to you. Like your first-born not being thrown into a river.
Stack the Deck in Your Favor
Things that matter to you can improve your willpower by increasing your attention, and therefore your motivation.
So make a conscious effort to make mundane things matter more. This is how you stack the deck in your favor.
It will help you in two different ways:
[1] Activation Energy. Increased attention provides the initial interest and activation energy you need to get started and get over initial hurdles.
[2] Habit FormationPerforming any activity will begin your brain on the journey of creating a habit. Doing it in an interested state will likely make it stick better. As they say, “Neurons that fire together, wire together.” Soon enough, you’ll enjoy a semi-automatic behavior, the familiarity of which will bring you comfort and joy. You just need a little help getting there.
Use Temptation Bundling
Temptation bundling is just one hack of many that you can use to increase your motivation, and thus, your willpower. Bundle an enjoyable activity with a less enjoyable one, and keep the association strict.
In order to do this effectively, you’ll have to know yourself.
For example, I love audiobooks, and I don’t have much of an attention span for television. I like certain shows, but I can’t focus on a show while exercising. You might experience the exact opposite.
If you LOVE a particular show, then ONLY watch that show at the gym. I personally do the same with audiobooks.
More Examples of Temptation Bundling for Fitness
Make a pact with a friend you don’t see often, but whose company you thoroughly enjoy. For the next three months, you are only going to hang out at the gym. This is you time.
Listen to your favorite audiobook only while exercising.
Watch your favorite TV show only while exercising.
Have a small piece of chocolate every time you exercise! And at no other time.
Splurge on cute gym clothes, so that whenever you are at the gym you feel like the hottest ticket
If you are motivated by physical challenges, then spend the first 2 minutes of your workout racing yourself on the treadmill and try to beat your old times.
Many people do these things without even realizing. Often, these are the people who experience the most success.
If you don’t do these things naturally, then it’s very important to be concrete in your temptation bundling rule and action.
The only person you are trying to help here is yourself, and a concrete behavior is what you need to get the habit formation going.
If you have any other tips and tricks, I’d love to hear. And I’d also love to hear how any of these tips work out for you.
Happy Bundling 🙂
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Serial. An award winning non-fiction murder mystery podcast. It tells a gripping true story over a series of episodes. You cannot stop listening.
If you haven’t heard it yet, then I have an idea. Start listening to it.
…..But only while you’re at the gym.
This idea occurred to me while listening to another podcast. It’s an episode of Freakonomics called “When willpower isn’t enough.” On this episode, guest Katherine Milkman talked about the concept of “Temptation Bundling.” Milkman is an assistant professor Wharton School at Penn. She has done some interesting research on motivation and choices.
Ok, so maybe Temptation Bundling is obvious. But it works. You can make terrible stuff slightly less terrible by bundling it with good stuff. It’s something many of us do without even noticing.
This challenge is basically just that. But it has the additional benefit of being concrete. So you can make a commitment to simply just do it.
be like Shia
The Challenge
If you don’t go to the gym because you simply hate going, then this is for you.
Don’t worry about what you do at the gym. Lift weights, do cardio, whatever. Who honestly cares?
You are more than welcome to go easy on yourself. The point is just to get moving.
Here’s the challenge:
Download the “Serial” Podcast
Pick at least twospecific days to go to the gym per week
Spend at least one hour at the gym per visit, listening to the podcast
You are NOT allowed to listen to the Podcast unless you’re at the gym
The challenge is over once you finish the first season.
If, after the challenge, you still hate the gym, then no bid deal. Your challenge is complete, and you did some good for your body.
If, on the other hand, you learn to love the gym, then YAY. Sometimes, it just takes a little bit of activation energy to get started. You’ll just have to try it and see 🙂
If you do this challenge, OR if you have another idea for a good podcast that might work, let me know.
Happy Gyming.
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Writing this post feels a bit like speaking at my own funeral. I love Diet Coke so much. Diet Coke is my friend.
But fuck Diet Coke, because it’s my greatest addiction.
But I love you Diet Coke. I was just playing. Come back 😥
Kicking the Habit
I’ve tried so many times to kick the habit. I failed, I succeeded, and failed.
I kid you not that I had serious withdrawals. If I didn’t drink Diet Coke by 1 PM, my lower back would start hurting. I would get a terrible headache. Wtf is that about.
An End to Extreme Approaches
I used to take an extreme approach to quitting the great Diet Coke. “Starting today,” my dumbass would say, “no Diet Coke for all of eternity.”
And by 1 PM my back would hurt. And by day three, you’d find me underneath an overpass, injecting Diet Coke directly into my thigh.
I’ve stopped taking this approach. Quitting my dearest friend is too hard.
Instead, when I want a Diet Coke, I just try to drink something else. And sometimes, just sometimes, I have a fucking Diet Coke. And it’s glorious.
Five Alternatives to Diet Coke
1. Water. Need I say more?
2. Green Tea. Usually, water doesn’t scratch the itch. And oddly enough, coffee doesn’t scratch the itch for me either. I’ve never been a huge tea drinker, but Green Tea somehow does the trick for me. And after substituting Green Tea for Diet Coke a few times, it actually became much easier. It’s a habit thing. If you don’t like Green Tea, maybe you’ll like Black Tea or one of those zesty orange flavored teas.
3. Coffee. Maybe coffee will work for you. Coffee is delicious, and it has health benefits. The coffee at my office is disgusting and burnt. It gives me heartburn. So choose a coffee that is not the coffee at my office.
4. Vitamin Water Zero. Ok so arguably this is just as terrible for you as Diet Coke. I don’t know, it probably is. But I find it less addicting. And I guess it has vitamins. So sometimes I just want a Diet Coke and I have a vitamin water instead. Then I don’t want Diet Coke anymore.
5. Crack. Sometimes, you need something a bit harder. Crack is probably equally addicting to Diet Coke, but you won’t find it at Duane Reade. Once you develop a full blown crack habit, your Diet Coke habit won’t seem so bad. It’s all about perspective.
I can’t remember if crack is one of those drugs that makes you skinny, but try it for yourself and let me know.
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I don’t take a strict “calories in-calories out” approach to weight loss or maintenance. Still – your overall caloric intake is important. Very important. Perhaps the most important factor in determining your overall body composition.
Even so, you don’t have to count calories to lose or maintain your weight. It just depends on the circumstances.
Full Disclosure: I Can’t NOT Count Calories.
I don‘t count calories anymore. But I did spend my entire life doing it. So now, at the tender age of 28, I can’t NOT count calories.
Sadly, I’ve become such an expert that I just do it subconsciously.
I can very accurately predict the calories in basically any food. And without thinking about it, I just always know how many calories I’ve had to eat on a given day.
I’m like a Calorie Rain Main.
The reason I tell you this? ..So that you take my advice on calories with a grain of salt.
Because after all, even though I DON’T count calories, I actually DO count calories. It’s like the 10,000 hour rule for fat people.
Sometimes, Counting Calories is Good.
Counting calories can be very helpful under the right circumstances. Specifically, counting calories might be a good idea if:
You’re a noob.
You eat lots of processed foods and carbs.
“Noobs” are people who don’t know much about nutrition. Being a noob is a good thing. It means you’ve actually enjoyed your life, instead of focusing on what you eat all day.
Still, Noobs might be a little confused. And not through any fault of their own. The basic nutrition facts we learned in school – well, they were wrong. Eating fat doesn’t make you fat, eating cereal for breakfast is probably a terrible idea, and yes – you can eat the egg yolk. Even if you have high cholesterol.
If you’re a noob, counting calories can help you become more mindful of what you are eating. This might lead to a greater awareness of how your diet might be less than ideal.
But be careful, noobs, lest you fall under the impression that caloric intake is all that matters. It’s part of a bigger picture.
…which brings us to processed foods.
People who eat lots of processed foods might also do well to count calories.
Two reasons:
1. Processed foods are less filling than whole foods, so your body might not be cueing you properly on when to stop eating;
2. Processed foods are often designed to be addictive, making it more likely you’ll overeat
Similarly, for some people, carbs have a tendency to increase your appetite and cause cravings. This is certainly my experience.
A Way Out
Read my blog post on how I eat, in general. I believe that for most people, a diet similar to mine will allow them to lose weight – even without exercise.
And yes, without counting calories!!
The keys are –
1. Crowding out poor choices with MANY veggies; and
2. Listening to your appetite
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I love hiking more than anything else in the whole world. I just want to be one with nature. And then I want to come home to all of my modern amenities and never look at nature again.
I hike because I desperately enjoy sitting on unfamiliar rocks.
But, seriously. Do it to lose weight.
But realistically speaking – who cares about nature? I, for one, haven’t stopped celebrating global warming since the moment Al Gore invented the internet.
Just look how sweaty my back is. I am definitely losing weight!
Hiking and the Deep Burn.
Hiking is fantastic because…
1. God gave you muscles. God gave you a variety of muscles. He wants you to roam this earth in sorrow and longing, constantly questioning his existence as well the purpose of your own. And he wants you to do this at various elevations.
Scrambling up and down hills engages a variety of muscle groups. This makes hiking a dynamic activity which brings you closer to God. Just ask a Rabbi and he will confirm that he has no idea what you’re talking about.
2. You can take pictures. Hiking is scenic. When hiking, take a picture and post it on social media. This will accomplish two things. First, it will let everyone else know how much better you are than them. And second, it will create a cherished memory of a time when you let everyone else know how much better you were than them.
Just check out this this glorious view.
3. It takes a while. When you hike, the time flies because you are among friends, invariably talking shit about all of your other friends. A weekly hike gives me the extended workout I need to allow me to eat as many french fries as I can find under my couch cushion.
Friends who hike together, talk shit together.
4. It’s Conducive to Planning. At the gym, it’s easy to fall behind. One bad day at work, and suddenly you’re six tacos deep instead of six squats deep. Hiking, on the other hand, is conducive to planning.
Plan to hike EVERY SINGLE SUNDAY beginning on March 1. Compile a list of hikes, and actually schedule them out with friends. You will be accountable because these specific hikes are now in your calendar.
5. It gives you something to talk about with fit people. Fit people love expending energy in various extraneous ways. So if you want to talk to a fit person, try bringing up the hike you did last week. If the person is truly fit, then he or she was probably doing the very same hike as you, and at the same exact time. Now the fit person is more likely to have sex with you.
6. It’s good for your physical and mental health. With the exception of that scary thing from The Little Shop of Horrors, being around plants is good for your mental and physical health.
And since most of the plants on earth will be dead soon, you should take in as much nature as you can, while you still can.
All of these plants will soon be dead.
7. Trail Mix.
Hiking is the only time when you are allowed to feel good about eating M&M’s. Don’t let this moment pass you by.
Downsides of Hiking
If you go hiking, you will probablyget lost or worse – eaten by a bear. In either event, it won’t be a particularly pleasant way to go.
But in case you’re still interested, I find many of my hikes here. You can also check out Meetup.com for hiking groups near you.
Happy Hiking 😀
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Yes, they’re both important. Blah blah blah. But I firmly believe that when it comes to weight loss, physical activity is secondary to food intake.
While it’s true that some people don’t move enough, it seems to me that many more people are reasonably active, and still experiencing issues with their weight. Perhaps I am biased because this was my personal experience – always overweight, and yet always quite active. But in any event, I’m not the only person who feels this way.
The typical Western diet is calorie dense.
In general, food is primary because while we are designed to want to eat until we’re full, we are also designed to eat foods that had a much lower caloric density than the foods we typically encounter today. Admittedly, we were also designed to work a bit harder for those foods (a factor in favor of exercise, I suppose).
Still, typical Western foods are so calorific that even a large amount of exercise won’t offset poor eating habits. And to make things worse, the caloric density of these foods is probably magnified by our general over-reliance on carbohydrates – the consumption of which tends to affect our metabolic state in favor of storage.
For some, exercise can increase appetite.
My advice to anyone, simply based on my own experience, would be to avoid starting caloric restriction and a workout regimen at the same time.
Of course, you have to know yourself. But in my experience, exercise increases my appetite noticeably. In fact, exercise has been shown to both increase or decrease your appetite depending on a number of factors.
In life, we expect clean and predictable answers. People will say “Oh you can never lose weight without exercising.” But that’s simply untrue, because the truth is much so much more complex than what some person put in a single news headline.
You can look at what scientific studies tell you, or you can sit down and mindfully examine your own life experience, incorporating what you pick up from the news as well. Our bodies and brains are unique, and in the end, what works for you depends on more factors than a scientific study can possible consider. You need to know yourself.
Consider – how did you get where you are now?
If you have a lot of weight to lose, maybe it’s time to consider this – what caused you to put on the weight in the first place? And be honest with yourself.
If you overeat often, you should probably deal with your eating habits before dealing with your physical activity. If you find it’s difficult to get full, then you want to begin opting for more veggies with every meal. Simply adding veggies may cause you to eat less of other more calorie dense foods. This was the case for me. Of course – I still exercise regularly for the health benefits.
On the other hand, if you’ve put on a pound or two each year slowly throughout the years with age – maybe you’ll do fine just adding enough activity to compensate for your slowing metabolism. Try it out, and see how it works for you.
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“Yes! I ate a whole slice of pizza and only gained seven pounds”
So you want to lose 30 pounds, am I right? Or 40 or 50?
Well you can do that. And probably in time for Spring, too. Definitely in time for Summer. Wouldn’t that be the most incredible thing? Just stop for a moment and imagine how sassy you’ll feel. Just imagine how quickly you’ll abandon your loser husband and kids.
Losing enough weight to abandon your entire family is well within your reach. In fact, I wish I could just burst through this computer screen right now and squeeze your face until you feel within your soul just how possible this is for you.
All you need to do is forget your ultimate goal. Wipe it completely from your mind. Instead, just “aim for eight.”
It’s not magic, it’s logic.
Losing 30 pounds is hard. Losing 40 pounds is the absolute worst. You just don’t need to embark on that kind of journey, because you’re probably not a murderer and therefore deserve some modicum of happiness in your life.
Losing 50 pounds is basically impossible. It’s so difficult that I’d rather get eaten by a shark. And yet I have lost 50 pounds, and more.
I would rather be inside this thing
But losing 8 pounds? That’s cake. Most people can do it in less than a month just by making small changes.
Here is the idea.
This is important. You can’t “aim for eight” in order to lose 30. You need to forget the 30 completely. Forget it at a cellular level. It is NOT your goal. Not now, not ever. Your goal is eight. It is always eight.
I can’t emphasize this enough. Because it’s not enough to simply forget your larger goal. You must actively banish it completely from your mind. It’s just not your goal, because your goal is to lose just eight pounds. Eight Eight Eight Eight Eight. Lose 8 pounds and then reevaluate. Chant it with me now “Eight Eight! Eight Eight! Eight and reevaluate!”
So – What is your sole mission on this earth?
To lose 8 pounds. And not starting tomorrow, not starting on Monday, starting right now. If you want to lose weight, then you start RIGHT NOW – the second you read this paragraph.
Your goal is now to lose 8 pounds. As quickly as you can, but in a healthy way.
What’s Next?
Once you lose eight pounds you have two rules:
1. You are PROHIBITED from losing more for a minimum of 1 or 2 weeks; and
2. You are PROHIBITED from gaining any weight back during this time. You hear me?
Not an an ounce. You are spending a minimum of one or two weeks maintaining your new sexy self. But it’s even better if you spend more time maintaining. You can maintain your 8 pound loss for a month or more if you want.
Why? Because you reached your goal. And now you can let your body and mind rest as for as long as you need.
A Note on Natural Fluctuations During the Maintenance Period
And now, excuse me as I contradict myself. Of course, natural fluctuations in weight happen – and for some women more than others.
And if you go from a strict eating regimen to a less strict regimen, you’ll probably gain some weight from water and glycogen.
Be reasonable, and be kind to yourself. But be mindful. You’ll know if you’re gaining ‘actual’ weight. Just try not to do it, but also not to lose. Because your body thinks it’s starving to death, and it wants a little break.
Re-evaluate
Maintenance period over.
Congrats. You lost eight pounds, and you’ve maintained it. Or maybe you gained a pound or two back.
No big deal. It’s been one or two weeks, but maybe you want to maintain for longer.
Because what’s your new goal? You guessed it. Aim for 8. You can do it the same way you did the first 8, or maybe try something completely new. Who cares? Just do it.
Wait, hold on. I’m confused. How much weight am I trying to lose?
Imagine a friend is curious about your diet. She asks you what your goal is. Do you say “Oh, well I just lost 8 pounds, and now I’d like to lose 20 more? ”
Hell no!
You say “Yep – I’m just trying to lose 8 pounds” And every time you lose 8, you win. Re-set. Game over.
What’s going to happen when you lose 8 pounds?
The first eight: You’re going to feel great. You’re going to feel as bright as the sun. You might go down one size. You’ll realize, “hey – it’s not so hard.” I could do this 3 more times.
The second eight: This is when you begin to feel like a new person. You’ve probably gone down one or two dress sizes.
Do this three times, and you’re down by 24 pounds. You won’t even realize how it happened so quickly.
Meanwhile, you’ll be establishing great habits. You won’t be stressing yourself. You won’t be setting insane expectations, and you won’t be simultaneously starving and working out at the gym. Instead, you’ll be giving your body what it wants and needs, because you’re only trying to lose a few pounds at most.
So aim for 8. I don’t care if you’re 20 pounds overweight, or 100 pounds overweight. Write it down today in lipstick on your bathroom mirror.
And when you reach that goal, you can re-evaluate.
Start today! Don’t wait until Monday! You can do it!!!
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This topic hits really close to home. I crave food the most when I am sad, stressed, nervous, made, or anxious. Basically it hits when I “just can’t deal”. For many years, emotional eating derailed me from succeeding on whatever diet plan I was on at the moment (we need to discuss the word diet at some point. I really hate that word. It’s a lifestyle change… once I realized the difference between diet and lifestyle change, my world changed).
Cortisol is a stress hormone that triggers cravings for foods that give immediate pleasure like high fat foods, foods that are salty and sweet. My go to foods were always pasta and breads and if I wasn’t home, man oh man, the most comforting food to me was Wendy’s #6- spicy chicken sandwich. Eating that food gave me such a temporary high. It reduced all my stress and made me feel like everything was ok in the world. But then I would get so mad at myself for eating those bad foods. What a vicious cycle from sadness and stress to anger and around and around we’d go.
Emotions are sometimes hard to control, BUT, we can control how we consume foods. I have my moments of weakness but not as bad as before and I definitely don’t beat myself up over it anymore because guilt is just another negative emotion.
Here are ways I’ve been able to help myself and I hope my experiences can help you too.
Know yourself. Know what sets you off and be prepared.
Example: Work stressors. Keep healthy, satisfying snacks around. I always make sure to have something laying around like nuts (I love Emerald’s 100 cal packs of Cocoa Roast Almonds), apples, bananas, protein bars, or my recent favorite, banana peanut butter sandwiches (see recipe below).
Find ways to cope.
Examples:
-Take your lunch break and go for a walk. Get the blood flowing, get some fresh air and relax. Enjoy the world around you.
-Keep a journal; sort out your thoughts, word vomit all over those pages!
When life gives you lemons, squeeze em into your morning water!
Let’s explore the benefits of lemon water, shall we?
Lemon water helps the process of eliminating waste products from the body easier. Isn’t being backed up in morning traffic bad enough? Don’t back dem bowels up also.
Your liver is asking to be saved after last night. I know what Thirsty Thursday is… Lemon aids your liver in releasing toxins.
It benefits the skin: helps to reduce fine lines and wrinkles. Where my ladies at?
Lemons help reduce inflammation. If you are planning to shovel your car out today, try preventing a sore throat by drinking a glass of warm water with lemon. #winterstormjonas
If you are a workout enthusiast, lemon water helps restore body salt and helps reduce joint inflammation.
Lemons are a good source of Vit C which is vital for a strong, functioning immune system.
Lemon contains potassium, potassium aids in brain function. Feed-your-brain!
Helps lower blood pressure, fight diabetes, and helps fight against eye problems.
I know some of you are just getting up…put down that cup of coffee and grab yourself some lemon water.
Fat Girls Fitness 