Visit Kathy at Vodka & Soda / Twitter / Instagram
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Hello amazing readers of Life According to Steph! I’m Kathy
and I blog over at Vodka and Soda. I’m a
38 year old mother to an adorable and brilliant 5 year old, a total geek at
heart (I work in the IT industry) and an avid lover of all things health and
fitness. Today, Steph was crazy enough
to let me take over this space so we’re going to talk about something that
gives me a major boner – fitness. Listen
up fast because I’m about to impart some mad wisdom in your faces.
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It’s the end of January and a lot of people have started weight
loss challenges or making positive changes in their lives. All of this – whether you’re a newbie or a
guru – is awesome because any change, no matter how small it is, can make a
difference. And here’s where I get on my
soapbox to say what needs to be said: All
that shit you read or hear on the TV/internet about this diet or that diet or
juicing or detoxing or whatever – IGNORE IT.
It’s nothing but dumb marketing schemes put out by marketing companies
who want nothing but to take your money.
Do not buy into their shit!
In my personal opinion (and experience), when it comes to
weight loss, we need to go back to the basics - no fancy blenders or juicers. No powders or meal replacements or
pills. No diets that cut out major food
groups or restrict food consumption. No
food that comes out of a box, bag or can - just the basic stuff: fresh, wholesome food and exercise. That’s it.
There is no magic behind weight loss. Nothing that any
marketing company can put out on the shelf will make you accelerate or burn fat
any faster than your body will allow which is why I say to avoid all those fad
diets and crazy machines – your body will burn fat if you return to the basics,
make the right choices and exercise. All
you need to do start and then give it time to work.
And carbs – what is with all the demonizing of
carbohydrates? Time and time again, I
read about women cutting out carbs because “that’s the reason i can’t lose
weight.” This is one of the biggest
misconceptions of all! Carbs are NOT the reason why you can’t lose weight – bad
choices are the reasons why one can’t lose weight. Yes,
carbs are caloric dense but are also is a great source of energy. Cutting out carbs will do nothing but make
you feel tired, miserable and crazy. Our
bodies need carbohydrates to function so instead of eating the white, starchy
kinds, just select healthy alternatives like sweet potatoes, quinoa or whole
grains. Eat them in controlled portions, eat within your caloric range for
weight loss and you will lose inches and weight.
The biggest challenge for anyone wanting to lose weight is making the change; the starting point. You’re now changing the way you eat and
changing your daily routine which is instead of sitting on the couch, you get
up and exercise. Who said change is easy?
It’s not! Humans are naturally
resistant to change because it’s
different from what we do on a daily basis.
We also put too much pressure on ourselves to become fitness gurus or
healthy in a couple of weeks when
really, it takes at least a month to
feel and see the changes. Did you know
that it takes humans on average 4 weeks to form new habits? This means that we need to repeat an activity
at approximately the same time every day for at least 4 weeks in order for it
to become a habit. So give yourself a
break; if you’ve just started a healthy change or a new workout program, give
yourself time to adjust and adapt. Be
patient. Go back to the basics of clean
eating and exercise. Most of all,
remember that it’s not the outside that only counts but what’s happening on the
inside that counts most.
