Ready, Set ... Let Me Eat This Cookie First

A lot of people have commented either here or to me in person that they enjoy how real this blog is. So I would like to get real again; I have been seeing a therapist for food addiction. It has been a wonderful and a humbling experience and I have learned a lot and I hope that the tips I have been given can help some of you too. But let me be clear - THIS BLOG WILL NEVER BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL HELP!  

One helpful tool is the Stages of Change Cylce (Prochaska JO, DiClemente CC, Norcross JC. In search of how people change. Am Psychol. 1992;47:1102–4.). You may have heard of this:

Precontemplation: You are in denial, feel helpless, or just not interested in changing. I was there while I was pregnant and for the past three months before restarting this blog. 

Contemplation: You realize that you need to do something but are not ready to make the changes. This is where I hear potential clients say, "Yes, I'd like to work with you but let me get on a program for a few weeks first." If you are in this phase and have those thoughts. Go ahead and commit to seeing the trainer or counselor you hope to see in the Preparation and Action phases. They can help get you excited about the next phase and make effective plans so you don't spend the first few weeks of your program frustrated.

Preparation: You make your plans and begin to implement them. I was in this stage for pretty much all of July. This is where we get the title of this post. I start the plan, get to the weekend, eat something that I'm 'not supposed to eat', then I decide that I should just start on Monday. You'll ALWAYS be ready on Monday... Actually maybe the first of next month... Oh wait, that's not a Monday. I'll start the Monday after that.

Action: Here we are! Making changes.

Maintenance: If you stay in the action stage long enough, here is where you end up. This is not the same as the stage right after you reach your goal. It is the maintenance of your BEHAVIORS. You begin to see steady progress during this phase.

Relapse: All of these are very important to know and talk about but this is the one I would like to highlight right now. Relapse is a part of the Cylce and is not a failure. It serves a very important purpose. Each time you relapse, you learn something. The trick is to recognize the relapse for what it is:  just a part of the process. Then try to take whatever lesson you need from that relapse. 

This is so important for you All-Or-Nothingers; you will probably let your guard down and eat something you werent't "supposed" to eat You might get sick and not be able to work out for a week. Something is likely going to throw you off of your game. The sooner you come to terms with that fact, the sooner you can be okay with it. When you do stumble into old habits (and it's likely you will), the sooner you recognize what is going on the sooner you can get over it and move on. 

So next time you find yourself struggling with your goal, try to determine which Stage you are in and how you can progress to the next. The more mindful of where you are in these Stages, the quicker you can progress.

For more information on the Stages of Change and how to move from stage to stage, try visiting http://www.aafp.org/afp/2000/0301/p1409.html (A ‘Stages of Change’ Approach to Helping Patients Change Behavior GRETCHEN L. ZIMMERMAN, PSY.D., CYNTHIA G. OLSEN, M.D., and MICHAEL F. BOSWORTH, D.O., Wright State University School of Medicine, Dayton, Ohio Am Fam Physician. 2000 Mar 1;61(5):1409-1416.)

The Secret

My story is pretty common to a lot of my clients and a lot of my readers: I lose weight, feel successful, celebrate a little bit... Then a little more... Then a lot more... And then I am back to my previous weight or higher. Each time I am sure I feel less and less certain that I will ever actually reach my goal. Right now I feel like, if I can't do this for myself, I at least owe it to show those clients and readers who share my struggle that the cycle CAN be broken. 

So what is the answer?

It is not that you don't know enough. I struggle daily with this and I have a degree in Exercise Science and two national certifications. I have worked in fitness for over ten years now and have been able to get multiple OTHER people to their goals so I must know something. You probably do too if you have tried losing weight in the past and had a measure of success. I promise you that there is no little nugget or tip you just haven't stumbled across yet that will change the game completely. It is not on Pinterest, it is not in another fitness blog, and it is not going to pop up in a magazine somewhere. Searching for it is going to be a waste of time. 

It isn't your motivation either. What is the problem with relying on motivation? Well, it is extremely fluid, I could feel ready and willing one second and want to go to sleep the next. 

So what else is there? This probably sounds fairly hopeless. Maybe not. 

I was on vacation at a condo rental last month where multiple families often stay during the year. Things are often left there including books. I was bored and decided to rummage for a book to read. I found a book called "Running with Angels" by Pamela H. Hansen. It is an autobiographical chronicle of on woman's journey to battle obesity after having some of heartbreaking tragedies. Her struggles with weight loss were similar to my own and I wondered what finally motivated her to lose the weight and keep it off for good. Perhaps if I knew what gave her that final piece to her puzzle maybe I could use it to motivate myself to do it once and for all. 

Then she said it: (I am paraphrasing) You don't need to be motivated, just follow a plan. 

WHAT?!?!?!? Most if what I do revolves around trying to get clients motivated. Then I thought about what my most successful clients have all had in common. It was not the specific plan that they used or the number of times they were in the gym (though they all met with me at least twice a week). What they all had in common was a six month or longer commitment to do the same thing. The two most successful clients I have ever had met with me three times a week and committed to a year of their individual programs. Their program / plan was just part of what they did. 

So there you have it: COMMITMENT, ACCOUNTABILITY, and CONSISTENCY. Find a plan that you are 100% positive you can commit to for AT LEAST six months. If you can't stick with it that long, it is definitely not going to become a lifestyle. If it isn't a lifestyle, then you won't maintain your progress. Make sure there is some way you can keep accountable for that commitment (calendars, friends, logging, personal trainers, etc.) and then make it a consistent part of your life.

So here's what I am doing: I am logging my food. I know that I can't commit to anything that takes away my chocolate. So I have a plan that incorporates chocolate and other yummy treats. Maybe in the future I can find a way to limit those more to make sure I am eating clean but I am not there yet. Then I am blogging at least twice a week (I hope) for accountability. Finally, I am committing to at least a year. 

Feel free to let me know what you guys are planning to commit to, how you will be accountable, and how long you have decided to commit!

Postpartum Transformation PT 2

For those of you who followed me last time, you know that I haven't posted in a while. The truth is, I went back to my old eating habits, gained all the weight back, then got pregnant again and kind of gave up. For those of you who may be new, let me introduce myself:

My name is Kerri Moore and I have two wonderful children. I am a personal trainer, I have a bachelor's degree in exercise science, two national certifications, and a third-degree black belt. I could be considered by many as a fitness expert.

... And I'm fat.

Okay, I can virtually hear a bunch of my friends yelling nice things into their computers to make me feel better. Thanks for that. But I can't ignore the fact that I have too much body fat and something needs to be done about it. I have had this issue on and off since I was at least 14. I've been on just about every diet out there and have gotten pretty darn close to my goal. Inevitably, though, I end up back where I started. I'm starting to feel like my weight is sheep's fleece. I shear it regularly and then it grows back within a season.

Now I am at my heaviest ever (non-pregnant). My son is 3-months old and I turned 28 last week. I want to get to my goal now more than ever but I am farther from it and I've gone through this cycle so many times it's hard to believe that it is possible.

Yesterday I logged all of my food, got a really great workout in, and felt great about my day. My husband came home from work and declared that he'd had similar success. We looked at each other and said, "This is it. We are going to do it this time." It is a feeling I have only had a few times in my life. Like when I met my husband for the first time and thought, 'Wow, I think this guy is going to be pretty important to me.' We are feeling great about our goals and we are on the exact same page (how often does THAT spontaneously happen?!).

So here we go! I will be back regularly to talk about my progress. I was hoping to do a video blog but can't find time to get it right or find quiet moments to talk without the kids interrupting so we might have to wait on that. But I can't wait any longer to start making and documenting my changes. So here is what you can expect from me:

• I will blog much more regularly (twice to three times a week - usually at night)
• I will be chronicling my transformation
• I will be describing my plans and the program I am following
• I will be giving tips, opinions, and reviews on weight loss research, news and products (please let me know if there is anything you would like me to check out!)

I hope to make this much more of an interactive experience so feel free to share with others and ask questions or make comments. I'd love to hear from you!

Day 1

8/1/16 : 197 lbs