My TWO daily secrets on "How I've Maintained My Weight” my entire life.

Before I begin telling you how Ive managed my weight my whole life and even now during peri-menopause, I want to start by saying, Im not writing about this subject because I want to brag to you. I want to share with you my health and wellness secrets, so to speak, because there are two things I do everyday that helps me stay in shape and maintain my weight. And obviously it’s worked so read on if you want to find out!

OK, let’s begin by closing your eyes and picturing your ideal physical self. Yes, I said your physical self. Why not the WHOLE self? Because, let’s be real here folks, our appearance is very important to us, am I wrong? It’s kinda shoved in our faces on a daily basis to always look and feel our best with everything out there on social media. Not that all of you are influenced to look a certain way, but looking good IS a thing, we are humans, its only natural to want to look good. But I digress! I’ll speak from my own experience.

Ever since I was a teenager, I was obsessed with my body and how it looked. Probably because I was always active and I felt a strong desire to be “fit” which meant I wanted to look fit too. I could just stop writing this blog right now, and say, “well friends, the secret to maintaining your fitness and weight for a lifetime, is to be slightly obsessed with the way you look and feel. “ Now, Im going to say this, there is definitely some truth to this statement. Because, I have to be honest with you, I still am obsessed with the way I look and feel aaaaaand Im the same weight Ive been my whole life! Im actually fitter then Ive ever been in my whole life too. Anyway, my mentality since my early teens, was that I never wanted to be unfit and Ive never wanted to “LOOK” unfit. This may sound like I have some underlining self body images issues, and yes there may also be some truth to that too. (We’ll save that for another blog topic!) I will say underneath some of the body image obsession, that I genuinely love love love the FEEL of being fit and strong! And I cannot imagine my life without fitness or a healthy diet. I just love the way I feel with the lifestyle I chose. Ok so you’re probably thinking right now, that’s great Deanna, hooray for you on being so dedicated to your healthy lifestyle. BRAVO! How the F*** do I gain that SAME mentality around healthy living?

Ladies and gentlemen, here it is. Daily secret #1, is to shift your mindset. Tell yourself, to get out there today and everyday and make it f**** happen! That’s it. That’s all. It doesn’t matter if its a jog, a 30 min weight training session, a Bar Method™️ Class, a 20 minute walk, 10 push ups day, squats, jumping jacks, you get the point. DO SOMETHING GOOD FOR YOUR BODY EVERY SINGLE DAY! Move just a little each day. Take the stairs, park your car further from the grocery store entrance, go hiking with a friend. Okay, yes Im beating a dead horse, but it’s really that simple. You get what Im saying right? The secret is, there’s no secret. It’s a mindset. It’s a way of life.

OK! Now onto the nutrition side of things, because fitness isn’t the only part of the equation. What to eat, when to eat, and how much is crucial for weight maintenance. But this is where I think things get skewed. There are soooo many nutrition programs out there, it’s just damn confusing. Do you choose Paleo? Vegan? South Beach? Do you count calories? No carb? Low carb? Only eat carbs in the morning? Do you do intermittent fasting? BAAAAAH! So many options to choose from when it comes to eating healthy and mindfully.

If any of you have been on a “diet” before, you know how that journey went. You made a choice to start the diet on a Monday or after vacation, you started the diet, and by day 7 or day 30 you were off the diet. Diet’s do not work!! It’s an on or off plan. It doesn’t work psychologically to OMIT something completely from your diet unless you are downing 6 cans of soda a day. So without lecturing you anymore, here’s my expert opinion; learn how to eat intuitively. What the heck does that mean? It means, know WHEN to eat carbs,(and what kind of carbs) when and when NOT to drink alcohol, keep sugar intake below 25g a day, and learn portion control.

For those of you that know me, you know I do not subscribe to the no carb diet and I never will because we need them! Especially women! I just learned how to eat them and when. Food timing is also critical and of course food selection along with portion size are all important for weight maintenance goals. In my opinion, THE best resource for carb selection comes from the Glycemic Index Chart, a system that ranks foods on a scale from 1 to 100 based on their effect on blood-sugar levels. I created a FREE Glycemic Index Cheat Sheet for you to use as a reference which you can get HERE!

So let’s reflect back on how to maintain your body weight; one is to eat intuitively, and the other is to shift your daily mindset. If you can conquer these two habits, then you will succeed.

I hope this brief summary of how Ive been able to maintain my weight all of these years, gave you some new insight on how you can grasp this new healthy mindset. Now that Im in my mid 40’s it’s even more important to maintain a stable weight. Hormone fluctuations are a real thing and they can affect your overall well being on so many levels. Men, you have hormone imbalances too, just not as extreme as us. One major hormone that affects us all if it is imbalanced, is cortisol. It will affect everyone’s weight if not under control and as we age. So if you’re struggling to maintain your weight and need some guidance, let’s have a chat, sign up for your FREE fitness discovery call! Id love to help!

High five’s and yay’s are my jam!

xx

Deanna B, NASM Personal Trainer

Fitness Coach/ Online Fitness / Fitness Nutrition