blacKandi Fitness

I originally posted this on my Spark Page because I get a lot of PMs from people asking me how I lost the weight and how my waist got so small. So here are my secrets…

Sorry to burst your bubble, but I have no secrets. To lose the weight and to become fit, you already know what to do. You’ve heard it ALL before and I’m going to run it down for you again.

1. Time to change. Make your mind up once and for all that you are ready and will focus on becoming a better and healthier you. This starts in your brain. You have to want to change in order to become successful. Keep on doing the same ‘ole stuff you’re doing and you will keep on getting the same ‘ole results you keep on getting!

2. Get serious and come up with a plan. And when I say that I mean you should be at a point where you are sick and tired of being big and out of shape. Making up a plan isn’t hard at all. What you should do first is look at the way you’re eating. You know what’s good and you know what’s bad. It’s just like knowing right from wrong. You can be good to yourself by doing the right things for yourself.

3. Fitness is GOLD. As a beginner you’re most likely not going to know where to start so what can do is buy a beginner cardio workout DVD and do that while researching a program that is right for you. There are loads of teams here on the Spark and when you find the right one for you then get to it. You can do several programs at a time, whatever makes you happy.

4. Push yourself/Motivation. You must stay on track…eating and working out wise. When you don’t, you only fail yourself.

5 Make the most out of your workout. Each time you go to work out, make every minute count and push yourself further and further each time you workout. Your body and mind will thank you for it.

6. Educate yourself. Refer to fitness books, websites, teams on Spark, etc. to get information to improve yourself. Learn about the different muscle groups, learn about nutrition amongst other things. It’s fun to do and you’re learning at the same time.

7. Track your progress. Yes, write down everything you eat and count calories. Some people say not to count calories, but I say do it because in order to lose weight you need to know how many calories are going in and how many you need to burn. So if you know how many calories you are consuming you will know how many to burn off. Also track your fitness and numbers so that you will know what you did last time and how far to push yourself the next time. If you run into a problem, let’s say a “plateau”, how will you be able to go back to see what you’ve been doing all this time to remedy the problem? You must know what you’re putting into your body, how you’re feeling everyday, know what exercises you are doing, how much weight you are lifting, etc. becaue you will need to make adjustments to your overall program as you become more fit and stronger. It only makes sense.

8. Not a gym person? I’m not either. I have a home gym and it’s quite small, most of my equipment is used and it could be better, but it’s mine. People say they don’t have space for this and that? Well, I think it’s time for a little spring cleaning EARLY. Get rid of the junk and clutter out of your house and either put it up for sale on Craigslist or give it away on Freecycle or sell it on Ebay to make room for the rest of your life.

What things should you have in your home gym when you don’t have a lot of space? A small stationary bike for cardio, a compact (folding incline) work bench, dumbells (different weights) and small rack, a full size mirror you can hang on the wall (to watch your form), workout gloves, stability ball, workout mat, a stop watch, a radio (an MP3 player is better) and a tv/dvd player near by and workout DVDs, reference books and inspiration pictures/collage. Some optional stuff can be a medicine ball, a heart rate monitor, resistance bands (if you don’t want to use weights, but sometimes you will want to alternate), a step, a poster of the muscles groups, in the body, sculpting bar, barbell, a treadmill or elliptical machine.

9. Effective Cardio Exercises: Jumping Jacks, Jump Rope, Running and Swimming because they are all high intensity and it uses your weight in order to get your heart rate up. These exercises are more effective than using a stationary bike or an elliptical machine. You want to move your lower and upper body in order to burn more calories.

10. What do you eat? Well, you need at least two servings of protein, two to three servings of fruit, two the three servings of dairy or veggies at leaset two to three servings of fiber in your diet. Limit your fat and sugar intake. Keep yourself hydrated with water, green tea, zero calorie Gatorade (or any other brand) or sweeten with Splenda if you don’t like plain water. You know right from wrong. If you’re having a problem figuring out what to eat then find a successful person on the spark and check out their nutrition tracker to get ideas. I do it all the time!

Added 12/16/08 — Somebody asked me a good question today…

*******NO YOU CANNOT EAT WHATEVER YOU WANT, PORTION IT OUT AND THINK YOU’RE GOING TO DROP WEIGHT? IF YOU THINK SO, TRY IT AND YOU WILL SEE THAT IT WILL TAKE A LOT OF TIME TO DO SO…time we don’t have to waste. Eat responsibly and with common sense. Trade that half a cheeseburger in for a turkey and cheese sandwich on 100% whole wheat bread!

Added 12/22/08 — Pick and choose your demons!

Dieting for the purpose of losing weight and becoming healthy is not as enjoyable as indulging in let’s say a massive, very high in calories dinner plate at the OLIVE GARDEN, but who cares! To overall feel and look your best you must eat whole foods and yes, you can jazz your meals up with spices of your choice.

LEAVE THE HEAVY SAUCES AND OILS OUT OF IT.

Nobody likes to diet so don’t…all you need to do is consume protein, GOOD CARBS and GOOD fats. Sounds like The South Beach Diet Phase 1 right? Well, it’s the proper way to eat and if you do a search on healthy eating you WILL come up with this list so here goes…pick one protein from the list and build your meal by picking two sides from the good carbs and a good fat from the lists below and there is your healthy and tasty meal — EASY. Want to drop pounds naturally and inexpensively and non-scammingly (is that a word???)? Then this is the only way to go.

Start planning your meals out a week in advance. It will help to keep you on track.

*PROTEIN

chicken (breast meat only)
fish
seafood
eggs
cottage cheese
beef (lean cuts)
whey protein
tofu

**GOOD CARBS

fruits
vegetables
beans (also a protein, but it is also considered a carb too)
100% whole wheat pasta (not to be confused with just “whole wheat”)
brown rice or wild rice
whole grain breads (rye or 100% whole wheat)
sweet potato (small or medium, baked)

***GOOD FATS (remember to portion)

olive oil (2 TBSP per serving)
EFAs
avocado (1/3 of a whole)
nuts
cheese (low-fat)
peanut butter (natural)

I GRABBED THE ABOVE LIST FROM MY FAVORITE FITNESS BLOG on the web at www.stumptuous.com (Blog Owner: Krista)!

11. Giving up and excuses. This is a big pet peeve of mine. It’s simply not an option and I don’t feel sorry for those who give up and can help it. If you can’t help it then I will feel bad for you, but there are 700lb. people out there who are taking it day by day, doing the exercises they can do and eating the right way to get the weight off. Remember, you control what you put into your mouth and control your own activity. When you cannot cope anymore and want to give up or something isn’t working out for you it’s one of three things as to why you’re having a bad time and it’s because:

a. you’re either eating stuff you have no business eating

b. not exercising or not exercising to your fullest potential (not burning enough calories)

c. you’re eating whatever you want AND not exercising

Lastly, Save the sob stories because not even you want to hear them. There is no room for negativity here. It’s easy to gain the weight, but it is hard to get rid of it and that’s just the reality of it.

12. It takes time. Yes, if you take it week by week and stay on your grind the pounds will roll right off. I know this is true because so far, I’ve been doing this for 21 weeks and I’m done 45lbs. It feels good. I look back over my notes and I see the numbers going down and I get so proud of me. When you’re happy about yourself then others become happy about you and it gives you motivation to keep up the good work.

13. Success. It only comes to those who work hard for it and make a habit of achieving their goals…so go from start to finish even if it kills you.