Is your body as healthy as you want it to be? Do you feel and move the way you want to over 50 years old?  If not, then I’ve got a step-by-step plan to get you into your best shape ever…

Best Shape Ever Step #1: Program Your Mind

Your mind is your number one ally when it comes to achieving your goals. However, until your mind has been programmed for success, it will do more to derail your efforts than to help you.

• Take a few moments each day to visualize yourself in the best health ever. Imagine how it feels to move the way you’ve always wanted to.
• Protect your mind from any negative self-talk. If a negative thought comes to mind, immediately reject it.
• You want to be a healthy size and more fit, and yet you think of yourself as out-of-shape and fat. Re-program your mind to think of yourself as fit and your right size, and you will be well on your way toward achieving your goal.
• Give up the belief that you can’t achieve the health you’ve always dreamed of. See it first in your mind, and then in the mirror.

Best Shape Ever Step #2: Conquer Your Fear

Change makes most of us nervous – even if it is a change in the right direction. You may not be consciously aware of the fear you have of getting into better shape. Until you conquer this fear, your better shape efforts will be blocked by self-sabotage.

Professional speaker and author, Anthony Robbins, has outlined three specific beliefs that you must have in order to conquer your fear and instantly create a lasting change.

• Believe that something MUST change. You can’t be wishy-washy about it. You can’t be considering it. You can’t even be pretty sure about it. You’ve got to be rock solid.
• Believe that YOU must change it. You can’t pass the buck of responsibility and expect to lose weight. It’s on your shoulders. Other people will prove to be great assets in your journey, but in the end, you are the one who is going to make it happen. You have to want this weight loss and better health enough to make it your personal mission.
• Believe you CAN change it. You may have failed in the past, but that doesn’t matter. When you put your mind to it, you’re able to do amazing things. Do you believe that you are capable of being in your best health ever? Once you own the belief that you can, you’ll be unstoppable.

Best Shape Ever Step #3: Lose Your Excuses

Your excuses for being out-of-shape are getting old. An excuse takes less immediate effort than an action, but in the long run, the action taker always has the advantage. Don’t allow excuses to ruin your life any longer.

• Don’t skip out on your responsibilities with excuses, instead expect more from yourself.
• Focus on the big reason why you want to improve your health. Make a list of the benefits you’ll enjoy once you achieve your goal and read them first thing each morning.
• Remember that you can only have two things in life: excuses or results. Which do you want?

Best Shape Ever Step #4: Strengthen Your Commitment

How many times have you tried to get in better shape, only to give up a week or two later? We live in a commitment-phobic world, so it’s no wonder that you routinely abandon your goals. If you truly want to lose weight, then your commitment to the process is a must.

• The margin between success and failure is bridged by your commitment. Don’t give up until your goal has been achieved.
• Treat exercise with the same importance as a work meeting or picking up your grandchildren, and you’ll never skip it at the last minute. Find three available 30-minute time slots in your schedule and mark them on your calendar. Now stick to your schedule.
• If you don’t give up, then you’ll never fail.

Best Shape Ever Step #5: Control Your Diet

If you consistently eat the wrong food, then your weight loss efforts will all be in vain. To put it bluntly, you need to stop eating junk. Processed foods, refined sugar, and high fructose corn syrup do not belong in your diet if you want to be in great shape. Cut these items out of your diet and replace them with real whole foods like lean meats, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and fruits.

• Don’t eat processed foods. Even though processed foods are accepted by our society, they contain tons of chemicals and empty calories that will make you sick and fat.
• Fat contains twice the caloric density of protein and carbohydrates, so make sure to limit the amount that you consume. Eat lots of lean proteins and wholesome carbohydrates from plants and whole grains.
• Vegetables, whole grains, fruits, nuts, and seeds are filled with fiber and antioxidants which are vital for healthy weight loss. Snack on these instead of packaged treats.

Best Shape Ever Step #6: Utilize Your Patience

It takes time to transform your body from unhealthy to fit, even though you want it to happen overnight. Remind yourself that it took time to put the weight on, so it will take time to take the weight off. When you find your patience wavering, or when you encounter a frustrating plateau, do the following:

• Review your goal. Is it specific and measurable? Is it small and attainable, rather than monumental? Focus on your goal when the going gets tough.
• Make each workout a new experience. Challenge your body with different resistance, new exercises and a varied pace.
• Remember that anyone can have one great workout, but that won’t get you into the best health you want. The only way to achieve your goal is by consistently exercising and eating right, plain and simple.

Best Shape Ever Step #7: Build Your Support

People who exercise alone are less challenged, less accountable and are more likely to fail. It makes sense. Who would rush to the gym if no one is was waiting for them? Who would push themselves if no one was paying attention? Exercising solo is a recipe for disaster.

• Find a workout partner who is in better health than you, or better yet, work with us, your local certified functional aging specialists, to guarantee your results.
• We’re passionate about seeing our over 50-year-olds achieve results — don’t waste your time, energy and effort on mistakes.
• When you start a program with us, you suddenly have the upper hand on weight loss. We’ll be in your corner, coaching you each step of the way, keeping you accountable to workouts and giving you that dose of encouragement when you need it most.

Get serious about your results and begin to move better, feel better and age actively getting in your best shape ever!

Call or email today to schedule your first workout. Not local, find a Certified Functional Aging Specialist near you TODAY. 

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I saw an infomercial the other day for a weight loss solution targeting the frustrated people who, “fail to see results from diet and exercise.” Had to scratch my head on that one.

When do diet and exercise fail?

This question is a trick, of course. Diet and exercise don’t fail.

The only way for diet and exercise not to work is if you fail to stick with it long enough for the results to show.

Plain and simple. End of story.

I’ve seen more clients over 50 years old than I can count, transform their bodies through the power of diet and exercise. Without surgery. Without gadgets. Without pills.

The real question to ask, when you’re not making progress towards your fat loss goal, is not why diet and exercise have failed you, but rather why have you not stuck with it?

How to stick with a diet and exercise plan

I will not downplay the hard work that goes into sticking with a diet and exercise plan, day-after-day, week-after-week, to achieve a healthy body transformation.

It takes dedication, focus, energy, determination and a stubborn refusal to quit.

Make no mistake about it: losing fat is hard work!

The hard work is why so many give up before experiencing the healthier body that they want to have.

So, you wonder, why are some people able to stick with the process long enough to transform their bodies while others jump ship after a few weeks?

Here are the four steps to sticking with diet and exercise for the long haul

1. Mentally and emotionally lock on to the idea of the new, healthier, you.

You can’t casually date the idea of transforming your body. Half-hearted is a noncommitting, no-strings-attached relationship – you’ve got to go all in, both mentally and emotionally.

Attach yourself to the idea of a brand new you; focus on how you will move better, feel better, and how life will improve once you achieve your healthier goals. The stronger your feelings and mental image become, the more likely you are to succeed.

2. Keep the game plan as simple as possible.

There is no need for fancy diet plans or complicated exercise movements when it comes to a smaller, healthier you. Keep your game plan as dull and boring as possible, even eating the same meals every day and exercising at the same time for the same length (with varying intensity), until your big goals are a new you.

Until your big healthy leap is in the NOW, stick with an uncomplicated game plan that works.

3. Expect the resistance.

It’s naïve to think that your body transformation journey will be all smooth sailing. Realistically you will run into resistance time and time again.

This resistance will come in the form of tempting cheat meals, tired muscles, lazy friends and waning motivation. But, most powerfully, the opposition will come from inside of you. It’s natural to resist change, and transforming your body to “healthy” is a big change. Plan for the waves of resistance. See it coming before it crashes over you, and you’ll be able to stand firm long enough for it to recede without hampering your progress.

4. Build in accountability.

Accountability is the most important step by far. It is essential for you to build accountability into your fail-proof healthy plan. A friend, a coach, or a mentor who has a vested interest in seeing you succeed will save you from throwing in the towel when things get tough.

As Functional Aging Specialists, a role that we fill for our clients is the accountability to keep them on their path to health and fitness with our support, instruction, and encouragement. We celebrate every healthy change, and every ounce of new confidence gained.

If you’re not yet one of our amazing clients, then today is the perfect day to begin!

Call or email us now to get started on your true body transformation story – and let’s show the world how diet and exercise DO work!

There are many complex reasons that make fat loss a challenge, reasons that go deeper than simply calories-in versus calories-out.

I’m talking about the life issues that get in the way of your success.

Here are 5 things that block fitness results along with the solutions to unlock your best body.

1. You are crazy busy.

Let’s face it, you work too much, commit yourself to too much and don’t even get enough sleep most of the time. The fast-paced way you live leaves you exhausted, stressed and hungry for comfort food. You even begin to feel too busy to take care of your health.

It’s time to reprioritize. Let go of your perfectionist standards and remove a few commitments from your schedule so that you are able to cook healthy meals, exercise and get a good night’s sleep. Remind yourself that taking care of your health is not a luxury—it’s a necessity.

2. You don’t want to wait for the good stuff.

Just as you wish to avoid pain, you are also an expert in seeking out pleasure—namely food. This served the cavemen well, but these days it ends up as extra pounds around your waist and thighs.

There’s good news: extra calories are not your only option to stimulate the pleasure center of your brain. Find an activity or two that make you smile and indulge in those regularly.

• A walk outside
• A good book
• A night out to the movies or theater
• A spa day

You can also retrain your brain to crave the pleasure of exercise-induced endorphins. Talk about weight gain kryptonite!

3. You don’t want to be bothered.

It’s in your DNA to avoid pain and seek out pleasure. Unfortunately, this works against you when trying to get fit. In your mind, it’s painful (or at least uncomfortable) to deny yourself the tasty food that you crave and to exert yourself with exercise.

There’s a simple way to work around this obstacle: Find something painful about being out of shape to motivate yourself towards healthy eating and exercise. Focus on the negative impact your current shape has on your health, self-esteem and lifestyle. Convince yourself that the pain of being out of shape is much greater than the discomfort of losing the fat.

4. You don’t deserve it.

I don’t agree with it, but you sure act like you don’t deserve to live the good life in the body of your dreams. Take a moment to think back on all the times you have self-sabotaged your weight loss efforts. If you don’t believe deep down that you are worthy, then you’ll never give yourself a chance at a fit body.

I believe that you deserve to have a healthy body—and I urge you to dig deep down to uncover why you don’t. Once you conquer your feelings of unworthiness, getting on an exercise and healthy eating plan will be easy.

Take the time to take care of yourself. You DO deserve it.

5. You are afraid.

You’re afraid to start because you just might fail, and wouldn’t that be embarrassing? You’re also afraid to start because you just might succeed, and change makes you uncomfortable – even if it’s change in the right direction.

When you decide to get fit you will need to go through a bunch of changes:

• New diet
• Exercise routine
• New Friends at the gym
• Clothes
• New self-image

Focus on all of the ways that shaping up will make your life better. Envision that better life everyday so that it goes from being new and scary to familiar and comfortable.

You’ve been working hard on your fitness game and it paid off. The pounds started to drop! And then one day your results stopped. You keep putting in the same effort without any sign of improvement.

You’ve hit a frustrating plateau.

Or have you? Before you blame a fitness plateau for your lack of results, let’s critically consider the following:

1. Your Diet: It’s human nature to begin to slip on your nutrition after a few weeks of stringent diligence. A small treat here, and a bite of something there, and before you know it you’ve fallen back into old eating habits. If your results have stopped then take the next few weeks to track your nutrition and hold yourself accountable for every bite.  There are several apps you can use to track you diet and exercise efforts to hold yourself accountable.  Some of our favorites include My Coach by Coach Catalyst and My Fitness Pal.

2. Your Workouts: If your nutrition has truly stayed on point then your workouts could be the problem. Are you slacking on the final few reps? Have you reduced your overall intensity in the gym? Did you skip a few sessions last week? Before you blame a plateau for your reduced results, take a really hard look at your effort in the gym. Rededicate yourself to pushing as hard as you can.  Remember to challenge yourself with every workout.  When lifting weights, count how many reps you’re able to do in the 30 second period.  If you’re able to do more than 15, it’s time to increase the resistance.

Interested in doing the same workouts we do everyday with our clients? Now you can! Purchase our Workout of the Day Program.​

3. Your Sleep: This is a tough one for so many people, but you simply must be getting adequate sleep in order to lose fat and develop muscle. Your body needs close to eight hours of sleep each night in order to recover from your workouts and to maintain balanced hormone levels. Going to bed and getting up at approximately the same time every night helps to reset your body’s natural circadian rhythm. Getting an adequate amount of sleep is vitally important to your fitness results.

If you have tackled the three steps above and still don’t see the number on your scale moving in the right direction, then move on to these next plateau-busting steps…

4. Track Your Efforts: It’s time to get meticulous with tracking your fitness efforts, from exactly what your workouts consist of, to exactly what and when you eat in order to constantly improve. Make it your goal to outdo yourself every day. If you’re constantly performing better today than you were yesterday, then your plateau will quickly become a distant memory.

5. Track Your Results: Simply checking your weight on the scale is not a thorough enough measurement for your progress. Start tracking additional metrics for change. Take your measurements. Use a scale like our OMRON scale to test your body fat. Take pictures of yourself weekly. It’s important to be fully aware of how your body is changing as a whole unit, not just the number on the scale. You may be surprised to find that your body fat has been dropping while your weight has stayed the same.

Need additional strategies on breaking through your fitness plateau? Together we will get you on a program that will melt fat and expose shape and definition. Call us TODAY!

You realize that you want to lose the weight and to get into phenomenal shape. Believe that your health is important to you, and that you want to improve the quality of your life through diet and exercise. You feel that this time it will be different, that this time the changes will stick and you’ll become the best version of yourself.

Starting out with great intentions and high expectations, the first few days go well. You’re making the time to exercise and eating vegetables and proteins. You’re avoiding sugar, packaged snacks, and soda.

After day 3, you step on the scale and find that the number has gone down! You’re making progress towards your goal and that feels good.

The next day something unexpected happens. You catch a cold. It would only aggravate your illness to exercise in this condition, so you wisely take the day off. That night you find yourself eating comfort food for dinner. You are feeling sick, so it seems justified.

A week later you think about returning to the gym, but your cousin is graduating from the police academy and there’s a family celebration. A slice of graduation cake later, and you’re in no condition to exercise. As your insulin levels soar and your energy dips, you tell yourself that tomorrow is the day that you get back on track.

Unexpected Turns

Tomorrow brings with it more unexpected turns, pushing your healthy lifestyle just out of reach.

There’s a very simple reason for this phenomenon: If you’re looking for an excuse the universe will provide you with one. Every. Single. Time.

But I’m not looking for an excuse. Those things were out of my control. I wanted to stick with the program, but I caught a cold and then life got busy.

If someone offered you a million dollars to stick with your diet and exercise program for 6 months could you do it?

You bet you could! And you’d probably even do it for 100 thousand dollars.

This means that if you had a great enough incentive then you’d stick with your program and get results. So right now the incentive, the motive, the desire just isn’t great enough to protect you against all of the excuses that the universe has to throw at you.

Find your incentive. Results will follow.