Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Being Fat... It Happens

Hey healthy people! It's been awhile, I know, but I'm finally back with a new blog post. :) So let's get straight to it! The subject of this post is an important one that I think should be discussed.

I, and other health conscious people, talk a lot about exercising, eating healthy and being fit, but I think sometimes the average person might get the impression that I, and others like me, think it's wrong or shameful to be "fat". (I use that word "fat" in quotes because I don't mean to offend anyone with my use of the word but this is the word we, as a society, use to describe very overweight or obese people.) And I know that for some people who still consider themselves to be "fat", this can be discouraging. Well, I'm here to tell you that being fat happens. And it's nothing to be ashamed of. It happened to me, it's happened to countless of other people, and it may be happening to you right now! The most important thing is that I didn't stay fat and you don't have to either! I made the decision to change, and I'm assuming you, since you're reading this right now, have made the decision to change as well. And whether you've already met your goal or still making moves to achieve it, YOU HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO BE ASHAMED OF.


Now don't get me wrong, I'm not proud that I allowed myself to get so out of control that I got up to 229 lbs. Yes, I said it, I was once 229 lbs! But I am proud that I made the decision to change my life and I am most definitely proud of all that I've accomplished. And if you're not there yet, you will get there, so don't get discouraged and don't give up! Like I said before, being fat happens. Living in a society where there are more sit down jobs and fast food places than ever, and just an overall abundance of food, being fat at one point in our lives is kinda' inevitable. Don't feel bad if things have gotten out of control. All you need to do is first come to the realization, that yes, I am overweight, secondly, decide that I really do want to change this, and finally, START MAKING CHANGES. Don't just talk about it, BE ABOUT IT!

Being fat happens, it's nothing to feel bad about it, the most important thing is not staying fat forever.


Hope this encourages someone! Stay strong guys!
- Jonelle -

Thursday, June 7, 2012

STAY READY!

"If you stay ready, you don't have to get ready."
Unknown


Okay, peeps, this post is going to be short & sweet, so let me get straight to the point. This is gonna' be a little tough love for some of you, but hey, sometimes you need to hear things that you don't necessarily want to hear, so here goes!

You wanna' know what's a pet peeve of mine when it comes to some people and their attitude about health & fitness? Most people refuse to accept the fact that in order to lose weight and/or stay fit, you have to make a LIFESTYLE CHANGE. That's right, I said it, a lifestyle change, not a "diet". The word "diet" is defined in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as "a : food and drink regularly provided or consumed, b : habitual nourishment, c : the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason, d : a regimen of eating and drinking sparingly so as to reduce one's weight." Notice that nowhere in any of those definitions does it mention the word "temporary", but most people have come to believe that a "diet" is a temporary thing and treat it as such. So once their weight loss or fitness goal is met, they go right back to eating and behaving as they did before. 2 or 3 months down the line, all of the weight that they lost has come back, plus more. Does the following sound familiar? A special event comes up, say a friend's wedding, you decide you gotta' lose 10 lbs for that, you lose the weight, off the "diet" you go... you gain 20lbs... it's now June, gotta get beach ready so time to lose the weight again... and the cycle just goes on and on, with you gaining & losing, losing & gaining... it's a vicious cycle of yo-yo dieting with no real end.

My response to all of that foolishness? A saying I heard a few years ago that totally applies: "IF YOU STAY READY, YOU DON'T HAVE TO GET READY." As I said before, this is a lifestyle change. If you make eating healthy and exercising your way of life, you won't have to worry about losing weight for a particular event or time of year, you'll always be ready! Do you know how much pressure & stress that would take off you? I don't mean to sound "holier than thou" because I am in no means not guilty of the "diet" way of thinking at an earlier time in my life, but I now know better, and once you know better you should do better, right? So if you are reading this right now, it's time for you to do better, too! STAY READY!