I  spend many hours a week reading about the latest research on nutrition, fitness and other aspects of human thriving,  as well as talking to various experts on these subjects.  There’s no question that a good bit of the advice we are getting is complicated, conflicting and contradictory.  Furthermore, implementing some of the advice would require many of us to do an extensive, expensive, and time-consuming overhaul of our entire lives.  Here’s my point:  if you have the interest, willingness, time, and resources to do that — fabulous.  Many people do, or are moving in that direction.  Other people simply can’t, or won’t.

HOWEVER, just because you aren’t able or willing to convert to an all grass-fed meat diet, or give up animal products altogether, or stop using the microwave, or start going to CrossFit five times a week, or give up storing your food in plastic containers, or consume a diet of 100% organic food, or drink filtered water from Fiji exclusively, or give up grains, gluten, or sugar completely, etc. etc., doesn’t mean you can’t start to incorporate some foundational, fundamental changes into your lifestyle that (1) won’t even be too painful and (2) will yield some incredible results in terms of your physique, energy level, bloodwork profile, self-estemm, and overall sense of well-being.

When people ask me for advice or my opinions regarding how to improve their health, I always start by asking what their current concerns are and what they would like to be different.  Then I find out a little about their current habits and beliefs around nutrition and exercise, as well as what some of the greatest stressors are in their life (e.g. relationships, money, job satisfaction).

Next, I encourage people to start with the fundamentals, before they fret too much about the more granular aspects of optimal health.  Once they have the basics in place (such as doing some time of movement/exercise most days of the week, getting enough sleep, taking time each day just for themselves in quiet reflection, drinking enough water, minimizing sugar, processed foods and fast foods), then if they are willing to kick it up a notch, we start talking about the more esoteric aspects of health and well-being, which frankly are often more challenging, complex and quite possibly expensive to implement.

Long story short:  Don’t get frustrated and just give up because it’s all so overwhelming and sounds so stinkin’ hard and unfun.  Begin with some basic, doable fundamental steps, and then if you want, build from there.  Here’s a short video from Dr. Jade Teta at Metabolic Effect, in which he uses the analogy of “big rocks” to address the fundamentals of good health.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6mmBrQbuIs

Brene Brown on Research, Connection, Vulnerability and More

Anyway, Martha, with her ivy league education, is insightful, brave, funny, and oh so real — kind of like another favorite author of mine, Anne Lamott. Which reminds me, the world is full of emulatable (pretend it’s a real word) role models.  Why don’t we just let the gang from the Jersey shore and those Kardashians fade into oblivion, and spend our time, energy, and dollars with more worthy examples of humanity?

I wanted to share a bit of Martha with you.  If you’re already a fan, you’ll enjoy it.  If you’re not really familiar with her, it’s a little taste.  A longish taste.  In this piece she talks about the light and the dark of Steve Jobs, and what it might be like if we all found the cool kernel of Steve Jobsness within ourselves that is able to dismiss self-imposed limitations.  Here ya go.

——————————————-

Distort Your Reality
Welcome to what some are describing as the very last year ever. Not that we’re all going to die, I am told, just that according to the Mayans—or the Aztecs or the people at Burger King or wherever—time will cease to exist this year, and therefore the word “year” will become meaningless. Why the hell not? 

So, as long as we’ve still got time, let’s talk about how we can use it. I just finished the longish biography of the shortish life of Steve Jobs. I read it on my kindle for iPhone, which I carry everywhere in my purse, giving me access to hundreds of books anytime I find myself waiting in line or stuck in an airport. It was an odd experience of cognitive dissonance; I’d read about how Jobs refused to bathe, threw tantrums and objects, and stabbed friends in the back, and think, “What a jerk!” Then I would highlight a particularly striking passage, and think, “Oh, my gosh! When I touch the screen a little magnifying glass appears! This is the coolest thing!” And, of course, my iPhone would not exist if Steve Jobs had not done what he did. Computers would still belong mostly to hackers who would sit in their garages designing inelegant machines for other techno-geeks. 

One theme in Jobs’ life was what his associates called his “reality distortion field.” Jobs would demand that his engineers create impossible gadgets and designs. There were actually signs posted in the Apple offices saying, “Beware the reality distortion field.” Yet, when they were face-to-face with Jobs, even staring right at such a sign, people tended to forget their own limitations and believe that they could do what Jobs said they could. This begs the question, what was the real reality distortion at work? The fact is that most of the “impossible” things Jobs demanded were actually produced, though their creators had to work feverishly to create them. In other words, the reality all along was that they had this capability. Their conviction that they could not do extraordinary things was actually the distortion of reality. It made me feel much more forgiving of Steve Jobs eccentricities. Can you imagine how frustrating it would be to know something was possible and that your friends could do it, and to have every one of them denying the reality you knew?

So as the year begins, I’ve been thinking about my own reality distortion fields. Where is my mind attached to ideas of limitation that are in fact distorted version of reality? What wonderful devices or innovations could I create if I surrendered my preconceptions? I’ve found that within me, as within Steve Jobs, there is a sort of psychological pioneer. It wants to see wonderful things happen in the world and it assumes that my job is to make them happen. I don’t think I’m at Steve Jobs’ level by any means, but that lunatic fringe part of my consciousness behaves a bit like him. When I’m trying to master a new technology on my computer, or find a way to get through to a client who is truly locked in a destructive worldview, or find a way to help rehabilitate Earth’s ecosystems, I reach the emotional level of a two year old. I feel petulant, teary, and seized by a combination of intense desire and stubbornly persistent fear.

I suspect we all have this pioneer archetype within us, pushing us to achieve things we know for certain to be “impossible.” We tend to stay away from that portion of our awareness for the same reason many people steered clear of Steve Jobs. (What a jerk! What distortion of reality!) But as I look around me at the change that Jobs created in the world, I have come to believe that I must befriend this delusional whiny pioneer within me. My task is to access that part of myself without the loss of compassion or patience that interfered with Steve Jobs’ personal relationships. Can I go to the furthest limits of my imagination and figure out where my supposed limitations are actually distortions of reality? Can I hang on long enough to the “impossible dream” to see it become real? I’m not sure. But as my resolution of this last of all possible years, I am determined to try.

So what about you? Can you find the Steve Jobs aspect of yourself? Can you “distort” your reality by believing against all odds that you can do something spectacular? Try entering your reality distortion field long enough to achieve the impossible. Believe that one human being can transform everything. Work your heart out in the service of your most optimistic imagination and then go one step beyond even the genius of Steve Jobs by continuing to bathe regularly.

I recently read a blog post by Heidi Grant Halvorson that I find so relevant and useful that I wanted to share it in its entirety.  Dr. Halvorson’s bio appears at the end of this post, but I’ll tip you off ahead of time that she is considered an expert in motivation and success.  Her work appears in Harvard Business Review, Psychology Today, and Fast Company.

The information shared by Dr. Halvorson regarding change and success is not of the trite, “rah, rah you can do it!” variety, but instead is a highly straightforward and accessible synthesis of the current science and research that describes how people of all stripes are able to decide what they want, implement appropriate strategies and actions, and see their changes through to the desired outcome.  Enjoy.  ~kim

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Why have you been so successful in reaching some of your goals, but not others? If you aren’t sure, you are far from alone in your confusion. It turns out that even brilliant, highly accomplished people are pretty lousy when it comes to understanding why they succeed or fail. The intuitive answer — that you are born predisposed to certain talents and lacking in others — is really just one small piece of the puzzle. In fact, decades of research on achievement suggests that successful people reach their goals not simply because of who they are, but more often because of what they do.

1. Get specific. When you set yourself a goal, try to be as specific as possible. “Lose 5 pounds” is a better goal than “lose some weight,” because it gives you a clear idea of what success looks like. Knowing exactly what you want to achieve keeps you motivated until you get there. Also, think about the specific actions that need to be taken to reach your goal. Just promising you’ll “eat less” or “sleep more” is too vague — be clear and precise. “I’ll be in bed by 10pm on weeknights” leaves no room for doubt about what you need to do, and whether or not you’ve actually done it.

2. Seize the moment to act on your goals. Given how busy most of us are, and how many goals we are juggling at once, it’s not surprising that we routinely miss opportunities to act on a goal because we simply fail to notice them. Did you really have no time to work out today? No chance at any point to return that phone call? Achieving your goal means grabbing hold of these opportunities before they slip through your fingers.

To seize the moment, decide when and where you will take each action you want to take, in advance. Again, be as specific as possible (e.g., “If it’s Monday, Wednesday, or Friday, I’ll work out for 30 minutes before work.”) Studies show that this kind of planning will help your brain to detect and seize the opportunity when it arises, increasing your chances of success by roughly 300%.

3. Know exactly how far you have left to go. Achieving any goal also requires honest and regular monitoring of your progress — if not by others, then by you yourself. If you don’t know how well you are doing, you can’t adjust your behavior or your strategies accordingly. Check your progress frequently — weekly, or even daily, depending on the goal.

4. Be a realistic optimist. When you are setting a goal, by all means engage in lots of positive thinking about how likely you are to achieve it. Believing in your ability to succeed is enormously helpful for creating and sustaining your motivation. But whatever you do, don’t underestimate how difficult it will be to reach your goal. Most goals worth achieving require time, planning, effort, and persistence. Studies show that thinking things will come to you easily and effortlessly leaves you ill-prepared for the journey ahead, and significantly increases the odds of failure.

5. Focus on getting better, rather than being good. Believing you have the ability to reach your goals is important, but so is believing you can get the ability. Many of us believe that our intelligence, our personality, and our physical aptitudes are fixed — that no matter what we do, we won’t improve. As a result, we focus on goals that are all about proving ourselves, rather than developing and acquiring new skills.

Fortunately, decades of research suggest that the belief in fixed ability is completely wrong — abilities of all kinds are profoundly malleable. Embracing the fact that you can change will allow you to make better choices, and reach your fullest potential. People whose goals are about getting better, rather than being good, take difficulty in stride, and appreciate the journey as much as the destination.

6. Have grit. Grit is a willingness to commit to long-term goals, and to persist in the face of difficulty. Studies show that gritty people obtain more education in their lifetime, and earn higher college GPAs. Grit predicts which cadets will stick out their first grueling year at West Point. In fact, grit even predicts which round contestants will make it to at the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

The good news is, if you aren’t particularly gritty now, there is something you can do about it. People who lack grit more often than not believe that they just don’t have the innate abilities successful people have. If that describes your own thinking …. well, there’s no way to put this nicely: you are wrong. As I mentioned earlier, effort, planning, persistence, and good strategies are what it really takes to succeed. Embracing this knowledge will not only help you see yourself and your goals more accurately, but also do wonders for your grit.

7. Build your willpower muscle. Your self-control “muscle” is just like the other muscles in your body — when it doesn’t get much exercise, it becomes weaker over time. But when you give it regular workouts by putting it to good use, it will grow stronger and stronger, and better able to help you successfully reach your goals.

To build willpower, take on a challenge that requires you to do something you’d honestly rather not do. Give up high-fat snacks, do 100 sit-ups a day, stand up straight when you catch yourself slouching, try to learn a new skill. When you find yourself wanting to give in, give up, or just not bother — don’t. Start with just one activity, and make a plan for how you will deal with troubles when they occur (“If I have a craving for a snack, I will eat one piece of fresh or three pieces of dried fruit.”) It will be hard in the beginning, but it will get easier, and that’s the whole point. As your strength grows, you can take on more challenges and step-up your self-control workout.

8. Don’t tempt fate. No matter how strong your willpower muscle becomes, it’s important to always respect the fact that it is limited, and if you overtax it you will temporarily run out of steam. Don’t try to take on two challenging tasks at once, if you can help it (like quitting smoking and dieting at the same time). And don’t put yourself in harm’s way — many people are overly-confident in their ability to resist temptation, and as a result they put themselves in situations where temptations abound. Successful people know not to make reaching a goal harder than it already is.

9. Focus on what you will do, not what you won’t do. Do you want to successfully lose weight, quit smoking, or put a lid on your bad temper? Then plan how you will replace bad habits with good ones, rather than focusing only on the bad habits themselves. Research on thought suppression (e.g., “Don’t think about white bears!”) has shown that trying to avoid a thought makes it even more active in your mind. The same holds true when it comes to behavior — by trying not to engage in a bad habit, our habits get strengthened rather than broken.

If you won’t change your ways, ask yourself, What will I do instead? For example, if you are trying to gain control of your temper and stop flying off the handle, you might make a plan like “If I am starting to feel angry, then I will take three deep breaths to calm down.” By using deep breathing as a replacement for giving in to your anger, your bad habit will get worn away over time until it disappears completely.

It is my hope that, after reading about the nine things successful people do differently, you have gained some insight into all the things you have been doing right all along. Even more important, I hope are able to identify the mistakes that have derailed you, and use that knowledge to your advantage from now on. Remember, you don’t need to become a different person to become a more successful one. It’s never what you are, but what you do.

Heidi Grant Halvorson, Ph.D. is a motivational psychologist, and author of the new book Succeed:  How We Reach Our Goals (Hudson Street Press, 2011). She is also an expert blogger on motivation and leadership for Fast Company and Psychology Today. Her personal blog, The Science of Success, can be found at www.heidigranthalvorson.com. 

So, it’s important from both health and aesthetic perspectives to focus on our body composition — or lean vs. fat ratio — rather than the number on the scale.

So how do you measure your body fat?  There are a number of methods that are commonly used, with wildly varying degrees of accuracy.  That said, using any method is better than no method, because if nothing else, by regularly measuring your body fat, even if the measurement isn’t entirely accurate, you can at least tell if you are moving in the right direction.

You may have one of those scales that claims to measure body fat along with your weight.  Those work on the principle of bioelectrical impedance, which I’d be lying if I said I fully understood, but Wikipedia says it means “opposition to the flow of an electric current through body tissues which can then be used to calculate an estimate of total body water (TBW). TBW can be used to estimate fat-free body mass and, by difference with body weight, body fat.”  So there.  In any case, measuring body fat this way, while not the most accurate, is cheap and easy if you have access to a scale that includes this feature. But bear in mind that this type of testing is said to have a fairly high margin of error.  I have one of these scales at home and my firsthand experience bears out that it truly is wildly inaccurate.

Another common way to measure body fat is through the use of skinfold calipers.  A method often used by personal trainers and others in the fitness field, this is where someone uses a special device to pinch fat on several different locations of your body and then uses a special formula to calculate your body fat percentage.  The margin of error for this type of testing also is said to potentially be high (as different testers “pinch” differently and have varying levels of expertise with the device being use).  But again, if you have this done periodically and ideally by the same tester each time, you should at least know if you are moving in the desire direction.

The gold standard method for body fat testing is underwater weighing/dunk tank.  But you have to find a place that offers this, and it’s expensive, messy, time consuming, and involves getting wet and holding your breath.  So this not is a method that is appealing or readily available to most of us.

Enter the Bod Pod™.  The Bod Pod uses a patented air displacement technology, and uses computerized pressure sensors to determine the amount of air displaced by the person’s body, and is said to be as accurate as underwater weighing, with a margin of error of just 1-2%.  While wearing minimal clothing, you get into the “pod, ” sit quietly and five minutes later you get a detailed printout of your fat to lean (muscle) ratio.

Information can provide inspiration.  I had a client recently who had been talking about wanting to get more fit for a while, and the stark reality of the information provided by the Bod Pod was the impetus she needed to really get on track with her nutrition and exercise habits.  In the past six months she has lost 30 p0unds of body fat, added close to 10 pounds of muscle and looks and feels sensational.

I have seen places offering Bod Pod testing for as low as $35.  If you have a goal of increasing your health and your attractiveness by reducing body fat and increasing lean muscle tissue,  that’s not a huge investment every few months or so to gauge how you are doing.

If you’d like to find out if there’s a Bod Pod location near you, here’s a locator:

http://www.cosmed.com/locator

patented air displacement technology to provide highly accurate results more quickly and easily than the dunk tank. Best of all, no one gets wet!

The

• I have been extra busy  this year with work and also attending the Duke Integrative Medicine Health Coaching Professional Training (now completed).
• I am really claustrophobic and was not loving the idea of getting into an MRI.  My claustrophobia continues despite my having done around 20 one-hour sessions in a sensory deprivation/flotation tank last year (a story for another time perhaps).
• I was sick and tired of having these health issues come up, because, as a so-called Health Coach, am I not supposed to be in perfect health at all times?   (Yes, I know, I need to coach myself away from such unrealistic, unproductive and shameful thinking,  don’t I?)

The MRI showed that I have bony spurs and pinched nerves in my spine and arms.  I just started physical therapy to work on this issue, and I need to figure out how to exercise to keep myself healthy without making this condition worse.

And also…. while I was at Duke earlier this month, I checked my email during lunch.  I had a message from my husband saying that he had accepted a new job with his employer that would require us to move from Colorado to Boston for 4-5 months,  and then to Singapore for 1-2 years. Oh, and hope you’re having in fun in school.  WHA?!?!

In fairness to my husband, he had told me a few weeks prior that his employer was  combining his division with another, larger one, and that his role would likely change.  He even mentioned that a new international position was being created  that sounded really great and in which he had great interest, but they’d probably hire someone from the outside.  Well, wrong!  They picked him (smart move, bosses, in my totally objective opinion), so yay, husband!  but whoa,  what about meeeeee?!  And my clients?!  And the work I’ve been creating and  and this expensive Duke training I just did?  What about all that?

I mean, we just moved back to Colorado three years ago, and just got settled into our house here two years ago, and we’re moving again?  To Asia?

Actually, I am really excited about this whole unexpected turn of events, except for two things:

1.  I really enjoy my work as a health coach, and how can I do that from Asia, both logistically and legally?  The answer to this one is, I don’t know yet.

Certainly I can’t continue to work with my U.S. clients the way I have been, so I currently am winding down my engagements with each of them, and where appropriate, referring them to other health coaches.  As for what I continue to do after that, time will tell.

I’ve gotten much-appreciated encouragement to try to figure out a way to continue to coach, perhaps as an online health coach, and I very much appreciate the encouragement from those of you who have so generously offered it.  I’ve got a lot of figuring out to do!  I’m thinking the next handful of months will be jam-packed with many life logistics, what with these two upcoming moves,  including one to a new hemisphere and all.  So it may be a little while before my head is clear enough to sit still and figure out what’s next.

2.  My two wonderful, senior citizen kitties.  We have started the process of all of the vaccines, shots, and medical documentation that Singpore requires to bring them with us, but we are really torn about doing this.  They are not young, and it’s a whole mess of shots, many of which our vets tells us are wholly unnecessary and some which pets can react badly to. Plus, we’ve been told that no airlines that fly into Singapore will allow pets in the cabin, so that means they’ll spend about 30 hours in the cargo hold of a plane.  Plus, when they get to Singapore there’s a mandatory 10-30 day quarantine period (we are trying to line things up to qualify for the shorter quarantine period).

It’s a lot to put two docile, innocent animals through.  So my husband and I are, to our utter astonishment, looking at the possibility of finding someone who might want to adopt them. As much as I cannot bear the thought of being separated from my sweet girls, more than anything I want to do what is best for them.  So if you have a heart and a household that’s suitable for two older, mellow, precious, attention giving and loving kitties, let me know.

Finally, I want to say how much I have loved working with all of my clients, past and present. You have taught me so much.  Thank you for letting  me be a part of your joy and growth and fun as you have forged your path to greater health and happiness.  Every one of you has inspired me, humbled me, and graced my life in so many ways.  I have said and will continue to say this privately and in more detail to each of you, but I wanted to state it here, publicly, as well.

Back to coaching now.  At least for a little while.

Well, it’s because I know you can.  If we can manage to find hours to watch TV, to surf the web,  to let all our Facebook friends know we just got our tires rotated, and to pass on adorable frolicking puppy videos, every once in a while we can sit still long enough to listen to some information that just might change or even prolong our lives.  Right?

I consider myself a a really, really typical person. So I’m pretty certain that anything I struggle with, there’s a fair number of other people who are struggling with the same thing. I’ve said it many times already and I’m certain I’ll say it many more: I get up every day and have to decide all over again to make the choices that I believe will give me the best shot at living a high energy, high quality, high vibe, healthy life. And it is not always easy. I hear the siren call of processed foods, yummy desserts, pizza, and one more cocktail the same way that many of you do.

This video I’m sharing with you today is about sugar. Yes, we all kinda know sugar is bad. We’ve heard things. It’s fattening. Diabetics aren’t supposed to have it. It does something to insulin that’s bad. It might have something to do with cancer. It maybe even accelerates the aging process. Etc.  A whole bunch of blah blah that ends with, “Sugar is bad; you should avoid it.”

But holy cow, sugary foods and drinks taste good. Eating them is fun and makes us happy, at least for a minute. Doesn’t that count for something?

I’ve noticed that for myself, the more I start to really understand, on a deeper level and not just in my head, that something really does not serve my highest good, the easier it is for me to say no to it the majority of the time if not permanently. I then am making my choices from a place of power and information as opposed to a place of weakness or lack of understanding.

So back to the sugar. This video is a talk given by Robert H. Lustig, MD, UCSF Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology. Dr. Lustig runs a children’s obesity clinic, and I promise you, he makes this topic — biochemistry and all — interesting and incredibly compelling.  Okay, admittedly, there are a few minutes where the biochem gets to be a bit much, but please just do as the good doctor suggests and stick with him — the overarching point is well worth sitting through it.  And some of  you will actually dig it.

Please give it a few minutes of your time, by clicking on the link below, even if you decide not to watch the whole thing. But I hope you’ll watch the whole thing, just so that going forward your choices around eating sugary foods will be more deeply informed ones.

Sugar: The Bitter Truth

Marc recently did an interview over at blogtalkradio, and while it’s an investment of your time at just over 90 minutes, it is well worth your time, if you are at all interested in some thought provoking conversation around the psychology, emotions, and realities around eating, food, and weight.

Hey, it’s free, it’s very different from what we normally hear on these subjects, and if it doesn’t grab you, just press stop.

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