healthy and beautiful

Yesterday, I sat with a friend and she said if she could have one wish it would be to be able to eat whatever she wanted and not gain weight. I clarified “you mean instead of your family being healthy or world peace?” She said “well one wish or thing I could change about myself.” I think I believe that last part. The truth is,  I hear all about these friends, siblings or coworkers who can eat whatever they want.   I’ve sent the majority of session consoling clients over metabolic diversity (or injustice in their eyes).   “I have to work so hard at this” or “I am eating the salad while they are having fries” I’ve heard it all and have a few things to say about these  “everything eaters”. Oftentimes, they don’t always eat like this. Think of the celebrity with a giant burger or ice cream cone. Many people eat differently out versus at home or on weekends versus weekdays. And many don’t want to appear to watch what they are eating. Chances are they will not be able to e...

We have a questionnaire new clients complete before coming in. We ask all the basic, annoying questions name, address, height and age. Buried in the list is my favorite question, “on a scale of 1 to 10 how content are you with your physique?” The answer to this question has little to do with what you weigh (something we don’t ask) but it says a lot. It’s important to revisit that question as sessions progress because that number, despite progress, can be stubborn. Last week, I had a client in my office. She’s incorporated all sorts of healthy foods into her day, her energy and mood swings are better but she told me about something that happened recently that concerned me. She saw some friends she hadn’t seen in a while. This is a somewhat competitive group of friends as she described them. Despite her improvements and weight loss she felt insecure in their company. In that moment on a scale of 1-10 she’d be lucky to give herself a 5. For years with clients I’ve call these modes we have...

Yes I do.  I love my haters and I will share that typically those who are “hating” or critical of others really do desire to be loved.  There is something down deep inside of each of us that longs to be accepted and  feel good enough, and when hate comes to the surface it usually defines deep insecurities or unresolved issues within a person.  The ability to be motivated or happy by or for another is replaced with bitterness, jealousy, and to the point of “hating” a person for their accomplishments.  Because I realize that there are underlying factors involved with “hating”, I can look past comments and know that it is not about me when my haters come to calling.  Lately, I have received lots of negative comments, and especially when I share motivational posters that feature me in fitness wear or bathing suits.  If I allowed the negative posts I receive to negatively impair me as a person, I really do not have any business being an internet personality...

I like that saying and it takes me back to when I was in junior high and high school.   I did not always feel the best about myself, but there was always a special motivation that came from my physical education teachers and coaches.   They made me feel accomplished, encouraged, and inspired me to do more and be more.   It was at that young age that I wanted to be like them, to be able to offer to young people that feeling of inner strength, confidence and overall happiness.   Presto...my goal in life was to be a P.E. teacher.   Of course I could not climb into their bodies and become them but imagining being them was pretty awesome in my younger years.   In my twists and turns of life, I am doing my passion on a broader spectrum than in a high school gym setting and I feel great about that.   The thing about life, mentors, and motivators is to understand the concept of guides, and yes to have goals.   The goals belong to each of us however, and...