Staying On Track On July 4th

You've started your diet. Unfortunately the temptation of hot dogs and barbeque threaten to to ruin the plans you have to eat healthier.

There are ways to enjoy the day of independence without ruining your diet plans.

Turkey is Your Friend

Turkey has less fat than beef. It's also a white meat, which makes it a lot healthier and more lean and it's also packed with protein.

The great thing about turkey is that it's still got a lot of flavor, minus all the grease.

If you're looking for a tasty frank, you can pick up some turkey dogs (sounds weird, right?) at your local supermarket and keep July 4th yummy without ditching the taste we love during this time of celebration.

Moderation

If you're not on a strict diet, understand that moderation is key. I know that in my post "Breaking Bad Habits"  I mentioned not telling yourself it's okay to just have one, but you'll be surrounded by friends and family that are (hopefully) supportive of your decision to eat healthier. It's going to be hard to eat 3 beef hot dogs without them snatching the plate from you.

It's the power of support and the power of moderation.

Easy on the Condoments

It's tempting to load your meal with all kinds of condoments. It's part of the tradition to add ketchup, sour krout and mayo to your hot dog, that's not even including the cheese.

Use a low fat cheese like swiss or mozerella cheese and don't add an entire bag.

I'm sure you're used to adding so many condoments that you can't see the hot dog at all. You should only add a enough to taste it and only choose 3 condoments at the most. This way you can still enjoy a classic taste without worrying about tipping the scale.

You should only apply a single line of each condoment to ensure you're not applying too much.

Don't Get Full

Don't stuff yourself. When you're done eating, you shouldn't feel like you need to unbutton your pants in order to breathe.

Think of it this way, do you really ENJOY that feeling of being stuffed? Or would you rather eat food and be awake enough to enjoy socializing with friends and family instead of retreating to your room to sink into a food coma?

Focus Less On Food

Remember what July 4th is really about and instead of focusing on the food on the grill (it's going to be one of the many challenges you face when deciding to get healthy) focus on being able to enjoy things that we now have that our country worked to hard to get.

Focus on your friends and family and the awesome fireworks.

Don't Beat Yourself Up

If you're just starting your fitness journey and you find you give in to your temptations, don't beat yourself up over it. It happens, especially in the beginning. Don't give up or ditch your diet plans (if you have any) just because of one slip up.

Forgive youself and start over tomorrow, making sure to remind yourself of your overall goal.

Breaking Bad Habits

It's time to talk about those nasty habits of yours. It's okay, we all have them, and it's important to be able to admit this to yourself so you can focus on the most important part:

GETTING RID OF THEM!

It's a must to be able to reduce our bad habits. I personally am a fan of sweets and fast food, but I'm referring to ANY bad habit you may have whether it be food related or has to do with smoking.

Basically, our goal is going to be to stop the bad habits that are making our bodies unhealthy.

Get Some Help

Don't make the mistake of tryting to conquer your bad habits alone. The mind works in mysterious ways. You can tell yourself over and over again that you're going to stop eating those chocolate cookies with the gooey caramel center, but as soon as you do that, your mind will tell you "Just one won't hurt".

Then you're going to eat two, then three, then four... you get the picture.

Tell family members what you're doing. If you live alone, invite friends over more regularly. This is a great way to socialize and get your mind off whatever habit you're trying to break.

Stay Busy

Don't give yourself enough time to think about your unhealthy cravings. One of the top reasons people even develop unhealthy habits is because they're bored.

People start smoking because they are bored and there's "nothing else to do" and the same goes for those who overeat.

The solution is to find something to do!

Remember that painting to wanted to finish last year but never did? Finish it.

Still never got to cleaning out those clothes that are sitting in the back of the closet that you don't wear anymore? Clean it!

When you really stop to think about the things you'd like to do, you'll be amazed at how many options you have!

Don't ever think there's nothing to do. There is ALWAYS something to do.

Replace Unhealthy Habits

If you're craving something sweet, research some yummy and healthy recipes that are quick and easy to make. There are hundreds, if not hundreds of thousands of them online.

For smoking, replace the butt with a nicotine patch instead.

There is always something healthy to replace an unhealthy habit. It will help you while to work towards your ultimate goal and supress the cravings that often leave us wanting to rip our hair out.

Throw It Out

If you're living alone especially, you probably have your favorite unhealthy products in your cabinets. Throw them out! You're going to remember where you put them when you crave them and you're going to give in.

Save yourself the feeling of failure and get rid of those negative things, no matter how much it hurts in the beginning.

It's not going to do you any good to buy healthy products when the old ones are still around.

I've focused on eating habits and smoking simply because these are the most common unhealthy habits I've heard about. I'm sure there are plenty to and it can even come down to a specific food or activity!

It's going to take a lot of will power but I'm confident you can do it as long as you take the steps you need in order to make succeeding possible.

Deciding To Get Healthy

When it comes to working out, it's a choice someone has to make themselves and not a choice their friends or family can make for them. I like to think of it more in terms of deciding to get healthy simply because that is much more appealing than "working out". Somehow, the mind hears the word "working" and the idea instantly becomes less desirable. This means less people will be interested in the process altogether.

Making the decision

No matter what the risks may be in regards to health, it's a choice you have to make. You have to figure out why you want to become healthy. Some common reasons people decide to get healthy include:

• Increase self esteem
• Health concerns
• Looking for a new challenge
• Having fun
• Losing Weight

These are all great reasons to decide to get healthy. The first thing you want to ask yourself is how much desire do you have to reach these goals?

Mentality

It's so easy to say you're going to go down the path of getting healthy but it's another thing entirely to actually start. Some start, more never start and those that do start have a hard time sticking to it!

This is because it's all about your mentality. Most people have gotten lazy since the invention of cars and the reduction of farm work so waking up in the morning after a day of exercising will make people feel they need to take a rest or a day off because they can barely move.

It's time to talk about having a healthy mentality!

Healthy Mentality: Understanding what your body is going through before you even make the decision to get healthy.

This is going to require some research on your part. Most people that haven't worked out in years aren't going to know what's going on with their body when they are sore the day following an intense fitness session.

They are going to think they've pulled a muscle or that their soreness is just too intense and that they've probably picked the wrong program entirely and that's when they stop.

Having a healthy mentality is going to give you the motivation to keep going even when you think you've done too much. It's the research you're going to do (and I'm going to help you with) that's going to enlighten you with what is happening to your body.

I will say one thing for now on soreness you experience after your first fitness session: That means it's working and your body is getting used to it.

Now, lets discuss the unhealthy mentality.

Unhealthy Mentality: The act of giving up as soon as you're presented with a challenge.

Remember how I stated that one of the reasons people decided to get healthy was because they were looking for a challenge? Surprisingly, it's usually the very same people seeking a challenge that give up when they are given a challenge.

I guess the saying "be careful what you wish for because you just might get it" would apply here.

I think the issue is more common with men since they tend to have their ego to deal with. They want to appear tough for their buddies so they can "lift things up and put them down" and they don't realize how much effort they really need to put into getting healthy in order to reach their goals.

Avoiding the Unhealthy Mindset

Before you even THINK about abandoning your decision to get healthy, I'm going to mention some great ways to keep you motivated and avoid the unhealthy mindset:

• Write down your daily fitness goals, even if it's only 5 push-ups and 10 jumping jacks. Small goals give you a sense of accomplishment.
• Keep your reason for deciding to get healthy written somewhere that you can see it daily. You are going to want to brand your reasons in your mind so you don't get side-tracked.
• Do research! Understand what your body is going to experience when you're getting healthy. This way, you're not freaking out when you're barely able to move and you'll know how to help the symptoms of a body that isn't used to physical activity yet.
• Have fun! Don't view getting healthy as a chore. It's a time that you should cherish and consider a treat to yourself so you're able to feel amazing about yourself. There's nothing more satisfying to the human ego as a sense of accomplishment.

Whatever your reasons for making your decision to get healthy, you're going to face the challenge of wanting to quit. One way to avoid this temptation is to constantly remind yourself why you're doing this.

This is a journey. I think viewing getting healthy as a journey will help you look forward to the daily tasks you do.

Don't view getting healthy as torture! Stop postponing your start date and realize there isn't a better time to get healthy than now.

Don't try to take on too much at once. Stick with one program or do more physical activity every day. Keep doing these activities and programs until your body gets used to it and then move on to something more challenging or find ways to make your current program more challenging.

Too many people try to take on too much at once and getting healthy is not just an exciting journey that should be taken slow for safety reasons, it's also something that should be enjoyed so you're not mentally overwhelmed!

Your Decision is Made

Congratulations! You've decided to get healthy! The trick to being healthy is remembering that it's something that is a way of life. That means once you've reached your goal, you want to either maintain that state of health, or keep going.

It's up to you to decide. It depends on your reasons for getting healthy. Realize that your goals can change as you complete each journey. Your reasons can change as well!

You've made your decision, now hold it dear to you and never lose sight of your ultimate goal.