Motivation

Motivational quotes are my jam! I love them! They "speak to me," they are usually my mantra when I'm getting thru a tough workout. They are a good reminder of what I need to focus on and not spend endless amount of time watching cute animal videos.

I have even made a private Pinterest board that I look through before each time I exercise. I even like to show my board to whoever will humor me. Most of the time my BFF (who doesn't workout the way I do. Shoot, she doesn't even read this blog) is the one who sees it the most! Sorry, Jess!

Since you are my friends and love fitness, I thought I'd share my favorite quotes here. These are ones that worked for me. I'll be crossing my fingers that they might, in some small way, work for you, too.

Here's one of my favorites ...

Crave Crap?

Do you dream of cheesy pizza, candy or fried anything? Did you skip your workout? If so, that explains the urge to eat the not so healthy foods. When you crave “comfort foods," aka fatty and carbohydrate filled, its a result of a lack of positive influence on mood, energy and stamina you get from exercise.

I know that this summer when I was injured I had to scale back my workouts but I kept my same nutritional routine so I could maintain the muscle I had built. I spent years working and sweating my a$$ off and I wasn't about to give it all up easily. I steered clear of anything fatty and greasy and stuck to my usual meals.
When you regularly exercise your metabolism increases. Yay! Since you’re burning more calories, you end up consuming more in order to maintain enough energy. Don't eat the same calorie-filled meals when you’re out of the gym for two weeks, your body won’t be burning the extra calories and you could potentially put on weight! No Bueno!

Is Your Gym Worth The Price?

I often wonder about all the fitness clubs popping up around me. Of course I go and check them out. The worst fitness facility of all time is....drum roll please...Planet Fitness. It's seriously the worst! I'm not talking about the equipment, the cleanliness, or the staff. I'm referring to the amount of junk food Planet Fitness feeds its members.

I have worked out at Planet Fitness gym a handful of times so I'm speaking the truth when I write about the suck factor.

Let's start at the beginning of the week. Monday. Who doesn't think of pizza when you think about the gym? PF has Pizza Monday on the first Monday night of each month.
There are literally stacks of greasy pizza boxes as soon as you walk in the door and as a member one gets an endless buffet of free pizza. That seems like a bad marketing ploy to lure new people to the gym to me. 

It  gets better, on the first Tuesday morning, it’s bagels. Ummmm what? Not exactly fitness friendly food at the GYM! You might actually gain the wrong kind of weight at PF. 

To make matters worse, when you walk in there is jar full of tootsie rolls.

I can't just bash on PF without telling you some of the things I do like about the joint:

1. It's $10 a month

2. This "gym" is a “judgement-free zone,” so they appeal to the “novice” gym-goer.

3. It offers a friendly environment for newbies to learn the ropes of exercise without being judged by others who are in better shape.

Ok, that's it. I honestly tried to think of 4 reasons why I support the gym but I could only come up with 3. That's how weird the place is. I do think PF has a good idea but I do think it’s just being horribly executed. Leaving a jar full of tootsie rolls on the front counter and giving members an endless buffet of free pizza once a month is nothing more than a sleazy marketing ploy used to lure new people to the gym so that PF makes more money. What gym encourages their members to eat junk food? Basically, Planet Fitness is letting their unhealthy clients know that eating junk food is fine IF you are working out. Sounds dangerous to me to be sending that message. It’s obvious that they’re more concerned with profit than actually helping over-weight people get in shape.

Bingeing, It's Not Just For Netflix

Even though it is October and it seems like the year is winding down but that doesn't mean your goal setting has to wait until January. There is no rule that says you can't set a goal right now. In fact, setting a goal might help you stay on track during the upcoming holiday season. I'm a fan of setting a small but achievable goals every season. For example, my goal this fall is to get certified in a new fitness modality. I took the first step by registering for the certification. It may not seem like a big goal but it is attainable. A lot of people go about goal setting the wrong way. Instead of making short term intentions, most people Goal Binge. A lot of people make their goals as long as a Child's list to Santa. Goal setting is not a bucket list. Everything that you want to change about you should not be on your list. It should be statements of short term intentions. Like 1 or 2 things.  For example:  I will run 2 miles in the next 4 months or I will take a fitness class 3 times a week.  My question to is this, Has anyone experienced goal binging and what was the result?

This brings me to another point about goal setting. Be sure you aren't setting VAGUE GOALS. Our goals need to be measurable in some way. Saying "I want to lose 10 pounds" sounds good but there is nothing about that statement that lets you measure your progress. Instead make your goals more specific, like: "I will eat out 2 less times this week, I will workout 1 more time this week, I will make healthier choices the next week, I will keep a food and workout journal."
How does this relate to you? Any experience with this? You don't have to answer out loud. These are just questions to ask yourself.