challenge

Updates: More Resources for Week 1 – Don’t Drink Your Calories
More Resources for Week 2 – Emotional/Stress Eating

Are you ready for 2016? December can be a very very busy month. You may have to deal with lots of demands on your time and on your emotions, but you also have to deal with lots of temptation from holiday parties, social drinking and family meals. With that in mind, I’m going to give you some very straight forward goals to focus on as you get ready for 2016. Below, you’ll see that there is a new goal each week to keep you motivated. It’s time to do the work and do some planning! Grab a notebook and a pen!

Just getting started? This challenge will help you to get started with the basics. Already got a winning plan? It’s time to evaluate what you’ve been doing so far to reach your weight loss goals. Plan out how you will stay on course or take your efforts to the next level. You don’t have to wait until Jan 1 to commit to how you want to shape your fitness and change your weight over the next 3-12 months. Begin your journey today.

Lose to Win! – We will also continue with our series of DietBets for those who want to commit to losing 4% of their weight and split the pot $!  Our December Dietbet starts on Dec 7th. Bet: $30

How do you join?: Comment below and let us know why you want to commit to weight loss NOW and what challenges you are dealing with in terms of weight loss and wellness. This will help us tailor the information we send out for the rest of the month.

Also, let us know if you already have an eating and exercise plan that is working for you that you plan to use in 2016.

Weekly Goals

Week 1 (Dec 1-5) – Stop drinking your calories.

Week 1, you will commit to drinking water, freshly brewed tea, freshly made juice and homemade smoothies you make at home. Cut out all soda, diet drinks, store bought, sweetened tea and store bought juice from concentrate. How much water should you drink each day? Start with 7-9 glasses of water per day (56-72 oz). Add fruit, tea and natural sweeteners (Stevia, agave, etc) to your water for more flavor. Haven’t been drinking much water? Start by adding a few more glasses a day to your normal routine and work your way up. You don’t have to drink a gallon of water a day to be hydrated. (If you have health issues, (kidney or bladder related-issues especially), follow your doctor’s orders when it comes to drinking water.)

• The Number One Drinking Mistake Affecting Your Weight
• Ebook – Drink Green Smoothies – Guide with 80 Delicious Recipes
• 8 Reasons to Give Up Diet Soda and Diet Drinks
• How Much Water Should You Drink Each Day?
• 25 flat belly sassy water recipes
• 14 Fruit Infused Waters to Drink Instead of Soda
• Can You Drink Too Much Water?

Week 2 (Dec 6-12) Commit to feeding your body, NOT your emotions. If you are dealing with emotional eating, stress eating, overeating or food addiction, get to the REAL root of your issues.

For the second week, I want you to focus identifying the junk food, fast food, sugary foods and highly processed foods that you haven’t been able to let go of. Ask yourself, what are the real reasons that you can’t let go of these foods. Take the time to really think about your connection to food, emotional eating, stress eating, overeating/binging and even food addiction. If you are medicating with food and using it to soothe and comfort yourself, that’s not really a food issue. That’s a lifestyle and mindset issue and you have to approach it as such. If you can’t commit to totally cutting these foods out, keep your indulging to a minimum and use portion control. However, be real and truthful about how much junk you’re really eating and why you are eating it if you want your lifestyle and habits to change.

• Emotional Eating: 5 tips for overcoming binge eating
• Action Steps for Emotional Eating
• Tips for having self control over your eating habits
• Tips for dealing with stress eating
• Hidden Sugars – The Many Names of Processed Sugar
• Is Sugar Addiction Real?

Week 3 (Dec 13-19) – Decide on a plan for eating and meal planning.

What is your current plan? What is your plan for 2016? Will you go raw vegan, low carb, paleo, keto, vegetarian, or eat clean? Will you be following a specific book or plan? Will you create your own plan for your own needs? If you haven’t done your research and embraced an eating plan, it’s time to do that. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. One of the number one reasons people don’t get results, is because they don’t go into weight loss with a clear plan and clear, reasonable goals in mind. When it comes to eating, it’s very easy to get off track, eat too much or eat too little food.  If you haven’t lost weight in 2015, could it be that you didn’t commit to a balanced eating plan and give it time to work? Could it be because you really couldn’t find a way of eating that worked for you? Let’s change that before you make your New Year’s resolutions. There are tons of recipes and meal plans online for free to help you get started.

• Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail: Making the Decision to Change
• How May Calories Do You Need to Eat to Lose Weight?
• Lesson: Portion Control and Portion Sizes
• The Basics of Weight Loss
• List of Free Meal Plans
• The Best Diet Plan – These articles from ACalorieCounter.com are excellent! It’s a step-by-step guide for creating a unique eating plan to support weight release. Make sure that you check out this resource.

Don’t worry about doing anything new Dec 20-26. Spend time with your family and focus on having fun.

Week 4 (Dec 27-31) – Decide on your exercise plan for the next 60 days. Workout at for at least 30 minutes, 3-4 times a week (minimum).

This week you will decide on your exercise plan for the next 60 days. No one can tell you what exercise routine will work best for you. Just like an eating plan, you have to do your research and figure out what will work for Y-O-U. However, there is no room for excuses. From home workout DVDs, to YouTube videos to fitness magazines, there are tons of workout resources out there at your disposal. Walking, jogging, HIIT, Tabata, cardio, Zumba, weight training, etc. If you’ve been exercising regularly, but haven’t challenged yourself in a few months, it’s time to consider more intensity. Online resources:

Now that you’ve done the work, write down your plan and commit to working hard for the next 60 days (or more)

Tip: Give yourself a gift! December is a great time to buy good book on weight loss and wellness. Don’t just focus on diet books. There are some great fictional titles, devotionals and self-help books on emotional emotional eating and our relationships with food.