Dropping major pounds and keeping it off

I would like to challenge the idea that losing a large amounts of weight is about 10% exercise and 90% nutrition. Though this is idea can get you far and it can alter negative behaviors, and certainly create huge changes.

However, I believe that losing a large amount of weight (and keeping it off) is more about: 10% exercise, 40% nutrition, 50% facing what you've been avoiding. This is what is commonly branded as behavior modification and/or change; but I want to take it farther and delve deeper into the specifics.

Regarding disease in this matter. Disease complicates, but it does not stop these efforts.

~ It is a cumulative affect not and immediate result. ~

10% Exercise
Simply getting up and reducing your sedentary lifestyle can work wonders. Then image what could happen if you added purposefully exercise bouts via specific cardiovascular  efforts, strength efforts, flexibility challenges, or all of the above.

Humans are amazing and most of us only use 10% or our brains. What would have if we really devoted 10%  of our efforts to fitness - it is amazing what changes this can bring. Simply making plans to be slightly more active during the day in some way would go very far to making some big changes.

40% Nutrition
If you put crappy fuel into a performance vehicle, in a very short time the performance vehicle would start to run like a rusty Volvo from the 60's with broken windshield wipers. Likewise, if you eat poorly or imbalanced you break, swell, barely inching forward, with very little ability to assist others around you - let alone yourself.

The absolute biggest issue I see in this area as a fitness professional is inadequate hydration, crazy high sugar intake, and sodium intake that is off the charts.

50% Facing What You've Been Avoiding
Addiction: Obsessions.
Anger: Grudge.
Betrayal.
Fear (selfishness).
Habit.
Laziness (a.k.a, disbelief).
Trauma.
Memories of what "used to be".
Being motivational hampered by too much futuristic thinking.

The root of many of the problems I see clients (and myself) facing, seem to stem from one of the following:
Lack of perceived social acceptance.
Lack of commitment or motivation = no follow through.
Poor or unrealistic goal making.
Pride.
Persistent negative self talk.
Unexplored and unresolved issues.
Not using support resources.

Now, of course there are many serious medical issues that some of this doesn't apply to. However, the greatest of all interruptions that I have professionally seen on this topic, have not been from major health issues. I strongly encourage those in the pursuit of serious weight-loss, to also companion their efforts with a mental health professional, support group, or a highly supportive confidant, while perusing such "weighty" matters.

Living in Faith and Courage

Someone asked me recently, "what made it possible to change from living in fear to living in faith and courage?" This is an extremely good question.

When I was living in fear, I was allowing myself to be ruled by self doubt, which was fueled by false perceptions. These false perceptions were not limited to just myself, but the world, as well as my role within it. I had truly believed that I was insignificant and easily discarded. Please note the past tense tone of that last statement.

Because I felt that I was insignificant and easily discarded, I feared that my entire existence didn't matter. I believed that I was one hundred percent replaceable in every way. Fear was a natural result. This childhood fear definitely lingered well into my adult years.

I would come in and out of this phase and thinking periodically, but it was never a lasting feeling. With such strong limiting beliefs, how on earth could I matter in the grand scheme of things? In what possible way could I bring any value to the world at all?

Then there was a series of events that completely upended this fear-based line of thinking. 

SITUATION: I had a talk with God one day and I asked, if I was so replaceable and insignificant, then why am I here? I believed God to be a kind and a loving God, but if I was here on earth without a purpose or any meaning, then that was just simply cruel.

RESULT: God found a way to let me know that I was of value, but more importantly I believed it. Here's how He did it.

The way in which I learned that I was of value and significance was during the time I was watching my father-in-law slowly die. God spoke to me in my heart during this time. I am not sure that I can describe it, but it was powerful and undeniable. Here were some of the thoughts I was having.

My father-in-law was prone to melancholy and depressive thoughts, yet he had impacted so many lives for good - more than he had impacted them in negative ways. I then thought about others that had "impact" and "value" in the world both on a grand scale as well as in my own personal life. 

Martin Luther King, Jr., Abraham Lincoln, and Oprah Winfrey are truly great people - but with some pretty big issues and faults. But they persevered and continued forward to the best of their ability. They persistently and consistently worked hard to live good lives. Their best efforts changed lives for the better.

On a personal note and as further proof, there's Mrs. Wasden who was my fourth grade teacher. Because of her example I learned to love reading and writing. She is a good woman, with a beautiful light to share with the world. 

All Mrs. Wasden cared about was God, her family, her students... ginger snaps and root beer flavored hardtack candy. Yet, when in her presence, you were made to feel as though you were the top priority - even in a crowded room.

As I reflected on these experiences, they became a serious ongoing boost to my faith. If my imperfect melancholy father-in-law, Martin Luther King, Jr., Abraham Lincoln, Oprah Winfrey, and Mrs. Wasden can impact even one person to change their life for the better, well then...that was a life well spent.

When you have faith-uplifting experiences like this, it creates an energy and courage within. When this happens, the world seems to change right in front of your eyes.


SITUATION: Because of the increase in faith and courage, I felt more daring to try things, to be more involved, and more than that - to believe that my contribution to a variety of events in life actually mattered. 

RESULT: All the sudden I felt a surge of energy, an almost "unleashing" and urgency to live life fully. Why? Because someone out there needed me. Someone out there could have their life changed for the better, just because I had the words and maybe even the actions at the right time to be the linchpin to their unleashing. 

Wham! Bam! All of the sudden I can see that I am in no way insignificant. Of course I matter! Of course I have value! Now that I understand this, how could I have fear? How could I not have courage? 

It was at this time that I first heard Gandhi's quote, "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." He said it so simply. It was as if it could happen, just like that. Just all the sudden, "be the change."

I've since discovered that it is possible to all of the sudden just "be the change." Your habitual doubts and historical behavior are an ongoing obstacle, but it is possible to change them as you create new habits. It requires practice, but it is possible.

Byron Katie is coming!

Byron Katie is an amazing woman who has such a simple concept  she teaches and the simple concept is quite literally mind blowing. She's going to be presenting at the Salt Lake City Downtown Radisson on September 22; who's coming with me?

Participating in this one day event can quite literally change your life. It has the power to strip you of negative perceptions and help you write new very positive ones.

To learn more about The Work of Byron Katie, click here.

Salt Lake City, Utah 
Saturday, 22 September 2012
The Work Now—Loving What Is with Byron Katie 

Byron Katie has one job: to teach people how to end their own suffering. As she guides people through her simple yet powerful process of inquiry, called The Work, they find again and again that their stressful beliefs—about the world, other people, or themselves—can no longer run their lives. Join Katie in a workshop designed to take you on this one-of-a-kind journey of self-discovery now. 

Schedule

Saturday, 22 September, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.

When the Superman Band-Aid Doesn't Hold

So, I panic from time to time. Finding a way to get a grip on the irrational emotions that occur during that time is a tough job. 

There have been some interesting times in my life, and because of it, I've had the following terms used on me: mild OCD, panic disorder, PTSD. 

My response to them all back in the day was "woe is me", but now it's more akin to "bite me!" How many acronyms can a single person be labeled with? 

Hi, I'm Diana BS MS PT ICD9 340 ICD10 G35 OCD PTSD... and on and on and... Forget that! I've been labeled enough. Can't a person just be sad anymore?

Simply put, I've got issues, but who doesn't? I've got to deal with them and I refuse to hide behind or excuse the issues because of my labels. 

I also refuse to let labels and treatments desensitize me from the responsibility of corrective behavior; especially when I do have control over at least that much. 

Medicine is appropriate in the right setting, but that's not all that I should rely upon. So many people think that, because you have swallowed a pill, you've been absolved from doing anything else about the situation. 

I would like to submit that treating "the problem" by milligrams alone is essentially like putting on a band-aid with poor adhesive qualities.

I'm fascinated by the mind-body connection. I've begun to understand just how powerful a role it has played in my life; it's been empowering to know that though I may be irrational at times, I still have some semblance of control over my response(s). 

Not long ago I read something that got me really thinking - it was in Aine Tubridy’s book, When Panic Attacks. She was talking about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and I realized that what she had written about actually held the key to understanding normal fear and anxiety. 

Normal meaning, you live and breathe, therefore sadness will happen occasionally and you may even freak out from time to time because of it. 

Tubridy talks about the primitive fear response that is the basis of all panic, which can be good sometimes:

"[The aim of fear] is not only to prompt you to find safety, but it will remain in place until it is certain that the danger is over and that you will not be exposed to a similar experience before you have fully recovered. Once you are out of danger, the focus shifts to a risk of a future occurrence. Your internal bodyguard means to see that you don’t become complacent or relaxed for some time yet, to ensure that you stay ‘on alert’ should the danger return unexpectedly - the alarm will only cease when your primitive brain is completely satisfied that you are not in danger any longer and that adequate safety measures have been put in place for the future."

What I get out of this is that you have to prove to the primitive brain that the danger no longer exists - only then, will it stop the fear. And sometimes the fear may linger because the situation is prolonged. 

In some of those situations your life may not be in danger, but the brain perceives that it is; simply because it's in a state of unrest. In other words, you're not where you would like to be.

I can't tell you how many times over the years that I've read from multiple resources that the final say comes from the brain. 

In his book, Life Strategies, Dr. Phil McGraw said something to the effect of the following: When it's announced that one political party takes control of the Senate, it's not bad news, it's not even good news, it's just news. 

The pros and cons of the situation aren't assigned until an individual interpretation is applied. Even then, it's still just news. The mind still has the final say of how that information is going to affect you. Y-O-U still get to decide how you will respond to whatever comes your way.

This life is about our responses to the ebb and flow of circumstances that we experience. 

Labeled or not, medicated or not, 

we still get to decide what we do about it.

I've had a really long and really crappy week. The days have been packed with insecurity and frustration. But this week is also over, yeah! 

I also have had moments of joy while serving others, seeing family and seeing some neat people at work that I seldom get to see. The positives of this week really do outweigh the negatives. 

In any case, I'm really thankful for my pillow and I think I will go let my head sink into it. I look forward to a good long run tomorrow. You know what? I'm amazed I'm even running. Yes, these will be good dreams tonight; very good indeed.

Poetry Corner: An Imaginary Villain

We've all been here at one time or another... or now. 

An Imaginary Villain

Subconsciously

I interrogate myself,

by manipulating the eyes of others

to tell my deepest fears

admit my worst wrongs

to judge

by reading too much 

into an onlooker's gaze.

I create

I mistake

I adjudicate

my own follies

and displace my own disgust, 

standing victimized

allowing guilt to be provoked

by an outsider's glance.

My head drops,

succumbing to the weight

of worthlessness - 

chained, locked away 
again;

because that's where I tell myself

I belong.

By Diana M. Bateman

2006 ©

Why do we work so hard to put ourselves in this bad place? We are all worth more than this... The truth is that we are all uniquely amazing, whether you believe it or not. 

Courage is fear holding on a minute longer

Diana on initial descent into Natural Bridges National Monument.

"Courage is fear holding on a minute longer. " 

~ George Patton

Just a few years ago my husband was away with the military for a rather significant amount of time. I was unhappy with life and I was alone. I woke up, went to work, and decided that on the way home I'd pick up something from a fast food vendor or I'd order pizza. 

I always had plenty of soda pop on hand and a recently rented television series waiting at home. From five to eleven-thirty at night I didn't move much from the couch. 

Life was too hard to handle away from the remote control. Looking back I see that I wasted so much time doing absolutely nothing! I was afraid to do things alone. 

I was afraid to go to sleep. I was afraid to wake up. I was afraid to start my day. I was afraid of socializing because people have to engage and talk there... I was afraid to talk. 

I was afraid to answer the phone or the front door; even if friends were on the other side. I was afraid to feel. I was afraid to exist. 

As you may have read from previous posts, several things changed for me; above all my attitude. 

I realized that if I don't work on the things that I want most in life, then I won't see them come to fruition. If I were lazy and couldn't allow myself to care, then how could I expect family or friends to care or support me?  

I had to find inner strength and courage to have a more meaningful existence. The thing that amazes me most is that I think I've only even scratched the surface of that inner strength and courage. 

It's also an extremely fragile thing to hold on to. It's a conscious decision and commitment. It's holding on... just a little longer, daily. 

Emotional Health... cough, cough

We all have “sucks to be me” moments, but why is this one taking so long? It is human to feel sad on occasion, but come to find out, when you have MS there is an increased risk that you can get a lesion that affects your mood and general emotional health. The medications that we take can also cause sadness or depression. How rude! Thank heaven for cute husbands, religion, doctors, yoga, cute dogs, gardening and music. I haven’t figured out all the secrets to life yet, but I am pretty sure that we are meant to LIVE IT...(*ahem*)...but recently, I haven’t been, and quite frankly it has sucked.

So, I go through the motions. I do the things on the “to do” list. I pay the bills. And then for some reason I sit and stare - thinking of nothing in particular and just feel sad. 2:30am eventually rolls around and I am either just falling asleep or suddenly awake with nothing in particular on my mind. I hate 2:30am. But I love my life.


I have asked myself many times, “How do you remain positive and hopeful when you have a tendency towards melancholy?” I don’t think I have a definitive answer, but I’ve found comfort and peace in reading about the great historical figures of American history. I feel excitement and exhilaration in the beauty of the earth and extreme landscapes, so I visit those places or look at pictures and read about them. Music has vital importance in my life and certain songs are reliable for pulling me into a better mental place. I’m sure in later blogs I will share some of them. For now, just know that logically we must experience these less than favorable moments, so that the antithesis of this crud can be as spectacular and joyful as they are meant to be.

Denial: A Hurt Feeling Waiting To Happen

It is frustrating when you are perfectly comfortable being a hurt feeling waiting to happen and the only one who knows what you are going through.

My denial phase occurred during the five months before I actually went to see a doctor about my blurred vision, extreme eye pain, migraines and fatigue. 

I was a Literary Studies Major...my eyes and alertness were crucial, yet I couldn’t explain to myself the need to ignore what was going on with my body.

It didn’t take long to realize that I needed a positive outlet. The tough part though, was that I had hit rock bottom and was depressed. I had lost all interest in things I was talented at, that I enjoyed doing, and even associating with people I love and admire. I masked the depression (or so I thought) with overworking and ostracizing myself. 

Masking the issues was relatively easy to do, because my husband was overseas and I spoke with him rarely; it was easy to hide the issues and not tell him anything. Not telling him actually seemed logical, because what could he do from thousands of miles away - worry? 

My parents thought I was just coping with my husband's deployment, busy working, completing my last semester of college, and handling the construction of a new home for my husband and I.

Truth be known, I was sinking further and further into a well dug hole. I was comfortable, and I felt that although I wasn’t in control of my body and pain, I could at least control everything else immediately around me. 

I needed to be upset when I wanted to be (which was preferably when I was in total solitude). I needed to feel like I was being picked on, because then I was justified in being angry. I needed to be busy, so I could complain about it rather than about the incessant pain I was in.

Though I finally got myself to a doctor for my eyes and migraines, I didn’t tell the eye doctor of my suspicions about multiple sclerosis (MS). I let him talk on and never really paid attention to his suspicions about two or three possibilities of what might be wrong (none of which were MS). For some reason though, I did take his referral to see a Neuro-ophthalmologist.

I made the appointment to see the Neuro-ophthalmologist and decided that I didn’t want to waste my time anymore. I just told the doctor that I knew I had MS and could I get the medication and be on with it. I don’t know why I was surprised to find out that it didn’t work that way, but I was.

There was no definitive line between denial and coming out of it for me. There was no big awe-inspiring moment or conclusion; it just kind of went that way. I still didn’t want to tell anyone about the MS until I had a firm diagnosis. 

I wasn’t ready for that experience. Maybe there still was some denial at that point, because in my mind it wasn’t really “real” until I told my sister Melene. For some reason in my mind, that would make this all actually real.