Off to Accomplish My Dreams!

June 13, 2011 in Informational, Motivational by Taylor | No comments

I began this blog in the fall of 2009, right before my book, Cutting Myself in Half, was published, and I’ve enjoyed offering tips and encouragements to fellow fitness strugglers for more than a year and a half. Many of you have become my cyber friends, and I’ve struggled and celebrated along with you as you have strived to accomplish your fitness dreams.

Now I’m turning the page to the next chapter of my life as I complete my college education. 

My dreams are big, and one reason is because I know that dreams can come true if you don’t limit yourself with a preconceived paradigm.  A paradigm is a model, a way that things are done or someone thinks they’re done.  If we create a paradigm that says we can’t do something, it’s not likely we’ll be able to do it.

An elephant trainer can casually drape a rope around a short peg, and a seven-ton elephant will make no effort to move. Why? Because when the elephant was young, the trainer tied the rope securely, the elephant pulled, and he couldn’t break lose. Over and over the elephant tried to free himself until he eventually created a mental paradigm that when the rope was stretched out, he was helpless to move.  Soon he stopped trying.

I have been blessed to have family members, teachers, and friends who never put a rope around my leg. They never told me what I couldn’t do. They always said, “Someone wins. Why not you?”  They taught me that I was only limited by how big I could dream.  That’s one reason I believe I was able to get—and stay—fit.

If you have paradigms that tell you that you can’t do the things you dream of, remember that a paradigm is just an imaginary fence and you can walk right through it.

I wish every fellow fitness friend success in everything he or she attempts. Dream big! You won’t accomplish everything you attempt to do, but there’s one thing I can promise you: You will never accomplish what you don’t attempt.

Reluctantly, I must give up my blog in exchange for accomplishing my academic dreams. But I don’t want to give up my cyber friends. If you haven’t done so already, I hope you’ll become my Facebook friend so we can stay connected. There’s a FB link on the home page of this website.  I won’t be checking for comments on my blog, but ask me questions on Formspring, which is also on my website home page. Keep me updated on your fitness progress and check up on mine.  

Get rid of paradigms, dream big dreams, and remember my final quote: See you at the top!—Zig Ziglar

Live positively,

Taylor

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Advice for Beginners

June 1, 2011 in Diet, Motivational, Uncategorized, exercise by Taylor | 2 comments

Last week, I graduated from high school. Big milestone!  After a Facebook friend, who is just starting high school, asked if I had any advice for beginning high schoolers, I thought about the beginning of my own high school experience. I had been working to get fit for several months, but I had not yet reached my ultimate goal.  What I would have appreciated four years ago is advice for people just starting their fitness journey.

After nearly four years of fitness, here’s what I would say to anyone taking the first steps toward fitness because the hardest part of fitness is making it a lifestyle:

  1. Anyone can lose weight for a little while, but most people gain it right back. Losing weight is too hard to keep repeating all your life, so lose it once for a lifetime.
  2. It’s tempting to try to lose too fast, but you’re running a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t go on a diet. Get on a whole new life track. (I have an example in my book on pages 114-116 that illustrates what I mean by getting on the right track.)
  3. I believe that most people don’t keep the weight off because they forget that they’re amazingly amazing and they deserve to be thin. Start feeling good about yourself today, then lose the weight tomorrow. The more you start enjoying the smart, funny, amazing person you already are, the more determined you’ll be to give yourself the body you deserve.
  4. You can change your life by changing your weight. I’ve been where you are, and I know it seems like an impossible climb right now. But I promise you that it will be worth it. You’ll be healthier. You’ll have more energy. You’ll have more social and career opportunities. But the biggest change you’ll see is how people respond to you. Most people don’t take time to look past the extra pounds to see the amazing person you are. It’s not fair, but that’s the way it is. Get rid of the pounds so people can see the real you.

Check out this information on the detox diet!

Until next time, here’s something to think about:

Some are destined to succeed; some are determined to succeed.—Tejomayananda

Live positively,

Taylor

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Get Motivated

May 14, 2011 in Motivational by Taylor | No comments

While getting fit, I felt discouraged plenty of times, especially early in my fitness program. For months, I worked out, I reduced my food intake, and I made good food choices. No one noticed the difference, not even me. During those early months, I had to keep reminding myself that each day I didn’t gain, I was better off than if I were piling on the pounds. I told myself that even if I didn’t lose weight, I was making healthier choices, so my body was getting stronger. I told myself that if I turned back now, all my work would be for nothing. And I let myself imagine what I’d be like a year from now, not next week.

The good news is that eventually the weight seemed to melt away. Then other people became my encouragers. Hearing all the compliments became my motivation.

Until next time, here’s something to think about: If you can dream, you can do it.—Walt Disney

Live positively,

Taylor

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Your Most Reliable Fitness Coach

May 1, 2011 in Motivational by Taylor | No comments

I appreciate all the friends and family who encourage me in my fitness program. I couldn’t have succeeded without them. But it wasn’t long into my fitness program before I realized that the only encourager I had available 24/7 was me. I developed a lot of self-talk to keep myself on task.

I devoted a whole chapter of my book to self-talk because I depend heavily on it. I have things I tell myself when I’m tempted to skip exercise, make a poor food choice, or grab an extra serving of a healthy but high-calorie food. I talk to myself just like I’d talk to someone else if I were their personal trainer. I say things like, “You’ve worked too hard to blow it all on a couple of potato chips.” 

I also use my imagination to motivate, and this method was especially helpful early in my fitness program. I imagined it was a year later and I’d gotten totally fit. I met someone at the mall that I hadn’t seen in a long time, and they didn’t recognize me. When I told them who I was, they were blown away by the change. Scenarios like this kept me going. And the cool thing was that almost all my scenarios eventually came true.

Until next time, here’s something to think about: Within you right now is the power to do things you never dreamed possible.—Maxwell Maltz

Live positively,

Taylor

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