How small daily improvements can have HUGE long-term results!

This is very similar to the concept that I've been reading about in The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy (great personal development book, by the way)

So let's just say that you decide to cut 250 calories from your diet each day.  That's realistic. That's less calories than 4 Oreo cookies.  So 250 less calories a day isn't going to make any difference, you say... okay, maybe you won't notice a difference after a day of cutting 250 calories from your diet.  You may not even notice a difference a week after doing it, or even a month after omitting 250 calories from your normal diet.  

But guess what?... 

When you've been 6 months and this 250 less calories a day has just become your usual routine that you follow out of habit, and it doesn't even seem like you're doing anything special... In that 6 months, you've consumed 45,000 LESS CALORIES than you would have if you didn't decide to cut those mere 250 calories per day.

45,000 calories is equal to 13 pounds!!! So without even adding any kind of workout or adopting healthier eating habits... you've lost 13 POUNDS in 6 months... by simply cutting out those 4 Oreo cookies each day, or maybe the Iced Caramel Macchiato from Starbucks is your guilty pleasure.  Wherever you could cut off those 250 calories, do it! It may be tough the first week, but then you'll get used to it.  And you'll see results over time! 

Think about it... just by doing this for another 6 months, you will have lost over 25 pounds in a year, without working out, without eating salads and brussel sprouts for every meal... JUST by cutting 250 calories a day! 

NOW... Imagine if you also decided to replace some of those other calories you're taking in each day with some healthier choices.  Even baby steps... I'm not talking about starting a crazy workout routine, running marathons and living off of greens, but I'm just talking about ordering a wrap instead of a burger.  Get the apple instead of the baguette (Yes, I love me some Panera).  Skip the fancy, sugary coffee at Starbucks and get a black coffee and add your own cream and sugar so you can limit the amount put in it or try a Chai Tea Latte with nonfat milk... maybe you'll like that? And it only has 180 calories compared to a Venti White Chocolate Mocha (which used to be my FAVORITE... until I found out that it has 580 CALORIES-- 190 of them from fat!) Wowzers... no thank you! 

So just keep this in mind and remember, this goes for anything in life, not just dieting and losing weight, but if you start with small, baby steps, making small positive changes in the direction that you want to see yourself go, then it's inevitable that you will begin to see huge changes over time! So ask yourself... where do I wish to see myself at this time next year?  And how can I start making small steps in the right direction, RIGHT NOW? And start doing it!  

Just remember... CONSISTENCY IS KEY!  And that goes for anything in life!

~Crystal

You are the only one stopping yourself

Wow! How true is this? Why is it that we are always so hard on ourselves? Often, others are quicker to cheer us on and tell us we can do something, when we find ourselves building these walls and putting ourselves down for the things that we didn't achieve yet, or the things that we feel that we've failed at. 

STOP with the negative thoughts... STOP comparing yourself to others and STOP being your own biggest obstacle to hurdle! YOU, and only YOU, can decide that it's time to make a change in your life... so stop waiting for the perfect time to do it, because the perfect time will never come...

The perfect time is TODAY.

 The perfect time is that moment, where you realize that what you've done up until this point, hasn't worked for you... and it's time to make a CHANGE!!! STOP building these walls and holding yourself back!!! Think positive, take a leap of faith and JUMP!!! Jump over that wall, chase out those negative thoughts and become that person that you always wished you could be! 

Because guess what? YOU CAN BE THAT PERSON!

To follow my motivational posts, join my free fitness challenge group or become a part of my fit fam, then just go to facebook and 'like' my page!

 KISS MY ABS FITNESS FAM on FACEBOOK

Maria Kang -- My take as a fit mom of 3

After reading numerous articles about Maria Kang yesterday, I decided to make my own post on this topic. I am also a mom of 3 and have gotten into the best shape of my life after having them! You do have to have a lot of self discipline during and after pregnancy to achieve this... And you can complain that you don't have time to workout, because let's face it... most mom's really don't have a lot of spare time--between working, taking care of the house, doing the laundry, cooking meals, bathing the kids, helping with homework, putting them to bed... by the time you've got a second of peace and quiet for yourself... the LAST thing you feel like doing is working out!

I feel ya... I can relate!!... but you know what... A lot of us moms also decide to put ourselves LAST once we have a family to take care of. I know I'm guilty of it! For lunch many days, I would just pick from the leftovers on my kids plates. And when I did actually find time to eat a whole meal... it was something from McDonalds or Chik-fil-A (ewww) So find time to make little steps in the right direction to get healthier and in better shape! Try to make healthy food choices throughout the day, or if you can wake up a half hour before the kids and workout, then do it! Or start going for walks around the neighborhood with your family after school and work.

I suppose I have a similar message as Maria Kang, but I understand that these decisions must be made on your own time and you must be ready to really make some serious changes in your life and be willing to make a commitment to YOURSELF! I believe in you, but in order to see changes, you must believe in yourself! :) If you want to make a small step in the right direction, then I even have an online health and fitness challenge group going on that can help you achieve your goals! If you're interested in joining me, you can APPLY HERE and friend request me on facebook so that we can connect and get you started! :)

Start your own business from home!

If this sounds like something you'd be interested in, please contact me as soon as possible! We are beginning a coaches training bootcamp group on facebook to help get you started and teach you how you can earn Shakeology for free every month, while helping others and getting in the best shape of your life in the process!  You don't need any fitness or nutrition experience, no certifications, just the passion to help others get healthy and fit and the self discipline to be your own boss and "work" from home at least 30 minutes a day!

The quickest and easiest way to contact me is through email at Crystal.Laiti@yahoo.com.  You can start making money as soon as today, so don't wait... Let's get started on building your own business!

~Crystal
Independent Team Beachbody Coach

Join my FREE Fitness Challenge for October!!

 

 

Alright everyone! Sorry I'm 2 days late, but here is your October Fitness Challenge! I'm doing it a little bit different this month! Each day will be a 5 minute workout! This is to just get you into the routine of adding exercise to your DAILY routine!

 

You'll notice that each day of the week has a different combination of 30 sec-1 min exercises. These will be the same workouts for every week. What I want you all to do is keep track of how many reps you are able to do in the allotted time given for each exercise, everyday.

 

*For example: This week, you may only be able to do 10 crunches in 30 seconds, but a week from now, maybe you find that you're able to do 13 crunches in 30 seconds, and so on....

 

So I am going to post a blank calendar for you guys to print out (or if you have a calendar of your own at home that you can use already, or want to make your own word document calendar to keep track.... go for it! You do what's easiest for you!) But I really do want you to keep track of your rep #s so that you can see your improvement over the course of the month! If you want more of a challenge, then go through it all again when you've finished and you've got yourself a 10 minute workout each day! That's the beauty of this... is you can do as much or as little as you want, but I want you all to at least try the minimum (the 5 minutes that I posted for you each day!) 

 

And remember to check in and let us know when you've completed your workout for the day! Let us know which part you find to be easier or tougher for you! We're all in this together, so let's have fun with it! Thanks for participating everyone!!! And I'm hoping some of you that have just been observers up until this point, will join in on the fun and start posting for us! The more people who really participate and get involved in this, the more motivation everyone will have to get working! Whose in for a challenge this October?  If you're on facebook and want to join us, you can find us at

FunandFabFitFam@groups.facebook.com

Save and Print this one so you can track your number of reps for each day! But remember to keep good form!

 

How to have good things happen to you!

Friday's Food for Thought:

So lately, I have been the happiest I've been in a long time...maybe even ever!  I look at my beautiful family and thank God everyday for blessing me with healthy and happy children, a loving husband who is able to provide for us and give me the opportunity to stay at home with my kids everyday and when I started to feel like I needed something more to fulfill my purpose here, this wonderful coaching opportunity practically fell into my lap! When I heard that all I would have to do is work out, eat healthier and get in great shape again (which I'd been putting off for a while) and help other people do the same... it sounded like a dream come true! And I am LOVING it!

So I've started to see a chain reaction, lately.  As I've become healthier and happier overall, I'm beginning to see other parts of my life fall right into place as well.  I've always wished I had more motivation to get creative in the kitchen and cook new, healthy meals for my family... I have over 100 wonderful recipes pinned on Pinterest, but I had maybe tried cooking 2 of them over the last year.  I've cooked about 5 of them now, just in the past week! I wished my kids and I were on a better schedule and that I could be more organized... and now I have calendars, dry-erase boards, star-charts for the kids... I'm organized! I've been focusing on the good things in my life and the positive changes that I want to happen, and now they are all happening... almost all at once! It's amazing!

And not only are things becoming better for me, but I've noticed that this positive energy is also affecting those who are closest to me!  My husband has quit some of his bad habits and is beginning to workout with me, my sister and her husband have decided to add daily workouts to their schedules and are getting healthier, my mom has made a huge step toward becoming healthier and committed herself to overcoming some huge obstacles in her life and my dad is achieving success in doing what he loves and has been invited to speak at an event this weekend that he's been attending for years, and now he will be sharing his knowledge with some of the best gardeners out there!

So as I've started to really see the positive chain of events happening right before my eyes, I thought about this book that I had read a couple years ago called, The Secret.  I'm sure many of you have heard of it, but it pretty much explains how if you focus your thoughts on negativity, then negative things will happen to you.  But when you focus your energy on positive thoughts and doing good for yourself and others, then you will notice an overwhelming positive chain of events begin to happen.  It seems like a pretty straight-forward concept, right?  I'm sure you've noticed those facebook friends who are constantly posting negative posts on here... doesn't it seem like it's just one bad thing after another happening to these people? They never seem happy do they?  Maybe if those people stop letting the negative things consume them, and start being grateful for the positive things in their life, then they will start to experience more happiness. 

So no matter how tough your day may be... whenever a negative thought starts to creep into your head... chase it off and replace it with a positive thought!  See what a difference this simple change can do for you! Enjoy the life you've been given, be grateful for what you have, don't dwell on what you don't have and be sure to spread the love and pay it forward to others!  If each person that sees this today could just do one small deed for someone else out there today, then we have changed a life! No matter how big or small the deed may be, good karma will find it's way back to you when you need it most! I hope you all have a fabulous Friday!
~Crystal

TODAY's FOOD FOR THOUGHT:

 

 So I've really been thinking about this a lot lately... You know how after the holidays, suddenly EVERYONE wants to diet, go to the gym and make a New Year's Resolution to get healthy and fit? Change their life? Well, my question is... "Why do people feel like they have to wait until January 1st to make this commitment to themselves?" Many of those people lose their motivation within a couple weeks and give in to their old habits again anyways, because they get off track and then get discouraged. So why not make that kind of change TODAY?

 

Think about it!... If you decided to start jogging after work today, or even just add a simple workout regimen to your daily routine NOW, then by the time New Year's is here, you'll feel amazing, look amazing and be able to rock that hot dress you've wished you could pull off for years! And then instead of making a resolution to get in shape, spending tons of money on a gym membership that you don't even know if you'll really use... you will already be ahead of the game! You'll have people asking you what YOU did to get in such great shape and their resolution will be to do what YOU already did!! 

 

I guess that's my thought for the day. So if you're one of those people who has decided that you want to make a change NOW, then DO IT! What are you waiting for? And if you need someone on your ass to push you and help motivate you, then that's my job. So feel free to message me with your fitness/health goals and I can help you start checking them off your list BEFORE the crazy holidays hit! So that's my rant for today... HOPE YOU HAVE A FABULOUS FRIDAY!