If you want to be fit and slender ...

Then act like someone who's slender and fit. 

There's any entire industry out there called the "diet" industry.  But what's its purpose?  To help people who are overweight get skinny.  And boy do they offer a ton of BAD stuff to get you there. 

Diet Pills.  Low-fat diets.  Low-carb diets.  The grapefruit diet.  The cabbage soup diet.  Uggh, what craziness!

What do these all have in common?  They are tough to handle, tough to maintain diets.  They are often built on some form of deprivation, and they're really meant to be used for a limited amount of time. 

But I've said it to all my clients and I'll continue to say it.  If you want to be a slender, fit woman/man, act like one.  And here's the first trick.  Slender people, at least healthy ones, rarely ever go on diets.  Diets are trends, not a lifestyle.  Don't do it.

So what do healthy, slender and fit people do?

• Nourish themselves: They eat food that nourishes them.  Sure they have some cravings too, but because they eat enough good-for-you foods, they aren't ruled by them.  They eat regular meals with food that looks like something that came from the planet and not a science lab.

• Stay active: They move, play, and exercise.  They get regular exercise because they know they feel better, sleep better and feel happier when they are active. 

• They find balance: They work hard, but they also take time to enjoy family and friends, they take vacations, they get their sleep.  Balance is what keeps them able to make good decisions every week, even with all the temptations out there.

Compare this with people trying to lose weight and you'll see some glaring differences. 

With most weight loss programs, it feels a lot more like something you're forcing yourself to do.  Workout at the gym forever, because that's what you're supposed to do whether you enjoy it or not.  Eat food that bores you, or deprive yourself so that you can burn fat quickly 

But just like a house build on a bad foundation, dieting and deprivation will never last.  It's so rare that you meet someone that started a diet 10 years ago and still happily just consumes low-fat products to stay thin. 

The focus has to be on nourishment, and enjoying the changes. 

Learn what it's like to be a fit person and the fat will burn off. 

Learn how to cook and enjoy real food. 

Find an exercise program that's fun for you, and don't do it just because you're supposed to work out. 

Once you know how fit people act on a daily basis, the next step is believing you are a fit person. 

We'll discuss the topic of aligning yourself with your goals the next time. 

For now, go nourish yourself!

Dedicated to your health,

David Beares, MAc, LAc

Owner, 39 Minute Workout
www.39minuteworkout.com