Monday morning motivation – three tips
Three nutritional tips that will change your health and how you feel…for good
Lori Schaefer of intheequation.com speaking at the 2014 O’Neal Hampton Wellness Fair.
Happy Monday morning peeps! Are you ready? It’s going to be a great kick off to a great week! Here’s a little Monday motivation.
This past weekend, I had the privilege of speaking to a small group at the O’Neal Hampton Wellness Fair about my core message: “How to put yourself in the center of your own life and achieve your big, hairy audacious goals.” The Wellness Fair was hosted by O’Neal Hampton of NBC’s Season 9 Biggest Loser — and if you know my story — he was my hope, inspiration and mentor in my transformation journey. The Wellness Fair benefits the O’Neal Hampton Wellness Foundation, check it out. I love to spend time with “Unc” O’Neal and his peeps. And I love sharing my story and helping others who battle some of the same challenges.
Another great speaker at the Wellness Fair was local Fox 9 News fitness and nutrition expert, Ali Holman, of CoreCamper. Ali shared 3 nutritional tips — things you can start doing today — to change your health and fitness trajectory and take care of your body. I loved her speech and, in fact, have shared these same tips with people that I coach when they are just starting out. At the Wellness Fair we promised Ali we would help carry the message. So here you go.
If you make just these three nutritional changes, Ali said, you’ll change your health, see results and feel better. Ali, I totally agree! All three are changes that were part of my nutritional program in the very beginning and they are now my weight maintenance/healthy living program for life.
Three things you can do today that will change your health and improve how your feel:
1) Eat a big breakfast and a small dinner. Switch those two meals up. Most of us have been trained to do it the other way. But your body needs fuel for the day and you will burn that fuel during your entire day when you eat your larger meal for breakfast. And, I would add, be sure you eat breakfast. Too many people skip breakfast and make it up for it by eating more or even binging during the day. I used to be one of them. Breakfast is now my most important meal of the day.
2) Eat 5 smaller meals, 2-3 hours a part vs. 3 big meals. I learned this from my nutritional and program coach, Leif Anderson back in 2010. And, I’ve practiced it every day since. This keeps your metabolism working. When you skip meals — which I haven’t done in the last 3.5 years — your metabolism is thrown off. You won’t always be hungry 2-3 hours apart, but eat anyway and try to include protein, healthy fats, and fiberous carbs. This is one of the very BEST changes I’ve made in my nutritional program and new healthy life.
3) Eat whole food NOT processed food. This is a biggie and we think most Americans know this, but they don’t. Whole food, not processed stuff in a box is what your body needs and will thrive on/thank you for. It is the best fuel — the good stuff. When you drop the processed foods high in salt and sugar, you will notice the biggest changes in how you look and feel. Ali had two important observations on this point. 1) Do you see any photos of our ancestors overweight? No, because they ate whole foods from the land. 2) “If you eat what comes in a box, you will look like a box!” I’ve written others blogs on this topic and there is growing research on this point so I won’t be labor it here. But, this one is big. For me, this was the most important shift in my nutritional program and factor in my nutritional success.
Look at Ali Holman — WOW — and she is a leading local nutrition and fitness expert who knows her stuff and spews out the research. I am the experiential part of the equation. Look at me sans 200+ pounds and nearly 50% of my body fat. I learned many of the same things that Ali teaches for the first time about 3.5 years ago when I started my weight loss journey. So, together, I think we’re proof it works! 😉
Happy Monday. Let me know if you start doing practicing these three nutritional tips and how you feel after a couple of weeks.
Cheers!
Lori
