WILL(ing to em)POWER

To obtain a healthy lifestyle most of us have two things we need to work on (diet and exercise)...with the help of our willpower...we must be willing to empower ourselves to make changes and improve our chances of living a longer happier healthier life :)

As you all know, I am a chocoholic. I keep a stash of chocolate up on the top shelf of my bedroom closet. It's funny how old habits are hard to break...I still buy chocolate especially when I see something new or an old fave that sets my tastebuds off right there in the store. LOL...inadvertently my willpower has turned me into a chocolate hoarder! Can you believe that I have chocolate in there from last Christmas? I don't mean the one just passed, I mean Christmas 2011! I think I should start choosing my treats by date bought and not by what strikes my fancy at the time.

I test my willpower almost every day and I must admit that I am quite proud of myself. I'll head upstairs and open the bin and look through everything trying to decide which to eat that day. And surprisingly, most days I close up the bin and head back downstairs empty handed. Just the thought of the extra calories perhaps adding fat to the muffin top I am already struggling to remove is enough to squash the urge in it's tracks. LOL...but other days I am thinking what the heck I want this chocolate NOW!

LOL...I am not superwoman...when I open up a chocolate bar, I do not divide it up into pieces, I eat the whole thing!

Now that I've shared what I need willpower for the most, please share (in the comments area) what you think will be your biggest obstacle. In a future blog we will delve into alot of healthy and unhealthy foods that we need willpower to add or remove from our diet.

WILLPOWER & DIET:

Future blog posts/topics will cover the good the bad and the ugly about food choices. A healthy diet is such a multi-level endeavor with so many variables to tackle.

Personally this is the area where I needed the most willpower.

WILLPOWER & EXERCISE:

Personally, this was the easiest for me ...

... all I had to do was get off my butt and do it, lol!

THIS WEEK'S CHALLENGE:

This week we have a double challenge...one for diet and one for exercise.

DIET CHALLENGE:

LOL..yup, that's right, do not add any salt to your food! Think you can do it?

At first I was skeptical, thought all the fun would be taken out of my meals. I was surprised to find that most food was still tasty enough for me. For years and years, out of habit, I would always sprinkle salt onto my food without even tasting it first. Nowadays I rarely add salt to anything.

One observation that really opened my eyes...I can't believe how salty some food items are now that I'm not used to a salty palette. Of course, at the top of that list is fast food. As a matter of fact, whenever I do eat at a fast food joint, I end up with chapped lips. The biggest culprit...pre-salted fries!

For this challenge, just start out with one day...see if you can make it through the day without adding salt. If you survive that,lol, how about going for 2 days, 4 days, 1 week?

Please come back to the blog in a day or so to share your experience. How many days did you last? Was there any food that you thought you couldn't eat without salt but found out it was doable? For me,that was eggs. In fact, I discovered that I can eat anything without adding my own salt, but there are still a few times when I feel the urge to sprinkle when a particular item tastes too bland.

EXERCISE CHALLENGE:

For this challenge, while watching tv...just get up and move during the commercials!

Take a walk to the fridge for a drink of water. Take a walk to the door and let the dog out. Take a walk over to the window and check the weather. Take a walk around the house picking up dirty dishes.

Or just stand up beside your chair and do a mini-workout. Wake up your body, lol, move your arms & legs, stretch, twist, dance :)

Please come back to the blog in a day or so to share your experience. Were you able to move around during every commercial? LOL...easy peasy right?

NEXT WEEK'S BLOG:

With all this talk about will(ing to em)power, I've got good news for you...it doesn't have to be engaged all the time...which brings us to THE 80/20 RULE...tune in next week to learn more.

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DISCLAIMER: Whenever I use the word DIET in my blog posts I am in no way suggesting that I have invented/discovered some miracle system to lose weight. Whenever I use the word DIET, I am simply substituting a single word to replace the longer phrase EATING HEALTHIER THAN IN THE PAST.