Stop reading the headline – I meant what I said.
At our house, we make mistakes. Really, big, messy ones sometimes. And you wanna know something really cool? Wait for it…(knuckle in mouth)…they are usually helpful. Crazy, right? See, the thing about perfection is that it leads to all or nothing behavior. “I can’t ever miss a workout or I’ll fail,” leads to no working out at all. “I can’t eat that piece of cake or my plan to lose five pounds will be ruined,” turns into ditching the weight loss plan altogether, because eating cake won’t count as cheating if you’re not trying to lose weight. Am I right? But what if it is not only good to make some mistakes, but to make them often?
Mistakes are opportunities. Deep, I know. Mistakes are opportunities to learn. In fact, I propose you make that same mistake twice, or three or four times. Make it until your plan is YOUR plan, because after trial and error time and again, you know what works, what doesn’t work, and how to overcome obstacles, get back on track, reevaluate, tweak, and become persistent. Making mistakes means you are trying. Multiple mistakes means you are continuing to try because you care, because you want success and you want to reach your goal, whatever that goal may be.
Finally, making mistakes reminds us that we are human. Everyone (seriously – everyone) makes mistakes, and I’m willing to bet that some of the most successful people on the planet made a lot of them before they reached their goals.
Enough said 
 Have a GREAT Tuesday all!
No one likes Mondays. If you do, I think that is just super, and please, feel free to share your secret to achieving Monday bliss with the rest of us. In the meantime (not sitting on pins and needles waiting), I will share a couple of rules for getting your week off to a great start, despite hating Monday.
Rule #1: Don’t start your day with any food product that has the word Krave, Frosted, Corn, or Rice. Don’t believe me? Just look at the graphics on any box with these names, especially those in the cereal isle. Most have a picture of a very happy animal with big eyes and a smile too big for its face. Is this how you want to look when you get to work? And, if you tried Kellogg’s new cereal, Krave, and found that you can’t stop after just one bowl, are eating it for lunch, snacks, and dinner too, and see the scale tipping in the wrong direction…people – the name on the box might as well say, “CRACK COCAINE!” At 10g of sugar per serving, this cereal is not going to get your week off to a great start. Opt instead for an egg, a slice of whole wheat toast, a 1/2 c. of blueberries, and a cup of plain almond milk.
Rule #2: If you haven’t already, sit with your calendar and plan all of your meals and workouts now. It doesn’t take a lot of time, just discipline, and the benefits are tremendous. I’ve said this a gazillion times before – not planning your workouts is planning to fail. If sweat sessions aren’t on your calendar, inevitably the minute something else comes up, the workout will be forgotten. The same with meals – at least put some thought into what you plan to eat for the week, get the ingredients you need ahead of time, and you’ll be prepared for a successful week.
Rule #3: Do your hardest workout for the week on Monday. I know, you think I’m nuts. Monday is the day that most workouts are postponed, thus setting a negative tone for the entire week. By plowing through your hardest workout of the week on Monday however, you start the week with a BANG, feel great about yourself, and set the tone for the rest of the week. Odds are good the rest of your workouts will follow suit.
Hoping this helps set the tone for all of your Mondays to come
Good luck!
Print Health Food coupons
After patrolling my email in box, I thought it would be fun to post some “finds” that you may find useful this week. If you are one of the millions of people who has either “getting in shape” or “lose weight” as your New Year’s resolution, I hope you’ll find these little tidbits useful. February is typically when resolution seekers fall off the wagon. Even if you have fallen off, I’m certain the wagon isn’t moving so fast you can’t run alongside and hop back on.
Okay, here goes:
* Save on Health Food! Smart Source and Red Plum don’t often carry coupons for “health food,” but I have found Mambo Sprouts to be a valuable resource. Hop over to the Mambo Sprouts website and select from numerous coupons that you can print out at home. Super easy, so can’t use the “healthy eating is too expensive”
excuse any more.
* Get a grip on all things “fat.” There is the fat you eat, and the fat you have, and of the fats you eat, there are trans fats, saturated fats, monounsaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats… There are differences, and your body does need some amount of fat. Find out the ins and outs of fat from Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, who penned this great article in Organic Valley. Be sure to check out all of the other great stuff the site offers while you’re there.
* Start your day out right…with OATMEAL! Yes! My favorite breakfast food ranks #1. Woot woot. Get the straight up nutrition facts about this super healthy day starter, and your many options for dressing it up and making it even yummier at EatingWell (my fave “go to” site for healthy recipes).
* Body Bar has FREE SHIPPING on orders over $100. Gals, you know those Body Bars weigh a ton (or, they should if you’re ordering the ones heavy enough to help you get to your goal weight/shape), so free shipping is awesome. Think about it – a 15lb bar would cost a small fortune to ship, so take advantage while you can. And if you’re looking for something fresh and challenging to do with your new bar, I highly recommend the Body Bar Boot Camp DVD by Andre Houle.
It happens to be American Heart Month, in case you haven’t seen the “Go Red for Women” slogans everywhere. Heart disease kills more women than all forms of cancer combined – I was shocked the first time I learned that, but not surprised either. Heart disease is prevalent in my own family – a fact which I passed along to a nurse during my annual you-know-what appointment last week. Know what she said? “Wow. Heart disease on both sides of your family. Well, your screwed.” I kid you not – her exact words. She didn’t ask about my health habits, exercise, nutrition…nada. Just, “your screwed.” What?!?!?! I’m not, and I’ll tell you why. Twenty-plus years ago I decided I could make a difference. I started exercising regularly, eating right, and learning as much as I could about keeping my heart healthy. We do NOT have to die from the same things our family members died from, and don’t let anyone, health care professional or not, tell you otherwise! Do something. Do it today. Go for a walk, reduce your stress level, make a colorful salad, find out what the healthiest foods are, join a gym – just do something, anything but listen to a load of crap like that. Now go on cowgirl, get a move on, and don’t die from heart disease, ‘kay?
