Posts

Showing posts from July, 2016

Not every opinion is worth listening to

When you have goals, it's important to find others who's beliefs line up with them. Is not it easier to communicate with those in agreement? Imagine getting fitness advice from someone who doesn't care about fitness. Don't surround yourself with the wrong people and expect the right results to fall in your lap. Dumping Friends Then should you dump friends who don't share you views? Just because your friend doesn't share your interest in fitness or weight loss doesn't mean you can't share other interests. I know many gamers who don't care about weight loss. No problem! I still love them and we still frequently hang out. Of course, if they ever do become interested, they know who to talk to. Imposing Views The issue arrives when their goals impose on your goals. If you struggle with overcoming an addiction to sweet deserts and your friends keeps offering you ice cream, their goals are imposing on your goals. Listen, it may be a good intention in

Inventorying Your Environment

"You are a product of your environment. So choose the environment that will best develop you toward your objective. Analyze your life in terms of its environment. Are the things around you helping you toward success - or are they holding you back?" - W. Clement Stone Would you hold a weight loss meeting in a donut shop? How about an Alcoholic Anonymous Meeting at a bar? How about a smoking cessation class at a cigar lounge? Environment matters But environment isn't just location, it's also the people you surround yourself with. Are the people you surround yourself with helping you reach your goal or are they holding you back? Maybe it's a good time to take inventory .

A Product of Your Environment

I will never fully understand the life of an Iranian in Tehran during the regime change. No matter how many books read, movies watched, nor people interviewed I can never truly be a product of that environment. But your environment does not define you. It also doesn't have to be static. Your past doesn't have to dictate your future. Sure, your past is important, but not nearly as important as your vision for the future Or rather the way you see your future is more important than what's happened in the past. But changing your environment takes a conscious decision, it requires conscious effort, and sometime the results are also not immediate. Circle of Friends “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” - Jim Rohn The people you spend the most time with have the greatest influence on you. Those are the people you surround yourself with. Your environment. Look at them? Where are they in life compared to you? Typically most of them will be aroun

Be Ambitious

But not foolish. It's great wanting to lose 100 pounds in 1 year... But trying for 2 pounds a week for 25 weeks is hard when you struggle to lose 1 pound a week. And what do you do when you start hitting your plateaus? Progress isn't linear. Do you eat less? If you're already are your minimum viable calorie consumption, you're starving yourself. Fasting is great, but it's not a long term solution. Starving yourself is a great way to retain water, compromise liver and kidney function, and throw your hormones out of whack. Consider the alternative. If you have been gaining weight, first learn to stabilize your weight. Try a weight stabilization diet for a few weeks and find out what's sustainable for you which also achieves the goals your are looking for. Once you learn how to maintain your weight, practice losing 1 pound a week. That about a 500 calorie deficit a day. A combination of dietary habits and increased exercise will get you there easy.

Misplaced Blame

On my About Me page I mention how I was depressed without hope and I believed my family was falling apart before my eyes. Looking back, I realize I was deceiving myself, devouring unhealthy thoughts. I started to believe my family was against me and began self fulfilling the negative prophecy in my mind. False Narrative With the false narrative, I added to my 10 ton bag of lies and began to misplace blame. I started looking for reasons why my family was 'broken'. Days they didn't have energy to clean, I'd fill my plate with the fruit of resentment thinking. "If only they loved me, they'd help me pick up this house." What's more, when Anne Marie mentioned how I also forgot to finish a chore, I would be quick to anger, pointing out how it was me always bending over backwards. Busting my butt. Cooking, cleaning, taking care of the kids. Relationships But it's not easier to fit a square peg in a round hole by pushing harder. I was planting

Pokemon Go. Greatest Social Game to Date?

Image
My friend Gregory states "Pokemon Go is the greatest social game to date". That's high praise but he has a point. For years MMOs kept him, myself, and millions of others in our houses. We were connected in MMOs, but only virtually. Physically we were hidden in dark hideaways double clicking relentlessly at a glowing monitor. Not a sterling definition of social. But now millions of people are leaving their house and heading to parks and community centers to catch them all. Millions of people are now outside, walking every single day, meeting others they would have never met otherwise. There are already reports of Pokemon Go couples. Players who met chasing Pokemon now going on dates. Like I stated in Pokemon Going , it's only a matter of time until Pokemon Go is mentioned in wedding vows. What's more, savvy businesses owners are capitalizing on the craze. They are intentionally placing Lures at PokeStops near their location to attract potential customers.

All Mirrors Lie

At work Michael mentioned he uses a mirror to determine his fitness. I had to ask him, "So what does fit 'look' like anyway?" What does fit look like? Lying Mirrors I realize many people do it. I know I have. But when we determine our 'health and fitness levels' by looks, we are doing our self a huge disservice, physically and mentally. The body is a fast fading facade. Don't slide down that slippery slope. PS By the way, mirrors don't lie. It's just the stories we tell ourselves looking in mirrors aren't always accurate.

Nutritionally Repetative

When I suggest batch meal planning, the most common opposition is "I get sick of eating the same thing over and over!" But aren't you also sick of being unhealthy? Following my proven plan will save you time, money, and stress at the expense of being nutritionally repetitive. Following no plan will cost you time, money, and stress. You'll likely also have a harder time tracking nutrition and will probably lose less weight. So what are you more sick of, being unhealthy, strung out, out of time, and broke? Or being nutritionally repetitive a few times a week? While you're thinking about it, let me introduce you a secret weapon I call Mrs. Dash .

MyFitnessPal

My wife decided this week to rededicate herself to weight loss. She want to lose 50 lbs by years end. This is an aggressive plan. Losing 2 pounds a week for 25 weeks is not a cake walk. I'd love prayers and well wishes. One of the way I'll be supporting her is by counting my calories with MyFitnessPal . If you don't use a calorie tracking app and are looking to lose weight, I highly recommend it. If you do have it, please connect with me. My user name is Hamenopi . I'd love to encourage you on that platform. What more, I'm continuing my journey to from over 300 lbs to under 200 pounds . Currently I'm at 218.5 lbs. I'd love for you to motivate me past the finish line.

Pokemon Going

Image
You might not know Pokemon stop locations originate from Ingress Portals. Since I played Ingress, I knew where the local stops were most cluttered for efficient play. So today at lunch, I had a quick bite and headed over to one so called location. It's name, Fullerton Park. Fullerton Park was alive with people walking the perimeter! Every so often, the people in turn would look down at their phone, swipe a few times, then keep walking. Young people, old people, healthy people, and no so healthy people; they all were there. I saw at least 10 people, more than I've ever seen during the heat of the day before. What more, they were all waving and nodding to each other. From time to time, they'd stop for a quick chat before continuing. I talked to three of them for a bit, walking with them around the lap for some time. We talked about locations they've been and strategies they used. We talked about teams they're on and other interests we shared. I had a great time

Pokemon NO?

Image
I think back to when I was a kid. I remember clearly still the original Pokemon. I loved that game! I played that game for MONTHS! So of course my attention diverts when facebook erupts in Pokemon pics and chatter. Shortly after that, I see walls upon walls of Pokemon GO hate. It alarmed me some of the people with such strong negative opinions about the game. Apparently this game turn people into zombies and idiots! So I got curious and I installed it to see what the rage was all about. I also wanted to see if I was the very best, the best there ever was. So far I noticed these interesting things about the game... The application doesn't run unless you tell it to. It doesn't force you to stare at the screen. It doesn't order you to run out into traffic. It doesn't compel you to capture Pokemon while driving. In the end, Pokemon GO is just an application. It's the user who applies it. Analysis The application doesn't create anything except an experie