Self Helping Yourself

Self Improvement Made Easy

Weight Loss Habit

The Miracle of Frozen Meals

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This is an excerpt from my upcoming book The Weight Loss Habit. Since we’re all stuck at home, can’t go to restaurants, and it’s a time of habit change, it’s a good time to start eating healthier. Here I explain how frozen meals are one of the easiest ways to do that.

Edit:

The book is now available.

There was a period of time where my wife decided to go vegan. It made her feel generally better and healthier, but she ultimately gave it up because it was just too much of a time commitment.

Every day I’d come home from work and she’d be in the kitchen blending smoothies, making pastes, sorting seeds and grains, and doing god knows what to prepare all her meals. She’d stay in the kitchen the entire evening until it was time to go to bed. Eventually she decided, “Screw this. I want my life back,” and switched back to a normal diet just because it was easier.… Read more

Reward Yourself During or After Exercise (But Not With Food)

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[This is an excerpt from my upcoming weight loss book, The Weight Loss Habit]

Edit:

The book is now available.

Remember my tip about forming habits from Part 1: To be able to form a habit, it’s really best if it’s something that’s easy, convenient, enjoyable, provides immediate positive feedback, or is incremental improvements over time.

You can kind of cheat this with exercise, by making it more enjoyable and giving yourself immediate positive feedback through the use of a reward.

If you do something that makes you happy or is really enjoyable immediately after, or even better – during – exercise, then you’ll mentally associate the two things, and start to crave exercise because of the reward.

Some possible rewards are:

  • Watch a favorite or “guilty pleasure” TV show.
  • Watch movies.
  • Exercise with friends so that you can socialize at the same time.
  • Listen to your favorite music.
  • Listen to your favorite podcast.
… Read more

Twenty-eight Ways to Exercise That Aren’t Going to the Gym

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Note: As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been working on a book called The Weight Loss Habit. From time to time I’ll post excerpts from the book.

Edit:

The book is now available.

My approach mostly focuses on eating habits rather than exercise, because diet has a much bigger impact on your weight and overall health. But exercise certainly has some impact. And you absolutely should be getting exercise.

But not at the gym. Here’s the dirty little secret about the gym industry: Gyms are only for people who enjoy going for the gym. Take note of that. Commit it to memory. Recall it anytime a commercial, salesperson, corporate wellness program, overeager gym cultist, New Years Resolution bug, doctor, or well-meaning friend suggests you join one. Do not join a gym unless you are the kind of person who finds the gym actively fun. If you do, you are just wasting your money, and setting yourself up for frustration, failure, and self-hatred.… Read more

The Fundamental Rule of Weight Loss

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Scale representing weight loss.

Note: I’ve been working on a book tentatively titled The Weight-Loss Habit: The (Sort of) Easy Way to Lose Weight and Keep It Off Forever. This is an excerpt from the book.

Since the book is still in draft form, I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback on this.

Edit:

The book is now available.

Weight loss is all about habits. So is weight gain. In fact, your entire relationship with food is determined by your habits.

To lose weight, you need to change your eating habits.

You may argue that this is an obvious statement, and just kicking the can down the road. How do you change your eating habits?

That isn’t necessarily obvious, but at least you’re asking the right question.

One of my favorite books is The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. This talks about the idea of Keystone Habits. Frequently, someone looking to change their life will pick up a new good habit or break a bad habit.… Read more