The only way, you are not

 The one thing about legos besides being one of the coolest toys ever is that the instruction manual is non-negotiable. No matter who you are no matter your personality or IQ everybody needs and uses the instruction manual. We all put legos together by the same process. I know there will always be someone that believes argues differently but we recently got a 1,771

piece Yoda lego set and I can tell you that no one will be putting this set together without the instruction manual. 

This blog isn't about legos or lego sets, even know, like I mentioned earlier legos are the coolest toys on the block! This blog is about how we treat other things in life as if there is a universal step-by-step way to do it right. I have seen and experienced this type of false ideology of  "I've got the instruction manual" attitude as a Pastor in the church for over 20 years and now as a health coach in the health and fitness industry for the past 7 years.

Let me explain. When I was a young youth pastor, I loved attending training conferences. This was my opportunity to glean from others in my field. Some were from my peers that have been doing this longer and then there were the speakers that were brought in to teach (tell) us strategies that would help us be more effective at using our time wisely, being better at personal growth and all the other things that make us a better Christian. I would always leave encouraged with all kinds of new strategies, to only a few months later be totally discouraged because I failed to do what I learned to be the most effective way to grow my own spirituality and to help the students in our ministry grow in the way I was told was most effective. As I matured I realized that I was only failing at being like the speakers and my peers. I was growing my faith and I was becoming a better pastor, it just didn't look the same as others. It's not supposed to! Unlike legos, spirituality looks different and our growth in the Lord doesn't necessarily come the same as others, most of the time it won't. 

 I also noticed this same attitude with nutrition. Someone would go on a diet and do really well. Sometimes that diet was ridiculously restrictive but they did well, and it worked for them. Now, every time someone needs help they believe that they have the answer to everybody that is struggling with their weight. Everybody knows an MLM supplement recipient, you know the ones that purchase an MLM program. Some do really well others not so much. Most become a coach and some falsely promote their supplement as some sort of magic bullet for health, others go on to be great coaches helping people reclaim their health. Kudos to them, that's what a coach does. I'm not against MLM's and I know there are some good ones with good products, but they are not the answer to good health, and not everybody will do well on the program they offer. 

 The number one way to help someone in their journey whether it's a spiritual journey or a health journey or any other type of journey is to get to know them to walk with them and give them the ability to be themselves and when our way is beneficial to them use it and when it's not, help them find their way. We must never let our pride push them in a direction that makes us feel better about who we are, this is of no help to them. 

Anti-maskers are uncaring?

Are the people that refuse to wear face coverings uncaring?

Before we try to judge whether others care or not, I think it would be a good idea to look at some facts about protecting ourselves and others from this or any other virus.

There are many things that we can do to protect ourselves and others. Let’s talk about four of the best things. Three of the four are on the CDC website, with the one exception being the most important for protecting ourselves: Our Immune System. I’m not sure why it’s not mentioned on the CDC website or why it's not mentioned by any national or local leaders but it is without a doubt the most effective way to keep yourself healthy.


Four of the top ways to protect ourselves and others from Covid19.


1. Our immune system.
Our immune system is the best defense we have. An immune system can be strengthened by number one: eating lots of nutrient-dense foods that are rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants and by keeping highly processed calorie-dense junk foods to a minimum. Number two: by exercising regularly; staying active.



2. Washing our hands.
Hand washing is the second most effective tool to help combat the spread. If the virus doesn’t reach the inside of our body or the surfaces we touch our chances of getting it pretty much disappear and it’s also very hard to spread.


3. Keep our distance from others. (social distancing).
When we keep our distance from others the chance of spreading or contracting the virus is diminished, especially indoors.


4. Wearing a face covering.
Depending on where you are and what your doing, wearing the proper face-covering, in the proper way can lessen the chance of getting or spreading the virus.


There are plenty of people that are neglecting one or all of the other habits, so does it really make sense to label people who refuse to wear a mask as uncaring? Or should we label everyone who doesn't follow any of these habits as uncaring?

Is it justified for people that may not be practicing one, or all of the other three to criticize those who maybe practicing the other three but not mask-wearing?

Immune System?  A large portion of people in America don’t eat right or exercise regularly. There are a lot of people that are refusing to change their diet or exercise and causing themselves to be more vulnerable, but they still find it appropriate to criticize others for not masking up. We all understand that there are people that have a compromised immune system and it's no fault of theirs. That doesn’t take away the responsibility of eating healthy and exercising to help the immune system do the best it can with said compromise. However, it does give those people even more reason to be more diligent practicing the other three.

Hand Washing? According to studies, less than 60% of Americans wash their hands regularly after going to the bathroom and that up to 95% don’t wash their hands well enough to kill harmful bacteria. You would think we would see a lot more mandates, criticism, and debate over handwashing than mask-wearing since hand washing is a lot more effective and less intrusive to the person doing it.

Social distancing? We have seen thousands and thousands of people over the last year totally disregard any social distancing at all. 

Mask wearing? Just like washing our hands improperly reduces the effect of handwashing, so does wearing the mask improperly and unfortunately, this is also happening regularly.

I put the bulk of my energy is into strengthening my immune system, this makes a lot of sense working in the fitness field. 

I have been the most convicted about hand-washing. Even know I wash my hands and use sanitizer, I only spend 5-10 sec washing; I have made a commitment to do better. 

I also do my best to respect people's space. If I think, or someone tells me they feel uncomfortable, I keep my distance.

I wear a mask where it's required to do so. 

The purpose of this blog is not to argue for or against mask-wearing, personally, if I was going to take a hard line it would be in the area of personal health. But I am bothered that some people have the nerve to judge people's hearts based on if they are masking up or not. 

Telling people that they are uncaring because of the possibility of killing others could amount to hypocrisy unless the accuser plans on wearing one for the rest of their life. Since every day before this virus and every day after there is a chance, each of us could give someone a virus that could kill them or someone they come in contact with. For more deadly viruses like SARS, the chance is greater and for the yearly flu it's less deadly but the risk is still there every single year and will be forever. 


No matter where we stand on the mask-wearing or any of these other habits, it's most important for each of us to ask ourselves; how well am I complying with any habits that benefit myself and others. Personal Responsibility. Since most of the time, we have no idea why someone isn't adhering to one of these habits it would be most caring to not play judge and jury to them. 

Celebrating average over extraordinary

Bad to good draws a lot of support and encouragement and inspires people, but good to great draws less support and encouragement and can even draw criticism and jealousy.  We love to celebrate when someone has made a change in their life that brings them out of a bad place. But when someone that is doing good decides that they would like to take their life to a level of greatness, very few celebrate; often people like to criticize and come up with every reason why they shouldn't be or are not really great. We are definitely happy to see someone overcome an addiction, or watch someone do something that they once couldn't. but to see a person that is already making good choices go from good to great gets a much different reaction.

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We see this every day on social media. When someone unhealthy makes progress to reclaim their health the likes and more importantly the encouraging comments are rightfully plenty. When someone is already healthy, gains 10 pounds of muscle and benches his/her new max weight the likes are down quite a bit and the comments are even less.
Maybe it's easy to celebrate when someone does something good, but not so easy when they do something better than us? Or maybe we think they don't need encouragement because they are already encouraged by how well they are doing, but on the other hand, those that struggle may not continue to do well if we don't over celebrate their wins?
 I admit that I'm sensitive to this very situation because of my upbringing. When I was growing up, I was the middle kid that was pretty average (good). I basically listen to my parents and teachers stayed out of trouble most the time and respected the rules that I was under. While I had two sisters that did not follow rules and always pushed the limits. Because of this, they seem to get all the attention of people of authority. Now I realize that a lot of time it was bad attention, but as soon as they made a good decision they received more attention and this was the "over the top" I'm proud of you for making such a great decision type of attention all the while I've been making those decisions daily. When I made what I believed to be a great accomplishment the praise was much lower if any. It was as if what I did was expected.
 Now I realize that my feelings weren't always right on and still aren't today. but I still believe that we do people an injustice by overlooking a great accomplishment while at the same time going out of our way to tell those that have turned things around how awesome and inspiring they are, which we should. But let's not forget the sacrifice and dedication of those the do extraordinary things. Even if we need to push back the jealousy to do it. 

Success through "C"

When it comes to Success "C" is your letter!

When it comes to succeeding we want to grasp on to these four C's

1. Coach - All great teams and winning athletes have a coach. Not because they're not already great, but because a coach helps them compete at their highest level. A coach isn't necessary to make us great but to help bring out the greatness. When it comes to our health a good coach is crucial for long-term success
2. Community - The people we surround ourselves with have a huge impact on our ability to succeed. Those people that we allow in your inner circle are going to either sabotage or encourage our health goals, and our success will be deeply impacted by them. 
3. Commitment - A commitment that is based on our long-term goals, not a commitment that's only there when things are either out of control (reactive commitment) and until the perceived problem is temporarily solved. We must be committed to deep health. 
4. Consistency - Commitment is awesome to get us started and moving toward our long-term goals but it's consistency that's going to keep us on the path. 

www.zaofit3.com

Avoiding Failure is Avoiding Success

When it comes to our health sometimes the biggest mistake we make is trying to avoid failure. 

When we try to avoid something that is unavoidable like, failure the impact of the failure is usually negative and harmful instead of helpful. When we see failures as they are: part of the process of success, we embrace the lessons we learn when we fail. When we see failure only as a failure we learn little to nothing from the failure. 

This is why fad diets are mostly ineffective. I say mostly because there are always a few success stories (even know most of those don't pan out long-term).  

Trying to avoid failure by adhering to some crazy restrictive fad diet doesn't actually help us avoid failure, unfortunately, In most cases, it causes an endless circle of failure.

How many people do you know that have tried more than five different popular diets to only be looking for the next one because even though they may have lost weight on the last five they gained it all back and a few more to boot?

Failure is something we will all face and when we try to avoid it we end up delaying the inevitable and feel much worse about the failure.  

So what do I do?

No matter what you do failure is going to play a part so embrace the opportunity to learn from your failure because that's really what is going to bring success 

Failure doesn't mean you are a failure it just means your learning; more about yourself, more about how your body reacts, more about nutrition. You are learning.

So ditch the latest diet fads and start learning about your body, your strengths and build personal eating habits that allow you to eat the foods you like in a way that promotes health and vitality. 

Eat Slower -  This is a great habit to help build a healthier you and yes sometimes you will fail and from these failures, you will learn strategies to better eat slowly and the more you fail the more you learn until one day you will find yourself being the slowest eater at the table.

Eat until satisfied (Think 80% full) - Another great habit to build a healthier you! Again you will fail but those are the times you will learn the triggers that cause the failure and before you know it you will be eating less because you're done.

Eat less processed food (avoid highly processed food) - This is the food that feeds more than our appetite, it feeds our body with nutrients for a healthier you.  

Listen to your body and don't let the latest confirmation biased weight loss book convince you that: Carbs are bad, Fat is bad, Grains are bad, Dairy is bad, Fruits are too high in sugar, Alkaline is the way, Meat is evil, putting butter in your coffee is the secret to good health.

Now if you don't feel very good after eating dairy, stop eating it. You have stomach problems after eating bread, stop eating bread. You don't like bananas, stop eating bananas. You love butter in your coffee, drink it that way. 

Be careful not to stop or start eating certain foods because someone else is trying to create a fear narrative that's not real, in hopes of promoting their preferred lifestyle.


www.zaofit3.com 

One small change to your eating can get big results

The Game Changer

There is just a few more days 0f 2017 and then on to a new year with new resolutions and renewed aspirations for a new you.  Gyms are packed with people January 1st but are back to the same by February. Why? Because we just want a quick way to lose lots of weight so we can go back to our old eating habits and our little to no exercise habits, and still keep the weight off, but are reminded quickly that this is an endless path to disappointment with our weight, appearance, and self-esteem. 

So what can we do about it? 

Consistency!  We have to find habits that promote good health that we can and will do consistently for the long haul. This is a proven effective way of reclaiming and keeping long-term health!

So why aren't more people doing this if it is a proven method for helping thousands of people reclaim their health for the long haul? 

Because most the time, these changes, that we can do, and are willing to do are usually small changes that do not bring immediate results, they work over time. And let's be honest, unlike our friend ELF, that's not our favorite:) 

This new year, make it your goal to build healthy habits that are sustainable, and stay clear of all the fad quick loss diets and focus on being mindful of what you eat when you eat, and how you eat. 

I want to give you one of the most important habits that you can practice and it's so simple you won't believe it's so valuable, but it is. And even know it's simple it's not always easy to be consistent, but if you are it with pay big dividends for your health in the long run! 

Eat Slowly. 

Here are some simple ways to eat slowly

• Put your fork down between bites.

• Relax. Breathe. Take a few extra moments before you pick the fork up again.

• Set a timer if needed — start with 15 minutes per meal as a basic goal. Work up to 20 or even 30.

• Chew a few more times than you think you need to.

• Enjoy and savor each bite. If you’re eating something delicious, take pleasure in it. Notice smells, flavors, and textures.

• Eat mindfully without distractions such as TV, smartphones, or the computer. (Pleasant conversation with friends and family is, of course, welcome.) 

Why eating slowly is so awesome!!

1. Slow eating creates mindfulness. Mindfulness creates awareness.

When you get the hang of slow eating and your body cues, you'll become aware of when they’ve over-eaten.

2. Slow eating attunes people with flavors, textures, and smells of food.

People instinctively begin to seek out better choices, simply because of increased awareness. Their emotional-brain elephant is gently guided, rather than wrenched unwillingly.

3. Slow eating provides important information to the GI tract and gives satiety hormones time to kick in.

If we rush, we don’t smell, taste, or texturally experience our food. Our bodies don’t notice stuff getting shoved into the pipeline until it’s too late.

However, when we eat slowly, our satiety hormones have time to work. We stop eating naturally, earlier.

4. Slow eating helps with digestion.

The step-by-step information processing also helps with cueing digestive activity such as peristalsis or enzyme secretion further downstream. Our GI tract doesn’t get caught off guard.

So you feel better after you eat.

If you suffer from heartburn this just might be a magic cure :)

5. Slow eating doesn’t depend on controlling what you eat.

This means you can do it anywhere, anytime, with any kind of food — whether that’s a Mother’s Day brunch, a business lunch, dinner at Grandma’s, a Vegas buffet, or S’Mores around a campfire.

No matter what’s on your plate or who’s around you, you can eat slowly.

6. Slow eating makes the client’s body the boss.

This means eventually you won’t have to rely on calorie counting, weighing and measuring food, or any other means of external control. you’ll feel much less anxious, and much more self-assured.

Paradoxically, relinquishing external control gives you more real control.

Mindfulness is the path to this outcome.

This year make a commitment to building habits that build a healthy you!

And if you would like to know more about this other habits that are proven to help you move toward your health goals, and would like help implementing them I would be happy to discuss more, just head over to my website or email me. 

Website: www.zaofit3.com                                                                                                               Email: zaofit3@gmail.com

Jerry Mullins                                                                                                                                       PN1, DSW, CPT, WMS

How can a penny help you get healthy?

The other day when I was on a morning run with my wife and a friend, I was thinking about some of my clients and former clients and I found myself asking why some really struggle and others flourish? If I could just find out "the why" I could be a better coach. I understand we all have stories that can give some insight, and there are a lot of great resources that I use (school, books, mentors) to help be the best coach I can be, but this particular day as I was running, and I started thinking about my wife, and she found change project. Boom! I realized it's all about the penny! So here's how it works: If while running she sees money she stops and picks it up, most the time its pennies but she has found all kinds of different coins, even some bills and other things like pocket knives and even a posable bunny. 

 My wife's old jar and new jar (first got too small)

Most people when running with her for the first time laughs when she suddenly stops. Usually, the person looks back and asks; "did you drop something" and she responds "No I found a penny" and at this point, she proceeds to tell them how she collects money that she finds regardless of its denomination. Most people laugh when she tells them she's saving money to pay for her trip to run Boston (marathon) someday, but others that have run with her for any period of time are inspired. Some even collect pennies themselves. Why? Because she has made believers out of us by collecting over a hundred dollars the last several years.

What do My clients and their health have to do with my wife and her coin collecting endeavor (obsession)? I believe it's the same reason you and I don't stop and pick up a penny, well, at least why I don't. When I see a penny I think its value is not worth me stopping in the middle of a run to pick it up; well it's only a penny and some of the pennies are barely even recognizable. Now if a see a quarter I think about it, I still don't pick it up but I do think about picking it up and if I see a dollar it's mine. What I have learned from my attitude towards her found change project; Is that because of her faithfulness to pick up everything she sees no matter the value, she has collected about one hundred dollars, a couple of pocket knives, a cool rock that says "Jesus Lord of all", a pretty shell and has inspired others to start their own found change jar.  

My coaching philosophy is a slow process of building habits and learning to make choices that are a little better. One of my favorite sayings is "Think a little better"  When it comes to your nutrition and exercise we can always do a little better. The problem with this philosophy is that it's like collecting pennies and most people don't want to collect pennies we want dollars! But you see if my wife only collected dollars she would be at a fraction of where she is, as a matter of fact, she might not have anything saved, because why save the dollar when it's sitting in your jar for over a year all by itself, it's a little discouraging so we might as well spend that dollar, right?

So what am I trying to say? When reclaiming your health you can be like my wife who no matter how tired she is, or how hard she has to push to catch the pack, how the run is going or how small the denomination of money is, she picks it up, because she understands that the Boston (marathon) is expensive and every penny gets her one penny closer to her goal.

Or you can be like me and pass the pennies hoping that you will find the stockpile of money that will pay for Boston all at once and end up with nothing. 

There is no magic bullet (short cut) to get you to your health goals, it comes one penny (small habit, little better choice) at a time. The awesome thing is that some days because of your faithfulness to the small things (pennies), big things (dollars found) will happen.

If you are looking to reclaim your health and are willing to build habits that bring long-term results by making small changes (collect pennies) I would love to talk to you about some options that will give you the tools needed to collect all the pennies you need to reach your health goals.

zaofait3@gmail.com