Wagoneer Masters Come Hither (Meeting of the Minds)
I wanted to talk with the Wagon Plan Masters about something near and dear to my heart. This is what keeps us on track, keeps us focused and help us see the end of the road. The below writings are from Tom Venturo (Professional Bodybuilder and Mega Fitness Trainer to the Champions). Please take this is and apply it to your nutrition life! This week, so many Wagoneers have loss a combined total of 165lbs (Here on the forum, my friends in my neighborhood, and co-workers). This is a movement! Let's continue to lose together!
First set a long-term goal; your ultimate outcome. What kind of body do you
ultimately want to have? Let your imagination run wild and dare to dream. Don’t listen to
anyone who says it can’t be done! You can’t afford to associate with negative people
who always try to tear you down. If you really want it badly and you’re willing to work
for it, then go ahead and set the goal.
Next, set a one-year goal. A one-year goal is especially important if you have a
lot of work to do. For example, if your primary objective is to lose one hundred pounds,
that’s at least a twelve-month project. Don’t expect or even attempt to do it any faster.
Probably the most important goal you can have at any time is your three-month goal.
Three months is the perfect time frame for your short-term goal because a lot can happen
in three months. Most people can completely transform their bodies in 90 days. A
sensible and realistic 90-day goal would be to lose up to 6% body fat and 12 to 24
pounds. The three-month goal is important because long-term goals don’t have any
urgency. A one-year goal is so distant, you may find that you tend to procrastinate more
without the impending deadline.
There’s a law in psychology called “Parkinson’s Law,” which says, “A task takes as long
as there is time to do it.” Differently stated, “Work always expands to fill the time
allowed.” Deadlines are motivating. Without time pressure, you’ll rationalize missing
workouts or cheating on your diet: Your brain will keep saying, “You have plenty of time,
so missing this one workout won’t matter.” With a deadline right in front of you, you’ll
know that every workout and every meal counts.
You also need to have weekly goals to let you know if you’re on track. Weekly
goals provide immediate feedback to tell you whether you’re moving in the right
direction. Every week or two you should weigh yourself and have your body composition
measured with skinfolds. If you’re getting the results you want, you simply continue
doing what you’ve been doing. If you’re not seeing the results you want, you can
immediately adjust your training or nutrition to get yourself back on course. (See chapter
four for more information on how to chart your progress and adjust your approach).
To reach your weekly, three-month, twelve-month and ultimate goals, you must
develop good habits every day. You develop good habits by setting daily action goals and
working on them repeatedly until they become as routine as brushing your teeth or taking
a shower. Ninety-nine percent of the actions you take every day are habits. Write out a
list of daily goals, to-do’s and habits you want to develop - good daily habits that serve
you – habits like eating small, frequent meals, cutting down on sugar, getting up early,
making your meals in advance for each day and so on. Long-term goals are important, but
they can be intimidating and discouraging if you don’t have small daily goals, too. If you
only look at the “big picture,” it can sometimes be unsettling to realize how much farther
you have to go.
There’s an old saying about tackling big tasks: “The only way to eat an elephant is The next time you feel a craving, you’re tempted, discouraged, unmotivated or you feel The final type of goal you should set isn’t so much a goal as it is a mindset. If you Set goals to become better than you used to be, not better than someone else.
one bite at a time.” When your larger goals are broken down into smaller parts and you
focus on each little step one at a time, you won’t be overwhelmed. “By the mile it’s a
trial, by the yard it’s hard, but by the inch it’s a cinch.” Take baby steps. Every step you
take, no matter how small, will give you a feeling of accomplishment and keep your
momentum going.
like skipping a workout, focus on your daily goals, not on the huge amount of work that is
ahead of you. Tell yourself, "All I have is today. All I have is this moment, this workout,
this meal, the next 30 minutes, the next hour. If I just do what I know I must do now,
then I know I'll reach my ultimate goal eventually." Concentrate on the task at hand in this
moment. As the Zen masters of Japan remind us: “Be here now.” The point of power is
always in the present moment.
fall into the habit of continually comparing yourself to others, this will ensure that you are
perpetually unhappy and unsatisfied, no matter how much you achieve. This is called the
law of contrast. There will always be people stronger, leaner, faster, more athletically
talented and more genetically gifted than you, so compare yourself only to yourself, not to
others.
Constantly challenge yourself. Keep aiming to beat your previous bests. Going to the
gym can become fun and exciting when you’re always working on improving yourself.
So make it fun – make a contest out of it. Go for one more rep, five more pounds, five
more minutes, or one level higher on the Stairmaster. Aim for hitting your lowest body fat you can achieve by planning realistically!
Big Hugs
James
on 7/13/08 9:17 am - Vacaytown, HI
Someone tole me to come hereto look for the wagoneers.... Im 2.5 years out and as hungry as I can be. I have frequent hypoglycemia and have to avoid carbs a lot. I am really worried about gaining weight as my hunger remains. I am at a normal BMI but my worry is based on not wanting to continue to gain. anyway is this the right place to work on this? Jess