Here’s a quick video showing me doing what are called sumo deadlifts at Crossfit. My purpose is not to show off (in actuality I am still truly a beginner in Crossfit terms).

This is off-topic from the hCG Diet I know, but I kind of feel like I really want to share these little snippets of my workouts at Crossfit because I really feel that having an exercise program that I’m really dedicated too and really see results from has been a very important part of me maintaining my hCG Diet weight loss.  What you personally end up finding that keeps you motivated to keep your new body may vary.  But find something.

Obstacles to Maintaining Weight Loss

One of the biggest problems I’ve seen when it comes to re-gaining weight after a diet- not just the hCG Diet, but any diet, is a return to old habits and an old way of life after the diet part is over (I’ve been guilty of it many times myself).  Let’s not kid ourselves.  You have to make a long-term life change not just your eating habits but your life habits.  You have to learn to think differently.  We’ll talk about how to do that in a minute.

Food used to be my comfort mechanism for just about everything- happiness, sadness, depression, joy, tiredness.  Whatever the occasion, food was the thing to go with it.  It has taken me some time, and I’m not saying that I never eat more carbs when I’m feeling down (because I do!), but the way that I approach these things has changed.  I no longer consume sugar in it’s regular forms at all.  In the past, when I used to feel sad, I would go out and eat a bunch of cake or cookies.

Now when I’m feeling down, I still might consume  a bit more carbs than usual, but I make sure it’s from a fairly healthy source and not too much- like a couple slices of toasted gluten free bread with butter- and tea.  Lots and lots of hot tea with stevia and half and half.  But how did I get to this point?  Was it just being thinner that gave me this self control?

What Helped Me Make the Long-Term Eating Habits in Regular Day-to-Day Life?

What is it that helped me to change my eating habits this way for the long term?  What kept me motivated?  Because believe me, there are many days that just having a thinner body doesn’t cut it– when I’m in my husband’s baggy sweatpants and sweatshirt with no makeup and hair that hasn’t been washed in 2 days, I don’t feel particularly thin anyway.  In the past, that’s the sort of thing that would have caused me to throw caution to the wind and pig out on whatever struck my fancy.  Or sometimes, the opposite, being all dressed up in my cute jeans and flashy top with curled hair and all the makeup and jewelry fixings would make me feel like I could get away with eating what I wanted like it wouldn’t affect me, just because I felt so thin and cute.  Ha!  So in the past, it didn’t matter whether I felt good or bad about myself- both often lead to eating the wrong things and wrong amounts, on a regular basis.

Enter Crossfit (insert whatever form of exercise you enjoy, if you’ve found one).  Since I attend Crossfit 3-4 times a week, I am getting a pretty consistent input of influence in my life from this source.  When I get to Crossfit, the workouts are hard, I sweat a lot, I feel GREAT afterwards, and I see myself gradually get stronger over time and see muscle start showing in places I’d never seen before.  It’s a complex hobby and skill that I’m learning there really.  After each Crossfit class, I feel re-motivated to continue eating right to go along with Crossfit- to help make my efforts at class pay-off.  Eating right and exercising go hand in hand.  Sometimes, if you only have the eating right aspect in your life, you can start to get unmotivated because it’s not paired with anything.

There’s like this synergistic effect if you will when you combine the two- eating and exercise.  One definition of synergy is “the creation of a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.”  Another definition for synergy on dictionary.com is, “the interaction of elements that when combined produce a total effect that is greater than the sum of the individual elements.”  Or in simpler terms,

Strawberries = pretty good.  Whipped Cream (sugar free of course!)= pretty good.  Almond flour pie crust= pretty good.  Strawberries + Whipped Cream + Almond Flour Pie Crust = DELICIOUS.  (Here’s a good p4 hCG Diet recipe with this idea in mind btw.)

You get my point?  By themselves, these items taste, pretty good.  But all together, the taste factor goes to a whole nother level.  If you take this example and translate it to eating + exercise, I have found the same to be true.  Having a regular form of exercise that I truly find beneficial has kept me motivated to continue doing the right things for my body and myself in other areas of my life- like eating.

Find the Right Type of Exercise for YOU

Since we are all unique individuals, Crossfit may not be your thing (although I’m a bit partial now and highly recommend you at least give it a try- it’s one of the most effective uses of your time for your body).

But I really encourage all of you who complete a round of the weight loss protocol to then find and start some type of exercise program that will keep you motivated in the long run.  Maybe you won’t find the right type of exercise that fits your personality right away.  That’s okay- keep trying different things until you find the program that fits you best.  After my 1st round of HCG Injections, I took up Zumba classes.  I loved them! But after awhile I started getting a repetitive stress injury in my shins that I’m prone to getting and couldn’t do it any longer.  I found Crossfit and loved it so much that it’s what I’ll stick with long term.  For you it may be walking, hiking, jogging, biking, jazzercise, pilates, swimming- even something as simple as running up and down some stairs  a few times a week can accomplish a lot- there are really ever so many choices.  Find something that after trying you discover you could enjoy doing long term and make it part of your weekly life.

Being Realistic About How You Will Make Sure You Exercise Consistently

Some of you may have the discipline to exercise alone- doing workout dvd’s at home or running stairs consistently by yourself- many of us though may find exercise in a class setting, outside the home, to be a more reliable way to make sure we get the activity we need.  I often don’t feel “in the mood” to exercise- I may feel tired, blah blah, blah, but since there is a class at a prescheduled time, it’s easy to tell myself that I will at least drive to the class, and if I still really don’t want to exercise, I can always just drive back home.  Once I’m at crossfit doing the warmup with 6-10 other people, I find myself gradually waking up and I always end up doing what everyone else is doing- the workout.  I’ve never once not gone into class or not completed a class once I was there.  It’s a great way to trick yourself.  If I’m just at home, it can be harder to actually start exercising- you can get sidetracked online and keep putting it off until before you know it it’s midnight and you’re super sleepy and you just decide to go to bed and try to wake up early and exercise instead, which of course you don’t do.

Concluding Thoughts

I myself am far from perfect yet and I still screw up and mess up some days.  It’s going to happen to the majority of us.  The indicator of how you’ll do long term though is if you give up or not.  I hope not.  When we fall and do the wrong thing for our body for a day or two, let’s make a renewed attempt to get back on track.  Even if the mess-up spans a period of weeks, or months- just don’t give up on yourself forever.  What I mean by that is, I really believe there are times when we feel more determined in our hearts and minds to make a  change- take advantage of the times we feel like that to do just that.  And for the times we are totally unmotivated and don’t care- it happens- just wait it out and as soon as you feel that breeze of motivation pass by you, get ready to make a change.

Watch Nathan’s Full Interview here

Watch Melissa’s Full Interview here

Watch Linita’s Full Interview here

Watch Tamara’s Full Interview here

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