2 things you MUST do to lose fat this year...

This past weekend my family took a trip over to the central coast. We stayed at the San Luis Bay Inn and the weather was beautiful! Sunny, warm - shorts, t-shirt and sandals weather. My wife and daughter drove over on Friday afternoon and are headed back tomorrow. I on the other hand went over Saturday morning and came back on Monday morning. 

I've started using my VALUABLE time more PRODUCTIVELY.

One thing I have developed a habit of on road trips I take by myself is taking my iPod along and listening to podcasts. You see as I have gotten older, I realize that time is at a premium. So, I can either use the drive time listening to songs I've heard at least 93 times before, or I can use the time to educate myself.

So this weekend on the drive back I was listening to a seminar by the creators of the Franklin-Covey planners/time-management systems. This was a basic workshop and they discussed something they have named the Productivity Pyramid. 

The base of the Productivity Pyramid is "Values." Values are what we base our decisions and the rest of the pyramid is based on our values. The second level of the pyramid is "Goals." The goals you select will be reflective of your values. Now granted there are two more levels in the pyramid, I am not going to get into those just yet because I want to address the "Goals" step.

Goals can be long term or short term, but either way, a goal is something you hope to attain or achieve. But the truth is most people don't have goals. If you don't have goals then you really aren't going to have any direction in your life. Instead, you simply move from day to day just handling crisis after crisis, or maybe you're AVOIDING crisis after crisis. But either way, there is no direction. 

Now the level above "goals" in the "Productivity Pyramid" is "weekly planning," and the level above that is at the top. And this is the last thing that is "built." Do you see how each level builds on the one below that? So if you don't have goals, your week isn't going to have any direction! And if you're weeks don't have any direction, how can your days have any direction? 

So the first thing that we all need to do if we plan to lose weight is set a goal. Not just a "I want to lose weight" kind of goal. But instead, a more Specific goal, a Measurable goal, an Attainable goal. So instead of wanting to "lose weight" try going with "I want to lose 10 lbs by summer." Now you have an goal that you can start to plan around. Then after you've got a weekly plan, now you can planning smaller steps. 

The second thing you need to do in order to lose fat this year is to MAKE A CHANGE. Just make a small change. Here are some small changes you can make that take less than 11 minutes a day. 

• Start taking a multivitamin in the mornings
• Drink a liter of water each day
• Take two 5-minute stretch breaks during the day
• Walk up and down 2 flights of stairs twice
• Play with your kids for an extra 10 minutes after work

You don't have to do all of these, but choose one and make it a habit, doing it every day for the next 14 days. To lose fat this year you MUST

1. Set a Specific, Measurable, Attainable goal
2. Make a SMALL change in your life that is in the direction of attaining your goal!

Have a great week!!