Chez FitMercy

Today is the Twenty-Second day of the Twelfth month in the year Two Thousand and Sixteen, and when you consider your journey towards weight loss, how do you feel? Sad, disappointed, frustrated or happy, fulfilled and encouraged, I would rather say maybe it's not about the happy ending but the story. Instead of checking your weight today and just realizing that the numbers are higher than the first month this year, I would rather you do an analysis of other things like the efforts you have put into living and staying healthy in 2016. A screenshot of my sparkpage and my weights for the first 8 months

I am concluding the series on managing stress this week. The fifth tip according to the article is referred to as the 4 As i.e. Avoid , Alter , Adapt and Accept . These, as extensively explained in helpguide.org : Avoid unnecessary stress It’s not healthy to avoid a stressful situation that needs to be addressed, but you may be surprised by the number of stressors in your life that you can eliminate. Learn how to say “no” – Know your limits and stick to them. Whether in your personal or professional life, taking on more than you can handle is a surefire recipe for stress. Distinguish between the “shoulds” and the “musts” and, when possible, say “no” to taking on too much. Avoid people who stress you out – If someone consistently causes stress in your life, limit the amount of time you spend with that person, or end the relationship. Take control of your environment – If the evening news makes you anxious, turn off the TV. If traffic makes you tense, take a long

Stress is simply a reaction to a stimulus that disturbs our physical or mental equilibrium. In other words, it's an omnipresent part of life. A stressful event can trigger the “fight-or-flight” response, causing hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol to surge through the body. Never say "there is nothing I can do about it". No! Don't accept stress as a part of your lifestyle, you can deal with it, you can minimize it, stress can be controlled. Some quick tips according to Stress Management by Lawrence Robinson, Melinda Smith, M.A., and Robert Segal, M.A.: Move your body frequently—don't sit for more than an hour Make positive face-to-face connection with other people a priority When you can't change the stressor, learn to avoid, alter, adapt, or accept Reduce your intake of alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine Do something you enjoy every day Get all the restful sleep that you need to feel your best. According to the authors, there are a few ti

This is the conclusion of the quiz of yesterday's post and what it could mean to our weight loss journey [ culled from Sparkpeople ] Scoring the Quiz Look at your answers to questions 1,2,4,5,7, 9 and 11, and give yourself 1 point for every True answer, and 0 for every False. For questions 3,6,8,10 and 12, give yourself 1 point for every False answer, and 0 for every True. Add your total points up to get your score. A high score (7-12 points) shows that your expectations about weight loss are more realistic, and you are more likely to reach your goal. Each question you scored a zero for represents a misconception or unrealistic expectation that might be adding unnecessary stress to your weight loss efforts. For example, a zero on Question 11 (you don’t talk to others when you have trouble sticking to your plan) may indicate that you tend to keep problems to yourself, which can add even more stress to the difficulties you are already having. Scoring zero on

I did some stress eating during the week and except intermittent fasting and organizing my home, I was not logging any intentional minutes other than a few strength training and of course cleaning the house. I am going to speak on stress management in the next post. I hope you get yourself ready to de-stress. I am not speaking about any topic [except the quiz below] today other than just let you into what my weight says this week. I weighed in at 167.2lbs , an 0.2lbs gain from last week. I saw this article on Sparkpeople.com and I think I can share it here. To find out whether your expectations about weight loss may be increasing your stress levels, take the following brief quiz. Indicate whether you think the following statements are true or false. To benefit from this exercise, your answer should reflect how you honestly feel most of the time, NOT what you think the “correct” response might be.

“ Cleanliness is next to godliness ” [being clean is a sign of spiritual purity] is an English Idiom, this means that if you are living a right life it should reflect in your level of organization and cleanliness on your body, home, office space etc  What I have realized is that nobody is dirty [you might disagree with me], it’s the secret to permanence of cleanliness that is lost. Let me ask this, is there anyone who doesn’t take care of a place within the home or his/her body on a daily basis? None! So the fact that a home looks unkempt sure doesn’t make a person dirty [except when perpetually so], there are a thousand and one reasons responsible for this. I have some reasons that normally inform the level of our cleanliness: Habits formed while growing up – if parents are not meticulous about cleanliness, kids won’t. Experience – From experience, some people have learnt to be clean or dirty as the case maybe. Time – Availability of time may just be all what some need to b

 “ Blessed be the name of God, forever and ever. He knows all, does all: He changes the seasons and guides history, He raises up kings and also brings them down, he provides both intelligence and discernment, He opens up the depths, tells secrets, sees in the dark – light spills out of him! God of all my ancestors, all thanks! All praise! You made me wise and strong. And now you’ve shown us what we ask for… .” The above were the words of Daniel when the Lord answered a prayer and I am also thankful with the above words today because God had kept me. [ Daniel 2:20-23 ] I am thankful for life and living I am thankful that I know Christ as Lord and guide I am thankful for my cute little family I am thankful for sustenance I am thankful for multiple miracles that had made me give testimonies before men this year I am thankful for my mom (good health), my siblings and my in-laws I am thankful for my nephews and nieces I am thankful for my job I am th

Better late than never. I was not feeling too good posting anything on Wednesday after the weigh in because I was up not just a bit, I was up a lot at 168lbs [It's a number I had not seen in a while] as against the last weigh in of 164.6lbs . I think it's stress which of course led to some episodes of overeating and lack of exercise. I did travel out on a road trip to an event last weekend and of course sitting for long hours of inactivity and the mental stress of the rough roads too (Naija for you). The mental stress contributed to my inability to even lift a finger in my exercise room. Nutrition is very important in every weight loss journey, as good as it could be when done right it could jeopardize all good intentioned efforts when done badly. No wonder someone did say "abs are made in the kitchen and not in the gym" , this is a true statement because I saw better results when I paid closer attention to my meals. Do I dare to ask this question today, what

It could be funny that I normally get inspirations through some routines on a daily basis like when I am taking my bathe, during my morning meditations and when I am doing strength training. Today, the word accountabilibuddy  dropped [I have heard the word before, though].  Accountabilibuddy simply means an accountability buddy . To be accountable in the first place is the ability to be answerable or responsible for an action, it is the will to justify an action or a decision taken. It is that state of not excusing a flaw either it was caused by the culprit or an external force.  To be successful on this weight loss and healthy living lifestyle [even in life], one needs to be accountable for whatever happens. Don't be quick to put blame on others, when you accept the blame, you are being accountable and it is easier to make the right choices the next time such scenario occurs because you don't want to feel guilty anymore. I have heard a dozen blame trading on why some