As some of you know when Jack Lalanne passed away this January, I dedicated an inspiration to him. I mean it’s the least I could do. But I’m a little upset that a very important person almost went unnoticed this month…

Larry LaPrise, the man who wrote the “Hokey Pokey,” died peacefully at age 84 – fifteen years ago this April. The most traumatic part for his family was getting him into the coffin. They put his left leg in…and then the trouble started.

In all seriousness, I think a little (or A LOT of) goofiness is important. A little (or A LOT) of fun is important too. After all, that’s what this is all about.

As much fun as eating junk and lounging around is, it’s way more fun to eat healthfully and to be active. It really and truly is, and I know we all agree.

So that’s my assignment for us this weekend.

Let’s aim for fun!

What do you love to do? If you don’t know what you love to do, it’s worth thinking about it. (And no, eating doesn’t count.)

When our mind isn’t occupied, usually our mouth is, or at least, it wants to be.

So tell me, what do you do for fun? And when will you do it this weekend?

Talk to me.

P.S. My nephew, Landon, turns 2 today! So, I’ll be hanging out with him all weekend. That’s what I’m doing for fun.

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Here was the inspiration I wrote for Jack Lalanne…

I’ll never forget watching Jack Lalanne on TV when I was little kid. Whether it was his juicer infomercials, his exercise segments on talk shows or his insane feats of strength like towing boats while shackled, I was always so inspired by him.

I vividly remember watching him on talk shows and TV thinking how unbelievable he was. I remember getting so inspired after watching him, I’d exercise right then and there.

I mean if HE could do a gazillion push ups (a 70+ year young man at the time), how can’t I at least do some?

Jack LaLanne was known as “The Godfather of Fitness.” He believed that our health account is our wealth account.

He often said, “I can’t die, it would ruin my image.”

Ernest Becker’s classic, The Denial of Death reminds us that when it comes to our mortality, there is no uncertainty principle. We will die, he reminded us. We cannot not die.

Yet, it is what we do in a doomed attempt to refute the irrefutable first principle that defines us and gives our lives meaning.

Becker believed that each of us makes sense of our existence through an “immortality project” – a personal mission that allows us to cheat death. Whether it is by turning out babies or books or blog posts or students, creating companies or helping to build them, or collecting model trains or Facebook friends – whatever they might be – we all have our immorality project(s).

If anyone wanted to be immortal and believed they actually could be; it was him. Jack was doing things in his late 80’s that many of us can only dream of.

But because, sadly, even Jack isn’t immortal – the only thing we can do to keep him living on is to spread his work.

In honor of Jack, and from what I know about him (having read his last book), he’d be thrilled if we all exercised today.

However, not just exercise because Jack wasn’t about just exercising. He was about going above and beyond. I mean, his feats of strength are amazing!

So, if you were planning on exercising, I’d like you to do a little extra for Jack. And if you weren’t, let’s make time – even if it’s for 5 minutes. On your feedback tonight, write, “And in honor of Jack, I did…”

I bet Jack would get a kick out of it. After all, if we want to honor those we loved and admired and were impacted by, we have to keep their memory alive.

Jack, no one pulled off a track suit quite like you. Your enthusiasm and belief in what you do will always inspire me. Thank you!

I’m going to teach you why (sadly) some of our coworkers, friends and even family members might try to sabotage our efforts.

With consistency comes results. And with results = us looking better and better…

Sadly, this is also when the saboteurs try to work their toxic magic.

Ya know, I get a lot of email from clients who tell me how their friends / coworkers and even family members try to break their consistency, and try to sabotage their efforts.

Ugh, I know. It’s frustrating.

But instead of fighting reality – let’s explore why this might happen. If we understand why, it’s a lot easier to deal with.

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First, we have to understand human behavior – at its WORST.

A study quoted in the book The Paradox of Choice gave participants hypothetical choices concerning status and asked for their preferences. For example, people were asked to choose between a) earning $50,000 a year with others earning $25,000 or b) earning twice as much, $100,000 a year but being surrounded by people earning $200,000.

Which would you choose?

Sadly, more than half the respondents chose the option that gave them the better relative position. That means earning $50,000 to $100,000 because at $50,000 they were earning more than others, while at $100,000 they were earning less than others.

(I think this is crazy! BUT, it doesn’t matter what I think. For many, this is how they feel. For some humans, this IS their nature.)

Although we’re hard wired to compare, it’s who we compare ourselves to that can make or break our happiness. Ideally, we wouldn’t compare ourselves to anyone. Really!

Besides, your status compared to other people isn’t how YOU’RE doing.

Because we now know that many would prefer the better relative position, it’s easy to see why people would sabotage our efforts.

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Let’s go even deeper…

Are you familiar with the term cognitive dissonance? This happens when we have two conflicting desires. For example, smoking. It is well known that smoking cigarettes can cause lung cancer yet every person I’ve ever met wants to live a long, healthy and fit life.

The uncomfortable tension caused by these two opposing ideas — wanting to smoke but also wanting to be healthy and fit — is known as dissonance.

As humans, we look to get rid of this uncomfortable feeling. This is known as dissonance reduction.

The only way to get rid of this uncomfortable feeling is by a) quitting smoking b) denying that people actually get sick from smoking or c) justifying and rationalizing.

For example, a smoker could rationalize their behavior by believing that few people get sick from smoking, it only happens to people who smoke more than they do, if smoking doesn’t kill them something else will, they’ll quit next year, it’s too expensive to quit, or they only live once and they deserve to smoke.

In essence, they either need to take action (quit smoking and get whatever help they need <—-this is very hard!) or they need to make themselves feel better by rationalizing their smoking – which is what most people do).

Sooooo……..

This might cause your friends/family/coworkers to feel an uncomfortable feeling —-> “Ugh, so and so looks so good! I wish I could have the “discipline” it takes to look that good too!”

(I quote discipline because it’s not all about discipline. As we know, it’s about having a system in place along with support and accountability to monitor and track our progress.)

They need to get rid of this uncomfortable feeling somehow though…

Sadly, these people know deep down that they’re not going to take any action, and nothing is going to change on their end.

SO, if they can’t change their own body (most people don’t really want to change — they rather TALK about changing), they’ll try to bring down the people around them who ACTUALLY are.

This is how they get rid of the dissonance (or uncomfortable feeling) they’re experiencing.

Again, as sad as it is – it’s human nature. Fighting human nature is silly.

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When we understand what’s going on around us, it makes it a lot easier to call it what it is and move on.

WHAT IF: every time someone was trying to sabotage us, we flipped it, and said to ourselves, “Bring it! I must be looking good! Damn. This consistency business is working! I love MBT! What an amazing program! And just smiled to ourselves?”

Sure it can be hurtful that our coworkers and friends are sabotaging us — even our loved ones! But, if we understand human behavior, and accept it, rather than fight it, we can at least understand why they’re doing it.

And maybe, just maybe, look at it in a completely different way.

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It’s essential that you surround yourself with supportive people who will be there through thick and thin. As Samantha H said, “No book, program, weekly meeting or whatever people try to do to lose weight will give you as much support as MBT does.” And support and accountability when embarking on any change makes all of the difference! Otherwise, let’s face it: if it were easy to change, people would do it.

Join MBT today to get unwavering 24/7/365 support along with daily and personal accountability which makes a world of difference, and a proven program that works – or your money back!

Last night a new client asked me if change was really possible.

Well, change is not only possible, it’s inevitable. The world is changing every day. And so are our bodies whether we want them to or not. (We’re either going forwards or backwards.)

I think what she really means is change really possible for her – because she’s scared of not being able to put forth the effort change requires.

Instead, of letting the thought of the word ‘change’ terrify you, why not focus on micro changes?

How about exercising for an extra 2 minutes? How about exercising for a total of 2 minutes?

How about waiting 5 minutes before you give in to eating junk food as opposed to eating it right away?

How about cooking one extra meal per week?

How about waking up 10 minutes earlier?

How about making your lunch?

How about drinking a glass of water with each meal?

How about emailing me every time you have a relentless craving?

How about starting your meal with either salad or veggies?

How about for just one meal per day, you make your meal last more than 20 minutes?

All of these are simple things that can and will lead to your success.

And best of all, change begets change. Small changes eventually turn into enormous changes.

Rome wasn’t built in a day, right?

The only way to get to where we want to be is to change. We can’t just go from the person you are now, to the person you want to be without changing anything.

And when you’re feeling overwhelmed, think micro.

What micro changes can you make today? Tomorrow? This week?

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If you’re ready to add the support and accountability we all need to ensure your changes stick, consider joining MyBodyTutor. It’s the proven program that excels at helping you stick with your diet and exercise plans. Because after all, what good is any positive change – if we don’t stick with it? Sticking with it is where all the results come from!

And in case you’re worried if MBT will work for you, I offer a 100% money back guarantee. There is literally ZERO risk for you to try it. What are you waiting for?

Fitness is a decision. But here’s the kicker: It’s a decision we make every day. And sometimes, clients tell me they’re not in the mood for it. Sometimes, I’m not in the mood for it, either.

But what’s “it”?

Why do we need to be in the mood for something to do the work? And yes, it’s work. Existing isn’t work. But living? That’s work. Thriving? That’s a lot of work.

It’s called work because it’s difficult. Not because we need to be in the mood for it.

Very few people wake up each day in the mood to eat healthfully or in the mood to exercise. People aren’t usually in the mood to push themselves harder than they’ve pushed before or in the mood to be brutally honest with themselves which can be quite uncomfortable.

Of course, what we’re in the mood for is irrelevant to how our body performs or how we exist, live or thrive.

Don’t pay so much attention to what you’re in the mood for. Pay attention to the work.

Then when you’re thriving, you’ll be in the mood to continue thriving.

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Zig Ziglar said, “People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing. That’s why we recommend it daily,” and that’s why we provide it daily. And it makes all of the difference in the world – otherwise, it’s just too easy to make excuses and rationalize those excuses. Ready for some unwavering motivation? Join MBT today!