My Stepping Stones Toward Life

[Irene]

Weight Loss Method and Tools ;-)
My Goal for August 2008: Lose Weight =D

I have learned that there are 12 ways to lose weight and keep it off. A change in lifestyle is highly essential, in fact, it is the SECRET to weight loss. This lifestyle change must first be initiated internally, meaning that this includes a change in one's mindset, habits and character. Yes, at first it is like trying to start life all over again, but later it becomes YOUR LIFE. In fact, you will be happier, confident and positive, which would help you achieve your goals and dreams.

Lifestyle change is not the only necessary tool in long-term weight loss. The second one is keeping a food diary. Here's the reason why keeping a food diary is essential:

"Devote some time each day to record what you have eaten and how much, your hunger level prior to eating, and any feelings or emotions present at the time. A food diary can provide a large amount of self-awareness. It can identify emotions and behaviors that trigger overeating, foster greater awareness of portion sizes, and help you discover your personal food triggers. Study any patterns that emerge from your food diary and identify where you may be able to make more healthful changes. A food diary provides an added benefit of keeping you focused on and committed to your goals."
-www[dot]thedietchannel[dot]com/weightloss[dot]htm

Exercise is the key to a successful weight loss. A person who is faithful in exercising is a person who will enjoy weight loss for a long time. Find a workout that offers convenience and enjoyment. Consider your daily activities and MAKE TIME for exercise. Allot time for your workout.

Aspire for good health instead of weight loss. This is very effective because, psychologically, there will be no hindrances when aspiring for good health; while aspiring for weight loss allows insecurities to surface from inside which in turn will handicap your efforts towards losing weight.

Conscious eating includes finding out why you overeat. It is a significant skill to learn to deal with emotions (without food) that cause you to overeat. CONDITIONING is a successful tool in dealing with these emotions without the comfortable outlet of eating. Conditioning includes addressing emotional and behavioral issues.

"...the developmental skills of self nurturing and effective limit setting. The skills are taught and practiced repeatedly in therapy until the participants use them automatically. "Our earlier research suggested that once the skills became integrated, a trend toward persistent emotional and behavioral balance followed," Mellin said. "Participants reported eating less not because they were complying with a diet but because they stopped wanting the extra food."

Each developmental skill involves asking oneself two sets of questions, Mellin said. The self-nurturing skill questions are: "How do I feel? What do I need? Do I need support?" The limit-setting questions are: "Are my expectations reasonable? Is my thinking positive and powerful? What is the essential pain and the earned reward?" The skills are designed to internalize responsive self-parenting and to create emotional balance. When one is emotionally balanced, then he or she is less likely to go to excess, Mellin said.
-www[dot]pub[dot]ucsf[dot]edu/newsservices/releases/2004010235/

Remember that fat loss is best achieved when weight is lost slowly. A healthy weight loss is 1-2 pounds per week. One pound of weight is equivalent to 3500 calories.

Remember also that: Eating less fat will help you to lose weight. Eating less fat and replacing it with excessive amounts of fat-free products will not.

Best weight loss plan: substitute foods instead of eliminating them.

Simple truth about weight loss:

Many people think weight loss is like emptying a bucket with a ladle. A scoop out of the bucket today, tomorrow, next week will eventually empty the bucket. Not so with our bodies. When we decrease our food intake, our bodies try to absorb and store more calories the next time we eat in excess of what our body needs. So, even though we are cutting down most of the time, we will not lose weight if we get extra calories part of the time.

Factoring exercise into your weight loss plan:

You can exercise more to lose weight, but beware of this idea. Most people don,t realize how much exercise is needed to lose weight without cutting calories. Plus, exercise increases appetites. If a dieter can avoid eating any more than was consumed before the diet and can burn off an additional 500 calories every day, that person can lose a pound a week. One mile, walked or run, or five miles on a bike, burns 100 calories. If you can do five miles a day—every day—and not eat any more no matter where you are or what you are doing, you can lose a pound a week. Or, you can cut 250 calories per day and do two and a half miles to accomplish the same thing.

Everyone can lose weight. Not everyone can or should be skinny, but everyone can reach a normal, healthy weight. It requires an acceptance that we cannot eat all we want, whenever we want. We can enjoy food and the occasions in which food is served, but our food intake must be balanced with our activity to achieve and maintain a normal weight. -www[dot]thedietchannel[dot]com/Weight-Loss-Truths-and-Myths[dot]htm

Most importantly, don't forget to enjoy life while dieting!!

[Irene]

GREAT QUOTES: "Do not go where the path may lead...instead go where there is no path and leave a trail." ~motto of successful people

"Freedom lies in being BOLD."~what successful people keep in mind

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined."
~Henry David Thoreau ~advice to people who desire to be successful

"The power of imagination makes us infinite." ~John Muir ~tool to create success

(08-10-2008 06:29 AM)Irene Wrote:  

Quote:6. You are a one-man army. You not only have to plan everything in your life like a general or commander-in-chief would do, but you have to get down and dirty and execute your plans as a soldier would do. If you keep thinking yourself as just the general of your one-man army, well, your just never going to get anything done, are you? You have to be a very smart one-man army also.

^QFE
Planning and implementing are two very different spheres. Kelangan tuparin mo mga plano mo..

Quote:  9. Trust your family. Friends are good to have, but you have to trust your family. If you have good relationships with all your family members, you,ll be successful. You need your family, and a healthy relationship with your family members will help you out in the long run. Blood runs thicker than water, and if you have treated your family members right, they will be much more trustworthy than any friend you can possibly have.

^QFE
It's instinct to love your family because blood runs thicker than water. Treat your family right and they'll help you achieve your goals and they'll support you in your agenda.

Quote:10. Curiosity didn,t kill the cat. Successful people throughout history have always been curious. Curiosity and innovation has always lead to the best ways people make money. They see a problem in the way things currently are, and then they improve them. If you are trying to understand everything in the world, you,ll be more alive to your surroundings, making you much sharper. It has been said that every piece of knowledge you learn will always be used.

^QFE
AWESOME! I love this revelation.

Tularan natin si Mr. Trump. Nang sa gayon, makukuha natin ang gusto natin.

[Irene]

SET A GOAL

Goals provide the process that can take you where you want to go, but too often
they don't provide the inspiration to get you there.
Wishes are different. They have impact - like being struck by lightning instead of
by a lightning bug. They let you dream. They let you soar. They let you tap into a
source of limitless possibility and boundless energy that gives you the power to
accomplish what you might otherwise never have imagined.
If you want to make things happen in your life, don't think about goals -
think about making your wishes come true.

Figure out what you really want.

Every wish has its price. You can have anything you want if you are willing to
pay that price. The price may be time, money, or efforts. It may be in what you
have to give up in order to get what you want.
Your willingness to pay the price is what gives you the power to cause your wish
to come true.

If you are 100% willing to pay the price, then you are 100% likely to
succeed.
Pay the price and your wish will come true.

HOW TO ACHIEVE A GOAL

“Desire is the first step of goal achievement and the foundation.”

Have you set personal or business goals and failed to achieve them?

Here is a crucial question: WHY?

The answer is simple: Because we did not have a strong enough desire.

Some may argue with that. "But I did have a strong desire and still I didn't get
there."

Sorry, but the desire was still not strong enough.

How do you identify intense desire, passion?

It's what keeps people working all hours, up early, late to bed. The desire
dominates conversation, thinking, actions.

Take a moment to think about the goals you've set for yourself.

How committed are you to achieving these goals?

Under what conditions would you give up?

What if you could significantly increase your desire to achieve these goals?

What if you wanted them so badly that you knew with absolute certainty that you
would absolutely, positively never ever give up?

When you are truly 100% committed to reaching your goals, you
move from hoping to knowing.

If you want something badly enough, then quitting is simply not an
option.

You either find a way or make one.

You pay the price, whatever it takes.

By creating intense desire you can realize the impossible dream.

Develop a sincere desire to achieve the goal. A wish or daydream has no
substance; it is vague, unformed, and unsupported by action. Desire puts action
into your plan.

Strong desire is success power.


Define your OBJECTIVE

In May of 1961, John F. Kennedy pledged that America would land a man on the
moon "before the decade is out." It was a brave and bold objective, perhaps one
of the greatest of all time.

Just making the statement, however, did not lead to its achievement.
Putting a man on the moon required immense amounts of intelligence, research,
planning, money, people, risk, and commitment, amongst other things. The most
important step, though, was not Neil Armstrong's, it was John F. Kennedy's
setting of the Objective.

We define the Objective as the final goal. It is what all your efforts are going to
lead to.

In Investing, for example, it could be to have $5 million by retirement.

While some people may want to only have an Objective in one area of their life,
most successful people set Objectives in many areas:

Career
!Family
!Financial
!Health
!Knowledge
!Material
!Retirement
!Spiritual


These are just some categories you should set Objectives in. Objectives are
generally long-term, sometimes even lifetime, although they don't have to be.
They do have to be important to you, and something you feel is worth pursuing,
or establishing a goal setting routine wouldn't be worth doing.

In starting a goal-setting routine, we recommend you set Objectives in one or two
areas to begin. As you start realizing small successes, you'll probably add more
Objectives as you will want to be successful in all areas of your life.

Remember, don't hold back:

Make your Objectives as large as you can realistically realize.

Make sure that your goals are S.M.A.R.T.!!!

Commit to making SMART goals and start working toward them today.

[Irene]

WRITE it down!

Write your goal out in complete detail.

- Why is it so important to write it down?

Words are an integral part of the thinking process. Words convey images,
pictures, feelings, emotions to the mind. By clothing it in words that abstract
thought now takes on body, shape, form, substance.

It is no longer just a thought!

It becomes something, which motivates us, or creates a gut feeling inside.
- Why is the mechanical act of writing so important?

Building on what we have already stated, putting pen to paper now transfers
those expressions, which embody thoughts onto something tangible. We can
now physically look at it.

Even the act of using the eye in coordination with the hand holding the pen
makes a much firmer impression on our mind as we write out the phrase or
expression.

Now when we read and re-read that phrase or sentence the impression on the
mind becomes deeper and deeper.

Written goals are directives to the unconscious mind, which obeys them
blindly.

There is something semi-magical about writing one's goals down which makes
achieving well-written goals an almost certainty. The real trick is to write ones
goals down in a special way which helps guaranty their achievement.
Write it down or kiss it good-bye.

Set a DEADLINE

Set a date for the achievement of your goal.

Setting a date for the attainment of your goal is the ignition for the goal-seeking
missile in your mind. Make sure that your date is realistic... not too soon that it's
impossible, but not so delayed that it's not interesting. Make sure you write the
date of your goal down next to your goal. Once you've set this date, you should
never change it.

Can we see then why deadlining is another crucial step in the goal achievement
process?

Yes, deadlines crystallize thinking and increase motivation.

However, it would be a mistake to think deadlines perform miracles.

Setting a deadline by saying, "In seven days from now I will have made an extra
$5,000" is not going to miraculously deliver unless you have a strategy and a
realistic plan based on your present circumstances.

Set a deadline. Deadlines move us to action.

When we fail to include a deadline for our goal, when we commit to achieving it
"as soon as possible", the goal winds up in our "as soon as possible" pile of
things I will do another day, which is probably never. Why? Because we all too
much to do and not enough time to get it all done. The items that have deadlines
for completion tend to bubble up in priority and importance so that we take
action and achieve them.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. No goal achievement
is a leap across some huge canyon. Many are intimidated and driven away from
going after what they really want in their lives for fear they will have to take a
giant leap across that canyon and, hey, what if I don,t leap far enough? Disaster.

But until you write out your goal, quantify it, and set a deadline so that you break
it down to its small steps, it will forever appear to be too big a stretch and
therefore unattainable. But every time you follow these three steps and break the
goal down, you will always find that you have within your control what it takes
to accomplish that next step. And once you begin, you are on your way!

[Irene]

Defining Your REASONS

In studying goal setting, and the keys to success, it was discovered that many
people fail to achieve success simply because they lack clear REASONS
for doing so.

Don't let this hold up your success. Give serious thought as to why you want to
achieve an Objective, and write down what you've decided.

Do you want $5 million at retirement? Why? You say you want to live in a
mansion? Why? The more compelling your Reasons are, the greater your
chances will be for meeting your Objectives.

Conversely, if you can't come up with "good" Reasons, you might as well set
another Objective, as this one won't be achieved.

Remember, every person has different Reasons for wanting something. What
one person thinks is vain or stupid, another will think is worthy or great.


You must come up with Reasons that are honest, strong, and motivating to
you.

Write them down below the appropriate Objective, leaving plenty of space to
expand or add to them. The more Reasons you have the better. Just make sure
they really represent the Reasons you have for desiring something.

Defining Your SUBGOALS

Once you've written an Objective, and your compelling Reasons for achieving it,
you must start planning the route towards the Objective.

Ask yourself: “What steps do I need to take to………….?”

These steps will be your Subgoals.

Say you've set an Objective for having $5 Million by retirement (which could be
20+ years away). First, you must figure out how you can achieve that. Do you
need to learn more about investing? Will you have to start saving $500 a week?
Do you have to get a new job? Will you have to more actively watch your existing
investments? Whatever needs doing, to progress towards your Objective, will
become your Subgoals.

Subgoals can be specific or broad in scope, but they must always lead directly
towards the Objective they support. They must also always have a deadline. A
date you plan to accomplish the Subgoal by, a realistic date that not only
motivates you into action but also ensures progress towards your Objective.

Usually you will have many Subgoals at a time, and in the case of a real longterm
Objective, some of the Subgoals will not be clear at the start, with others
coming about when certain existing Subgoals are achieved.

Always write your Subgoals and their Accomplishment Dates down. Never make
your Subgoals too long or too difficult, as you don't want to be overwhelmed by
them. If a Subgoal is long-term (as in taking a four-year degree towards a larger
Career Objective), break it down into smaller parts (each year for example), and
revise and/or renew them when accomplished.

By making sufficient and reasonable Subgoals, and always accomplishing them
on time, you'll find yourself making great progress towards Objectives, which
may look intimidating, or even impossible, by themselves.

Defining Your TASKS
Just as we break large or long-term Objectives down into smaller supporting
elements called Subgoals, we further break our Subgoals down into even smaller
elements. These small elements are called Tasks, and accomplishing them is
what makes the practice of goal setting really work.

Tasks are usually the simple things you must do to accomplish a Subgoal.

If you've set a Subgoal, for example, to have a complete understanding about
investing in bonds by next June 15th, you will have to accomplish a number of
Tasks for acquiring that knowledge.

Choosing to go to the library and get a book on bonds would be a Task.

Reading the book for one hour each this Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, could
be three separate Tasks.

Visiting the Investors Skills' website for their bond information, would be another
Task.

Calling your buddy who's had success in the bond market would be a Task as
well.

All of these Tasks, which should be written down on the same paper as the
Subgoal they support, must be set with an Accomplishment Date, for if you
procrastinate calling your buddy, never get around to completely reading the
book, or don't even bother checking the website, you won't reach your Subgoal of
learning about bonds, or won't meet it by its Accomplishment Date.

And this, unfortunately for you, will turn your $5 Million by retirement Objective
back into the pipe dream it didn't have to be.

By focusing your mind on the easy-to-accomplish Tasks, and completing those
Tasks, you'll be making great progress towards your Subgoals and Objectives
without feeling overwhelmed.

Make sure to write down ALL Tasks, even those that take only minutes to
complete.

Then, when they're accomplished, check them off.

As more and more Tasks are successfully accomplished, and checked off,
you'll find yourself becoming more encouraged, and more confident about your
abilities.

The more you believe, the more you will strive to accomplish, and the more
you will enjoy completing even more Tasks.

And the more Tasks you complete on time, the closer you'll be to that success
you have real Reasons for wanting. The success you originally defined as your
Objectives.

[Irene]

Using SUCCESS ENHANCEMENTS

What Are Success Enhancements?

There are really two key elements to achieving success.

The first, as we've described, is the practice of goal setting, which is simply:
Setting Objectives,

Developing compelling Reasons for wanting the Objectives,
Breaking the Objectives down into not so overwhelming Subgoals,
Breaking the Subgoals down into easy-to-accomplish Tasks.

The second key element involves training your mind to think positively.

In order to accomplish what you set out to do, you must develop an
achievement mindset. While reviewing your Reasons, and checking off
completed Tasks are two things you should be doing to keep your mind focused
on the success you desire, there are five other Success Enhancements we
recommend you become familiar with:

Success Questions,
Success Stimulants,
Visualization Technique,
Affirmations
Reward Technique

When you are able to keep your mind on success, you will be virtually
certain to reach that success.

Visualization Technique

The brain often thinks in pictures.

The human eye captures an incredible amount of information with just one
glance and relays it all to the brain that then translates that information into a
form we 'see'.

It would be more accurate to say we see with our brains than with our eyes.
The success technique to which I am referring is visualization. I guarantee, that
"visualizing your results is the key to realizing your results".

Visualizing is one of the most important techniques you will ever learn and
one that is utilized by all high performers.

One of the reasons goal setting doesn't work for people is because they don't
understand or utilize the power of this one critical factor. Often times, you may
set a goal, write it down, you may even read it aloud every day, but if you can't
see yourself in possession of your goal, you will never realize it long term.

Visualizing is your key to success for two reasons:

1. Your mind thinks in pictures and images;
2. Your subconscious mind drives your behavior.

When something is hammered into your mind in clear detail, it becomes part of
your reality.

Your subconscious mind doesn't know the difference between something that is
real and something vividly imagined. Whatever picture (goal) you consistently
think about will drive your actions to create that exact picture.

When you continually see yourself in possession of your goal, your subconscious
mind will move you into actions that align with the mental image you hold.

AFFIRMATION technique

Affirmations are words we say to ourselves. They,re verbal suggestions we
say silently or out loud.

The truth is that if you tell yourself something often enough, you,ll eventually
believe it.

Affirmations, or self-talk, is a very common activity.

“Things like this are always happening to me!”
“I just can,t lose weight!”
“I,m so clumsy!”

Does it sound familiar?

But we can affirm our strengths too. We can even affirm strengths we don,t
yet have.

Develop daily affirmations that support the goals you developed in your goal
setting. You need to figure out what you need to change about yourself to make it
easier to practice or keep the commitments you made in your goal-setting.

[Irene]

So many people want to do great things. So many people dream of being a person who changes the world through some great written work, a great deed of courage performed, or a great act of compassion rendered to those in need. But the negative feeling of "I just can't do it" robs people of that chance to make good on their dreams. (Excerpt from Maria Fontaine)

Monitor your thoughts. Just as you monitor your thoughts, monitor the words that you speak. Listen carefully to every word that is coming from your mouth.

Whats out for excusitis. Excusitis is a disease that causes to constantly make excuses.

When you hear yourself complaining, stop yourself immediately.


There is so much to be positive about!



_______________________________________________




OPTIMISM means
# Positive attitude ,
# Key to success ,
# Key to solve all your Problems ,
# Key to find Happiness in everything .
# It also means Healthy Mind and Body .

Optimism is a vital ingredient for a life that is creative, productive and enjoyable. Research shows that optimists live longer, enjoy better health, and do better in relationships, work and sports. For some, optimism comes naturally. For most, it is a postive attitude towards life that must be learned and cultivated

Optimism helps to cope more easily with the daily affairs of life. It brings optimism into your life, and makes it easier to avoid worry and negative thinking. If you adopt it as a way of life, it will bring constructive changes into your life, and makes them happier, brighter and more successful. With a positive attitude you see the bright side of life, become optimstic and expect the best to happen. It is certainly a state of mind that is well worth developing and strengthening.

Optimism leads to happiness and success and can change your whole life. If you look at the bright side of life, your whole life becomes filled with light. This light affects not only you and the way you look at the world, but also your whole environment and the people around you. If it is strong enough, it becomes contagious.

People with a positive frame of mind think about possibilities, growth, expansion and success. They expect happiness, health, love and good relationships. They think in terms of 'I can', 'I am able' and 'I will succeed'.



NOTE : Optimism is very easy to get used to. You just need to forget the word failure and start saying that everything is possible and nothing is impossible .

[Irene]

Benefits

#Positive thinking--being optimistic and hopeful--is a habit anyone can adopt with some practice. Why might you want to do so? A positive attitude and optimistic thinking are healthy. The power of positive thinking is that hopeful, optimistic people are healthier, live longer, and report greater satisfaction with life than those who might be labeled pessimistic.

Positive Thinking and Reality

Positive thinking is not ignoring reality. Bad things happen to positive and negative people alike (though Law of Attraction advocates may disagree). The difference is that positive thinkers tend to look for the best in a situation. That doesn't mean they ignore the negative event, just that they accept it and look for ways to make things more positive.

# Positive thinking is a mental attitude that admits into the mind thoughts, words and images that are conductive to growth, expansion and success. It is a mental attitude that expects good and favorable results. A positive mind anticipates happiness, joy, health and a successful outcome of every situation and action. Whatever the mind expects, it finds.

# Negative thoughts, words and attitude bring up negative and unhappy moods and actions. When the mind is negative, poisons are released into the blood, which cause more unhappiness and negativity. This is the way to failure, frustration and disappointment.



The following STORY will illustratre clearly the benefits of being optimistic/positive : -



Allan applied for a new job, but as his self-esteem was low, and he considered himself as a failure and unworthy of success, he was sure that he was not going to get the job. He had a negative attitude towards himself, and believed that the other applicants were better and more qualified than him. Allan manifested this attitude, due to his negative past experiences with job interviews.

His mind was filled with negative thoughts and fears concerning the job for the whole week before the job interview. He was sure he would be rejected. On the day of the interview he got up late, and to his horror he discovered that the shirt he had planned to wear was dirty, and the other one needed ironing. As it was already too late, he went out wearing a shirt full of wrinkles.

During the interview he was tense, displayed a negative attitude, worried about his shirt, and felt hungry because he did not have enough time to eat breakfast. All this distracted his mind and made it difficult for him to focus on the interview. His overall behavior made a bad impression, and consequently he materialized his fear and did not get the job.

Jim applied for the same job too, but approached the matter in a different way. He was sure that he was going to get the job. During the week preceding the interview he often visualized himself making a good impression and getting the job.

In the evening before the interview he prepared the clothes he was going to wear, and went to sleep a little earlier. On day of the interview he woke up earlier than usual, and had ample time to eat breakfast, and then to arrive to the interview before the scheduled time.

He got the job because he made a good impression. He had also of course, the proper qualifications for the job, but so had Allan.

What do we learn from these two stories? Is there any magic employed here? No, it is all natural. When the attitude is positive we entertain pleasant feelings and constructive images, and see in our mind's eye what we really want to happen. This brings brightness to the eyes, more energy and happiness. The whole being broadcasts good will, happiness and success. Even the health is affected in a beneficial way. We walk tall and the voice is more powerful. Our body language shows the way you feel inside.



The benefits of positive attitude

    * A positive attitude attracts people, while a negative attitude repels them. People tend to shy away from those who carry a negative attitude.
    * We define attitude as our unique way of looking at the world. If you choose to focus on the negative things in the world, you have a negative attitude brewing up. However, if you choose to focus on the positive things, you are more likely carry a positive attitude.
    * You have much to gain from a very positive attitude. For one, studies have shown that a positive attitude promotes better health. Those with this kind of attitude also have more friends. Projecting a positive attitude also helps you handle stress and problems better than those who have a negative attitude.
    * A positive attitude begins with a healthy self-image. If you choose to love the way you are and are satisfied, confident, and self-assured, you also make others around you feel the same way



    * This positive affirmation may help you get started: I am an optimistic, hopeful, positive thinking person. I accept that bad things may happen in my life, but I look for positive opportunities in the midst of anything negative.


NOTE : Being an Optimist can give you so much but being pessimist will take so much from you
            Optimism can give you success in one or the other way but Pessimism will take your success from every way.

[Irene]

Superior Health
In a study of 99 Harvard University students, those who were optimists at age 25 were significantly healthier at ages 45 and 60 than those who were pessimists. Other studies have linked a pessimistic explanatory style with higher rates of infectious disease, poor health, and earlier mortality.

Persistence
Optimists don,t give up as easily as pessimists, and they are more likely to achieve success because of it. Some optimistic businessmen, like Donald Trump, have been bankrupt (even multiple times), but have been able to persist and turn their failures into millions.

Less Stress
Optimists also tend to experience less stress than pessimists or realists. Because they believe in themselves and their abilities, they expect good things to happen. They see negative events as minor setbacks to be easily overcome, and view positive events as evidence of further good things to come. Believing in themselves, they also take more risks and create more positive events in their lives.

[katorse]

puro health ah...

kumusta na ba...