Maximize Your Life

I don’t watch The Biggest Loser and I didn’t really know much about Jillian Michaels, who is one of the coaches on the popular weight loss TV show. Wasn’t she that skinny b@#*x who yells at people?

Me and Lindsay waiting to hear Jillian.

 After hearing her speak last night at the Holland Center in Omaha, I’m a Jillian Michaels fan. I might even start listening to her podcast.

In a stop on her “Maximize Your Life Tour," Michaels spoke for 90 minutes and then took questions from the audience. A lot of what she talked about I had heard before. But she presented simple, easy-to-understand concepts in an entertaining way. She’s very funny, articulate and quick on her feet.

Michaels won me over right away with her very, very important secret to health. It’s the key to being fit, the wizardry behind weight loss. The secret formula. And the magic words?

(Drum roll…..)

Eat Less. Move More.

Simple, right? Simple, but not easy.

In her speech, Michaels laid out a combination of practical advice and

Oprah-like wisdom.

Jillian Michaels

Here are a few of the messages she shared with her audience.

• Eat. Real. Food. Don’t spend one more dollar on fad diets. Don’t eat stuff with ingredients you can’t pronounce.

•  Count calories. Figure out your basal metabolic rate, the number of calories you body needs even if all you do is stay in bed all day. Figure out the calories you can take in, based on your daily activity level and the number of calories it takes to lose a pound or two a month. (There are loads of calculators on line in you’re like me and don’t do math.)

• Exercise helps move the needle faster. But it has to be intense exercise: kinetic, energetic exercise that uses body weight and free weights. Figure out your maximum heart rate and aim for 85%. I blogged about using a monitor so I can reach my target but there are other ways to measure heart rate.

• A permanent source of motivation has to from inside. Figure out exactly why you want to be fit and that will help you tolerate the tough workouts and clean diet you need to meet your goals. (Rachel, a personal trainer, also tries to help clients “figure out their why” so they can set goals and be successful.)

•  Don’t live life entirely as a “responsibility sandwich” made up of fear, judgment, responsibility and obligation. You need to fit yourself into that equation and put yourself first. Fear is paralyzing but there’s a cost associated with doing nothing. Doing nothing about your health leads to decay, high cholesterol, heart disease.

• Wherever you are in life, it’s your choice. The way you respond to stress and other challenges determines how your life plays out.

• Transformation is a present activity. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking, “I screwed up already so what’s the point?” or “After I’ve lost ten pounds, then I’ll be happy.”

• The goal is not perfection. The goal is progress.

• Don’t give up. Failure is an entry point for success. When you fail, evaluate what you did wrong, make changes and try again.

• And finally, let yourself be awesome!

I know a lot of this stuff may sound like sayings that should be stitched on a pillow. But it’s also truth that is good to hear and think about.