PREPARE FOR PASSOVER

Since Passover is more than one day you want to incorporate your Cheat day into your celebrations. Here are some helpful tips:

THE WEEKEND BEFORE: If you are planning on cheating for Passover you want to skip your cheat this coming weekend 20th or 21st. And save it for one or two of your passover nights that you are celebrating.

IF YOU PLAN ON CHEATING MORE THAN ONE DAY:  If you are cheating multiple days you want to be very mindful and taste the food you really want to try and pass on anything you really don’t need. Keep portions extra small so you can enjoy both days.

VACATION: If you are going on vacation – do not cheat before you go. Stay on program and pick and choose your cheats while you are away. Plus you will feel so much better leaving if you do not cheat before you go.  There are always on program passover options

Chicken, Gefilte Fish, salads, Matzah, Fruit, one drink if you are over 21 🙂

*PASSOVER FOOD IDEAS & CHOICES TO KEEP YOU ON TRACKINCORPORATE PASSOVER CHOICES IN YOUR DAYBREAKFAST & LUNCH CHOICES YOU CAN INCORPORATE PASSOVER WEEK:

• MATZAH-2 Matzah with 1tbsp of peanut, almondor SunButter, or 1/2avocado

• MATZAH AND FRUIT: 1 Matzah with 1 tsp of pb or sunbather with 1 piece of fruit 

• MATZAH AND EGGS- one Matzah with 3-4 egg whites and 1 cup of veggies

• ANY Kosher Meat no sauce no marinate no butter

• Light tuna or chicken salad or egg white salad with 1 matzah

• Chubby Potato: 1 large white potato or sweet potato with 1 cup of veggies on top and 1/4 cup of cheese and bake 🙂

• 1/2 cup park skim Cottage cheese with 1 cup of fruit 

• Popcorn

• 15-20 Any nuts

• Think Thin Bar

• Matzoh ball soup without the Matzoh ball

• 2 slices of low fat cheese or 1 light part skim cheese stick with 1 Matzah

 • non fat greek yogurt with 1/2 cup of berries

• 1 cup of any berries with 2 tbsp of cool whip

**NEW ITEMS IN THE INNOVATION STORE STARTING THIS FRIDAY 4/19 FOR PASSOVER WEEK

Gluten Free Quesadillas 

Honey cake

Mandelbrot

Sponge Cake 

Coconut and Almond Macarons 

KETO peanut butter cups 

Keto blondies 

Keto cookies

*Current Innovation Passover friendly products

— All our Gluten Free Muffins, GF CookIes and Gluten free bars 

— Our Entire Ketovation line contains no wheat or flour 

Gluten free pasta 

Gluten free crab cakes

Gluten free quinoa burgers

Quinoa salad

Grilled chickens salad

Shrimp and rice 

Chicken and rice

Steak and rice

Swedish meatballs

Salmon and veggies 

Cauliflower Pizza

Turkey Taco

Chicken Salad

Tuna Salad

Sweet potato fries 

Tomato Soup

Broccoli cheddar soup 

Bisque Soup

Pudding

Rice Sticks and Hockey Puck Rounds 

Chocolate mousse cake, & Cheese Cake & Gummy Bites

All Innovation nuts regular, chocolate and mixed

Popcorn

Licorice

Detox

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

WWW.INNOVATIONWEIGHTLOSS.COM

INNOVATIONHEALTHYMARKET.COM

00:00 – Speaker – Josephine 

Hi everyone, welcome to the Love to Live Healthy show. I’m Josephine Fitzpatrick. This week’s topic is stop being afraid, and I know in today’s world that sounds so much easier than it feels. I mean, look at last week. In one week we had an earthquake, we are in retrograde and we experienced an eclipse. It’s a lot for people. We have been through a lot with world destruction, political issues. It can go on and on. But the truth is it’s life and it’s not always supposed to be easy and we’re not always going to have all the answers. But what we do know is we are here and we are so lucky and blessed to be here, and that is one thing we can and should never forget. 

00:42

When it comes to weight loss, it’s very easy to be afraid. I see my clients all the time. I see what they’re afraid of. They are afraid of failing, they are afraid of self-sabotaging, they are afraid of being hungry, they are afraid of temptation, they are afraid of working so hard and being disappointed. And that’s okay. It’s okay to be afraid, but what’s not okay is to not try because you’re afraid, because everything I just said failing, self-sabotage, being hungry, temptation you’re in control of most of them. 

01:16

I know it’s not easy and we will never have all the answers. We’re not supposed to have all the answers. You know no one does. You don’t reach a certain age, a certain social status, a certain position in your career and suddenly have it all and have all the answers. It doesn’t work like that. There is no secret potion, there’s no lucky token and there’s no prayer that will change the course of your life in the snap of your fingers. You will never know all the answers and sometimes, because we don’t know all the answers, that’s what makes it so uncomfortable. But when we talk about weight loss, what we can find comfort in is that you have a plan, you know what you have to do, you know if you prepare and follow through your menu you don’t eat in between your meals and you work really hard and you are consistent you will absolutely see results. And you know this because so many of you have already done it and those of you who haven’t done it know clients that have done it and you see the results. 

02:14

But again, it’s not easy because you also know the results won’t come unless you try. So, whether you’re afraid or not, you have to try, you have to start, you have to work hard, you have to push yourself. You have to be okay with being outside of your comfort zone. Because think about it that’s why it’s so scary, that’s why you’re afraid, because you’re outside of your comfort zone. 

02:37

You feel like you need to have all the answers because you’re outside of your comfort zone, but the truth is, like I said before, there’s no one who has all the answers. There’s no perfect time. There’s no perfect situation. What is most important, you have to just start. You have to follow and be consistent. You don’t need to know all the answers. You just have to put the work in. That’s what gives you the results. 

03:01

And what you need to know is that every day you follow, you will learn more and more. You will see more and more results. Every day that you are consistent, you will feel better and better. You’ll feel better outside of your comfort zone. You will no longer be afraid. Think about it, for those of you who were always on the innovation program, when I introduced the five-hour and the detox program, you were completely out of your comfort zone. 

03:26

Yet you trusted in yourself, you listened, you follow, you learned, you worked hard and the results have been absolutely amazing. I mean, I have clients who have never been so thin in their entire life and all ages 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, even eighties. I have a client yesterday it was her birthday, 85th birthday she texted me and she has been at her goal with me for some time. That’s incredible. I just love that. But again, it doesn’t mean that it’s not scary, it doesn’t mean that you’re not going to be afraid. You won’t be afraid if you keep trying. If you keep trying, you will see how you get less and less afraid and will believe more and more in yourself and the results.

04:07

This is a game. You know life is a game and I mean that in the very best way. You put the time in, you work hard, you learn, you learn the rules, you see how it goes, you see the results, and this is in all aspects of your life. You have to try and work hard, you have to get over the fear if you want to reach any goal. And when you do that and you try really hard and you put the work in, I truly believe that, even if they are not the exact, 100% results you wanted, you will still get results, results that make you so much happier than doing nothing at all. Is it challenging? Yes, of course. Everything in life can be challenging, especially if you think of it that way. 

04:47

You know for those of you who know me, you know I’m a big believer in mindset. I believe that what you believe in, what you put your work into, what you put your energy into, that’s what’s going to happen. Dreams and goals are not always supposed to be easy. And everyone’s dreams are different. While it might be weight loss for you, that is your dream, to be a certain size or number, for someone else it’s another dream entirely. But all dreams and goals are challenging, no matter what they are. And the only way to succeed at them is to work hard at it every day. To have a positive mindset, believe in yourself, put your energy into it and work hard at those dreams and goals every day. And if you do that, I can promise you will see results every day and every week you will get closer and closer to what you want. And remember when I say you’ll see results every day it might not be on the scale, but you’ll see results in how you feel, how your clothes fit you, and eventually it will be on the scale, but you have to look at all your results. 

05:50

Let’s remember it’s in the challenges we face every day, every week, every month. That’s where we learn the most and it’s also what makes it so exciting. You know, as you succeed with each challenge, you’re trusting yourself to overcome the next challenge, the next future obstacle, because every time you do it you’re getting stronger and stronger. You gain great advantage when you overcome your challenges because you’re also learning discipline and control. You know, and we have to remember that learning discipline and control is going to help us in every area of our life. 

06:36

I want to quickly tell you about one of my clients that I have that I won’t go too deep into because she’s planning on doing a podcast with me when she reaches her goal, and it will be soon. So I really don’t want to get into the story, but just to give you an idea about her. She came to me about 10 years ago, probably more, and she lost all her weight, got to numbers she never thought possible and she stayed there for a really long time. But then, of course, things happen in life as they often do, one thing or another and you know, like I said, I’m going to leave the details to her. But right before she came back, you know she started gaining weight and in the beginning she was kind of ignoring the extra weight and she would ask me and then eventually she couldn’t ignore it anymore. So when she started back, you know it was really difficult. You know my point is through the story. It wasn’t easy for her. You know she lost a pound, she lost two pounds, but just going back so strict, after not having to be so strict for so long because she was basically maintaining for years, so going backs trick again, she struggled. You know she questioned it, she questioned me, she questioned the food. I kept telling her to trust me, trust the program, trust the food. Everyone eats it, everyone loses. And now she’s just doing amazing. You know she got through the hard part and that’s my point. 

07:46

You have to get through the hard part. It’s not the first week, the first week is not the hard part, it’s the second through like the fifth week. It’s really tough because you have weight to lose. And the second through the fifth week week is you’re really not seeing what you want to see for all the work you feel like you’re putting in, but then all of a sudden, all those pounds add up, all those ones and twos, they add up and by the sixth week you are feeling amazing. Then, all of a sudden, you start to see the better number, you start to see the difference in your clothes. You start to see how you feel. Your body image is better, your confidence is better and you know you can do it. You’re working hard, you’re putting the time in, you’re seeing the results and you feel confident. You’re no longer afraid. So you really have to give yourself that second to fifth week. Get through that. That’s the hard part. It’s gets so much easier after that.

08:45

It’s funny, as I was just telling you that story, I’m thinking to myself. I can guarantee there’s so many of my clients that are listening to this and they think I’m talking about them, because I didn’t realize. But, as I was talking about the story, there are so many clients in the last couple of months that went through this and now they’re in such a great place. Not all of them are at their goal, but very close and very happy and in a place where there’s no turning back because they got through the hard part. They’re so happy about where they are. They’re so happy being back on program. They’re so happy feeling good again. Their clothes are fitting. You know, they all had to restart for one reason or another and they got through the challenge of starting. They got through the second and fifth week and when you can do that, it’s going to make such a big difference. It’s going to take the scariness out of everything. 

09:25

So again, my point is if you can get over being afraid, being afraid of failing, afraid of the hunger, afraid of the temptations, you will do it. You know deep down you can do this. You can do anything you want to if you put your heart and soul into it, if you put your energy and beliefs into it. Yes, it takes a positive mindset, hard work, consistency, but you will get to where you want to be. You have to learn to talk yourself into it. Talk yourself into it and stop talking yourself out of it. 

09:56

And, especially in the beginning, instead of looking for excuses to go off program, you have to make all the excuses why you should stay on program, why you want this, why it’s important to you. You know, again, when we’re talking about mindset, if you keep yourself afraid, you will stay afraid. If you make excuses for yourself why you can’t do this, then you won’t do this. Your negative mindset will keep you stuck. You don’t want that, because when you keep yourself afraid or tell yourself excuses why you can’t do something, it’s causing yourself to limit yourself. I really believe that tell yourself excuses why you can’t do something, it’s causing yourself to limit yourself. I really believe that. That’s why you’re staying stuck immediately. It’s going to give you reasons to go off and do the wrong thing. This fear and these excuses keep you going down the same old path, preventing you from reaching your goals. 

10:46

And if you really want to lose weight, feel great and have control over your life and your happiness, then you have to stop being afraid and stop making excuses why you can’t do it. When you start to struggle, I want you to remember me telling you this, Life is hard. It’s supposed to be hard, but it’s also the challenge that makes it fun and exciting. Don’t be afraid of it and don’t make excuses for it. Instead, live it. Live your goals, live your dreams. That’s what’s going to make you happy. Get through being afraid. When you’re through being afraid, it’s going to be life-changing. It’s not about being perfect. It’s about going after what you want and making sure you’re working hard to do it, put your energy in it. So, if you’re one of the clients that are doing all the right things which I know so many of you have been, and I’m so beyond proud of every one of you Keep going, keep working hard. Every day, you are closer and closer to your dreams and goals. Every day you feel better and better, and I love that. 

11:50

Now, if you are someone who has not started or has not been doing the right things and want to start, this is your motivation today. You have to start by following your menu, not eating in between meals and snacks, having the discipline to work through your challenges and fears. It takes planning, preparing and following through with your day. It takes not making any excuses on why you should go off program. It takes consistent hard work and, most of all, it takes you loving yourself enough to walk away from the temptations. You have to be willing to put your immediate wants aside for your future results, and when you can do that, you will see the very best results. It’s time to stop being afraid and start being excited. Start today 

Okay, that’s all I have for you today. I hope this helped. Thank you so much for tuning in. I really appreciate all the feedback. It truly makes my day. I’m wishing everyone a happy, healthy week full of love and blessings. Hugs from me to all of you. 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

Speaker: Josephine

Hi everyone, welcome to the Love to Live Healthy show. I’m Josephine Fitzpatrick. Happy April everyone. 

For the month of April, we are focusing on the importance of appreciation. Today’s podcast is about working for what you want while appreciating the life you have and the body you live in. I don’t think we realize how important these things go together. 

I want you to think about this question Can you appreciate yourself and your life if you do not feel good about yourself? Seriously, don’t just answer a quick yes or no. Really think about it. Can you really truly appreciate what is going on in your life if you are not in a good place with your mind and body, if you don’t feel good about yourself? Well, I can tell you after dealing with thousands of clients, the answer for most is no. You can never truly appreciate where you are in life, or appreciate all the big and little happy things that go on in your life, if you do not feel good in your body and mind. 

You have to feel good about yourself to really appreciate what’s going on around you. Think about all the big things that are going on right now. So many people have so many things going on, planning Summer vacations, graduations, bar mitzvahs, communions, sweet 16. Whatever’s going on in your life or your world, will you really appreciate that day or that week when you don’t feel good in your body? How can you really appreciate any experience when you don’t feel good in the body you have? 

Now listen, I’m not talking about being a size zero. I’m talking about feeling your best in your body, and whatever that means to you. For some it’s feeling fit, feeling strong, feeling thin, maybe it’s just feeling in control with your food, which always gives you control in your life. Whatever that feeling is, you need to have that in order to really appreciate all the things that are going on in your life, even the little daily things like going to the beach or barbecue with friends, waking up and appreciating having a day in front of you to enjoy with your husband, or with your significant other, or with your family or friends. You will only truly appreciate these things when you feel your best in your mind and body. 

So I decided for April that, while we are working really hard for what we want, we are also going to stop and appreciate what we have, from big to little things. We are going to take notice of it and appreciate it. Listen, you know how I love to keep things positive. I mean, really, what else do we have to live on than our own positive thoughts and actions? And for some they are in real tough times and finding appreciation for anything can be a real challenge when times are really tough and things aren’t going well in your life. And listen, it’s inevitable that we all will face hardships and challenges throughout our life from health to family, money, career, kids.

Life can be really hard, and for some so much harder than others, and it is in these scenarios that you really have to learn how to appreciate everything you have and what’s around you, the big and little things you know. I tell my kids all the time it’s life challenges that not only make you stronger, it really also helps you appreciate all the good things you have in your life, the little things that you didn’t even notice before, that not everyone else has. For example, being able to go for a workout. It sounds so simple, but it takes time, it takes money and it takes a healthy body. Not everyone has all those things. We forget that. We sometimes take so much for granted that we forget to appreciate the smallest things that keep us going every day. It’s a fact that embracing, celebrating and appreciating your life can greatly enhance your well-being and your overall happiness.

Cultivating a healthy relationship with yourself is definitely not easy, trust me. I see clients every day and I know when they don’t feel good about themselves and it changes their mindset of what is in front of them, how they’re going to handle it when they don’t feel good about where they are at. You have to have your mindset positive. You know you’ll either go to a negative or a positive, and I’m telling you that you have to keep that mindset positive to get to where you want to be, because if you let it go to the negative, you will not only be able to not appreciate anything, but it will keep you stuck where you are or put you in an even worse place. So how do we keep the mindset positive so we can keep ourself in a good direction and appreciate what is going on in and around our life?

You need goals. Yes, you need some good April goals, because that will help you continue working for what you want. And when you’re working for what you want, feeling good about the future is one of the keys to success and happiness. We all need goals to motivate us. It should be challenging enough to excite you, but also achievable. But choosing an ambitious but realistic goal will give your life direction and bring a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. When you get close to it and finally achieve it, and when you feel good, you will be able to appreciate everything in your life and what’s ahead of it.

Think about it If you’re on program and you have goals that you’re working toward, you’re going to feel in control and when you feel in control, it gives you control in your whole life. Clients tell me all the time, even when they’re losing slow or weak, they didn’t see any weight loss. Being on program is so much better than being off program. That is because it’s a sense of control of your day, your food, your body and when you’re doing the right thing you feel better. You know the weight loss will follow, but you feel better eating on program and following your meals and snacks because you know it’s going to get you to where you want to be. Plus it just makes you feel overall lighter and healthier. And even when you are not at goal and just have that sense of control and feel good working towards your goal, that is going to help you appreciate everything you have going on and in and around your life.

So let’s talk about some April goals. A great short-term goal for April is where do you want to be by May 1st? You know, think about it. That is so doable. Where do you want to be by May 1st? It’s four weeks. Do you want to do one pound a week? Two pounds a week? Is it a certain number? Do you want to fit in a certain outfit? 

So let’s start by setting a short-term goal. That’s the first thing you have to do, because that short-term goal is going to start you and you’re going to feel so good going in a direction that you feel you have control in.

Now, listen, if you have been on program, which so many of you are, it’s still a great time to set some monthly goals. Think about where you wanna be May 1st. It will not only continue to give you direction, but it will also help keep you motivated each month. You just continue on your path, continue doing the right things, and you know that every day, you are one day closer to your goals and the body you want. And in the meantime, you have the control over yourself and your life, and there’s no better feeling or way to appreciate what you have today and what is in front of you.

If you have not been doing the right thing and not been on program. You need to get back on. Regardless of where you are right now, one solid week sometimes is all it takes to get back on track, to feeling great. That should be your first goal is to commit to one solid week. When you have a week that is 110% clean and on program, it really doesn’t take much to start seeing the loss and feeling immediately better. It takes one solid week of commitment and you want to start it by setting your goal for April. Where do you want to be May 1st? More importantly, where do you want to be in a week from now? First, you want to have a solid week behind you that you were amazing, and then work toward your goals for the month.

Let’s go over some tips on how to stick with your goal for April. 

First is promise and commitment to yourself. Don’t think about the actual goal. Instead, remember that your goal is a promise and commitment you made to yourself. It’s easy to say who cares? All right, who cares? I went off, or I ate that extra snack, no big deal, I didn’t run or I didn’t exercise this week. But, it’s not the actual goal that you gave up on, though. You made a promise to yourself, a promise and a commitment to yourself to do this. You know how happy it will make you and it will be a lot happier than any extra you’re going to feed yourself to take you out of your promise and commitment. Remember you want to keep the commitments and the promises you make to yourself because once you break those promises, once you break those commitments, you are giving yourself the excuse and lack of discipline to break other promises and commitments. Every time something gets challenging in your life, every time something gets hard, the most important promises and commitments in life are the ones you make to yourself. Those are the ones you need to keep, before any other promises and commitments.

Number two don’t give up. Remember, before you give up on your goal because you are stressed or because anything that is not going on right in your life, remind yourself giving up on your goal is going to make it worse, not better. The one thing you can control is completing your goal. If you don’t give up and you do one solid week, it’s going to make next week even easier. If you finish your goal for the month, it’s going to make the next month even easier. Every week and every month, you will feel more motivated and stronger to handle what’s in front of you, it gets easier. It doesn’t get harder. The longer you are on, the better you do. It gets easier, it doesn’t get harder.

Number three don’t allow setbacks to destroy your goals. Unfortunately, many things don’t go as expected, no matter how much planning we do. When you can be patient with yourself, that is key to approaching bumps in the road in a positive way. Accept the hiccup in your day or week and just get back on. Even if you had a moment of weakness, the most important thing you can do for yourself is to get right back on program. All the clients you see that look amazing, I promise you. They have had hiccups, they have had really bad cheat days, they have had setbacks, but they get right back on and that is why they look the way they do. That is why you never notice their hiccup, because it only affects their moment, not their week, or their month.

Number four plan, prepare and follow through. I will preach this forever because you don’t always overeat when you are hungry. In fact, it’s almost never about the food, it’s about everything else that’s going on in your life. So when you can plan and prepare, when something comes up, good or bad, you just follow what you planned and prepared and that will keep you moving forward. That will keep you where you need to be.

Number five push yourself. Without pushing yourself to your limits, you will never know how far you can go and what you can really achieve. I say it all the time it’s okay to be a little uncomfortable. That usually happens because you’re pushing yourself and if you’re not a little uncomfortable, you’re not pushing yourself hard enough. This month, give yourself that extra push every day to complete your goal and don’t let yourself make any excuses why it’s not important. We don’t like to be uncomfortable, so a lot of times we’ll put an excuse in place, but you have to decide how important this is to you. How hard you push is going to determine how much you want it. That extra push and being a little uncomfortable can make all the difference. Remember, this is a journey and it’s your journey. You have to do what makes you happy.

I can tell you what I see. When clients feel their best, when clients are doing the right thing and they’re following their program and they have goals and they know they’re moving forward, they appreciate everything going on. I see it everyday. I see it in the way they text. I see it when they come in my office. You’re a different person when you’re doing the right thing and living in a healthy body, feeling good about yourself. That makes all the difference. Every month you have choices lose weight, maintain gain.

How you live, how much work you do, how much time you put into what you want it all determines your outcome. No one else can do this for you. No one else can make it happen except for you. It takes more than just saying you want it. You have to work hard for it every day. You have to remember. It’s easy to say the words I appreciate, but living in appreciation, it’s two different things. And in order to live in appreciation, you have to feel good about yourself.

I think life is way too short to not appreciate everything you have and everything that’s in it. It’s not comparing to what everyone else has. It’s about you and only you. What you have in your life, how important it is to you and how you feel about it is going to make all the difference in how you live. We know the very best way to appreciate the life you have and the body you live in is by taking care of yourself. When you take care of yourself from the inside out, you will create a positive mindset and feel good and excited about today, tomorrow and what is to come in your future.

So let’s set an April goal and get yourself in a good, positive mindset and keep moving forward to what you want. When you are in control in your body, it gives you control over your life and that is when you can truly appreciate everything that’s in it. 

Okay, that’s all I have for you today. So remember, next week is a client story of her weight loss and I can’t wait for you to hear her journey. I’m wishing everyone a healthy, happy week full of love. Thanks for tuning in. Hugs from me to all of you.

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

Speaker Josephine

Hi everyone, welcome to the Love to Live Healthy show. I’m Josephine Fitzpatrick. Today’s topic is being incredible can sometimes be uncomfortable. We know this right. If you want results, you have to be willing to do what it takes, and this is what it takes. It takes getting up every day and working towards your goal and agreeing that some days will be very, very uncomfortable. And that’s okay, because it’s those tough, uncomfortable days that you get through that make the biggest difference in your outcome. When those uncomfortable times or days appear, you need to work harder to get past them. Don’t waste time thinking of an easier way, because there is no easier way than doing the right thing. The time you actually spend trying to find an easier way or a shortcut could be the time that you already invested into the work that would be getting you to where you want to be. 

Now. Listen, I even tell my kids this all the time. For most of us, life is so simple if we don’t complicate it. If you want to do well in life, you must get up every day and work hard toward what you want, what makes you happy, toward your goals. Don’t waste time looking for shortcuts or easy. Just get up, work hard, make good choices and you will reach your goals. We all have to work, and it should be at multiple things in life – at our jobs, families, school, at our love life, at our health and our body. Everybody has to work hard to get to where they want to be, to make good things happen in their life. But the point is, no matter what it is in life that you are working for, if it makes you happy, you get up every day and you put the time and effort into it, I promise you you will reach your goals. You will make it happen. Yes, it may happen slower for some, but slower, or fast, it will happen if you keep doing the right things. 

Now, when we talk about everyday life, this applies to everything. Right, consecutive days, hard work, making good decisions will lead to incredible results, no matter what you’re putting your time and effort into, and when you continue to do the right thing, the journey is always going to be just as exciting and rewarding as the outcome. Every day you are closer to what you want. Every day you feel better and better mentally, physically. Every day you are closer to what you want. Every day you feel better and better mentally, physically. Every day you have more and more control, and this should apply to everything in your life the more it makes you happy, the more likely your success will be. 

I will tell you one thing, if you haven’t already started working towards your goals and toward where you want to be, I suggest you start now. Spring is here and it is not waiting for you to get ready for it. If you want to be amazing and feel amazing this summer, there’s one simple solution Follow your program. Do the right thing for your body, do it for your mind. Stay on your program. As you know, there are all types of people in the world. There are those who do and those who talk about doing. You have to decide who you want to be. It’s up to you if you want the very best results. It’s up to you if you want to be thin or you just want to talk about how you wish you were thin, how you wish you were eating better, how you wish you were healthier. If you want to be a talker, be a talker. If you want to be a doer, start working towards it now. 

We know one of the very worst feelings is having a party, an event, an occasion and not being ready for it, and looking back and saying I should have, I could have, why didn’t I? You know, some things come up out of the blue and we just think, oh, I wish I would have known, I would have had more time, I would have made sure I was ready for it. But spring is here and summer’s around the corner. And we go through spring and summer every year, so it’s not like you didn’t know it was coming. So you’re either going to be ready or you’re not going to be ready. Right now you have the time to get yourself in motion and make the changes you need to make, to see the differences you want to see. And while many of you still might not reach your goal by summer, if you start now, you will know you’ll be closer to it than you are today. If you start now, you are going to be so much in a better place by the time summer comes than you are today. 

So here are some things I want you to do to remember when you are trying to be the best you can be. 

-You will see the best results when you have six consecutive on-program days every week

-One Cheat Meal and dessert a week

-Exercise is amazing, but only if your food is amazing as well. You can’t eat more because you’re exercising, not when you’re trying to lose weight. 

-Stop making excuses. You are only hurting yourself. 

The bottom line is if you want to be amazing, look amazing and feel amazing, then you have to put the work in. You have to follow your program, you have to be a little hungry and you have to want this more than anything. Temptation will always be in sight, but you have to be stronger than what’s in front of you. You have to look at yourself and visualize. What do you want in two weeks from today? Where do you want to be? Where do you want to be in four weeks from today? Two months from today? Every weight loss day is one day closer to the person you want to be. 

You can only fight the addictions, the habits and the poor choices if you recognize. You have them, so own them and move on from them. If you have been amazing, then continue to be amazing, and if you’ve not done the right things to make yourself happy, then start today and make yourself happy. Make it happen. You are the only person who has control over your happiness, just like you are the only person who has control over being unhappy. We have the same control to be happy as unhappy. It’s always in our choices. You are the only person who can get in your own way today. So make it happen. Don’t be a talker, be a doer. You can do this if you really want it. 

Okay, that’s all I have for now. I want to tell you in two weeks from now, we will have another fabulous story from one of our successful weight loss clients. I can’t wait for you to hear her journey. So please make sure you subscribe to the podcast, because if you subscribe, then you will immediately get notified every time we have a new show, so you don’t have to keep checking. Subscribe. Give it a thumbs up. It helps the program, it helps you. It’s a great way to find all our shows and be notified immediately. I want to thank you all for joining me and listening to the Love to Live Healthy show. I’m wishing you all a happy, healthy week full of love. Hugs from me to all of you. 

~Love to Live Healthy With Josephine Fitzpatrick

Speaker 1 (Josephine)

Hi everyone, welcome to the Love to Live Healthy show. I’m Josephine Fitzpatrick. Today’s episode is Suffer Now or Suffer Later. The choice is always yours. First thing I want to say is wow, we had the most amazing results this past week. Almost every single client in studio and online lost weight. That is a lot of people doing the right thing and I’m so proud of you all. 

You know, the clocks have changed and I can’t believe we are already halfway through March already. And it was a challenging week with the time change. You know, we don’t realize how much that could affect us, but all of a sudden people were hungrier. They just felt off, and that is because you have more daylight, which feels like more time in your day. So if you feel hungrier, the first thing to do is try to start eating a little later than you normally do, so this way you don’t feel like you finished at five and there is still three hours of sunshine. Maybe save a half a snack for the evening. You know, you must remember, you are in control of your appetite, your mind and your body. You train it. So yes, changing it that first week might feel like a struggle, and it probably will be, but by the second week you will be fine, you will get used to it because you’re training your body, mind and appetite.

When the time changes, one thing we know for sure that it’s a true sign that summer is approaching. In New York, we’ve already gone from 30 degrees to 65 degrees overnight. It happens so fast. 

And so many of you are going to say I’m so excited for the warm weather, and so many of you are going to say I wish I had more time. But the truth is you do have more time. Every day is a chance for another great day and it’s a chance to add on to the great day you had the day before. Always remember what you do today affects your tomorrow. You will either do the right thing now and suffer through getting back on program now, and suffer through eating less now, suffer through the exercise now. But if you suffer through it all now then when June and July comes that’s the reward. You will feel amazing. So when everyone’s putting on shorts and bathing suits, you will be right there with them OR you will not do that. You will continue to overeat, you will continue to grab, taste, have extras bites, and when June and July come and everyone’s putting on shorts and bathing suits, you will be suffering and wishing that you suffered now instead.

So remember, you will either suffer now or you suffer later. Actually, that is going to be this week’s mantra I will suffer now, so I am not suffering later. 

What I can tell you and I have been talking about a lot lately is, once you decide to start being 100%, that is what’s going to make all the difference in your results and how you look and feel. And, of course, how you look and feel is going to make all the difference in your day. It changes everything and makes a difference in how you approach your day and how you feel throughout the day. You see, if you commit and stay on program, you may suffer being a little hungry through the day, but by the end of the day waking up feeling lighter the next day, that’s the reward. Or you will eat off program. You will eat too much, eat unhealthy, grab, taste pick. You’ll feel full and bloated. By the end of the night you’ll wake up feeling even worse next day. Either way, you suffer now or you suffer later.

Now I know we all have challenges and excuses, Why it’s hard, and why it sometimes feels impossible to do it. You know how many people I see so I could probably write a book on excuses, and, honestly, even for me I just had a bank account hacked. It was terrible, but I got through it and I didn’t eat my way through it. I might have drove people crazy around me, but to me that was better than taking it out on the food, though they may not have thought so (laughing). But my point is it was a real excuse. To me it was very warranted excuse to be stressed, and I was very stressed over it, because when you count on your bank to protect your money and someone decides to just take what you have and the bank lets them, well, that’s very stressful to me and that is a warranted excuse. Right?, To not like be able to see my path clearly, but I stayed with it. I stayed with what I had to do with food because I knew it would only make me feel worse and more stressed than I already was.

The good news is they stopped it and we had everything returned and now we have an extra protection that, ironically, I have to pay for, which is another whole type of fraud. Right?! (laughing) I have to pay extra so my bank accounts don’t get hacked. It’s crazy. But enough of that. 

I just thought I would share this with you, that we all have challenges. We all go through things in life and we all have good excuses.

I know for a fact that many times your excuses are very serious and very warranted, but eating your feelings and your stress and not caring in the moment is not going to help you. It’s going to keep you stuck and in a bad place, both mentally and physically, and it’s never, ever going to help the challenge. In the moment it might feel like it helps it or it feels like it’s worth it. You over eat, indulge in a bottle of wine, extra desserts, because you think it helps your stress or helps you get through the stress or the moments of stress, but it actually only adds to the stress. It adds to the challenge, because as soon as you are done, you know it’s not worth it. You put yourself back and you gain weight that you already lost and now you have to lose it all over again. That is never worth it. 

So my biggest point I want you to take from all this is I know there are many excuses that are very warranted excuses, but the unfortunate thing is, whether it’s a good excuse or a great excuse, it’s going to keep you stuck where you are and the excuse is never going to help you get to where you want to be. So deal with the challenge, deal with the excuse, the problem or the issue, without using food and alcohol to make you feel better. No matter what excuse you have or how good it is, I promise you, whatever it is, if you were taking care of yourself and feeling better and feeling thinner and your clothes are fitting you, you would feel a thousand times better going through that problem or excuse than you would if you were going through the same problem or excuse not feeling good.

I don’t care if you have to keep trying over and over again. Get away from the excuses and commit to what you want and just do it, because there is no reason that you should not be one of these happy clients that I have. I know this program is so doable. I’m not telling you to do something that you can’t do. You have the tools, the support, the food and cheat meal. Every client that has been successful on program all say the same thing the program is so doable. They found it so much easier than anything they’ve ever done. They love ordering the food because it’s easy and delicious and they love the support it’s hand holding. 

We know how hard weight loss can be, so we make sure we are there for you. But YOU have to be there for YOU and make the right choices and be strong in the face of temptation. Stop waiting, stop putting it off and stop making excuses. Trust me, we are approaching spring. You want to suffer now and enjoy later. 

I just did a Monday tip the other day and it was all about you have to stop losing the same weight over and over again. You have to get yourself unstuck and the only way to do that is your mindset. You have to tell yourself, no matter how hard this week is going to be and no matter what is going on or what excuse I have, I am staying on my program 100% no extras, because at the end of the week when I weigh in, I need that scale to go down. I am the only person that is in control of doing that this week.

Repeat your mantra every day you wake up and every night before you go to bed.

I am not going to let any challenge or excuse prevent me from reaching my goal. I am going to suffer through it now so I do not suffer later.

That’s all I have for today. I hope it helps an I am hoping everyone has the most amazing day, week and month. Much love and hugs from me to all of you. 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

Josephine (Host)

Hi everyone, welcome to the Love to Live Healthy show. I’m Josephine Fitzpatrick. Today we have a very special guest, Stephanie Luft from Merrick. I’m going to bring Stephanie in now. Hi, stephanie, hi, how are you? How are you Good? So thank you for joining us. I’m so excited. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Oh, my pleasure, take it easy. 

Josephine (Host)

So you are definitely like one of my long time clients, right? 

Stephanie (Guest)

I think I’ve been following your program over eight years. Yes, eight and a half years now.

Josephine (Host)

That’s amazing. That’s so exciting. I love that. So, how much did you lose? 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yes, so originally I lost about 11. That was my original goal weight was to lose 11. Total, I’m probably down about 17 or 18.  

Josephine (Host)

That’s amazing, yeah. So your total is 18, but your original goal was 11. But what’s funny is, once you got to this new number, now that’s your number. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yeah, and now I think about that number. Like what do you mean I was seven pounds more at one point. How could I have been 7 lbs more than this number.

Josephine (Host)

It’s so funny how that happens. 

Now, what’s different? I think, too. And what I love about your story and I wanted to share is you go through times because it has been, you know, almost nine years where you have little instances of maybe like something going on in your life or whatever, and you go up a couple of pounds and you come in, and immediately, as soon as you come back in and you’ve done it so many times you lose it in like the first or second week.

Stephanie (Guest)

So it’s funny because I came into the office like two months ago and you put me right back on track. I lost it in two weeks. 

So I went through some medical things so I couldn’t really work out the way I wanted to, and also accepting age too. I mean, I started this journey nine years ago, so there’s a big difference between being in your early 40s and being in your early 50s, Right, like the change of your body and everything else that’s happening along with your diet and your exercise, but also your hormones right. 

Josephine (Host)

Yes, exactly, a big difference.

So what everyone doesn’t know. Stephanie makes me laugh all the time. Every time she’s in the office. Since I’ve known her, she’s just hysterical. So when she doesn’t feel good about her body, she will not walk into the bathroom, she backs into the bathroom. 

Stephanie (Guest)

So my husband can see the better parts of me. It’s so funny because you know my whole life I was always hung up on like having a big, you know, big ass, like when I gain weight that’s where it goes, but like I needed to be born after the Kardashian error, and the JLO error. So when we were younger, you know that was always the thing. Right.

(Both Laughing)

Josephine (Host)

Yes. Right. So Funny.

And just so you know this is her talking, because if you saw her, you would be like, oh my God, that’s what I dreamed to look like. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Thank you, thank you, but everybody has their hand up. 

Josephine (Host)

Everyone has them

Stephanie (Guest)

And when I started working with you and my goal weight was like six pounds more than I am now, it was like I could never imagine the number that I’m at right now. That was like I don’t even think I was this number in high school. 

But you know, everybody puts pressure on themselves and like we talk about, I think there’s a pressure where we live. 

Josephine (Host)

Yeah, right, Of course yeah, and that’s a big thing. But the other sense too is sometimes if you don’t have that little bit of obsession it can so easily get out of hand. 

Stephanie (Guest)

It did and you totally brought me back. So I felt so much better because I left and it was like shocking to me and you just said to me just you know, change one snack and it immediately worked. And it really did make all the difference.

Josephine (Host)

It’s always the little details that make the most difference. 

Stephanie (Guest)

You know you and I have discussed this before. How many times at work I’ve been skinny shamed at work, I think. I think more at work than outside of work. I had one person actually and we spoke about this too was she at one point like, shook my pants and she’s like Are you okay, are you sick? These are so big on you. And I was like, first of all, didn’t ask you and, second of all, what was that about? But I think a lot of it is just, you know, through jealousy.

Josephine (Host)

Yeah yeah, and I do think the worst comes out when someone’s jealous. And listen. We always have to remember weight loss is one of the hardest things to do. We’re surrounded by temptation all the time and when you see someone jealous of course because it’s so hard to lose weight. I think like to your point before when you said when your coworker said that to you I think it just sometimes, when you’re in such a good place and you look so good, it can make other people very uncomfortable.

Stephanie (Guest)

Yeah. You are right I didn’t think about it like that.

Josephine (Host)

Yeah, that’s when you force people to look at themselves and a lot of times when someone’s not in a good place, they don’t, don’t want to do that you know,. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yeah. But you’re right, there’s so much temptation. So every time I’m at a meeting at work, there’s the one who I said to you. She comes with a huge, huge bowl of candy and sticks it like right in the middle of the table. And usually I’m in the middle and the other day I took like a paper towel and I stuck it on top and put something else on top so I didn’t have to see it. And they’re like what are you doing? I’m like I can’t sit here and stare at peppermint patties when they’re like my favorite. 

And that same group would sometimes just if there was a party and they’re having cake like just because it’s your birthday doesn’t mean I have to eat cake on a Tuesday, right? And they’re like you’re not gonna have a bite. I’m like I’m good and they are like but you could afford it. You’re so skinny. 

Josephine (Host)

That is why you look the way you do, because you’re not doing the cake on a Tuesday just because it’s there. 

But you know, I love that. I think it’s so important for people to hear, like, what other people go through when they’re when they’re trying to lose weight, because while you handle it so well, I have clients who really get so upset they cry. You know, I had one client recently who cried at the table because her friend supposedly was skinny shaming her at the dinner. And you know it’s hurtful because you’re trying so hard to lose weight and when you get to a good place, instead of people going well, you look great. And understanding that’s why you look great and all the positive things that you’d want to hear from your friends, and instead it’s reverse, or the opposite, and it can really be hurtful. So it’s good. I love the way you handle it. I think that’s so great. 

So tell me one thing as far as like how you feel, especially because you’ve been on for so long. Give me an idea of like what you do when you go on vacation. Like how do you handle that? Because these are questions clients ask me all the time. So, of course, when I tell them, it’s one thing, but when they hear from you or a client, it’s a big difference. 

Stephanie (Guest)

So it’s funny because some people say, oh, you’re on vacation, but I’m like, okay, I need to. There’s so many things like swirling around in my head. So it’s funny because sometimes we go on vacation or sometimes you know, we have our vacation place and it’s like being at home and for some reason, I don’t know it’s harder for me sometimes now to be there than if we just were on vacation and going to restaurants all the time. I do think to myself like, yes, I’m on vacation, but I know that at the end, if I’m gaining four pounds, three pounds, two pounds, it’s not making me happy. Like recently when we were away, I tried to do the best I could and we were, you know, in our apartment and I was really sticking to it, 

Josephine (Host)

Which it’s funny because if you gain a pound or two, you know you’re going to lose it. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yes, but I don’t want to go through the pain of like agonizing over it,. Like the other day when we were away, we were in our apartment and you know my husband, he’ll weigh himself to most days and I was like tempted to get on the scale. So I get on the scale and and he’s asking me questions and I’m not responding. I said do me a favor, just don’t even talk to me. I’m not in a good mood and I’m not answering anything. This is just a warning for you. 

Josephine (Host)

(Laughing) Oh it’s always good to give warnings. 

Stephanie (Guest)

I was like don’t talk to me, because I got on the scale and I was pissed off. (Laughing), yes so I gave him the warning.

Josephine (Host)

Do you think it’s harder now for you to get back as quick. 

Stephanie (Guest)

I think so, but I think I’m also mentally struggling, like I said, with the change of body because of the medical reasons why I couldn’t work out the way I wanted to. You know it’s just cardio. And I know that I’m thin because of the sizes that I wear because of what the scale says. 

Josephine (Host)

Cardio is very good for you mentally. It really does help you. It’s like a different level, a different feeling. So even if your weight stayed the same, I don’t think you would necessarily feel the same without it, because your body is so used to doing it. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yes, you are right and that makes me feel better. But like it’s so funny. So this is, it’s like it’s either. You know, we used to say I either have a full face and a big ass or small face and a small ass, because I lose my weight from there. Now the conundrum, as I’m sitting in the sun and I don’t want to get it on my face, so I sit up and then I look at my stomach and I have these like lines from where the rolls are tanning, that everybody really has. And now it’s either I have a pale face and I have these lines in my stomach, or I’m going to have like a good tan stomach the way it should be, and my face looking like leather.  So, we just catch a break here when you’re losing weight and trying to get to where you want to be (laughing)

Josephine (Host)

(Laughing). So true, But also, I think the biggest thing is, what we’re talking about, too, is age, because how much more do we worry about getting a tan now than we did when we were younger? 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yes, right exactly. Now when I sit in the sun I’m on to the umbrella and I don’t care, because then it’s like all right. Well, you know, I’m trying to use every product to get rid of the sunspots. 

Josephine (Host)

Yes, right and as soon as you go out in the sun they all come back. I agree. As we get older, it’s just such a different mindset, because we used to be like, I can remember pictures of you in your bathing suit on the boat. But now it’s like you don’t even want to go in the sun.

Stephanie (Guest)

(Laughing) But that picture was like the ideal day I said to my husband and to my sister and to my kids see this picture. This is a picture you’re going to use it if I ever go missing. This is what’s going to be on all over channel seven. She is missing and she looks like this. (Laughing)

Josephine (Host)

(Laughing) That is hysterical, you are so funny. But I think that was actually before you got to your thinnest. 

Stephanie (Guest)

It’s probably before I was at this weight, Yeah.

Josephine (Host)

That was before you lost the last 6 pounds, and look at how you loved, how you looked. Now look at what you just said. And now you’re six pounds lighter. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yeah. You are right. 

Stephanie (Guest)

I never old you this so other people would say you know, who is Josephine. Because sometimes Danny will reference, you know, like if the kids are over, oh, Josephine says don’t eat that. And they are like who is Josephine, And Danny says, it’s the little person that sits on her shoulder during meals, and pipes things into her ear (laughing)

Josephine (Host)

(Laughing) Oh my God, that is so funny. I love that.  So this is at your lowest weight. 

Stephanie (Guest)

I’m sure you’re going to want me to say this, okay, so I have my low number that I aim for, and then, for whatever reason, I got like two pounds lower than that and it scared me, my body scared me, like I’m seeing bones and I’m like I cannot look like that. So you know, when they say you can’t be too rich or too thin, like for me, like I was.

Josephine (Host)

Yes, I remember when that happened. And there is a fine line you have to be careful at. And that’s why I said before, you know which I don’t even think you’ve ever realized like when you were talking about, like your picture on the boat, like you said, that was the best you felt at the time, like you’d never look better. Meanwhile you ended up losing six pounds more. Now, after that, I know what you mean. Like when you go to that fine line of another two pounds more, it can really change how you look in a bad way, you know. You just start losing everything you know, and that’s not good either. But that’s when you know, like you look at yourself and you say, okay, wait. Because I do know unfortunately Women tend too, and men, I’m sure do too, but they tend to go on what other people say. So sometimes you’ll get someone who’ll say, oh, don’t lose any more weight, you look too thin and you really don’t. But I know I have clients who, if people don’t say to them you look too thin, they don’t feel thin, they’re like why isn’t anybody saying it to me? I hear that all the time from them because it kind of reaffirms that they feel like they’re in a good place. But it doesn’t always mean that, because sometimes people are like you’re too thin and you really might be. I’ve said it to clients you can’t lose any more weight and sometimes, like you said, it’s not even on purpose. Your body’s in that weight loss mode and I know people are listening going I wish I had that. Your body has been losing weight for a while so it just keep losing. But it doesn’t last, it will stop and eventually it’ll balance out. And then all of a sudden you find yourself like oh, I just I want to be that one number again. But it’s very hard to be that one number and that’s why I always say you need those two or three pounds that give you flexibility in your weight it can never be just one number. 

I wanted to say too, which I love you with your cheat day. Now, a lot of times I have actually in the last, I guess, couple of years, two years I’ve been putting people on cheat meal because they just cannot handle a cheat day, and a lot of times it is because they’re not being 100% during the week, which you know, when you have that cheat day, you have to be 100% during the week. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yes totally. 

Josephine (Host)

But your stories with your cheat day are just by far the best. 

Stephanie (Guest)

I’ll tell you one because I don’t think I’ve ever shared this with you. So you know, typically my cheat days are on a Saturday and typically when you get together with friends it’s on a Saturday. So you know, I save it for dinner and during the summer we’ll be with friends at the beach or we go to their house or a pool. We have a couple that we’re very good friends with, and when they first met me and I would do my cheat day, I think that he was shocked, right. So he makes a barbecue and while I’m eating the ribs with all the guys, all the other women are eating these dainty salads, and he’s like Stephanie, eats like a gavone. 

So they tell that daughter that. And she’s like you said that to her. He is like, yeah, I shouldn’t have. She’s like no woman wants to hear that they eat like a gavone. (Laughing).  And I’m like, I’m good with it, I’m proud of it, because you know I can wear a bikini and eat like that on a Saturday (both laughing)

But yeah, then Sunday morning comes and I get right back, because mentally, Sunday just resets me, right, it’s just right back and then I’m good. Yeah, I just, I really can discipline and get right back, on Sunday.

Josephine (Host)

Yes that is so important. I really keep trying to tell people that is like one of the best things you can learn from this program, for example, the way you just said it, like you almost embrace getting back on every Sunday, like you can’t wait. I love that.

The best part of this whole thing is you’ve been on so long and you really live the program. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Yes, I really do.

Josephine (Host)

You really do and I love that. I am So thankful that you shared your story, I’m telling you that you don’t even realize how much these help everyone. Every time I do a podcast, people come in. They’re like I love that. I learned so much. Just learning how to deal with people, and the strategies you use helps so much. Especially since you had such a rough year with medical issues.

Stephanie (Guest)

Yeah, and you know, just because I’m talking to you now doesn’t mean that even during the outside of this rough year, that I haven’t bounced up a few pounds at certain times and bounce back down.

Josephine (Host)

(Laughing) Yes, I know that is when you come back in and I get to see you.

Stephanie (Guest)

(Laughing). I love you and I so appreciate you having me. 

Josephine (Host)

Thank you so much. I love you. I appreciate you. Have the best weekend. 

Stephanie (Guest)

Thank you so much. 

Josephine (Host)

Thank you so much, stephanie. That was an amazing story. We appreciate you. We appreciate your time and we appreciate so much of sharing your journey with us, how you’ve dealt with going up and down in the last nine years and how you deal with all the outside circumstances that go on in almost everyone’s life. So thank you.

And we want to thank everyone who’s listening today and has been sharing the love to live healthy podcast. We appreciate it. We appreciate the likes, we appreciate the comments. Please, any questions you have, leave down below. We’re here for you. We want you to live healthy and love living your best life. Much hugs and loves from me to all of you. Have a great one everyone. 

~Love to Live Healthy With Josephine Fitzpatrick

Josephine (Host)

Hi everyone, welcome to the Love to Live Healthy show. I’m Josephine Fitzpatrick. Today we have a very special guest, one of our success stories, Shari Rauch. Let’s see, I’m going to bring her in. Hi Shari, can you hear me?

Shari (Guest)

Yes, I can hear you. Hi.

Josephine (Host)

Hi. Welcome. One of the absolute things I love is that about your story is it’s the second time you did this. You had success the first time, lost all your weight and it was years ago how long ago was that? 

Shari (Guest)

2015. 

Josephine (Host)

And then, of course, with everything, life, age, pandemics, name it, you gained weight and you came back. I guess it was like in the summer, right this past June,

Shari-(Guest)

June, yes

Josephine-(Host)

Okay yes, and what I love and I think is so inspiring and this is what I told you, I wanted to share so much with our audience is you were a one pound a week weight loss and sometimes you weren’t even a pound. 

Let’s talk about first, how much did you lose so far? 

Shari-(Guest)

25 pounds

Josephine-(Host)

Wow. That’s amazing. It’s a lot of weight. It’s insane, especially doing it like that. But if you think about it, did we ever have a two pound week? I think once or twice, right?

Shari (Guest)

Yes In the beginning there were a couple of times I would lose two and a half maybe, but that was the most I ever got in one week. 

Josephine (Host)

That’s what I thought. And, honestly though, look at like you now. Like, if you look back and if you would have given up because it wasn’t a lot of loss each week, you would have just regained the weight and ended up starting all over again.  

This is what I tell people all the time if you stop and then you just regain what you lost, it’s the hampster wheel you never get anywhere and just keep starting over. 

What I loved about you, you had that mindset. No matter what and I tell you this all the time when, there were weeks you came and worked hard and lost nothing and you were disappointed. Of course you’re trying so hard, but I never looked at you and said she’s going to give up, You were just so mentally in this. 

Shari (Guest)

And it took me quite a while to get myself mentally to that point. I mean, obviously, the weight starting with pandemic years was creeping on, creeping on, then pre-menopausal and hormones and so many things, just all compounding one after the other, making it, you know, all this weight gain coming on and I hit rock bottom and I said finally, like all right, like this is it, I can’t take it anymore and I’m going to do this. But before that I wasn’t mentally ready and I knew like I probably would have given up. The only time I ever weighed that much is when I had two babies in my belly. I was pregnant with the twins. 

Josephine (Host)

Wow, that’s so funny, but that’s so inspiring. If you look back, do you feel like it took as long as it did? I mean June? What are we in January, so Basically, it’s not even what. Seven months. 

Shari (Guest)

I feel like it’s been like slow and steady, but I feel so much better now getting to this point it was worth it, you know, every bit, of every little bit each week it was so worth it. 

Josephine (Host)

I just did a podcast with someone else and I was talking about you in the beginning. You didn’t really have that much exercise either. You started that more towards, like the middle to the end, right? 

Shari (Guest)

Yeah, and I’m trying. And you know, to be honest, I am not a big exercise person, I don’t love it, I kind of hate it. But I force myself and I mean I’m better in the warmer weather, in the summer I love to walk and that’s my big thing, but not in the winter, now I’m getting on the peloton and I’m like forcing myself to get up, you know, early in the morning and do it, even though I don’t like it, but I do feel better after I do it. So I’m really trying to push myself for more exercise. 

I wish I had that exercise bug. I just don’t. And the first time I did the plan, you know, it was really with almost no exercise and the weight came off a lot easier. And now I feel like I really need to try to incorporate more exercise along with the eating to make it work at this stage of my life, you know, hormonally and everything else, where I am, and I’m not working in the city anymore, so I’m a lot more sedentary where I used to commute every day. So I’m just in generally not moving as much as I used to.

Josephine (Host)

Right and that is important. I see you buying all new clothes, when I bump into you at RAGS and you look so happy and amazing. 

I do want to talk about the five hour and detox, because I think what’s really great to tell people is how much you basically bounced back a lot between the detox and the five hour. 

Shari (Guest)

Yeah, I’ve been doing both. I think I like the five hour better. I did a mix of the detox and five hour this week, a couple of days and I kind of felt like I was a little bit hungrier than usual, where I think I’m not feeling as hungry when I do the five hour. I have that little like hunger pang like in the morning and I get past it and then once I eat my muffin for lunch like I’m full and I’m good till dinner, but having the detox drink and then the muffin for lunch. I don’t know, I think I was feeling a little hungrier this week or maybe it was in my head. 

Josephine (Host)

You were supposed to feel a little hungry. I was trying to confuse your body a little bit just because we are down to those last 5 pounds, you know. So that’s when I like what I called it the doubling down, Like sometimes just confusing your body a little bit. So if a little bit hungrier, that’s probably a good thing. Another thing to mention is you started with just the regular innovation and sometimes we still throw it in, especially on the weekend,

Shari (Guest)

 I know, in the beginning we did more of the regular innovation and then we switched over to the five hour, which I really like doing the five hour. I feel like it just works very well for me. I’m not finding it that hard to stick to. 

Josephine (Host)

Yeah, and I felt like, even when you didn’t lose you always said you felt lighter. 

Shari (Guest)

Yeah, sometimes the scale just didn’t move, but I felt lighter for sure. 

Josephine (Host)

What’s great about that is too, is sometimes it just takes that scale a little extra time, another day. We just don’t see it, but you felt it and a lot of time mentally you need that, you know. 

Shari (Guest)

I mean, it definitely stinks when the scale doesn’t move, but it helps when you feel lighter.

(Both laughing)

Josephine (Host)

I know it stinks for both of us, trust me. Well, it’s great. You’re doing amazing, you look amazing. I can’t even believe It’s 25 pounds. 

So this is a great question. Okay, last question. It’s 25 pounds, and because I saw you go through this, and it was a lot meaning a pound a week, and you just kept at it, and some weeks, no pounds, and you still kept at it. You were so mentally strong. I was so proud of you through the whole thing. If you look back now, though, if somebody said to you when you first started, it’s gonna take seven months, but you’re gonna lose 25 pounds, what would you have thought? 

Shari (Guest)

I, it’s a good question. I mean, I think, just mentally, I was at the point where, like, I have to get this weight off and no matter what it takes. So if it’s seven months, then it’s seven months and that’s what it’s gonna be. But as long as I was seeing progress most weeks which most weeks I did it was worth it. 

Josephine (Host)

I really feel that to look back on like seven months, it sounds long, but it really wasn’t long. The days and weeks go so fast. And look at you now. You’re like a different person and in the middle of it, at any time had you given up, which I knew you wouldn’t it’s not even a question, but for other people, when they feel like it’s slow and they give up they never get to where they want to be. I think it’s important to realize when you don’t give up and put the time in look at where you got too. You are amazing and you look amazing. 

Shari (Guest)

Yes, 100%. I feel like a new person. I was at the point I was miserable. I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror, I didn’t want to put clothes on. I was just happy being in sweatpants, because then I didn’t have to feel how tight all my pants were and buying bigger sizes. It was, it was awful. And I just finally like hit the bottom and I said, okay, like I have to do something. I had started coming back and buying the food, but like I knew what I needed to do. I needed to start sitting with you being accountable every week and like really taking it seriously. 

Josephine (Host)

The last question what if somebody’s looking right now and they’re apprehensive about doing it or they’re scared about doing this? What is your best advice to them? 

Shari (Guest)

My best advice would be just do it. You just have to tell yourself mentally I’m ready to do this, I’m gonna do it and whatever it takes, and you just stick to it. You got to stick to your plan, you got to hold yourself accountable and you’ll see the results. 

You can’t be picking at this or picking at that, and, believe me, I do that sometimes. It’s not easy when I have two teenage boys and they’re eating all this fattening stuff around me and I definitely pick at this, pick at that, and that’s why I like the summer better when they weren’t around, and there was not a bad thing in my house, so it was a lot easier to stay on track but definitely hard with temptations around. But I always try to plan the best I can.

You know, if I have to go to a restaurant, I’m looking at the menu. I’m asking what can I eat? Like this is going to be hard, but you do everything to just try to stick to the plan and see the light at the end of the tunnel. 

Josephine (Host)

Yes, see the results, and yes, see the cheat day at the end of the week. 

Shari (Guest)

By the time that meal comes, it’s like if I eat one thing on cheat day I’m so full. 

Josephine (Host)

Yes, exactly, which is the whole point. Like, mentally you want it but you can’t even physically do it, because your stomach shrunk and you get so full so fast, which is good. 

You are amazing. I am so appreciative of you being on. I know this is not really your thing, but you did it and you’re inspiring so many people. You look gorgeous Every time. I see you every Saturday, which I’ll see you tomorrow morning I am amazed by the progress and everything you’ve done and all the work you put in to get to where you are, so I’m really proud of you. 

 Shari (Guest)

Thank you so much. You’re the best, I couldn’t do it without you my therapy sessions every Saturday morning and getting me through when I just don’t feel good or got to get over something or stressed out so you’ve helped me get there. Without you I couldn’t do it.  

Josephine (Host)

Thank you so much I really appreciate that. I really do. I love you. You’re so great. Thank you, 

Shari Rauch 25lbs lighter, You’re an inspiration to so many people you don’t even know. One pound a week and you kept at it and seven months later you’re 25 pounds lighter. You look amazing. So proud of you. Thank you so much for being on our podcast and thank you all for listening today to our Love to Live Healthy podcast. I’m wishing everyone a happy, healthy week. Hugs and love from me to all of you. 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick