With just a hop skip and a jump you will be on Holiday Break.  As fast as it arrives it will be gone.  So make sure you enjoy every second of it and do tithe way that will make you the happiest – with No Regrets.

Here are some Holiday Tips and Advice I would like to share with you:

1. Whether you are on the beach, the mountain or home you should be drinking water throughout the day.  Dehydration can cause hunger, headaches, constipation and fatigue.  Plan your water intake throughout the day.  for example a great practice is to drink an 8oz bottle of water when you wake up first thing.  Your body is dehydrated from sleep and the activities from the night before – whatever that may have been.  So wake up and drink.  Every time you plan a meal or a snack drink 8 oz of water before you eat.  You will not only consume less but you will feel and look so much better throughout the day.  ** Did you know that alcohol and caffeine are diuretics.  If you are drinking alcohol or any caffeinated drinks – make sure you have a glass of water in between every drink.
2. Stay of the gym BUT stay active on Vacation.  You want to change it up of your mind and body and vacation is the perfect time to do that.  On the mountain go skiing, sledding, shoe walking, or horseback riding.  On the beach take a long walk or jog on the sand.  Go swimming.  Do an outdoor yoga or bootcamp.  Enjoy your surroundings and plan activities according to the weather you are in.  If you are staying home with the family play hide and seek or tag.  Go bowling or ice skating.  Take long walks in the park or go hiking.  It will be enjoyable and nice change for the mind body and great family time.
3. Always always plan your meals and snacks.  Regardless on vacation or home you need to plan your meals and snacks because believe it or not while it’s uncomfortable to over do it at home it’s even worse to over do it on vacation.  Whether you are home or on Vacation you want to choose one of the following to keep you on track:

• STAY ON PROGRAM:  and follow your 6 clean days and 1 cheat day.  If you do this you will of course lose weight and feel great.  Plan your food and snacks in advance each day.  if you are drinking then that is your snacks.  if you follow the 6/1 I would recommend having your cheat day at the end of the week before you go home.  All week long you can make a list of the foods/snacks/desserts you see that you want try on your cheat day.  If you save the Cheat Day for right before you return you will have a much better chance of sticking to the 6 clean days.
• SPLIT THE HOLIDAYS:  We have Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and New years eve and New Years Day.  If you split them and stay clean all day and only off at night – Dinner and Drinks or Dinner and Dessert.  You do it for both Holidays with super clean days in between.  You will absolutely maintain but for many will still have a great chance of losing if you have SHARK DAYS in between.
• MAINTAIN YOUR VACATION:   If you feel you need the break from the everyday mindsets vacation is a good time to take advantage of it.  Whether you are homer away you will choose one meal and one dessert/drinks each day.  The remainder of the day keep clean. So for example you might do Muffin for breakfast and bar for lunch and then cheat dinner and dessert/or drinks (desserts are your drinks.  The next day you might decide to cheat at breakfast and eat clean the rest of the day with cheat dessert.  It’s up to you to choose each day your cheat.  The key is not to have a full cheat day that week.  You come home and you go right back on program.  No scale.  You go back on program for one week and then you go on the scale and you will see your  pre-vacation weight.

While I wish food and drinks didn’t play such a big part in how we feel – the reality is it does.  And Im a big believer in addressing things rather than ignoring them.  Since what we eat and drink affects our mindset and personality, I think it’s super important to think through how you want to feel and what is going to make you happy.  Do not cheat everyday if you  by mid week you will be miserable because that will use make everyone you are with miserable.  As hard as it may feel to stay on program – think about how hard it will be to feel bloated and uncomfortable in your own skin.  In not suggesting you stay 110% clean on vacation.  I know you all so well that I really believe there is a different option for each one of you.  But what I am telling you is that while going off program makes you feel free of stress and structure – if you over do it you will begin to feel uncomfortable and out of control and I don’t want you to have that feeling on your vacation.  Think about it and plan how often you can cheat and still feel okay.  Because when you start out in a bathing suit or snow pants and end up mid week in a cover up or feeling like frosty you have to be okay with it.

FINAL THOUGHTS:  Remind yourself two things.  It doesn’t matter how amazing you were up to this point.  You will feel the effects of daily over doing it and you will feel it quickly.  Smoke the choices because this vacation isn’t only about you it’s about your family and what mood they have to deal with when you lose control.  I know it’s the harsh reality but I’m telling you now so you don’t look back and feel like you should have made different choices.  You have all been on vacation before and you know what it does to you mentally and physically the you are consistently off program.  Some are okay with it and can just deal with the affects of it and go right back on program when they return — others will let it ruin the holiday/vacation mid way through.  Don’t do it.  this year you are going to THINK BEFORE YOU ACT and make sure your choices are what is good for you and all those you love.  And always remember if you lose control and you realized you over did it and start to feel uncomfortable there is a simple solution –  the very best thing to do is regardless of where you are you just go right back on program to a 110% shark day.  After one solid day back on program you will feel so much better.  We are always here for you if you need guidance – simply reach out.  Remember this isn’t about being perfect it’s about being happy.

HAPPINESS LOOKS AMAZING ON EVERYONE!

YIKES! is probably the best word to describe how you might be feeling right now.  With the long weekend behind you and any damages that might have been done are now in the past the only thing to do is to move forward.    Don’t waste anytime beating yourself up – it’s wasted energy.   Right now you start your hardcore 100% Shark week immediately.  We have a countdown of exactly 4 weeks until Holiday Break.  It’s super important that you enjoy when it’s time to enjoy and it’s even more important that you are amazing when it’s time to be amazing.  So regardless of the parties you might have coming up or any events that are taking place over the next couple of weeks it’s important you are a shark and stick to the 6 clean days and 1 cheat day.  The next 4 weeks is all about being amazing.

THE NEXT 4 WEEKS IS ALL ABOUT BEING A SHARK

I can’t even begin to tell you in the last two days how many text and email messages I received  -everyone was more than ready to start eating clean again.  Many of you even started yesterday.  YES it’s so enjoyable to cheat but it’s beyond amazing to start eating clean again after you cheat.  Think about it – we cheat to mentally comfort us.  Most of us will agree that as soon as we feed that mental comfort our physical comfort is compromised.  The more we cheat the worse we feel.  Not on purpose of course.  Mentally we want to be able to cheat the whole day but the longer  you are on program the less you are able to cheat the entire day.  Even when you can cheat the whole day you will notice how week after week you really are taking in less without even trying.  — All good things and all very relevant to where you are today.

The reason I bring this up is so you understand that even though you probably feel like you did a lot of damage the reality is you probably didn’t do as bad as you thought.  Yes you could have been better and I’m sure you could have been worse.  What is important if you get right back on program and give yourself a solid 6 clean days.  I promise regardless of how bad you feel right now, by mid week you will feel so much better and by next weigh in you will be so happy you have a Hardcore Shark Solid Clean week in.  And in 4 weeks you will be more than ready for your holiday and/or vacation.

The program is all about loving to live healthy and enjoying life.  We eat clean so we can cheat and when we cheat we can’t wait to eat clean again.  Living the program gives you the opportunity to enjoy it all.  Especially over a holiday week when we need a little more flexibility than just one cheat day.  Now that Thanksgiving Holiday is over and everyone enjoyed – now it’s time to get serious and put the work in so in 4 weeks you can BE, FEEL AND LOOK like the most amazing you and also have that flexibility again and enjoy the next holiday break.

LIFE

WORK HARD FOR IT 

LIVE IT- LOVE IT – ENJOY IT

Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

We all want to be happy around the Holidays.  But along with happiness, we also know the holidays can be filled with stress, laughter, drinking, over-eating, family fights and even tears!  Everyday can bring a mix of different emotions, and not just for you but for everyone around you.  There is however one way to feel your very best this holiday season….

Do you want to know the secret to having a happy Holiday Season this year?  The secret to a happy holiday season is not about how much you put on the table.  It’s not about how much money you have or what kind of car you drive.  It’s not about how expensive your outfit is and it’s not even about how many friends you have.  I mean these are all great things to have in your life but I can tell you for certain it’s not what is going to make your holiday season the happiest it can be.   The secret to a happy fulfilled holiday season is how you are going to feel about yourself throughout the holidays.  The happier YOU are and the better YOU feel in your own skin is going to be a game changer on how you feel through the holidays and how you treat yourself and everyone around you.

Many of you know exactly what I am talking about.  You know that feeling good about yourself is more than just what you have or what you can buy – it’s about how you feel mentally and physically.  Let’s face it putting on an $800 outfit is amazing but putting on $100 outfit on the body you love and feel great in will make you feel like you are wearing something that is priceless.

I know I am constantly reminding you that the better you feel the better you will live.  I am a true believer in if you are doing the right thing and feel good you  are more likely to choose the right options to keep you feeling that way.  When you are around a holiday dinner or party you will feel amazing and you will want to do everything you can to stay that way.  FACT:  when you feel good you want to continue to look good and when you don’t feel good you tend to throw in the towel a lot faster and fall prey to temptations  around you.

Between Thanksgiving and New Years you want to be able to go to a party, a holiday dinner and even a planned vacation and feel the very best you can feel because the better you feel the happier you will be and the better you are going to act and treat those you love around you.  You don’t want to put yourself in a position that you don’t want to get dressed and don’t want to see people.  We all kind of live in the same shoes.  When we are doing the right thing and feeling amazing – we don’t care who we run into.  In fact, sometimes we even seek out people.  When we are not doing the right things we want to avoid everything and everyone.  — Keep this holiday season simple.  When you are doing the right thing – you are happy.  So don’t make it complicated.  Follow your program and feel the best you can feel.  Always remember nothing is worth feeling uncomfortable in your own skin.

If you find that you are struggling at any time – you always remind yourself that you just need one clean week and you will feel like someone stuck a pin in you and you deflated.  One clean week is all it takes and you will start to feel the lighter version of YOU!  You want to spend this holiday season starting off on the right path.  But if somewhere in between you fall off you just get right back on and 6 clean days you will feel great again.  Everyone can be a shark when they want to be.  Head strong you will go into the holidays on program and enjoy your cheats when its you cheat day and not just cheat because it’s the holiday’s .  Because we all know when you start cheating just to cheat or because there are parties week after week – before you know it you will be squeezing into clothes and the happy face will turn into a frown very quickly.  And no one needs to see you frown around the holidays.  Especially when it’s something you have absolutely control over.

They say nothing in life is given to you.  But that’s actually not true.  The most precious thing in the world has been given to you – It’s called LIFE!  What you do with it, and how you take care of it will determine how happy you live it.  

HAPPY HOLIDAYS START WITH A HAPPY YOU

Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

NEED A MIND, BODY, ENERGY and METABOLISM BOOST THAT WILL GET THE BODY WORKING AT 110% EFFICIENCY THROUGHOUT THE DAY?.

This time of year we can feel a little extra tired and stressed.  A lack of sunlight, shorter days and a change of weather all play a part .  When we don’t feel our best it’s even harder to do the right thing.  Because of all of your requests – I have been working hand in hand once again with my Naturopathic Doctor who is a specialist in Chinese Herbal Medicine.  We created and designed a 2oz shot that will increase energy, boost your metabolism and get your body working at 110% so you can feel your very best everyday.

NEW INNOVATION ALL NATURAL SHOTS

TANGY TURMERIC AND FIRE APPLE

Do a shot first thing in the morning and up to 3 times a day when needed.  Each shot is an immediate immune and energy booster that provides an increased metabolism, and blood flow.  They are also an excellent source of phytochemical to fight against aging, inflammation for a healthy all around immune system.

We used our special combinations to create our All Natural Energy Shots.  Both contain two Chinese medical herbs that together have been proven to stimulate the body and give you the most intense internal and external health benefits.  Along with our hand picked special blends both shots also include:

ELEUTHERA ROOT:  It has been proven to help the body boost metabolism handle stress and acts as a natural stimulant to increase blood flow throughout the body and nervous system.  It increases blood flow creating an energetic feeling throughout the day.

REHMANNIA ROOT:  Improves oxygen intake, reduces inflammation and helps pain and swelling. It improves allergies, and lowers blood sugar levels and helps diabetes or tired blood (anemia).  It also improves weakened bones (osteoporosis).

Two amazing Roots together are life changing in the way you feel and perform throughout your day.   So if  you need an energy boost or you need to increase your fitness levels, or you are just not feeling your best because of age, the lack of sunlight, change of weather, daily stress, allergies etc…   Give the shot a try.  It will give you an immediate internal all natural energy and health boost so you can enjoy your day and not drag yourself through it.

Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

Innovation Tips for the Upcoming Holiday Season

THE HOLIDAYS ARE MORE THAN ONE DAY – KEEP THIS IN MIND NOVEMBER THROUGH JAN1

1. Don’t just do the program – live the program
2. Walk away from the temptations and remind yourself to choose your hard.  – HARD TO WALK AWAY OR HARD TO DEAL WITH THE RESULTS OF YOUR ACTIONS
3. One drink is a snack – Before you go for the second drink – remember it’s not the alcohol it’s what the alcohol makes you do.
4. Be a Shark – it feels great!
5. Be happy! No one wants an Eeyore in the room.  Everyone wants to be around the happy Tiger who is excited and feels good because they are doing the right things for their mind and body.
6. Don’t live in the moment.  While it’s fun to do something spontaneous – make sure it’s not with food – the results can be both mentally and physically draining.  Plan, prepare and follow through
7. Everything matters – every bite, sip crumb that you have extra is one extra to many.  Live by 6 clean days and 1 cheat day and you will feel great, be happy and lose weight!
8. Everyday you will either lose weight, maintain or gain.  The choice is always in your control
9. Less is always better when trying to lose weight.  If you don’t need it don’t eat it.
10. If you want to feel amazing you must act amazing.  Stay on program, work hard and do the right things.

The better you feel the better you will live and the happier you will be

Stay on Program!

Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

A Positive State of mind is so important in so many areas of your life- family, work, school, friends, health.  We can literally talk our self into happiness and/or talk our self right into depression.  When you keep things positive and happy your life may not be perfect but it will be a lot better and a lot more positive than if you are living in a negative stare of mind.  When it comes to weight loss I would have to say more than 90% of it is mental.  We eat when we are not hungry, we feel pressured in social situations, we want the weight loss but we don’t want to put the work in that comes with it.  We can step on the scale and when it doesn’t say what we want we throw in the towel and over -eat.  We never even stop to think how much better we feel.  A great weight loss day can be as easy as walking away – but when you tell your mind that – it’s not so easy.

CHOOSE TO BE POSITIVE

How do you get to a positive state of mind.  There is no magic.  You accept where you are and you move forward to where you want to be.  When you are not in a great place it can be the hardest time to push yourself to get there- but it’s also when you need to push yourself the most.  Let’s face it you have two directions…

1. Do the right thing, fight through the hard and keep yourself in a positive place and feel good.
2. Continue to make excuses, blame everyone around you and self sabotage and stay in the negative.

Sometimes it will take you being laser focused to do the right things – planning ahead, reminding yourself over and over what you want, walking away from the temptations, and pushing aside all the negative feelings – focusing only on where you want to go.  Reminding yourself constantly that when you stay positive and on program – it is the only thing that will change the way you feel mentally and physically about yourself and about everything around you.  Keep it simple – when  you do the right things and you follow your menu you feel better.  When you feel better you act better and you even speak nicer to everyone around you – you think happier thoughts throughout the day and you let go of any negativity.  Every good decision leads to another one.  Even when the scale doesn’t move as much as you wanted it to you wills till say how much better you feel mentally and physically by following your menu.  Will it be hard- of course it will be.  But just focus on one solid week at a time.  You have to stay positive and know if you put the time in an you follow your menu and you stay true to 6 clean weight loss days with 1 Cheat Day.  It will only take one week to get to a place the you realize and remember makes you so so happy.

We know staying on program and feeling good are two very good ways to live positive.  Here are some more ways that will keep you living in a positive state of mind:

1. You must plan your days.  Know what you are doing and eating every day.  When you plan in advance and you know what you are eating you are taking the struggle out of your day.  When you take out the struggle you add in positivity.
2. Know what you are wearing so you don’t have to sabotage yourself with negative thoughts first thing in the morning when things do’t quite fit yet.  
3. Stay away from the scale for one week.  I know that will be the hardest challenge of all but I promise yo that by the end of the week not only will the number be in the right direction but you will feel mentally better all week.
4. PROMISE yourself one solid 110% week on program.  Follow your menu for 6 straight days.  The consistency is the key and putting yourself in the mindset that no matter what I am sticking to my menu of meals and snacks for one week – after one complete week you will feel like you did it and you are back in it!  It will be an empowering positive end to a successful week!
5. Change every  negative thought into a positive one.  As soon as those little negative thoughts come creeping into your mind you must immediately replace them with positive thoughts.  negative thinking will always win over positive if you let it.  Really make an effort to change your mindset when those little negative thoughts find their way in.  
6. make the decisions that will keep your results positive.  Stay away from sabotages.  Remind yourself that you really can do whatever you want.  Every decision you make is your own.  Don’t base them off what others want.  You know your feelings and how staying on or off program will affect you.  It’s up to you to make the right decisions.  It’s not what is going on in your life or in anyone else’s.  You make each decision – because good or bad you are the one who has to live with the results.

There are soooo many Innovation positive Sharks!  They are positive about what they are doing everyday.  I you are not one o them – YOU SHOULD BE! There is no reason that you are not doing the right thing for your mind and body everyday.  There is no reason that you shouldn’t look and feel like you BEST SELF every day!  Don’t even begin to say “I can’t or it’s too hard.”  Everyone can make the same excuses just like everyone can make the right choices.  You can do and achieve whatever you want to.  But you really need to want it and it has to be a priority to you.  There is no difference between you and the person next to you who has done amazing and continues to do so.  The only difference is THEY WANTED IT MORE.  You can give yourself every excuse in the book but I’m telling you that if you really want it, and you make it a priority, and you stay positive and follow your program – you will do it.  

It all starts with you.  Your choices – Your decisions, and Your positive mindset.  

OUR LIVES BEGIN TO CHANGE

THE DAY WE DECIE WE WANT IT TO

BEWARE OF AUGUST and THE END OF SUMMER

August is so dangerous for so many reasons. We start the Summer full of excitement and committed to do the right thing and stay on program. It is fresh in our mind in May/June and even July – how hard it was to get to the happy place we started when summer began. It’s that memory that keeps us true and dedicated to what we want, who we are and how we want to feel…..  But slowly as the summer sun gets weaker so do we. August arrives and you start to feel like it’s almost over – the summer is ending. And all of a sudden you have to fit in as much as you can. This is when you must stay strong, mindful and positive. When you stay mentally strong you will remind yourself that the end of summer doesn’t have to result in the end of you feeling good and gaining weight.

Fall Is In The Air: For many are scheduling camp pick-ups; preparing for the last vacations; for others it’s the end of freedom and the end of less demanding schedules. We will start to feel senses of Fall coming near. The faint smell in the air, the Sun changing, or recognizing one orange leaf that has matured early. For some will feel Fall when they walk in the stores and see all the back to school shopping, and Teachers will start preparing for class rooms. Many will be packing up college students (that will be me crying and packing). For each one of us something reminding us summer is slowly coming to an end and Fall is around the corner – leaving little time left for summer fun.  While it’s easy to want to give in, this is when you need to be your strongest and not let the mental override the physical. We tend to mentally think “the end is near Im just gonna do what I want and go back to 100% in September” – No don’t do it. Im warning you that way of thinking will add on 5-10 pounds in a blink of an eye. You have to keep reminding yourself that Fall is around the corner and the more days you stick to your meals and snacks the better you will feel as summer comes to an end.

Let’s Face It – The “END” of Anything is Hard. While you might think you are ready for it — I know some of you are already saying, “I can’t wait to get back to a September schedule” and “I am going to go full force – hardcore in September!” and all that’s great, but don’t let that mindset determine what you do right now. Sometimes when we know we are going to give it a full commitment in a couple of weeks – it’s like saying you can have a free for all now. But you can’t and you don’t want to. As summer ends you need to get into the mind set —it’s ending and it’s okay—. And for it to be okay you need to start slowing things down — not speeding them up.

Mindset Is Everything When It Comes to Weight Loss. If you believe that you are going to be amazing and stay strong then you will be. If you tell yourself that you can’t do it and it’s too hard then you will give yourself a reason to “ throw in the towel” and you will regret it. Because at the end of the day it’s very important for you and your mental well being to feel the best you can be. The only way you will do this is to stay mentally strong and continue to stay on your program. Fell off – get back on. Had a bad week — make the next week great. You must stay disciplined and mindful, and even though the end of summer is the hardest to be discipline doesn’t mean you can’t do it.  But if your mindset is to “throw in the towel — summer is almost over — I don’t want to work hard anymore — I need a break — I want to just enjoy the rest of the summer.” Well… that’s the results you are going to get. You will gain and depending on how much depends on how far off you go from your path and how long you stay there. And let’s face it after a couple of days you are no longer enjoying it and you are out of control wondering how you are going to get back on program. You are feeling fuller, thicker and sad and that is what you are doing not to just yourself but those that are spending the end of the summer with you. Stay on program and it will keep you happy and everyone you love happy.

Much of what I am telling you I am sure you already know.  What is important is to recognize that you are the one in control and how you think is absolutely going to affect your outcome. So if you keep it positive and stay strong and stay as close to program as possible those are the results you will get. It’s always up to you and it’s your choices that determine your results. While friends, family and work all play a part the decision – you must take responsibility for the choices you make. Make August fun and exciting. Prepare, stay mindful and enjoy friends, and family time. Keep positive thinking and remembering that just because we may soon be losing the shorts and tank tops doesn’t mean you want to fill out the jeans and sweaters. Stay healthy, stay happy, and stay in tune mentally and physically with where you are,what you want, and what makes you feel your best.

Stay positive and you will get positive results!

When you feel good it’s always easier to transition from one change to the next. Don’t give yourself an excuse to do the wrong thing. Give yourself excuses to do all the right things. Make the choices that make you feel lighter, thinner, happier, healthy, and strong, and makes everyone around you happy too. Only you have the power, the want and the need to make this happen.

“Whatever we make ourselves believe is what we will experience”

LOVE TO LIVE HEALTHY WITH JOSEPHINE FITZPATRICK

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