Last week, we looked at Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps for dealing with debt and finding financial peace. This week, we're going to apply those same Baby Steps to the battle of the belly.
Baby Step One is to do whatever it takes to establish a basic $1,000 emergency fund as quickly as possible. This is a small buffer against trouble, and gives you some peace of mind. Perhaps more important, it gives you a sense that maybe you CAN do this thing.
That may be the biggest problem confronting someone with a lot of weight to lose. It can often seem impossible, especially if you've tried and failed before. That's why I like to hit the ground running with new Biggest Losers. The goal is to get them moving twice a day, right from the start. At the same time, they're looking closely at their calories.
It's kind of like working to bank some cash in a hurry. But here, they're trying to bank some calories through diet and exercise. If they can get a daily deficit of 1,000 calories going, they'll lose at least two pounds that first week. Many people lose more; sometimes much more.
When they do, it really boosts their morale, and gives them some peace about the whole weight loss thing. That makes it much more likely they'll succeed.
Baby Step Two is "The Debt Snowball." The goal is to seriously change behavior and create some momentum through "gazelle intensity."
When you tackle huge weight loss, it can often seem overwhelming. By starting with smaller, easier workouts like just walking a mile, you learn you can do it. You start gaining confidence and skill, and can then add time and difficulty to your workouts.
This means you start burning more calories, which means more pounds lost. That builds even more confidence and momentum. Suddenly, you really start to believe there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Finally, Ramsey's third baby step is to fully fund a 3-6 month emergency fund. This protects you against many of the different bad things that might happen.
It's kind of like losing a lot of weight, but you still have the risk of gaining it back. I've seen it time and time again. Here's where banking another 3-6 months with your routines is a good idea. It makes sure you've truly developed new habits, where you stay focused on healthy eating and lots of movement. That will protect you against ever putting that weight back on.
To help you get that early calorie deficit and weight snowball going, the new Biggest Loser will be just 7 weeks long. But it's going to be packed full of stuff! This should give you a big kick start, and everyone should be able to do 7 weeks!
For the first time ever, we're also going to open up our Boot Camp and kickboxing classes to Biggest Losers at no charge. This will give you even more chances to succeed!
The new Biggest Loser "22" starts Monday, October 13th. The class will meet Mondays for an hour, starting at 7:00 pm. For more information, give me a shout.
If you're like me, many of us need to work on our debt. A lot of us need to work on our weight too. Let's do the baby steps together and burn some fat!
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