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*The title of this post was taken from the Guns N’ Roses song of the same name*

A fair amount of time elapsed from the time Chris first sat down in a consultation with me until he decided to sign up and get started. We had several mutual friends in common and I’m sure it helped that Chris saw those friends get good results here at the studio.

One of the hangups was that Chris wasn’t really interested in exercise. Nothing about it seemed particularly intriguing to him. So, even though he wanted to lose weight and get his body in a better place, the thought of exercise was not desirable.

We would stay in touch via social media over those months and little by little, Chris was teasing the thought of getting started. Even when it seemed like he would begin, he shared his hesitation by stating, “We’ll see if I can stick with this…”

Chris began and we had a very candid conversation about what needed to happen with his food plan. Like many people, I think Chris felt he would try to adhere to the plan making as few changes as possible. Typically, that bites clients in the ass. Calling it what it is, you either decide your in or your out. Calories don’t discriminate.

However, by replacing copious amounts of soft drinks with water and getting the food under control, Chris started dropping fat mass very quickly. Not only that, he barely plateaued. In the 2 months since he started, he’s lost just shy of 20lbs. That may or may not sound impressive to you, but I will tell you this: I generally don’t see people who have as little fat mass to lose as he does lose it so quickly.

Chris is literally just a few pounds away from his maintenance goal and he did it in the blink of an eye. No flashy supplements, no über-intense exercise regimen, literally no gimmicks.

I must say, Chris has had it “easy.”

Now, Chris himself may not say it’s been easy for him to do. I believe some days he really had to deal with the fact that a certain amount of hunger was going to be the new norm for a while. Some days were easier than others.

I will also mention that since Chris didn’t have a history of dieting, his body may have just been agreeable with his efforts to drop. Should he lose sight of his goals and regain everything he’s lost, Chris might find himself in the position many others do. That cycles of dieting have a potential of not yielding as promising of results with each successive try.

While the body will continue to fight for homeostasis, many people on their weight loss journey can find it significantly more difficult to lose the same weight that Chris has lost in the same amount of time.

But please don’t forget that detail I mentioned above: Chris committed to the plan and he saw almost immediate results. For someone who was not very motivated to exercise, Chris has had enough momentum to make him a believer.

Once he hits his weight loss goal, we’ll boost his calories back up and let him adjust to a maintenance phase for a while. After a couple of months, we’ll start strategically pushing the calories up so he can slowly build some muscle mass back onto his frame. That part, I’ve told him, will be a much slower process.

So, back to the title of the post. Weight loss isn’t easy. It is one of the hardest things the average individual could ask their body to do. For no other reason than, it takes a lot of consistent effort to get you where you want to be. The more fat mass you have to lose, the longer you would feasibly be on that journey. The rules may be simple in theory, the execution rarely is.

For people like Chris, he can thank his genetics, his adherence to the plan and maybe a little bit of beginner’s luck. I have to say, his results have been incredibly inspiring.

You’d have to ask Chris how much he imbibed on that drink he’s representing in the picture below. 🙂

 

 

She’s steadily conquering the world with better food options, sustainable planning, and the tips to make women succeed with their diets. I’m joined this week with Leslie Ann Quillen of Fat Loss Foodies to talk about why her program has been so successful. We discuss her online cooking program and why it works so well for the busy women who are trying to prepare meals that work for their families and for themselves. Balancing a realistic approach to cooking while also considering how hormones can affect the outcomes, Leslie Ann shares the concepts that have helped her help others succeed. To learn more about Leslie Ann and Fat Loss Foodies, check out http://www.fatlossfoodies.com or link up with Fat Loss Foodies on Instagram and Facebook. To learn more about your host, visit http://www.jasonleenaarts.com Download, subscribe, share with your friends and please take a moment to leave us an iTunes review.

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*The title of this post was taken from the Muddy Waters song of the same name*

Two years into my ten year addiction to drugs I was already in rehab.

It was something of a surreal experience.

I was on a co-ed floor of the hospital where the men were mostly recovering alcoholics and the women were mostly recovering crack addicts. The only thing we all had in common was the intent or execution of self harm.

Despite these facts, you could not convince me that I had a drug problem. I looked at the patients I shared the floor with and thought,

“YOU all have problems. I just need to get out of here.”

Denial is a funny thing.

It didn’t matter that they made us attend AA or NA meetings. I said the words, heard some stories, and felt sincere sympathy for other peoples struggles. There were people battling greater demons than I knew how to fathom at 22 years old.

The strangest thing about being a drug addict for all of those years was that I continued to see other people fall down a hole they didn’t know how to get out of. I just kept thinking I was invincible because I hadn’t overdosed or been arrested.

The fact of the matter was that I wasn’t invincible and I truly believe that ten years of shoveling every drug I could get my hands on into my system did damage I may not ever be able to undo.

All that aside, if you’re reading this now, you know that I came out of all this without a lot of scars.

How did I succeed at getting clean?

I was ready.

It didn’t matter to me that I was damaging relationships, my health and affecting my job performance. It didn’t matter that family and friends had suggested, implied or begged me to go clean. And for most of those ten years, it didn’t matter that I couldn’t pay all of my bills as long as I had money to support my habits.

I just finally had all I could take. So, I changed.

Does any of this sound familiar?

Maybe you’re someone who has allowed some patterns of addiction or a lack of appropriate coping skills to rule their lives. Maybe every time you felt sad, frustrated, unloved, unaccepted or stressed, you used food to comfort you (like I did with drugs.)

Granted, there are not many clients I’ve come across who have ever been drug addicts. But many people have let some self-destructive patterns dictate their well-being. Many of them come through our doors READY for change. So, we help them change.

And many come through are doors BELIEVING they are ready for change. But they’re not.

That’s not a bad or good thing. They’re just not ready yet.

Sometimes you can tweak a diet or get someone rolling with exercise. They lose some weight, start feeling better about themselves and ride that momentum as far as it will carry them.

Others have to sift a bit. They’re constantly dipping their toes in the proverbial water to decide “Am I jumping in or just splashing around?”

We’re happy to take any one on either end of the spectrum. We can’t change everyone but we’ve worked hard to build a community that has support coming from all angles.

Maybe you can take a cue from Mr. Slow-Learner over here.

Try not to take ten years to get your act together and start making yourself a priority again. Then again, maybe you’ve spent longer than ten years and you need to take a step back to ask yourself:

Am I ready?

Because if you are, then we’re ready for you.

Oh yeah…and this is Stephannie. She’s down 17lbs and counting. Suffice to say, she’s ready.

I have the great pleasure of sharing some time with Christian Finn from Muscle Evo this week. Knowing that he had so much information to share from decades in the fitness industry, we whittled it down to the questions he typically helps clients with regarding fat loss. This is an awesome episode and Christian has some great tips to share that will help anyone who might be struggling on their journey. To connect with Christian and learn more about his excellent products, check out http://www.muscleevo.net To learn more about your host, check out http://www.jasonleenaarts.com and like our new Facebook page for the podcast at http://www.facebook.com/revolutionaryou Download, subscribe, share with your friends and please take a moment to leave us an iTunes review.

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*The title of this post was taken from the Oasis song of the same name*

Perhaps you’ve heard the question: “If you were to die today, what would people say about you at your funeral?”

I’ve probably heard that question countless times throughout my life. Never did it have much of an effect on me until I was standing with my mother at my father’s calling hours. That was nearly six years ago.

You see, since he has passed, my mother and I have raised my Dad to nearly mythic proportions. I guess, because to us, he was such a prized part of our lives.

And as we greeted each friend and family member who came through the line to talk to us (we had services in both Ohio and Tennessee), we found that we weren’t alone.

People loved my Dad.

There were co-workers and friends who told these amazing stories about struggles they couldn’t have gone through without my father’s assistance, his kindness, his wisdom. Some stories just shared a love for my Dad that was simply unforgettable.

One story in particular I didn’t happen to hear until several years after my father passed, at the calling hours of my Oma (Dad’s mom.)

Jimmy and Dorothy Williams were long time friends of my parents. Dad and Dorothy were friends back in high school. I was speaking with Jimmy at Oma’s calling hours, relating a story that I knew he would appreciate hearing.

For a little bit of backstory, my father was diagnosed with multiple myeloma (bone marrow cancer) in July of 2010. It was his intention to break the news to my Oma in person as soon as he heard. However, some things got in the way of him being able to make the journey (we were in Ohio, she was in North Carolina) and that trip didn’t happen as soon as any of us would have liked.

By Christmas that year, Dad’s weight had dropped dramatically and I think he may have known that time was running out. He booked the trip down and called Dorothy and Jimmy to ask if they would pick him up from the airport and drop him off at his mom’s. They knew he was sick but I am certain they weren’t prepared for the sight they would see when they came to get him.

That flight was very hard on my Dad’s body. He was already experiencing severe pain in his hips and airplanes aren’t exactly known for their particular comforts. When the Williams picked Dad up, they took him to Oma’s.

The doorbell was rang and my Oma came to the door to greet her guests (she was unaware my Dad would be surprising her with a visit.) She perked up when she recognized the familiar faces of Jimmy and Dorothy on her doorstep but when she looked in my father’s direction she paused. Her initial reaction was not of pleasure in seeing her youngest child. It was a frank reminder of some of the people who shared in the horror of the holocaust with her. Dad was truly that emaciated.

When she realized who was looking back at her, it’s my understanding that she had some difficulty recovering from her shock. The fact that she did not recognize her son was something that would continually haunt her and come up in my conversations with her until she passed.

The four of them visited for a while until Dorothy and Jimmy felt it was best to give my Dad some time alone with his mother. They reminded my Dad,

“If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to call.”

Well, that call came sooner that Jimmy probably anticipated. My father had sat down for a few minutes on the couch in my Oma’s living room and was unable to raise himself up. He called Jimmy and asked if he could come back over to assist him in getting up.

Jimmy came back and their conversation led to the discussion of food. Since my father had started chemo, he had been suffering from a loss of taste. Since nothing was tasting good to him, he was not getting sufficient nutrients in him. Jimmy reminded him, “Paul, you have to eat.”

To which Dad replied, “I know I do. I just get so busy with other things that I forget. Then, sometimes I just don’t have the energy to eat, so I don’t.”

These issues were contributing to my Dad’s rapid weight loss.

So, Jimmy made my father a promise.

“Paul, I’m going to set a reminder on my phone. Every morning when that reminder goes off. I’m going to call or email or text you and remind you to eat something.”

Sure enough, Jimmy kept his word. Every day his reminder went off and every day he contacted my Dad.

My father passed away on March 23, 2011. About 3 months after that conversation with Jimmy.

You see, I never knew that story until about 4 years later when my Oma passed and Jimmy shared it with me. And as he was telling me that story in 2015, he said “Jason, that reminder still goes off today. I can’t bring myself to get rid of it.”

To be honest, I was equally surprised and overjoyed to hear this story. I knew how much people loved my Dad. Stories like these never got old. This one was just exceptional because I know how those last few months were for my Dad.

Last week, I called Jimmy and asked him to tell me the story again. I told him I would be writing a post like this and I wanted to make sure I got most of the details right.

Jimmy, the kind man that he is, shared the story with me again. And as he finished he said, “Jason, I still have the reminder on my phone. It goes off every day. I just don’t want to let go of him. I loved your Dad. I’ve never met anyone else like him.”

“What it taught me was that I have to be present. And not to take anything for granted…”

And as I type these words out for you to read, my fingers are trembling a little bit. And I can’t stop my eyes from tearing up.

While nearly 6 years have passed since my Dad left this world, here is a very lengthy post to say to all of you readers a few things:

Take Jimmy’s advice and be present. Do not take anything for granted because you don’t know how long it will last. Cherish it.

And come back to the question I started this post with: If you were to die today, what would people say about you at your funeral?

Whatever you want people to remember about you, be that person. Right now. Don’t wait. Time is not on our side.

To my father, I love you. I miss you. Thank you for giving me every tool I would need to be more like you. I am trying. I promise.

And to Jimmy, I have to say: Thank you for being a perfect friend to my father. I know how much he loved you and Dorothy.

Rest in peace, Dad. 

 

 

She’s written one of the most essential books I can recommend to any woman (or man) who is allowing their self-image to affect their wellness goals. Erin Brown, the author of As Is, joins me this week and it is an amazing episode. We discuss the aforementioned book, Erin’s philosophies on changing some of these mindset obstacles and we touch on a little bit of parenting too. You do not want to miss this show. To learn more about Erin, please visit http://www.iamerinbrown.com To learn more about your host, check out http://www.jasonleenaarts.com and follow our new Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/revolutionaryou Download, subscribe, share with your friends and please take a moment to leave us an iTunes review.

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*The title of this post was taken from the John Lee Hooker song of the same name*

I love what I learn from my clients when they feel like they’ve failed at something.

Please don’t confuse that with: I love to see my clients fail.

I don’t.

What I do love (if the opportunity arises), is the wisdom that comes from clients when they’re searching for answers.

I would love to offer all the right solutions to my clients.

Many times, I get so excited to answer that I verbally vomit solutions all over myself.

However, what we’re taught by behavioral psychology is that it generally isn’t the solutions we (as wellness professionals) offer that do the most good. It’s the solutions a client can come up with on their own.

Sometimes, it takes a little bit of probing, nudging, and perhaps leading to get headed in the right direction.

This past weekend, one of our clients had a moment like this. One of those moments that I truly love.

She was out at a restaurant that isn’t exactly known for catering to the health conscious. She ordered a serving of soup (180 cals) and something that seemed appropriate on the 500 calories and less menu.

She also confessed that she had breadsticks.

I asked “How many?”

To which she replied: “I’m embarrassed to tell you…4”

Calories were added up and those 4 breadsticks had more calories than her entree.

Total up all of the calories and this individual (for her particular weight loss goals) was only 140 calories away from filling up her day. Her restaurant meal was the only meal she had consumed so far that day and she still had dinner to look forward to.

Rather than shame her for the decision, I simply helped her look at all of the numbers and put them into perspective.

To my client’s credit, she ate appropriately and within goal to stay in line for the rest of the day. Many people would have just let the day go to pot since one meal went wrong. By being candid with herself about how much she had consumed, she stayed the course and didn’t let one meal wreck her.

Most importantly, I applauded her for just being honest.

Her response: “Part of my healing is to not deny/hide what I eat.”

THIS is what I love.

To me, I don’t care how you get honest with yourself. I just care that it happens.

You can write it down in a journal, share it with a friend, log it into a food app…anything.

Just get painfully, candidly honest and put all of the gory details out there.

And with us, there’s no shame, there’s no guilt. We just hash it all out and move forward.

And to our anonymous client: your “healing” is going to go a long way. I know how far you’ve come just to get here and I couldn’t be more proud of the new you that you’re discovering.

 

 

I’m back with another solo episode to cover a case scenario with a former client who embarked on a cheat meal after a week’s worth of good effort with her diet. This story got a lot of people talking in our closed community on Facebook. If this story describes you, you might find the details worth hearing about. To learn more about your host, check out http://www.jasonleenaarts.com and our new http://www.facebook.com/revolutionaryou site. Download, subscribe, share with your friends and please take a moment to leave us an iTunes review.

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*The title of this post was taken from the Eagles song of the same name*

It would be quite a  world if we all had access to local, organic, free-range, all natural, humanely raised and practical foods. Thankfully, as the demand for these items has gone up, the cost of them has generally come down.

However, that isn’t exactly the world we live in. Sometimes we have to succumb to convenience. And sometimes, convenience leads us to the drive -thru of those establishments who carry anything but local, organic, free-range, all natural, humanely raised foods. Hell, at least they’re practical (one out of six ain’t bad!)

If I’m being honest (and I try my very best to be), sometimes it just comes down to budget and in many ways, the convenient can be the most cost effective…just not always.

So, this is my attempt at helping you survive the fast food lane. I asked the members of our client-only closed community on Facebook to help me tally up their favorite fast food establishments. I’ll be tallying up the breakfast and lunch/dinner options that will help you reach your weight loss goals, regardless of whether you are male or female.

There are a few things to note before you dive into this. Due to the nature of fast food, these generally won’t be the best ratios for a proper macronutrient balance. So, if you are focusing on optimizing body composition or if you’re training for endurance events, this is probably not the menu for you. Also, note that the sodium counts will be higher than what the average individual needs. It would serve you best to keep your water intake high any time you eat fast food or even at your run of the mill restaurant. In addition, fast food is terribly low in fiber. You might want to consider a fiber supplement to continue to eliminate waste as needed.

I’ll also be working within some general ranges. For women, somewhere between 1200-1500 calories. For men, somewhere between 1500-1800 calories. If you are not certain where you fall within the range, start on the high end and assess your weight loss progress. If you are not losing, you can make gradual drops of 100 or so calories to see the changes you’re looking for.

I should also note that this is not by any means meant to replace healthier options if you have access to them. I personally would not spend much time with fast food. However, if you’re travelling, short on time, or just didn’t plan your day appropriately. These options could really help you stay on track. Please also be aware, there are no french fries mentioned in this list. This will simply be for entrees. I made every effort to keep every choice roughly 500 calories (maybe less, maybe more.) I also made every effort to keep protein at least 20g per meal.

Some menu options may be seasonal or temporary depending on the establishment.

BREAKFAST

Taco Bell

Breakfast Quesadilla-Bacon (510 cals, 26g protein)

Breakfast Quesadilla-Sausage (500 cals, 24g protein)

Breakfast Quesadilla-Steak (500 cals, 29g protein)

Cheesy Burrito-Bacon (490 cals, 23g protein)

Cheesy Burrito-Steak (480 cals, 26g protein)

Chick-Fil-A

Egg White Grill (300 calories, 25g protein)

Breakfast Burrito (450 calories, 30g protein)

Chicken, Egg & Cheese Bagel (480 cals, 27g protein)

Wendy’s

Artisan Egg Sandwich (360 cals, 20g protein)

Mornin’ Melt Panini (520 cals, 31g protein)

Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit (510 cals, 21g protein)

McDonald’s

Sausage McMuffin With Egg (470 cals, 21g protein)

Steak, Egg & Cheese Biscuit (530 cals, 25g protein)

Burger King

King Croissan’wich With Ham & Sausage (530 cals, 23g protein)

LUNCH/DINNER

Taco Bell

Burrito Supreme-Chicken (380 cals, 20g protein)

Shredded Chicken Mini Quesadilla (Order 2 for 360 cals, 24g protein)

Fresco Soft Taco-Shredded Chicken (Order 3 for 420 cals, 30g protein)

Fresco Soft Taco-Steak (Order 3 for 420 cals, 30g protein)

Power Menu Bowl-Chicken (480 cals, 28g protein)

Power Menu Bowl-Steak (490 cals, 27g protein)

Power Menu Burrito-Chicken (450 cals, 26g protein)

Power Menu Burrito-Steak (460 cals, 25g protein)

Cheesy Gordita Crunch (500 cals, 20g protein)

Cool Ranch Doritos Cheesy Gordita Crunch (500 cals, 20g protein)

Fiery Doritos Cheesy Gordita Crunch (490 cals, 20g protein)

Meximelt (Order 2 for 500 cals, 28g protein)

Nacho Cheese Doritos Cheesy Gordita Crunch (500 cals, 20g protein)

Quesadilla-Chicken (510 cals, 27g protein)

Quesadilla-Steak (510 cals, 27g protein)

Chick-Fil-A

Chick-Fil-A Chicken Sandwich (440 cals, 28g protein)

Chick-Fil-A Deluxe Chicken Sandwich (500 cals, 31g protein)

Spicy Sandwich (450 cals, 29g protein)

Chick-Fil-A Nuggets (260 cals, 28g protein)

Chick-n-Strips (350 cals, 28g protein)

Grilled Chicken Sandwich (310 cals, 29g protein)

Grilled Nuggets (Order 2 for 280 cals, 50g protein)

Grilled Chicken Club Sandwich (430 cals, 37g protein)

Grilled Chicken Cool Wrap (350 cals, 37g protein)

Chicken Salad Sandwich (500 cals, 27g protein)

Wendy’s

Double Stack Cheeseburger (390 cals, 25g protein)

Jr. Hamburger (Order 2 for 480 cals, 28g protein)

Grilled Asiago Ranch Chicken Club (520 cals, 42g protein)

Homestyle Chicken Sandwich (520 cals, 30g protein)

Spicy Chicken Sandwich (510 cals, 30g protein)

Grilled Chicken Sandwich (360 cals, 35g protein)

Crispy Chicken BLT (440 cals, 20g protein)

Grilled Chicken Wrap (270 cals, 20g protein)

10-Piece Chicken Nuggets (450 cals, 24g protein)

BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad Half Size (310 cals, 21g protein)

Power Mediterranean Chicken Salad (450 cals, 40g protein)

Spicy Caesar Chicken Salad, Half Size (410 cals, 23g protein)

Chili-Large (250 cals, 23g protein)

McDonald’s

Mac Jr. (460 cals, 21g protein)

Hamburger (Order 2 for 500 cals, 26g protein)

Double Cheeseburger (430 cals, 25g protein)

McDouble (380 cals, 23g protein)

10-Piece Chicken McNuggets (440 cals, 24g protein)

Artisan Grilled Chicken Sandwich (380 cals, 37g protein)

Bacon Ranch Salad & Buttermilk Crispy Chicken (490 cals, 33g protein)

Bacon Ranch Grilled Chicken Salad (320 cals, 42g protein)

Southwest Buttermilk Crispy Chicken Salad (520 cals, 28g protein)

Southwest Grilled Chicken Salad (350 cals, 37g protein)

Burger King

Whopper without mayo (470 cals, 26g protein)

Hamburger (Order 2 for 440 cals, 22g protein)

Double Cheeseburger (350 cals, 20g protein)

Bacon Double Cheeseburger (370 cals, 21g protein)

TenderGrill Chicken Sandwich (420 cals, 32g protein)

FlameGrilled Chicken Burger (480 cals, 22g protein)

Original Chicken Sandwich without mayo (450 cals, 28g protein)

10-Piece Chicken Nuggets (430 cals, 20g protein)

BK Veggie Burger (390 cals, 22g protein)

Dr. Corey Peacock joins me this week to discuss many of the protocols that he uses with his own elite-level athletes (MMA, NCAA football and more.) Corey touches on his best practices and how they can crossover to general population. While I admit that I don’t follow the MMA world closely, Dr. Corey has a lot of great tips and thoughts on how technology helps him succeed with his athletes. To connect with Dr. Corey you can find him on Instagram at http://www.instagram.com/drcpeacock and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/drcpeacock To learn more about your host, check out http://www.jasonleenaarts.com Also, you can link up with us on the new Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/revolutionaryou Download, subscribe, share with your friends and please take a moment to leave us an iTunes review.

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