THE TEN POUNDS OF CHRISTMAS

Dear readers,

If you’ve been reading this blog from the outset, you’ll recall that I once blogged on how to keep from gaining weight over the holiday season. I still have to fight the urge to eat all the goodies in sight, but writing those blogs and recalling the tips I submitted have made it easier to resist.

With that in mind, I made up a handy booklet to use to assist you in maintaining your svelte shape from now until the New Year. It is on sale on Amazon.com. goo.gl/ikG3G2

Here is an introduction to the beginning:

The Ten Pounds of Christmas

How NOT to Gain Weight over the Holidays

  

Chapter One

I gain ten pounds every year at Christmas. Some years I’ve even gained twelve. How is that possible? It’s easier than it sounds, actually. My weight gain starts in October with Halloween candy and escalates from there. There’s a little devil inside me who keeps saying things like, “Go ahead. This is the season to enjoy. Worry about it later.”

It’s easy to be swept away in the good cheer and fantastic food that surrounds the holidays. Every day it becomes harder not to fall into a sedated state of overeating. The result of that state of overeating is a struggle to take off the “Christmas fat” in January and February.

All of this changed three years ago when I vowed to put everything I’ve learned about controlling my eating into practice over the holiday season. I refused to allow myself to fall into the habit of ‘the holiday weight gain.’ I anticipated what the hurdles would be on every occasion, made lists, taped reminders to my mirror, and blogged about what I was doing. Did it work? You bet it did! Come mid-January, I’d only gained one pound! I did the same thing last year, but added a few new tips and only gained half of a pound.

This booklet is filled with ways to survive the holidays without outgrowing your clothes. Not all of them will be helpful to you, so invest in a small notebook and copy down the ones that make the most sense for your lifestyle. Keep a journal of your efforts; note what is helpful and what doesn’t work for you. Anything you put in writing adds more meaning to your resolve.

One absolutely necessary step—weigh yourself every day! At the same time, wearing the same clothing, or after your shower, nude. This way, as soon as your weight starts going in the wrong direction, you can follow up with a few days of sensible eating and upgrade your exercise program until it goes back down.

You’ve taken the first positive step by investing in a copy of this booklet. Now, with help and guidance from me, you can design your own plan to stop the ten pounds of Christmas weight gain.

So if you’d like help in avoiding those hard-to-get-rid-of holiday pounds, get your copy now! And please let me know if it works for you and let us know of any tips you’ve found that should be added.

Have a wonderful holiday season,

Marla

WRITER’S CONFERENCES – Are they worth the time and expense?

WRITER’S CONFERENCES

–      Are they worth the time and expense?

JEFFREY DEAVER 

            Before judging the value of a conference, it’s important to decide what you want to get out of it. If you’re a writer and want to receive tips on writing, you need to find one that offers educational workshops.

Many conferences are geared to readers. The Bouchercon is probably the most popular of that kind. I attended one in St. Louis in 2011, and I did enjoy it, but there were no educational sessions for writers. Almost every breakout session consisted of a panel of writers discussing a particular topic. Panels of writers tend to be more entertaining than educational, although it’s possible to pick up some writing tips.

The conferences I enjoy the most are ones that offer learning experiences, those that teach and inspire. I attended Killer Nashville last week and it was a wonderful experience. The quality of the breakouts was excellent.

For an extra fee, I attended a 2-hour workshop with Jeffrey Deaver. What an amazing experience! In addition to being one of the world’s best thriller writers, Mr. Deaver is an excellent teacher of his craft. Having the opportunity to meet and learn from Mr. Deaver made the conference the best I’ve ever attended.

Considerations before investing in a conference:

1.     Is the conference geared to writers or readers?

2.     Are there breakout sessions that are educational for me?

3.     Is the conference specifically for writers of my genre?

4.     Is the conference geared mainly for traditional writers or does it include independent writers?

5.     What do I, as an individual, want from a conference?

Dear Readers,

I must apologize for the huge gap in my blog posts. No excuses. Just a promise to keep in touch in a timelier manner.

Hope your life is moving in the direction you want,

Marla

Two months into the New Year -  And I'm still fat!

By the end of February resolutions have already drifted from our minds. We’ve joined gyms, signed up for diet programs, started the latest fad diet, with no noticeable results. Or, just as bad, took off a fast ten or fifteen pounds only to gain it all back in a week or two after giving up.

What happened to our fresh resolutions?

A resolution, from the word resolve, is defined as firm determination and sounds way too much like restriction.

How about goals? Unlike a resolution, a goal is a something positive that we want to achieve, not a restriction. Positive is good.

The holidays, along with all the food temptations that come with them, have been over for weeks. It’s time to resume normal eating. Normal? Normal might be defined differently for each of us. For me, there is no “normal”. I’m either closely watching my caloric intake, or overeating, seldom anything in between.

It is time to dust off those New Year’s resolutions and turn them into manageable goals. A goal can be as simple as a mental picture of something you want to accomplish or can be a formal outline for a goal’s accomplishment. The most important thing is to choose goals you are excited about achieving in order to motivate you to complete them.

Some goal guidelines:

1.    Write them down. Give them the added formality of typing them and printing them out. You might want to have a separate list for your goals for the week, month, and year. Anthony Robbins advocates a five-year plan—think about what you’d like your life to look like in five years—it’s an eye opener!

2.    Have your goal sheet somewhere you will see it every day. I keep a set of weekly goals on an index card next to my computer.

3.    Don’t try to do too many goals at once. Pick two or three, or even only one if it is something important to you.

4.    The more difficult the goal, the more necessary it is to have a list of action steps you will do in order to achieve it. Divide the steps into long and short-term solutions.

5.    Procrastination can be overwhelming, thus emphasizing the need to have increments toward the achievement of your goal. Begin with that baby step—but begin!

Many years ago, I was stuck in a job I found unfulfilling and I made a goal for the year to change my career path by taking advantage of the tuition reimbursement plan my benefit package offered. I wanted to go back to school for my Master’s degree, a huge task that involved a lot of work just to get started. I took an immediate first step and contacted a university for information about the programs. It was a small step, but the catalogue they sent made the goal real and feel more attainable.

I began classes that spring and graduated three years later.

Make that first step a small one and make it today. You’ll be surprised how it inspires you to keep going.

Dear Readers,

An accomplished goal does not happen by throwing a coin into a fountain and making a wish. If you tucked those resolutions you wrote on New Year’s Day into the pile of detritus on the top of your desk, that’s most likely where they‘ll stay—buried.

Whatever your goal, keep it in sight and take a first step toward its completion. What you focus on becomes more and more real to you.

I wish all of you a healthy and amazing new year!

Marla

The holidays are over.

 Now what?

My last blogs were designed to encourage myself and others like me get through the holidays without gaining weight—or at least only gaining a pound or two. Since most of us have a New Year’s resolution to lose weight in 2018, I thought talking about how to accomplish that goal would be helpful.

An accomplished goal does not happen by throwing a coin into a fountain and making a wish. One of the best ways to achieve a goal is to use creative visualization. Athletes use the technique to get in their optimal zone by picturing a winning season. What you focus on becomes more and more real to you. If you tuck those goals you wrote on New Year’s Day into the pile of detritus on the top of your desk, that’s where they‘ll stay—buried and forgotten.

Using visualization:

1.                    Twice a day, assume a relaxed position, close your eyes and picture what you and your life will look like when you’ve accomplished your goal.

2.                    Make sure to include a mental video of you making the steps necessary for success.

3.                    Picture yourself overcoming the obstacles that are sure to fall into the path to achieving your goal.

4.                    Incorporate as much sensual data into the picture as possible.

5.                    Remember, don't forget that what you focus on becomes more and more real to you. Rerun that picture of your goal in your mind throughout the day.

Whatever your goal, keep it in sight and take a first step toward its completion. join a support group, begin an exercise plan, start a food diary. Make a list of the steps involved in reaching your goal.

If I’ve learned one thing about losing weight, it’s this—no one method works for everyone. Part of your goal is finding a plan that you can live with.

Dear readers,

      Thank you for following me through this series of weight-control blogs. I am an author of suspense novels, and also a woman who has battled with my weight since I was a child.

      Many of us who love to read and write have an even more difficult time, as our favorite pastime does not burn calories!

Wishing you a happy, healthy and successful new year,

Marla