I like cats.

Recently I've been busy making, individually wrapping, 
and freezing tiny diet cookies to give out at a YouTube conference
which I'm attending in LA at the end of this month
together with my web-genuis son.

These cookies' claim to the status of diet, is because they are sugar-free
and only about 1 in square by 1/4 inch thick, and less than 25 calories each. 
I need between 600 and 1200 cookies. 
Making them is easy, because they are bar cookies,
but wrapping them invididually is quite a time consuming task. 

For those who are interested in watching my most recent
Ask Grandma YouTube video, which talks about the cookies and event,
you can find it HERE under RESOURCES, Videos, Ask Grandma.

"Trust a few" are words contained in today's video.
Sound advice, but it does raise the question...
....who are the few that I can trust?.......

An analysis of this question could begin
with one's close family circle,
moving out to friends,
and then expand to acquaintances,
and finally to others such as well-known authorities and experts.

 Sometimes we think of Trust as a Totality,
when actually it is a matter of degree and situation.

I like to think of myself as trustworthy,
and I would never steal money from you,
but you might not be wise to leave me alone in your house
with a box of your favorite chocolates.

You might be able to trust the accuracy of my opinion
about weight-loss, diet, calories, food-intake,
but you would be unwise to do so
regarding issues such as how electricity works,
or what makes a vehicle operational.

 There are many nutritional and diet experts,
and many of them give opposing advice.
Each of us must distinguish, and choose for ourselves,
who are the few that we can individually trust.

                                
In every aspect of life, including
Weight-loss and maintenance of that weight-loss,
It is not about what is right for others
but it is about what is right for you.

It’s not that I am right and others are wrong
Instead there is no one-size-fits-all approach
to losing weight and getting fit.

The longer I travel this path the more I understand
that there isn’t a generic plan that is right for everyone.
I have discovered that because we are all genetically different,
what works for me may or may not work for you.

Each of us has to write our own owner’s manual to achieve success.

There are general fundamental philosophies of eating and exercise.
It’s valuable to start with those principles.
As we discover how our own body responds to following these,
then we can re-evaluate where we are in this journey
in order to continue on the same path
or to determine ways to change directions.

Some people don’t like the word “diet”
and instead use words like: “eat healthy”.
Other people…such as myself….view dieting as a “hobby”,
and embrace the concept and incorparate it into their lives.

Some people avoid sugar and white flour.
Some avoid or restrict most carbohydrates.
Some avoid all processed food.
Other people eat everything in moderation.

Some people eat small frequent meals..as scheduled or as they become hungry.
Others eat only two or three times a day, and avoid snacking between meals.
Some people use fasting as a weight-loss tool.
Some people count calories; some use food exchanges;
and some even count bites.

 To survive and to live, each of us must eat,
and there are many different foods
and eating patterns available to choose from.
Personally, I find it helpful to track all my food
and this is something I find valuable as part of my own plan.

Sometimes people ask what I did to lose the weight,
and I’m happy to tell them.
But that doesn’t mean they can expect the same results,
within the same time frame.
And the way I choose to eat and to live my life
might not be a good fit for them.

The Journey is much longer than many people can imagine
The reality is that it is a life-long journey with no clear destination
except to have a healthy and fulfilling life.
During my own journey, I’ve changed directions many times.
I think it’s helpful to read all that you can
so you can better understand the process;
And ask questions.
The only dumb question is the one never asked.
Do not be afraid to fall flat on your face.
I have learned the most in my life through my mistakes.

What I have discovered is that no one approach is better than another.
Don’t run if you hate running,
Don’t eat cottage cheese if you hate cottage cheese.
Know that we are all truly an experiment-of-one
and what works for me may or may not work for you.

Each of us must live in our individual bodies, during the "game" of life.

 Sometimes we feel stuck.
Stuck in our eating patterns;
stuck in how much we weigh,
stuck in how we feel about ourselves.
This tends to lead us to a feeling of
hopelessness that we can’t seem to shake.

A look at new possibilities can move us
away from that black- and -white thinking
that we have during the times when we feel stuck.

When we start considering possibilities,
we alter our thinking just slightly to consider
that there is a possibility that things could be different,
that other behavioral options can exist for us.

We don’t have to start with an actual change,
just a consideration of a possible change.

When we’re on the sofa, and junk food is calling us by name,
we can choose to eat it, Or, we have the possibility
of making another choice. We can choose to go online,
or take a walk. We canchoose a different activity.

Do we have to? No! 
Do we want to? Maybe No
But there is a part of us that might like
experimenting with doing something different

Will we go online? Will we take a walk?
Perhaps, if we know the possibility of doing it exists.
No pressure, no rules, just internally giving ourselves an option.

If weight-loss success is our goal,
we have options, and those options give us
a variety of different paths to get there.

Weight-loss and maintenance of that weight-loss
depends on our food-intake and exercise,
which involves the physical process of weight-loss.

There is also a mental side to successful weight-loss,
and people talk a lot about motivation,
which is a way where we can be driven
to start a weight-loss plan and stick to it.

However, the basis of the ability to see a weight-loss
process through is Faith...or what one believes. 

Faith is an underlying force which gives strength to succeed
in changing our bodies.  It is also the driving force
we need to make changes in any area.

At the beginning of a diet,
we need to have faith that we will succeed.
Otherwise we can't really get going.

No one tries something without at least a litle belief
in his or her ability to achieve their goals.
We don't need to be certain of our success,
but we do need to have faith that it is in our ability to achieve it.

Wanting to lose weight is a good start,
but we then it's time for a decision.
We need to choose one plan over another,...even if it is for a limited time...
and put faith in someone, or in some system.
In the end we have to trust someone and something.

There is a saying: "When the Going Get's Tough,
the Tough Get Going", but it isn't the tough that keep going,
it's those people with Faith.

Unless we have faith, we are likely to fall apart
and retreat wheever we face a difficulty.
And difficulties will come, they can't be avoided.

Weight-loss depends on making lifestyle changes and breaking old habits.
It is like swimming against the current of the river or the ocean.
It is much easier to keep doing the things we are used to doing,
regardless of the impact on our bodies and our health.

A few suggestions to help find faith are:

Remember our past successes.
This isn't the first time we have achieved something,
either in school, at work, or in our personal lives.
If we have achieved something in our past,
there's no reason why we can't lose weight.

None of us is THAT different.
Other people find ways to lose weight and keep it off,
and so can we. We aren't that different or that much weaker
than many other people.

Take a blind leap.
In a way, not doing anything is failing.
Not doing anything is failing to make a change.
Sometimes we just need to take a leap of faith,
to try something out and hope for the best.

Faith isn't something we're born with.
It is something we develop over time.
Each of us has the power to change ourselves
to be someone who has faith in themselves.

Ultimately, what matters is what we, ourselves, believe.