… And there it is… “Ehhh …ehhh …ehhh”… Its 3am once again as evidenced by the penetrating monotone, rusty nail on the chalkboard screeching sound. That damn three dollar electric alarm clock from Radio Shack, bought back in 1998 (note to self: time to get one of those cool Feng Shui Zen clocks that supposedly wake you gently wake you up over time). Have to get moving; don’t want to be late for my personal training client at 4am. No worries girl; grit it out and stay focused…be dedicated.

Time for me to get to the computer and check all the emails since last night asking the same thing: “How do I tone my core?” Maybe these people should just ask me for the winning Trifecta of the 5th race at Del Mar racetrack. I would probably give them a better answer. Still, they insist on doing as they always do; take my sincere advice about diet and training and make it look like one of those Steve Martin arrows through their heads as I sense it go in one ear and out the other. Why ask for advice if you are just not going to follow it?

Maybe I’m just grumpy, or maybe it’s the bland chicken I am washing down with plain cold broccoli, but as I watch the cable news channels I see it all again: reports of restaurants proudly proclaiming “Zero Trans Fats” and commercials screaming that you should “Get your daily recommended allowance of Calcium from Ice Cream!”

I give up watching TV and decide to go online, instead.

As I read through different websites, I keep seeing all these food diaries posted by women who desperately want to get in shape, lose weight, get toned…however I notice a trend: women posting their daily meal plans consisting of sugary juice, pizza and nightly muffins! I’m sorry to break it to you but the only thing you are going to get by eating muffin bottoms is a muffin top!

All you have to do, is take a look at the diets of bodybuilders, figure and fitness girls. There are thousands of them...and each one looks incredible! Just read the diets they post. Chicken breasts, eggs, cottage cheese, tuna, and protein powder are staples; along with some EFA’s and carbs from oats, brown rice or rice cakes. Look at how detailed their diets are; right down to the exact weight and caloric break down of everything they take in for the entire day.

Does the “I eat because I am unhappy, and I am unhappy because I eat” crowd really not see any discrepancy here? Or are they purposely trying to be like the horse with the blinders on, headed straight for the dangling carrot in front of its face, just like in that cartoon; going in the wrong direction, totally ignoring the advice of the trainer/jockey. Oh the horse was motivated as heck and eager to jump out of the starting gates like a rocket, only it lost its focus and strayed off course.

Just as I find it hard to swallow cold broccoli at 4am, I find this whole eat what you want and get in shape mentality equally difficult to masticate. Yes, I said masticate…get your mind out of the gutter. As my gag reflex (stop it already) kicks in, I’m reminded of a story: Indiana Jane and the Temple of Fried Ice Cream.

There once was a very sweet, pretty lady named Jane. She had every reason to be happy, except one. You see, Jane was overweight—obese, actually. She tried everything to lose the weight...but it just wasn’t happening!

She’s been on every diet at least twice, but no matter how motivated she was starting out, she just never lasted for more than a couple of weeks. Once she’d start to make poor food choices again, she would regain the couple of pounds she worked oh-so-hard to lose...and now it was beginning to get tougher working up the motivation to start over yet again!

Jane didn’t want to be fat! She just no longer knew what to do to lose the weight. She blamed it on her genetics, her kids, and finally...her thyroid condition. It obviously wasn’t her fault the weight wouldn’t budge! I mean she really was motivated every single time she started on a diet...if it weren’t for all those factors beyond her control, she’d surely have been a tiny lil’ thing right now! You know—look like one of those figure girls, winning all her competitions!

Yes, that’s how motivated she was.

Once, after coming across some photos of such figure competitors on the internet, she decided to do more research to find out more about them. Jane had to prove to herself that they were indeed genetically gifted individuals! She’d feel better knowing that none of them had the issues she’s struggling with. Surely, none of them have kids. And naturally, none were ever overweight at all!

The results of her research left her flabbergasted. Jane was even more depressed and at a loss upon learning that many of these figure girls are in actuality mothers, and plenty are over 40 years of age! She even found that a few looked twenty years younger on stage than they did just five years ago, when they were over 100 pounds overweight!

The sadness came over her. She felt herself drowning in a sea of despair, getting swept further away from her goals with each dark wave of chocolate she devoured.

So...blaming the kids is out. Thyroid—plenty have gotten over that, as well. If others have been able to lose hundreds of pounds prior to getting on stage...what was stopping her? She needed to find out. It was finally time for a journey so out of character she wasn’t sure she would ever be the same again.

Jane declared that day to be the day she finally conquered the secret of the temple and defeated the enemies causing her to stray from her intended goals. After a grueling day of work as an archeologist, it was time to once again enter the temple and try to change her fate.

Upon entering into the familiar world, our heroine began dodging waves of ice cream cascading at her from all sides. The mounds of sharp chocolate morsels, and rocky road marshmallows furiously tumbled at her. The frigid cold searing brain freeze she received from being so close numbed her and made it hard to think. They were telling her to stop, relax and enjoy their soothing comfort. Maybe she should just adapt to her shape, take it for what it is? Maybe she could just be one of those “happy” fat people?

The Temple of Fried Ice Cream became increasingly difficult to traverse as night fell. It was now dark; Jane’s vision became uncertain. Should she give up? Should she give in, yet again?

Not our Jane, she would venture on, ever so forcefully moving forward. She reached over and grabbed one of those flaming marshmallow torches she used to munch on; however this time she used it to light the way to freedom. Jane needed to recover the lost secret of the temple and return to her past glory—her former fit body she was once so proud of.

As she pressed on, Jane kept gazing over the photos of these flawless women hanging on the inside of the temple’s walls. The temptation of solid milk chocolate piles and soft serve rainbow sprinkled custard ice cream all around her was overwhelming, and causing her to feel sick. Sick and tired...of all this motivation just not helping her reach her goals at all! She was beyond frustrated. She was angry. Angry...and determined.

Her heart racing, her lunges feeling as though they’re about to explode, Jane felt like screaming... announcing to the entire world of a discovery she just made inside of herself. Having made her way through the precarious maze of cheesecake covered canyons she was finally at the end of the temple, face to face with her arch nemesis – Fried Ice Cream. It held the secret she needed to know. It was a fierce struggle that lasted for what seemed like an eternity. Would Fried Ice Cream again win the battle?

Today was different. It was our heroine’s turning point. Suddenly, Jane was overcome with power emanating from deep within her soul. A profound strength she never knew she had, existed all along. It was impatiently awaiting to be uncovered...determination.

When the smoke and dusty air cleared from within the brick walls, only Jane would be left standing. Proud, with an enormous smile livening up her face, feeling weightless for the first time in ages. Our heroine flew into action, grabbed a heavy duty construction size garbage bag, and went for the refrigerator door.

Out came the frozen TV dinners, the pizza, the sausages...all ten types of cheese, her soda, twinkies, jelly and yes…it was the end for her starch adversary…the Fried Ice Cream. It had put up such a persistent fight for all these years yet it melted into oblivion screaming “Oh cruel fate, why dost thou mock me.” A fateful end it met that day.

Jane was now laughing gallantly. Her mind seemed clear; she suddenly didn’t want any of what she previously could never imagine living without due to “cravings!” CRAVINGS? She kept laughing; she couldn’t begin to imagine letting herself cave into such silly things anymore! She felt superhuman...determined...

This feeling was intoxicating. She was now living her new life. Evil Fried Ice cream had been defeated at long last. From that moment forward, NOT the day after—her new self would never let her wait that long! It was then or never.

Jane proudly signed up with a trainer that day. She got a grocery shopping list off a respected fitness website, and restocked her fridge with chicken, fish, vegetables, and rice. There was now a food scale on her counter, where the enormous basket containing various kinds of breads used to be.

The desire to be regimented was now an engrained part of our heroine. Sticking to an actual plan was the only way she would satisfy that yearning. She could no longer fathom grabbing the first item she laid her eyes upon and starting to eat it out of stress or frustration. Jane had regained her long lost ways, she was now equipped with the secret of the temple. She boasted triumphantly to all her friends and all rejoiced in her success.

I sit here now, two years later, looking at photos of my client Jane on stage. She did it. Just a few months ago, she competed in figure. Lost all her weight, didn’t “fall off the wagon” once. She’s now too determined to let that happen!

Jane reached her goal. There she is, her smile lighting up the stage, her eyes twinkling with pride as she looks at her audience. She’s fully aware of the fact that she is now an inspiration—she is that woman, the one who lost over 100 pounds of weight, standing tall in a barely-there bikini, looking 20 years younger than she did just two years ago.

She battled her demons, the ones inside her—and the ones in her kitchen. She fought with the chocolate and the pasta, the ice cream and the pizza...she WON.

She also learned a crucial lesson. Motivation and Dedication are two totally separate things. Unless a pronounced distinction between them is made, one can never hope to succeed!

Motivation will make you set that alarm and get you out of bed at 4:30am that first morning for cardio. Dedication will keep you getting up at an ungodly hour, day after day, when your body feels numb from the cardio and your legs feel as though they can not take another step.

If you’re only motivated to tone up, you’ll stick to a diet of chicken breasts and brown rice for a week, before complaining that you just need to have Chocolate Cookies...and caving in.

Dedication is when you would rather eat the ass out of a dead donkey than force down the 300th dry chicken breast washed down with water, but you do it anyway—and complaining never even crosses your mind.


Motivation is not enough. You absolutely need to be dedicated. Jane was…Are you?

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