Planned Positivity

 Today, I'm going to share an unorthodox weight loss plan.  A mostly unintentional weight loss plan, to be exact. It depends largely on a human trait we all share and most of us try to hide.  Laziness.  If you ask around, what you find is that the average person who has gained unwanted weight will tell you the same story as everyone else: they ate junk food. Prepackaged, processed junk. Why? Because it was easy and it was there. Not because they really liked it. Just because it was there.  How to avoid this trap?  Well, duh. Cooking! From scratch.  Consider the humble pizza. Takeout or grocery store pizza is much the same- acquire box, heat, eat. No challenges there.  A pizza from scratch? That's a horse of a different stripe: make the dough, chop the veggies, make the sauce, bake the whole thing.  Now there's a a barrier to entry, no?  Is that pizza really worth all that effort? I don't know about you, but a salad is suddenly sounding a good alternative.  How about gen

 And here we all are. The third week of January, and most of us have fallen off the resolutions bandwagon. I certainly did. What happened? Well, a lot of people made resolutions they didn't want to make. They made resolutions based on what everyone else seemed to be doing- public declarations of the intention to lose weight, get out of debt, be more mindful. Those make wonderful, inspiring Instagram posts.  But what if you happen to like chips in front of the TV more than you like the gym? Guess what's going to come out on top? What if you like your daily six dollar latter more than having a credit card balance of zero? Again, you'll find yourself with a latte in hand making a minimum payment on your card. It's basic human nature.  Quit fighting yourself. If exercise is one of the levels of Hell for you and the thought of going to a gym makes you want to curl up in a ball and hide, DON'T GO.         Really. Don't. Forcing yourself to do things you really hate is

Look. It's a bright day, sun streaming through the window in our office. (And the plants are doing pretty darn good considering it's December!) It's been a productive day so far. No disasters or even small dramas. Everything is in the wins column.  Yay!  Right. Fuck off.  Yeah, that's what I said. That's the mood I'm in. Another fantastic no-reason-for-this-crap mood swing! Here's a good idea: write a post for a blog called Planned Positivity while you feel like a negative creep. Actually, that's a bloody great idea. Know why? BECAUSE DAYS LIKE TODAY ARE WHAT IT'S ABOUT.  I don't have a magical system that allows people to avoid bad days. I have a system that gets you through them with a minimum of trauma and fuss. For instance, left to my own devices I would be eating a bag of Doritos and a can of Monster for lunch. But instead I'm having chick pea curry which has the benefits of actual nutritional value and not feeling ill afterwards. How d

Stock photo (Please excuse that click-baitiest of titles. I couldn't help myself.) It's a cold and blustery Wednesday morning. I'm not a fan of cold and a bit worried about the freezing rain forecast for my commute home. I'm writing this post on a small plugged into a narrow space between a stack of tasks I don't really want to do.  I'm sitting at my desk smiling my face off. Why? Endorphins, my friend. Endorphins and dopamine! Was I doing drugs?  Hell no. I will admit I feel a tiny bit high and have for the past two days.  How did I achieve this state of mild nirvana? I exercised.  That's it. A half weight training circuit. Thirty minutes of fun in exchange for days of mood stability. It's almost as if people weren't designed to be sedentary.  What else has happened since my work out session? Let's see... I'm clearheaded and focused and I get shit done. Partly that's because I have clarity and I can remember what to do.  It's in the

 Sounds easy, right? Have a dream, set a goal, smash it.  Hardly ever works out that way, does it? You get as far as setting a goal, and then you trip. Your goal of getting in shape falls to quarantine couch potato-itis. Your goal of going on holiday fell to bad shopping habits. Your goal of learning to play guitar went down in flames against the temptation of a series of Netflix binge sessions.  How do you avoid the trap?  Break it down. The goal is too big to take on all at once. If you decide your goal is to run a marathon once we're all safe and vaccinated, you need to get off the couch first. If you just pop up and go for a 10K jog, that'll be the end of your journey because tomorrow you will hurt so much you'll convince yourself it's not worthwhile.  Aim for getting where you want to go without blowing your motivation (or your knees!). The best approach? Small steps.  Instead of that exhausting 10k run, try a ten minute walk.  Pick a time for that walk, and schedu

[Warning: this blog will contain foul language. I use the right word for the job.]   Hey there!  I'm so happy you've found my little corner of the web. Now that you're here, grab a cup of tea and pull up a spot on the couch. We've got plans to make, and this is important brainstorming my friend.  We're going to improve our lives. Yeah, I know. Everybody's promising that these days. 15 Yoga Poses That Will Make You Flexible And Super Rich! Eat These 3 Foods to Achieve Nirvana and Levitate! (I'm exaggerating a little, but you get my point.)  But I have a system that works. I've been testing it for many years and it's taken me from being a miserable disorganized negative creep to a (mostly!) happy, confident and positive human. I find myself fielding messages from friends looking for advice on the subjects of organization and attitude adjustment, which frankly shocks the hell out of me. I'm going to call myself an expert for no better reason than th