People choose various ways to either lose weight fast or temporarily change different parts of their lives with quick fixes such as:  Viagra to enhance your love life, fat burn pills, water pills, or following the fad diets such as Atkins, South Beach, Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem or Weight Watchers.

Many people that are out of shape also use interesting ways to mask their trouble spots.  Two of my favorites are:

1.      The long shirt method…used to hide the muffin top for women and the spare tire for men

2.      Spanx/bodyshapers…they serve a great purpose sometimes, but when worn under short skirts or fitted tops, too often are accidentally displayed, not only showing they are being worn, but what they are attempting to cover as well

The issue is, at the end of the day when you come home, you won’t be hiding your body in the long shirt or squeezing it together with a pair of Spanx.  Wouldn’t it be better to just make up your mind that NOW IS THE TIME TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE ONCE AND FOR ALL!!!

One major lesson to learn on the path to healthier living is what I term the first commandment of nutrition:

 “Thou shall eat breakfast!” 

In addition to understanding proper nutrition, we know that it’s imperative to exercise a minimum of once or twice each week, preferably 3-5 times per week.  This doesn’t mean just going through the motions, but actually learning what your body needs in order to undo the damage from bad habits and unhealthy living. 

At Next Level we teach you how to get fit, look lean and toned, and stay that way with proper nutritional guidance and about 3 hours of exercise per week.  I’m going to show you a typical week for many of us:

• There are 168 hours in one week. 
• The average person gets 7 hours of sleep per night or 49 hours per week, leaving 119 hours.
• The average American works 46 hours per week, leaving 73 hours.
• The average commute to work is 26 minutes per day, or approximately 4 hours per week, leaving 69 hours.
• Let’s use 40 hours per week to share between spending time with your significant other, children, pets, cooking, laundry and cleaning, leaving 29 hours.
• With the remaining 29 hours, we need time to eat, workout, run errands, see our friends, shower and prepare for each day.  We might want to watch a game or tv show, play a round of golf, catch a movie, or many other activities that we try to make time for.

HOW ARE YOU SPENDING YOUR 29 HOURS??

The point is, when it comes down to it, every moment of our day seems to be full and often it is spent taking care of others.  It’s important to remember that it’s okay to be selfish sometimes, even if only for 3-5 hours per week.  Having this time to do something positive for yourself will be reflected in every other aspect of your life.

As you begin your journey to healthier living, you will look and feel better, you will become more comfortable with yourself, have more energy, and not experience the emotional ups and downs that can be caused by dieting.  This is not about diet, but lifestyle change…a completely new way of life.

Many studies show that exercise can increase your libido by producing endorphins (feel good hormones), increasing your energy and stamina, and giving you more self-confidence, leading one to be less inhibited or self-conscious.  Those late night headaches may start to go away, replaced by activities that may be more fun and help you sleep better--LOL--.

At Next Level, we strive to change lives, give you a new outlook, and have fun in the process.  If you’re ready to make this change, I’m here to teach you THE SOLUTION.

-Phillip Penza

The Solution