motd Friday Sept 16, 2011

[Guest guest]

HALF-TIME

Friday, 16 September 2011

Well, whaddya know? Football season is

back! Now I have to tell you, my brother, Lenny was

the true sports buff in our family. When he was in

college, he was even the team manager for New

Orleans' Tulane University football team.

I never really understood football that

much but there is one thing about the sport I do understand. Half-time!

And when he wasn't working with the squad of players

at Tulane, Lenny would be parked in front of the TV

watching some other football game. You can imagine

how thrilled I was. "Hey,

Lenny, you're making me miss I

Love Lucy!"

I never really understood the sport that much but

there is one thing about football I do understand.

And that's half-time!

Oh, I know...it's when both teams head for their

locker rooms to get that big pep talk from the

coach. But it's also when the stampede begins...the

stampede toward the concession stands, that is.

It's like a scene from Day of

the Locust! Thousands of people swarm the

concession counters buying up hot dogs, slices of

pizza, buffalo wings and the biggest cup of

Coca-Cola they can get their hands on! Oh yes, the

joy of half-time. (Burp!)

Now that leads me to this. I receive a lot of

E-mail from people writing to tell me they're at

half-time, that is, the half-way

point to reaching their weight-loss goals.

Let me tell you about one of those people. Her name

is a.

a started out needing to lose 100 pounds and

she's lost 50 pounds so far. Of course, that means

she has another 50 pounds to lose before reaching

her goal. Yep, it's half-time for

a.

I was so proud and happy for her. I congratulated

a and gave her the accolades she deserved for

the great job she'd done so far. But I had to talk

about her plans for losing those second 50 pounds.

I shared with her a coupla stories of people who

were at the same point in their weight-loss

journey where she was now. See, I didn't want a

repeating any of the mistakes some of those people

had made.

"I've lost 50 pounds and half-way to my

goal. So, hey, I can afford to have a dessert

today. I've earned it."

Their problem was, after getting half-way to their

goals, they made the mistake of becoming overconfident.

They'd say things to themselves like, "Oh,

look at me! I've lost 50 pounds and I'm half-way

to my goal. So, hey, I can afford to have a

dessert today. I've earned it." So they'd

have dessert, just that "one day" or...so they

thought. Just a few days later, they'd end up

deciding to have dessert again.

And oh yeah, since they'd been so successful so far,

they decide it's okay to go out for dinner every now

and then, too. (Trouble brewing here!)

I told a that some of these people begin their

half-times by picking up some of the same bad eating

habits that got them into trouble in the first

place. And because of that, they ended up gaining

back 20 pounds, 30 pounds or even all of

the weight they'd worked so hard to lose.

I made it clear to a that my intent was not to

scare her. I simply wanted to make her aware of the

mistakes some of those people at the half-way point

had made in the past. I did not want her repeating

their mistakes.

Your life is so much improved at the

half-way point. So just think how much better

you're going to feel after going all the

way and

reaching your goal!

Those of you who may be in a's position know how

much better you already feel.

Go ahead and admit it. You're breathing better,

have more energy, you're looking better and feeling

better about

yourself. Now, if your life is this much improved

at the half-way point, just think how much better

you're going to feel after going all the way and

reaching your goal!

a promised me that she would stay focused and

keep her confidence in check. She also promised to

write every couple of weeks to let me know how she's

doing. (I'll be

expecting those good-news updates from you,

a!)

In the meantime, my brother Lenny, who, himself, has

had some great weight-loss success still attends a

big football game every now and then back in New

Orleans. But at half-time, he knows better than to

grab a hamburger and fries. He spends half-time

talking with friends before the second half of the

game. (Way

to go, Lenny!)

Hey, I may even check out a football game or two on

TV this season. And I'll be thinking about my

brother watching his favorite team play when we were

growing up back in New Orleans. (Go Saints!)

Think of me as your coach.

In the meantime, it's only half-time and it's time

to start up the second half. Think of me as your

coach. I want you to get back out on that field and

prove that you can win this game!

Let's go, team! I know you can

score that winning touchdown and...reach your

goal!

Love,