Venus Index

  We all deal with insecurities with our bodies; even after we achieve our goals This podcast with John and Nicola was extremely helpful to me regarding emotional issues that I’m currently dealing with. Sometimes I have a huge disconnect between how I see myself and how others see me. My husband Randy says I look perfect right now, but I tend to see myself as bigger than I once was, even though I lost 60 pounds!   Your body is your power house Randy sees me as a whole person. When he sees my shape, he sees the whole shape and he does not nitpick at the parts like I do. When he hears me talk about my body he gets frustrated and tells me that I’m not looking at the whole picture or that my overall shape is beautiful. He also sees how I work and use my body as the power house in all that I do.   Comparison is the thief of joy I am constantly comparing myself to when I was at my leanest which was immediately after I’d achieved my Venus goals. My leanest is not a realistic body fat level to live my life especially as a female. At my leanest (10% body fat) I was able to create some great fitness model looking pictures. But this is sometimes a drawback for me as I tend to compare myself to them. I am almost 53 years old and I don’t live my life prancing around in a bikini and high heels, at 10% body fat, and water manipulated!  It’s just not a practical comparison. It's as bad as any of us who compare ourselves to all the fitness model pictures of girls who were ripped for a few nano seconds in time AND had their pictures enhanced with photoshop, AND we have NO IDEA what methods were taken to get their bodies in that kind of shape. Even my own pictures were only a moment in time that took weeks to prepare for.   I did not see anything special in the picture I took this silly locker room picture because I was happy that the new jeans and T-shirt felt good and brought back fun memories of my recent vacation with my dear friend Carla. We had gone clothes shopping together and she helped me pick these out. The reactions I got from the picture were a turning point for me.  I  did not see anything special in this picture.  In fact what I saw were arms that are too bulky,  a torso that is too thick, and in my mind I pictured the fat on my legs and butt that I don’t like.  You are supposed to have some fat on your body! I wasn’t wearing makeup so I didn’t take off my prescription sunglasses that I had worn for work outside.  I just wanted to take the picture so I could post it for Carla and let her know I was thinking of her and the fun we had going shopping the day I’d purchased these clothes.   Sometimes you need to listen to the truthful positive feedback After I posted the picture on Facebook and MyFitnessPal I was brought to tears by the comments and compliments. It was a turning point. Even though we can’t base our happiness on compliments and what others think, it is nice to get positive attention on occasion. I’m only human and this makes me feel good sometimes. Not only was it nice, but it spoke to me on a deep level about how I was viewing myself. Something was wrong and I needed to take action.   You can have fitness goals and still decide to feel good about your body Even if I have a short term goal of getting back to my pre-summer vacation shape I can feel good about my shape now. I can focus on the strength and health improvements that I've already achieved. I can focus on feeling good about the actions I am taking today to achieve my short term goals. My goal is not to get back to 10% body fat and that is okay too. I can decide to be happy anywhere in my healthy body fat range and it does not matter what anyone else thinks.   What can you do about it? You can tend to analyze your parts, not the whole. You can tend to look at your body parts as something that is an object, not part of you. There is social pressure for a variety of reasons.

Today we are honored to listen to Carlie Akerman who placed second in the Eighth Venus Index Transformation Contest.       Read what Carlie wrote about her experience with the Venus Factor: My name is Carlie Ackerman and I am 29 years old. I discovered and began the Venus at the end of March this year. Health and fitness has been an enormous part of my life for many years now. I’ve been training in many different ways and experimenting with diet and methods of reaching my goals to the best of my ability. However I was never quite satisfied with the results and felt that physically I could push myself harder with the correct help and advice. I found Venus through ‘Eat Stop Eat’ where I began to use fasting as part of my weight loss programme. When I begin the Venus workouts, I found it not only exciting and educating but also it made me feel great! The high intensity, variety of exercises and change in my body made it addictive and I wanted to succeed. It was when I began to get results that I decided to compete. I have always been a healthy and conscious eater but that was something I also stepped up with Venus. I found that I became hungrier the more I trained but I continued to eat sensibly and appropriately in order to gain the best results with my training. I did not look at my before pictures until just this week. When I saw them I couldn’t quite believe how I had changed. The Venus has become a huge part of my life. For the first time in my life I have felt happy and comfortable in my own body and even more passionate about fitness then ever. Thanks to The Venus Index I am happy being me and very proud of my achievements. Many Thanks, Carlie Ackerman     Listen to Carlie's interview here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

Today we are honored to listen to Kerry Zeilinger who placed fourth in the Eighth Venus Index Transformation Contest.             Read what Kerry wrote about her experience with the Venus Factor: In 2006, I took a position as a traveling consultant.  For the first year I was in the position, I  ate my meals like I was on a permanent vacation.  I gained 40 pounds in 1 year.  I was miserable at  that weight and knew I had to change how I travel.  I was still traveling so it was my attitude and  perception that had to change. I made progress by the time I came to Venus but I was not doing the amount of strength training that  I needed to really scorch and sculpt my body.  My progress was extremely slow over the course of  years.  I was happy the weight was coming off but unhappy with the shape of my body.  I would always  say ‘Well I travel for a living’.  This is just once more excuse to add to the millions we hear every  day. I decided that I was tired of making travel my excuse to getting to my desired body.  I really wasn’t  sure I would be able to speed up the process but I was going to give it my all.  Now that I have been  through the transformation, I realize traveling has advantages and disadvantages. I love the Circuits and I think they actually fit my workout personality.  This meant I would stick  with strength training longer than I ever have.  I combined the Circuits with High Interval Intensity Training and Steady State cardio.  I  really think this was MY answer.  Part of it was having the deadline.  But, I also think my  perceptions have changed quite a bit since learning of Venus Index, Eat Stop Eat, and Anything Goes Diet.  The support on the  community is spectacular.  I don’t post as often as I like but I always know there will be support  and truly honest opinions when I need the truth.     Listen to Kerry's interview here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

We all deal with distorted body image to some extent.  I've found that opening up to friends about it really helps as well as listening to how others I trust view me.  It all gets better over time.   We just keep working on being the best we can be; mind, body, and spirit.   What can you do about having a distorted body image? What causes someone to not see themselves as they are? What causes people to not appreciate themselves? Do we all struggle with distorted body image to some extent? What is the difference between negative motivation and positive motivation? What makes a person have sabotaging behavior? Sometimes we are our own worst critic. Will talking about how you feel help? Is it possible for you remove the emotional baggage associated with your body? You can turn this into a positive mindset that works for you. Find your own positive, self loving, self talk that is motivating for you. Opening up to others can help.   Nicola and John talk about what to do to about having a distorted body image. Dr. Nicola Bird Nicola's Online Program Listen to John's interview with Dr. Nicola Bird here, and please “like” it when you’re done:  

Today we are honored to listen to Lorraine Gearhart who placed tenth in the Eighth Venus Index Transformation Contest.         Read what Lorraine wrote about her experience with the Venus Factor: How great can it be to become a Venus? More importantly, how can you get there without having to do  the impossible? In my case, the Venus transformation promises seemed literally too good to be true. I've got siblings  who are crippled with osteoporosis, overweight, who've literally thrown in the towel on ever getting  themselves in any kind of shape ever again. I want to inspire them, I could see the incentives before  me. I've got a loving husband who celebrates any achievement I make, and I sure didn't want to arrive at  age 60 with a hunched back and no bone density. Of course, it's rarely that easy. Getting nutrition  and training down to a science, well sure, but you need to balance that against being self-employed  and having a hundred obligations outside of simply improving and shaping a physique. A real balancing act, complete with having parents into and out of the hospital ICU, a million other  obligations, and a need to stay motivated and focused at all times. That said, we're celebrating a  real success, since in a mere 12 weeks I've managed to shed excess fat, shape up to more ideal  proportions, and add a good bit of lean mass. Can I strut down the runway with girls half my age? Maybe. It's only been 12 weeks after all. More  importantly, have I gained in health, have I achieved proper proportion, do people notice it and  complement me on it every day. OH, YEAH, BABY!!! Never have I EVER experienced the sheer amount of positive comments and reinforcement I've seen in  the last month! People spontaneously talk to me about fitness, try to guess my age – delightful! Not  to mention, my Adonis really likes the changes I've made!     Listen to Lorraine's interview here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

Today we are honored to listen to Daphne Dyson who placed ninth in the 8th Venus Index Transformation Contest.       Read what Daphne wrote about her experience with the Venus Factor: The Venus lifestyle: diet to lose fat, workout to gain beauty and strength. Simple, uncluttered, fits into my life, I don't have to fit my life in around my diet. I no longer quietly dread that future moment when I give up trying to lose weight anymore, because I cannot keep up with the recommended 3 mini-meals + 3 snacks. With a large family I just do not  have that much time to plan out all those meals and snacks; when I tried to do so, inevitably I ended up overeating. Now, if I want to eat well with my family, I can. Then I quietly reduce my calories at other times, to keep within my weekly calorie budget. This is so different from the conventional way of looking at dieting as a daily thing! With Venus Factor, there is an end to dieting, and soon I will be able to afford to eat more calories with pleasure and freedom. I am on this journey toward weight loss and strength and it is doable, and I now know deep down that maintaining will be doable too, once I reach my goals. Aspiring to achieve my personal golden proportions gives me a concrete, measurable goal to work toward; the scale is no longer the only way to see if I am going to be more or less attractive while working so hard in the gym! Do I expect to achieve those numbers perfectly, especially the waist measurement? Well, no, I have had 10 kids after all! I love Venus for the straightforward, scientifically-supported simplicity; do hard work in the gym this way, cut calories as is best for your body and lifestyle, and results will come. Finding ESE and Venus Index have been life-changing for me.  Entering a transformation contest is something I've only thought about for a long time, that I did not have my diet under control was THE factor that held me back, and having the Golden Ration metrics gave me a wonderful look/goal to strive for. I give you all my heart-felt gratitude for putting all your experience and  science-based information into a program that is straight-forward, and doable for the rest of my  life!  I hope Venus/Adonis continue to prosper, so that others can change their own lives, as my  family and I have! Warmly, Daphne Dyson   Listen to Daphne's interview here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

  Can food be a reward? Should food be used as a reward or punishment? Why do we say "I deserve this" for a food treat? Will some of this behavior make healthy eating seem like deprivation? Eating well is taking care of yourself and nourishing yourself.   Is rewarding yourself with food an excuse? Is rewarding yourself with food opening yourself for overindulge? How do you feel after reward yourself with food?   It is seductive and dangerous. Are you seeing your fitness program as a punishment? Or is your program a gift to yourself?   It should be. exercising is caring for yourself. Do the best you can for yourself. I deserve to be fit. I deserve to be healthy. It is a daily practice. Nicola and John talk about what to do to change your mindset if you need to. Dr. Nicola Bird Nicola's Online Program Listen to John's interview with Dr. Nicola Bird here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

Today we are honored to listen to Lori Aquino who placed fifth in the 8th Venus Index Transformation Contest.         Read what Lori wrote about her experience with the Venus Factor: What do you say about a program that every day, several times a day, has forced others to take notice of you? And boy, have people noticed. Wow! How do I handle all their ‘noticing’? I have a co-worker who, no matter what results I get, will completely do another program to prove that weight loss can happen on her terms. She has often attempted to sabotage me with food. And another who was in shape and one time and knows what she needs to do…complains about it but will never do it. These two sat one on each side of me during this whole contest. That was a challenge in itself! I called them the snack queens. They eat out of boredom and it was hard to remind myself that I was shooting for a bigger goal; ME and MY health. However, I did have two other co-workers who noticed and joined the program. (I check in on them often and they love it too!) As well as several members who told me how wonderful I looked and that I should be proud. If only they could do it? Of course, I told them that they could and all about Venus. The ‘noticing’ has ranged from praise to concern to others attempting to sabotage me. Wow! However, my favorite notice has been from my teenage daughters. My middle daughter saw my legs one day and was like, “Mom, you are wearing shorts and you have better looking legs than I do!”  God bless her!     Listen to Lori's interview here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

Today we are honored to listen to Julie Johansen who placed first in the 8th Venus Index Transformation Contest.         Read what Julie wrote about her experience with the Venus Factor: Though not heavy as a youth, upon reaching adulthood my weight started creeping up to where I found myself as much as 100 pounds overweight. Twice I successfully lost large amounts of weight, but, unknowingly, my calories were still too high. So it involved increasingly more and more hours of my day spent in exercising in order to continue to see any pounds coming off. I felt guilty and narcissistic for spending so much time on myself instead of my family and work, and would eventually give up, putting the weight back on and more. Finding Venus solved this problem for me. It was a huge eye opener to learn that calorie control is the real key to fat loss and the workouts are to give me the hourglass shape that I had previously assumed were only for the genetically blessed. Since I got the habit of working out down pat early on, I focused more attention on strictly keeping to the weekly calorie budget. While I’m still a work in progress, I love that the exercises target the areas that make women look good! For mental motivation I turned to the online community for encouragement and answers to questions. I learned that perfection is not possible for me and that when I feel that I have “blown it,” then I simply STOP, do damage control and tell myself that I am not a failure, just a “delayed success” and promptly get right back on track, with fewer and fewer setbacks as time goes on. With consistent effort, my progress is assured now that I’m experiencing how to effectively manage my three big “M’s”: my mouth, my muscles and my mind. I feel so appreciative that Venus has given me the truth and the tools to make these changes permanent!     Listen to Julie's interview here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

What can you do about closet eating? Overeating usually happen in two major situations: 1) When you are influenced socially. 2) When you are alone. Today we will focus when you are alone.  You are facing yourself.  This is a moment with an opportunity to learn or face why you might overeat.  What can you do about this? This is a vulnerable time.  It's a common theme to hide and eat.  People do this because they don't want to be seen or face the shame of being overweight.  It increases a vicious circle.  Shame is usually driving the emotion.  It is a very painful place.  You can be stuck in this unhappy and shameful place. The goal would be to eat in a similar way whether you are eating alone or in a social setting. What is the first step in getting away from shame in secretive eating? Admit it.  Get out of denial about it. Then you can face it. You are not alone in this.  Find a friend or someone you can trust.  Write a journal. Nicola and John talk about what to do about closet eating. Dr. Nicola Bird Nicola's Online Program Listen to John's interview with Dr. Nicola Bird here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

  Emotional Eating vs Emotional OVER-Eating Everyone emotionally eats.  Sometimes it happens like clockwork.  It might be from certain events that cause stress. The thing to remember is that the stress and the need to want to eat a treat that makes you feel good; it is a moment.   Let yourself have the moment. You do not have to keep eating to the point of overeating.  Slow down.  Take a moment to enjoy the food. Have the chocolate.  Pay attention.  Give yourself the permission to have that chocolate and then just have it.  You can always have more again next time. Do not deny it.  It needs to be factored in.  Plan on it.  Know it is going to happen. Remind yourself that you can have it again. Be mindful of the emotion at the time.  You have not do beat yourself up about it.  You can contain it.  You can learn to manage the moments. Every human being has these cravings and urges.  It doesn't mean there is something wrong with you.  It does not mean you have to give up your goals.  Factor in that you are human. Give yourself some flexibility. Dr. Nicola Bird Nicola's Online Program Listen to John's interview with Dr. Nicola Bird here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

  Identify Emotional Eating Do you think that you're overeating or eating high caloric food simply because you happen to "like" food or have a "sweet tooth"? That's a common mistaken belief. It's more likely that you are overeating because of your emotions. Emotional eating is not restricted to people who are out of control bingers. Whenever you are eating for reasons other than hunger, it is your emotions that are driving your behavior, not "love" of food or your "sweet tooth." Learn how you can identify this drive to eat for reasons other than physical hunger and take charge of it. Dr. Nicola Bird Nicola's Online Program Listen to John's interview with Dr. Nicola Bird here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

How a Type 1 Diabetic Lost 40 Pounds and Improved Her Health Using The Venus System Today we have an interview with Molly Carbone. Since January she has lost over 40lbs on the Venus system, but the even more impressive thing is as a type 1 diabetic she has cut her insulin dose in half and cut her blood sugar down to a level she could never get to before. Molly's story is proof that Venus can work for you even if you have something like diabetes. Listen to Molly's story and hear how she dropped the weight, and got control of her body and her health.     Listen to Molly's story below and learn how she dropped the weight and improved her health:

The Perfectionist Mindset Do you think that you always need to be better? That you're often not happy -- at least for long -- with what you have achieved? This is the perfectionism mindset: when nothing is enough for very long. Perfectionism often derails and sabotages success. Find out how you can overcome perfectionism.... Dr. Nicola Bird Nicola's Online Program Listen to John's interview with Dr. Nicola Bird here, and please “like” it when you’re done:

Today we are honored to listen to Dom who placed seventh in the 7th Venus Index Transformation Contest.   Check out her beautiful transformation pictures:       Read what Dom wrote about her experience with the Venus Factor: Finally, this is something that works for me. As a work at home mom of 2 kids younger than 2, I was looking for something simple but real. Not just a quick fix, but a way of life that would fit into my life. I found that in the Venus index. I like that there is science behind it, it is not just a fad or trend, I can approach it on my terms. And most of all, it works! Prior to joining the VI community I exercised exclusively OUT of the house. I thought I needed to GO someplace to be motivated by someone. VI has shown me that I can do this by myself, for myself. I can integrate this into my life right here at home and I can shape it to fit my needs. The principles of Eat Stop Eat really resonated with me and I love that the workouts are all laid out for you to follow. Never having been a part of an online community prior to this I have been blown away by the amount of support on the forum. I am proud to call my Venus sisters my friends and I have been so grateful for their support 24/7 via the community and privately. Bottom line, this is the first program I have followed through with long term. I am learning to integrate it into my life slowly, and while I am not all the way to my VI metrics yet, I am working towards it at a pace that has me confident that this is a new way of life for me! One of the things was how much I appreciate that this program is a way of life and that it has given me the tools--through both the programs (ESE and VI factor workouts) and the community, to control what I can control. Between working, raising two little girls, taking care of my house and family, it is hard to carve out "me" time.  In the past this would snowball because I would be frustrated when I missed a workout and then eat more, and then I would be discouraged from eating more and not want to exercise.  Of course, then it would become this vicious cycle and before I knew it days would have past where I ate more than I wanted too, didn't exercise, felt bad, blahblahblah.  It would all change next week, next month, next year, as soon as I got through whatever the next big hurdle was THEN I would start over.  I’m sure this is familiar to so many of us! I have found this program so sustainable because it is just one day at a time, one step at a time.  If I eat too much today, I eat less tomorrow.  Better yet if I eat too much this morning, instead of blowing the whole day, I just eat less later on. To take it one step beyond that, I can plan ahead and if I KNOW I want to eat too much tomorrow or next week, or later today because I have plans, I can plan ahead and eat less NOW in preparation.  Similarly, I work out when I can and if I can't make time today I will make some tomorrow. By making this a way of life instead of a means to an end, I have let go a little and in doing that I have actually gained more control.     Listen to Dom's interview here, and please “like” it when you’re done: