How do you #LiveALittle? | Blog Series | Featured Member: Robert in Topeka, KS

Robert in Topeka, KS

When did you start to #LiveALittle?My journey started on January 15, 2014. I hit the "restart button" as my New Years Resolution. I had begun to eat right and exercise.
Dieting and exercise is not new to me. I have rode that diet roller-coaster many times. I always started out great but I would lose motivation and drive shortly after I started. 6 months ago I came across the #Livealittle project. With this group I found my niche. I learned how to set goals, maintain motivation, and changed my perspective. I have made many new friends that are very positive and supportive.  

What do consider your main accomplishments?
My main accomplishment isn't the weight I have lost or the 5K's and Half marathon I have finished. My main accomplishment is the change in my way of thinking. I learned that I have to #Livealittle for "me" first. I can't change anyone and they can't change me. I have to love myself enough to change. I learned that I am worth something. I am not a fat, ugly and worthless person. I have something to offer. Each and every day I am surprised by the people that tell me I am helping inspire them #Livealittle. People that I had no idea were even paying attention tell me how they have been following my journey.

What does everyone around you notice as 'different'?
The one thing I hear the most is that people have noticed my unrelenting drive and determination. My never quit attitude. Every time I get knocked down I get up again. 

What qualities do you look for in the people you hang out with and allow into your inner circle?
I look for people with positive attitudes. People that genuinely care about others and want to help. People willing to love others and not care what others think. People willing to take time and invest in others to help build them up. You never really know how much of a difference you are making in others lives. 

How would you describe your personal #LiveALittle lifestyle change?
My personal lifestyle change has been to not be afraid. To take the chances and see what happens. To not settle for the status quo.

If you wanted to create an environment where motivation can thrive, what’s the first thing you would do?
I would surround myself with positive self motivated people. A core group that is there to keep each other accountable. People that are going to encourage and motivate you. People who help pick you up when you are down and celebrate you success with you! With a great core of support you can move mountains.

How do you show that you believe in yourself?
I show show that I believe in myself by not settling. My goal this year was to do one 5K. It was outside of my comfort zone but I overcame my fear and did my best. I learned an important lesson that day. I learned that the only thing holding me back was myself. I keep looking for new challenges and strive to better my 5K times. I am never satisfied. I want more. Since my first 5K I have ran six more and I have constantly improved my time and have cut 20 minutes off my time. I have also completed my first half marathon. That is something I would have never dreamed of at the first of the year. Now I am already setting goals to prepare for a full marathon.

Who, Whom, and/or What has influenced you the most?
I have several people that have influenced me but my parents, Joey Little and the #Livealittle project have made the biggest impact. My late dad always told me, "Unless your reach exceeds your grasp, how do you know what you can attain and don't!" My mom has always been my rock. That unwavering love and support for me to never give up. Joey has shown me to change my perspective and never settle. To take chances and look beyond my comfort zone. To love and support others in their journey's. The #Livealittle project has introduced me to several wonderful people that are committed to the #Livealittle philosophy and to help others #livealittle. I love seeing everyone's posted whether it is about a success or failure, a need or encouragement.  

What do you do to challenge yourself when you're not motivated?
I work hard at being consistent. I have formed new habits by sticking with my routine everyday. it has become second nature to me and now I feel lost if I don't exercise.  

When is breaking the #LiveALittle rules okay?
For me, breaking the rules is not okay but you shouldn't beat yourself up if you do. There is no shame in hitting the restart button.

What does 'working on’ yourself mean to you?
This means always striving to do better and be better. To not settle in all aspects of your life. Not just health but in your relationships, career and anywhere else you can think of to #Livealittle.

How and where do you find inspiration?
I keep positive people around me. I have a 12 year old daughter and I want to be healthy for her and to be a good example for her.

Whats the best way to keep your eye on future results or maintaining?
Setting goals. I set short term goals and long term goals. I write them down and post them in several places as a reminder. I have done the same with the #Livealittle rules.

What values are you committed to?
I am committed to being positive and honest. To love myself and others. To show others the love I have and hopefully inspire them to love others.

What dreams and goals inspired you to succeed?
My dreams and goals are constantly changing. My initial goal was to do everything possible to be a good example for my daughter, in health and in life. As my health gets better my dreams get bigger. I have a dream of completing the Boston Marathon, the NY Marathon and an Ironman.

15 Things to Ask Yourself Before the End of the Year | #LiveALittle

15 Things to Ask Yourself Before the End of the Year: 
1. What have been the most exciting wins of your life so far in 2014?
2. What have been the most disappointing moments in your life in 2014?
3. What are you most grateful for so far in 2014?
4. Do you feel you’ve taken a step forward in maximizing your potential thus far in 2014? If so, how?
5. If not, what has prevented you from maximizing your potential and performance in life this year?
6. Is this something that is in your control?
7. What is one powerful change you can make right now that would impact your life almost immediately?
8. Can you make this change now and try operating differently for the rest of 2014, to help you continue the progress into 2015?
9. Is there someone you can call/text/message to help you be accountable for this change?
10. How would making this change set you up differently for 2015?
11. What has been a theme for you in 2014?
12. What would you like your theme to be in 2015? Come up with one or two words at the most.
13. What is the predominant feeling you would like to be having in life for the rest of the year?
14. With that in mind, what is the predominant feeling you would like to have in life in 2015?
15. What are three actions you can take to ensure that you feel that way at work for the next month or so?

How do you #LiveALittle Series? Featured Member: Arch

Your name?   Arch
Location?  Topeka, KS
When did you start to #LiveALittle (make the changes)?  Aug 2013

What do consider your main accomplishments?  The weight loss is clearly the most visible, but lowering my blood pressure, getting taken off diabetes medication, and learning to stop abusing myself with words and actions are the greatest accomplishments. 

What does everyone around you notice as 'different'? They obviously notice the outward physical change, but my overall demeanor has improved as well, and those who know me best see it very clearly. 

What qualities do you look for in the people you hang out with and allow into your inner circle? I’m still very guarded about my “inner circle”, and it’s very sparsely populated. I don’t hang labels on people, and don’t have a checklist of what qualities people should have. Everyone I interact with will either become a part of my “inner circle” or they won’t. There’s no real criteria for me.

If you wanted to encourage innovative ideas on changing one's life, how would you go about it? I don’t think there’s much need for innovation. The methods are tried and true, and there’s no need to reinvent the wheel. As cliché as it sounds, things like, “If you want to see a change, BE the change” and “You need to love yourself first” are the real truths. That’s why they become cliché… because they are accurate. Step 1 is to incorporate positive self-talk and absolutely ELIMINATE negative self-talk. It’s powerful. Stuart Smalley was onto something. #SNL

How would you describe your personal #LiveALittle lifestyle change? One thing that has helped me was to make an agreement with myself that I will not break promises I make to myself. So if I say I’m going to walk a mile today, then no matter what gets in the way, I walk that mile. Even if it comes at the end of a long day and I’m tired. I refuse to let myself down. Maybe it has to do with my meal choices for a particular day. I approach every day with an attitude of setting out to “Win The Day”. Over time, I’ve gone from loathing physical exertion to craving it. Walking used to be a miserable necessity, now it’s a valued activity that I enjoy. 

If you wanted to create an environment where motivation can thrive, what’s the first thing you would do? I’d say it depends. If you mean one’s own personal environment, then my answer is to do the following things. 1)Be cognizant of that little voice in your head that spews negativity and SQUELCH it. When that voice chastises you or belittles you or tells you that you can’t reach your goals, audibly take control and say, “That’s not true” and follow it with a positive statement about yourself. It’s important to say it out loud. And it’s been proven that using your name in third person is far more effective. 2) Remove things from your vicinity that perpetuate the problems you’re battling. If you don’t have alcohol, soda/pop, or Twinkies, or Skittles, or Hot Pockets around the house, you won’t be able to succumb to moments of weakness. People sometimes slip, hammer some Girl Scout cookies, and then the cycle begins of beating themselves up over it, and the negative self-talk can follow. Remove those things, and you are one step closer to having a personal environment where motivation can thrive.  

How do you show that you believe in yourself? I show it through my actions. I show it by keeping the promises I make to myself. I make good choices. I get my exercise. Literally, I walk the walk. 

Who, Whom, and/or What has influenced you the most? I’ve drawn influence from many people. Some I’ve known personally, others only through their stories I’ve encountered via various forms of media. For me, being introduced to Plexus Slim was what triggered my rise from the abyss. The product gave me hope, and I’ve taken the proverbial ball and run with it. And it was the friend who introduced me to Plexus, Christina Crosby in my old hometown of Butte, Montana who taught me the power of eliminating the negative self-talk. I used to abuse myself verbally in a hateful way that would make most people cringe. I’ve gotten much better at that discipline, though it’s a constant battle. 

What do you do to challenge yourself when you're not motivated?  In those situations, I break things down into manageable components. I think about why I’m not motivated. A lot of times, it’s because the goal seems so far away, and what difference will one day make? Then I realize that I don’t need to lose 10 lbs. today. I just need to do SOMETHING today. I’ve learned that I never regret exercising, but I always regret when I don’t. So I just treat it on those days like a job. A necessary task. Then I (with apologies to Nike) JUST DO IT. 

When is breaking the #LiveALittle rules okay? Really, it’s never OK. But it’s gonna happen. And when it does, it’s imperative to acknowledge, and reset immediately. It’s forgivable, certainly, but not really ever “OK”. 

What does 'working on’ yourself mean to you? There are three areas that require attention and maintenance: physical, emotional, and spiritual. The physical part is obvious. Diet and exercise. Simple. The emotional part is deeper. It’s not just about being happy or sad, or fulfilled, though those things play a part. It’s also about loving yourself, respecting yourself. It’s about being able to hold your head high because you know you are being the best “you” you can be. It’s about a lot of things I talked about in some of the earlier questions, like creating an environment for yourself that encourages motivation, and keeping promises you’ve made to yourself. Spiritual can mean your relationship with God, or whatever greater power you believe in, or nature, or simply finding inner peace. I think, to find true balance, a person needs to be aware of and nurture all of these areas. 

What does empowerment mean to you? To me, I see it as coming to grips with the belief that we each do control our own destiny. For years, I rolled wherever the current led, feeling unwilling and unable to chart my own course. I no longer feel that way. I’m the captain of my ship and I’ll sail where I damn well please. That’s empowerment. 

How and where do you find inspiration? I used to think I would find my inspiration in a romantic partner. That when I found love again, that I would then have the strength and inspiration I needed to take control of my life. It turns out, the only REAL inspiration comes from within. My inspiration comes from my own core. And it’s powerful. I never realized it was there, until I learned how to tap into it. Now that I have, I’m unstoppable. 

How do you keep your feelings from clouding your decision-making? To be perfectly honest, I’m not sure I know how to do that yet. I’m an emotional, passionate guy who feels things deeply. Love, pain, joy, sadness. Whatever it is, I feel it strongly. I’ve not really even tried to disassociate my feelings from my decisions.

What’s the best way to keep your eye on future results or maintaining?  Document things. Write down as much as you can, with dates. Goals, milestones, struggles, everything. Our minds play tricks on us, and our recollections get fuzzy. Hard data won’t lie. 

How do you bring courage and conviction to risky situations? I think the answer is in the question. If you have conviction, the courage comes a lot more easily. I’ve been wrong before, and it’s OK to keep an open mind to that possibility. It’s not imperative that we be “right” all the time, regardless of our conviction. But believing in and trusting in yourself will help you find the courage to stand behind your conviction.  

What values are you committed to? Family. Trust. Those are the most important things to me. 

What do you do to live a balanced life?  I’m blessed to be able to do what I love. I work for a hockey team which is the dream job for me, I get to perform music, and I’m active by playing adult league hockey. I have a great balance of work, play, and down time.

What dreams and goals inspired you to succeed?  I’ve always been an athlete. Even at 451 lbs I still managed to lace up my skates and get on the ice for adult league hockey. My hands and hockey smarts allowed me to remain competitive, and I could skate like the wind once I got moving, but like a locomotive, getting started wasn’t as smooth as I’d like. Being able to compete at a level that I felt good about is something that has helped inspire me along the way. Also, the possibility of advancing in my broadcasting career. Back to the negative self-talk, I would say, “No pro team is gonna want to hire a fat f*** like me who no one wants to sit next to on the plane.” I’ve buried that phrasing from my vocabulary. Life is full of opportunity, and I no longer fear or feel unworthy of any of it. 

How do you #LiveALittle Series? Featured Member: Lauralee in Kansas

Name: Lauralee 

Location: Kansas

• When did you start to #LiveALittle? 

Lauralee's "before" #LiveALittle Picture 2 years ago

When I was 28 I was diagnosed with high blood pressure. It freaked me out! I was massively overweight and then I started showing symptoms of that at a very young age. I decided then and there I couldn’t hide inside myself or in food anymore. That was 2 years ago.

• What do you consider your main accomplishments?

Well, this one is hard because through this journey I have accomplished so much. The biggest one for me would be building a bigger and better relationship with God. To be honest, I got to where I am because of him. He was on every run, workout and struggle with me. Don’t get me wrong, I give myself the credit where it is due but I prayed a lot to get through workouts and over cravings. I also believe the amount of weight I lost on my own was a huge accomplishment. 120 lbs gone! It’s crazy to think I was carrying an entire extra person. But my FAVORITE accomplishment is the ability to run. I LOVE RUNNING. I could never do it before! Now I am running 5-7 miles some days. That is rad-tastic!!

Lauralee current picture "LivingALittle

• What does ‘working on yourself’ mean to you?

This is one of my favorite questions to answer. Obviously being massively overweight, I had a problem with food. That problem didn’t stem out of no where, it was a way to cope. I smoked for years and then I quit. I drank at least 3-4 times a week and now I have a drink or two once or twice a year. I could conquer issues in my life but the one with food I just could not overcome. When I started ‘working on myself’, it started with the intention of being “skinny”. I had no idea the path I was about to take myself down. I spent a lot of time in my own mind facing the things I hated about myself. The things I wanted to change had so much more to do than with weight. I am sensitive inside and hard outside. I wanted to please everyone. I hated my body. I thought I was stupid. The list could go on and on and on. The thing is, when you spend a lot of time with yourself, you have to face your faults head on and then the hardest part comes: changing them or accepting them. Working on yourself has a ton of different sub-categories and they all kind of collide together. The moral of my drawn out explanation: Working on yourself to me means that loving yourself is ok. Disliking things about yourself is ok. Accepting yourself is a process that takes a while and that is also ok. I read a quote once that said “You’re not made for everyone to like you” and once I accepted that was ok, the self love came a lot easier because if you can’t love yourself, who will?

• How and where do you find inspiration?

As self-absorbed as it sounds, a lot of time I find it in myself in an assortment of ways. I get that awesome “high” competing with myself. Can I run faster? Can I lift more? Can I push my limits? I love it! I am constantly trying to be better than I was the day before, but if I fail in my own eyes, I TRY NOT TO get too down. I also find it in music, the bible and in others. Lots of #LiveALittle members cross my mind daily and inspire me to push myself! It’s not a competition with them but a reminder ALL people can reach their goals! It’s amazing how people I have never met have impacted my life so much!

• When is breaking the #LiveALittle rules okay?

I want to honestly believe never. We should always be focused on becoming better people. Life gets in the way of living sometimes if that makes any sense but I think once you adopted the lifestyle it should become a habit. Shit happens. I am just going to be straight up honest. I don’t have it all together and if anything at times I have more problems then I can deal with. Luckily, I also have a strong faith and I refuse to give up on myself. We are precious beings. Whatever your personal beliefs are don’t really matter. There is only one if you in this world and that means you must be pretty special and taking care of yourself (not just physically but also mentally) is completely acceptable! Besides, #LivingALittle is fun and life should be a good time, it’s too short as it is!

Warning: Accountability is not included.

Not only does someone need goals to succeed but they also need promises. Self promises. It is incredibly hard to make self promises when you don't have very much self love, worth, or esteem. You can't trust yourself. You've already spent years of breaking promises to the one person you are supposed to love completely unconditionally, yourself. That was my dilemma. With this new #LiveALittle lifestyle I needed to make some self promises but I needed to get down to the nitty gritty of what they should be.

My first promise needed to reflect why I was even making an attempt at a new #LiveALittle life. I wanted to get out and be more active. Seeing the world was becoming more of a priority to me and my new job was giving me the opportunity to get out more.  A flight to Las Vegas via Southwest Airlines put a huge scar on my self esteem at the beginning of my journey.
Got to the airport early, grabbed a coffee at the Starbucks, read some articles on my iPad waiting for my flight at the gate, got A list seating, boarded the plane, took out my laptop, sat down, buckled my seatbe........ Try again, buckled my seatb.......... Damn, suck it in fatty. Buckled my seatbel............Holy shit. I'm too fat for the seatbelt. This was one of the biggest eyeopening experiences of my life. It was all making sense, how could I travel and experience new things if I couldn't fit in normal airplane seats? I also had recent memories of how I couldn't ride the roller coasters at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City because the safety bar wouldn't latch due to me being too big. This was serious.
Promise #1: Live a healthier and more active lifestyle. 

Sitting for long periods of time in front of the television watching entire seasons of shows like Sons of Anarchy, Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, and Mad Men used to fill my weekends. I didn't know anyone in Kansas City and I didn't have any intentions to meet anyone so getting out and about was detoured again by bullshit. If I wasn't too fat to do it, I was too lazy. Notorious for always mumbling to myself, on the long lazy ass weekend of extreme Netflix watching, "Damn, I'm so bored". How in hell could I be bored?! I lived in amazing city with hundreds of things to do. I had no right complaining that I was bored. Choosing to stay at home and not venture out was my own doing. Laziness was my problem and a fear of change or trying something different. A change my pattern is what I needed, and to live outside my current comfort zone. Focus on starting local, and go from there. Needed to look for activities happening in my community like Waldo Days, Irishfest, Union Station, or just garage sale driving, and venture more out from there. With this new way of thinking I would hardly be at home. Always be moving.
Promise #2: Never complain about being bored.



Not only would I complain about being bored sometimes I just wouldn't want to move. Just lay in bed. Making excuses why I couldn't meet new friends for happy hour or go on a 12 mile bike ride through Lenexa & Overland Park. Lying to myself was something that came very easy. It's something I still struggle with daily. Constantly want to lie to myself and make up excuses to not live a little bit more. To just give up and lie. This is possibly the toughest of all of the promises. Still struggle with it but I've come so far.
Promise #3: Stop making excuses & lying to yourself

The fourth promise I needed to make to myself, in order to live a better and more productive life, seems like it would be a tough one but it's really not. I compare it to removing a bandaid. What's the least painful way to remove a bandaid? You guessed it, just rip it off. I needed to get the negative out of my life. Negative people, vices, habits, thinking, everything. I've got to be really careful here because some of you reading this might take it personally and I think I'm talking about you when I mention getting the negative people out of my life. If you are taking it personally and think I'm talking about you you're absolutely right. Only negative people would think that way. If you haven't heard from me in awhile then at least you know now why. So at least it's a win/win? Getting rid of negativity was like I was having a fire sale. Everything negative must go! Smoking cigarettes, GONE! Shitty unloving girlfriend always complaining and talking mad smack on all her friends, GONE! Getting liquored up weekly, GONE! I still enjoy a drink now and again but seriously, if you're over 35 and enjoy getting schammered daily or weekly you might want to reconsider your choices. But hey, its your life, this is just a promise I needed to make to myself.
Promise #4: Cut out all negativity

So far my promises seemed very doable. I needed to stick to them. Figuring out how to keep myself accountable was the tough part. Talk the talk, no problem. Walk the walk, "Houston we have a problem." Accountability. I figured the best way to create accountability is to tell the masses what you are going to do and the promises you are going to make. I knew the perfect place to announce my promises and ask for assistance in keeping them. In fact, asking others to examine the same promises and maybe make them for themselves might even increase that accountability. People relying on others in a full accountability circle, what a great concept. The #LiveALittle Project members were perfect for this and the promises I was making to myself fit right in with other struggles people face with trying to live a #LiveALittle life. So not only would the word of the promises spread but the word of The #LiveALittle Project would spread with it.
Promise #5: Spread the word about the #LiveALittle lifestyle and encourage others to make the same 5 promises

http://TheLiveALittleProject.com

The #LiveALittle Mission Statement | Living for those who cannot

I've been thinking a lot lately. I love the #LiveALittle Project but want to see it go to the next level. What that level is I don't know. I've been advised to write a business plan & mission, vision, values statement for the project. Making The #LiveALittle Project a registered nonprofit would require those anyway. I've been stuck on the Mission statement. What exactly is the mission of The #LiveALittle Project? There’s a few of the things I have said in the last year that The #LiveALittle Project stood for but this has been the main statement:
“Encourage people to live a little bit more every single day.”
What exactly does that mean? We are all different when it comes to living a little bit more every day. Fitness, health, losing weight, more activity, have been the issues that most of the members of the project have focused on but there are so many more issues project members getting detoured with to further their “live a little” life. Dead end jobs, terrible relationships, estranged family, substance abuse problems, and the big three: lack of self-esteem, self worth, and self-love.
Then it hit me.

In high school I met a very beautiful, funny, caring, protective, loving amazing girl named Michelle. I fell in love with Michelle within minutes of meeting her. We spent hours upon hours together. She was a true friend. We weren’t romantically involved; we loved each other in the purest form, complete respect. Over time our lives drifted apart but we stayed in touch because of modern social media sites like MySpace and Facebook. The last time I saw Michelle was when I went to visit her in

Phoenix nearly 4 years ago. She was still beautiful after all those years. Now a wife and a mom our lives had changed very much but that visit we were swept back to 1992 and giggled like high school teenagers gossiping about everyone we went to school with. About 2 years ago I received an email from Michelle telling me that she had been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer but for me not to worry because she was going to fight it and she was going to beat it.

Six months later my beautiful Michelle died.

A lot of you may have some kind of similar story about someone you love or know being diagnosed with a terminal disease. Have you noticed the amazing thing they do after they are diagnosed? They change. They wake up from the haze that all of us seem to be in. Suddenly trees look different and are more noticeable. Smells smell different and amazing. Wind isn’t just wind, it tickles and fills your spirit. Self-love starts to prevail, self-esteem become clearer, and self worth becomes one of the most important things right next to the love of others. The definition of life for someone with a terminal disease takes on a whole new meaning and I believe that meaning is what we all are striving for. Why must we wait until we are told that our death is very near before we truly start to live a little? Why can’t we do it now? We are all dying but we ignore that. What’s the first thing most smokers diagnosed with lung cancer do when their doctors tell them that their disease is fatal? They stop smoking, because they truly find that self-love to continue to do whatever necessary to possibly continue their life even if it is a tiny chance. It took me 20 years to quit smoking. Even when I learned of Michelle’s disease, and even her death, one would think I would have stopped but I didn’t.
This is where I believe the mission statement of The #LiveALittle Project needs to come from. It’s not solely about fitness, eating right, loving your work, and trying new things, loving new people and those already in our lives. It is about LIVING.

The #LiveALittle Project’s Mission Statement:
“To encourage others to live life as though they would not see next year”

From this moment on I dedicate my #LiveALittle life to my beautiful Michelle and her spirit, and I live my #LiveALittle life for myself and those who love me.