If you follow these 5 Golden CSE Rules, you'll have massive success with any CSE Challenge! 

#1 Be patient.

I get a lot of messages from frustrated people about how slow their progress has been. When I ask how long they’ve been working on changing their lifestyle habits and eating SPOT ON using a CSE plan in a moderate deficit... the answer is usually... “4 days. 4 whole days perfectly and NOTHING!” My response... “4 days?🤦🏼‍♂️” ... Some metabolic changes can take up to 30 days to manifest themselves. That’s a good 4 weeks of consistent hard work. You didn’t gain all the weight in 4 days. You WILL NOT lose all the weight in 4 days. Let your body work itself out. Changes are happening, even if you can’t see it yet. I’ve worked with a lot of people that have simply given up before that magic 28-30 day mark. They quit right before the magic happens because they weren’t patient enough to see it through. So... work hard. Be patient. Good things come to those that wait. 

#2 Be honest.

Quit lying to yourself. This is the hard one. When I tell people to be honest, the walls of defense generally go up and they are a bit offended at first. Let me explain. A lot of people come to me and tell me they’ve been eating at 1500 calories for 6 weeks PERFECTLY and they haven’t lost a pound! Once we dive a little deeper it usually ends up like this... “ok, so when I said PERFECTLY what I meant was Monday-Thursday I am spot on! Then Friday I went out to eat at Cheesecake Factory and didn’t track but I just ordered the Grilled Chicken Tostada Salad (1,620 calories!) and I couldn’t pass up a slice of the Oreo Dream Extreme Cheesecake (1,520 calories!).... Saturday I had a wedding dinner so I didn’t track that either (+500 calories). Sunday was family dinner and my mom makes THE BEST double chocolate-y chocolate cake ever so I didn’t track any of that either (+350 calories). I also went to Costco and ate some samples and my kids had friends over and I couldn’t just let all those grilled cheese crusts go to waste! (+500 calories). But besides that I was PERFECT!” This was obviously a very very slight exaggeration but you get the point. See how quickly your weekly deficit can be undone?! You thought you were in a 500 cal/day deficit making your weekly deficit 3500 but, in all reality, you now have 4,490 unaccounted calories. Now you’re talking about a 990 calorie surplus for the week. Unless you are being 100% honest with yourself about what’s going in your mouth - your goals, hopes and dreams can slip away from you after one “just a salad” option at a restaurant. If you’re truly looking for real results then track it like you mean it! You’ve got goals! Be unapologetic about hitting those goals! Not mean and nasty toward family and friends, just kindly let them know you’ll be bringing your kitchen scale to dinner. 😉 If you eat a sample at Costco, lick yogurt off your kiddos fingers, taste test a batch of power balls before they’re scooped or breathe in the fumes at your favorite restaurant... track it. All of it. Only YOU know what you’re putting in your mouth. If you want results. Be honest with yourself. It is humanly impossible to defy the laws of thermodynamics. Impossible. It’s never been done. Ever. If energy IN (food) is less than energy OUT (exercise, activity, metabolic function)... you will lose weight. 

I've done all the hard work for you and put in each meal from the Summer Meal Plan in the My Fitness Pal app (click HERE to download in the Apple App Store or HERE for Google Play) 

#3. Be smart.

Never eat BELOW your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate). Ironically, cutting too many calories and over-exercising can cause a slowdown in your metabolism and inhibit weight loss. Eating below your BMR for an extended period of time will put your body into an emergency stance position, meaning your body starts to use lean muscle mass as fuel to preserve the fat it thinks it needs in case of an emergency. This is bad because muscle burns more calories than fat, so your metabolism drops and it's harder to lose weight. Your Basal Metabolic Rate is your caloric floor. These are essential calories needed to sustain life, metabolic function, organ function, enzyme production, hormone production, you know, life’s necessities. Think of your metabolism as a fire. Sometimes it takes a bit more fuel to have it burn hot. If your current goals have you eating less than your BMR then make an adjustment. That number is your floor. Don’t go into the caloric basement looking for success and progress... you will not find it down there. And it’s dark and scary. 😆 Keep in mind that a moderate deficit will generally keep you eating above your BMR. Consistency and time will always yield results. 

#4. Be active.

Monitor your daily activity with a fitness tracker. Set a goal of a certain number of steps or active calories you want to hit daily, and don’t let your head hit the pillow until you’ve reached that goal! Push yourself a bit. Don’t set a goal of 1,000 steps and think that’s going to get you into the “active” category. That’s like 2.5 trips around your couch. You can do better!😉 As your activity level increases, so does your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE). Make it a point to get out and do more. Go on a hike. Ride bikes with the kids. Play at the park. Take the dog for a walk. Anything! Movement gets all of the transformational juices flowing so get up and move.

When calculating the number of calories to eat per day, you do NOT need to add any more calories just because you work out; that is all taken into account when you calculate your TDEE. You can download our app to help you estimate how many calories you should be eating each day HERE in the Apple App Store or HERE in Google Play.

#5. Be calm.

I fully realize that some of these changes can be a massive undertaking. Don’t get so consumed with the thought of changing every little detail about your current lifestyle. If you feel overwhelmed, take a deep breath and realize that we are all human. We all make mistakes. You will not be perfect on this plan. So offer yourself some grace if you slip up. The trick is to consistently have more good days then bad days. To get right back on plan when you’ve “slipped up” or had an off day. Don’t let a bad day turn into a bad week, a bad month and a bad year. You have the power to change. Realizing you have a choice as to what goes into your mouth should be empowering! You are in control! So be calm and be confident knowing that the small changes you are making each day will  keep you on the path of crushing goals and living the vibrant life you deserve to live.