Losing those excess pounds seems to be the most popular resolution year after year.  Maybe 2011 was the year that you really packed it on, or maybe you’ve been slowing putting on the pounds for some time.  Either way, losing weight and getting into shape is certainly something worth doing, but not as easy as it sounds.

I write this blog not to lecture anyone or to try and tell you what your goals for the upcoming year should be.  However, as someone who lost over 65 p0unds 3 years ago, and has successfully kept it off, I write this in an attempt to help you do the same, should this be your 2012 goal.  Actually since losing the weight, in addition to my real estate career, I now spend a few hours a week helping others do the same, as a Weight Loss Coach at Rock Creek Sports Club.

If I could offer one piece of advice, it would be that there is no “quick fix” or “magic solution”.  The diet and weight loss industry makes billions of dollars each year selling gimmick plans, and pills, and machines, and DVD’s, and special foods………and it’s all a waste of time and money!  Weight loss actually comes down to a very simple concept.  If you burn more calories than you take in, you’ll lose weight (in most circumstances, where there are not specific medical issues).  Obviously, making the right food choices help the process along and give your body the proper nutrients that it needs to maximize your natural burning of calories.  However, there are honestly no tricks to losing weight, nor any need to spend your hard earned money on gimmick products or diets.

In reality, as many of you might already know, weight loss is much less about the way you go about losing weight, but the mental preparedness of sticking to a plan.  In over a year of coaching weight loss, I’ve never had a client who’s had a bad week, tell me that it was because they forgot what they were supposed to be eating.  Most people generally know what are healthy foods to eat, but maintaining the willpower  to stick to your plan is what is truly the difficult part to accomplish.  It took me 20 years to get myself in a place that I was mentally prepared to lose weight.  Once I was mentally prepared, it was simply common sense approaches that made weight loss obtainable, effective, and sustainable.  Eating the correct number of calories per day, eating the right type of healthy foods, and exercising regularly.  And last, but certainly not least, occasionally allowing yourself to enjoy eating and indulging in things that you like.  I’ve found that if you try and eat perfect 100% of the time, you will eventually give up and quit trying to lose weight.  You have to have something to look forward to, and you can’t deprive yourself of what you enjoy forever.  I tried to eat properly 85% of the time, allowing myself to indulge enough of the time that I kept moving forward, and kept losing weight.

Three years later, I still live and eat by the same principals.  I liken myself to an alcoholic.  I can never have a drink again,which in my case is allowing myself to just eat without thinking about what I’m doing. 

I could go on for hours about my personal experiences, as well as those of my weight loss clients, but will simply leave you with a final thought.  Anyone……and I mean anyone, can lose weight effectively and sustainably.  You must be mentally prepared, and use common sense approaches to eating proper foods, proper portions and you must exercise.  If you can accomplish these “simple” (not really) steps, you’re well on the road to a thinner you.  Good luck with whatever your goals are for the upcoming year!

Washington, DC, November 18, 2011

WASHINGTON (November 17, 2011) – The National Association of Realtors® commends Congress for reinstating the loan limit formula and maximum cap for Federal Housing Administration-insured loans for two years.

“As the nation’s leading advocate for homeownership, we applaud members of Congress for restoring FHA’s previous loan limits, which will help reduce consumer cost burdens, stabilize local housing markets and allow qualified, creditworthy borrowers to access affordable mortgage financing,” said NAR President Moe Veissi, broker-owner of Veissi & Associates Inc., in Miami. “The reinstated loan limits will help provide much needed liquidity and stability to communities nationwide as tight credit restrictions continue to prevent some qualified buyers from becoming home owners and the housing market recovery remains fragile.”

The provision reinstates the FHA loan limits through 2013 at 125 percent of local area median home prices, up to a maximum of $729,750 in the highest cost markets. The floor will remain at $271,050.The loan limits for Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-backed mortgages will remain at 115 percent of local area median home prices, up to $625,500.

NAR believes the reinstated loan limit formula and cap change will help make mortgages more affordable and accessible for hard-working, middle-class families throughout the country, not just wealthy individuals or those in costly markets. Nearly two-thirds of buyers who will be helped by the loan limits provision have incomes below $100,000.

“It’s a misconception that only wealthy borrowers benefit from the maximum cost loan limits; middle-class homebuyers living in all areas of the country deserve the same access to affordable mortgage financing and the same opportunity to achieve homeownership that homebuyers enjoy in the most affordable regions of the country,” said Veissi.The legislative action will have an impact even in communities with loan limits well below the maximum cap;the reset last month impacted 669 counties in 42 states and territories, with an average loan limit reduction of more than $68,000.

The bill also provides for a short-term extension of the National Flood Insurance Program through December 16, 2011. NAR strongly urges Congress to use the additional time to complete work on a five-year reauthorization of the program, which ensures access to affordable flood insurance for millions of home and business owners across the country.

The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

The Lee Goldstein Group at Keller Williams Capital Properties is a locally owned, locally managed, full service residential real estate team based in Bethesda, Maryland, just outside of Washington DC.

SUPERIOR SERVICE

We are dedicated to providing our clients with the highest level of personal service, uncompromised integrity, and superior expertise in the local real estate market. Utilizing cutting edge technology, we are able to offer our clients not only the best service in the business, but also the best tools available, which allow us to maximize our ability to assist you

We offer a highly knowledgeable, highly professional and highly motivated real estate team, dedicated to providing a superior level of customer service, unparalleled in the local market. Receiving extensive training from nationally renowned real estate educators as well as local experts, we are exceptionally well prepared to represent our clients with the sale of their current home, the purchase of a new home, or both.

NEIGHBORHOOD EXPERTISE

At the Lee Goldstein Group, we pride ourselves on maintaining an intimate knowledge of the neighborhoods in which we work. Licensed in Washington DC, Maryland & Virginia, we take the time to study market trends and neighborhood statistics to give us an in-depth understanding of the market, which ultimately results in an informed and profitable transaction for our clients. Some of the neighborhoods in which we work are:

Washington DC

Colonial Village • Shepherd Park • Brightwood • Sixteenth Street Heights • Crestwood • Chevy Chase • American University Park • Forest Hills • Cleveland Park • Woodley Park • Mt. Pleasant • Columbia Heights • Adams Morgan • Kalorama • Dupont • Logan • Shaw • Takoma Park • Geogetown • Burleith • Downtown • Capitol Hill

Maryland

Bethesda • Chevy Chase • Silver Spring • Kensington • Takoma Park • Garrett Park • Rockville • College Park • Hyattsville • Potomac • Wheaton

Virginia

Arlington • Alexandria • Falls Church • Vienna • Tyson’s Corner • Springfield • Fairfax • McLean • Great Falls • Annadale