Budgets and Bulges

Recently, I started an on-line class through the local community college called, “Where Did All My Money Go?” After eight years of non-stop college tuition, and a few other life events, I decided to try and put my house in order. As I was approaching my "golden years," I felt I needed to be more cognizant about how money was being spent, and how to better save for the future. (Don't ask me why I didn't do this 20 years ago..) I found the assignments on spending, particularly the tracking of spending habits painful, yet illuminating. I started to see how small purchases here and there, combined with a lack of oversight can lead to a loss of control over our finances.

As I studied the curriculum, terms such as “spending plan” (aka “budget”), and “net worth” (what you have and what you owe), started to light little bulbs in my head. Simple concepts, but if you pay no attention to them, they don't do you much good. So in essence, I put myself on a –excuse the lack of euphemism—DIET. It occurred to me that what the instructor was having me do was exactly what I was asking clients to do when they were trying to lose weight!

When you establish a spending plan (budget), you first must look at what you currently spend. When I ask clients if they know how many calories a day they consume, most cannot tell me. When I ask them how many calories they need to survive, they cannot tell me. So here’s the dilemma: how can you know what needs to be done to resolve your burgeoning budget (read: waistline), if you don’t know how to curb your spending (eating), and monitor your assets (exercise) and debits (sedentary lifestyle and extra pounds)? We'll talk about this later.

With the HOLIDAYS fast approaching, we find ourselves “outspending” on many levels. We spend a lot on entertaining, presents, and travel. We also spend a lot of time indulging in foods that do not help our fitness budget. And in addition, I have people tell me that they don’t have time to exercise “because of the holidays!” This is probably when we need to be scrupulously monitoring our exercise assets more than ever! Eating rich food is okay once in awhile, but it starts a vicious cycle: the more you eat, the more you want (rich food is very addictive), the slower you become, the less you do, the fewer calories you burn up. Spending on non-essentials is kind of the same way. Heck! It’s fun to spend money. I am the first to admit it. But I know it’s not going to help me get where I need to be financially. The same is true when it comes to exercise and a sensible eating plan.

But, let’s get back to my analogies. January rolls around. And the bills start trickling in. You wonder how the heck your VISA bill got that big. Where did all these Nordstrom charges come from. I bought WHAT? at Amazon.com? Then you step on the scale, and you wonder where the extra 5 lbs came from, and then the resolutions start. You see where I’m going with this.

There are countless clients who have come to me wanting to lose weight. They are desperate. I have told them I do not hold the key to weight loss. They do. They want some kind of secret formula, and I don’t have one. I just tell them what I know has worked for me and many others. What I find interesting, is that during the time my clients worked out with me, very few actually lost weight. (Sad, but true). But then I see them 6 months later, and—by golly!—they’ve lost weight. You may want to know how that happened. Tune in tomorrow to find out more….