Don’t Become Derailed on Your Diet!

Hey, it's J.J. here. You know, I've been talking about environmental toxins forever, and laundry detergent is a sneaky one. A lot of them contain harsh chemicals like dyes, preservatives, and even UV brighteners. Those brighteners don't actually clean anything. They just coat fabric so your eyes think things look whiter or brighter. That's more chemicals I don't want on my family sheets or skin. And if you've got sensitive skin or allergies around the house, this can be a big problem. That's what got my attention about Earth Breeze. It looks like a dryer sheet, but it's actually laundry detergent. You toss one in the washer and that's it. No pouring, no mess, and no heavy plastic jug. Their packaging is lightweight cardboard, which helps reduce plastic waste. And if you choose the fragrance free option, it's gentle, hypoallergenic, non irritating, and non sensitizing. I really like how simple it is and how fresh and clean everything comes out without those unnecessary chemicals. Right now you can try Earth Breeze for up to 40% off with free gifts@earthbreeze.com virgin that's earthbreeze.com virgin for up to 40% off plus free gifts on your first order. Hey, JJ here. Can you believe how fast the holidays are knocking at the door this year? One minute it's pumpkin spice season, the next you're getting your guest room ready and wondering where their wrapping paper went. And that's when I turned to Wayfair. From bedding and towels to holiday decor and last minute stocking stuffers, Wayfair has everything you need to get your home and holidays together fast. And for way less. With Wayfair, I know I can refresh my guest room in no time. Maybe I'll add a soft new comforter or a few holiday throw pillows. With Wayfair, it's so easy and everything arrives super fast. Plus, there's free shipping for any order over $35 easy and total peace of mind. So whether you're hosting, gifting, or just adding those final festive touches, Wayfair has your back. And when the holidays wind down, Wayfair has everything you need to tuck it all neatly away. Smart storage solutions for every room from the kitchen to the closet. Get organized, refreshed and ready for the holidays. For way less, head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home. Wayfair. Every style, every home that's W a Y F A I R.com Some people.

Think nature is like this. But actually it's like this. That's why Columbia engineers everything we make for anything nature can throw at you. Columbia engineered for whatever.

Welcome to the Virgin Diet lifestyle show with your host, celebrity nutrition and fitness expert and New York Times best selling author, JJ Virgin.

You've made the decision. It's finally your time to lose the weight, to get rid of those sugar cravings, to live your life full out. You've got the plan and you're ready to go. But then you stall out. Before you've barely gotten started, something came up and knocked you off your path. Do this enough times and you lose faith in yourself. You stop believing you really can change and you settle for less than you should. So what can you do to make sure this doesn't happen? What can you do to ensure that you stick with your plan? I've got five surefire ways that will help you stick with your plan no matter what is happening around you. After all, there's always going to be some excuse for why you can't do it. Look for how to do it and these strategies will help. First of all, journal. There was a study in 2008 of nearly 1700 participants that was published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. And it found that journaling was the number one factor in predicting weight loss success. People in the study who were also asked to follow a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and exercise at least 30 minutes a day, lost twice as much weight if they kept daily records compared to people who kept none. Now, here is the deal with this. First, be sure to write it all down. This is not just the good Days journal, this is the All Days journal. If you have to write it down, you're going to be less likely to misbehave. And it's also more importantly going to help you figure out if a food is zapping your energy or a situation is creating a challenge for you or if a food is a trigger for you. Now you can go beyond just journaling your food. I like to focus on food first and then I'm going to focus on things that I want to improve. So it may be drinking water, it might be your sleep, it might be increasing fiber, it might be your burst training. But again, what you measure, you can improve. And here's something really important. Take that journal. Share it with a friend. Now, speaking of friends, here's number two. Get an accountability buddy or a support group and up the ante by putting a wager down. Make it enough so that would be a little painful. If you Lose, and even better, find fitter friends to hang out with. So there was this study done in the journal plos Computational Biology, and they found that having four obese friends doubled someone's chance of becoming obese compared to people with no obese friends. And what was interesting about this is that it didn't matter whether the friends were down the street or across the country. People have gotten better at gaining weight in the recent years, by the way, but not at losing weight over the recent years. Yikes. That's not exactly the way that you want this to be right now. There was also another researcher from Harvard, David Rand. He said that the more obese people you have contact with, the more likely you are to become obese. Now, we're not sure why this is true. It may be that if you have a lot of friends with unhealthy habits, you wind up with similar habits. But of course, there's a whole lot of other stuff that have a huge impact on this. I think more that in this whole bit with research, it's in your best interest to help your friends lose weight. So how cool is this? You know, it's like friends help friends lose weight. So not only should you find some fitter friends, but pull the friends you do have along with you. Now, there was another study by Harvard researchers in 2007 that found that one person's obesity can significantly increase the chance that his or her friends, siblings, or spouse will also become obese, suggesting that maybe weight gain is being spread through social networks. And again, what I found so crazy with all of this research is it didn't matter if the person was right next door or 100 miles away. But what that also means is that you can engage your friends on a program whether they're right next door or 100 miles away. And if they are not going to engage, find a new group to connect with. And better yet, find a new group who are already down the path you can grab onto. Who's going to help lift?

Hey, it's J.J. here. Now, let's be honest. The holidays are basically a financial ambush. Travel, hosting, gifts, surprise holiday school, things. Suddenly you're wondering how December turned into a spending spree. If you want to keep your finances under control this holiday season, you need to be using Monarch. It's rated the Wall Street Journal's best budgeting app of 2025. Monarch is the all in one personal finance tool that brings your entire financial life together in one clean interface on your laptop or your phone. What really grabbed my attention is how fast Those little holiday expenses pile up with Monarch. Seeing everything in one place makes it a lot harder to accidentally overspend. And honestly, I appreciate anything that keeps me from starting January with a money hangover. You'll love exploring the holiday spending category. Imagine how good it will feel to actually see what's happening before your credit card statement does that whole dramatic reveal thing. Monarch basically shows you exactly where the money is going in real time and that level of clarity could change everything, right? Don't let financial opportunity slip through the cracks. Use the code virgin@monarch.com in your browser for half off your first year. That's 50% off your first year@monarch.com with code Virgin.

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You up. Now one of the other things that's a great tip is that you will believe it when you see it. And and I will tell you that I got this tip I'm going to share with you from a mind body expert who told me that this was the one thing. He goes, JJ, if people just do this one thing, I can basically ensure their success. This man has helped thousands of people lose weight at his clinic. He says this is the number one determinant for him as to whether they'll be successful or not. This simple little tool, this one thing, here it is. And again it's based on you'll believe it when you see it. You grab a shot of your ideal after body and then you put your head, your face on it and you make a couple copies of it. Now put it on the refrigerator, keep it in your purse. I actually did a TV show where I put this in the freezer on tlc. Freaky eaters. I went and put this into the freezer. When a gal was an ice cream addict, always jumped in, wanted ice cream. There she was, her before, her after body with her face on top of it. So if you feel your motivation wane, you're gonna pull this out because seeing is believing. And remind yourself about where you are going, what you're going for. Again, when you see it, you'll believe it. Now here's the thing. You're gonna blow it. We all blow it. There's two ways to look at this. This is either, you know, a mistake or an opportunity. So if you blow it, learn from it. Mistakes become opportunities if they happen once, and if you create a plan to not have it happen the next time. And I'll tell you, that's why journaling's so important, because you can look back and go, what the heck happened? Oh my gosh, almond butter is a trigger food for me, right? And best of all, hire a coach. And not a very nice one. Okay? You gotta be a little afraid of them. And more importantly, that coach should hold a bigger vision for you, this amazing aspiration of what possible for you. And they should keep you accountable and support you to reach that goal. For a copy of my journal tracking sheets, text 58885 and enter JJ Journal 1. That's the number one space, your first name space, and your email address. Again, you text to 58885 and enter jjournal1a space, your first name a space, and your email address. In the sure Impact Diet, I help you clear up the confusion around sugar and take back the control that sugar has over your life. In just two weeks, you'll lose your sweet tooth and shrink your waistline, so why wait? Start those two weeks today.

Hey everyone, did you like this episode? Be sure to subscribe for the next one and tell a friend. If you'd like world class training and cutting edge information, visit thevirgindiet.com foreigners this.

Is Anne Bogle, author, blogger, and creator of the podcast what Should I Read next? Since 2016, I've been helping readers bring more joy and delight into their reading lives. Every week, I tag all things books and Reading with a guest and guide them in discovering their next read. They share three books they love, one book they don't, and what they've been reading lately. And I recommend three titles they may enjoy reading next. Guests have said our conversations are like therapy, troubleshooting issues that have plagued their reading lives for years and possibly the rest of their lives as well. And of course, recommending books that meet the moment, whether they are looking for deep introspection to spur or encourage a life change, or a frothy page turner to help them escape the stresses of work, school, everything. You'll learn something about yourself as a reader and you'll definitely walk away confident to choose your next read, with a whole list of new books and authors to try. So so join us each Tuesday for what Should I Read Next? Subscribe now wherever you're listening to this podcast and visit our website. What should I read next podcast.com to find out more?