10 secrets to lose 10 pounds during your next home DIY project

My never-ending project continues to be… never-ending. But some “good” news: Along the way it seems I’ve dropped a few pounds. Not on purpose, but as a by-product of (1) lots of movement mostly caused by (2) moving stuff to get at other stuff. Repeatedly. Inefficiently. For months on end. My ten secrets:

1. Do not buy all your supplies ahead of time: Most of my tips for losing weight while you DIY involve gross ineptitude. Not of the unsafe kind — no! Be safe! Rather, of the ‘don’t be very organized’ variety. Starting with: Don’t think through and buy all your supplies ahead of time. It is a pain, and it costs you gas and automobile wear and tear, but going back and forth the hardware store 4-6 times every week — or every day! — surely burns calories.
2. Do not organize all your tools ahead of time: If you have all your tools in the basement, this one means that you must go up and down, up and down, up and down those stairs a gazillion times to look for the particular tool you need now.
3. Once you get a tool, do not keep it in the same place every time you set it down: If you get all Marie Kondo with your tools when you use them, this will help you work efficiently. On the other hand, if you set your tools down every which where, you will constantly be wasting steps (getting your steps!) looking for them.
4. Do not finish any single part of the project before moving on to the next part: This was the real key to the “success” of my DIY-diet. My project had lots of parts… and I would easily get bored… partially finish one part…  then start on another one. There was always stuff in the room, so this meant I had to keep moving stuff to get at other stuff, then move it all back to start again.  I even made up a song with the lyrics: “Moving stuff to get at other stuff, that is what we do!”
5. If you’re working upstairs and you have a sink in the basement, only clean up at that downstairs sink: This is a very practical tip. Do not wreck your kitchen sink even though it’s handy. Do the right thing, only clean up downstairs, and work your glutes in the process.
6. Make sure your project includes repainting the ceiling: Cross-training, ya know. 
7. Invite friends over every weekend while the project is under way: Have company as often as you can. This means that, no matter what state of disarray your room is in, you will clean it all up. You must clean it all up. Move all your tools and stuff downstairs. Then, next day, move everything back.
8. Eat Amy’s frozen entrees for lunch every day: Okay, while you’re burning lots of calories and working muscles you never knew you had, you can also take this opportunity to eat a little lighter. I usually eat Amy’s entrees — love that veggie loaf! — for lunch while I continue working on the Mahalo Lounge. Fast, tasty, satisfying, portion control. Stay off the breads and carbs for lunch especially — they make you want a siesta — and you have work to do! Obviously, this is a light-hearted story meant for entertainment, but I will continue on the bread theme: I have had issues with red patches on my skin for about 20 years. I recently tried giving up wheat products just to see what all this gluten-free business was about. Indeed, I found that I felt more awake when I didn’t eat bread (that is: when I eat bread I get sleepy.) Moreover, I looked down at my arms on day and kapow: My rashes were gone! Wow. I’m not 100% gluten free, but I try to keep off the stuff as much as I can, and I think I can tell the difference.
9. Keep everything spotlessly clean: Reserve at least a half hour at the end of every day to clean up. Turn up the stereo and dance some more inches away.
10. Finish the darned project: Is there a correlation between unfinished punch lists and… curvier curves? For me there is — I know that I’m way better motivated to achieve all my goals when I am making steady, visible progress on just a few at any given time. Conversely, when I get too many balls in the air, I can get so overwhelmed that I become almost paralyzed. I need to stay focused — finish this project — and do my happy dance! 

Do you have additional home DIY diet and fitness secrets to share, dear readers?

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