Losing weight is a struggle for countless people, and many of the issues surrounding our extra pounds have been built up over a long period of time. This is why we struggle so much with making the decisions that will support our weight loss goals. We have a lot working in opposition to our desire, such as deeply ingrained bad habits, distorted self-image, limiting beliefs and plain laziness. While research continues to uncover a variety of factors that affect our weight,besides diet and physical activity, it does not change the fact that our lifestyle choices factor heavily into the equation. To make better decisions, we need to get in a better space mentally, where it all starts. If you get your mind healthier, your body will follow suit.
Table of Contents
Start Viewing Yourself Differently
We all have a view of ourselves, and for the most part, it is very distorted by false beliefs. We look at our habits, personality and behaviors and wrongly concluded that is ‘’just the way we are.’’ It is very hard to lose weight if you have the belief that you are just meant to be heavy. You can be whatever type of person you want to be, including a person who eats right, exercises and makes other healthy choices. You can always turn things around. Say affirmations to yourself; write out the desired changes you want to make in the present tense as if you have already made them. These suggestions are very powerful to the mind.
Control Stress
Notice how I said control and not eliminate; so many of us complain about the stress in our lives, yet do next-to-nothing to reduce it. Sadly, it seems like people are proud of their high stress levels, as if it says something about how tough they are. Being highly stressed is nothing to be proud of, and this state of being is not compatible with your weight loss goals. Stress makes you feel badly and ironically enough, this leads to us doing other things that continue to make us feel badly, rather than better. Examples include eating emotionally, drinking in excess, abusing drugs and abandoning our efforts of positive change. To forge a successful weight loss battle, you must get in a better state of mind, a state of mind where you feel hopeful about your efforts, where you want to make choices that make you feel good rather than bad.
Define Core MOTIVATORS
Fuzzy desires will undoubtedly yield fuzzy results. Lack of clarity will thwart our efforts to achieve any goal we may have, including weight loss. If you have decided to lose weight, something (or likely many things) is triggering this desire. You need to define these triggers as clearly and deeply as you can. These are your ‘’whys’’ and they are an important piece of the puzzle. The more clearly you have defined why you wish to lose weight, the easier it will be to make the necessary changes and stay the course. List out your ‘’whys’’ and the reasons behind those ‘’whys.’’ Keep going until you cannot go anymore.