…Little servings of thoughts coming your way…

Dear Friend,

Continuing on from this morning The hindrances of one’s mind-set
this is my second thought pattern which needed challenging:

“I can’t lose weight”:
Having tried and failed to lose weight lead me to this mind set. It was an obvious conclusion to make. Right?  No. There is normally a reason which will substantiate why we think we can’t lose weight. Either it is because of incorrect eating patterns or lack of knowledge. It is important to investigate why we can’t lose the weight. Don’t just use it as an excuse. I know it feels very demoralizing when the weight doesn’t fall off. And we can beat ourselves up but being cruel to ourselves, which rarely works. Habits take time to change and effort is needed to develop a new habit in it’s place.

We can’t do it if we don’t have the tools or the knowledge. I went to a dietician for 3 years. I learnt many good habits (which I will tell you about another time) but it was only when I went to my doctor and he picked up that I was insulin resistant that we knew how to precede. People who are insulin resistant do struggle to lose weight and it can be soul destroying and humiliating after all the effort you put in to it to not see any results. Once I understood what the problem was I could approach my Self with compassion. I began to feel sympathy for my Self for the first time in relation to weight loss because I had been so hard on myself all these years. I had originally been thin but then when I began putting on the weight I told myself that I was a bad person for putting on weight because I had “just lost control” (another incorrect belief). Now I believe that I can look after my weight and my health successfully, even though I sometimes feel like I am not succeeding on a particular day or week – I have confidence in myself to continue looking after myself.

Every new choice we make helps build a new mind-set.

Leading a wholesome lifestyle is exactly that – a life style. It is not just about the weight; it is about all the choices we make. If we don’t have the confidence in ourselves to make changes we can take small steps: what we choose to eat, drink or do like; choosing to move our body every hour if we are sedentary; walking the flight of stairs, and not becoming inert; and choosing to find professional help is also a step towards health. Every step in the right direction counts.

We only fail ourselves if we neglect to give ourselves enough of the right things in life but we can change that one step at a time. Aim for one healthy practice a week: do one good thing for ourselves a day; do it until it feels like it is an essential part of us then move onto the next thing.

Here is a list of ideas:

• drink more water
• get more sleep
• eat more fruit and vegetables
• cook your own food from scratch
• breathe more deeply
• and relax.

I realized that it was my life and it is time to stand up for myself. No one else was going to do it and it wasn’t going to happen magically. It is an investment and we are worth it. Choose to plan for health. When we really want to do something we can do it. We can make the time for things that we care about. Making small incremental changes that shift our mind-set in a new direction needs careful consideration. Sometimes we need to ask for support from like-minded people or a coach, mentor, instructor or dietician.

Next time I hope to tell you about what I learned when I was going to my dietician. Take care till then.

Much love, Morag.