A thought came to mind today while I was working with a Lose Weight, Find Yourself® client whose diet and workout plan had stalled out. I expressed to him that you can’t finish something you haven’t even started. (Tough love, honey!) Of course I reassured him that he hasn’t failed himself. In the LWFY family, we encourage looking ahead and discourage focusing on the past. This isn’t to say that we don’t rely heavily on resolving our past issues, which are often times directly related to our messed up relationship with food. It is to say that when you get on that weight loss bike the first few times, you’re most likely going to take a tumble. As the saying goes, it’s not about how hard you fall, it’s about how you get back up, dust yourself off, and try again!
As we effortlessly and briskly glide into the spring season, the promise of new beginnings literally “spring” up before our very eyes. (See what I did there?!) I encourage those of you who’s diet and workout plans have stumbled, to use this time wisely by allowing yourselves another opportunity to get up and hop back on that bike. Of course you know that I lost over 100 pounds twelve years ago and if you’ve followed my journey you know it was a long and sometimes difficult road. The beauty lies within the freedom of living your truth. This is where you find the secret to success.
If you have you tried and tried, but seem to be getting nowhere fast, it’s likely that you are applying a band-aid to a large wound; that’s not going to fix the problem. So why be mad at yourself when you know you’re not going approaching weight loss with the right intent and purpose? This is what I explained to my client earlier today. When you attempt to lose weight and get healthy for the right reasons in the right way everything falls into place. The attempts suddenly become results. Once I decided to look in the mirror and face the ugly truth of why I was overweight and what my relationship with food represented, the rest was so simple.
In my upcoming book “Lose Weight, Find Yourself! 6 Steps to Having a Healthy Relationship with Food…Bite by Bite and Pound by Pound,” I offer 6 steps to my weight loss plan just as the title implies. In step #1, I ask you to “Take a Look in the Mirror,” while step #2 is to “Clean Out Your Closet.” These two steps are what I advised my client to focus on for the time being. If you’re in a bad way right now, might I suggest the same to you? Take time to look in the mirror and recognize that the person staring back at you is not your best self. You already know you seek change and you know what that change is. Step #2 takes on new meaning for each and every one of us. For me, cleaning out my closet also meant I had to come out of one. For you it may be something entirely different, or perhaps not. Cleaning out your closet is all about acknowledging and recognizing emotional baggage. When emotional baggage is coupled with low self-esteem and poor behavior, we find comfort in food. Comfort in food brings on weight gain, which brings on self-loathing and so the cycle continues. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, dealing with your issues will free you from your fat. Taking care of all of that baggage and “stuff” that’s been weighing you down both spiritually and physically is probably the most important step of all. There has to be a strong foundation from which to build upon.
Let’s talk about it, click on the “Work With Me” tab to find out about personal health coaching sessions with yours truly. In these private one-on-one sessions we can discuss any topic and implement plans to create real change in your life. Please follow my Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook pages for continued free support, motivation, and inspiration!
When it comes to life, remember that no amount of guilt will change the past, and no amount of anxiety will change the future.
Let’s get somewhere this season! Happy spring-cleaning!