Mindset is the only guarantee to weight loss
There is only one guarantee to beating obesity and weight loss, and that is mindset.
Don’t misunderstand me. You cannot think yourself thin.
What mindset allows is a lifestyle change which doesn’t let you eat more than your body requires. It puts discipline into your eating regime.
This I have learned through many years of failed diets.
Your mind dictates your actions, and if your mind isn’t in the correct gear, it will only move in neutral and allow you to keep the status quo. You need to change gears and move forward. This is not an easy thing to do. We automatically believe our mind wants the best for us, but this is only the case if we tell it so.
What I have learned about weight loss is it takes forever to reach your goals, and most times the goals we set are unattainable. We set an impossible goal weight to achieve within an unrealistic time frame.
We can get rid of the scale or the calendar.
I got rid of the calendar.
Set small, achievable goals and reward yourself for achieving them.
The easiest way to achieve a big goal is to set smaller ones which chip away at the big one.
Instead of saying you want to lose 25kg in two months, do what I did.
After losing 5kg, I’ll give myself a pat on the back for a job well done.
At 10kg I would buy myself a nice new fragrance.
And so on, and so on.
The ultimate reward on reaching my goal weight will be a basic closet of clothes that fit me.
With the lockdown in full force here, I will change my rewards a little, but I can tell you now, my list of rewards is a great motivating factor.
Learn to love your obese body.
This sounds counterproductive, but it works.
I avoided photos and full-length mirrors for years because I didn’t like what I was seeing.
Now I walk around freely at home, not worried about what my naked body looks like. I know it is the ‘before’ picture, and I know what the ‘after’ picture will look like. It is amazing what this does to boost your self-esteem.
Being obese has forced me to hide away from the world, but I don’t have that issue now.
I am not a believer in daily, early morning mantras, but a sudden and definitive belief that I am not my obesity, has shifted my mindset to making me know I will lose weight.
You will fail on some days, but learn to forgive yourself.
I have had many days in the past where my diet went down the toilet.
This was at a family braai, dinner with friends or just such a craving that I binged like there was no tomorrow. Put it out of your mind, but you will do it again.
The worst thing about bingeing is the guilt afterwards. Many times, after a binge, I decided ‘what the heck, I can’t keep on track, so why bother?’ Then I went back to my bad eating habits for a few months, gained the already lost weight, and started another diet. I was going nowhere.
Developing a habit or a winning mindset takes time, so be patient.
Be prepared to fail every so often, but more important, pick yourself up each time and get with the program.
Mindset is your secret weapon to beating obesity.
Beating obesity will be difficult and take a long time, but you will do it.
We will do it together.
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