The first step toward success is taken when you refuse to be a captive of the environment in which you first find yourself
- Mark Caine
It was 2010. In the midst of one of the worst recessions in US history, I was 24, jobless with a college degree, living at my step dad's house, and deeply depressed. Aside from spending hours each day submitting job application after job application, I sat in seclusion, stuffing my face and sitting comatose in front of the television. Finally, after months of searching, I landed a position at a travel agency. The job was far from ideal and the pay was subpar, but it was a job.
A few weeks after starting the job, I started to shake off the cage of self-pity and despair that had kept me prisoner for so long. I was keeping myself busy, engaged, earning a living, and I had even made a few friends. Still, I looked in the mirror and felt like a failure. I was the heaviest I had ever been. I started to worry about my health and decided that if I wanted to live a full, happy life, I needed to do something about my weight and eating issues.
1. Take that first step.
Food had long been the enemy. Growing up, I was always thin and was obsessive about my eating habits. From college until several years into adulthood, I struggled to maintain a healthy weight and to develop a healthy relationship with food. Then, when I had this epiphany in 2010, I slowly learned how to fuel my body, focusing less on weight loss and more on health. A close friend of mine wanted to try vegetarianism, so I decided to join her challenge. I also started exercising on a regular basis, starting with brisk walks - small steps. After a few months of this new regimen, I lost about 25 pounds. I felt better, mentally and physically. After keeping that up for about a year, I lost a total of 65 pounds. Then, when I began to feel too weak and tired, I decided it was time to add meat back into my diet.
2. Listen to yourself. Look inside to solve outside problems.
I continued focusing on eating mainly fresh fruits and vegetables, beans, nuts, lean meat and fish. I ate dairy in small quantities. I never worried about counting calories and never starved myself; I just listened to what my body needed and made sure to get moving at least a few times per week. The most effective - and the most challenging - part of it all: learning not to eat my feelings. With the help of regular sessions with a professional counselor, journaling, personal research on emotional eating, and learning to seek more emotional support from family and friends, I managed to get a handle on my emotional eating and lost a total of 85 pounds.
3. Stay focused.
I have kept the weight off for over 4 years, and I am more active and healthy than ever. Since that first day of my journey, I have developed a love of running. I have completed numerous races over the last several months, including my first half marathon. I went from feeling lifeless, struggling to get through each day - let alone getting off the couch - to finding a true passion. If I go a few days without a run, I feel out of sorts. Nothing beats that runner's high and the solace of the outdoors - just you and your thoughts, spending some quality time with Mother Nature.
4. Find your passion. Find yourself.
I must emphasize that I am not an expert on health, fitness, or life in general. Anyone close to me knows that I am a huge dork with a sense of humor who just happens to be a runner. This story is not intended to provide professional advice, nor do I expect everyone who reads it to lace up a pair of running shoes and start training for a 5K. Maybe you're more into yoga or swimming or curling. Maybe there's something else you've always wanted to do that you've been holding yourself back from trying. Try things out, experiment, explore - figure out what makes you feel alive and just go for it. You will be amazed how quickly your life transforms once you take that first step.
วันอาทิตย์ที่ 14 ธันวาคม พ.ศ. 2557
Change Your Language, Change Your Weight
One of the biggest differences I've found between people who are successful in losing weight and those that don't is the language the successful people use. Some of the most people I've met that have been able to lose weight and keep it off, don't use the term "lose weight." I've been told by more than a few people that even saying "I want to lose weight"is a type of self-fulfilling prophecy to gain it back. This might seem strange at first, it sure did to me, but I came around to their way of thinking. I was told that you use the terminology "lose"when you want to find something i.e. lost keys, lost children, etc. However no one wants to gain back the weight they worked so hard to get rid of in the first place! Imagine if just by just saying you want to lose 20 pounds and you do, but then you gain it back because subconsciously that language means to your brain, ""oh dear I must find that which I lost? Now I don't think weight loss is just that simple, but there have been a lot of studies that show the power of the brain in such circumstances, think of the phrase "mind over matter."
So what then do these successful skinnier people use instead of the proverbial "I want to lose weight?" Many replace that term with release weight, i.e. "I want to release 10 pounds." This simple statement on the surface looks very similar, but it is quite powerful to use language that doesn't have the same negative connotations connected to it as "losing weight"tends to have. This is especially true for chronic dieters and people that yo-yo up and down in weight. These people tend to lose weight, then gain it back, sometimes even more than they originally lost, then they lose it again, and their mind and body starts looking for it back. This can quickly turn into an endless cycle.
One simple and easy way to break the weight loss and gain cycle is to change your self talk. The first step could be as simple as changing your language around your goal. Instead of saying "I want to lose x pounds," try saying "I want to release x pounds." Just this one simple, easy to do step could get you off the weight loss and gain cycle you have been stuck on. Give it a try, it costs nothing.
So what then do these successful skinnier people use instead of the proverbial "I want to lose weight?" Many replace that term with release weight, i.e. "I want to release 10 pounds." This simple statement on the surface looks very similar, but it is quite powerful to use language that doesn't have the same negative connotations connected to it as "losing weight"tends to have. This is especially true for chronic dieters and people that yo-yo up and down in weight. These people tend to lose weight, then gain it back, sometimes even more than they originally lost, then they lose it again, and their mind and body starts looking for it back. This can quickly turn into an endless cycle.
One simple and easy way to break the weight loss and gain cycle is to change your self talk. The first step could be as simple as changing your language around your goal. Instead of saying "I want to lose x pounds," try saying "I want to release x pounds." Just this one simple, easy to do step could get you off the weight loss and gain cycle you have been stuck on. Give it a try, it costs nothing.
Goal Setting: The Key to Weight Loss?
You have probably heard all about SMART goals. Goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely. In other words set goals that you can clearly define is what is your desired result, in other words be specific. A good actionable goal is also measurable, it should be made in a way that you can tell if you have reached your goal or not in a glance. An achievable goal is obtainable, it may take a lot of work and effort, but it is reachable. A realistic goal is in the same vein as an achievable goal, it is a goal that is isn't too far fetched, but lines up with your talents, skills, etc. The time component of a SMART goal is one of the most important features of this mnemonic in my opinion. It is important to set a time line for any goal that you set to achieve.
Now you might ask your self how to I apply goal setting to weight loss? I think it is one of the cornerstones of successfully losing weight and keeping it off. The reason is this, without a specific end in mind you won't know if you arrive. If you start your weight loss journey with the vague goal of "I want to lose weight"and that is the extent of your goal setting, I think you will be sorely disappointing. How much is enough? How do you measure this goal? How do you know when you've actually reached your goal?
A much better way to set a weight loss goal is to use the SMART framework. Let's go through each piece of the SMART format for an example. Let's say Susie wants to lose her baby weight that she put on during pregnancy. She knows she gained 35 pounds during her pregnancy and she really wants to get back into her pre-pregnancy clothing. So starting with the S of SMART, Susie can set her specific goal of losing the pregnancy weight she gained because she wants to wear her old, smaller clothing again. In order for this goal to be measurable, she will need to determine and actual value that can be measured. In other words "some, a lot, and anything"are not helpful, nor or they measurable. It is important to set a real discrete number at this point. In Susie's case it is 35 pounds. A is for achievable, and that means no pie in the sky dreams. Achievable goals are obtainable with a reasonable amount of effort. Now is the time to think about how you will achieve this goal, what tools and resources do you have at your disposal. Susie should think about the time she will need for this goal, what equipment she has available and any obstacles standing in her way.
Susie should then think about if the goal is realistic. Since Susie weighed 35 pounds less before her pregnancy it is realistic that she could once again reach that weight. However, she needs to be realistic about the time frame, which is the last part of this framework. Susie did not gain 35 pounds overnight and she won't lose it in a week or two either. Susie does some research and finds out that healthy, sustainable weight loss is about 1-2 pounds per week. She decides she is super motivated and thinks with her available resources she can average 2 pounds per week. She sets the time portion of her goal at 18 weeks or about 4 � months to get to pre-baby weight. So putting her SMART goal together, Susie now has a real, measurable goal of "I want to lose 35 pounds in 18 weeks so that I can wear my pre-baby clothing."This goal has all of the elements of a SMART goal and Susie can track her progress and also know her motivation. Susie will be well on the way to achieving her weight loss by using this key to effective weight loss.
Now you might ask your self how to I apply goal setting to weight loss? I think it is one of the cornerstones of successfully losing weight and keeping it off. The reason is this, without a specific end in mind you won't know if you arrive. If you start your weight loss journey with the vague goal of "I want to lose weight"and that is the extent of your goal setting, I think you will be sorely disappointing. How much is enough? How do you measure this goal? How do you know when you've actually reached your goal?
A much better way to set a weight loss goal is to use the SMART framework. Let's go through each piece of the SMART format for an example. Let's say Susie wants to lose her baby weight that she put on during pregnancy. She knows she gained 35 pounds during her pregnancy and she really wants to get back into her pre-pregnancy clothing. So starting with the S of SMART, Susie can set her specific goal of losing the pregnancy weight she gained because she wants to wear her old, smaller clothing again. In order for this goal to be measurable, she will need to determine and actual value that can be measured. In other words "some, a lot, and anything"are not helpful, nor or they measurable. It is important to set a real discrete number at this point. In Susie's case it is 35 pounds. A is for achievable, and that means no pie in the sky dreams. Achievable goals are obtainable with a reasonable amount of effort. Now is the time to think about how you will achieve this goal, what tools and resources do you have at your disposal. Susie should think about the time she will need for this goal, what equipment she has available and any obstacles standing in her way.
Susie should then think about if the goal is realistic. Since Susie weighed 35 pounds less before her pregnancy it is realistic that she could once again reach that weight. However, she needs to be realistic about the time frame, which is the last part of this framework. Susie did not gain 35 pounds overnight and she won't lose it in a week or two either. Susie does some research and finds out that healthy, sustainable weight loss is about 1-2 pounds per week. She decides she is super motivated and thinks with her available resources she can average 2 pounds per week. She sets the time portion of her goal at 18 weeks or about 4 � months to get to pre-baby weight. So putting her SMART goal together, Susie now has a real, measurable goal of "I want to lose 35 pounds in 18 weeks so that I can wear my pre-baby clothing."This goal has all of the elements of a SMART goal and Susie can track her progress and also know her motivation. Susie will be well on the way to achieving her weight loss by using this key to effective weight loss.
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