You want to get in shape, but one way or the other, you end up failing.
Have you ever looked in the mirror and got scared by your reflection? Did you react as if you’ve seen a ghost? If that sounds familiar to you, let me tell you you’re not alone. Many people don’t like how they look, and feel bad about themselves, especially when they try to diet without success.
Losing weight isn’t an easy battle since you’re fighting against yourself. You might think that those extra pounds are responsible for the way you feel, but it might be more than that.
Are you sabotaging yourself?
The image you have about yourself, stress, and especially the loser mindset can quickly bring you down. Just because your previous efforts weren’t successful doesn’t mean that you cannot succeed. If you believe in yourself, you can achieve whatever you want.
“Where the mind goes, the body will follow.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
Let’s find out what you can do this time to get closer to your goal…
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Exercise primarily for your mind, then for your body
Most of us associate exercise with weight loss. You have to burn those extra calories if you want to get fit, right? Turning from a couch potato to a fitness enthusiast cannot happen overnight, and chances are it won’t happen at all. Why?
When you use exercise as a short-term “hack” for losing weight, your mind will try to find excuses to avoid it. As much as you try to motivate yourself if you cannot see the benefits and don’t enjoy the process, you won’t stick to it. Who wants to feel pain? You already feel bad when you don’t have the body you want when you cannot wear the clothes you like and don’t feel comfortable in your own skin.
Change the way you think about working out. Just use it as a way to clear your mind and control your stress levels. This way, your body will become stronger, and you will love the process.
By exercising, you can change your mindset and start believing in yourself. You and only you can overcome the pain and push through the challenges you face when every rep seems impossible.
Your mind tells you cannot do it because it is trying to protect you from feeling pain and discomfort. However, when you stop listening to your inner voice and push through, you will find out you are more capable than you think.
This can apply to many aspects of your life, beyond exercising. Suddenly you’ll realize you can accomplish so much more and build your confidence.
Read more about How To Win The Battle Of Weight Loss
Don’t use food as an antidepressant
We all know what healthy food looks like, but why don’t we eat it? Our relationship with what we eat goes beyond satisfying our hunger. We turn to junk food and overeat most of the time, not because we are hungry but because we feel stressed and depressed.
Of course, processed products taste a lot better than healthy ones, because they are engineered that way. It takes just the right combination of fats, sugar, and salt, and your brain goes straight to heaven. The problem is that the effects last for a short period.
Afterward, you crash feeling worse than before. Falling into the same trap again and again, will make your weight go up, your mood will worsen, and you will turn back to food for comfort.
If you just try to eat healthily, you won’t succeed. First of all, you have to address the problems you have and establish a healthy relationship with food.
Dealing with your emotions and identifying what triggers overeating is what can transform your life and let you achieve the body of your dreams. Talk to your family, friends, or a doctor, and seek advice or help. Remember the saying, “A problem shared is a problem halved.”
Don’t believe in miracle diets
Most people never go on a diet once, lose all their extra weight, and never gain it back. A significant percentage tries many diet plans, lose weight, gain weight, and are always searching for the next miracle diet to help them achieve their goal in the shortest amount of time.
As you may already know, such things exist only in fairytales. I’m sorry to break it to you, but the prince won’t come to your rescue.
Most of the time, fad diets might help you in the beginning to lose some water weight, and as soon as you start eating like an average person, you will gain back what you lost and sometimes even more.
Why torture yourself when you know that the results won’t last?
No-one likes to wait, and I am one of them. However, if you want lasting results, you have to have patience. It won’t be easy, but it won’t be impossible.
It is a great challenge, you have to change your habits, mindset, and relationship to food. The whole process isn’t just about controlling the number on the scale; it will mentally transform you into a stronger person.
Stop the all or nothing approach
Having an all-or-nothing approach can sabotage your weight loss. Don’t be too hard on yourself. We are human beings and can’t be perfect all the time. I’m sure you can relate to the following example…
You start your diet and eat a small cookie, and suddenly the world falls apart. You end up blaming yourself because you lost control, you feel bad and eat all the cookies, a chocolate bar, a bowl of ice-cream, and a pizza to change it up.
What seemed like a minor misstep can quickly end up in a total disaster.
That is why having the all-or-nothing approach won’t serve you. If you eat something extra, you can go for a walk or exercise instead.
It shouldn’t bring you down. On the contrary, it is absolutely normal. If you go past these moments you think you “failed” and continue on your weight loss journey, you will achieve your goal.
Read more about Small Changes For Big Weight Loss Results
Develop new habits and routines
During the day our mind is mostly on auto-pilot, we don’t think about all the things we do, it would be too much to handle. That’s why we have routines and habits, it makes life easier.
However, if our habits are bad, they can work against us by sabotaging our health. If you come home from work and watch tv while eating junk food to relax, that’s a habit you should break.
Change routines and add new ones that will bring you joy. When you feel good, you won’t think about food all the time. Just have fun… Let me see that smile on your face.
Stop worshiping the scale
Weighting on the scale can become an obsession. Did you lose weight? How much? Why didn’t you lose a pound this week? Is the scale broken? This love and hate relationship can really wear you down. The number on the scale isn’t the only way to know if you lost weight.
When you exercise, you gain lean mass—however, muscles weight more than fat. A simple scale won’t show you your body composition, and you might end up thinking that you never lost a pound when your body is truly transforming.
That is why you should take body measurements, buy a scale which shows body composition, and try on from time to time a smaller size when you go shopping for clothes. Taking pictures of your body is another great way to track how your body transforms through time.
Take care of yourself
When was the last time you colored or cut your hair? Are you doing anything to help you feel and look better? You might not feel like it because you aren’t comfortable in your own skin. If you don’t care about yourself, who will? Find the time and remember to pamper yourself, it can help you change your mood.
This way, you’ll become happier and find meaning in your life. Every day we are trying to accomplish so many things and take care of others, yourself can easily be left behind.
It isn’t selfish to have time for you, it is self-love. When you travel by plane, you listen to the directions on how to use oxygen masks. They say that if you travel with children, you have to wear your own mask before helping your children.
If you’re suffocating in your life, you won’t be able to help anyone. It’s time to think about yourself. Find your oxygen and breathe.
Read more about How To Finally Break The Cycle Of Overeating
Change focus, keep food off your mind
Counting calories all day long, measuring what you eat, and thinking about all the food you aren’t allowed to eat can make you mad. If you continuously look at your watch and anticipate your next meal because you’re starving, we have a problem.
It is a common misconception that you’re supposed to eat small portions, but that won’t serve you long-term. To keep up with your diet, you have to eat enough food to help you feel full.
Cutting down your calories, you can end up with a slow metabolic rate over time, and then when you’ll reach the point that you have enough, you’ll start eating again, and the weight will come back in a blink of an eye. Who wants that?
When you eat enough food and make it tasty, you won’t have cravings, your body will adjust, and it won’t become obsessed with forbidden snacks.
What can help keep your mind off food is to find a hobby, something you enjoy doing. It might be exercise, gardening, going for long walks with your dog, or whatever pleases you. It will lift your mood, lower your stress levels, and make you smile once again.
Take your life into your hands
No one can do it for you; it is only you with the power to change your body. Let fear aside and take the first step on your weight loss journey. You have to believe in yourself and keep the faith no matter how long it will take.
People associate dieting with torture; that is one reason they cannot stick to it. By learning to enjoy healthier foods, by training your mind and body, you will get stronger.
Accomplishing the goal of reaching your ideal weight isn’t only about how you look. Your journey will make you stronger, and you’ll be able to apply your warrior mindset to every aspect of your life. You’ll learn that you can do whatever you set your mind to. So change your mindset and let yourself free.