Now that the holidays are over, winter has settled in for a nice, long stay here in Michigan. Several inches of snow cover the ground and the temperature is in single digits, with a wind chill dropping the air temp a few degrees below that. I joke that those of us who experience this type of weather (I resisted the urge to write "endure"!) have a deeper appreciation for spring, summer and fall than those who are surrounded by green grass and flowers twelve months of the year, but the truth is that this kind of weather has a tendency to drag me down. Because we live very near Lake Michigan, we typically get a lot of cloud cover most of the winter and going for days without sunshine probably contributes to that dragged-down feeling.
Truth is, this time of year brings out the grizzly bear in me - all I want to do is put on a nice layer of fat via lots of carbs and sugar and then sleep until spring :-). For years, that's pretty much how I coped with our Michigan winters. Even in my 20's and early 30's when I was at a healthy weight, I'd pick up around 10 pounds every winter then take it off in the spring and summer and just accepted the fact that my winter slacks were a size larger than my summer ones. I didn't understand at that time that I was really yo-yo dieting and that each gain/lose/gain cycle was actually increasing my percentage of body fat, so I succumbed to the inclination to carb load and curl up under a blanket with a book.
To be honest, that is STILL my inclination . . . but that's not what I do anymore. As tempting as it is to reach for those carbs and vegetate under a blanket, I'm making different choices these days. That grizzly bear tendency is still there and it still growls at me, but I'm growling back :-). I know that what I really want is to be thin and healthy, and grizzly bear living is NOT the way to have what I really want. So, whether I feel like it or not, I make healthy choices and I move my body.
I think that my seasonal battle with the grizzly bear can most likely be attributed to my self-diagnosed Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), but I've found that eating right and staying active actually helps to calm the grizzly bear. I also take extra Vitamin D to make up for the sunshine that we miss - the extra D helps minimize some of the winter blahs, too, and I have a light therapy box that I can use as well.
Sometimes it's just plain hard to make the choices we know we should be making when we frankly feel like doing something else. If we are taking a short view of life, we'll go for the immediate gratification and follow our instincts almost every time. The challenge is to shift our focus and look at where we want to be in 3 months, 6 months, or 12 months from now. If we stay focused on where we want to be, and if that's what we REALLY want, we will then be able to make choices that will support what we want.
So it really doesn't matter how we feel today - what matters is what we want tomorrow and the day after that. Focus on what you want, then choose wisely :-)
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Feeling "Normal"
As many of you know, I occasionally enjoy revisiting past blogs that I've written. It's always interesting for me to read about what was going on in my life at that time and to remember how I was feeling about the weight loss journey I was on.
The following blog was written three years ago today, January 8, 2008. I hope what I wrote then will be helpful to you today!
***
After 6-1/2 months on Take Shape for Life/Medifast and 76 pounds gone (so far), it is finally dawning on me that I feel like a normal person again.
DISCLAIMER: Let me hasten to say that in NO WAY means that I wasn't a "normal person" when I weighed 260 (starting weight) or even 268 (all-time high weight), and that absolutely does NOT mean that those still at those weights, or higher, aren't normal. Of course I was, and so is everyone else!!
What I DO mean is that I no longer feel defined by my obesity. Even though I still have around 50 pounds to lose, I'm wearing Misses sizes and look a lot like "other people." I don't feel like people are looking at me or make assessments about who I am based on my size. I can fit comfortably into all chairs, including a favorite small antique rocking chair I have. I don't have any concerns about the seat belts on airplanes or squeezing between tables at a restaurant. I feel like I once again "fit in" with everybody else.
Until my early/mid 30's, "normal" WAS my life and I couldn't have imagined spending 20 years of my life feeling like an outsider, embarrassed by my size and wanting to stay in the background. For the past 20 years, I have been the person in the background in pictures, if I was in the picture at all. In the summer, I avoided sitting on other people's lawn chairs because the tag on most of them said "Weight Limit 225" and I was well above that and mortified at the thought that a chair would collapse under my weight. I took up "more than my fair share" of any sofa or love seat I sat on, and I knew that my sitting there made it crowded for whoever sat next to me. For 20 years, I didn't go clothes shopping with anybody because I was embarrassed for anyone to know what size I wore. When friends would suggest a day of shopping, I'd tag along for the fun but would never, EVER look at clothes for myself. I'd look at the sizes they were trying on and compliment them appropriately on how they looked, while inside I was crying because I was so far from where they were.
Because of Take Shape for Life/Medifast, I have left all of that behind! Talk about a fabulous NSV (non-scale victory) - I finally "feel" normal again. For me, there is real freedom in realizing that, even though I'm still overweight, my weight no longer defines who I am. Perhaps a better way to state it is to say that I no longer ALLOW it to define who I am! I hope that the first thing people notice about me now is my smile, or maybe my eyes, not my size.
For me, feeling normal again makes every little white packet worth it; it makes every last bite I've turned down worth it!
***
All I had to do to start reading this blog to immediately go back to the wonder I felt at the transformation that was taking place. Three years later, I still thrill (literally) at being able to fit into spaces, shop in the Misses section, and even being able to share (and swap) clothes with my daughters and my girlfriends. I hope I never take any of this for granted, and I hope I never forget about the pain of morbid obesity.
I am so thankful for this program and for all that has happened in my life since the day I chose to open my first packet of Medifast food! The things I temporarily gave up were more than worth it, and I promise you that I have no regrets for staying on plan.
I stayed on plan by making the choice every day to do so, and I chose to not allow anything to get in the way of getting to my goal. You have the same choice today - choose wisely :-)
The following blog was written three years ago today, January 8, 2008. I hope what I wrote then will be helpful to you today!
***
After 6-1/2 months on Take Shape for Life/Medifast and 76 pounds gone (so far), it is finally dawning on me that I feel like a normal person again.
DISCLAIMER: Let me hasten to say that in NO WAY means that I wasn't a "normal person" when I weighed 260 (starting weight) or even 268 (all-time high weight), and that absolutely does NOT mean that those still at those weights, or higher, aren't normal. Of course I was, and so is everyone else!!
What I DO mean is that I no longer feel defined by my obesity. Even though I still have around 50 pounds to lose, I'm wearing Misses sizes and look a lot like "other people." I don't feel like people are looking at me or make assessments about who I am based on my size. I can fit comfortably into all chairs, including a favorite small antique rocking chair I have. I don't have any concerns about the seat belts on airplanes or squeezing between tables at a restaurant. I feel like I once again "fit in" with everybody else.
Until my early/mid 30's, "normal" WAS my life and I couldn't have imagined spending 20 years of my life feeling like an outsider, embarrassed by my size and wanting to stay in the background. For the past 20 years, I have been the person in the background in pictures, if I was in the picture at all. In the summer, I avoided sitting on other people's lawn chairs because the tag on most of them said "Weight Limit 225" and I was well above that and mortified at the thought that a chair would collapse under my weight. I took up "more than my fair share" of any sofa or love seat I sat on, and I knew that my sitting there made it crowded for whoever sat next to me. For 20 years, I didn't go clothes shopping with anybody because I was embarrassed for anyone to know what size I wore. When friends would suggest a day of shopping, I'd tag along for the fun but would never, EVER look at clothes for myself. I'd look at the sizes they were trying on and compliment them appropriately on how they looked, while inside I was crying because I was so far from where they were.
Because of Take Shape for Life/Medifast, I have left all of that behind! Talk about a fabulous NSV (non-scale victory) - I finally "feel" normal again. For me, there is real freedom in realizing that, even though I'm still overweight, my weight no longer defines who I am. Perhaps a better way to state it is to say that I no longer ALLOW it to define who I am! I hope that the first thing people notice about me now is my smile, or maybe my eyes, not my size.
For me, feeling normal again makes every little white packet worth it; it makes every last bite I've turned down worth it!
***
All I had to do to start reading this blog to immediately go back to the wonder I felt at the transformation that was taking place. Three years later, I still thrill (literally) at being able to fit into spaces, shop in the Misses section, and even being able to share (and swap) clothes with my daughters and my girlfriends. I hope I never take any of this for granted, and I hope I never forget about the pain of morbid obesity.
I am so thankful for this program and for all that has happened in my life since the day I chose to open my first packet of Medifast food! The things I temporarily gave up were more than worth it, and I promise you that I have no regrets for staying on plan.
I stayed on plan by making the choice every day to do so, and I chose to not allow anything to get in the way of getting to my goal. You have the same choice today - choose wisely :-)
Friday, January 7, 2011
Weekend Planning
Wow, did this week ever go fast! I can't believe it's Friday already! For those of us who are trying to lose weight, the fact that it's Friday can be both good news and bad news.
Weekends are always extra-challenging. During the week, most of us are on some kind of a fairly predictable schedule, which makes staying on plan pretty easy. Then the weekend hits and we spend two days on a totally different routine, and weekends are when many of us do most of our socializing. For me, much of my socializing involves food - meeting friends for dinner; getting together for movies and, yep, snacks; family get-togethers which ALWAYS involve eating - what's a person to do?
PLAN and COMMIT.
PLAN: Decide ahead of time how to handle the social situation. Since I'm a people person and absolutely HATE to miss out on a good time, skipping these social events was out of the question for me, so I had to figure out how to survive them. If we were going out for dinner, I'd save my lean & green for dinner and, when possible, check out the menu on line. Deciding ahead of time what I was going to eat was really helpful! I'd log the meal on "My Plan" before I left and it helped to cement the plan in my mind. If we were invited to someone's house for dinner, I'd offer to bring a salad :-). If we were getting together for games or a movie, I made sure I brought a Medifast bar or a cappuccino. After a while, people got used to the fact that I was going to stay on plan, no matter what.
COMMIT: After you carefully plan, commit to following your plan! It can be easy to be swayed by what other people are doing or eating. That's why part of my plan was to check the restaurant's menu on line before we'd go out to eat. I'd write down what I was going to eat and wouldn't even look at the menu. When possible, I tried to be the first one to place my order so there wouldn't be any last-minute temptation to change what I planned when I'd hear what others were ordering.
One last thing: nobody really cares what you eat - really! Some of us have hesitated to stay on plan because we're worried about how what we eat or don't eat will impact someone else. One of the things I learned is that others really don't care. As long as you're comfortable with what you're doing and don't make a big deal out of it, neither will anyone else.
So, is this a busy weekend for you, or are you going to be able to kick back and relax? Either way, are you carefully planning to make sure it's an on-plan weekend?
Plan, commit, then choose wisely :-)
Weekends are always extra-challenging. During the week, most of us are on some kind of a fairly predictable schedule, which makes staying on plan pretty easy. Then the weekend hits and we spend two days on a totally different routine, and weekends are when many of us do most of our socializing. For me, much of my socializing involves food - meeting friends for dinner; getting together for movies and, yep, snacks; family get-togethers which ALWAYS involve eating - what's a person to do?
PLAN and COMMIT.
PLAN: Decide ahead of time how to handle the social situation. Since I'm a people person and absolutely HATE to miss out on a good time, skipping these social events was out of the question for me, so I had to figure out how to survive them. If we were going out for dinner, I'd save my lean & green for dinner and, when possible, check out the menu on line. Deciding ahead of time what I was going to eat was really helpful! I'd log the meal on "My Plan" before I left and it helped to cement the plan in my mind. If we were invited to someone's house for dinner, I'd offer to bring a salad :-). If we were getting together for games or a movie, I made sure I brought a Medifast bar or a cappuccino. After a while, people got used to the fact that I was going to stay on plan, no matter what.
COMMIT: After you carefully plan, commit to following your plan! It can be easy to be swayed by what other people are doing or eating. That's why part of my plan was to check the restaurant's menu on line before we'd go out to eat. I'd write down what I was going to eat and wouldn't even look at the menu. When possible, I tried to be the first one to place my order so there wouldn't be any last-minute temptation to change what I planned when I'd hear what others were ordering.
One last thing: nobody really cares what you eat - really! Some of us have hesitated to stay on plan because we're worried about how what we eat or don't eat will impact someone else. One of the things I learned is that others really don't care. As long as you're comfortable with what you're doing and don't make a big deal out of it, neither will anyone else.
So, is this a busy weekend for you, or are you going to be able to kick back and relax? Either way, are you carefully planning to make sure it's an on-plan weekend?
Plan, commit, then choose wisely :-)
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Long Shot or Sure Bet?
I spent a long time thinking that I could somehow escape the consequences of my obesity. It wasn't that I was unaware of the health risks I faced, but I hoped that somehow I would beat the odds and be one of those rare individuals who was both fat AND healthy. My chance of beating the health risk odds was probably on a par with winning a mega millions lottery (which I will never win because I won't ever play!). Fat chance!
So many of us spent years gambling with our health, and many of us finally made the decision to get started on this program when our odds ran out. For me, it was being diagnosed with diabetes. Wake up calls for others have included heart attacks, by-pass surgery, or the need for a C-pap machine for sleep apnea.
What's exciting is that the Take Shape for Life/Medifast program gives us the opportunity to often reverse the conditions that finally brought us (perhaps borderline kicking and screaming!) here. My diabetes is gone and I'm off of all medications. C-pap machines have been returned, no-longer-needed medications disposed of, and individuals who have been under the care of a cardiologist for heart conditions have been discharged from the practice because of the improvement in their health. Other health improvements are too numerous to be listed here!
The odds of most people reversing disease and getting off medication are pretty slim - conventional wisdom is that once on a med, always on a med. For most individuals, one medication almost inevitably leads to a higher and higher dose, followed by additional medications. The opposite is often true here: the longer someone is on Take Shape for Life/Medifast and the healthier they get (this is an optimal health program, after all!), the fewer medications they are probably on.
Every day on this program, people are beating the odds of disease. We are preventing disease and often reversing disease as cholesterol levels, blood sugar levels and blood pressure numbers return to normal. Those are the kind of odds I like - a LOT!
So what kind of a gambler are you today? Are you still playing the odds that you will be able to get away with unhealthy eating habits and an unhealthy weight? If so, that's a long shot at best, and you're gambling with your health.
Instead, consider the odds of your health improving if you stay on plan and reach your weight loss goal. Getting and staying healthy really isn't a gamble, because making healthy choices has an very consistent and predictable pay off. Living a healthy, vibrant life is far better than winning a mega million lottery, because that kind of life is priceless!
The choices you make determine whether you're going for a long shot or a sure thing . . . choose wisely :-)
So many of us spent years gambling with our health, and many of us finally made the decision to get started on this program when our odds ran out. For me, it was being diagnosed with diabetes. Wake up calls for others have included heart attacks, by-pass surgery, or the need for a C-pap machine for sleep apnea.
What's exciting is that the Take Shape for Life/Medifast program gives us the opportunity to often reverse the conditions that finally brought us (perhaps borderline kicking and screaming!) here. My diabetes is gone and I'm off of all medications. C-pap machines have been returned, no-longer-needed medications disposed of, and individuals who have been under the care of a cardiologist for heart conditions have been discharged from the practice because of the improvement in their health. Other health improvements are too numerous to be listed here!
The odds of most people reversing disease and getting off medication are pretty slim - conventional wisdom is that once on a med, always on a med. For most individuals, one medication almost inevitably leads to a higher and higher dose, followed by additional medications. The opposite is often true here: the longer someone is on Take Shape for Life/Medifast and the healthier they get (this is an optimal health program, after all!), the fewer medications they are probably on.
Every day on this program, people are beating the odds of disease. We are preventing disease and often reversing disease as cholesterol levels, blood sugar levels and blood pressure numbers return to normal. Those are the kind of odds I like - a LOT!
So what kind of a gambler are you today? Are you still playing the odds that you will be able to get away with unhealthy eating habits and an unhealthy weight? If so, that's a long shot at best, and you're gambling with your health.
Instead, consider the odds of your health improving if you stay on plan and reach your weight loss goal. Getting and staying healthy really isn't a gamble, because making healthy choices has an very consistent and predictable pay off. Living a healthy, vibrant life is far better than winning a mega million lottery, because that kind of life is priceless!
The choices you make determine whether you're going for a long shot or a sure thing . . . choose wisely :-)
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
How 'Bout Those Resolutions?
We're five days into the new year, so how's it going so far? My husband shared with me an article on the internet (Daily Mail Reporter) that stated that, according to research, many people don't have the willpower to make their New Year's resolutions last longer than a week. A week . . . which means that there are some people whose resolutions are already starting to weaken.
I hope that doesn't apply to anybody here! I do know that being successful on this program requires a lot more than what is usually found in a New Year's resolution. Most of my past New Year's resolutions were mostly wishful thinking with very little resolve to be found. I know that's true because they rarely lasted a full week.
The research posted on the internet identifies the reason for failure as a lack of willpower, but I disagree. Willpower really has nothing to do with it, because we almost always end up doing the things we really want to do. We just need to decide what it is that we want and keep what we want in focus.
When I decided that what I really wanted was to get to a healthy weight, that became my focus and there was a level of resolve that hadn't been there before. Foods that had formerly been huge temptations suddenly became obstacles to me getting what I really wanted. The food hadn't changed, of course, but my focus had and I wanted health far more than I wanted the food. To be honest, I still wanted the food, and sometimes it was really, REALLY hard to walk away from it, but I was able to walk away because there was something else I wanted even more.
I've often heard people say that they can't lose weight because they don't have enough willpower. Sorry, but that's a cop-out! The truth is that they just don't want it bad enough, at least not yet.
The good news is that this program is designed to get us what we really want - if we really want to get to a healthy weight - and it will get us there pretty quickly. We just have to decide if that's what we really want. Once we decide, we'll make choices that support that decision. Once again, decide what you want, then choose wisely :-)
I hope that doesn't apply to anybody here! I do know that being successful on this program requires a lot more than what is usually found in a New Year's resolution. Most of my past New Year's resolutions were mostly wishful thinking with very little resolve to be found. I know that's true because they rarely lasted a full week.
The research posted on the internet identifies the reason for failure as a lack of willpower, but I disagree. Willpower really has nothing to do with it, because we almost always end up doing the things we really want to do. We just need to decide what it is that we want and keep what we want in focus.
When I decided that what I really wanted was to get to a healthy weight, that became my focus and there was a level of resolve that hadn't been there before. Foods that had formerly been huge temptations suddenly became obstacles to me getting what I really wanted. The food hadn't changed, of course, but my focus had and I wanted health far more than I wanted the food. To be honest, I still wanted the food, and sometimes it was really, REALLY hard to walk away from it, but I was able to walk away because there was something else I wanted even more.
I've often heard people say that they can't lose weight because they don't have enough willpower. Sorry, but that's a cop-out! The truth is that they just don't want it bad enough, at least not yet.
The good news is that this program is designed to get us what we really want - if we really want to get to a healthy weight - and it will get us there pretty quickly. We just have to decide if that's what we really want. Once we decide, we'll make choices that support that decision. Once again, decide what you want, then choose wisely :-)
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
THE Secret to GUARANTEED Success!!
I am SO excited this morning! I have a secret to share with you - THE key that will GUARANTEE your success on this program. It doesn't matter if you're just getting started (if so, welcome!) or if you're a veteran who's been on the program for several months (or longer). This is it - the key that is guaranteed 100% to get you to your goal.
Are you ready? Here's the key to your success:
1. Get started
2. Don't quit
Yep - it's that simple! Here's the good news: since you're reading this, I'm assuming that you've already started. If that's true, then you're half-way there! :-) Getting started is often the hardest part, especially if we've tried and failed before. Failure tends to breed failure, and if you've failed before (like I did about a zillion times), the very thought of trying again can be overwhelming. The fear of failing yet again can keep us from even trying, so the very fact that you've started is encouraging.
The second half of the "guaranteed success" equation is to keep going and not quit. You already know that this plan works. If you've been on plan for even a week, you've lost weight - possibly more weight than you've ever lost in a single week on any other plan. All you have to do is keep going :-).
This is such a great time of year to keep going and not quit! First of all, with everyone just coming off the holidays, a lot of people are focused on eating healthier and losing weight. There are less temptations now and you are more likely to encounter sympathetic, supportive people. For everyone who lives in one of the cold weather states, you have several months before shorts and swimsuit weather is here - great motivation! Getting started and not quitting means you'll be at your goal (or at least a lot closer) by the time warm weather arrives.
I do apologize if the key to success wasn't exactly what you were looking for - I fully understand! Before starting on this program, I was always on high alert, looking for THE thing that would finally unlock the chains of my own morbid obesity. Almost every January would find me perusing the diet section of my local bookstore, checking out the latest and greatest plan. Every year I hoped and prayed that the latest and greatest new plan would be THE key. When someone I knew lost weight, I'd always ask them how they did it. When they responded that they changed how they ate and started exercising, I was always disappointed because that answer was so simple - I wanted to hear about something new that would let me eat whatever I wanted, continue to be a couch potato, and still melt the pounds.
Of course, that "secret" never materialized, and I know now that it never will. There IS no magic potion, pharmaceutical wonder, or anything else that will bring the results we want without effort on our part. Sigh!
However, this plan works and it works fast. All of the hard work has been done for us - we don't have to figure anything out. No counting calories, carbs or fat grams, no worrying about whether or not we're getting the nutrition we need - it's all been taken care of. All we have to do once we start is just keep going and not quit. If we do that, the chances that we'll reach our goal is 100%.
Get started. Don't quit. The choice is ours, so choose wisely :-)
Are you ready? Here's the key to your success:
1. Get started
2. Don't quit
Yep - it's that simple! Here's the good news: since you're reading this, I'm assuming that you've already started. If that's true, then you're half-way there! :-) Getting started is often the hardest part, especially if we've tried and failed before. Failure tends to breed failure, and if you've failed before (like I did about a zillion times), the very thought of trying again can be overwhelming. The fear of failing yet again can keep us from even trying, so the very fact that you've started is encouraging.
The second half of the "guaranteed success" equation is to keep going and not quit. You already know that this plan works. If you've been on plan for even a week, you've lost weight - possibly more weight than you've ever lost in a single week on any other plan. All you have to do is keep going :-).
This is such a great time of year to keep going and not quit! First of all, with everyone just coming off the holidays, a lot of people are focused on eating healthier and losing weight. There are less temptations now and you are more likely to encounter sympathetic, supportive people. For everyone who lives in one of the cold weather states, you have several months before shorts and swimsuit weather is here - great motivation! Getting started and not quitting means you'll be at your goal (or at least a lot closer) by the time warm weather arrives.
I do apologize if the key to success wasn't exactly what you were looking for - I fully understand! Before starting on this program, I was always on high alert, looking for THE thing that would finally unlock the chains of my own morbid obesity. Almost every January would find me perusing the diet section of my local bookstore, checking out the latest and greatest plan. Every year I hoped and prayed that the latest and greatest new plan would be THE key. When someone I knew lost weight, I'd always ask them how they did it. When they responded that they changed how they ate and started exercising, I was always disappointed because that answer was so simple - I wanted to hear about something new that would let me eat whatever I wanted, continue to be a couch potato, and still melt the pounds.
Of course, that "secret" never materialized, and I know now that it never will. There IS no magic potion, pharmaceutical wonder, or anything else that will bring the results we want without effort on our part. Sigh!
However, this plan works and it works fast. All of the hard work has been done for us - we don't have to figure anything out. No counting calories, carbs or fat grams, no worrying about whether or not we're getting the nutrition we need - it's all been taken care of. All we have to do once we start is just keep going and not quit. If we do that, the chances that we'll reach our goal is 100%.
Get started. Don't quit. The choice is ours, so choose wisely :-)
Monday, January 3, 2011
It's a New Year!
Happy 2011! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year's, and I also hope that you're ready to make 2011 your healthiest year ever. It doesn't matter if you're just starting on this program for the first time or if this is your umpteenth go-around. It also doesn't matter if you blew it royally over the holidays. The only thing that matters is that you've made a decision NOW to create something wonderful - a healthy, thin YOU, living the life you want to live.
That may sound next to impossible to some of you; it sure sounded impossible to me when I started on this program in June of 2007. I was desperate to lose weight but, at 5'5" and 260 pounds, I didn't think it was possible to lose the weight I needed to lose. Two decades of failure with multiple weight loss attempts only reinforced what I believed to be true. Funny thing, though - what I believed to be true about my inability to lose weight ended up not being true at all! I not only lost a total of 126 pounds on this program, reaching my goal in May of 2008, but I've been fairly successful in maintaining my weight loss ever since. I say "fairly successful" because I haven't done maintenance perfectly, but I'm still wearing my size 6 jeans . . . sometimes they're a bit more snug than I prefer, but this program has given me the tools I need to know what to do when the scale blips up.
So how do you shift gears and move forward, even if you don't really believe you can? It's simple (please note: I said "simple," not "easy"!). You shift gears by focusing on what you want. Have you made the decision to lose weight and get to a healthy weight? I'm not talking about you wanting to lose weight, because just about everybody wants to lose weight :-). I'm asking if you've made the decision to lose weight and get healthy. This isn't a matter of semantics. Everyone wants to lose weight and would opt to do so in a heartbeat if it could be done quickly and without giving anything up. However, very few people actually make the fundamental decision to get to a healthy weight, because once you make that decision, things begin to change.
It's not that making the decision to get to a healthy weight somehow waves a wand that magically makes it happen, but once you make the fundamental decision and focus on what you want, you will begin to make the choices necessary to support that decision. Making the decision also doesn't mean that you won't ever slip up, because some of you will, but if you have your eyes on your goal and keep focused, you'll keep moving forward.
Forget what's happened in the past - you can't change it. The past can only rule your present and determine your future if you allow it to. Today, at the beginning of 2011, you can set your course for a different future - IF you know what you want and have made the decision to go for it. Once you've done that and focused on what you want, all that's left to do is make the choices that will support your decision. Decide, focus, then choose wisely :-)
That may sound next to impossible to some of you; it sure sounded impossible to me when I started on this program in June of 2007. I was desperate to lose weight but, at 5'5" and 260 pounds, I didn't think it was possible to lose the weight I needed to lose. Two decades of failure with multiple weight loss attempts only reinforced what I believed to be true. Funny thing, though - what I believed to be true about my inability to lose weight ended up not being true at all! I not only lost a total of 126 pounds on this program, reaching my goal in May of 2008, but I've been fairly successful in maintaining my weight loss ever since. I say "fairly successful" because I haven't done maintenance perfectly, but I'm still wearing my size 6 jeans . . . sometimes they're a bit more snug than I prefer, but this program has given me the tools I need to know what to do when the scale blips up.
So how do you shift gears and move forward, even if you don't really believe you can? It's simple (please note: I said "simple," not "easy"!). You shift gears by focusing on what you want. Have you made the decision to lose weight and get to a healthy weight? I'm not talking about you wanting to lose weight, because just about everybody wants to lose weight :-). I'm asking if you've made the decision to lose weight and get healthy. This isn't a matter of semantics. Everyone wants to lose weight and would opt to do so in a heartbeat if it could be done quickly and without giving anything up. However, very few people actually make the fundamental decision to get to a healthy weight, because once you make that decision, things begin to change.
It's not that making the decision to get to a healthy weight somehow waves a wand that magically makes it happen, but once you make the fundamental decision and focus on what you want, you will begin to make the choices necessary to support that decision. Making the decision also doesn't mean that you won't ever slip up, because some of you will, but if you have your eyes on your goal and keep focused, you'll keep moving forward.
Forget what's happened in the past - you can't change it. The past can only rule your present and determine your future if you allow it to. Today, at the beginning of 2011, you can set your course for a different future - IF you know what you want and have made the decision to go for it. Once you've done that and focused on what you want, all that's left to do is make the choices that will support your decision. Decide, focus, then choose wisely :-)
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