Anyone who has struggled with wanting to lose weight has felt mental anguish
over their appearance. This is normal and often necessary to give us a wake
up call to return to health. Excessive fat on the body is not good for you.
The choice is yours. You can choose to feel this way day after day or you
can make small changes every day - which has a heavy impact on who you become
in six months or a year.
The first step is to listen to your "self-talk" - as your thoughts affect
your attitude. If you are getting ready to go out one evening, and you
don't like what you see in the mirror DON'T tell yourself, "I look awful".
Instead, acknowledge that you are not where you want to be, and remind
yourself that you are working hard to become a healthier person.
Next, learn to deal with stress, since it is impossible to avoid. Many
people eat because they are under stress, not when they are really hungry.
Realize that a better way to handle stress would be to call a friend, keep a
journal; this gives you a private place to vent frustration and then
evaluate your feelings to see if you could work on a healthier attitude, or
get up and move your body! Frustration is energy - use it to your advantage!
Go for a run, jump rope or do whatever you can. Exercise is productive
and you have time to think of a reasonable solution for your stress.
Other important ways to improve your thoughts about weight loss include
learning to trust how you feel to chart your progress. For example, more
energy, move easier, and feeling better in clothes. Use the scale sparingly
because water fluctuations occur in the body daily.
Don't tell yourself, "I need to lose 60 pounds" it sounds too hard! Realize
that your health improves with every 10 pounds you lose - work in increments
and find small ways to reward yourself. Acknowledge that losing fat
requires discipline. In the heat of the moment, you have to want to lose
weight MORE than eating that chocolate cake. If you are hungry make a
healthier choice. Do not deny your hunger. It is a healthy signal that
your body needs to be nourished. Prolonged hunger creates unhealthy
obsessive thoughts about food, and can lead you to over eat - when you do
give in.
Lastly, think about your childhood associations with food. Were you told to
'clean your plate' as a child? It may be a bad habit that you have
continued to do as an adult, if it causes you to over eat. It is important
not to waste food. Learn to take smaller portions and go back for more if
you are still truly hungry.
Take some time to reflect and gain a new focus on what you can do now.
Realize that it took years to get where you are now with you weight, and
it's going to take some time to get where you want to be. Just think, in
one year you will either lose weight, gain weight or stay right where you
are - the choice is completely up to you.
Take back your health! It's the small steps we take today that have a huge
impact on who we become in the future.
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Ask Dawn,
Can you recommend exercises that do not involve stress on the knees or lower
back?
Swimming is a low impact activity that is excellent for the cardiovascular
system. Walking is also low impact and simple. Even if you can only walk
for 10 minutes in the beginning - you will strengthen your muscles,
oxygenate your body and increase circulation.
Yoga is another excellent choice. Performed slowly it is great for
flexability and muscle tone, and if you pick up the pace and try power yoga,
it is still low impact and your cardiovascular system also gets a real
workout.
I find I like to snack throughout the day, can you recommend snacks that
won't inhibit my weightloss goals?
The rate your body consumes calories for energy is increased when you eat
small amounts of food 4 - 6 times a day, instead of 3 large meals. Green
vegetables are the best - celery sticks, cucumber slices, broccoli or a
salad as these foods will not trigger and an excessive insulin release
(insulin tells the body to store fat). Limit yogurt, bread, nuts, rice
cakes, fruit and fruit juices to post-workout foods. If you are serious,
processed snack foods are out the question, except for an occasional treat.
Are supplements really important when trying to lose weight?
Yes. There are some essential nutrients that can speed up the fat loss
process and make your journey a healthier one. However, you must avoid the
weight loss hype! Do not try products that say, "Eat whatever you want and
lose all the weight you want". If you eat more calories than you expend in
a day, you will store the extra energy as fat. A duiretic "miracle pill"
will not change that. Once your dietary lifestyle is on track you can try
adding a natural source multi-vitamin which supports the entire body. The
mineral chromium is great because it balances your blood sugar, which
affects your mood and energy levels between meals. When you feel better
don't have the craving to snack on unhealthy foods. Fibre supplement is a
must. Fibre will grab excess fat in the diet and safely eliminate it from
the body. A healthy bowel is essential. Some people have had colonic
irrigations done and as much as 7.5 pounds of excess fecal matter that was
stored in the bowel has come out. Essential fatty acids are one of my
favourites, here's why: they make digestion work more efficiently, improve
skin - especially dryness, give you energy, flushes out stored trans fatty
acids (bad fats), and balance hormones!
All of the above supplements are safe to take together.
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