How do you know where to begin when you decide to pursue a healthier lifestyle? Try taking an honest look at where you are right now and what your strengths are.
I was looking for information on the role b-vitamins play in metabolic processes when I came across this video:
“Hello? That’s not cool!” Was my first response. Then it hit me: If I hadn’t made changes in my life, I might very well have been headed for my own video about shockingly overweight people. I was immediately inspired to jot down a few things I have going for me in my weightloss adventure:
- I can move freely – I have no physical disability that keeps me from exercising.
- I have the support of close friends – I know I’m not alone nor am I the only one with this struggle.
- I know what to do – I know enough about nutrition that I can focus on what works for me instead of struggling to learn about how things work in general.
It’s easy to look around and find somebody who needs to lose more weight than you or I do. It’s easy to look back on previous failures and use them as an excuse to accept failure again. It’s convenient to blame anything and everything but ourselves for our current state of health.
The truth is, unless you’re in a straitjacket (if you’re reading this and you’re in a straitjacket, it’s okay, most of us hear voices) or being force-fed like a French goose (Actually, I’ve had a fatty liver…awful…water retention to match my belly…no baby though), the only thing stopping you from reaching peak health is you. (Yes, I just indirectly referred to you as a thing. I’m also developing a fondness for parentheses and long sentences)
Stop rolling your eyes. You knew I was going to say that you’re the problem. The cool part is that you also get to be the solution. In fact, you’re the only one who can really help you. Why? Because you choose your actions. You choose when and what to eat. You choose when to exercise and when to rest. It’s likely that you already know exactly what you need to do in order to achieve better health.
The hard part is acting upon that knowledge and making healthy choices.
Where to start?
I look at this picture and think, "I'll be able to do that soon!"
Find an old notebook. Most of us have at least one half-filled notebook hanging around. Rip out all the used pages. Grab a pen and write at the top of the first page: “Things I have going for me already.”
Continue by listing at least 3 things you have going for you in your fight for better health. You might have strong legs, be adventurous about trying new foods, or know how to laugh at yourself. No matter what your situation is, I know you have things going for you.
Focusing on your strengths is one of the most important tools in bringing about lasting changes.
Now what? If you haven’t read it already, check out 5 Questions To Ask Before Eating Anything and give the process some thought. My next weightloss post will build upon your list of strengths and my five questions to discuss what I’ve tentatively titled “How to keep a food journal that doesn’t inspire random acts of violence against senior citizens“. Obviously, the title needs work. Goodness, I need work. The reader in the straitjacket needs work. You might need a bit of work, too.
Let’s go to work on us together. What is one of your strengths?
photo: akunamatata
Love the potential title of your next weightloss post, keep it. Thanks for the giggle. So many of us are in the same boat it’s amazing we’re still afloat. I’m in short supply of motivation, so I made a bet, 20 lbs in 4 months, problem is I’m also a procrastinator so it’s probably 20 lbs in 3 days, hmmm now there’s an article for you, I’ll be looking for guidance. See ya on Twitter.
I’m not at all surprised that I float. Fat is quite buoyant, you know. =) Okay, that’s one vote for the title.
Check out my post on goals and consider making a bet on something non-weight related like running a certain distance. The body can do weird things with weight. Endurance almost never lies.
I dropped 26lbs in 2 weeks but I think the only way to lose 20 in 3 days would be to start chopping off limbs! =P
My strengths? I can laugh at myself. Entirely. I dont take like too seriously.
uh LIFE I mean.
Oooh, you’re so good at that! =) I’m dying with laughter right now. =)
I can admit it when I’m wrong. I was WRONG WRONG WRONG about exercise being boring, painful, impossible to do, impossible to fit into my schedule, too tiring…did I mention, boring? Well, yes, *sometimes* it is one or more of those things. But I don’t think I’ve ever done a workout, then thought to myself, “Well, sheesh, that was a waste of time.”
Well said! I’m in the same boat. Exercise only ever seems boring to me when I’m in the middle of coming up with excuses to avoid it. I’m never bored when I’m in the thick of the stuff! =)
Sleep eight hours everyday if you can. Good tactic to avoid weight gain from ’sleep-loss-related-food-craving’
8 hours is far too much sleep for some people. Definitely a bit much for me!
There’s a step between the “sleep loss-related food craving” and the actual weight gain. It involves thoughtless eating. “Am I tired?” is one of the 5 questions that drove that type of eating out of my life. Works very well indeed! =)
SIMPLE KEYS TO SUCCESS: remember that relative that said “chew every bite thirty times”? Seems they were on the right track. Taking at least thirty minutes (I know it takes p-a-t-i-e-n-c-e) allows the lining of your stomach to send the chemical messenger to your brain that register satiety. In this way less food = same “full” feeling. The second part is to drink before you eat but NOT for thirty minutes thereafter. The liquid will help you feel full early on but if you drink anything after you begin savoring your nosh you tend to “flush out” the food that needs to sit there for awhile. Drink before but not for thirty minutes after and don’t chew thirty times necessarily but DO take at least thirty minutes. BAM you’re on your way!
Everything there makes sense except for the “flushing out” part. That doesn’t make so much sense from the scientific standpoint.
However, yes on patience! Yes! We’d all do well to slow things down and make a point to eat things we enjoy and enjoy the things we eat. Eating quickly was one of the hardest habits for me to break.
Thanks Ed!
I think a big key is to stop eating when you’re full.
How many times do people eat stuff “just because it’s there?”
I’ve been trying to be conscious of that myself lately – It’s okay to walk the jar of peanuts to the kitchen, or even ask Netter to “please take these away.” (I’d do the same for her.) It’s okay to get carryout boxes at restaurants. Leftovers make great eats.
Unless of course you eat them at 2 in the morning, but that’s another bad eating habit all together.
Really like the concepts you have here Seth. Focusing on strengths and “what works for me.”
Thanks for sharing.
Fascinating! I stumbled across your website by an embedded url in a Dvice article http://dvice.com/archives/2009/06/twitter-busines.php I’m loathe to admit that I’m still fighting the Twitter/Facebook, etc. revolution (but I am). However, I’d love to subscribe your blog via email but the system is attempting to thwart me. And there’s no “contact” on your home page. Thus a heartfelt public plea. (Feel free to mock.)
I recently lost 30 lbs and am now trying to get over the “hump” and lose another 20-30… I was a tugboat and for me I just had to cut down on my vitamin C. Now I only have a coke once or twice a week when I am really stressed instead of 3-4 a day.
I had several issues with losing weight early on – I would always try the “wake up early and go running bit” – but I was so heavy it hurt to run so I switched to low impact hiking and biking until I lost the initial tonnage. Now if I go running, it doesn’t hurt as much.
Waking up early is difficult. Waking up early and going running seems nearly impossible at first. I know what that’s like!
Low impact is always, always a good way to start. If it doesn’t hurt a lot, it’s probably going to be the easiest to maintain. I started out with a moderate incline walking on a treadmill then pushed the percentage up every week until I’d get right to the “I feel like I’m about to die” point and maintain it for 45 minutes.
The intensity is mind-numbing…which can work as a great stress-reliever, too!
I’m pushing for my next jump in weightloss now and I’d love to hear how things are going for you!