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Gratitude and Weight Loss
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Losing Weight With Gratitude
Whenever we think about losing weight, a deliberate practice of gratitude is definitely not at the top of our action plan. In fact, with our national obsession about calories and exercise, the notion about being grateful as a weight loss strategy might even sound ridiculous. Besides, you might think you don’t have much to be grateful for, especially when it comes to your body. But investing a few minutes each day in simply indulging in warm feelings of appreciation will definitely pay off and here’s why.
Complaining Leads To ‘Cheating’
What we focus on we can get consumed by. If you spend your day thinking about your weight, how much you hate yourself and how deprived you feel by your current diet, you’ll amplify those miserable feelings. Complaining will inevitably create more resistance to your weight loss and you’ll dislike yourself more!
When that moment of temptation comes, and it always does, it will be harder to resist the afternoon pastries and soft drinks because, after all, you’re having a really tough day. You deserve a reward and what could be more welcome than the food you deprive yourself of?
On the other hand, if you’ve deliberately noticed how many blessings are in your life right now, even before you’ve reached your perfect weight, you will feel less sorry for yourself and be more inclined to feel positive and happy. Feelings of serenity and joy make it easier to brew a cup of tea rather than guzzle a high-calorie milkshake and a couple of chocolate biscuits.
Gratitude Causes Confidence
When you’re grateful, you feel more confident. How can you not feel more confident about yourself when you’re focused on all the good in your life?
One of the enemies of serious efforts is a feeling of discouragement, especially when we hit the dreaded “plateau” when nothing much seems to be happening. There is always an initial weight loss and there is always a time when our body stops losing weight so that it can adjust to new realities before it resumes the weight loss again.
This is an extremely dangerous time and it’s easy to say, “What’s the point?” and return to the habits that made us overweight. If we feel grateful and confident it’s much easier to keep to a healthy eating plan.
A Grateful Person Is A Powerful Person
Gratitude helps us to feel more powerful. When we notice how ‘right’ our life circumstances are, we feel more in control and less like a helpless victim.
“What Do I Possibly Have To Feel Grateful About?”
You might wonder what in the world you can possibly find to be grateful about. But the truth is that your world is full of blessings, whether you notice them or not. Bottom line: ingratitude is a habit and any habit can be changed. Here’s a question to consider:
“If I wanted to be grateful about something, what would it be?”
Begin with the body that you want so desperately to change:
* If you wanted to, could you notice that you have a beautiful complexion?
* If you wanted to, could you be aware that you have thick, beautiful hair that many people would love to have?
* If you wanted to, could you be appreciative of the great relationship you have with your partner?
* If you wanted to, could you be grateful that you have a roof over your head?
Five Minutes Every Once In A While Is A Useless Weight Loss Strategy
A two minute “gratitude session” today is great, but it’s consistent effort that will pay huge dividends. There is nothing unpleasant about feeling grateful, in fact, it’s just the opposite. So find a way to remind yourself to spend a few minutes every day simply noticing the positives in your life.
The Power of Gratitude
Here is the most powerful ‘secret’ in harnessing gratitude power for weight loss: you absolutely MUST make your gratitude emotional, rather than rational. No matter how unattractive you may feel, there are always many people who are worse off than you. All you need to do is notice and feel genuine appreciation for how fortunate you are.
As well as gratitude it's about managing your expectations. There is NO silver bullet to weight loss. Everyone wants a diet pill, meal plan, skinny injection, miracle juice or supplement to help drastically lose weight. Even weight loss surgery is NOT A MIRACLE CURE although it’s a fantastic tool if correctly used with support.
The simple practice of gratitude and setting SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time limited) will empower you and your weight loss efforts. It really can make a difference with how you feel and think about yourself, and the food you eat.
To find out more, contact me for a discovery call.
