Our focus on weight loss has been a complete failure. While we spend billions of dollars on diets and weight loss products, and untold hours agonizing over every thing we eat and whether we’re doing the right exercise, adult obesity climbed from 19.4% to 31.3% over the past 20 years. That’s a 61% increase!
Would you like to recapture that money and time as you move forward?
Reviewing my Year of 50, a popular theme was the “Top 50 things to focus on instead of losing weight.” Because when we focus on weight loss, we’re more focused on the scale and getting immediate results and less focused on the things that can actually contribute to reaching and maintaining our ideal weight.
My clients hire me when they’re done with traditional weight loss approaches. Together we discover the obstacles that get in the way of reaching their goals and devise strategies to overcome them and finally get results.
Consider how focusing on these 5 of the top 50 could contribute to your success:
1. Vocational satisfaction: Unhappiness at work can prompt unhealthy coping mechanisms both at the office (ala breakroom donuts) and at home (think vegging out in front of the TV). A focus on what you can control at work and taking steps to improve satisfaction are crucial to good self-care.
2. Simplifying your calendar: If your standard response to “how are you?” is “I’m so busy,” stop. Take a critical look at your schedule and decide how to spend your time going forward. Prioritizing, building in margin and saying “no” will help you reclaim your time. You can take good care of yourself when being busy is temporary, but not when busy is a lifestyle.
3. Discovering the positive in each situation: We naturally look at what’s wrong and in many situations that’s helpful, even necessary. But when we look at everything with an ever-critical eye, it limits our capacity to be happy and to treat ourselves well. Every time you catch yourself ruminating on the negative, stop and ask “what’s good here?”
4. Building up others: Doing this not only makes others feel good but us, too. And when we’re focused on others, we focus less on ourselves (like, obsessively thinking about our weight).
5. Enjoying the present moment: For example, choose foods you like and that will nourish and energize you. Be present and enjoy eating, instead of thinking about how the food will affect your weight.
Imagine it…not focusing on weight loss could actually help you lose weight!
If you want to stop agonizing over what you eat and what you weigh and move toward enjoying food, getting back to the activities you love and creating the health and body you truly want, schedule a complimentary Strategy Session.
I’d love to support you in getting unstuck and finally achieving and maintaining your body’s ideal weight.