^Say that 10 times fast^
😆
Alright, back to the topic of weight loss….or the much preferred “weight release” mentality!!! – – Please see Part 1 from last week in case you have no idea what I mean by that!
With full disclosure, much of this post is for ME!!!! Reminders, helpful hints, and points of view to keep in mind as I go. And like most of my blogs, it is also my hope, as I talk it all out in this post, that something may click or resonate with you as well! Or maybe it may help someone you know who is also on a fitness and wellness journey, therefore something in here may spark or clarify something. As always, please feel free to comment or share!
Share this post….or share in any way you like! 😉😁🍕
Now, let’s do this – as uncomfortable as it may be…….we got this! We’re just gonna chat a bit about a list of 7 super important reminders – – for before and/or after we embark on a fitness and wellness journey!!! And they apply to however far along on our journey that we find ourselves today. AND perhaps these reminders also extend to the other goals and targets that we have on our scope as well!!!!
Here is what I have learned and/or am finding to be true for me. And maybe for you, too?!?!
REMINDER #1) We have to believe that we can reach our goals.
I know we may have some goals that are BIG and totally OUT THERE. Maybe ones that seem farfetched yet would be really cool to do or accomplish one day. Like, going to the moon, becoming a billionaire, or traveling to every country and continent on the planet. Keep those goals and keep reaching high for them!! That way we are ensuring that we will continue to get closer and closer to those targets! 🌝 And I still believe that our BIG and OUT THERE goals are still entirely possible to achieve, that is for sure!!!
HOWEVER, our health and wellness goals are not OUT THERE, yet they can be as BIG as we wish them to be! The most important thing is that when it comes to our bodies and what we envision our physique to be in the future, we must believe that we can actually attain it.
Sounds simple, right? And maybe a lot like a Captain Obvious statement…..
EXCEPT if we have been here: Once, twice, 400 times before….deciding to get into shape, trying to reduce body fat or reach a certain scale weight, following lots of various diets and nutrition plans, starting a new workout program…..AND THEN losing our focus, falling off the wagon, stopping said workout program, or losing our mojo and ending right back at the start. Ooooooh, so discouraging, disappointing, and frustrating, to say the least!!!
If we find ourselves in this yo-yo 🪀 place, perhaps multiple times over the years, we sometimes reach a point where we lose faith in our ability to actually accomplish this weight goal or ideal physique because we have experienced this feeling of “failure” more than once. It may even be a subconscious awareness, where we don’t even fully realize it is there. Yet, once it sets in, self-sabotage often finds its way into the picture because, in a way, we have already given up on ourselves. The faith in ourselves has a thick covering of self-doubt alllllllll over it.
We must remind ourselves that we can fulfill our vision, even WHEN it’s challenging and even WHEN we stumble. We must believe that the end goal will be ours, no matter how many times we may need to reset and begin again.
Which leads me to…….
REMINDER #2) Our mindset determines everything.
This definitely correlates with number one because believing in ourselves is a crucial mindset to have, especially when moving towards fulfilling a dream, a goal, or any vision that we have.
It’s also important to note that in addition to believing in ourselves, we must be flexible and resilient in our approach of our health and wellness journeys.
Which means that we have to train our brains to accept the slippery-tracked rollercoaster that we may be on and allow ourselves to make mistakes. Rather, to understand that we WILL make mistakes, that we WILL have bad training days, that we WILL have fails and mess-ups time and time again, that we won’t have perfect nutrition 24/7, AND THAT THAT IS ALL OKAY. They are inevitable, they happen to everyone, and they are a part of the process. And they are how we figure out what does and doesn’t work for us, they build our own resiliency because we learn how to get back on track faster and with greater ease, and they are what teaches us to prevail – – as long as we don’t give up!!
We must be flexible to allow for these obstacles and scheduling issues and McDonalds cravings and 10pm snack binges and skipping workouts and not following the plan to a “T” every day……and then bounce right back, shake it off, embrace the new day, carry on with the healthy eating that works best for us, smash the workouts, and GO!!!!
If we allow space for the messy days to happen, it can be much easier to accept, brush off, and get right back on track because we know it is normal and expected.
For me, I always remind myself to “Get your mind right!!” Which, for me, means to believe in myself and my capabilities, to always do my very best, to remain optimistic as much as I can, to always try, to stay dedicated and consistent, and to never ever give up or give in to the challenges that I face. If I find myself losing faith in me, feeling low, messing up my nutrition plan, or wishing things could be different, I say those magic words and I can pull myself right back to the top of my game and continue working on being my best self! Sometimes, our self pep talks are even more powerful than the ones from someone else.
On that very important note, please remember this vital truth:
We must be on our own sides!! With support, encouragement, kindness, and leniency when we mess up or if our perfectly-laid plans need to change in order to account for life. Honestly, I have always struggled with this one – – being on my side. I used to find it so difficult to support and encourage myself, unless I was telling myself that I needed to do better or be better. And I was far from lenient with myself if I had to miss a workout because of life!!!! Whoa, zero leniency and constantly berating myself for every little thing….it was rough!! I am thankful to be much better now, though this one serves as an extra-important reminder for me and one to continue practicing!
Mindset is the make or the break of EVERYTHING. Especially reaching a scale weight target or a physique goal. It’s so important to listen to how we speak to ourselves. Because what if our negative words, and therefore our negative mindset, towards ourselves is what is interrupting and even sabotaging the progress that we make? It may be worth getting curious and investigating our self-talk and do a check-in with our mindset!
Perhaps this is a super forward reminder that we need to hear:
#rocksofunity
REMINDER #3) It’s going to take TIME.
We must do our best not to rush the process. If we stay dedicated and consistent to our goals over time, we will make it AND they will be lasting results. Our time is best spent when we let go of the “quick fix” desires, put in the time and the effort, remain diligent with our sights facing forward, and choose slow-and-steady progress over drastic-and-harsh progress.
REMINDER #4) Eat in a way where we can see ourselves following that nutrition plan for LIFE while also being on track to meet our goals.
This definitely takes time and an open and experimental mind! Because it is asking US what is best for US. Not anyone else and not any one diet trick. Which means that we need to be honest with ourselves about the healthy foods that are not a chore to eat as well as the indulgent foods that we refuse to eliminate completely. Or what foods make us feel awesome and what foods cause us to feel terrible and sluggish, for example.
In other words, it is so important to build our awareness around nutrition and on our relationship with the foods that we eat.
For example, perhaps we love Weight Watchers or the Keto diet and that works so well for us! OR maybe one of our diet plans worked for a while and now it feels hard to follow OR maybe it just never was something that we really WANTED to follow…..yet we tried because it was popular so we “should”…..and this created a form of resistance to the plan that just made results nearly impossible.
Wherever we are, let’s remind ourselves that we know more than we think we do about nutrition. And we get to choose the food plan that works best for us!! NO ONE ELSE. Sure, lots of people have lots of opinions; however, we get the ultimate say on our nutrition and what that looks like.
AND also remember there are coaches, trainers, dietitians, and/or like-minded people that want to help and support us. Collaborating and building relationships with these other individuals while reaching for our own personal goals often brings great success and pride in the team effort!! We are not alone on this journey and we can find these other lovely and inspiring beings to be a part of our fitness team, if we choose!
Bottom line, it’s important to reevaluate our food preferences based on our own tastes and then devise a plan that allows us to eat the foods we like AND get results. It is possible and it is a way to live life without feeling guilty or deprived all of the time!
Sounds so great, right?!?!?!
YES!!!!!!!! 🎵 ❗️🎼 ❗️🎶 ❗️
#5) Know our WHY!!!!
It is so important to understand and have a deep connection to the WHY behind our goals and visions. Especially when times get tough, it is often that WHY that serves as the anchor that keeps us steady during the tidal waves. Otherwise, we can be washed away and tumbling through the waves, moving away from the progress we once had and therefore the goal that we had been working towards.
REMINDER #6) Pay attention to our habits.
We all have go-to’s – – our automatic pilot and where our mind and body goes without even thinking about it. Checking out THOSE are excellent places to start because if a habit isn’t serving a goal and helping us to get there – – rather it many be adding obstacles to it or even destroying our best efforts – – well, then, wouldn’t it be fantastic to change that habit into something that WOULD help as opposed to hindering the progress of what we really would like??
And finally, one of the most important lessons that I learned the hard way:
REMINDER #7) Understand what drives our motivation and make sure it is love and kindness.
When we have a goal such as fat loss, muscle gain, a specific scale weight, or an ideal clothing size, we must look at what is motivating us to achieve this goal: are we revved up to conquer this goal because we hate our body and wish to change it OR because we love our body as is AND we wish to help it continuously improve. Two TOTALLY different mindsets – – one of them being shame- and guilt-ridden and one of them coming from a place of approval and acceptance. Or, more succinctly, one being driven with hate for our body and one being driven with love.
Let’s look at this from a different place – –
If we were about to get on a bus and we had the choice of a love-filled and happy bus vs. a hate-filled and mean bus….which would we choose? A bus that welcomes us, doesn’t judge us, offers us the best seat on the bus, and even wipes the seat clean for us before we sit down. OR a bus that trips us on our way up the stairs, makes fun of us, doesn’t even let us sit down, and makes sure to hit us and knock us around for the duration of the trip.
Again, which one would we honestly choose????????
Because if we are hating on our body, feeling so disgusted by what we are seeing in the mirror, then we are definitely riding the hate-filled and mean bus. Which makes results harder to come by – – our cells are always listening to what we tell ourselves – – and it also makes it nearly impossible to reach a weight goal and feel good about it.
MOMENT OF TRUTH!!! Please, let’s ask ourselves this question:
“If I woke up tomorrow and was magically my ideal weight, (or muscles size or clothing size…) would I finally love and appreciate my body?” If we said yes, most likely we already love the body we have right now. If we hesitated at all or said anything close to “ummm” or “not exactly,” then it might be time to reassess the goals and the mindset that we have. It begs the question, why is our heart set on a weight/clothing size/certain physique that won’t even make us happy? AND what would it take to make us happy and allow us to appreciate the magnificent body that have NOW and the one that we can transition to in the future?
Let’s be real with ourselves. Take it from me, motivation through riding the hate-filled and mean bus can be seriously detrimental in so many unforeseen ways. Choose to be happy now. Choose to appreciate ourselves now. Choose to love ourselves now. NOW AND LATER. Lead with love AND kick major arse on all of our goals, targets, and physical improvements. Not only will our mind, body, and spirit thank us – – – often, just stepping into the love-filled and happy bus creates progress and results that which we have been waiting and hoping. Coming full circle, mindset is EVERYTHING. ♥️
SO, in answer to my question, “what weight will we wish??,” (which can also be asked as “what goal will we wish??”) we can choose any response that we like and that serves our future visions WHILE DOING OUR VERY BEST to come from a place of love and acceptance for ourselves, today, right now and every day.
And it can be SO HARD!!!!! And we can feel disgusted, upset, guilty, disappointed, and even loathsome with regards to ourselves. Yup, that’s going to happen. Yet, we must continue to remind ourselves to come back to love and kindness. To clean up the mind and practice this appreciation of self are the keys that unlock our greatest potential and open the doors to all of the goals, targets, dreams, and visions that we have. Especially with regard to fitness, health, and wellness.
I shall let Wim Hof, the Iceman, conclude my blog with his words of wisdom. He is an incredible and awe-inspiring man, who finds healing and comfort in frigid waters. An amazing being and definitely someone to check out!
“The limit is not the sky, the limit is the mind.”
Wim Hof knows!! Never quit when we know that the edge of our limits is where we find our greatest growth! Work towards the edge, reach for the edge, balance on the edge, and especially go beyond what we at first considered impossible. Believe in ourselves, get our minds right, work towards our visions and self-improvements, AND NEVER QUIT. ❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️