Leveraging the power of our minds is one of the most pivotal things we can do as we release weight through pleasure. While we may be all too familiar with diets, diet pills, diet shakes, cleanses, exercising, low carbs, low fat, good foods, bad foods, in-between foods, fast food, health food, and even radical surgical procedures, in many cases we are missing one key element. And that key element is visualization.
In the late 1980s, I gained some weight, didn’t like how my clothes were fitting, and promptly resolved to lose that weight. And lose weight I did. Temporarily. But within three years, I had gained it back--and then some. A decade later, it happened again. Only this time the number of pounds I re-gained doubled. So again, I endeavored to lose weight. And again, I succeeded, temporarily.
However, even when I reached my goal weight, I still saw myself as fat. Even though I was lighter than I had been in many, many years, I still saw myself as obese. Even though I was wearing clothes in a size I was quite happy with, every time I saw a photo of myself or caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror, I saw myself as heavy. Even though, to the outside world I was thin, I still perceived myself as fat. And you have one guess as to what happened. Within a couple of years, I became fat--again. I could temporarily change my external behavior by eating less and moving more, but my internal progress was zilch. In my first two attempts at losing weight, I neglected the most important part of the journey. I neglected the internal work. I neglected to transform my view of myself and what I deserved.
At the end of each issue of O, the Oprah Magazine, Oprah Winfrey writes a column called, “What I Know for Sure.” Here’s what I know for sure about weight loss: In order to release weight from your body for good, you need to be willing to change your view of yourself and your body.
You need to be willing to replace negative beliefs about yourself with positive beliefs. You need to be willing pay close attention to your thoughts about your body. And you need to be willing visualize yourself in your healthier body before you have released that first ounce of fat.
“But Kristin, it’s been decades since my body’s weight has been in a healthful range,” you might say. “I have no clue about ‘visualizing’ myself at my ideal weight, because, in all honesty, I can’t ever remember being at my ideal weight. How can I visualize something that I’ve never experienced?”
Here are a few tricks that might help you get started down the road to changing your view of yourself and your body.
1. Recognize the truth. The truth is, no matter what you weigh today, you are beautiful.
2.Tell yourself the truth. Every time you look at yourself in the mirror, find something about your physical body you like, and praise it. Say it out loud. Even though you might feel silly doing so, do it!
If you can recognize the truth of your beauty and if you can acknowledge it to yourself verbally, you will notice that your relationship with your body will improve, that your body will gradually become more and more beautiful, and your weight will diminish. Because you see your body as beautiful, you may find yourself eating more fruits and vegetables. Because you see your body as beautiful, you may find yourself wanting to move it a little bit more. Nutrition and activity are important. But the crux of the matter is seeing yourself--visualizing yourself--as beautiful.
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