A few days ago, I found myself in a conversation about my weight release of 45 pounds.
“What did you do?” someone asked.
“I worked on my thinking,” I responded.
“But what did you do?” she repeated. She wanted something more concrete than just “thinking.”
“Well, I’ve been running. . .”
“So that’s what you did. You started running,” she said.
And yes, I started running. Yes, I started eating well. Yes, I started writing everything down that went in my mouth. Yes, I started celebrating each thing I did that moved me toward the body I wanted.
But in reality, in addition to running and eating well, the biggest thing I did was that I worked on my thinking. I worked on my view of myself. I worked on my view of my body. And I believe the process of changing our thinking, our view of our bodies, our view of ourselves and our lives, is fundamental.
Sure, if you want to lose weight, you need to eat less and move more. But the biggest, most important, most profound transformation was the one that went on inside my head many months before my body ever started to change. My internal view of myself changed way before I released the weight.
How did I change my view of myself?
I began to really pay attention to my thoughts about myself and my body and my life. “My butt is so huge” became “My body’s so curvy.”
I began to look for things about my body to celebrate and enjoy and appreciate and love. “I have the thighs of an elephant” became “I love how strong my muscles are.”
I began to find beauty where previously all I saw was ugliness. “I have bad hair” became “Look at how much hair I have!”
And this was a continual effort. Some of the things I did are silly. Some of the things I said to myself would seem absurd to most of the world. And some of the thoughts I created initially felt like lies. “I’m so fat” felt more real than “I’m pretty darn cute.” But the more I saw my body as “strong” or “cute” or “curvy,” the stronger, cuter, and curvier I became.
Margaret Sanger said, “No woman can call herself free who does not own and control her own body.” I say, “No woman can call herself free who does not own and control her thoughts about her own body.”
If you are thinking about transforming your relationship with your body, begin today to pay exquisite attention to your thoughts. And lavish your body with verbal praise, acknowledgements, and love. It will love you back.
Up Next: Gratitude for Cellulite
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