Body Language - How To Make It Easier To Lose Weight And Love Your Body

"I'm too fat. My thighs jiggle. My belly wobbles. My butt's enormous." Too fat, too thin, too short, too tall, boobs too big, boobs not big enough.

Sound familiar? This is the all too common language we use when looking at our bodies, and none of it feels particularly nice. In western culture we have a plague of making our bodies
wrong, making our bodies bad. And all this does is make things worse.

The more we loathe our dimpled thighs, the more we struggle on the exercise bike. The more we resent our bulging muffin top popping over our pants, the more we discouraged we become, and we seek solace in a cookie. Or ten.

Hating what is only creates resistance to the healthy, slim body you desire. Taking action from a place of hate only slows you down and makes much action ineffective, leading to even more discouragement.

There is not enough energy in action alone to compete with the energy of your misaligned thoughts. Exercise and diet without thought and feeling alignment is simply pushing poop up the proverbial hill.

In their terrific new book, "The Astonishing Power of Emotions", Esther and Jerry Hicks explain:

"It is not your action that matters; it is your vibration. It is not your action that makes you fat; it is your vibration. It is not what you are doing that makes the difference; it is how you are feeling about what you are doing."

Right. Are they telling me I can eat all the ice cream I want and not go up a dress size? Yes, they are indeed saying this. I had to read that paragraph several times before I really got it. What they are saying is that all the exercise and dieting in the world will not work when your mind is strewn with negativity.

And I can testify to this: I have trained for 7 marathons over the last seven years and my body size and shape has pretty much stayed the same, no matter how many miles I ran. I remember a shop attendant asking me when she found out I ran marathons, "Did you lose a ton of weight?" No. No I didn't, was my sour reply.

I did not transform my body because most of the time running was spent in critical analysis of all the bits I despised. I ran heavy, I thought heavy, I felt heavy, my body stayed heavy.

As Esther and Jerry remind us, "You cannot create a new reality while looking at your current reality."

The real body language is one of love and appreciation. This is the creation process that shifts you in to the state of allowing instead of the state of resistance. It's like choosing to run downhill instead of uphill. Why not make it easy?

While I climbed step after step up the mountains this weekend, I started to speak this new language of the body. I felt gratitude for having two arms, two legs, and strength and fitness enough to hoist a 20+kg pack around so I can camp in the wilderness. I felt gratitude that my body healed itself from cancer and continues to be healthy.

And looking out on an incredible view with miles of beauty unfurling before me, I felt nothing but awe and peace and connection to this beautiful world.

And now back home, looking in the mirror, instead of making my cellulite ugly and bad, I say thanks for being there because it reminds me that I have more than enough to eat, that I have the luxury of leisure, and that I can use intellect and not labor to earn an income.

I accept what is, love it, and at the same time call forward the body that is in its best shape ever. While appreciating the journey that is written on my current body, I anticipate with excitement the body that is responding to a new journey. And with this new excitement
I savour the delight of making choices that power my physique: fresh fruit, a run in fresh air, a soothing stretch, and a good night's sleep.

Feeling good, excited, grateful: downhill.

Resentment, embarrassment, discouragement, punishment: uphill.

Yours in cruising downhill,

Zoe