Responding to Being Overweight

How do you respond?

I often get letters from you who are seeking to lose weight are have started on your weight loss journey stating how difficult it is to get started, or an inability to stay on track. The reasons are many, but some often point out the fear of not being able to accomplish what seems like such an overwhelming task. I discussed in a previous article the issue of being overwhelmed and taking things one step at a time. But how you respond to the challenge that you face is the key to getting on and staying on the road to fitness.

There are three ways you can respond to your situation - and this applies to any situation in life. When faced with a problem that seems overwhelming, these are the three ways that our bodies will instinctively respond based on our emotions.

We can become inundated with the problem and almost feel unconscious -- even to the point of being numb. This is a reaction of fright-- being frightened of what we feel we have become, as if there is no hope. You can talk yourself into being scared of failing, and never being fit again. This leads to inaction and no movement, and hence no improvement.

The second way you can respond to your situation is acknowledging that you want to lose weight, you need to lose weight, but that it's too much to handle right now, so you'll get to it later. This is avoiding taking action, and in a way is running from the problem. This reaction is called flight-- taking flight from the problem, and choosing not to face it. This most often leads you further away from your goal of weight loss and fitness, in the opposite direction. You can run from the problem and sometimes the temptations that may come up along the way, but ultimately you will have to stand up to them in order to move toward your fitness goals.

The third way to respond to the situation is to fight. This involves us fighting our weaknesses, many of which are mental or emotional. Saying no to that cookie, cake or brownie because you realize that one will lead to more. Or feeling strong and empowered over soft drinks because of the contribution they make to your weight and poor health. It is also a fight to overcome your doubts about being able to succeed, in order to get started on a healthy plan and continue on a path of health and fitness. One of the things that I teach in my program is fighting those one or two bad habits that are contributing the most to your weight, or vice busting. This begins to perpetuate healthy actions toward weight loss, fitness, and better health.

You can see from the three ways to handle a difficult situation, that taking the stance of facing your fears, difficulties and temptations; that looking the situation head on and "fighting" to overcome it will help you build the strength that will ultimately get you on and keep you moving to a life of fitness.

During times when you might feel weak, or are facing a tempting unhealthy food or beverage, or if you are just doubting your ability to get started or succeed, think first about how you are going to respond. Take those fears and doubts and stomp them out with a conviction that makes you feel strong. Turn your emotions from inaction to action by being motivated by the fight you will put up to overcome any adversities that may come your way. In this way, you won't succumb to your current state of health, and will be empowered over the things that you thought were holding you back-- unhealthy foods, snacks, sweets, sodas, doubts -- and you will win back your confidence in yourself to get going and continue on your path of self-improvement.

Your health is worth fighting for each day!