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Quit the Mental Struggle and Watch the Pounds Melt Away

By Liz Labrum
May 7, 2009
It's simple to lose weight, isn't it? Cut out fatty and sugary foods and expend more energy. Hey presto you'll be as light as a feather and we can all go home.

But you know it's not that easy, in fact it's a downright nightmare. Once you've declared war on all bad foods the mental struggle begins. You spend you whole day drooling over doughnuts or chips the very things that got you into this overweight mess.

Then when you get home after a hell's day of work, you head straight for the foods that are off limits. Then down they slip, mouthful after mouthful all rinsed off with your favourite sugar drink or wine and rinsed off with tons of guilt. The end of yet another diet.

Does that have a familiar ring of truth to it? Do you stop and start the fight to be thin and good with food? Feeling like you'll never get away from this endless loop of starting and then failing and feeling even worse and weighing more.

This is the sad but typical approach of many. What you're actually doing is setting yourself up for failure.

Surprised? What do you think you'd do if someone treated you like a very bad child who can't be trusted? Harangued you constantly. Told you all the things you like are off limits and that you've got to endure this treatment until some magic moment happens when you become a good person again. Do you think you'd be overjoyed and confident of fun and fulfilling day of dieting?

Get Off to Right Start
For some clues on how to get it right look back in your life and consider when you've made a change or achieved a goal. When you've got that in mind start to ask yourself about it. How did you do it? What were the circumstances? Did you have to keep at it, if so what was it that made you keep going? Was there a worthwhile reward to go for? If it was a new career perhaps the increase in pay or more enjoyable work kept you going.

Really changing your eating so that you lose weight and keep it off is a lifestyle change. Some people can go for it but most of us need to take a run up to it. A little bit like training for a marathon. You need the muscle strength and determination to keep you going.

What Do You Really Want?
Being clear about what's important to you is paramount to success. Is it to get away from disappointment or to get admiring glances and the feeling of being light and slim? When the goal is sufficiently important to you it will create the energy for your running muscles and determination. Writing out your goal or making a collage of it helps because you can review it and keep it in sight to spur you on.

The rest of the 'race' is a combination of environment and reinforcing your new eating habits. By environment I mean get your fridge, larder and eating areas in order. Get rid of temptation and replace with well thought out tempting and delicious foods. Always be ready for the moments that give you problems. Instead of reaching for crisps have your box of crudities handy.

A word of warning, don't limit yourself to vegetables and salads all day long. These won't be enough to slate your appetite and you'll feel hungry all the time.

Do exercise that you like and enjoy. If you hate spinning classes don't go. Experiment and treat yourself like the beautiful adult you are willing to become. Take up meditation if it appeals or do your own version. Just take ten minutes and 'watch' your breathing.

Now I don't expect you to believe me about any of this stuff. I think the only way you're going to know for sure if any of it works is to try it out for yourself.

So if you are berating yourself just now for the size you are let that thought go and instead think of what is important to you about being slimmer. Get really clear about what you want. Then ask yourself why is that important? In fact ask yourself why it's important three times just to make sure. Write down the ultimate answer and then you'll know what motivates you.

Then next thing to consider is what obstacles you need to prevent now and what is the first step you can do today to start you off.

There starting a new life isn't that hard is it?
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