First of all, we have to consider weight loss in a very different light. If it’s the same torture and deprivation strategies, then we will surely never last. It’s not about “being good or being bad or falling off the wagon.” We have to make it a “lifestyle” as we keep hearing. But what does that mean? For Happy Food, it means making it delicious, fun, and pleasant if not pleasurable. It’s not a linear path that we follow and get on or off. Consider these thoughts to start:
- Wear tight clothes. Wear clothes that flatter your body instead of hiding in baggy clothes until you lose the weight to wear a hot outfit. This will give you confidence and motivate you to get fit.
- Pack away leftovers. If you leave all the food on the table, it’s likely that you will go back for seconds, thirds, fourths. Easy access means eating more.
- Put away the food scale. Doing math every meal will definitely drive you crazy and slows down your metabolism because you foster a low-grade stress in your body signaling it to be on danger alert instead of efficient digestion.
- Stop paying attention to food rules. Start eating real food and stop finding short cuts in supplements or “magical” foods that help with weight loss. Just enjoy your food, flavor it with delicious spices, and eat what comes from Mother Earth. Eat what your great grandmother would recognize.
- Move comfortably. Move in a way that feels right and fun instead of forcing the latest and greatest exercise that you hate and dread participating. Do what drives you out of bed and gets you excited.
- Enjoy “sugar.” Add sweetness in none-food ways then you won’t have to fill the void with food (and often bad food). Get hugs, massages, call a friend, get a hobby, do things that make you happy. The happier you are, the less food issues you’ll have because you won’t eat emotionally and look to food for a pick-me-up or to numb-me-out.
- Relax & Play. Focus on relaxing and playing. Stress signals the body to excrete cortisol which will only add on belly fat (stomach has the highest amount of cortisol receptors). It tells the body to turn on the sympathetic system in order to fight or flight instead of metabolizing for a fit/healthy body. Definitely eat when relaxed!
Dieting simply does NOT work. Understand the science and psychology behind how you will succeed for life being fit and loving your body. Get a free health consultation at www.HappyFoodHealth or (619) 876-2655.
~Samantha Hua, Nutrition & Health Coach, San Diego, CA
