If you’ve dieted before and lost weight, how did it go? What were your thoughts when the three months were up, or the 6-week challenge was finished? If you were like most people, you probably had some thoughts like these:
That was good but I’m glad it’s over.
I got what I wanted (lost weight), so now I can bring back some of the things I used to eat.
All those urges sucked, I’m not doing that again.
I learned some good stuff, but that diet didn’t really fit my lifestyle.
The hidden idea behind these thoughts is that the diet was temporary. The thing is, when you start a diet, you want to end with the result being a new weight, and you want to KEEP your new weight, right? Why doesn’t this happen?
Losing weight AND keeping the weight off requires that you learn to manage your mind.
If you’re overweight, then it’s because you’re overeating. It’s as simple as that… but it’s also not so simple.
Food doesn’t get eaten just because it’s there, sitting in front of you – whether it’s chicken and broccoli or two Pop-Tarts. Just like you don’t go to the gym just because it exists – it’s just a building with heavy stuff in it. So why do you eat the food you put in your mouth, and why do you lift the weights when you’re at the gym?
The reason you do anything in life is because of how you think it’s going to make you feel when you get it or when you do it.
Our feelings are the most powerful experiences in our body because they compel us to act. Feelings are what drive our actions. They are the fuel to our actions. Think about it… we don’t do anything unless we feel like it.
We eat the salad because we think we’ll feel lighter, healthier, and happier. We go to the gym because we think we’ll feel strong, skinny, and sexy. We show up early for watch because we think we’ll feel liked and benevolent by our peers. We complain about our job or our supervisors because we think we’ll feel justified and correct.
Think about it… why do you follow orders so well?“We follow orders because it was “drilled” into us…. On your first day of basic training (when you’re sweating, confused and scared), and the drill instructor was yelling and spitting in your face telling you to follow his or her orders or else your shipmate on your first deployment could die… the feeling of horrendous guilt, fear, and shame inundated you. You may not remember this day or how it went down exactly but you’ll never forget the feeling. You immediately envision that terrible possibility of you being ignorant and not following orders and someone you know dying or getting maimed because of your inaction. The guilt and fear of that thought is so compelling, that your brain learns immediately that following orders is non-negotiable. Your brain shifts that thought into your subconscious so that it doesn’t even have to think twice about following orders. That’s why following orders sometimes feels necessary for your survival. That’s how powerful our thoughts and emotions are.”
All feelings come from our thoughts. We have a thought that begins in our brain. Our thoughts are triggered by what we see, hear, smell, feel, and taste around us. Each thought travels down our body, and we experience it in our body as a feeling, as an emotion. It’s known that we have tens of thousands of thoughts a day, which is why it’s so hard at the beginning to develop the skill of managing your mind by finding the thoughts that are creating certain emotions for you.
We have a thought in our brain, and the neural connections that are made cascade their way down our body signaling a feeling that corresponds best. You’ve seen this happen in your own life. When you think about how sharp and proud you’ll feel by wearing a clean, ironed uniform and the great first impression you’ll make at the pinning ceremony in front of your new Commanding Officer, what do you do in that moment? You’ll most likely wash and iron your uniform and lay everything out so that you don’t forget a single uniform item, including your underwear.
Your brain, which is the most powerful tool on the planet, was designed to operate this way and understanding how it works will help you begin to manage your thoughts so that you can start losing weight without having the weight come back on.
The more you think about the result you desire, the more your brain will learn to pay attention to it because it feels better than anything else.
Remember, we only do things because of how we think we’ll feel when we do them or when we get them.
This is how you begin developing the skill of managing your mind.The answer is, you learn to eat the way that you see yourself eating for the rest of your life that creates the body and the results you want for yourself.
It’s important to know that you can take action from any feeling, positive or negative. You can follow a diet feeling deprived. Or, you can follow a diet feeling fulfilled. But one route guarantees a more enjoyable experience, one that you will want to continue to experience. Ultimately, one way ensures a more enjoyable existence. Therefore, how willing and committed are you to creating the results you want for yourself?
You must decide. Then let your feelings drive or inspire your actions, and over time, you will have your results.
