Weight Loss And The Mind: Why The Mind Is The Most Important Part of Any Weight Loss Program. The Toughest Battle Takes Place In The Mind, Thoughts & Emotions...

I was always hungry and in a bad mood, and going to the gym was like asking me to go get a root-canal. The only thing I could see was my fat reflection in the mirror and the ‘huge’ amount of time that would be needed to lose all of that weight.

For this I had to become 100% convinced that ‘the old way’ of doing things simply did not work. It was a faulty equation that would NEVER produce the desired results. It was like trying to force 2+2 to equal 5. It will not happen. Not today, not ever.

That means that I had to find a better way to eat; a system that would keep me free of binging and would help me to develop a healthy relationship with food.

I talk about specific diets and menus elsewhere, but here I want to share with you the importance of you evaluating your past behavior, realizing that it doesn’t work and becoming willing to let it go once and for all.

Now this ‘letting go’ does not happen just once and that’s that. I have to ‘let go’ every day, sometimes various times in the same day. Those ‘old ideas’ related to food and eating always are looking for their way back into my life.

I have to be aware of my thoughts and, once I become aware of them, I have to invalidate them and realize that they are part of that 2+2 =5 equation. This is not always easy, especially when the cravings are strong. I know that fish and chicken are the best protein supplements for my body, but without a doubt I will often crave a pizza and cheeseburger instead.

You can talk to me about fat, carbohydrates, fruits, vegetables, protein and fitness, but my mind can easily forget all about it and take me back to the prison of obesity, binging and madness. But I have learned something very important: no matter how strong the craving is to give in and eat that donut, pizza, cake… whatever, this feeling ALWAYS passes and I end up feeling GREAT when I DON’T give in.

Likewise, if I DO give in, I always end up feeling like crap and unsatisfied. So these cravings that come are very misleading. I think that I want that food and that I MUST have it… but that is a lie.

When I have it, I realize that it did not satisfy me as I was hoping that it would. In fact, it makes me feel terrible. And when I feel terrible, I am much more prone to saying “screw it” and just give up on my plan altogether.

This is the bottom linie: The process of dieting, fasting and weight loss lies almost exclusively in the mind. That is where the heaviest part of the battle takes place.

The more aware you are of this truth, the better position you will have to achieve your goals. You may have all of the intentions to work-out and then drink a nutritious shake. But, if you aren’t careful, the mind may start to suggest you eat a pastry instead. And the arguments can be very logical and reasonable! You must identify the trap, isolate it and then invalidate it… that is the ticket.

Here is one homework for you: Start a food journal. Log in the journal exactly what you are eating and how you are feeling during the day. Get used to weighing your food and listing the weight of each type of food you have. Do this daily. Do it for a few months.

It won’t take long for you to gain tremendous insight into your eating patterns, the parts of the day and/or week that are hardest, and thinking/belief systems that are holding you back. I have been journaling what I eat for years. It has been crucial to keep me on the right path. All I have to do is look at my entries and quickly I can see when I start to stray. Then I can make corrections before the binge monster starts to take over my life again.

Look, I can write a million words and I probably will fall short on my weight loss and the mind message. The message is this: If you want to lose weight and keep it off, dedicate yourself to growing emotinally and working at healing the internal wounds that have caused you to become heavy. Not every case of obesity is caused by 'internal wounds.' I want to be clear on that before someone writes me a message to insult me. What i am saying is that, other than an illness, the internal world of thought and emotion is almost-always what causes our external 'corporal reality.' I will talk much more about this over time in the Mental Health section of this website. God bless you and thank you for visiting the site! Facebook comments bellow. :-)

Robert Dave Johnston
Fitness Through Fasting-Editor/Webmaster
Publisher:The Anti Prevention Nation Ezine &
FastingOlogy 9-Month Membership Program.