by Chelsea Terris (I’m pretty sure this is the first guest blog post on EatBlogEat… Bold was added by me on the parts I really liked / found interesting)
Losing weight and getting fit is all about the body, right? Wrong. Undertaking any weight loss program, be it diet, exercise, or weight loss surgery, requires a complete shift in mental perception to establish true change.
Ever lost weight but still functioned like an overweight person, feeling critical of your image in the mirror or engaging in habitual lack of confidence? The great Greek essayist Plutarch stated that “What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality.” If this is true, then making changes to our bodies begins and ends in the mind, where seeds of success must be planted to bear hardbody fruit.
Sound like a pile of motivational munbo jumbo? Let’s look at the cold, hard facts. For our bariatric surgery candidates at WeightWise Bariatric Program, the stakes are high. If they continue to behave and eat in the same self-destructive ways that once packed on the pounds, they will not only remain obese but may become seriously ill due to comorbid conditions, including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, high cholesterol levels, cancer, infertility, back pain, skin infections, ulcers, and gallstones, to name a few.
Think that’s rough? Once a patient has undergone weight loss surgery, returning to their old habits can cause discomfort in the form of dumping syndrome, which occurs when undigested contents of the stomach move too rapidly into the small intestine, causing dizziness, nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps and a whole host of other unpleasantries.
In addition, remaining engaged in former eating habits can cause a surgically-altered stomach to stretch, requiring correctional surgeries. Making good habits stick is not a choice for weight loss surgery patients; it’s essential.
Take it or Leave it . . . but mostly leave it
The same principles operate whether or not you have had bariatric surgery. If you want to make changes in your body, get that mind of yours under control and running on the right track.
A great way to do this is by employing Brad’s method of selective fasting, in which the following applies: “If you can go without then go without, if you can’t then don’t.” Built into this philosophy is the idea 90%/10% rule: eat clean (according to your doctor-prescribed diet or otherwise) 90% of the time and indulge 10% of the time (again, if you are a weight loss surgery patient, follow your doctor’s plan for you, which will eventually include certain indulgences. Don’t cheat, any percent of the time). Life is for enjoying, and maintaining a healthy weight and fitness level enables us to enjoy life more actively and with increased confidence. That said, food is one of life’s greatest pleasures and should be enjoyed. You, a full grown adult human being, know when you can have that chunk of dark chocolate you are craving and when one more cookie brings with it more cons than pros. Eat accordingly.
Old thoughts = old body
Old thoughts create the same old body you’ve had for years. It isn’t a bad body. If you are fully mobile and healthy, you have two legs that get you where you need to go and two arms that help you bring along what you need and give hugs along the way. You’re doing fine. But if you want more energy and a bod that, let’s face it, looks great in a bikini or speedo (no judgement!), you’re going to need to adopt a mostly disciplined attitude toward eating.
New Thoughts = More than just a new body
The great news is that this newly disciplined attitude will not only help you get where you are going, fitness-wise. It will also start to shape other areas of your life.
Just watch. Your work ethic and accountability will improve, producing great advances, should you desire them, at your job. You’ll feel more positive and will attract positive people who can enrich your life as you can enrich theirs. If you don’t like your current living situation/ career/ or relationship, you’ll suddenly have the energy to do something about it. Mental changes never just affect the physical, and that’s the best part.
Wondering why diet and exercise have not produced the changes you hoped for? Look at your thinking. By adopting a need-based indulgence system and remaining disciplined 90% of the time, you will shed pounds and could wind up reshaping your life perspective in the process.
Chelsea
***Chelsea Terris writes online content for WeightWise Bariatric Program, a comprehensive weight loss surgery program located in Edmond, Oklahoma. She is passionate about the mind/body connection and loves to encourage sustainable personal transformation.
