CONSIDER GAINING HEALTH INSTEAD OF LOSING WEIGHT AND DIETING?
I recently ran into an old friend in Winchester Virginia, who looked wonderfully different. “I lost 200 pounds,” she said laughing - meaning that she’d lost a love from her life. We women have heard that one before - remember the pain of shedding a love, only to look back and wonder “what on earth was I thinking?” Eventually we move on, pain and all - maybe there’s even a gain as we move on to be wiser and stronger, having come through fire - again.
Perhaps the loss we deem most positive these days, is weight loss by dieting. Cutting out the junk and exercising makes us feel just great, but a path of drastic change is often such hard work and can hijack a life to the point where it’s impossible to keep up. To make matters worse, many of us don’t lose much weight despite our best efforts. And then we encounter yet another disappointment, another loss of hope as the pounds creep back on.
And we are not alone! Every day in the U.S., 108 million people are on a weight loss diet and dieters typically make five or six diet starts in a year. I wonder how the subconscious memory center of the brain reacts when we decide to repeat dieting behavior. That same behavior that often leads us to a feeling of failure and disappointment, when despite our best efforts, we lose little to no weight and what we do loose, creeps back. “MAYDAY, MAYDAY - watch out, she’s doing it again” that ego says, “It won’t work this time either!” And it usually doesn’t. Is dieting really a solution that people need? Experts agree that so called miracle cures, fads and weight loss diets usually do not endure. When it comes to losing and keeping weight off, accomplishing small goals tends to produce the most satisfying and longer term results.
What if, instead of focusing on weight loss, we focused on health gain? Taking small steps to GAIN HEALTH, and in the process, look better; have more energy, mental clarity, and a DESIRE to move more. The side effect? Decreased body circumference and lasting weight loss!
And THAT is what this blog and my Nurse Health Coaching practice in Winchester, Virginia is all about - gradual lifestyle changes that produce BIG results. Make that LASTING results. Make that health gain! And a longer, healthier life.
Anne Palmer, RN, CNM. INC.
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