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A. ‘I
Have to, I Want to and I WILL Lose
Weight’
In order
to even consider losing weight, you must have the appropriate mind
set: ‘I have to, I want to and I will.’ If you don't believe that
you HAVE TO lose weight, it won't happen. If you don't really
WANT TO lose weight, it definitely won't happen. If you don't
tell yourself that you WILL lose the weight, it also won't
happen. If you instead simply set out to ‘try’ to lose weight,
you're bound to fail. Trying implies the possibility and even the
inevitability of failure. You either ‘do it’ or you try to do it.
There is no middle ground. You must realize that if you set your
mind to it and do what you need to do, there is no way you will fail
in your goal of losing weight. Like many other important and
valuable things in life, you need to decide whether to be a
WINNER, a WIENER or a WHINER. In life, you
either ‘make things happen’ for you or you ‘allow things to happen’
to you. You must attack weight loss the same way you have any other
important and valuable thing in your life. Why can’t it be easy? It
can’t be easy because NOTHING worth anything comes easy. All
things of true value necessitate hard work. You can't count on luck
– in fact you make your own luck if you really think about it. Why
was Michael Jordan so ‘lucky’ on the basketball court? It’s because
he worked so hard at it off the basketball court, of course. The
return on this investment is well worth it – I promise you. But it's
your choice and it's your life.
☺
B. Patience and Perseverance are
Virtues
There's a good reason it is said that ‘patience is a
virtue’... because it is. You must recognize that you didn't gain
weight ‘overnight’ so there's no reason to believe that you must
lose it overnight. As long as you recognize your ultimate goal of
losing weight, never give up and make steady progress toward it (no
matter how slow) you will definitely achieve that goal. You want
your life to be more like a bottle of great Vintage Port (keeps improving as the years
progress) rather than a bottle of Beaujolais (tastes OK today then rapidly turns
into vinegar). Would you rather have the greatest day in your life
today then everything goes downhill, or an average day today but
things keep getting better and better over time?
A good idea is to set up multiple ‘mini-goals’ along your way
to give yourself positive reinforcement – the first five pounds then
the first 10 pounds then the first 15 pounds, etc... Imagine someone
trying to learn how to pole vault for the first time: their initial
goal is obviously not going to be 20 feet but rather one foot –
followed by two feet then three feet, etc... Remember that the main
difference between a winner and a wiener is that if the winner makes
a mistake in progressing toward their goal, they recognize it as a
such (just a minor mistake), correct it, learn from it and continue
to move forward with even that much more determination and
perseverance. On the other hand, if the wiener makes a mistake in
progressing toward their goal, they view it as proof of their
ultimate failure and just give up. Life is like an amusement park
ride – you can make yours a Ferris wheel or a roller coaster. Ferris
wheels (wieners) go up and down (like life does) but go nowhere.
Roller coasters (winners) also go up and down but are constantly
moving forward – with the momentum of falling giving them the
ability to achieve even greater heights. Remember what Nietzsche
said, “that what does not kill you makes you stronger.” That is,
IF you let it.
☺
C. Positive Thoughts Lead to Positive
Outcomes
Realize that negative thoughts breed negative outcomes
whereas positive thoughts yield positive outcomes. If you notice
that little voice inside your mind berating you with negative
messages or making up excuses for your ‘bad’ behavior (“you're fat,”
“you're never going to lose weight,” “you'll just gain it all back,”
“but I love chocolate,” “I'm too tired to take a walk”), force
yourself to turn the situation on its head with a positive spin and
flood your mind with positive reinforcement (“I may be heavy now but
just you wait,” “I'm definitely going to lose this weight,” “I'm
going to keep the weight off this time,” “chocolate's no big deal,”
“I'll feel great after the walk”). Tell yourself these positive
messages over and over again and eventually you WILL believe
them. Brainwash yourself.
Another
technique is to visualize yourself in the future when you are lean
and health-conscious. Whenever you plan to eat or exercise, really
focus on this image and ask yourself: “What would the future lean,
health-conscious me do?” and do that. Role-play that future slender
you and you’ll ‘morph’ yourself into that person sooner than you
think. This was the same technique Arnold Swartzenegger used to first become a
world-champion body-builder, then the top action-star in Hollywood and a multi-millionaire businessman
and finally now governor of California. Since all people (kids
as well as adults) love playing games, whenever you sit down to eat
or get ready to begin your exercise routine, challenge yourself,
“How can I do this in the best way to promote metabolism and lose
weight?” Make eating and exercise fun. If you truly enjoy something,
you’ll excel in it; if you never really enjoy something, you’ll
never do it well.
☺
D. Losing Weight is a Job That Must Be Done
Every Single Day
Think of your weight loss program as a job that MUST
be done every single day for the rest of your life. Your intent is
not just to lose weight in the short-term but rather to keep the
weight off for the long run and thus promote a happy and healthy
life. Before you can get a ‘vacation’ from your job (for
Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, another major holiday, a wedding, a
dinner party, etc), you must prove yourself at your job as a good
and productive employee. Remember you are proving yourself to
yourself – at this job you are both employee as well as employer.
Your job consists only of three distinct tasks: 1) decreasing
caloric intake; 2) increasing caloric expenditure; and 3) optimizing
BMR. That's it. The central trick to weight loss is changing certain
of your ‘bad’ and self-destructive habits into ‘good’ and
self-promoting ones. And realize that, all habits are ‘hard to
break,’ including the good ones. These habits (good or bad) are just
learned associations (like Dr. Pavlov’s dog and the bell) that can
be ‘unlearned’ if we put in the effort. If you crave a bowl of ice
cream before going to bed, you must realize that eating it tonight
fuels the desire for it tomorrow night. Force yourself to avoid it
for a while and you won’t even want it anymore (as long as you keep
avoiding it).
The three tasks mentioned above will definitely lead to
success – the only questions are how much focus and effort you must
apply to each and how much time it will take. This is a battle between your positive self and
your negative self. In such a battle, your positive self CAN NOT
LOSE as long as it is appropriately armed (‘eat less and eat
smarter’), appropriately trained (‘exercise more and exercise
smarter’) and appropriately motivated (‘have the right attitude’ – a
POSITIVE one). It might take some time, but so what?
Once you have altered your lifestyle sufficiently in order to
lead to steady, persistent weight loss and once you feel secure of
the inevitable success of your personalized weight loss program,
then and only then can you take a ‘vacation’ from your job. A word
of advice – for as much ‘fun’ as you have on your ‘vacation,’ that's
how much work that will have ‘piled up’ upon your desk when you
return to work.
Call (239)
261-HAPI today for an appointment at the Heart Attack
Prevention Institute (HAPI) with Dr.
V.
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