Over the 15 or so years I’ve been coaching clients in fitness, nutrition and wellness industry I’ve come to realize that there is a lot more to it the just workouts and diet plans. More and more people are coming to me with difficult to lose weight. They seem to be doing everything right. And still they can’t seem to lose. Or they lose to a certain point and either get stuck or it starts coming back.
The good news is if this is you or someone you know, there is a solution. The shitty news is there is no one right answer because we are all so different and some of it might involve some deep emotions.
The fact of the matter is if we don’t fix the inside, anything we do on the outside is only temporary. But that doesn’t mean we can’t fix them both at the same time.
Here are two of my best tips to help you heal the inside while getting healthy on the outside.
#1. Love yourself no matter what! This is by far the most important tip I can give and probably the hardest for most to do. I am telling you now that if you follow a diet and exercise routine out of hatred for the way your body looks, you will feel miserable. And even if you lose weight you will end up gaining it back plus some in the end. Learning to understand that this is just a small bump in your journey and that the excess weight is not who you are. You are a beautiful soul, if you only knew...
Move in ways that you enjoy and excite you. Exercise doesn't have to be the same thing repeated over and over again. You can achieve results in all different ways of moving. When you miss a workout tell yourself you understand and that you love yourself anyway. Rest when you need to rest and tell you body you love it enough to rest when it is tired. Love yourself regardless of whether or not you exercised today.
Love yourself so much you want to fuel your body with the best fuel. But when you eat a less healthy meal tell yourself that you love yourself regardless of the food choices you are making in that moment. Enjoy each and every bite of that delicious less healthy food and tell yourself that you love yourself enough to enjoy all the flavors of the world.
#2. Listen to your body. For years I followed plans that were working for others and I struggled to understand why I wasn’t seeing the same results. I generally blamed myself for the failure and it would usually end with a more extreme version and then a binge and a low in the end. I’ve since realized that actually feeling good is what a fitness and nutrition plan should feel like. And cravings and injuries are messages from my body. If I listen to my body and truly feed it and exercise it in the way it enjoys, I feel good and see great results. When I fall astray from what my body is asking for I generally run into cravings and injuries. I use these as signs that I’ve fallen off the path and start listening again to find my way back on. Other signs can be depressive mood, low energy levels and low sex drive. Listening to your body has to be one of the hardest things for many. Most often we are pre programmed to default to things we have been taught through social trends and what we are hearing and reading in the media. The best way to sift through all this is to journal your feelings, moods, emotions, energy levels, strength, likes and dislikes during a program. This will give you a good indication of changes you can make to suit you. You are perfect. You need to see that. And maybe this excess weight is here to teach you that. Or maybe it’s here because you’re hiding from something. Regardless, I've come to learn that there is not a single event in our lives that is not happening to teach us a lesson and help us grow from it. Everything you do in your fitness and nutrition plan should be from a place of love. When you get up and workout tell yourself that this is because I love you. And do the types of exercises you enjoy and make you happy. When you eat a healthy meal sit down and be present with it. Enjoy each bite and tell your body you are feeding it this beautiful nourishing food because you love it.
Hope this helps.
Sincerely
Lisa Glazebrook
Simply Thrive