Yesterday an Ah-Ha moment occurred for me. I’ve had more than a few on this weight loss journey for sure, but this one was a biggie!
I’ve been rolling something around in my brain that I heard trainer Jillian Michaels say on the premier episode of The Biggest Loser Season 8. She was talking to contestant Shay as she was struggling on one of the pieces of gym equipment.
This is what she said to Shay:
“This is a story in your head. None of it is real. All you have to do is change your mind.â€
What?! Wait a minute! Shay is like the biggest female contestant that they’ve had on the show thus far. (and you go Shay!) If she feels that her body cannot do something, is that incorrect? I mean we do have physical limitations…don’t we?
Hmmmmm…..
Yesterday, I did Jillian Michaels: No More Trouble Zones as I’ve been doing for weeks now. Every time I do this dvd, there are certain exercises that I cannot (really?) do all the way through. One of these is the dreaded surrender move where you hold your dumbbells over your head while kneeling and raising to standing position.
So, yesterday I realized that maybe this “I can’t” business was only a “story in my head”….maybe if Jillian was right about Shay and Shay has been completing amazing fitness tasks – maybe I could do this silly surrender move all the way through! OK, go figure! Changed my story, completed the move!
Could it really be THAT easy?
Change the story in your head, CHANGE YOUR LIFE, even?
I remember the day I decided to buy a bicycle. I had lost about 48 lbs at this stage of my weight loss journey and was weighing in at about 230 lbs. I had been thinking about this for awhile, but I honestly had the idea that it was something that I needed to wait for. After all fat people cannot ride bikes, can they? Doh!
I made the decision to go to the bike shop and literally stood there talking to the salesman with hands on hips saying…”OK, Am I too fat to ride a bike?” Of course, he denied this and sold me a bike that completely revolutionized my exercise routine! When that story in my head changed, the weight started coming off even more rapidly because I found a type of exercise that I completely enjoyed! Riding the bike that first time is one of my favorite memories during this journey to health, fitness and FREEDOM!
My weight loss journey DID begin with a decision back in 2006. There was a story playing in my head at that time that had all the makings of a very sad ending…a sad life. I had tried so many times to lose weight and the story I was telling myself was that I could only fail again, but was that real? Could it be only a thought and could I decide something else?
What is the story you are telling yourself today? Have you failed time and time again at losing weight? Are the words you hear in your head, reality? Or are they simply words?
If other people have lost the same weight or more than you have, is it possible that you could also achieve success?
Can you change YOUR story?
I know YOU can! Decide today that YOU deserve every positive thing that you could imagine coming your way…regardless of the past, regardless of the story, regardless of the obstacles that are before you.
What’s the NEW story in your head….I can’t wait to hear it!
Let’s do this together!
Paula,
Very inspirational. I think my head is my worst enemy sometimes. It has sabotaged many a weight loss attempt by me. I am so tired of my weight and how it makes me feel. I look forward to your inspiration on FB and twitter. Glad to have made this connection.
Thanks for sharing,
Beckie
THANK YOU for this blog – it’s so true that you can change the story in your head if you want to.
This reminder was just what I needed today!
Yay! Beckie! SO great to meet you – thanks for sending the note via Twitter! I’m sure we can be a great encouragement to each other! 😉
Thanks Andie – I am actually reminding myself of this as I go throughout my day…wondering what are the other “stories” just in my head…hmmmm. Hope you’re having a great day!
hmm, you have me thinking and I think you and I have spoken about this before. I can think of a million and one perfect scenarios that would just most definitely provide me with weight loss. But life is not perfect and the thought of failing yet again is definitely a story in my head. I have started SOO many diets that I know the ones around me don’t believe me, I don’t believe me. I want to believe me, but I don’t. Maybe, this is just the story in my head and I just need to do it.
Kim, I think you hit on it perfectly! How bout a new story that goes something like…”this time is different because I want to be healthy for the long term…the things I’m doing today, I can do for the rest of my life…I can eat pizza/cake/fast food – whatever that thing is – once in awhile and still make healthy choices the rest of the time.” You ARE gonna do it and I can’t wait to celebrate with you along the way! 🙂 Thanks for posting.
I can really identify with you Kim! I’ve been on so many diets and lost the weight only to gain it back plus some. My story is that even if I take the weight off I won’t keep it off. Another story line I’ve been telling myself for a while now is that I can lose weight without cutting anything out–just eat less. But I have trigger foods. I eat for emotional reasons. And since I have 55 to 60 pounds to lose, I need to cut WAY back. And to keep things real, I’m going to start counting calories.
Thanks for posting that very honest note Linda. You know how much I am appreciating your involvement, honesty and determination. I have faith that you can change the story in your head by being more and more conscious…as it seems you are doing. Regarding calorie counting…I am planning to write up some material on this in the near future because it has worked so well for me. Will definitely keep you all posted. Thanks again Linda! 🙂