Mindsets That Can Sabotage Your Weight Loss | Bradenton Surgical Group
Like many people, you probably already know what you need to do to lose weight. You’re familiar with the idea of a balanced diet and exercise, and you may even know that losing one pound of fat requires burning 3,500 calories. If we have the facts about weight loss, what prevents so many people from actually achieving weight loss success? The problem may be found in the way you think.
3 Mindsets That Can Sabotage Your Weight Loss
- Do you focus on the negatives while largely ignoring the positives? Perhaps you’re afraid to get your hopes up, or maybe you’re just not used to celebrating successes. Whatever the reason, failing to recognize small victories can prevent you from achieving big ones. Instead of focusing on how much weight you haven’t lost or the day you weren’t able to eat healthy, practice celebrating the positive changes you have made and the results you do see.
- Are you looking for a fast, quick, or easy solution? Here’s the hard truth about weight loss: it takes time and it’s hard work. But the sense of accomplishment you’ll get from doing the hard work can be as valuable as the health benefits of losing weight. Take a moment to recognize that committing to weight loss means accepting a challenge. Challenges aren’t easy, but they are achievable.
- Do you have trouble accepting the idea that you could be thin? This may sound silly or hard to believe, but many people struggle to sabotage their weight loss efforts because they haven’t quite accepted the idea of living life as something other than the “big girl” or “fat guy”. Your self-perception and identity are very powerful and can be difficult to change even if you don’t necessarily like the way you see yourself. Spend some time examining how you see yourself. Can you visualize yourself thin? Can you imagine what life would be like for you if you lost weight? Can you stop referring to yourself as “big” or “heavy” or “fat”?
Examine your thoughts. Are you giving yourself positive messages that will help with your weight loss goals, or are you setting yourself up for self-sabotage?