“To navigate this world’s dietary indulgences, a person needs to learn to switch gears from being blindly restrictive to being thoughtfully reductive.” (Yoni Freedhoff, MD, CCFP) I like that. My clients and class participants have heard me speak to that very subject on many occasions. Many people ask how I lost weight. For those of you who know the story, I appreciate your indulgence; I began to walk 20 minutes, three days a week when I was 41 years old. My ninth child was two. I weighed 297 lbs. That’s a true story. I was heavy and I was depressed. As I very slowly increased my walking time and speed, I also began to very slowly decrease my caloric intake. I didn’t go on a ‘diet.’ Instead, I just decreased the amount of what I was eating, bite by bite, over a period of months. I was very carefully, very thoughtfully reductive. I did not, and still do not, restrict my diet…as my family and friends can attest. I have gained a few pounds over the holiday season, but you know what? I’m not worried about it. I generally eat well and exercise regularly. I enjoyed the Christmas season (and I hope you did, too!). As I mentioned a few issues back, it’s not uncommon to gain between 1 and 10 pounds during the holidays. So, should I be full of self loathing because I drank a lot of eggnog and ate the equivalent of half a pecan pie this weekend? (Another true story) I say nope.
Consider this idea: Your weight loss goal shouldn’t be a number; it should be whatever weight you reach while living the healthiest life you honestly enjoy. The healthiest life you can enjoy is very different from the healthiest life you can tolerate, (Dr. Freedhoff, “The Diet Fix: Why Diets Fail and How to Make Yours Work”). I am all about enjoying your life! Life is meant to be lived with joy and thanksgiving. Not misery. If your worry over your diet is making you suffer, you’re not likely to continue in whatever diet you’re trying to maintain. Think about that. If you think exercise is pain, you may enter an exercise program with dread and not stick with it. It’s human nature to try to minimize suffering. For your weight management to last your lifetime, it cannot be a difficult process fraught with suffering. It must be a program you can enjoy…or come to enjoy. Small and consistent steps will take you where you want to be.
Be thoughtfully reductive in 2015.
Sally Windham-Blackburn is an ACE Certified Personal Trainer and Fitness Instructor in Blanco, TX. Please send questions and comments to sally_blackburn@yahoo.com
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