The lasting way to lose weight (includes mindset Mp3)

Now things have opened up in the UK and it’s summer time there’s a lot of focus on losing “lockdown” weight. There is so much noise and conflicting advice in the diet industry. Following extreme diets and full on training plans isn’t for everyone and can often only work short term. People can actually put on more weight after a diet, feeling like they’ve failed and then they muster up enthusiasm for another type of restrictive or intense programme - and the cycle continues. I want to help you to break that cycle.

For some people there is more to it than calories in and calories out. If you’ve been struggling to lose weight then here are some helpful tips based my experience with hundreds of clients I’ve helped with weight loss. They are not quick fixes but will bring more trust, connection and confidence in yourself. I’ve also written a hypnosis Mp3 for you to listen to support you with the changes you want to make. 

Notice how you use food

If you want to eat more healthily and you’re not doing so, then there must be some benefit. Your mind doesn’t do something with no gain. Sugar and fat taste delicious but it’s more than that. Our unconscious mind is a database for all of our experiences and beliefs. How was food used growing up? Notice how you use food now. Do you eat for comfort or stress release? Do you use food as energy to power through your day, as a reward for completing tasks or as a treat at the end of the day? Once you’ve identified what your association with food is then find other ways to meet that need. This can be the tricky part. The Mp3 below can help you with this but maybe a coaching session can help you to put some positive strategies in place. 

What we focus on, grows

It’s simple but shift your focus on to what you actually want - ask yourself: what will losing weight bring you? What could you enjoy more? What health benefits are important to you? how would it feel to be slimmer, lighter and have more energy? Visualising the results can be powerful in guiding our mind to what we want. Often we tend to focus on feeling fat, heavy or all of the things we don’t like about ourselves - this is not motivating and can lead to comfort eating. 

Beating yourself up doesn’t work

Reset, start afresh. A lot of people eat something that isnt’ ‘diet food’ they ‘fall of the wagon’ and then write off the day as a disaster. Feeling like a failure causes them to eat double or triple the amount as a self sabotaging punishment and/or comfort strategy. You can imagine how much more helpful it would be to reset after the chocolate bar, saying to yourself “I enjoyed it but I’m going to make sure I eat loads of greens at dinner”. No drama involved, no telling yourself off. Setbacks (if you want to call them that) are a normal part of change. Recognise them, accept them and move on.

Have an abundance mindset - eat what you want

When we restrict ourselves it can make our body go into survival mode which actually makes us store fat! What if you told yourself that you’re going to eat more from now on- eat the rainbow, make your plate full of colour, choose quality food that you like, make it tasty, no food is bad, you enjoy every mouthful. Can you see how this switch could help you to register what you eat and feel satisfied so you’re more likely to eat what you need? How this could be a sustainable shift in your eating habits that works long term. It breaks the old unhelpful pattern of ‘the diet starts on Monday’ mindset and therefore you eat double of what you normally would as you’ve got a ‘scarcity’ mindset not knowing when you’ll get to eat these favourite foods again. 

Check your stress levels

Sometimes when we’re stressed we can use food as a crutch to mask how we really feel. We can run on empty, live off adrenaline and then feel like a failure for not eating well and putting on weight. It’s unusual for your body to lose weight when you’re asking for it to do so much and it’s in survival mode. (Here is a very helpful talk on this by Dr Libby Weaver). This is very common in people who have busy jobs, lots of personal commitments and no time to relax. Does that resonate with you? You might find a coaching session helpful to make changes to reduce your stress levels.

I hope the questions and information above help you to see that if you’re struggling to lose weight then it’s not just about willpower and determination. It’s about sending the right messages to your mind and body. 

If you’d like some personal support with anything I’ve mentioned above please book a coaching call. 

Next Monday I’ll write some tips for My Wellness Hub on how to increase your motivation to exercise. 

Listen to this Mp3 every day (or most days) to help choose better habits and train your mind to focus on abundance. I’d love to know how you get on.