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If you have seen any of my other Health & Fitness posts you’ll know that I enjoy creating and implementing exercises and finding new routines to help with weight loss, maintenance or toning.

mental truth about weight

 What I wanted to address in this weeks’ post is the mental aspect of weight loss and all of the realizations and struggles you have to overcome mentally when you go through any journey of change (This also applies to those of you going through the opposite journey of putting weight on). Sometimes the hardest part is in your head, regardless of which way round your struggle is. I have also found some cool quotes that capture everything I was trying to say! But if you are on a weight journey you are bound to encounter these…

Problem Solver

Believing that changing how you look will solve all of your problems. Yes, losing weight (or gaining it) will help you reach the appropriate BMI on the chart and will make you healthy from a medical perspective. Yes you will feel better and be more healthy but you need to address the underlying problems; why do you eat (or not) to begin with, is it a self-esteem issue? is it boredom? By dealing with these problems you stop them re-occurring later and “fighting” against yourself mentally in the future.
louisehay fixmyproblems

The “Quick Fix”

 You need to realize you are making a lifelong change to be healthy, not skinny etc. If you aim to make it stick, you need to know they don’t happen overnight. Anything that has “quick” or “easy” attached to it should be avoided because even if it does make you lose “2 stone in 2 weeks”, it’s not healthy and it won’t last. I tried diet pills too and it’s not an effective means of weight loss or maintenance! My pet peeve is “quick” diets/weight loss.

 success doesn't happen overnight

 Me Against The World

Competition is a great way  to motivate yourself if you are looking to lose weight with someone else but don’t let the competition overshadow the support you need to give (and receive) from each other. Understand that people can support and help you but if you keep everything to yourself , the days you struggle are going to be overwhelming!
brave enough to ask for it quote

Praise Me!

Yes, it is very motivating to hear how well you are doing or how good you look but there will come a time when you’ve reached your goals and it will become your new normal! don’t just work hard to get the attention of others because you will be more inclined to “bounce” straight back again. Praise yourself and be proud of yourself, learn to be happy with your own progress and don’t rely on other people’s opinions of you.
anna kournikova on feelinng sexy

Unrealistic Expectations

The more you work, the more you get out, it’s that simple. Don’t expect to start walking once a week and get upset when things take a bit longer. It is great to get up and out but make sure you understand what will change you and in what way so that you don’t get disappointed. Aim for greatness but know what is going to get you there and what isn’t!

melody beattie expectations

Accept the things you cannot change

Finally (and in my opinion most importantly) accept that no one is perfect! For example throughout my pregnancy I got a lot of stretchmarks and when I lost weight I thought they would be less noticeable/disappear,  when they didn’t it overshadowed (mentally) the positive aspects of my weight loss, (if anything I notice them more because the ratio of me to stretchmarks is higher now I’m smaller). So it is something I am working on too! Accept that you can’t change everything about yourself that you don’t like! You wouldn’t be you without them!
mary engelbreit change

Have you been on a weight journey? what have you learned? Let me know in the comment section below!

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 the mental truth about weight

51 comments on “The Mental Truth About Weight”

  1. Keeping everything realistic when it comes to goals is so important. I know that it can be a struggle but keeping to it one step at a time makes it possible.

  2. I am learning not to obsess so much about my weight. My goal is to be strong and healthy and I need to keep that focus.

  3. For the first time in my life I am not obsessing about my weight! I know I have a few extra pounds, but I am more focused on nutrition and overall health as a priority!

  4. This is all so true, whether the topic is weight, or almost anything else. I love the inspirational quotes you included. It is similar to what I was just telling my daughter the other day – Happiness is a choice. You can decide to embrace your circumstances find good in all things, even when they aren’t the ones you would have chosen! T

  5. Ugh I hate the mental part of losing weight. I’m in it right now and it is just awful. I’ve taken pictures along the way so I can see the difference.

  6. i have been fighting the weight loss battle for years adn have lost every time. i think fro me it is not having someone to talk to when I find myself struggling. I pretty much go it alone because the people around me aren’t interested in being healthy.

    • Don’t listen to the people around you. Talking to the wrong people makes you sick. You don’t need them. When you need to talk, write your feeling on a piece of paper or better, make your personal fit journal and write on it how you feel everyday.

  7. I love that you mention self-esteem. That one hits home for me. Keeping a journal of my emotions has helped me so much.

  8. As a health & fitness professional I’m fighting against the “quick fix” mentality in a world now entrenched in wanting a magic pill to fix everything. I get so tired of “lose 10lbs in 10 days”, “belly wraps”, and “tone your way to a 6 pack”… but those headlines sell! I’ve struggled over the years to avoid them, but that’s what people want it seems 🙁

  9. I can totally agree with what some others have said above — we all want that quick fix, but the reality is that there isn’t one. So much of weight loss (and gain) is mental!

  10. Nice post dear, you are right the hardest part is in our head. I love your quotes,I have to learn a lot from this post. we should always remember that no one is perfect.

  11. Hi Charlotte – you’ve achieved so much and I really like how you emphasize that there is no quick fix. We all want the magic pill but it’s hard work and determination that will be the only things that really pay off in the end.

    • Thanks for commenting leanne! One of my downfalls early on was believing it was easy to do and therefore I could do it any time. I think that’s how I let myself put on so much weight believing it would be easy to take off! x

  12. I think that this post is so great! I see a lot of posts on weight-loss, but they usually don’t take into account those that need to gain weight and just be healthy as well. I’ve never really struggled with weight-loss myself. However, I’ve had an ongoing battle with maintaining a healthy weight. Looking at all of your points really did open my eyes to some things that I hadn’t thought of. It’s surprising how similar the two journeys are and yet I’d never made that connection. Thanks for the inspiration. I’ll make sure to pin. 😉

    • Thanks lovely – I think everyone focuses on weight loss but I know several people who go through the opposite journies and they are mentally exactly the same – you are just try to be as healthy as you can and a lot of the hard stuff is mental! x

  13. Love this Charlotte as you are being realistic and helping others to be realistic too with their goals. Mental strength is so important in achieving anything. I found that when I ran the marathon I could talk myself out of things easily if I had wanted to – but I wanted the marathon more. Keep up the great work!

    • I know exactly what you mean! when I run I know I can do it but some days if my head isn’t in it then it’s a nightmare. My strength is purely mental! xx Thanks for commenting

  14. Hmmm….I read this while eating raw cookie dough. I think I might have a problem. Thank you for posting this. I am very externally motivated but I need to learn how to praise myself and make that praise count.

  15. Hi Charlotte, there were several of your inserted quotes that spoke to me, but the one thought that made the most impact on me was yours when you said we need to remember that we are not nor ever will be perfect, but those little imperfections make us who we are. I have a college age daughter who tries too hard to be perfect, and has a hard time accepting that she she is human and her little imperfections are what make her beautiful. Thanks for this good reminder.

  16. Charlotte, I love the quotes and the way you think about life and food. Love it. I had to look back at your weight loss journey and it was so cool to read and see the photos. I was cheering you on as I read, so cool what you have accomplished! And I really am inspired by your story, your words have the power to help so many others.

  17. Hi Charlotte, a five stone weight loss is an incredible achievement, that takes commitment. I like the way you’ve also acknowledged in your post the fact it can also be difficult to gain weight, my son has that battle on his hands and it’s not an easy one either.

    You’ve shared some sensible tips about expectations and being realistic. Learning to accept what we can’t change is a biggy.

    xx

  18. Lots of great thoughts and strategies here! There is so much we need to emotionally deal with in order to have a successful and healthy weight loss. Thanks so much!
    Blessings and smiles,
    Lori

  19. I’m always struggling with the opposite problem, putting on weight, which also has it’s own challenges (though it sounds like a dream to some, it isn’t when it comes to health!). Thankyou for sharing your story and tips though, I’m sure it’ll help others with similar issues. Thanks for linking up to #MarvMondays. Hope to see you again tomorrow! Kaye xo

  20. I totally agree I know I can lose the weight but I am the only person stopping me from doing so I am my own worst enemy! It is all about changing your attitude and thinking #KCACOLS

  21. I totally relate to this post – I need to change my thinking behaviours for life rather than simply jumping between daddy diets. Its definitely going to be a slow process but something I am trying. #MarvMondays

  22. really greta quotes that reflect your really great advice. It’s true though you do feel more sexy and attractive when you feel great about the inner you. Thanks so much for linking up #mg

  23. This is a great post, so motivational. I agree that so much of weight loss is mental. These quotes are so fab! I’m visiting from #MG but see you are linked up to candid cuddles so I’ll pin & tweet while I’m here 🙂 xx

  24. What an inspiring post with fantastic quote choices! When you talked about the “quick fix” diet plans, I found myself nodding my head right along with everything you said. Committing to losing weight and getting healthy should involve making changes that work for YOU for the ling haul. It’s incredibly unrealistic to follow a diet plan for the rest of your life. It’s like setting yourself up for failure from the start. A “diet” may work for a little while, but once you go off of it, that weight will sneak right back up on you. Speaking from experience 🙂 #candidcuddles

  25. Some lovely quotes here! For me the journey was to realise that there is more to life than my weight – I used to put all my energy into it, but I was so miserable. I needed to fix my thinking, and put it all back into perspective. x #KCACOLS

  26. Those are all great quotes and I have some of them on my hard drive but I’ve never looked at them in the way of health and fitness. While I have known for a long time that in order to lose weight I have to change my eating habits and make fitness (hiking for me) a part of my life, it wasn’t until I related it to my mental health that I truly decided to change things. These quotes are great! Visiting from #candidcuddles

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