Weight Loss Strategies: Getting Unstuck
One definition of being stuck is this:
“Being stuck is when you can only see one possibility, and you don’t like what you see.”
One thing coaches help clients do is generate more possibilities . . . and more options.
When you have more possibilities, then you have a CHOICE.
And when you have a choice, then you have FREEDOM.
PAYING THE PRICE
So consider that there is always a price to pay for getting unstuck.
The price might be changing your eating habits. That might mean eating less, or eating your favorite foods less often.
The price might be starting an exercise plan and sticking to it.
It might be paying the cost of hiring a personal trainer, a personal coach, or a gym membership.
Or it might be investing time in learning ways to soothe yourself without using food.
It might mean changing the belief system that is supporting your current behavior (“Everyone in my family gets heavier as they get older. I’m going to too.”)
Or changing your values to make health and weight loss a higher priority in your life. Change typically doesn’t happen until it becomes your highest priority.
You may worry that the price is too high . . . that you would need to give up too much.
But, there is a price to pay for staying stuck as well.
And you probably have been paying this price for far too long.
That price might be low self-image, low self-confidence, and poor body image.
It might be constant emotional turmoil, or listening to relentless negative, critical self-talk day in and day out.
It may be putting your life on hold and NOT going after what you want until you lose weight.
It might be the physical discomfort of wearing clothes that don’t fit, combined with the mental anguish every time you look in the mirror.
Or it might be some other cost, but in EVERY case, there is a price.
SELF-COACHING
To coach yourself in getting unstuck, follow these steps:
1. Recognize that there is a price to pay whether you change your behavior or keep things the same.
2. Recognize that there IS a way to make the change (once the price is paid, then you have made the change). In most cases, there are MANY ways to make the change.
3. Identify the price for keeping things the same AND the price for making the change.
Ask yourself what it is costing you to keep things the same, and what it would cost you to make the change. What would you need to give up?4. Decide if you want to make the change. If the price seems too big, think about it some more. Use your optimism and flexibility of thinking to come up with ways to make the change that are easier and more doable. Think about how you might ease into it without struggle.
If you LOOK for these, and EXPECT to find them, your mind has a way of creating them.
5. In most cases, the price to be paid involves changing your beliefs. For instance, if you believe “this is going to be hard,” it will be.
6. Keep in mind both sides of the equation. It may SEEM easier to keep things the same, but when you think of what it is actually costing you, and HOW LONG you have been paying that price, things may look different.