No matter what size you are it is probably true that a good portion of the clothes in your closet fit your person. Your pants are the size you are, as is your professional attire, your jeans, your tops, right? It may also be true that there is a portion of your closet that doesn't fit. "Section X," I like to call it. (Clothes that you would like to fit into because you fondly remember what you felt like and looked like when you use to fit into them.) Embracing the size you are is a healthy decision, but if the size you are is realistically too big, maybe you should set a goal to get back into 'Section X' of your closet.
First thing is first: Write down what you eat and how you spend energy. Do not change anything, just get a baseline of what you are consuming and what it is costing you. Log whatever exercise you do today as well. Read the nutritional labels of the foods you are consuming to find out what is going into your body nutritionally and calorically. Be accountable for everything: butter on bread, sugar in coffee, cookies in the afternoon, M&M's in the car, snacks after dinner, salt on the popcorn, wine by the glass, everything. Record your diet for three days (get a weekend day in there somewhere) for a tangible account of nutritional/caloric use or abuse . (I posted some links to the right to make record keeping easier.)
Second: Weigh yourself, but do this only once. Weighing yourself every day is not healthy, smart, realistic, informative, encouraging, helpful, or necessary. Weight fluctuates daily whether you like it or not, so sever the relationship you have with your scale by putting it in the linen closet after you record your weight. Your weight is a tool to use to calculate how many calories you need to consume daily in order to meet basal metabolic functions, as well as to calculate your body mass index. Your weight does not decide your health, but there is 'unhealthy weight'. Be accountable. Be honest. Be realistic. Weigh yourself now and then give it a rest.
Third: Define what you want to accomplish. Would you like to be a horseback rider? Would you like to swim the bay next spring? Is a marathon calling your name? Did you really enjoy tennis in high school and would love to hit some balls? The best way to define 'the thing' you would love to do is to sit down and think of a time in your past when you felt productive, happy, challenged, healthy, and empowered. If you have already felt those feelings about an activity or lifestyle in the past, you can and are able to rediscover those same achievements in your future. Do not set goals that are dead in the water- they lead right back to square one (you will never participate in your goal of riding 100 miles on a bike if you hate riding a bike; know what I'm sayin'?)
Forth: Do Not Do Anything Drastic! I do not encourage you to throw away all of the food in your pantry just yet. Do not eliminate everything sweet, do not deprive yourself of everything white, do not purchase a list of vegetables you know you will not eat, and do not make any rash decisions about fasting or administering coffee enemas or green tea gulping or cabbage soup dieting. Instead, eat real, whole, naturally occurring foods that you love! Take some B Vitamins to give your mind and metabolism a boost. Drink some fruity water instead of soda. Go for a walk after meals, and, as always, remember to wash your hands. Nobody benefits from dirty fingers.
(If none of this applied to you because you are already on a path to achieve a 'healthier you', "Go You!" If you know someone who isn't on that road, invite them to join you~)
Anna~
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