Forget about losing weight

You heard me - forget about losing weight. Let me explain where I am coming from.

I just watched the national broadcast of Beyond The Secret - and Bob Proctor said something that really resonated with me. He said that we are programmed to find things we lose. Think about it - if you lose your keys, you look until you find them. If you lose something, you feel lost until you find it. So when we focus on losing weight, human nature is to find it again - and most of us have been successful at losing weight and then finding it again and again - and sometimes we find more than we lost to begin with.

So how about releasing the weight instead? That's what Bob recommended. Don't lose it - let go of it. Discard it. If you really don't want it, then let it go. Now, I realize it's not as simple as saying to yourself "I hereby release the extra fat on my body". But what if you changed your mindset? What if you focused on letting go of what you don't want and uncovering what you do want? Take off that blanket of excess fat and let the thin person inside you out.

When I think about it, the basic principles of the Law of Attraction and what a lot of these speakers and books talk about in terms of success are what led me to succeed this time when I had failed so many times before. My focus has been on being thin - not on losing weight. I hang around people who are thin. My best friend is one of those skinny people I used to hate. She's also a yoga instructor and personal trainer - and spending time with her has helped me tremendously. It also helps that the person I live with (my dear hubby) is also very fit and concerned with his health.

I've spent the last several months focused on being healthy, feeling good about myself, and being skinny. I've put up pictures to make me think about being thin. I've talked to thin people, I've been around them. I've even set passwords to "skinny" and other words that help me focus on what I want.

So much of our energy is focused on what we don't want that we often get exactly what we don't want - but if we really focus our energy on what we DO want, wouldn't that feel better? Think about something you have accomplished in your life that you really wanted. How did you get there? Chances are you focused on what you wanted. You knew why you wanted it. You knew how it would feel when you got there. You took action because it was what you wanted, and that action felt good because it was leading you to your goal. You made choices that were in the direction of your goal, and even if it was a sacrifice it was worth it because it was taking you toward your goal. You did what it took because you were working toward something.

Isn't it easier to work toward something than to work against it? I really think that's why it has worked for me this time. Rather than focusing on what I didn't like, I focused on what I wanted to be like. I focused on feeling good as much as I did on looking good.

So here's my challenge to you: Forget about losing weight. Instead, focus on being thin, healthy, skinny, or whatever it is.
1. Think of a word or phrase that describes what you want to be and put it where you can see it every day. Write it on the fridge, in your car, make it your desktop wallpaper, your Blackberry password. Do whatever you can to keep that goal in your mind.
2. List on paper your reasons for wanting to be that way. This is important. If you don't have reasons, then you won't have motivation. I did that, and I will share that list of reasons in a later post. Think of all the little reasons, no matter how silly. If it means borrowing your best friend or sister's clothes, or not being the fat chick in the bridal party, or not having to pay extra for that bridesmaid's dress, or being able to walk the dog or keep up with your kids, or even take the stairs at the office.
3. Believe that you can do this if you want to badly enough. There is a thin person inside you, and you have the power to bring that person out.
4. Make your choices. When someone offers you something that isn't on your program, your choice is whether that something fits into what you want. Is the ice cream more important to you than your reason for being thin? Probably not. If you just think of your reasons first and then make your choice, you will more likely make the right choice - and if you don't, you don't have to beat yourself up because you made a choice. (Having some cheesecake you can eat like the recipe posted here, or a choice that leads you toward your goal will also help.)

That's it! It really is that simple. It's a little more difficult in practice, but if you know what you want and WHY you want it, then it becomes so much easier to make those choices.

Now, go to it. All you have to lose, or release, is the old person you don't want to be so you can uncover that gorgeous skinny person inside who is just dying to slip into a slinky dress and go dancing!

Weight Loss Tracker

I have been using this spreadsheet to help track my progress and keep me motivated when the pounds weren't moving as quickly as I would like.

Try it and see if it helps you. If you don't have a scale that calculates your body fat, try an online calculator like the one at zonediet.com. You have to register to use theirs, but they have lots of great info there and you will want to register anyway.


Weight Loss Calculator Blank.xls

Why it's so hard to change

This article is very eye opening and makes so much sense:

http://www.oprah.com/article/omagazine/omag_200701_change

I think this helps explain why I have been successful this time versus all the other times I have tried to lose weight.

1. I am externally motivated. I care more about what other people think than about what I think - so I need to have someone else expect me to stay on track.
2. I am motivated by praise - hearing others tell me I am doing well is much more powerful for me than doing it myself.
3. I am motivated by value - and believe in getting the most out of my money - so I'm not going to spend the money on the doctor and then just throw it away.

These 3 things tap into my dopamine receptors. The 4th thing that has helped is coming up with recipes that still taste like comfort food - and therefore give me the dopamine I need.

The funny thing is - now that I have been using these recipes for several months, I actually crave them more than the bad stuff. I tasted a piece of red velvet cake the other night, and then decided I would rather have my cheesecake made with cottage cheese. That's not the old me. So it sounds like I have been able to reprogram my dopamine receptors with substitutes for the things I really love.

I hope you find this article helpful and use what you learn in the article to help reprogram your brain for good.

P.S. I do have a few copies of the first draft of the book for sale - but I am still working on some things so I don't want to put a lot of effort into printing until I am ready. If you can't wait, send me an email and I will send you one. The cost of the book is $20 including shipping, and anyone who purchases the draft will also receive a copy of the final version for just $5, which is to cover my printing costs and postage.

Book Table of Contents

Table of Contents
Part 1: Survival Tips.. 1
Part 2: Craving Busters.. 3
Part 3: Recipes.. 5
Easy Breakfast Muffins. 5
Guilt Free Cheesecake. 6
Tiramisu Cheesecake. 7
Amazing Alfredo. 8
Beef Stroganoff Florentine. 9
Creole Turkey Meatloaf Muffins. 10
Turkey Frittata. 11
Turkey Breast Chili with No Tomatoes. 12
Turkey Burger Variations. 13
Mozzarella Stuffed Turkey Meatballs. 13
Ranch / Onion Dip: 14
Chicken Fajita Salad. 15
Yummy Chicken Salad. 16
Low Carb Tuna Salad: 17
Sweet Cucumber Salad. 18
Thai Chili Sauce. 19
Hoisin Sauce. 19
Peanut Sauce. 20
Lettuce Wraps. 21
Easy Lo Mein. 21
Part 4: Thanksgiving Dinner.. 23
Pumpkin Cheesecake Parfait 23
Guiltless Pumpkin Pie. 24
Sugar Free Cranberry Sauce. 25
Cranberry Jello Salad. 26
The Perfect Turkey. 26
Garlic Mashed / Twice Baked Potato Swap. 28
Green Bean Casserole. 29
Sweet Potato Souffle' Swap. 29

More Before and After

I had to put this together for my new Yoga for Weight Loss class, and thought I would share here as well.

A Couple of Cheesecake Variations

I have done so many different things with the original recipe, and here are a few very decadent options. As always, if you are under a doctor's care, check with your doctor before adding any of these ingredients, and take it easy on the sugar free chocolate!

Almond Joy:
Add 1/2 tsp each almond and coconut extract, and about 2 tbsp of sugar free choclate chips - add the chips at the very end and only blend for about 30 seconds

Tiramisu:
Add 1 tsp each of instant coffee and cocoa powder, then add in some sugar free chocolate chips, or 2 chopped up sugar free chocolate miniatures.

Snicker's:
Add the PB2 and the cocoa powder to the mix, plus 2tbsp chocolate chips. Once you have the cheesecake in its container, swirl in some sugar free caramel sauce (I prefer Harry and David but you could also use Walden Farms).

Top all of them with some sugar free cool whip. Enjoy!

Happy 2009!

I wish you all health and happiness in 2009. I realized it has been a very long time since I posted an update. As of Tuesday, I am down 38.6 lbs in 4 1/2 months and have reached my original goal! I even burned 3 lbs of fat over Christmas. (More on that in another blog post.)
I wanted to post a current before and after, and also a link to my dr's website.

Now, for a couple of pictures. The first one was taken 8/15/08 - a few days into my program. The second was taken 12/25/08.