If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be?
For many people it would be the way they look – in particular their weight.
Ours is a society that has become obsessed with size. The results of surveys about how people perceive weight can be alarming.
One survey found more than 80% of women thought they would have a better social life if they were slimmer and that 70% of the people asked thought overweight people were perceived as less intelligent!
Another survey of personnel officers found many of them would prefer to give jobs to people of ‘normal weight’! It is easy to see why people get hung up about their weight and why there is such a dazzling array of diets on offer!
This culture has many dangers. One is that very often a quick fix or miracle cure is being sought. This is not only unrealistic. The ‘quick fix’ options are often unhealthy with people resorting to unhealthy eating regimes or even worse. People can sacrifice their health in search of looking slimmer. Often the desired weight loss isn’t even achieved. Even if they initially lose weight it is put back on again.
Another danger is that people have a false idea of what life would be like if they were a different size. Going from Size 16 to Size 12 does not turn your husband into George Clooney. Getting into that dress will not see your house in Newport Pagnell transform into a luxury home off Hollywood Boulevard.
Before jumping into a weight loss programme think through what you are trying to achieve.
First of all think of what your weight does NOT affect. Don’t kid yourself that losing a few pounds would turn you from a homely character to a party animal. Do you want to get out more and make new friends? Then start to do it now! Do you want a job change? List out your skills and experiences, update your CV and start looking around now. There will not be one day when you wake up and look suddenly transformed. So start creating the new habits you want to get into now.
Ask yourself how much it is your weight affecting how you look and how much is it other factors. Do you need some different clothes? Do you need to smile more and hold you head up rather than slouching? Make these changes. You will start to look different straight away.
Secondly come up with realistic goals associated with your weight loss. Try to have a series of goals you want to achieve that follow on from each other. Think in time units of a fortnight to a month. Be realistic in what you want to achieve given where you are at now, what time and effort you are willing to put in and what is healthy. Some goals may be measured in weight, others in clothes sizes, others can be set in different ways – ‘I will be happy to wear a bikini by the time I go on holiday’ or ‘I will be up to running for 30min three times a week by May’. Keep the goals varied and keep them in mind. But don’t give up if you miss one – stick at it and think up the next target.
Thirdly don’t think purely in terms of weight loss. You should be able to feel healthier too. By eating and drinking more healthily and undertaking moderate exercise your body will change shape and you will feel better too. Your skin will look better, your digestive system will function better, you will sleep more soundly and you will have more energy. These are great benefits! Being healthy will make you look and feel far better than someone at the same weight who is achieving it by unhealthy means!
Fourthly think in terms of a new lifestyle. The way you look and feel will only last slightly longer than you stick to your new dietary and exercise habits. The good news is that habits become just that – habitual. So rather than resorting to an unsustainable diet and/or exercise regime make changes that you can stick with longer term. This way you will continue to look and feel better.
You can discuss diet and weight loss on our forum.
