You know that cliche saying that when you stop looking for something you’ll find it? That’s the easiest way to explain how I accidentally lost some weight back in May. It started when I went on a work trip and I’ve actually been steadily keeping it off as well as slowly losing more since then. I just think it’s so funny that I’ve been trying for basically the last 10 to 15 years to slim down and it never works. It’s always an up and down struggle of semi-hating myself, trying really hard and then giving up. But then I quit worrying about it and the weight starts to come off by itself. Go figure.
Start viewing food as a nutritional source
One thing I always knew, but never really followed through with, was that food is first and foremost a source of nutrition for my body. What I’m feeding my body directly affects the way I feel. While taste and enjoyment is a huge part of what I want to eat, my tastes have evolved over the past six years of transitioning to healthy living and I can easily make something healthy be delicious. Now when I meal plan, I start with ingredients that I want in my body and figure out meals from there.
Stop thinking about it
While we were in Florida for work, I was having such a good time that I honestly just stopped thinking about eating. I have this weird tendency to almost get paranoid about being hungry in the future. So even if I’m not hungry I’ll eat if I’m leaving the house or something because I don’t want to get hungry later and not have access to food. This might be a result of the fact that I turn into a snarky, satanic bitch when I get hungry, but the reality is I will live. I lost several pounds while I was in Florida for less than a week because it was more important to me to be in the workshops and then by the pool/beach than to be seeking out food. I’m not saying starve yourself, I’m just saying when I stopped thinking and worrying about food the weight melted off.
Being active doesn’t mean hitting the gym
When I think about being active, I think about doing all this work to burn a couple of calories at the gym and it frustrates me so I never do it. But when I start thinking of it as a way to get out of the house and enjoy the fresh air, it’s a lot easier to get my butt out of my computer chair. While I was in Florida (which is when the weight loss started) I took daily walks on the beach by myself. Now that I’m home I do my best to get the dogs out in the fresh air a couple of times a week. It helps to think about how much they will enjoy it and how much I need to step away from the computer and get away from work. Once I stopped thinking about being active to lose weight and just thought about it as a way to spend my time intentionally, it was easy to get outside and move even if it’s just walking a mile or two a few days a week.
I don’t talk about my insecurities with my weight on here a lot because who wants to hear someone else talk about their weight? I was insecure in high school and over the last 10 years I’ve fluctuated at about 10-15 lbs heavier than my high school weight and I’m ironically more comfortably in my skin now that I was then. The more I focus on living a healthy full life and taking care of my body for the sake of taking care of my body, the most comfortable I become despite the fact that I’ll never be as thin as I’ve always wanted to be. My new focus on just nourishing my body the best I can and moving on a regular basis has a direct relation to how I feel about myself and I’m glad I’ve finally figured that out!
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