Weight Loss without Worry

     This wonderful quote is from the diva herself, Miss Piggy.  I love Miss Piggy because she knows who she is.  Yes she is portly but she doesn’t let that overshadow her self-image.  When she looks in the mirror she sees one sexy swine, nothing more-nothing less.

     For too many women, self-esteem and self-worth is intimately related to their weight.  About 8 years ago I had the pleasure of picking up an Audio Cassette recording (Career Tracks, 1993) called Self-Esteem for Women (How to Increase your Self-Worth, Self-Respect, and Life Satisfaction) by Dr. Julie White.  This is still available on Amazon.com. 

     White shares how we run into a problem when we as women set out to love and accept our bodies.  This problem is that we are conditioned as young girls to see our bodies as ornaments to be looked at and admired.  Boys in contrast are raised to see their bodies as instruments that allow them to move and lift and work hard.  This would explain why men do not worry about their weight as much as women do.

     Since women are taught to see their bodies as symbols of beauty it is easy to see how women can attach their sense of self-worth to their bodies.  This however is putting all of your eggs in one basket.  One of the first things I stress with clients is that they must stop looking only at the things they hate about their bodies and instead start focusing on what they appreciate about their bodies.

     This can be a challenge for those who have always focused on the negative but it is a must if you want to produce positive change.  I will fall back on an analogy I often use, if you are driving a beat-up rust bucket, how often will you take that heap to the car wash?  Will you be taking it in for regular tune-ups?  The answer is most likely no.  The same applies to how you view your body.  If you hate your body and how it looks why would you waste your time and energy to improve it? 

     This is one time (I don’t say this often) that we need to take a lesson from the men in our lives and start looking at our bodies more as instruments that allow us to move and function.  We all have been blessed with incredible bodies and I know this for a fact because the human body is incredible!  Here is just a small sampling of what your instrument is willing to do for you:

• Your heart beats 100,000 times/day (2,000 gallons circulated/day)
• Your lungs breathe 7 million times a year without you thinking about it
• Your nose can detect 4,000 different smells
• You have recovered from broken bones, viral disease and bacterial infections
• Your body renews all of its cells each month
• And you may have even given birth (no small feat!)

     If you want permanent weight loss results start today to view your body more as an instrument of health then and ornament.