“The more fear one has of anything, the more a vibrational match to the thing that they fear they are.” ~Abraham-Hicks I’ve been focused more on the fear. Recently a sales clerk saved me from buying a pair of pants in a larger size because I was “afraid” the smaller size wouldn’t fit me. I hadn’t even bothered to try them on. After pulling my summer clothes out of the closet, I almost didn’t try on a pair of carpis because I was “afraid” they would be too tight. They fit just fine. My focus is more on what I don’t want than what I do. Is it any wonder my exercise and eating have been off and weight is creeping back on? You may have done this too . . . and not even been aware of it. Have you ever lost weight, but after you met your goal you still felt fat? When you looked in the mirror, did you still catalog all your physical flaws? Did you notice new problems, like loose skin or a softer belly? How quickly did you gain back the weight? Our thoughts and feelings are much more powerful than most people understand. If you feel fat, or focus primarily on what’s wrong with your body rather than what’s right, it’s almost impossible to lose the weight—and keep it off. To truly be the slim, strong, and fit person you want to be, you have to feel slim, strong, and fit . . . at least most of the time. Feeling slim is critical to being slim long-term. And no amount of diet and exercise is going to alter your self-perception. That is a change that has to come from the inside out. Most people see themselves through filters of self-criticism, limiting […]
15 Ways to See Your Body as Beautiful
I used to hate my body. Almost all of my thoughts about my body were negative—and harsh! I constantly told myself how ugly I was, how awful I looked compared to everyone else, how weak, soft, and poorly functioning my body was. I focused almost exclusively on my body’s flaws. And for years, I struggled with losing and regaining the same 30 pounds over and over again. Oh, I knew how to diet and exercise, but I just couldn’t make the changes stick. After 35 years of struggling with my weight, I knew there had to be another way. So I tried something drastic. I decided to change my thoughts. It wasn’t until I started changing my thoughts that I started to see lasting changes in my body. Not only did a release the weight, but best of all, I’ve kept it off for 3 years now! Today, I love my body! I love my body and life more than I thought possible. Believe it or not, your body reflects the thoughts you are thinking. And you may be seriously underestimating the incredible power of your thoughts. Reflect on the kinds of thoughts you think about your body—and life!—most of the time. Are you primarily focused on how fabulous your body is, how hard it’s working on your behalf, how beautiful it is, how strong and fit it is, and how much you love it? Or are you saying things like I used to say? Are you frustrated and angry at your body because it doesn’t look like you want it to look, or how you think it should look? Are you on the verge of giving up on ever getting the body you want? […]
How Not Being Perfect Will Help You Get the Body You Want
Hi, I’m Hanna, and I’m a recovering profectionist. I got reminded of this on Monday. After dealing with nagging minor injuries for over a year, I finally broke down and went to the doctor. Apparently an old injury has never fully healed and is now causing other problems and I’m looking at 6 months of physical therapy and recovery. While part of me is excited to begin the healing journey and take my self-care to the next level, I can feel some niggling self-criticism. It’s a case of the dreaded “shoulds.” I should have been doing my self-care perfectly already to prevent this. I should have been listening to my body more deeply and not jumping back to action as soon as I felt better. I should have gone to the doctor sooner. I should . . . I should . . . I should . . . And it feels icky. How many times do you “should” yourself a day? Chances are it’s a lot. Pay attention. “Should” never feels good. It’s a symptom of perfectionistis. This is the need to do everything perfectly. Not only has perfectionitis been a significant contributor to my past struggles with my weight, but I see the majority of the women I work with suffering from it, as well. It often shows up as: The need to do a diet and exercise program perfectly, or you might as well give up. Or an unwillingness to give yourself credit for all the healthy actions you are taking, and instead focusing on every place you are “failing.” Or anywhere you are beating yourself up because you “should” be doing something other than what you are doing. Perfectionistis is not […]
How to Follow Your Bliss to Get the Body You Want
Follow you bliss. Joseph Campbell first said it. But what does following your bliss really mean when it comes to getting the body you want? Is it staying under the yummy warm covers or is it getting up and doing your planned workout? On the surface, staying in bed feels better—at least for the short-term. But if you feel guilty about sleeping in for the rest of the day because you skipped your workout, you’re seriously undermining the shot of bliss you got from staying in bed. Maybe it didn’t feel blissful to get out of bed. In fact, it was darn hard. But you feel awesome about yourself for the rest of the day because you got in your workout. In that case, you are basking in the bigger bliss of following through on your goal to reduce your weight and improve your health. Now ask yourself, what feels better—to get up and do the workout, or to stay in bed? If you were truly at peace and it felt good to stay in bed, you probably needed the sleep. If you listen to your heart, you can always feel if your thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and actions are in alignment—even if you are taking an action that on the surface seems like it feels way harder. This is true whether you are reducing your weight, improving your life, or standing up for something that you believe in. Your emotions are your direction, gauge, guidance, indicator, litmus test letting you know if you are moving towards what you want, or are taking a detour. My Mother taught me this from her example. In 1957, she was a student at Little Rock Central High School when it […]
3 Tips to Get the Slim, Healthy, and Radiant Body You Want
When you finally make the decision to lose weight, you may want the change effective immediately. It’s the mindset of, “I want to be a size 4 and I want it today.” This impatience is really being focused on the fact that you don’t have the body you want, which means you are fighting the forces of the Universe and will struggle to lose weight. What does it really matter if it takes a little time to achieve your goal? It’s the pain factor, right? It’s looking in the mirror every day and suffering from body shame. It’s struggling to find something in your closet you feel good wearing. It’s feeling deprived as you turn down that piece of chocolate cake while everybody else digs in. It’s dreading the dressing room and trying on 50 jeans to find one that you don’t hate yourself in. It’s the risk of having your partner see you as unsex-worthy because of your sagging stomach. It’s feeling how tight your waistband is all day long. You want to just wave a magic wand and make it all go away. These thoughts are all symptoms of what has caused you to gain weight in the first place. At their heart is the fear of judgment and a lack of self-love. This is why so many diets and exercise programs fail. For lasting results, you have to change your core thoughts and beliefs along with eating healthy foods and moving your body. Here are three tips to let go of the thoughts that are keeping you from the slim, healthy, and radiant body you want. Focus on a body part you CAN appreciate. How often do you look in the […]
Take the Keys to Your Inner Queendom
Do you: Ask others what you should do? Think some Higher Power decides the results you get? Feel discouraged because you don’t see how your dream will come true? Believe getting the body you what has to be hard? Criticize your body–or yourself? Have self-doubt? Fear anything? These are all signs that you are not being the leader of your body–and life. It’s time to step into your role as the alpha female of you. It’s time to accept your innate power. You are hereby granted sole proprietorship of your inner Queendom. The key is deciding. Deciding to take responsibility. Deciding if it’s going to be hard or easy. Deciding to be steadfast and persistent in your internal leadership role. The internal changes may not be instantaneous, but little-by-little, decision-by-decision, moment-by-moment, each time you focus on what you want, who you want to be, and how you want to live your life and then make the decision to reach for that regardless of the fear or negative self-talk, you will be changing your interior landscape to one that will support and celebrate your self-leadership. It is only when you take responsibility for and control over your daily thoughts, feelings, and beliefs that lead to your actions that your inner landscape changes. You do have power over your subconscious, your thoughts, and feelings–but you have to step into the leadership role . . . of you. How willing are you to be the leader of your own body–and life? How willing and committed are you to take the consistent action needed? Only you have the answers for you. How hard or easy it will be depends on what you decide. Together we can do it! Program Starts Tomorrow . . . Taking on a diet and exercise program that is not rooted in self-love is why a […]
The Inner Conflict that is Getting in the Way of Your Optimal Wellness
One of the push-pulls that I’m feeling in my life right now is surrendering to the power of All-That-Is AND setting specific and measurable goals and diligently moving towards those. This feels like one of those dichotomies in life, such Yin-Yang, Dark-Light, and Good-Bad. This is Surrender-Focus. To paraphrase Abraham-Hicks, the perfect mindset in life is simultaneously being content with where you are AND eager for more. How does this relate to optimal weight and wellness? It’s loving and appreciating the body you have right now AND wanting to be stronger, fitter, and healthier. Your choice is not because your body is broken, flawed, or in any way “less than” right now. It is just because that is the life you WANT to create. That is WHO you want to be. That is YOU becoming more. Doesn’t that feel a whole lot better than feeling horrible about yourself and believing things will get better “if only” you can lose the weight? Here’s what surrender looks like: It’s loving and appreciating your body just as it is. It’s marveling at how hard your body is working to stay in balance and manage everything you do and put into it. It’s accepting that where your body is right now is perfect. It’s recognizing that your body deserves to be loved right now and allowing yourself to fully and completely love all of you. It’s listening—and responding—to your body’s needs moment-to-moment. Here’s what focus looks like: It’s deciding what you want your body—and life—to look like. It’s getting to the bottom of WHY you want that body and life. It’s setting a course for getting there. It’s doing whatever you can do right now to make you […]
How the Government Shut-Down is Impacting My Self-Care
I’m one of the 800,000. What many of you may not know is that my day job as I’m building my business is writing for the federal government. So the government shutdown is giving me a great opportunity to practice what I preach. It’s giving me the opportunity to: Be aware of negative thoughts and emotions—and to consciously shift my response. Be compassionate and loving with myself when I am having a stress reaction, which absolutely has included falling into the peanuts and chocolate. Be compassionate and loving with my husband when he is having a stress reaction. Focus on gentle and loving self-care. My body is letting me know that less intensity workouts are what I need right now. Do all those things I say I’m going to do “when I have more time.” Relax into my absolute knowing that the Universe has my back and that no matter what happens, everything is always working out for me. I’ll be honest. I’ve had more negative emotion around this shut-down than I anticipated. Fortunately I have learned enough that instead of just trying to push through it (I’ve got a blog to write, dam it), I’m stopping right there and going to meditate. Ah, what a relief. The energy surge I have afterwards lets me know this was absolutely the right response. You can make these kinds self-care choices—even if you are in the midst of a hectic day. A woman I worked with a while ago was feeling the stress of going non-stop all day. She found herself running late to a meeting that she was dreading. As she drove to the site, she thought about the distraction of her late arrival, and […]
A Surprising—and Scientifically Proven—Way to Release the Weight
Chances are there’s an internal struggle going on inside you. Your experience has proven to you that there is more to optimal weight and wellness than just diet and exercise alone . . . yet there is so much information out there on diet and exercise that you keep going back to that as the solution. And while there is a part of you that knows happiness contributes to overall wellness . . . part of you wonders if when it comes to your weight, it’s not just a bunch of woo-woo. Compared to diet and exercise, how much of a difference can your emotions really make to the number on the scale? I get it. I struggled with that for a long time. But what if science is backing up the impact of positive emotions—such as happiness and gratitude—on your weight and wellness? Here’s what a recent study on positive psychology found: “An important fact that has emerged in the last few years is that happiness is causal and brings many more benefits than just feeling good. Happy people are healthier, more successful, and more socially engaged, and the causal direction runs both ways.” Bottom line: being happy makes you healthier. Here’s the thing. Most women who struggle with their weight believe they will be happier when they lose the weight. The truth is, getting happier will help you release the weight. There are many reasons for this. One is that being happy literally impacts your body’s physical processes down to the cellular level, ultimately making it easier to release—and maintain—your weight. Another is that when you are happy, you make different choices and have different motivations. For instance, from this more positive place, eating healthy is something you want to do instead of something you have to make yourself do. Moving your body is […]
How to Uncover the Pleasure of Releasing Weight
A gentle touch in passing. Yummy smells wafting in from the kitchen. Stopping to take in the exquisite beauty of a sunset. Creating a silly song for a favorite pet. The sound of a laugh. The taste of chocolate. It’s easy to overlook the small, sensory things that add so much texture and joy to life. But these small things add up to big pleasure. Pleasure is one of the areas you must strengthen to Love Your Way Slim. If you are like many women, you may see pleasure as an indulgence. You may believe the way to everything you want is to work hard and sacrifice so that you can give to others. You may put everyone else’s needs before your own. Here are some signs that you may be doing this: You feel guilty when you sit down to read a book for pleasure. Getting your nails done or going to the spa is something you mark off on your to-do list—or you don’t do at all. Taking a nap feels like an indulgence. When you try to relax, all the things you should be doing flow through your mind. You find yourself exhausted and have to crash for a day . . . or more. What if, far from being frivolous, doing things just because you enjoy them is the key to abundance in all areas of your life? Do you think this is farfetched? Is there a part of you that believes you will receive what you want IF you can just give or work-hard . . . enough? I hate to be the one to break it to you, but this is completely backwards. Even a hint of this […]
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