Weight Loss Success Killer: 1 Little Word

There is one little word that will kill any attempts to successfully lose weight. It probably isn’t the word you are thinking about. It isn’t “fat” or “sugar”…those are real things…this word can’t even claim that space in reality. This word lives completely in our minds.

Any guesses now? “Can’t”…not the word I’m thinking of, but it is another killer. But “can’t” speaks to our belief in our ability while the word I’m referring to speaks to the reason behind our efforts...our mindset about weight loss.

The word that we must eliminate from our vocabulary in order to permanently and healthfully experience weight loss success is “should.”

As Louise Hay tells it, the word “should” is always about making us wrong. We were wrong in the past, as in, “I should have exercised yesterday” or “I should not have eaten that cookie.” Or we are wrong now, as in, “I should lose weight because my doctor says I’m unhealthy” or “I should get out and walk but I don’t feel like it.” Or we make ourselves wrong in the future, as in, “I should set a goal to run that marathon in June” or “I should be at my goal weight by my wedding.”

It seems that we “should” all over ourselves…and it really doesn’t help in the long-run. Oh sometimes we can motivate (or intimidate) ourselves for a while with “should” and “should not” but it rarely sticks.

The reason is that “should” never springs from internal love and desire. Should always comes from an external focus. Even if we are the ones imposing the “should” (and we almost always are) it stems from the idea that we are not good enough, that we must fit someone else’s perception…that we must somehow be different.

In order to achieve weight loss success that lasts beyond the honeymoon we must have the internal desire that comes from loving ourselves. And that includes loving ourselves right now, as we are, fat and all! By loving and accepting ourselves and being appreciative of our current selves we are then opening ourselves up to an even “better”, healthier version in the future.

So as you are thinking about the New Year’s Resolutions you are going to set for yourself, delete any that start with “should” or “should not.” Instead, sit quietly and look at what your real motivation to lose weight is and focus on that. When you have a heart-felt motivation it will prove much stronger than any externally driven “should” and it will see you through challenges that you may face in the future and you will literally lose weight through positive thinking!