Focusing on the Positive

Have you ever said one of these to yourself while trying to lose weight?
~"If I show a weight gain on the scale at my weekly weigh in-even once-I'll fail."
~"I overate during my office potluck last month, and I'm sure I'll do the same this month."
~"I've exercised only one day so far, so I've ruined my whole week."
~"Thanks for the compliment on my weight loss, but I've still got 40 pounds to lose."
~"I must lose 20 pounds before my son's wedding in May."
~"I have so much weight to lose, I'll never reach my ultimate weight goal."

All of these statement, or similar ones, are negative thinking and can have a negative affect on your weight loss.

How you think and how you talk to yourself determines how you behave. When we get caught up in negative thinking we can experience feelings of failure and doubt our abilities.

You can learn to Manage Your Thoughts! (one of the healthy habits)
One of the first things we need to do is identify your negative thought. How can we beat it if we don't know what we're up against?!
Once you have identified your negative thought or attitude challenge it! Is this an unrealistic thought? How can you replace that thought or feeling with a more realistic forgiving, accepting attitude?

Here's an example I hear a lot.
What's the use? I am not losing weight and I am following the program.

Whether you've been on the program awhile or just starting out, a plateau can be very frustrating. If you really are following the program and eating within your daily points, then you must ask yourself some questions. Do I really want to lose weight? Am I looking for an excuse to drop out? Am I eating healthier? Do I feel better because I am eating healthier and getting more activity?
When I hit a 6 or 8 week plateau I had to keep my blinders on and not look at the number on the scale. My positive self talk- "Yeah, I do feel good, I am eating healthy, I am happy with my exercise plan. I know I'm doing what I can and the number on the scale will eventually fall." I kept focusing on the positive things I was doing and sure enough, the numbers began to move in a downward direction.

"Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you'll start having positive results."~Willie Nelson