"It's Just Too Hard!"

Dear Body Buds,

This past week, I had the privilege of meeting with a woman who had heard me speak at a health event last month. She contacted me after the event and I told her I wanted her to think about a few things, then let me know when she had thought through her answers. I have learned this is a very important part of the process of helping an individual make changes in their life. I refuse to be a “meal plan and workout plan sender-outer.” Instead, my aim is to COACH people through the process of learning about themselves! Changes in the body only happen when changes in the mind happen first. Here is the question I wanted her to answer for me:

• What are the thoughts in your mind that hold you back from where you want to be?

Simple, right? Well, a week later, I was actually able to meet with this woman in person (rare, as most of my clients are out-of-state or country!) and listen as she talked through her answers to this question. I took notes as I knew these are concerns MANY of you have. Below are two of her comments, and then my responses. I hope these are helpful in thinking through your own limiting beliefs.

• I’ve tried and failed so many times already. What’s the point of trying again?

This is a very common thought in people that I work with. You have tried Weight Watchers, Paleo, Slimfast, HCG, Ideal Protein, and everything else out there. You have seen success, but then you have also seen that success slide right out of your grip as you didn’t know how to function outside of your “routine.” You learned you couldn’t maintain that “diet” with the unplanned events and stress of life. And so, watching your hard work not stick around can be beyond frustrating.

I get it. I felt the same way, and remember those same feelings in my “former life” of dieting and binging. I worked so hard and loved to see the numbers on the scale drop, but then watched in horror and disgust as the scale numbers went right back up. With every new pound gained, my self-esteem and self-respect plummeted. It was frustrating and no one knew how fed up I was with it all—food! Me! My body! I hated it all!

But you know what? I know YOU have one more try in you. One more round of effort and focus and desire to change your habits. That’s how I felt too. All you need is just a small flame of hope—a chance to believe it really is possible to develop the HABITS you need to maintain your change. The Power Foods Lifestyle is just that—a system of new habits and behaviors in your everyday life that will help you MAKE the change and then MAINTAIN the change. We are all human and liable to whims of lacking willpower or motivation. That’s normal! But the more we focus on instilling our new habits, we change our “default program” when life gets tough and stressful! We resort to our NEW habits which have been formed over time. That is why we do this in baby steps.

We focus on one meal at a time.

One workout at a time.

One day at a time.

That is all we have!

Let the past GO! That is not you! YOU ARE YOU TODAY. You are the person at this instant—breathing, reading, thinking . . . you are a person who has the experience and hesitation of the past, but you must NOT let that define you! If the past defined Thomas Edison, we would have no light bulbs. If the past defined the Wright brothers, we would have no airplanes. If the past defined any of us, we would cease to become anything more than our current state. That, to me, is willingly cutting our lives short.

Take a deep breath. It’s time to live. To try again. To fight. To get back up.

• No matter how much effort I put in, I always need to give more. I just can’t give more!

You’re going to the gym regularly. You’re eating “healthy” foods. You really are trying! I applaud your efforts and say, ‘way to go!’ But I’d also like you to know you DON’T have to try harder—instead, you need to be SMARTER! That’s where I come in. My strategies in the science of nutrition and fitness do the hard work for you! That is the joy of what I do—getting your body functioning like a machine and helping it heal itself, returning to a baseline of homeostasis and functioning capacity where it, and YOU, feel great! So get rid of the thought that you’ll need to work harder! You just need me to help direct your efforts! All 60 minutes in the gym or in the kitchen are NOT created equally.

I am happy to report this woman is on day 5 of her new strategy and approach to her lifestyle of eating and exercise. She is making progress and BELIEVING in herself! I am SO proud of her for trusting ME and HERSELF.

I hope YOU, my Body Bud, believe in yourself with even a fraction of SOMETHING. In fact, I hope it’s a TON of something! I know it’s hard. I know it’s tough. I know it’s the last thing you want to do. But trust me—the world can be such a better place when you are LOVING how you feel, and are happy and confident with your body. It’s life-changing. I don’t change your life for you. I get to sit back and cheer you on as you change your own life.

Love your bud,

Kristy Jo

P.S. I am accepting new clients—and this is the BEST time to start your training to learn how to handle the holidays in a strategic way, not a depriving way! Submit a Coaching Request form on www.body-buddies.com and I’ll give you a call to chat about your goals!

#bodyimage #clientsuccess #emotions #healthyhabits #noexcuses #mentaldiscipline #psychology #weightloss