Today, we take a stand against those Sabotaging Thoughts decreeing that we must get to our weight goal before the reunion/wedding/cruise/fill-in-the-blank-event-by-which-we-"MUST"-be-thin, lose 10 pounds per month, or otherwise lose weight fast; and if we fail to do so we deserve no credit. Au contraire, counters Beck. Indeed, as uninspiring as this is to hear, the slower we lose weight the better. That doesn’t mean we have to resign ourselves to losing no more than half a pound a week, every week. Assuredly there will be weeks like that, but Beck gives its stamp of approval to losing 1-2 pounds per week, a common weight loss benchmark.
Slow weight loss can be a difficult pill to swallow, especially with the unrealistic expectations perpetuated by other weight loss plans and society in general. This is especially evident in the scrutiny of pregnant women, especially celebrities. Some critics ridicule new mothers for not being back to bikini shape within 3 months of having a baby. Even some women jump on this judgmental bandwagon, flashing their six-packs and kids on social media and crowing “What’s your excuse?”
These societal factors can help fuel STs such as “I won’t be satisfied unless I get to my goal weight and I don’t deserve credit until then,” “If other women can lose 10 pounds or more per month I should be able to do it too,” or “Losing 1-2 pounds per week is much too slow.” Shut these STs down by saying
“Celebrating every loss along the way will boost my mood and confidence,”
“I will be most successful on my weight loss journey if I don’t compare myself to others”;
“How much will it matter a few years from now how long it took for me to get to goal? I want to stay at or near my goal for life, so I need to take my time and learn the skills which will enable me to do just that”;
Or other helpful responses (“HRs”).
What should be our initial weight loss goal then? Five pounds, unless our goal is less. We need to praise ourselves profusely for every loss, no matter how small, then be sure to reward ourselves when we attain each 5-pound loss. Treat yourself with a special non-food item, like a piece of pretty but affordable jewelry, knick-knack, massage, makeover, new clothes item, and so on. The bottom line is, if we accept the fact that we should focus on losing 5 pounds at a time, weight loss will be easier.
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