Here comes summer!!!!

When you think of Summer Days, what springs to your mind? Long hot days, Your garden? BBQ’S, Wildlife (Bees, wasps, gnats, ladybirds) Holidays? Trying to entertain children during the school holidays? Long walks? Day’s out? Picnic’s? Holidays?

I’m sure there’s a few that you can relate to. However there is another side to Summer that when you are carrying extra weight causes distress and worry. The wearing of summer clothes that are uncomfortable and too tight, the having to expose more of your body than you would like. The physical discomfort of chafing and sweating. The dread of your summer holidays and wearing a swimsuit, or a sarong to hide in!.

When it comes to losing weight in the summer, most people feel it is easier as there’s plenty of fresh fruit, salads and of course it’s hot which means it’s so much easier to drink lots of fluids.

The reality is quite different, you socialise more, the drinks tend to alcohol, the fruit tends to call for double cream, Ice creams are perfect when it’s hot and actually it’s too hot to be in the kitchen cooking, so a sandwich will do.

There is never an easier time to focus on losing weight. You will have to face every season with all the assorted challenges, and if your aim is not just to lose weight, but to become healthier then it will take.

• Discipline
• Commitment
• Support
• Focus
• Understanding
• Avoid the “all or nothing” trap
• Don’t compare your journey to another

These may seem really obvious and when you’re yet to embark on this journey, easy to achieve, but each of them can undermine all of your efforts and mean that as with all the many times we’ve tried before, we fail.

So let’s have a closer look at each one.

Discipline – To achieve anything does require discipline, everything that is worth having requires it, and repeatedly. Those with a weight problem, will always need to exercise it. The reasons for continuing to be disciplined are to keep you where you are with all the benefits you enjoy. The other question to ask yourself is: Where am I going if I don’t!!!

Commitment – It’s easy to be committed when you’re doing well, but as the weeks go by the commitment can fade. That’s when you needed help, support, focus, guidance, motivation and inspiration. Don’t allow yourself to be sidetracked and give up. You will be back where you were!

Support – The more support you have on this life changing journey, the easier it will be. That doesn’t mean you letting others down. In fact often we don’t ask for the kind of support that helps us. Being part of group where everyone is in the same boat that doesn’t judge or criticize can make a world of difference.

Focus – Not just on the destination but on the joy of the journey, all those great milestones and achievements, those happy moments of looking and feeling better, happier and healthier. Focus on getting each meal the best it can be, stop looking for why you can’t, and focus on why you wanted to in the first place. When your ultimate focus is better health, there is no end, no finish, no destination.

Understanding – That it won’t all be plain sailing, there will be tough times ( there always has been) there will be challenges and obstacles ( there always has been) Understand that change is uncomfortable, it may seem easier to go with the flow, but is that why we’re where we are today? Knowing your reasons WHY (Your Reason Why?) you started this journey helps to reinforce why you need to continue and be more accepting and understand the pitfalls.

Avoiding the “all or nothing” trap – When Success lies in mind began nearly 2 years ago, we decided that mindset was far more important than following a strict diet, in fact search our past blogs and you’ll find many, many references that reinforce that belief. The beauty of not being on a strict diet, is that you can’t fall of the wagon. All it takes is a little tweaking and focus to recover, aim for healthier meals, and maybe add a little bit more activity. Possibly the most important aspect is the realisation that it need never be over.

Comparing – You are you, and no-one will ever be the same. Comparing your journey to another’s will only leave you feeling inadequate which could possibly distract you and lead to unwise food choices. Walk your own path.

Enjoying everything that each season has to offer, being confident that you have strategies, skills and new behaviours together with your positive approach and mindset that can overcome all challenges and maybe most important of all self belief! Believe you can and you will!!

To change your body, you must first change your mind.

toni sorenson