How you perceive to be your ability to shed excess pounds and actually keep it off is critical to your success. Bob Harper, a fitness trainer at the Biggest Loser reveals the most common outlooks that hinder weight loss and gives some important advice on how
those kinds of thinking can be altered.
1. Use of bad filter
You see only the negative side of things. You tend to blow them out of proportion and never bothers to look at the positive aspects of any given situation.
Example:
Maria is toiling hard with her exercise program for over six months now. She’s been shedding weight and her arms and legs appear to be toner that ever, however, her midsection is not exactly where she’d like it to be. So instead of acknowledging her progress on the other areas of her body (which can give her more energy boost), she focuses on her not-so slim waist, which lets that “problem spot” be the filter to the interpretation of her weight loss success. She then feels depressed and loses her enthusiasm to continue her workout sessions.
2. The black and white thinking
You don’t see any grey areas in a situation. You’re either perfect or a failure—no in-betweens.
Example:
Sarah has been following a diet plan for nearly three weeks, but then, she had a slip-up and had a cookie during an impromptu office meeting. Instead of seeing the cooking-munching episode as an isolated bump in the road, she viewed it as an all-or-nothing take of her failure. All is lost! Therefore, she picks
up another 4 pieces of cookies in the duration of the meeting, got a pizza to-go on her drive home.
3. Over-generalizing
You think that if something awful happened once, you feel that’s going to be that way, always.
Example:
Carl has been successfully following his diet and exercise program for weeks now. He’s lost looking good and lost a lot of weight but still feels that he’s not attractive enough for women to notice him. He finally asked a woman out on a date. It’s been a pleasant evening so far, but it is obvious that there’s no spark between the two of them. Instead of acknowledging the fact that it can be totally natural—and gaining confidence from being out of the dating arena—he then assumes women are simply not that drawn to him. He tells himself that he’s born to be alone an
d not find love because he’s way too fat and ugly.
4. Mind reading
You think you can guess what people are thinking about you.
Example:
Cara is supposed to be shopping for a new outfit to keep her inspired to stay on track with her diet. She found a nice pair of jeans that she actually liked but her size is not available. She asked a sales rep if she can help her find her size at the back, however, she sees the saleswoman talking to another sales person in hushed tones while looking at her. In truth, what the women were discussing is if they can give the pair which is on hold to Cara, but the Cara assumes that they are talking about her weight. She leaves the shop in haste before the salesperson can return with the good news that they indeed have an
available pair of jeans for her.
5. Control freaking
You need to be always on top of things. If you’re not in control, you feel that you’re being a victim or think that everyone is responsible for the way you’re feeling.
Example:
Mark is struggling to keep to his gym routines. On a fine Saturday morning, he finally managed to make himself get into his workout gear and head to the gym. On his way down, his car broke down.
Convinced that the mishap is his entire fault because he’s been too irresponsible in maintaining the car (even though it really is), he exclaimed forcefully “Just my luck! Things never ever go my way!” He kicks the sidewalk; call roadside assistance and picks up
a few donuts while waiting on the curb. How to stop these kinds of distorted thinking: Your game changer in this process is trying to be rational and more self-compassionate. Use those as your ammunition to battling your negative thoughts.Reinforce yourself, and don’t let these minor things push you back and make you lose track of your goals.
