Diet Renegade

Follow me as I eat real food, stop binge eating, and lose 100 pounds

Archive for category Inspiration

Down but definitely not out

Feb 9

Posted by Gina in Attitude, Compulsive Overeating, Emotional Eating, Finding Your Way, Inspiration | No Comments

I haven’t been around this blog in months. Yeah, I’ve posted a video here, a recipe there, but I stopped really pouring my heart out several months ago.

Why? I don’t really know. I guess I probably gave up on myself…again.

I’ve come up with a bunch of excuses like – my wedding was coming up and I was too stressed out to blog, or that my wedding was over and I was de-stressing by stuffing my face with cheese puffs and pizza. You know, perfectly legitimate excuses.

Well I’ve had enough of my self-loathing.

I must admit to you that in the past few months, especially after my wedding, I’ve just completely let myself and my restraint go. I have absolutely no idea how much weight I’ve gained (I really, really, really don’t want to know but very soon I’m going to have to find out.)

I’ve literally been eating everything in sight. About three days out of every week I typically eat at least two meals at fast food ‘restaurants.’ And I just can’t tell you what is going on.

I know that I need to get back on track in a major way, but I’m lacking the motivation to change. But I’m thinking that I can’t take to many more days of feeling like a whale, I just feel gross.

So, my plan is to just blog about my experiences whether good or bad.

In the past I only wanted to blog when I was being ‘good.’ I guess I was trying to impress you? I don’t know what I was thinking but that’s just stupid.

I mean, so many people could benefit from my ups and downs so I need to write it all.

And I don’t want to come across like I’m putting myself on this pedestal and that I have all the answers and everyone should listen to me.

Quite the contrary.

I don’t have any answers really. I struggle with my weight year after year. And its in this struggle that I’m hoping to connect with others. If I can get through the good and bad times by writing out what my experiences are, than hopefully any insight that I may gain can go back out to you.

And this goes both ways too.

As a blog, this website can gladly welcome comments on every post and we can create this huge support network of wonderful ideas. And we can also just be there for each other.

We all know how incredibly difficult it is to lose weight. Especially when that amount gets above 50 or 100 pounds.

When you are in that boat, most days its hard to just find someone that understands.

Well I understand, and I’m here.

So from now on, I’ll just keep on bloggin…

Tags:

Notes on Healing

Jan 12

Posted by Gina in Compulsive Overeating, Confidence, Emotional Eating, Food Obsession, Healthy Lifestyle, Inspiration, Motivation | No Comments

I’ve realized that I need to heal myself from within.  If I’m truly going to lose weight for good and not yo-yo diet for the rest of my life, I need to heal.

I need to heal my…

emotions
pain
depression
lack of self-esteem
self-loathing

I need to heal my feelings of unworthiness and realize that having a happy, healthy life is worth fighting for.

Its easy to fall back on old habits, to lose touch with why I want to lose weight.

Its also easy to just let life pass by.  But I don’t want to live that way.

There is so much to do, see, explore and I want to be healthy enough my entire life in order to participate in my life.

So I need to heal myself.   I need to figure out why I let my inner emotions use food to cope.

Tags: ,

Equilibrium

Jul 17

Posted by Jason in Finding Your Way, Healthy Lifestyle, Inspiration, Sustained Weight Loss, Views On Dieting | No Comments

So we keep referring to the term “equilibrium” of mind, body, and spirit…

What exactly do we mean?

Although this will be an ongoing topic, we would like to present to you an overall summary, so that you can get the gist of it.

Equilibrium means balance. But it also can mean something a bit different for everyone.  That’s why we don’t really advocate a one-size-fits-all approach to achieving personal harmony, and the resulting weight loss.  This is because, bottom line, everyone is not the same!  What one considers equilibrium and balance, another may think otherwise.  For example, if someone feels still bright, energetic, and cheery after a 60-hour work week, and another feels drained after a 40-hour work week, then the former person may be able to achieve balance while working so many hours, whereas the latter person may need to (if they are able) decrease the time and energies devoted to work a bit in order to achieve their balance.

Pay attention to your emotions, and creatively try to manage them the best that you can. This is why we talk about understanding and recognizing what’s going on inside of you.  Paying close attention to yourself, recognizing the times where you are starting to go into a funk, and developing strategies to help divert yourself away from the vulnerability that results from unchecked negative feelings is a major step in the right direction toward equilibrium.  Getting to this point can be hard work, but anyone can do it.  We want to help you get there by constructively discussing subjects like stress, depression, addiction, self-esteem, conditioning, self-worth, among other areas.  In our culture, for some reason these are subjects that don’t seem to be talked about too much in the mainstream, like we’re all supposed to be ten-feet tall and bulletproof mentally – like we come out of the womb as perfect prototypes that are supposed to automatically have everything perfectly mapped out, and if we don’t achieve those things as planned, then we must be weak, lazy, or something.  Forget all of that and realize that everyone is unique, and all of our paths are a bit different.  It’s what you make of your current state that matters – forget about the past and all the societal “norms” that make you think that you have to be a certain way.

Harness your passions. Everyone has some sort of creative passion or outlet.  And it doesn’t have to be something that you traditionally think of.  Just think about what you enjoy the most – something that is healthy for you.  If eating treats, drinking alcohol, smoking, or any other habit which can be detrimental comes to mind first, than think harder!  Those don’t promote balance!

And it doesn’t have to be complicated either.  You don’t have to be an artist, musician, or something of that sort either (although you may be and not even know it)!  You could really enjoy listening to loud music, but can never seem to make the time.  Reading may be quite enjoyable for you, but you seem to end up in front of the TV instead.  Walking through the woods may be something that you feel is just fantastic, but it’s tough to get yourself out the door to do it!  You remember enjoying the sense of community that you would feel when going to the religious services of your tradition, but somehow fell out of touch due to a busy schedule.

Whatever it is for you, it can be a healthy outlet that can help you achieve your equilibrium.  Consider reinvigorating it and remembering the importance of devoting some time to yourself.  Immersing yourself into a healthy hobby, pastime, tradition, or leisurely activity helps you reset, rejuvenate, and focus your mind on more positive energies.

Take care of yourself! Negative emotions, addictions, obsessions, or other negative energies can have a side effect of self-destructive behaviors.  A person who feels unworthy or depressed may tend to almost unconsciously neglect to really take care of himself.  This could involve not sleeping properly, eating poorly, neglecting good hygiene, good housekeeping, using substances, and other destructive habits.

This is an area we will cover extensively, so we won’t go too far into it here, but you should get the gist of it.

Create a healthy work-life balance. Is your job taking more than its fair share of your life?  Do you find it hard to say no to increased workload or schedule pressures, even if they’re not mandatory?  Do you feel completely dragged out by the end of your work week?  If you answered yes to any of these, you may benefit by working toward adjusting your approach to work and allow yourself more room to breathe, so that you don’t end up burning yourself out.  And you can keep your same job while you’re at it!  There are many ways to help balance out this area of your life, so that there is more time left for you to enjoy your own life.  Check back periodically for an ongoing chat about this!

Enjoy your time with your family to the fullest! Do you find that family time seems to consist of a small time watching TV, and the rest of it seems to be a bit detached or distant?  Make an effort to try to strengthen bonds and nurture your relationships, in whatever way may work best for you.  The time that you spend with family, and all the smiles, laughter, and love than can result, just helps reinforce an uplifting mood and sense of positivity.

Learn about a balanced way of eating, and shifting toward it for life. Again, everyone’s “way” can be a bit different, but there is generally a common theme and food elements that it consists of.  Learning about all of the components of food, and about nutrition in general, can help guide you toward making and adjusting to food choices that are the most nourishing and healthy for you.  And let me assure you, flavor and enjoyment will not go by the wayside!  The typical American diet leaves out many awesome flavors, so you may actually be missing out on the good stuff!

Obviously this will be a huge focus for us as well!  Look forward to a robust series of discussions about this over time, and even some great recipes and meal ideas!

Keep yourself moving. Most of all, this means learning how to not be sedentary, but instead keeping yourself active doing things you enjoy.  And this doesn’t necessarily mean going to the gym (although if you enjoy that, then go for it)!  Don’t forget that there’s emphasis on the word “enjoy!”  You can find things that you enjoy that certainly can count as exercise!

Nurture your beliefs, nurture yourself, and nurture your confidence. Ignite that spark that is always within you!  Light up your feisty, sassy self!  This can mean engaging in stimulating conversation with friends.  It can mean nurturing those strong values that you have and directing them toward good works.  It can mean having an open mind.  It can mean letting go of societal conditioning.

Oh, here we go with the whole societal conditioning thing again!  Really, we feel this is so important.  There are so many things around us that we have been ingrained to think are “normal”, that really could use some re-evaluation.

So I guess what this part can mean it to not be afraid to be yourself!  Don’t be afraid to speak up!  Don’t be afraid to go against the grain!  Don’t be afraid to harness your strengths!  Don’t be afraid to show your confidence!

So this is what we feel is equilibrium, and one of the great side effects can be sustained weight loss. To us, weight loss is just more than exercise and eating right, although those are important aspects.  What we mean by this is that hitting the gym for a couple hours a day and eating less will likely help a person shed some pounds, but it is the achievement of an overall balanced lifestyle which can help keep it off for good!  But even more, you can get to enjoy a more peaceful, content, and healthy life while you’re at it!

That’s what we mean by equilibrium!  Check back often for an ongoing discussion!

Tags: , , ,

Establishing Your Self-Worth

Jul 16

Posted by Jason in Attitude, Confidence, Feeling Beautiful, Inspiration, Motivation, Negative Emotions | No Comments

Do you let others or society be the ones who determine your self-worth?

Think about this question deeply for a few moments.  If you happen to be a person who feels that you have low self-esteem, or tends to feel inferior, unworthy, incapable, or just generally down on yourself, then ask yourself why?

And yes, why is it that some people must feel this way?  Why does there seem to be something that could be likened to a caste system with regards to the way people feel “classified?”  There’s so many judgments and stereotypes that permeate our culture.  Many of these can be described by adjectives like pretty, ugly, fat, skinny, smart, stupid, rich, poor, mean, nice, black, white, young, old, fast, slow, and on, and on, and on.

And if you are one who associates with the feelings above, maybe it’s time to recognize really what sort of nonsense these stereotypes and labels really are.  Maybe it’s time to work on a way to give these connotations absolutely no meaning or relevance in your own mind.

First of all, you are not defined by what someone else thinks or what society says.  Majority does not rule your perceptions – you rule your perceptions, and they can become even more clear and unadulterated once you strive to extract the years of conditioning and influence that may have shaped some aspect of your persona.

Let’s look at it this way.  Were you ever told that you weren’t good enough to fit into a certain club, class, team, job, or something of that sort?  All of us have at some point.  How did you take it at the time?  Did you feel that maybe they were right?  Did you tell yourself that maybe you really aren’t that good, because otherwise, you would have been accepted into whatever it was that you tried to become a part of?

That right there is an example of how another’s opinion or bias could have been affecting your perception of yourself.  Perhaps this happened repeatedly over time, which just seemed to reinforce the notion.  So over time, you began to associate yourself as being unworthy or undesirable, just because others may have made you feel that way.

Could it be that you have been letting others determine your self-worth?

In our society, there is a large focus on externalities.  There’s a sense of endless striving and competition with regards to external status or achievement.  The newest gadget comes out, and you’re almost made to think that you just won’t be “cool” unless you get it.  The latest fashion comes out, and you feel like you can’t even be caught dead in the new top you bought only six months ago.  You may drive an old car that is reliable and was paid off long ago, but you feel inclined to buy a new one just to keep up with “the times.”

With regards to appearance, you see the skinny models on the runway, and you may feel inferior to them because you don’t weigh 95 pounds.  After all, they’re the ones on the runway, so you may think that they must be the epitome of perfect beauty, right?

That’s what “they” may want you to think.  But who are they to try to dictate who you are and how you feel?  They are not the authority on what makes a person beautiful.

You create your own reality, so if you work toward extracting all of these old, ingrained thought patterns from it, you can start to break free from this kind of subconscious oppression.

That’s why we feel it’s so important to keep an open mind about everything.  Many times we were taught to not ask questions and to do as we were told.  But why can’t we ask questions?  After all, that’s how we can establish our points of view and the things that seem to make sense to us.

And that’s one way how you can start to enhance your self-worth and confidence – by questioning and scrutinizing those negative feelings about yourself that you may have been bound to.

You say you feel unworthy?  Unworthy of what?  Why do you feel that way?  What have you done to cause you to give yourself this label?  Is it because of others’ opinions?  Who are “they?”  What sort of authority are they?  Do they hold a status in society higher than you that gives them the capability to infallibly declare that you are unworthy?  Where did these feelings originally come from?  How long have they been there?  What may have reinforced them?

There may be nearly endless questions that can help you analyze what may really be behind these feelings.

There may be many that you don’t even have an answer to – and that’s okay, because that could be just another reason pointing toward how it is unnecessary and how there is no reason for you to feel bound to these thoughts.

Okay, this has gotten a bit deep, and you may be a bit wary to chart these waters any further at this point.  And that is okay.  The intention of this was to spark some thought and to help you start to question, recognize, and really think about some of the negative ideas about yourself that you may have associated with yourself for so long, with the end result of realizing that they are just totally inaccurate and can eventually be disposed of.

Part of the evolution of life involves learning more about yourself.  Don’t be afraid to really look deep within, even if it seems a bit frightening at first.  The great thing is that you will see just how wonderful, intelligent, talented, compassionate, and beautiful you really are.  You just need your own clear eyes, and not the distortions created by others.  You will love what you see, and will realize that you are worth more than you could ever imagine.

Tags: , , ,

You Can Do It In Your Own Way and Succeed!

Jul 14

Posted by Jason in Attitude, Confidence, Finding Your Way, Inspiration, Motivation | No Comments

If you are a person who is struggling with achieving weight loss or fighting a constant battle against overeating, you may think there are a few options:  go on a super-disciplined personal training program, take diet pills, check yourself into a food disorders rehab, get surgery, or strictly follow the next “miracle” diet.

As good as these may work for some, reality is, they may not work for you.  And that may be exactly the thought running through your mind.  You might be thinking:  “Why even bother?  I just can’t do it?”
But that may be your brain just trying to trick you one more time.  The simple fact is…

You can do it.  Everyone can do it.  It’s just that the “it” that may be slightly different for everyone.  Let me explain…

There is no reason why you, yes you, can’t become a healthier person who can lose weight and reach your personal balance.

Now I’m not saying that the weight loss options mentioned above are not good or should never be used by anyone.  What I am saying is that many people may not even get to the point of embarking on the gradual road to true success because they feel they just can’t do it.  In other words, they may have lost the will to try new things, because diets or strategies past just did not work.

But could it be that maybe one reason they didn’t work was because you were applying someone else’s strict plan to yourself and trying to fudge your way through, instead of developing your own plan and making it work?

If you’re as stubborn as I am, you may not like to do things someone else’s way.  You don’t want to be told that you have to follow this plan, step on that scale, go to this meeting, check in to that place, or eat that meal bar.  It may subconsciously make you feel fat, diseased, and like an outcast from society.  Now I’m not saying to sugarcoat your potential issues and neglect to realize that there may be some things within you that need fixing.  Instead, I’m saying that sometimes having to be treated “special” or like an “addict” can sometimes weigh on your psyche, because you just want to be treated normal, like everyone else.

Now there are some situations where the options mentioned above are a person’s only choice, so I can’t stress enough that I am not demonizing these types of programs.  I am just suggesting that if you are having a really tough time with getting yourself aligned with one of them, then there may be some things to think about…

There is a strength within us all that can guide us through the toughest of times toward a light at the end of the tunnel.  The form of this strength may be different for each of us, but it is there.  And it may not be anything you can concretely define.  It is just a driving force that keeps us going full speed ahead on the path to victory and joy.

So where can you find this strength?  It may be elusive until you really start to recognize it.  Some of us may not even realize it until we start to reflect toward our inner selves.

Even though it may be hard in some instances, try to take some time in the very near future to be still and think about one of the most challenging situations you have ever faced.  There are some things of which you may not wish to go back to, so if so, then maybe think of situation that may not be depressing, but instead empowering.

For example, if you were an honor student in college who pulled off a 4.0 average during the pursuit of a Masters degree, all-the-while working full-time to put yourself through this education, then look back at that astonishing achievement.  Obviously, that is not a simple task to pull off.  Not only did you have an enormous amount of responsibility on your shoulders – responsibility that took incredible self-discipline – you ensured that you succeeded to the absolute best of your ability.  That success was measured and rewarded by the 4.0 grade average and the accompanying designation of Honors.

When you look back, can you distinctly recognize the strength that kept you going?  Probably not.  But what you can recognize is that it exists, and it was there.

Now you do not have to be a college graduate to have this kind of strength.  This was just a random example.  Let’s look at another one.

Were you ever a smoker and quit for good?  For many people, this can be quite a triumph which takes a great deal of strength.

Can you draw upon that past experience?

What about anything else you have worked very hard for?  Did you work your way up in your company, without getting the same education as your counterparts in similar roles?  What sort of things did you do to make such a remarkable achievement?

Have you raised children?  Have you volunteered for difficult assignments for charities or other rewarding avenues?  Have you seen the difference that you made in people’s lives?  Do you struggle with depression or a chronic affliction, but still muster up the energy and strength to keep yourself going and living a productive life?

There are countless examples of how the strength within us can, and is, harnessed.  Look for those examples within yourself, and you will certainly find it.

So when you find it, what can you do with it?

You can apply it to be the source of your gradual achievement of overall equilibrium and balance.  In other words, it can be the driving force that keeps you on the path.  It can be what helps form the transition away from negativity and its associated unhealthy habits, and on toward a healthy balance.

It is what you can harness to develop what works for you – a plan that integrates well with your unique situation and persona.  It is something you can feel good about, because it feels right for you.  It allows you to see more clearly, and can wash away all the feelings that muddled your outlook.

This strength within you can do anything.  Harness it, and you will succeed.

Tags: , , ,

Powered by Yahoo! Answers