Howdy Journal & Friends,
The fire is back, baby!!
I just spent close to an hour hunting high and low for an article I had kept to back up the opinion I'm about to spout off... no such luck... couldn't find it... zippo.
So... take it or leave it. :-D This will be just one person's opinion (and you know what they say about opinions, right?) Here goes, a message going out into the ether, no one person in mind:
Stop it.
Just. STOP. IT.
Stop repeating, ad nauseam, those mythological "statistics" that tell how HAAARRRDDD it is to lose weight and KEEP it off. I am totally over it! I am exasperated. Irritated. TIRED OF READING ABOUT IT.
CUZ IT AIN'T TRUE!!
Who was it that said if you tell a lie enough times, it will eventually be taken for truth? Hitler??
Anyway, for years and years people have quoted and requoted those old stats about how only 5% can lose weight and keep it off. Blah blah blah. And since all the Quoters are only quoting other quoters, no one bothers to go back to The Source of these damaging statistics that have influenced an entire generation of dieters into accepting the inevitability of regaining weight.
Enough already!!!
The study I read (yes, the one I can't seem to find right now) exposed those tired old statistics.
They were base upon numbers reported from a weight loss clinic full of people who had chronic problems losing weight and keeping it off, who had already failed over and over... that's why they were there in the first place.
Their statistics were not from a cross section of the general "weight loss dieters" population. That is why their study outcome was SKEWED, and not applicable to the general "average" population.
Dang, I wish I could find that study! I KNOW most people need authorities with credentials after their name in order to accept it as the "gospel".
Anyway, with the usual headline and soundbite reporting, the original study was taken out of context over and over and over, until now all we hear are things like: most people fail at their weight loss attempts, and of those that do lose weight only 3 to 5% of them keep it off... etc etc etc.
STUFF A SOCK IN IT!!
I realize we all do this, me included. We repeat stuff we've "heard", trusting that it's true. Well, newsflash: this one is NOT true.
And I am tired of our whole weight loss community being continually bashed over the head with misinformation and LIES.
Yes, LIES.
Lies that we accept and internalize.
Lies that influence our subconscious.
Lies that cause us to impose limits on ourselves.
Lies that make us cower in the face of what the "authorities" tell us is supposed to be true.
Lie that set us up to fail before we even get started.
Lies that become self-fulling prophecies.
Please note: I am not stooopid. I get it that we are individuals, and we each must work with the hand we've been dealt. Example: I am now 60. I am in a wheelchair. I live with a few medical conditions. So... I'm not gonna stupidly set a goal to run a half marathon. I need to find the best plan for ME as an individual, and give it my best and honest effort.
So while running a marathon will, for ME, be unrealistic, I CAN set as my goal to live a powerful, joyful and triumphant life.. the best one FOR ME that I possibly can achieve. And I believe God has a plan for me, if I'll just get with the program!
I may not control the outcome, but I certainly control my EFFORTS (thank you, Coach Dayne for that).
I'm not talking about pie in the sky, unrealistic expectations. I AM talking about refusing to let others steal our dreams. About not laying down and allowing statistics to walk all over us, as if we were victims with no choice.
Have you ever played around with archery?? We did when I was growing up. Compound bows, wrist guards, arrows, targets, the whole nine yards. And the one thing you learned right away was this:
In order to hit the bullseye,
you had to slightly AIM HIGHER than the bullseye.
And the farther away your target,
the higher you had to aim in order to hit the bullseye.
So if we start out this weight loss trip with LOWERED expectations, we are totally setting ourselves up to NOT hit our goal. This is hard enough without sabotaging ourselves from the get go!!
Aim high.
Kick fear to the curb.
If I goof up... so what??!!
Get up, dust off, learn from it, and get my rear in gear again.
Am I feeling feisty? Uh... ya think?? ;-)
From Dr Phil's book: "Be kind when you can, but firm when you must. You alone are responsible for what you put in your mouth, and what you do to get in shape."
My verse for today: "O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand."
My quote for today: "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars." --Les Brown
Enjoy the Journey,
Loretta
=^..^=
DAY 825
