Boost your body-esteem
Beyond going to the gym and eating right, we also need to stoke and stroke our body confidence. According to Judith Beck, author of The Beck Diet Solution, feeling great about your body -- no matter its size -- can provide the motivation and energy to actually head to the gym and reach for healthier foods.
In today's Parade, Beck offers four tips to give our negative body-esteem a jolt of positive:
- Don't tie your self-worth to results on the scale: Do I ever need this advice -- sometimes my entire morning mood is controlled by the number that pops up on that blinking digital screen. A heavier daily weigh-in inspires me to reach for more fruits/veggies and go for a jog, but I should not simultaneously allow the scale to spark feelings of self-loathing.
- Stop putting your life on hold: Don't wait to lose the weight before joining the gym or buying new clothes. Stepping out on a 20-minute walk today can jumpstart a host of positive body chemicals to keep you moving toward your dream weight.
- Release the pressure valve: You do not have to workout like Lance Armstrong all the time. I've gotten much better at accepting my occasional bouts of aches and pains and taking a leisurely stroll instead of pounding the pavement on those tough days. Be more forgiving, but modify as needed to keep moving -- safely.
- Congratulations are in order: Okay, maybe like me, you've only lost a couple of measly pounds since your spring shape-up began. Celebrate your progress, whether it's eating less ice cream or losing just a fraction of your body weight. If you're changing diet and exercise behaviors for the better, even on the lazy days when the only good news is you're slurping down water instead of soda while running errands, give yourself credit. It's like throwing a bunch of mini-parties to honor your oft forgotten body confidence!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-30-2008 @ 10:39PM
M. Dickenson said...
I just wanted to share some thoughts about a wonderful book for a true journey to claim your "Body Esteem," I suggest, "Body Esteem, Weight Loss Through Self-Discovery" by Sherri Dawson. It is an excellent workbook and includes two excellent CDs that contain amazing guide visualization journeys.
Completely unique and a great value considering most authors (make you pay three times as much by publishing the CDs and workbook separately). But what really makes the book a great buy is the quality of the both the information in the book and the audio recordings. I've listened to a lot of different weight loss CDs and they are usually 20-30 minutes of the author talking about eating more veggies...but these CDs are in a league of their own. There is literally two hours of several different audio programs that are an absolute pleasure to listen to. Each of the programs a very vivid journey through nature, complete with waterfalls, beaches with foamy surf, a mountain path...and my favorite, the temple of self-love. They are such a pleasure to listen to you don't even realize that Sherri Dawson is planting positive suggestions and helping you connect with your inner goddess on a deeper level. You simply finish the track and you feel refreshed and more alive! It's amazing and it works!
Some of the tracks work in conjunction with the workbook. You listen to the track which asks you to address specific feeling you have about yourself, pause the CD, write the answer down and continue listening. Afterwards I couldn't believe the insight that I had recorded. It changed the way I thought about myself and helped me find a deeper level of appreciation and love for myself. I've lost 30 pounds over a few months and I'm feeling really good about myself. No more restrictive dieting...I just want to eat healthier and take care of the body I was given!
Even after owning the book for four months now, I'm still listening to the relaxation program after a long day at work. I can't say that about so many other supposed breakthrough "weight loss" books, that help line the selves of my local library...hopefully they'll help someone out there, they just didn't work for me. Perhaps it's the interactive aspect of "Body Esteem" that worked so well for me and my friends I recommend it to.
Check it out, you won't be sorry. I recommend Amazon.com (they seem to have the best price...I think it's 30% off).
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