Change your mind, change your body
When you’re getting started on a new fitness regime, or trying to break through a plateau if you’ve been on your fitness journey for a while, your mindset becomes hugely important to your results and progress. The problem comes when people exercise because they hate their body, but I would encourage you to exercise because you LOVE your body. The human body was designed to move and performs at it’s best when you treat it well with regular exercise and nourishment through good nutrition.
This negative mindset can be difficult to shift and while you might feel that all this self loathing is a good strategy for motivating you it’s actually very poor and can result in a cycle of unhappiness and comfort eating. It might get you through the odd workout on a bad day but in the long term you will be more successful if you quash the negative chatter in your head and introduce a positive mindset around exercise and your body. Ask yourself if your current thinking strategy is working for you? If not, it’s time to start working on some positive thought processes.
Learn to love the body you are in now and you will start to enter a whole new realm of motivation and good feelings. It’s not easy and trust me I’ve been there but when you achieve this you will end up in a much happier and healthier place. This will be hard especially if you have spent years being unhappy with your shape, but learning to appreciate the body you have will get you in the right frame of mind to take good care of it, which is going to lead to you getting fitter and healthier.
Living in a negatively pit and beating yourself up will not get you closer to your goals. Stop thinking about the things you aren’t and be thankful for the things that you are. Stop ruining it by telling yourself you can’t achieve something when you haven't even properly committed and tried yet. Stop criticising yourself and hiding behind all the reasons why you think you can’t reach your goals. You must be more positive and appreciate what you are and the life you have.
Whatever shape you’re in, there will always be someone out there who would love to swap bodies with you. Seriously! Having the physical ability to exercise is huge and shouldn't be taken for granted. Your health is your biggest asset and those of us who can exercise are very lucky. So enjoy it, your body is amazing.
Top tips for a positive mindset…
Say daily affirmations to yourself: I AM capable…I AM determined…I DESERVE this…I AM determined, happy and POSITIVE.
Go in to every workout remembering that your body thrives on movement. A workout is like taking the dog out for a walk - she will love you for it.
Don’t be so hard on yourself - give yourself a break - remember no one is perfect.
Be realistic with what you can achieve.
Ignore negative people around you - they will try to sabotage you - forget what other people think.
Accept yourself even when you’re not at your best
Stop comparing yourself to other people. There will always be someone who is fitter and leaner than you but constantly comparing yourself will damage your self esteem and get you nowhere.
