Loving ourselves one thought at a time

I wanted to remind myself what love looks like and what it doesn’t when it comes to us desperate dieters through a list. The reason why it’s so important to write these down is because we all have our vices and need to have a visual picture of what it looks like to love ourselves to a healthier version.

Here’s my list: 

•Beating ourselves up for messing up isn’t love, but forgiving ourselves and moving on is

•Starving ourselves to lose a few kilos isn’t love, but eating at set times is

•Gorging on sugary treats isn’t love, but treating ourselves to sweet encouraging self-talk is

•Being a couch-potato isn’t love, but getting up and moving is

•Drinking coffee all day long isn’t love, but drinking that water in is

•Smoking isn’t love, but taking deep breaths of fresh air is Stuffing your feelings isn’t love, but processing through the tough stuff is

•Numbing yourself with food or alcohol isn’t love, but allowing yourself to feel is

•Entertaining negative thinking is not love, but turning it into positive thinking is

•Obsessing about food and exercise is not love, but being determined to live life to the fullest is

•Aiming for perfection isn’t love, but seeking daily improvement is

•Fearing what other people think of us isn’t love, but making better choices for our own good is

•Self-destruction isn’t love, but self-awareness is

This list can go on indefinitely, but you get the gist of it. This doesn’t just include physical health because it starts with mental and emotional wellbeing.

Your thoughts

Before we ever decide what to put in our mouths or if we take the stairs or the elevator, our choice is already made up in our minds long before the action takes place. Therefore, beware of what you’re thinking. Your thoughts will either help you or destroy you and it is up to you which ones you wish to entertain.

Keep in mind what you focus on grows. One negative thought after another will in time snowball into a giant of a monster that will be so big it will overtake you. Likewise, one positive thought after another produces life-giving encouragement that will boost your mental capacity to move forward instead of backwards. 

This takes practice and a lot of repetition before it becomes second nature. Especially if you are surrounded by negative thinkers that tend to suck the joy out of you, leaving you depleted with nothing positive left in your bucket. 

One of the best tricks you’ll ever learn is not to depend on others to fill that bucket. Taking responsibility for your own wellbeing will serve you well for many years to come. 

Here’s to loving ourselves better one thought at a time, one choice at a time, one day at a time.

Reprinted with permission from Family Flavours magazine