Mindfulness and Weight Loss: Attitude and Achievement
Mindfulness. You might have heard of this word, maybe when you came across a wellness article about meditation. The discipline of the mind does begin with discipline of the body, and so although meditation is a practice that anyone can partake in, you may have heard about mindful choices and positive mindsets when it comes to weight loss.
What is mindfulness? To be brief, mindfulness can be defined as being self-aware or conscious of one’s actions, but that does describe most intelligent animals, not to mention people. What the definition doesn’t specify is that mindfulness implies a higher state of self-awareness than usual.
You might find yourself to be unaware of your breathing at times, and then suddenly find yourself aware of it. With focus and training, you could learn to breathe with complete control, which is a meditation technique! Cool, so what does mindfulness have to do with weight loss?
Expectations with weight loss or building are difficult to manage. Some part of us, deep inside, visualizes a godlike inner-self manifesting oneself as the charismatic sun of every social setting. Such fantasies are natural—they are born from a desire rooted deep inside the negativity that grows from lacking confidence in social settings due to self-image issues. While it may be correct to discourage wild thoughts, it is wrong to dismiss your emotions.
All the change you need for the change you want to feel happens within yourself, so you must confront your negativity. If you feel healthier and better about your appearance, others around you will notice, and they will also benefit from a more positive, confident you.
So, it’s right to focus on what you can do for yourself, first. Sustained weight loss is a real achievement and having the right mindset is always important to any sort of success:
- Set Reasonable Goals
Don’t attempt a radical transformation from the get go. First, get a good grasp of what your body can do, how much nutrition it really needs, how it feels to live on a lighter diet, and other important details that are a part of how you feel and perform during your day to day. This will help you adjust your perspective on your fitness and health as you begin your health journey, which will help you navigate the uneven plateau of weight loss hurdles down the road.
Sustained long-term health has many clear, tangible benefits, such as less restriction on diet choice, more active years, clarity in thought, and less stress. In short, being healthy and fit can keep open more options for you over the long haul. Weight loss and weight management is a long-term goal.
For sustained long-term success, it’s good to keep your changes simple and small, at first. You’ll be able to increase or adjust your routine after about three months or so, depending on what you feel you can handle, so taking it steady at first is a great idea.
- Keep Track of Progress.
Working your weight off is best done gently at first—the weight drop will eventually happen, and when it does, it will be quick. As your goals become more ambitious, you’ll grow a healthier, lasting positivity about your health and fitness, which leads to sustained efforts, and eventually, success.
Taking the time to understand how your choices affect your actions is an important part of understanding yourself. Weight loss does require you to understand your habits and your body. Knowing what works for you requires reflection, so it’s a good idea to be methodical and keep notes! Over time, you’ll better understand which dietary choices your body prefers or responds well to, what kinds of exercises you’re struggling with and benefitting most from, and so forth.
Being mindful of your dietary and exercise choices is also part of this kind of reflection, and keeping regular track of your efforts and results is a key part of maintaining the right expectations to making progress. This can help build a more positive and successful mindset towards weight loss, no matter your age.
- Keep Your Expectations Healthy. Reflect and Adjust
Improved confidence, a healthier self-image, and improved focus and performance are all benefits of maintaining your health, so it is an effective approach to focusing on your thoughts about weight loss with your long-term health benefits, instead of what others may think of you.
Maintaining your health requires effort and patience, so taking the time to reflect on your diet, what your body needs and why you want something can help you develop the strong motivation you need to make the changes you need.
Since weight loss is accompanied by hormonal changes in the body, it can be difficult holding yourself accountable to your dietary restrictions and exercise schedules. Physiological metabolic adjustments tend to be drastic in the beginning of most weight loss journeys, so the accompanying irritability, impatience, and other temperamental surfacing of ‘personality’ can become a habit.
When adjusting to living with a calorie deficit, you might notice how your dietary habits first developed, which can help you feel the changes your body’s metabolism is making. Being mindful about your meal choices and exercise quantity may lead to decreased focus and endurance at school or work, which may mean you’re devoting too much to reach a goal that’s better accomplished over a few more months.
There’s a lot of information to process at first, but within a few months of steady effort, most people find that the changes start to feel more natural in their routine. Making smarter choices is always a good way to improve the progress you make, and based on your personal metrics and scan data, our devices can get you started on the right path. Try using Bello 2 to set up a regular routine, to help you stay accountable, measure progress with key objective insights, such as visceral fat level or muscle quality.
