Motivational sayings and/or affirmations.

Interesting article from a Womens Health magazine-
"Stop dieting. Dieting just doesn’t work for most people. If it hasn’t been working for you, accept that—it’s okay! Instead, start to listen to yourself. Eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re full, and trust that your body does know what to eat—we just have to listen.
Create a life you love now. Most of us are emotional eaters because we aren’t getting what we need from our lives. Look at how you’re using food in moments when you’re not hungry—is it for comfort? Excitement? Love? Simply notice at first, and then start to design your life in a way that gives you more of these feelings. The more you feel the way you want to feel, the less you’ll turn to food to fulfill those needs.
Work on making peace with your body. You don’t have to love your body, but try to start respecting her and getting to know her. The more you can be on the same team as her, the more natural it will feel to feed her nourishing foods and take care of her."
 
My motivation at the moment, is to put a full length mirror in our bedroom. It's not just when you look at yourself that you get a shock, it is worse when you catch sight of yourself unawares... sobering!
 
cate said:
Interesting article from a Womens Health magazine-
"Stop dieting. Dieting just doesn’t work for most people. If it hasn’t been working for you, accept that—it’s okay! Instead, start to listen to yourself. Eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re full, and trust that your body does know what to eat—we just have to listen.
Create a life you love now. Most of us are emotional eaters because we aren’t getting what we need from our lives. Look at how you’re using food in moments when you’re not hungry—is it for comfort? Excitement? Love? Simply notice at first, and then start to design your life in a way that gives you more of these feelings. The more you feel the way you want to feel, the less you’ll turn to food to fulfill those needs.
Work on making peace with your body. You don’t have to love your body, but try to start respecting her and getting to know her. The more you can be on the same team as her, the more natural it will feel to feed her nourishing foods and take care of her."
Click to expand...

This is the best and most sensible advice I've heard in a long time. Thanks for posting it Cate
 
Some tips to beating junk food addiction, sugar cravings etc-
There is no such thing as junk food. There’s just junk, and then there’s food.

Eat real food. You need to eat fat and protein for each of your meals. Whole foods carbohydrates like veggies, legumes, nuts and seeds are perfectly healthy. Broccoli is broccoli. Processed, sugary junk foods are not real foods. They set the stage for sugar addiction and all its ugly consequences.

Steady blood sugar levels. Eat a nutritious breakfast with some protein like eggs, protein shakes, or nut butters. Studies repeatedly show that eating a healthy high-protein breakfast helps people maintain weight loss. Also, have smaller meals throughout the day. Eat every three to four hours and have some protein with each snack or meal (lean animal protein, nuts, seeds, beans). Avoid eating three hours before bedtime.

Ditch sugar. Go cold turkey. If you are addicted to narcotics or alcohol you can’t simply just cut down. You have to stop for your brain to reset. You must eliminate refined sugars, sodas, fruit juices, and artificial sweeteners from your diet. These are all drugs that fuel sugar addiction.

Reduce stress. Stress eating and junk food go together. When you’re feeling stressed, you’re more likely to reach for that bag of chocolate chip cookies or whatever your vice might be. Learn to address the root cause of your stress and address it with something like yoga, meditation, or deep breathing.

Exercise smartly. The next time you get a hankering for something sweet, walk it off… Literally! Besides creating a healthy distraction to avoid nose diving into a pint of butter pecan ice cream, exercise tapers cravings and raises feel-good endorphin levels.

Determine whether food sensitivities could be causing your cravings. We often crave the very foods that we have a hidden allergy to, including gluten, dairy, and sugar.

Sleep well. Ever notice you’re hungrier for something sugary after a terrible night’s sleep? Studies show lack of sleep increases cravings.

Implement crave-cutting supplements. These include vitamin D and omega-3s. Also consider taking natural supplements for cravings control. Glutamine, tyrosine, and 5-HTP are amino acids that help reduce cravings. Chromium balances blood sugar and can help take the edge off cravings. Glucomannan fiber is very helpful to reduce the spikes in sugar and insulin that drive cravings and hunger.
 
Saw this on facebook and thought I'd share:
“Low Fat” and “Sugar Free” are usually code words for chemically laden, overly processed foods. Don’t be fooled.
 
Small progress is progress.

I know I'm not the only one that can get so hung up on the scale or my clothes not getting looser, etc. but it's important to focus on the small victories.
For example, I'm proud of myself for still not devouring that last piece of pumpkin pie that's been sitting in my fridge from Thanksgiving!

Happy losing everyone, we can do it!
 
Making your New Year's resolutions stick-

Lose weight? Check. Start exercising? Check. Stop smoking? Check.
It can be daunting when your list of New Year’s Resolutions is as long as your holiday shopping list. In addition to the post-holiday slump, not being able to keep your resolutions by February, March or even late January may increase your anxiety. When your holiday decorations are packed up and stored away, the frustration of an unused gym membership or other reminders of failed resolutions can make the later winter months feel hopeless.
However, it is important to remember that the New Year isn’t meant to serve as a catalyst for sweeping character changes. It is a time for people to reflect on their past year’s behavior and promise to make positive lifestyle changes. “Setting small, attainable goals throughout the year, instead of a singular, overwhelming goal on January 1 can help you reach whatever it is you strive for,” says psychologist Lynn Bufka, PhD. “Remember, it is not the extent of the change that matters, but rather the act of recognizing that lifestyle change is important and working toward it, one step at a time.”
By making your resolutions realistic, there is a greater chance that you will keep them throughout the year, incorporating healthy behavior into your everyday life. APA offers these tips when thinking about a News Year’s resolution:
Start small
Make resolutions that you think you can keep. If, for example, your aim is to exercise more frequently, schedule three or four days a week at the gym instead of seven. If you would like to eat healthier, try replacing dessert with something else you enjoy, like fruit or yogurt, instead of seeing your diet as a form of punishment.
Change one behavior at a time
Unhealthy behaviors develop over the course of time. Thus, replacing unhealthy behaviors with healthy ones requires time. Don’t get overwhelmed and think that you have to reassess everything in your life. Instead, work toward changing one thing at a time.
Talk about it
Share your experiences with family and friends. Consider joining a support group to reach your goals, such as a workout class at your gym or a group of coworkers quitting smoking. Having someone to share your struggles and successes with makes your journey to a healthier lifestyle that much easier and less intimidating.
Don’t beat yourself up
Perfection is unattainable. Remember that minor missteps when reaching your goals are completely normal and OK. Don’t give up completely because you ate a brownie and broke your diet, or skipped the gym for a week because you were busy. Everyone has ups and downs; resolve to recover from your mistakes and get back on track.
Ask for support
Accepting help from those who care about you and will listen strengthens your resilience and ability to manage stress caused by your resolution. If you feel overwhelmed or unable to meet your goals on your own, consider seeking professional help. Psychologists are uniquely trained to understand the connection between the mind and body. They can offer strategies as to how to adjust your goals so that they are attainable, as well as help you change unhealthy behaviors and address emotional issues."

excerpt from an article from the American Psychological Association

 
Love this thread! Currently going through it from the beginning and saving the ones I like. On page 36.... eventually, I will catch up, lol, eventually...
 
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LEARN TO SAY 'NO
Learn To Say no-
It is such a small word, but can be a very powerful word. It is not always easy to say. There are however some things that you can do to make ‘saying no’ a bit easier in your life, so that you can put more of your time and energy into the things that truly mean the most to you - such as reaching your goal!

Kindly defuse and then say your need
It becomes easier for people to accept your no if you kindly defuse them first. You could for example do that by saying that their cake looks amazing or that you are flattered and that you appreciate their kind offer, and be honest about whatever you say. Then you can, add that you do not eat cake between meals or have the time for accepting and doing what they want.

Express how you feel about it
Some pushy people might want to overcome your objections and convince you to have or do something even if you first say no with a valid reason. Then try this: State how you feel as a reason for saying no. For example say that you do not feel that this offer is a good fit for your life right now or your doctor has said you need to cut back on sugar and you feel this is very important for your health at the moment or you are super busy and so you cannot do whatever they want. By telling someone how you feel it not only makes them understand your side of the issue better but also that it is a lot harder to argue with how you feel rather than how you think. How you feel is your thing and no one can really come up with good counterarguments to that.

Improve your self-esteem
If you do not value yourself then you will not value your time or the things that are important to you very much either. The most powerful thing to make it easier to say no is to improve your own self-esteem. With better self-esteem your time and your energy will become a lot more valuable to you and you do not want to waste it. Your sense of what you deserve in life will also go up and you will be less likely to give in to other people's negative ways of persuasion. Like guilt-tripping, being really pushy or simply trying to take advantage of you.

Remember why you are saying no
When you are about to say no, remember why you are doing it. Focus on the positive things it will open up in your life such as losing weight because you were able to stick with your eating plan, more time for a hobby or simply for relaxing so your stress levels will go down. This positive motivation will help you to go through with your decision even if it feels tough.

The world will go on
If you have trouble saying no remember that just because you say no to something does not mean that the world will stop. They will manage and life will go on for all of you.

Always celebrate and analyze your successes
You may not be able to say no to everything you would like to say no to in your week. Do not put too much focus on those few situations though. Instead, focus mostly on your successes. You may just have said no in one or a few small ways this week. That is still something new and great in your life so feel good about it. Pat yourself on the back and celebrate in some small way what you have accomplished and how you have grown as a person. Also have a think about what went well in those situations and what you can learn from them for the future. Like all habits learning to say no might take some time to learn. Persevere.
 
This was recited at a funeral I went to today-
?I read of a man who stood to speak
at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on the tombstone
from the beginning…to the end.

He noted that first came the date of birth
and spoke the following date with tears,
but he said what mattered most of all
was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time
that they spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved them
know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,
the cars…the house…the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.

So, think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
that can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
to consider what’s true and real
and always try to understand
?the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger
and show appreciation more
and love the people in our lives
like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect
and more often wear a smile,
remembering that this special dash
might only last a little while.

?So, when your eulogy is being read,
with your life’s actions to rehash…
would you be proud of the things they say
about how you spent YOUR dash?
 
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex, overwhelming tasks into smaller manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.”
~Mark Twain.
 
While scientists acknowledge that more research is needed, if you are in search of a good night’s sleep, there are a few things you can do:
  • Don’t eat for at least three hours before bedtime;
  • Cut down on the amount of sugar you eat during the day;
  • Reduce the amount of saturated fat in your diet;
  • Increase the amount of fibre in your diet; and,
  • Increase the amount of protein in your diet.
 
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